It appears the conspiracy theorists who believe 5G caused the coronavirus have arrived in the US.

According to a local report from Lavallette, in Ocean County, New Jersey, a Verizon cell site was vandalized. While the reasons are unclear (the perpetrator or perpetrators haven't been caught yet, according to the report) Daniel Nee at Shorebeat speculates the defacement is due to the myth that 5G causes COVID-19.

That myth has driven conspiracy nuts in the UK and elsewhere to burn cell sites and harass 5G technicians. However, those blockheads hadn't popped up in the US – until, apparently, now.

To be clear, US officials have long fought against concerns that 5G causes health problems – indeed, a Salt Lake City resident chained himself to a cell site just this week over such concerns, according to a local report.

But the myth that 5G causes COVID-19 is a new one. And, sadly, it's one that has gained some traction: For example, actor Woody Harrelson is among those who think that "5G radiation" may be "exacerbating" the spread of the coronavirus.

To combat those myths, officials stretching from Vodafone to Ofcom to the Centers for Disease Control in the US have debunked the claims.

Yet here we are.

I suppose this all doesn't come as much of a surprise, given the utter stupidity represented by protests against stay-at-home orders that are designed to prevent the spread of the pandemic.

I'll just end by putting this here:

— Mike Dano, Editorial Director, 5G & Mobile Strategies, Light Reading | @mikeddano