Georgia Guidestones' Destruction Leaves Conspiracy Theorists Divided

Conspiracy theorists and some on the religious right have reacted with a mixture of glee and concern after the mysterious Georgia Guidestones were destroyed in an apparent explosives attack.

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation released surveillance footage of the 19-foot-tall monument located in a field near Elberton exploding at around 4 a.m. on Wednesday, leaving at least one of the pillars destroyed.

A car can be seen driving away from the scene in the footage.

The agency said that for safety reasons the remaining pillars will also need to be "completely demolished."

The Guidestones, often referred to as "America's Stonehenge," have been shrouded in mystery ever since it was built in 1980 and commissioned by an unknown person or group under the pseudonym RC Christian.

The monument, which features messages in 12 languages on how to conserve humanity for future generations—including keeping the world population under 500 million and to "avoid petty laws and useless officials"—has been an obsession with conspiracy theorists for the past four decades.

The site gained renewed attention this year when Kandiss Taylor, a Republican Georgia congressional candidate, described the Guidestones as "Satanic" and made demolishing the pillars a key part of her campaign against the "Luciferian Cabal."

Taylor has since praised the bombing of the monument, and suggested it was part of God's plan.

"God is God all by Himself. He can do ANYTHING He wants to do. That includes striking down Satanic Guidestones," Taylor tweeted.

The idea is that there exists a Satanic cabal in government is one of the key beliefs of the radical QAnon movement.

A number of influential figures in the QAnon movement have also praised the attack on the Guidestones.

"The Georgia Guidestones arrogantly displayed the cabal's plan Satanic by proclaiming that they desired to keep the world population under 500 million," one QAnon account on Telegram, which has nearly 200,000 followers, wrote.

"Their plans are coming to ruin and we the people will thrive like never before. Babylon is literally falling. If that doesn't deserve an amen then I don't know what does."

Another QAnon account with more than 67,000 followers said: "An EVIL monument like The Georgia Guidestones HAD to come down. They simply don't fit in the America that God is about to FULLY RESTORE!!!"

Alex Jones, one of the most well-known and controversial conspiracy theorists in the U.S., backs the idea that the Guidestones are proof of a global elite plot to keep the world's population under control.

However, speaking on his InfoWars show, Jones said he cannot support the monuments being targeted in an apparent bomb attack.

"I don't support when left from the pulldown monuments, as I see monuments as pieces of history," Jones said.

"I will say that at an animal level I like seeing this edifice to the population world government bombed to bring attention to it. I do not agree with whoever did it, because we need that evil edifice there as a confession letter."

Katie McCarthy, of the Anti-Defamation League, said the bombing of the Georgia Guidestones is another example of how conspiracy theories "do and can have a real-world impact."

"We've seen this with QAnon and multiple other conspiracy theories, that these ideas can lead somebody to try to take action in furtherance of these beliefs," McCarthy told The Associated Press. "They can attempt to try and target the people and institutions that are at the center of these false beliefs."

The Elbert County Sheriff's Office is also investigating the explosion. The department has been contacted for further comment.