Here's my hot take: they're victims of a pump-and-dump, only instead of enticed by the promise of a get-rich-quick scheme, they're experiencing groupthink while people encouraging and controlling this narrative are running away to the bank.
Some people are pushing pump and dumps to make money. Some are ignorantly following along. Some genuinely treat it like a gambling addiction and enjoy it.
The GME thing though is unique, and there really is a narrative to hurt hedgies (in addition to all of the above).