@matrix There is a rather amusing story behind the "birds aren't real" and "birds are drones" meme.

Flash back with me to the Bush administration, where people were protesting the government's unjust power grab and wars. The government wanting to monitor them, sent out drones that looked like birds. Hummingbirds were the primary design if I remember correctly. Most if not all the drones (it has been a long time so I'm fuzzy if there were regular drones with bird coverings and the bird like drones or just the bird like drones) Using their wings, they were able to fly yet up close, it was rather obvious it wasn't a living creature or blessed by the machine god.

Protestors claimed the government had these drones. The government denied they did. Proto fact checkers claimed the technology didn't exist. We learned later it very much did. Well, this goes on for some time until someone with a tennis racket (I believe) swats one out of the air. Protestors had attempted using nets and other devices to catch one at the time, but those efforts ended in failure. After being knocked out pictures were taken and the staff at the white house had to walk outside and ask for their drone back.

Then it goes silent until (and this is just a theory) some disinformation agent creates the birds aren't real meme to hide a small bit of conspiracy history.