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“I’m So Thankful I Got Out Of That”: 30 Cults That Pretend They’re Not Cults, According To This Online Thread
Interview With Author
While many of us have seen fictionalized accounts of what it’s like being in a cult in movies and in TV shows, few of us actually know just how horrifying and dangerous it actually is to be part of such an organization. Especially from an early age. We’ve covered that in detail before, here at Bored Panda.
One of the hallmarks of a cult is that its leaders highlight the fact that they’re definitely not a cult. They try to present themselves as innocuous organizations or simply close-knit communities, sometimes with strong quasi-religious overtones, who 'care' about the 'welfare' of their ‘flock.’ But if it looks like a cult and quacks like a cult, odds are that it is one.
Redditors from all around the globe shared their opinions about what organizations they believe are actually cults in disguise, and explained why in a viral r/AskReddit thread. We’ve collected their insights and opinions to share with you. Meanwhile, read on for Bored Panda's interview with the author of the viral thread, whose family had been in a small cult themselves. The redditor was kind enough to answer our questions in detail.
This post may include affiliate links.
#1
Megachurches. They're money cults.
T. Unnamable 3 years ago
He (god) loves you, and He needs money! He always needs money! He's all-powerful, all-perfect, all-knowing, and all-wise, somehow just can't handle money! Religion takes in billions of dollars, they pay no taxes, and they always need a little more. George Carlin
bob van wijk 3 years ago
The ppl working to get the church going need a minimal income. If they don't get that, you get only preachers who preach once in a while and don't help ppl, don't give Bible school etc. It can be for free with some unpaid elders and a retired pastor, who pays the rent for the building a few hours a week. If you need a week of counselling, you have to go to a money church in Canada or America. It's all for free in Holland, but pastors just have a regular job and don't go out of their way for extras. They have a family, kids need attention, full time job and preach once a month or so. My ex used to be an unpaid pastor. Was no problem. I had an income. Then we got kids and it got irritating. Get a normal paid job and quit that dumb church. There was a woman who lives in a castle with 20 rooms. She wanted him to counsel her for free for a week. I said: You're not gonna do that. Noone here does that, so she went to Canada and she paid thousands for it.
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Hugh Cookson 3 years ago
It's becoming increasingly apparent that they are MAGAchurches - nothing to do with religion, kindness, compassion or understanding, more about hatred of anything 'other', deliberate mis/ disinformation of any other belief than their own and frankly ensuring that the less well educated amongst us stay that way in order to control them for their own ends and idealogies - Rather like the Mullahs in Iran or the Taliban in Afghanistan do, amongst other 'extremist' countries ... America, you need to take a long, hard look at where you are going otherwise it will only get worse.
WorldGoneCrazy 3 years ago
Not having the same beliefs as someone else isn't automatically hatred. As Americans in a free country we are allowed to believe what we choose to believe. It's one thing to have these beliefs for yourself and treat people that disagree like garbage. But that is not the way for most Christians. Just like any group of people there will always be a few extremists. They don't represent the whole group. God commands us to love everybody. Some get lost but most don't.
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Lo Kindred 3 years ago
Fun fact: Houston pastor Joel Osteen's church got robbed back in the early 2000's. Remarkably, during a remodel of the Megachurches bathrooms, almost the whole amount stolen was found in the walls. Hmmmm.....seems sus.
Elea Bell 3 years ago
Megachurches are super weird. Every church I've been a member of, holds regular meetings throughout the year where you can see how much came in, and how much was spent, and where it was spent. This much went toward the insurance; this much was donated to these ministries; this much went toward fixing the air conditioner. But megachurches? They don't even tell you when the meetings are, if they even have meetings. You don't get to see the yearly budget, much less have a say in it.
Lena Flising 3 years ago
Being from Europe, I have a hard time seeing this as a church. A church to me (Swedish), is a square stone building, usually white, sometimes brick red or stone gray. They are usually built 200-800 years ago. For example this church, which was inaugurated in 1306. Vrfrukyrka...f56315.jpg 
DC 3 years ago
... in order not to have to fly in "a looooong tube full of demons". Demons, in that case, are the other regular passengers.
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Moya Satterwhite 3 years ago
How dumb do you have to be to actually believe in invisible people.
The author of the thread explained to us what inspired them to come up with the question in the first place, shared their thoughts about people's fascination with cults, and explained how someone can realize that they were actually part of such an organization.
"I asked this question because I have seen a lot of people involved in cults in the past who didn’t realize it at the time. Spreading awareness about different cults can help people realize they (or their loved ones) may also be in a cult unknowingly," they told Bored Panda.
"I think cults have always interested people. There are so many different types," they gave Kanye West's new 'Christian school' "that chants/sings his mother's name in the mornings" as an example of this.
"Some of these seem innocent at the time but they can have long-lasting negative impacts on people. Most people don’t relive they have been in a cult until they have lost money, time, or friends due to the cult."
RELATED:
#2
MAGAs. Very culty. They basically worship one man who is supposed to be a public servant. They pay him money, go to his events, let him decide their healthcare
(antivax, hydroxychloroquine, etc), they have “secret phrases” (let’s go Branden”, they make it their whole personality (flags, stickers, hats, shirts, their cars), they have conspiracy theories, and they’re willing to get violent for him (Jan 6).
OhnoI’vebeencensored 3 years ago
Cults of personality are nothing new. But couldn't they have chosen a better personality?
KM 3 years ago
have cults of personality ever had good personalities though?
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Mistiekim 3 years ago
Dividing the country in half is not making America great again. Showing people it’s okay to disrespect others, throwing doubt on our whole democratic system because you can’t stand that you lost, and thinking a leader is all powerful and has no limitations is not making America great again.
pico diablo 3 years ago
So ... Cults and Conspiracies go together? (Qanon, Reasons given for anti-semitism, Reasons given for white supremacy, Republicans thinking Trump won the 2020 election, etc.). Yep.
Rostit . 3 years ago
I will never understand the appeal of that moron. He has always been a terrible business man. How do you go bankrupt with a casino? He never paid a lot of companies in AC when he built there. I mean I get the whole "he makes it okay to be an a*s" but there are plenty of people like that who are actually successful. Trump is a huge loser and so are his supporters, simply put.
lauralett50 3 years ago
Never liked him. Never trusted him. Never voted for him,. Never will.
Load More Replies... Nathan Pogorzala 3 years ago
a scum bag way to take in donations from the MAGA rubes without facing campaign financing regulations.
Kantami Blossom 3 years ago
They also make excuses for his illegal tax avoidance and at the same time criticise illegal workers for not paying taxes😂
No Name 3 years ago
The hypocrisy is intentional. It's how they assert dominance.
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Ilia Bauer 3 years ago (edited)
My father was a MAGAt. I'm female. All through my life he was very against p*dophilia, r*pe, and other crimes against women. he was a safe person to trust. Then along came tRump. Suddenly, he wouldn't acknowledge that tRump was guilty of all of that, it didn;t matter that his "lawyers" silenced everyone who spoke out against him. He refused to acknowledge that tRump was exactly the kind of man that Dad was extremely vocal against. Capital punishment for r*pists and p*dophiles suddenly went silent, and my father was no longer safe for me to confide in if I was ever s*xually assaulted.
Bubs623 3 years ago
I'm sorry. This happened with a family male member of mine. The worst are the women that still support him.
Load More Replies... T. Unnamable 3 years ago
The second half of the second amendment people are quite cultish. Many of them belong to this cult as well.
lauralett50 3 years ago
I don't understand this statement. Can you clarify?
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Kensi 3 years ago
Non-american here, but they even pay him to attend the events? This is messed up
No Name 3 years ago
Yes, the grifting and the attention were his original goals. He has debts coming due to more successful dictators
Load More Replies... #3
The Church of Scientology
Some of the illegal s**t they’ve done is so ridiculous. Been wanting to make a video where I just read a list of this b******t with fun goofy music in the background. You could do the same with the ridiculous things they actually believe.
Here’s an example: Their founder was a science fiction writer and the only holiday they recognize is his birthday
Edit: the entire “religion” is also banned from changing any and all articles on Wikipedia because they abused that feature.
N Miller 3 years ago
One of their tenets is anti-psychiatry. Which is a shame, because if anyone is in need of psychiatric support and treatment it's the ones who believe this BS hook, line and sinker.
BrownTabby 3 years ago
That’s probably WHY they don’t want their followers going anywhere near mental health professionals.
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Robert McKenzie 3 years ago
In Victoria, Australia it really WAS an illegal cult for several years, until they styled themselves as a church. What a load of rubbish.
Load More Replies... Mistiekim 3 years ago
Getting tax exemption was an obsession for them. They used intimidation and threats on IRS workers to get it. Sure sounds like a legit religion to me /s
Cory Tollman 3 years ago (edited)
I think what ended up getting them through in the US was that every member was threatening to sue. Even the government can't waste that much time and money. I do wonder if they could have gone after them under some law(s) for that tactic.
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Big Chungus 3 years ago
When I lived in Clearwater, the sea org members would walk the senior citizen members to the bank near Fort Harrison everyday to help them take money out of their accounts to give to the "church". It was awful to see. It is one thing to hear and read about scientology, it is another to witness their HQ and work for a company that is owned by them.
Mistiekim 3 years ago
When we were vacationing in Clearwater we drove past their HQ, or at least one of their ginormous buildings. We kept looking for some sort of HELP sign in a window but never saw one. I’m sure their rooms are monitored though……
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𝖊𝖆 3 years ago
There’s a rumour John Travolta was kicked out because he let his wife (eventually) have treatment for her cancer. They don’t approve of most medical interventions or treatment such as chemo. It’s also believed if she had sought proper treatment sooner she would have lived a much longer and less painful life, but because of their church’s restrictions, she didn’t have proper treatment soon enough. How awful :(
RajunCajun 3 years ago
I think I read something like that, three guys sitting around a room making a bet you could start a religion.
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Manuel Delgado 3 years ago
Thats why I can't stand Tom Cruise. Either he is an absolute fool, or a manipulative, power and money thirsty sob. My guess is he's not that fool.
Tammy Barnes 3 years ago
A mediocre science fiction writer who convinced them that they will live forever thus the million-year contracts, and that they are hosts to aliens who went into a volcano and were spewed out as ash to enter the host or some such nonsense seriously how the f*** does anyone take this stuff seriously.
Vix Spiderthrust 3 years ago
Mediocre is generous. He has the prose style of Dan Brown and the rich scientific imagination of Barbara Cartland.
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According to the author of the viral thread, critical thinking, as well as distance from the cult, are essential in realizing that you were involved in an actual cult.
"Talking with former members and discussing shared experiences (trauma, abuse, or just stories) can help the healing process. My family used to be in a small cult and we didn’t realize it until we left. I know this from personal experience," they revealed to Bored Panda.
"Thankfully, I wasn’t abused or anything, but I have friends who were abused and their lives will never be the same as a result. Cults are dangerous and deserve to be placed in the spotlight for public scrutiny to protect the children and individuals involved."
#4
The Mormon church. I realized it was a cult when I was a kid and started asking questions. Figured I’d be met with optimism and willingness to answer those questions. Instead I was met with aggression and shut down.
OhnoI’vebeencensored 3 years ago
Faith that can't take questioning is clearly not very secure.
Tracy Wallick 3 years ago
That's why I'm a fan of Buddhism as a philosophy; even the Dalai Lama has said that Buddhism should change in reaction to facts, and not the other way around.
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Sardonyx_3 3 years ago
Mormons can't have alcohol. This means they can't even eat foods that have Cooked red wine (certain stews, etc.) So weird. BTW the no coffee thing is almost ridiculous.
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Ada Hunter 3 years ago
i’m mormon. to be honest, i can see why people would think this. but also to be honest, there is a lot of stuff people don’t know or understand. i wish more people would be willing to learn a bit more before deciding to hate something.
30_Helens_Agree 3 years ago
I’m genuinely asking here. Can you please tell me why you belong to a church that was started by a guy who thinks Jesus came to America and allows men to marry multiple young girls?
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Tamra 3 years ago
In my youth, I was searching for god. I tried several different Christian churches, and every single one of them seemed cult-like. It was very much "us versus them"; if you don't do "x, y and z", then you'll burn in hell or be judged; be generous when giving the church your money; random, restrictive rules for conformity. I stopped looking for god inside of Christianity. God's not there.
Skeeter 3 years ago
I was raised Southern Baptist and at a very young age started asking my mother questions. Like, "why do you look down on Jews if Jesus was king of the Jews and was Jewish himself" " Why don't you like for young men to have long hair when Jesus had long hair and a beard" "Why do you say Catholics are bad when they worship the same god"? She had no answers but threatened to take me to a shrink.
Sardonyx_3 3 years ago
Also the racist, homophobic side we regularly see if we were raised by such people. I love it when they answer questions with a vague scripture. "If adam and eve were the first people, and they had two sons, where did the rest of (humanity) come from?" The Catholic school teacher just gave me a glare, and told me to be quiet. This was F###ing 2nd Grade. .-.
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Onion Cutting Ninja 3 years ago
I love my church, I believe the core principals, (love everyone, love god, god loves us, etc) but the conservative way they carry things out i disagree with. I try to just move past the homophobia, and I do what I can to prevent it on a ward level, and, to be fair they are getting better, but I just try to focus on the good.
Kate 3 years ago
I was a part of the Mormon church for years. Finally got my s**t together and left this year. There’s no ‘moving past’ homophobia, you still support a church that tells people they’re going to hell for loving who they love. Oh, also your prophet was threatened with his life because he didn’t want to marry someone else in addition to the wife he already had. Sounds sketchy to me.
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Libstak 3 years ago
I was raised Catholic, now consider myself Gnostic. My biggest problem with them is the Apostolic Oath which insists you believe in only one holy apostolic church...The Catholic church. Gnostic teachings don't deny me the right to remain Catholic but Catholic teachings make me heretical for being Gnostic and that's not fair because I respect the sacred teachings of history where I find them and believe that is my right.
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PNW-NatureLover 3 years ago
As someone who was raised Mormon and left in my 40s - can confirm. It’s a cult. Of course, no current member would admit that because they don’t see it. It’s a scary concept for them. I would have denied it being a cult as well when I was as a member.
#5
As someone who comes from a family of Jehovahs and has actively practiced this faith in past times
It is 100% a cult.
Ninjapig101 replied:
Came here to see this. I was raised JW, and finally mustered up the courage to leave when I turned 18. Literally overnight everyone I knew my whole life cut contact with me. Not even a goodbye. Friends and family. The stress from it all made me physically ill, I was in and out of the hospital constantly. I’m doing much better now, I have a beautiful little family. In the entire time I’ve been gone, now about 6ish years, my biological father has called me one time. This is how the conversation went (BD - bio dad)
BD- hello is this ninjapig101 (literally using my first and last name)
Me- yes….
BD- this is first name last name (yes he literally used just his first and last name) calling to inform you of the passing of grandma (except he uses grandmas first and last name in referring to her as well)
It was like I was just immediately no longer part of the family, just like that.
I’m so thankful I got out of that when I had the chance.
OmBoyGanesh 3 years ago
Check out the podcast “Shunned.” It’s heartbreaking, but so eye-opening.
Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill! 3 years ago
I got so tired of them showing up at my door every week that one day I said, "I'm an atheist". The shock on their faces was indescribable. But, they never came back.
Anne Jones 3 years ago
I had a friend who would tell them he was a satanist and asked them to come inside and read his grimoire. They never did.
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Lorrie Rothstein 3 years ago (edited)
I know someone who is a jehovahs witness. She doesn't celebrate birthdays or holidays. She can't eat birthday cake.
3 Owls In A Coat 3 years ago
I know someone who is 7 years old and has to go sit in the school hallways every time the class exchanges valentines or has an Easter egg hunt or birthday cupcakes because her parents asked that she not be in the room when those activities are going on, it’s very confusing for her. And now the class is thinking of just banning all holiday-related activities for everyone so they don’t leave her out. It’s quite weird and sad.
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FABULOUS1 3 years ago
We were raised JW's and my mother, and aunts still are. My mother was disfellowshipped and I remember us only being allowed to sit in the back of the Kingdom Hall in those days. When she was no longer excommunicated and welcomed back I remember thinking that these are the most phoniest mf's I had ever meet, including my own aunts. I could never understand how people could follow such a cruel god that required them to turn their backs on their own family. She had been disfellowshipped the first time for smoking which started after my father was murdered which made tings harder for her. I have some friends I have meet in the last year or so who also grew up as witnesses and its strangely satisfying to be able to tell the crazy stories and have someone truly understand what I went through.
Miles Mawyer 3 years ago
Yeah, I found my way into some discord chat's recently. It's great to be able to tell the crazy stories to people who actually understand. I've meet people here and there that are out, and I've replied "Did you get Dee Effed?" and it's an instant connection.
Load More Replies... Ramirez rachael 3 years ago
My son’s grandmother was really into the church. She must’ve signed me up for their newsletters and such because I receive handwritten letters from the evil, wanting me to join the church all of the time like no thank you I don’t want the watch tower.
Erin Miller 3 years ago
I was born into this and can confirm it is a cult, is extremely misogynistic, and hides the r*pe and child abuse that happens within the cult. My mother divorced my dad because he was abusive. She was disfellowshiped and we were immediately treated as if we'd all died. The tension between family members that are and aren't JWs is insane 30 years later. The "religion" destroyed my childhood and robbed me of family. It's doing the same to my niece and nephew.
Miles Mawyer 3 years ago
You're not alone Erin! I was born in as well, got out in my 20s (not DFed or DAed, which helps with family ties a bit)
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madbakes 3 years ago
I would have customers here and there try to give me pamphlets. For a long time I would just take it, then throw it away, since I was at work. One day I decided to not just take then anymore; it's insulting, like their beliefs are better than mine. So now each time they try, I refuse, they try again, and I tell them I don't like wasting paper and that it will go straight into the trash. That seems to work.
Tammy Barnes 3 years ago
I taught a group that if you see a lone woman sitting at a bus stop at 7am don't all of you jump out of your car , there were 4 of them, and rush over to talk about you "religion" I told them they were lucky this is Canada and we cannot carry guns because if this was the US they would be dead, the stunned look on their faces when the realized what they had done was priceless
Terd Fergison 3 years ago
The JW is one of the worst cults. They have huge amounts of rapes, child rapes, and coverups that go all the way to the top of their organization. They misinterpret one line of the Bible that says, don’t take the blood, and they think it applies to modern blood transfusions. So, if a JW mother is bleeding out during childbirth, they refuse blood transfusions and they often times let the JW mother die. They claim that the world is ending any minute. And they have been claiming that for well over a hundred years. They have made many specific end times prophecies that have all failed. Because of this they discourage their cult members from going to college. Because they think the world is ending and they don’t want their people to gain outside knowledge (knowledge that’ll contradict their lies). They horribly shun any member that doesn’t follow their strict rules. They are homophobic. They are truly sick, sad people.
Miles Mawyer 3 years ago
Had to upvote that downvote you got from a "loving" JW ;)
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Anne Mitchell 3 years ago
Just how "Christian" is it to ignore a family member who does not believe what you believe? It is like refusing to feed someone because you who like broccoli but they don't.
lauralett50 3 years ago
But they aren't Christians. They don't celebrate any Christian holidays.
Load More Replies... #6
Not necessarily a cult, but children having to say the pledge of allegiance everyday in school gives off cult vibes.
Jan Rosier 3 years ago
so I am not the only one to feel like this when I see it somewhere in movies or reportages
madbakes 3 years ago
Many of us Americans find it creepy. I remember saying it all the time in elementary school. I don't remember saying it in middle school, and they implemented it again after 9/11. I refused to stand when they brought it back.
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BrownTabby 3 years ago
It’s certainly a lot more forced patriotism than my country, where my primary school classmates parodied our national anthem as “God of nations, smell my feet, in the bonds of Coronation Street [TV show], hear our voices tweet tweet tweet, God defend the toilet seat” and to my knowledge no one got into trouble.
30_Helens_Agree 3 years ago
Goes along with the trump cult. It’s republicans, not all Americans.
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OmBoyGanesh 3 years ago
In 1943, in West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette, the Supreme Court said that public school students cannot be required to say the Pledge and that such ideological dogmata is antithetical to the principles of our country. The justice concluded with: “If there is any fixed star in our constitutional constellation, it is that no official, high or petty, can prescribe what shall be orthodox in politics, nationalism, religion, or other matters of opinion or force citizens to confess by word or act their faith therein. If there are any circumstances which permit an exception, they do not now occur to us.”
Vix Spiderthrust 3 years ago
Yeah it's creepy and Stalinist. Democracies should have room for criticism of, and even disdain for, the state.
Mistiekim 3 years ago
At the age they were having us do it, I had no idea what the heck it really meant. It was just words and didn’t register any kind of patriotism. Unless they came from a super patriotic home, I doubt a lot of my classmates did either.
Vix Spiderthrust 3 years ago (edited)
You say this as though it somehow mitigates the fact that it's brainwashing, when it only reinforces that fact
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TheHalloweenTeen 3 years ago
Damn, when was this? What state? Our teacher says it's optional but the year before, our homeroom teacher took no c**p and we got consequences if we didn't. I do morning announcements for this week so I don't have to do it...
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Michael Largey 3 years ago
"I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America ..." Pledging allegiance to a physical object? Yep, that's a cult, and a prehistoric one at that. Why not also pledge allegiance to the Great Seal of the United States or the national anthem? The constitution is mentioned later, but I've noticed that our flag worshippers aren't big fans of our constitution.
During a previous in-depth interview, Bored Panda spoke about cults with Suzanne Degges-White, a Licensed Counselor, Professor, and Chair at the Department of Counseling and Higher Education at Northern Illinois University.
"The worst thing about cult indoctrination is that people actually LOVE the feeling they get in being a part of something bigger than themselves. Folks who have the wisdom to recognize that they are being led into a cult are not the ones who are going to be totally indoctrinated and stuck inside it," the professor told Bored Panda.
"They recognize that the leader is likely a charlatan and they have enough of a support system beyond the cult that they don't get totally sucked into it in the first place. The people who actually NEED to get out of it are going to have to have a support system or something better outside the cult if they are going to leave,” she said.
"Cult leaders are master manipulators who are also excellent readers of others—and they truly sense who is a more likely 'follower' aka 'victim' and tend to invest their energy wisely. They don't waste too much time on people they don't think will easily join their ranks," Professor Degges-White told Bored Panda earlier.
#7
QAnon.
foco_del_fuego replied:
My wife's parents fell off deep into the Q-hole. It's more sad than anything.
SableyeFan replied:
I lost a mother to this. I left home because it was unsafe for my physical well-being to remain with how ready she was to shoot anyone who 'attacked' our home.
James016 3 years ago
How people have fallen for an internet troll is baffling and tragic for those around them
Hugh Cookson 3 years ago
Watch ' Life of Brian', it's a spoof but so, so close to the truth about how easily people are influenced it's quite scary ..... It's also very, very funny, so funny, that when it came out, various loony christian associations - including the Vatican, tried to have it banned. They failed
Load More Replies... Tamra 3 years ago (edited)
From CNet: "QAnon is the conspiracy theory that falsely claims former President Donald Trump fought a hidden war against a cabal of Satanist pedophiles in Hollywood and the Democratic Party while he was in the White House. It appears that Trump -- who said in 2020 he didn't know much about QAnon -- has now adopted the movement". The real joke here is the notion that Trump would fight for anything other than himself.
JoyfulZebra 3 years ago
One of the saddest things when hearing about QAnon is how painful it is for family members.
Naesil 🇫🇮 3 years ago
Hasnt qanon been confirmed long time ago to be 4chan trolling operation? People still believe that shite?
RedMarbles 3 years ago
It appears suspiciously likely that the son of the operator of 8chan and possibly his father (Ron and Jim Watkins, respectively) is more or less "Q." They're both entirely unprincipled people and there are a lot of things pointing to them, but it hasn't been proven. It also appears very possible that they've had direct or indirect assistance from others, including some in Trump's orbit, which is likely a case of capitalizing on the influence already in place. Russia of course has been amplifying the messaging from early on. It's taken on a terrifying life of its own now, so it probably doesn't matter who Q is, especially considering Q is usually wrong about predictions and it doesn't even matter to the followers. It appears to be used now by all manner of extreme right wing power hungry figures and actually seems to be growing in influence. It's beyond concerning.
Load More Replies... Dan Bexell 3 years ago
Apparently there have always been loonies like this around, but it has spread into the political world as well. Unfortunately, the internet has allowed these people to connect, and even organize. So much for the promise of the internet.
Limey 3 years ago (edited)
I have been saying for a while you could go into any pub in England (and likely any bar in the States) and find some looney mouthing off about stupid stuff like this, every village had one. The trouble, as you say, is the internet has given them a platform to connect with each other and influence others. In the pub everyone would tell you don’t listen to him/her they are nuts… no one to say that to the people who listen and get sucked in.
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Kate Jones 3 years ago
My take on Q-Anon is that the accusations are a projection of repressed thoughts and feelings onto an outside person. For example, one way to successfully deny (repress) feelings of same-sex attraction is to accuse others of being gay. An accusation of sexual abuse can come from either the accuser being a victim or from the accuser’s denial of being a pedophile. Looked at in this way, the accusations take on a new poignancy.
Dre Mosley 3 years ago
Some anonymous guy said something online and a bunch of idiots built a cult around it. SMH.
#8
I was born & raised as Independent Fundamental Baptist, which is Duggar family level of fundie. Their cult, IBLP, is a bit more restricting than IFB though — IFB didn’t force the long modest dresses or shotgun courtships, at least. But anyways, I’m 26 now and didn’t realize I was in a cult until about 3 months ago, and it was totally accidental while I was reading about Josh Duggar’s trial. Literally a wrong click on the page is how I found out.
Leo Domitrix 3 years ago
Many upvotes. "Quiverfull" etc. are movements that, frankly, scare me. The damage they do to individuals is horrendous; the damage they do through political influence is worse. See: Overturn of Roe v Wade in the US.
arienne libbrecht 3 years ago
I follow a TikToker who used to be quiverfull. It's horrifying what it did to her body.
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Enlee Jones 3 years ago
I totally called the Duggars and their BS. Back when their show was getting popular and I was reading more and more about how weird and creepy they were I thought to myself “There’s going to a scandal that burns the whole thing to the ground”. And wow, was I right.
Evelyn Fox 3 years ago
Grew up in this - no pants, longish dresses, total submission of wife, no friends that didn't go to the church, obey the pastor, no radio - no rock or any other music that wasn't orchestral or church music, and no christian rock - no movies, no public school, only church-related activities, etc. You get the point. Terrifying.
Diemond Star 3 years ago
I live a few miles away from the Duggar's and believe me they are nothing more than hypocrites that I would never trust!!!
ViFi 3 years ago
Look, i think you are free to have a large family if youd like,i know lots of people who find comfort in large groups, as do i sometimes, but forcing it upon people is just....no. quiverfull women arent allowed to take any kind of birth control. i mean what about assault?? or incest? would you be forced to give birth to a child, even coparent with your attacker?
Cara Vinson 3 years ago
I was in this insanity. Thought they were baptists. Not baptist. The Cult of WINDSOR HILLS BAPTIST CHURCH. It died when their cult leader couldn't cult at them anymore, and his offspring could not keep it going.
#9
The Amish. They control nearly every aspect of their followers’ lives and live in incredibly insular society. Sure they let their kids experience the outside world and choose for themselves through rumspringa, but they seemingly set them up for failure by throwing them into the deep end with no preparation at a time in their lives (17-21) when people aren’t noted for great decision making. When the kids almost inevitably end up crashing and burning back into the fold, they are forced to remain for the rest of their lives through the threat of shunning where even your own parents will treat you as if you are dead and invisible. Sure they look quaint with their beards, buggies, and barns, but if you actually look at them critically, they’re as bad as any other cult, they’ve just been around longer.
Leo Domitrix 3 years ago
I have a hard time with this. You're not "following". You're born into it. Odds are you'll die in it, too, what with their whole "no medications" thing. So it's nto reallya cult. I mean, who signs up to be Amish? But that's me being fussy b/c a person who left their Amish family married into my dad's family. Born into it is different, given a choice, and then running back to familiarity is not quite the same as "saw it on the internet and fell for it". I generally have pity and concern. BTW< kids can *skip* their rumspringa, etc. and they are often exposed to the "outside" world just by existing. M Night Shayamalan's "The Village" it ain't.
Freddie Le Brun 3 years ago
You can be born into a cult through your parents. Many have been. I’m not saying the Amish are or aren’t. I’m just pointing it out.
Load More Replies... Angie Taylor 3 years ago
I was not Amish (not even close), but lived, went to school, and worked in small towns in Indiana that were about half Amish for most of my life. The town I grew up in attracted tourists from all over the world as an Amish community. As a kid, I never quite understood the fascination with them because, to me, they were pretty much like everyone else. We went to public school together, studied the same way. I had Amish friends and “English” friends (this is we called us non-Amish). They just dressed differently, got better grades, and were better at sports. They always kicked our asses in Amish vs. English kickball and dodgeball. :) They “graduated” in 8th grade and we went on to high school. They are different and not all of it is good, that’s for sure. But, some of the comments made me smile and shake my head just because it’s a classic example of what we do as humans…we play the telephone game with bits of information and make it more interesting than what it is..
BoopBoop 3 years ago
I think the "graduated in 8th grade" thing is part of what is most cultish about them, though. If you only have an 8th grade education, you're unlikely to be able to survive in the "English" world and are much more likely to never leave. Some Roma communities do the same thing - deny their kids, especially the girls, an education, so they're totally dependent on their insular communities.
Load More Replies... Angie Taylor 3 years ago
I don’t know anyone that has chosen to join the Amish church. They were born Amish. I know plenty of people that have left the Amish church, so there is a choice to stay or go…but, it’s pretty rare for them to choose to leave because it would mean leaving their entire family, most of their friends, and everything they were raised to believe. Typically, if they leave it’s because they want to marry someone that is not Amish or want to further their education. Our valedictorian was once Amish, but chose to leave the Amish church to continue into high school and go to college. The choice to stay is really not that different than most people in the world that just fall in line with what the beliefs of their family, rather than thinking for themselves and believing differently.
Jane Cortez 3 years ago
Oh. And they pull out all of their kids teeth! Saw this AWFUL expose documentary, ‘Living with the Amish.’ They abuse their animals terribly too. Am in horse folk circles, do a lot of riding and it is amazing how many broken Amish horses I have seen, ( rescued of course, or bought from the Cannery). There is a divide amongst the people I know. Some will rescue any horse, others avoid them because they can’t afford the high vet bills to bring a horse back to health. It’s utterly horrible what they do. Perhaps there are some nice Amish people. I knew a girl who came from Quakers I think? Her mother didn’t want her to be friends with me because I gave her things, clothes, ( conservative), a bicycle. Her Birthday(?), Christmas present was a card, on it it said ‘I clothe myself in the words of the Lord,’ or something awful like that. Appalling what organized religion actually does, don’t forget what the Catholic Church has done either, abusing Natives, all the Incest.
Angie Taylor 3 years ago
I was not Amish, but lived, went to school, and worked in a small town in Indiana that was about half Amish for about 30 years. I can confirm that they don’t pull out all of their kids teeth! Most of them are very nice, but they definitely don’t like spending money and have some really outdated beliefs about caring for themselves, their children, and their animals. For example, I can see them pulling a tooth rather than filling it because it cost less.
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Ross Warren 3 years ago
If they do choose to leave they have no place to go. No family, no friends, no home, no job, and the equivalent of a third grade education.
Sarah Luna 3 years ago
I'm of Amish descent and let me tell ya...my mom has ~thoughts~. My great-grandma was Amish and my great-grandpa was Mennonite and that was more scandalous that any Hollywood affair. But that's as wild as she got. I've only seen one picture of her and she shunned the entire family because they photographed her. My mom always said that "the Amish have rules that suit them". I'm basically watered down Amish because my parents raised us Brethren and didn't even baptize us because we told them we didn't want to get wet. Super chill. They met at a Brethren college so my brother & I are lucky they both grew up the same way. But I do have a good memory of an Amish gentleman who stopped to talk to me just to shoot the s**t. Not creepy or preachy at all, we were just talking about sustainable perishable management (that was my job). was
Jerry Cullymore 2 years ago
Loving these comments from people that know absolutely nothing about the Amish.
lauralett50 3 years ago
Remember when a person broke into an Amish school and Murdered several children because they were Amish?!?! What did the families do ? prayed for him and forgave him for his actions. He still went to prison for murdering innocent ,unarmed children.
BoopBoop 3 years ago
Yes, that's part of their philosophy, but there's a very dark side to that. There was a documentary about sexual abuse among the Amish that featured a young woman who had been repeatedly raped by her brother. Each time, he asked for forgiveness and she HAD to forgive him and then pretend that it never happened - and then he would rape her again. She finally went to local law enforcement and they put the brother in jail, but the victim was shunned by her community because she reported him. They would have just let her brother continue to rape her over and over and over again because their philosophy is that no matter how often you sin, or how evil the sin, if you ask for forgiveness, you have to be forgiven, and the sin forgotten. It's really awful for the victims.
Load More Replies..."Cult leaders are narcissistic individuals who use their self-interest and charisma to prey on their followers. This, of course, requires that their followers, or marks, have certain traits that make them more likely to be preyed upon. Research suggests that some of the traits that make people vulnerable to joining a cult include suffering from anxiety or depression or addictions.”
People who are anxious or depressed are more vulnerable because cults offer ‘solutions’ to their problems.
"People with addictions need to have something to fill the hole left when they stop using whatever substance/behavior that they are addicted to. Addiction reflects a hunger and cult leaders have an easy time using their powers of persuasion to convince the follower that they and their cult can fill that need," the professor told us.
"Cult leaders often use the powers of seduction to convince people to follow them—they use flattery of a potential member along with promises of 'belonging' and being 'needed,' so that can be extremely enticing to someone who feels that something important is missing in their life. When someone convinces us that they care more about us than anyone else in our world, we will do whatever they want us to do just to keep their light shining on us," she explained how cult leaders exploit others’ psychology.
#10
Flat earthers.
troufaki13 3 years ago
Eratosthenes figured that the earth is round more than 2000 years ago with the help of two sticks, the sun and a friend who measured the distance between Alexandria and Syene. These people have all the knowledge in the palm of their hands but still refuse to see the truth
Robert T 3 years ago (edited)
Not quite. He figured out the approximate size of the Earth. It was already known to be round.
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Michael Largey 3 years ago
And you can find round earthers at all four corners of the globe.
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Amy 3 years ago
Stupid, but I'll take this over the antivaxxers and QAnon nutjobs. Although I guess a lot of them probably fall for that bs as well.
I'mNotARoboat 3 years ago
You are correct, there is some massive overlap in that Venn diagram. The other bits are just one group calling the other 2-3 idiots for believing such nonsense.
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Saw It 3 years ago
I've been convinced for years that FE started as a joke, like "birds aren't real", an April Fools prank of some pretty hilarious people....and it got WAY out of hand and now, no one knows what to do with this joke that has turned into a phenom of insane proportions that has proven just how stupid people really are. O_o my face
Shyla Bouche 3 years ago
Birds aren't real??? Damn! What was that yellow thing I had that sang all day?
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SirWriteALot 3 years ago
I actually believe that flat earthers are just playing an elaborate joke. At least I hope so.
lauralett50 3 years ago
If the earth was flat, cats would have pushed everything off the edges by now lol.
Kantami Blossom 3 years ago
I find them fascinating, they actually believe that every planet in the Solar System is round except the Earth😂
#11
Most religions. They are “soft cults” but cultish nonetheless. Some may not physically stop you from leaving but fear of existential threat is a very real thing for many. Prime example: My grandmother was raised Catholic and had a child out of wedlock. At one point in the 80s she was on her deathbed (did not die fortunately), she asked for last rites and a priest denied her because of her infidelity. Now, she had also been raised in a HIGHLY abusive Catholic orphanage that has in recent times been exposed for mass child graves as well as child rape and torture, so she was exposed to every abuse known under these people. Even after all that she lived the rest of her life entirely convinced that when she died she would spend an eternity in hell. I can’t imagine how terrifying that thought must be for a believer. She was an amazingly sweet person but that indoctrination made her feel like she was unworthy of love her entire life while living in fear of what may come next. If that’s not a cult by any reasonable definition then I don’t know what is.
ThatBiBookLover 3 years ago
Im going to brace myself to be flooded and attacked with downvotes; I’m risking my account with this. Not all religions are bad. Actually, let me rephrase that - religions can be good or bad, depending on the person. Let’s take my friend for example. She’s Christian. She believes in Jesus; however, she doesn’t go to church every Sunday if she doesn’t want to, she doesn’t shove it up other people’s arses, and her parents won’t shun her if she chooses to leave that religion. On the other hand, we have batshit crazy people who tell you that you will “go to hell” if you aren’t Christian. Religions are as good or bad as the people. I’m religious; however, I do not shove it up other people. I peacefully believe in gods, and live my life normally. Thank you, and now I might get banned.
OmBoyGanesh 3 years ago
You’re describing faith or spirituality. Religion isn’t about one’s belief, it’s about amassing several people open to believing and leveraging that within a society. I believe in toy drives for children, feeding my neighbors and helping out my fellow human through financial hard times. These are also tenets of the KKK. That they only do these things for white people is more than enough reason that I don’t have anything to do with them, but there is also their core philosophy which is based on discrimination. Religion exists not be issue of core values, but instead to create an “us” and the bad “them” whom we measure ourselves against. We then adopt the religions values as our own to bolster our position with the “us”. We alienate those who are “them” or even don’t support the “us.” It’s classic cult dynamics.
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Duane Ringlein 3 years ago
I was raised a Catholic, when I met my late wife (married 46 years) and told my Mom, I was in the military and overseas in the 70s so it was by a letter, she wrote back and told me I was going to hell because my fiance was divorced. I ignored her and married her anyway. But it was ok when years later 2 of my younger sisters married divorced men.
Freddie Le Brun 3 years ago
Not all religions are cults or bad. I’m a Unitarian. I go to church every Sunday because I CHOOSE to. I go for fellowship and community. But my beliefs are completely different from pretty much every other person at my church and the same can be said for every other person there. Our church is a place where we can talk about individual beliefs, discuss faith and theories, even have no faith.
Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill! 3 years ago
Telling a child they're going to burn for eternity is child abuse. But because it's a religious belief they get away with it.
Dan Bexell 3 years ago
"I (as a believer) assumed that successful prayers were proof that God answers prayer, while the failures were proof that there was something wrong with me.- Dan Barker
Brindle Nutter 3 years ago
I know of several catholic priests who've performed last rites for anybody who asked....my former boss was catholic and I got to know several priests. they were awesome people....not all religious figures are bad. I am not catholic
Brenda Spagnola-Wilson 3 years ago
I call myself a "recovering Catholic", but don't actually practice any religion. I believe in God but that is a personal relationship. No one should ever force anyone to go to a place they don't feel comfortable! Neither of my kids believe and that's fine. Whatever works for you is okay.
Tjoori Vids 2 years ago
In Germany (deepest Bavaria, which is very Catholic), I was applying for my National ID card, and the woman asked me "Religion?" and my response was "None." The SHOCK on her face. "You weren't baptized???" Me: "I was." *Relief* "Right, so are you catholic or evangelical?" Me: "Neither." "But...!" "Nope. You are NOT putting a religion on there, and that's final." "You don't believe in God???" *more shock* "So you're an...atheist?" (She could barely say the word lol) "I'm AGNOSTIC. I don't believe in RELIGION. One has nothing to do with the other." Believe me, I was persona non grata on 2 counts. The first being I was a Swabian living in Bavaria, and the second that I'm clearly some devil worshipping heathen. :P
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Paul O'Connor 3 years ago
Good people will always do good deeds. Bad people will always commit bad ones. It takes religion to make good people commit bad deeds.
#12
Don’t see anywhere where someone’s said Fraternities/Sororities. Wildly a cult. Was in one. Now I’m mid-thirties and it’s ridiculous what they make you do and how they make you feel. Especially at such a vulnerable age.
The Idaho Potato 3 years ago
Can't even say the Hellenic alphabet right. Their 'Greek lifestyle' is worse than fake.
Upstaged75 3 years ago
When I first went away to college I decided to Rush because my mom was in a sorority (in the 60's) and loved it. Rush is where you go to parties/interviews at different sororities and each one tries to convince why theirs is the best. YOU are being sized up too, and if they like you they'll invite you back for a 2nd time. (In the end they vote on whether or not you are worthy of being a member) I knew right away it wasn't for me. There were so many cheers and songs/dances that everyone was doing in unison. It was kind of creepy - like robot cheerleaders or something. ;) Some people really like it though. My best friend was very involved at her own college and ended up president of her sorority. I was just too apathetic to be forced to sing that Greek alphabet song on command. Or to pretend to be perky and full of school spirit.
madbakes 3 years ago
I disagree with this wholeheartedly. My college didn't allow national organizations, so I may have had a drastically different experience than most. My sisters are diverse-- religion, race, politics, all of it. The Greek thing of course isn't actually Greek; we know that. I'm 35, and those women are still my best friends and those who I have some of my best memories with. Anyone who says you just buy friends is an idiot; the dues go to costs for activities and parties. We just buy our alcohol in bulk.
Karen Lyon 3 years ago
Sorry, that's not everyone's experience. I had to be talked into doing Sorority Rush, and I am so glad I did. I know some other people who enjoyed it too. Not all fraternities and sororities are cultish.
Catherine Spencer-Mills 3 years ago
Some aren't so bad. I belong to the honorary engineering fraternity. (Yeah, they have female members.) No house, no wild parties, instead a lot of study parties.
Michael Largey 3 years ago
In college, I was in favor of the Greek system. It concentrated in one small area a group of people whom I would otherwise come into contact with much more frequently..
"You are treated like family and you have other cult members who make you feel welcome and work hard to develop that sense of belonging. When nothing else in your life is giving you what you need or satisfying you in important ways, a cult is the perfect setting to feel valued and that you matter," the professor noted that this is how members are trapped in cults.
"To get someone you care about out of the cult, you have to work hard and be available to help them see reason. You have to encourage them to stay involved in activities beyond the cult, to engage in connections with people who are 'outsiders.’ For some people, the sense of belonging within a cult is worth more than autonomy, wealth, or connections to family or those beyond the cult. That's when interventions by caring others are needed to help that person recognize the truth of their situation."
#13
Elon Musk fans. He could literally murder somebody and they would still be like "he is so innovative! A tech genius! My IDOL!" and would come up with an excuse as to why the murder was justified
Sergy Yeltsen 3 years ago
Aren't most of them like that? Bezos is no different.
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Luke Branwen 3 years ago
Elon Musk is the Thomas Edison of the current era, and I mean it as an insult.
Terran 3 years ago
Yes, they usually are an unhealthy mixture of tech nerd, incel and lack of social intelligence.
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#14
Mommy groups. Tsunamiis replied: Amen. I’ve been a stay-at-home dad for ten years. When I go to kids things alone everyone looks at me like a p**ophile. Not a single parent will give me their name if I don’t directly ask and no one wants to hear anything I have to say. My kids don’t have friends.
OmBoyGanesh 3 years ago (edited)
My husband and I deal with this daily. The police know us, because two grown men with a son is so suspect we deal with them a minimum of weekly. Luckily our kid is in a smaller school with great teachers & parents, but out in the rest of the world, these sanctimonious mommies are constantly on our ásses. We have to carry copies of his birth certificate & adoption papers, along with his actual passport, just in case we’re cornered by the mommy cultists.
James016 3 years ago
The mummies at my son's nursery were in a clique. They ignored me and my wife whenever we said hello. The mums at his school are actually really friendly.
Pizzagirl 91 3 years ago
Yeah, there are some mothers that completely ignore me when I greet them at the playground or in the kindergarten, and others are polite and friendly. There's a-holes in every group of people...
Load More Replies... Just_for_this 3 years ago
I drop my daughter off at school every day and was a SAHD when she was younger. get nothing more than i weak smile off teachers and other parents. Once in a blue moon my wife will drop off and has more conversation in that brief moment than I've received in all this time. And the looks i get taking her swimming...
Barbara Eich 3 years ago
So so sorry-that's just heartbreaking. Men should be treated as equals when it comes to raising kids. I have experienced this on a very small level at kid's birthday parties. I'm not able to have kids and I have gotten nasty looks from the "Mommy brigade" (why are you here kind of thing) The Mommy brigade or groups are real.
Dre Mosley 3 years ago
Those Mommy groups are toxic as hell. I saw a post in one where there was a clear air of superiority among women who gave birth naturally vs. women who "just had a C-Section." It was crazy.
#15
The Herbalife company. Despite being accused of being a pyramid scheme, they continue to function similarly. There are some people from my childhood who became addicted to it, and they act very much like members of a cult.
Monday 3 years ago
Many of these Multi-level marketing companies try to brainwash their "employees" to give them that lovely cultist state of mind.
Nathan Pogorzala 3 years ago (edited)
scientology is like a MLM. recruit, pay, recruit, pay. all the same concept taking advantage of gullible and weak people.
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Mouse 3 years ago
I can't take seriously any athlete or sports team who takes sponsorship money from them. I'm looking at you Cristiano Ronaldo.
SaraJune 3 years ago
One of them, a distant relative of my husband's family, came to my FIL funeral wearing a huge badge of herbalife on his suit: it said "Wanna lose weight? Ask my how!"
VodkaInMySweetTea 3 years ago
All MLMs are predatory and cult-ish. They have to be or everyone would see them for what they are and leave.
Jane Cortez 3 years ago
Same with Amway, Mary Kay and Primerica Trust from news articles/exposes I have read/watched. Also knew a fellow who was bankrupting himself for some multilevel life insurance company in the 1990’s…..
Christopher Gerlach 2 years ago
My mom got heavily into Amway when I was a teen. Definitely a cult and an obsession. Listening to their motivational tapes on long drives and then going to meeting rooms full of crazy people.
#16
Southern Pentecostal Baptist Snake Handlers
Grew up going to one of these churches. Long drive to a small church hidden in the woods. They honestly believed only their members were gonna make it to heaven. We saw some crazy stuff in that building.
Jan Rosier 3 years ago
They still exist? Thought it was just movie-stuff... unbeleivable. (pun in tended...)
Leo Domitrix 3 years ago
Yep. They haev one about 6-7 miles up the road from me. Nutters, the lot of them.
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Two_rolling_black_eyes 3 years ago
There are 3 different verses in the New Testament (Luke 10:19, Mark 16:18, Acts 28:1-6)that say belief in Jesus prevents harm from poisonous snakes. Handling of the snakes is proof that your faith is strong. In college, I worked with a PhD candidate who was studying a species of locally endangered rattlesnake (eastern massasauga rattlesnake). People killing them out of fear and the Pentecostals gathering them and then letting them die were the two leading causes. He spent a lot of time going to these churches to talk to them and I went a couple times with him. Its surreal to see 80 year old grandmothers handling poisonous snakes and speaking in tongues.
sofacushionfort 3 years ago
It’s all about having faith: they faithfully milk the snakes just prior to the service to deplete its venom sacs.
Leo Domitrix 3 years ago
Yes. THey used to handle non-venomous snakes but usually handle rattlers in the US South in my experience since moving to this region. FYI: The pastors chill the snakes in a fridge or cooler so it's docile for them, but will bite someone they hand it to to prove that person doesn't have God/Holy Spirit... or is just on the pastor's Dislike List.
Load More Replies... Moya Satterwhite 3 years ago
I’ll bet there’s a few girls over the years who had to have “private” sessions with the “snake”.
Analyn Lahr 3 years ago
My grandfather's grandfather was one. But he left after he got bit twice (by the same heathen snake so the story goes).
#17
Yesterday, I actually observed a job posting that stated "Don't bother applying if receiving money is your main motivation. Here, we live like a family."
One of the most degrading things I've ever read was that.
Just to be clear, this job was compensated. They simply stated that they wouldn't be paying you much, I presume.
Michael Largey 3 years ago (edited)
During the Cold War, a western reporter asked a Polish farmer whether he thought of the Russians as family or friends. The farmer replied " Oh, family, definitely." "Why do you say that?" "Well, you get to choose your friends."
Reinaldo Fuentes 3 years ago
Well... I mean... given that the whole "we're a family" schtick is a MASSIVE red flag informing you of how much will be demanded of you for which you will 100% NOT be compensated, I'd rather they flew the flag right at the beginning than find out later.
Robert McKenzie 3 years ago
If "receiving money is your main motivation" then you probably wouldn't applying for a job then would you?
WantsBalsam&Cold 3 years ago
I think I saw that same posting yesterday on Indeed! Was it for some quasi-religious company?
#18
Evangelical conservatives.
Lemaire 3 years ago
Ex-evangelical and comparative religion major here. As much as I disagree with the practices, dogma, and politics of evangelicals, especially fundamentalist evangelicals, I don't think it is accurate to label evangelicalism a cult. At least it is no more a cult than the Catholic church or mainline protestant denominations. Arguably, evangelical churches are more decentralized and lack a common leader other than God. Many evangelical churches are non-denominational meaning that they don't belong to any dogma prescribing organization or higher authority. In fact, one major tenet of evangelicalism is that people can talk to Jesus directly without the need of mediation from priests or ministers. Of course, there are numerous, independent evangelical churches led by charismatic, narcissistic, greedy preachers, and those could be described as cults, but not the entire evangelical movement.
Deb Dedon 3 years ago
I think the 'cult' label is best applied when the organization in question controls the behavior of its adherents beyond the immediate scope of its activities. The biggest clue is the 'shunning' response to anyone who questions or leaves the organization. If the organization operates behind closed doors, it might as well hang a red flag warning on itself. One might note this 'cult' label could be applied to many major (and some minor) corporations and political organizations.
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Vix Spiderthrust 3 years ago
You mean people who believe women should be able to make their own medical decisions. No sure how believing that women are competent adults is a "cult" exactly...
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MLMs.
BoothWilkesJohn replied:
Absolutely yes. My folks are in Amway, starting when I was in middle school. They were supposed to be millionaires by the time my dad retired (they are not).
Growing up, they were hardly ever home. They were gone every weekend at events that of course they paid to attend. Every time we were driving, they played self help tapes. The worst though was that they wanted everything to be positive, nothing negative. Sad? Be happy. Angry? Be happy. I couldn't have any kind of relationship with them beyond pretending everything was fine. A whole household bottles up their feelings for years. Once I was 17, I was hardly ever home. I slept at friends' homes or came back super late, after everyone was asleep. I left the day I turned 18.
It has completely consumed their lives. All of their social life is Amway, not because they cut people out who didn't join, because everyone who wouldn't got sick of the sales pitch over and over. After I became an adult and left their home, any time we came back to visit, they were trying to recruit me and my wife. We stopped going over except for the primary holidays, and now hardly that anymore. They've stopped the sales pitch, but it's their whole identity. We have nothing to talk about, except what's going on with us, which doesn't last long. It's beyond awkward.
Fortunately, my wife has a delightful family.
Mrs. EW 3 years ago
My fam was all into the Amway nonsense for a bit. Many “vacations” were centered around conferences. We had all the tapes, cleaning products, vitamins, shakes and the Goads. My sister and I were all about that band, as we were very young. I had the, “I love Jesus better than ice cream shirt”. My dad had the one that said, “Fired Up!” I was even up in stage with them once. So weird
Michael Largey 3 years ago
When I was at the IRS, I audited a number of Amway victims. They just didn't get it and didn't want to. "Sorry, sir, you can't deduct these business losses because it's not a real business."
UpQuarkDownQuark 3 years ago
They got me in my early 20s when I had never heard of them, didn’t know what a pyramid scheme was, and I was desperate. Perfect victim. But after two or three meetings it was clear that it was run by crazy people.
jeff adams 3 years ago
And for all that filthy lucre we got Betsy DeVos as our Secretary of Education. Don't let me get started on Blackwater. These people would be oligarchs in Russia.
Jane Cortez 3 years ago
That’s so sad. These companies feed people hope, prey on their dreams and rob them of their lives.
Brenda Spagnola-Wilson 3 years ago
I "joined" a few MLMs simply to get the kits full of products I wanted. Then got in trouble for not roping in others
Miss Frankfurter 3 years ago
Got invited one evening for their introduction to Amway. Years ago I did get out of a cult. I can spot one a million miles away. Got myself outa there pronto.
roses are red 3 years ago
Got dragged in, thankfully got out. Always ra ra ra meetings drove me crazy, and yes, they try to get you to turn family, friends, workmates, and the person at the Cafe that makes your coffee in a way members..could see my friends that were in it slowly lose their friends as they always pushed an away product for any problem there was. They do have good products, some anyhow..but no, too crazy for me...
Nobody Knows 3 years ago
I was actually involved with a MLM some years ago. I wanted to sell the products because I thought they were cool and a good idea. At one of the meetings, they asked me what I was planning and asked why I was so focused on selling when I should be focused on getting more people involved.
#20
Crossfitter here. We are absolutely a cult. Phish fan also. HUGE cult.
Leo Domitrix 3 years ago
Every physical therapist I know loves Crossift. It keeps them in business. Not joking, alas.
Barbara Skolly 3 years ago
Crossfit os the opposite of fight club, number 1 full is never shut up about crossfit
Crazy Dog Lady 3 years ago
I was waiting for this one! Best cult ever lol. It is cult like, but at least it oozes positivity and healthy self improvement. Love me some CrossFit and go 5-6 days a week.
Daniel Dugan 3 years ago
Nobody mentioned Dave Matthews Band fandom. I once told my boss I'd f*cking walk if he played DMB, so he played Phish.
#21
Ballet.
You are basically at their whim. You are expected to pay tuition, costumes, dance wear, dance shoes, travel fees, competition fees, production fees, tickets, and do volunteer work and give up your entire schedule.
If you complain at all about anything valid or not- they shun you by not giving your kid a good role or not moving them up a level. And they withhold attention to your child.
You literally must schedule all life around ballet. And pay thousands and thousands of dollars so your kid can be in the back.
If you quit all the former dance parents and friends will shun you.
The Radio Demon 3 years ago
And do not make a noise when you dance, even if your feet bleed.
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Reinaldo Fuentes 3 years ago
Ballet, little kid beauty pageants... The shockingly unchecked pathology of projecting one's adult fantasies onto a person NOT REMOTELY old enough to consent.
A_Human_Bean 3 years ago
My friend had to homeschool if she wanted to move up a level in dance, so she had to switch to a non-competitive studio so she could keep going to school. Also my cousin has been dancing for a while, and was a professional for a year or two until she quit about 6months ago. She was basically starved, she became suicidal, and she suffered from different mental illnesses… she ended up quitting and is now going to college. Thankfully she got out of that extremely toxic environment, too many aren’t as lucky
bottomless.abyss.of.bordem 3 years ago
This is only worth it if your kid has the skill and desire to be a professional ballerina. If not, take them to a local studio for half an hour twice a week and help them buy their first home later instead.
P. Mozzani 3 years ago
The same may be said about children in music or sports, especially those sports whose participants vie for positions at the Olympics.
Jane Cortez 3 years ago
I took ballet and I can confirm this is very much true. Sad to say but I was anorexic for many, many years, decades in fact up until 3 years ago. Fainted in during ballet, well, just about anywhere, actually. Our ballet teacher never ever once expressed concern. Mind you, different times. She openly favoured the gifted girls who were skinny and was disdainful towards the heavier girls or those who were not exemplary dancers. I also took swimming lessons, ran cross country- channelled intense anxiety into physical activity and was still persistently mediocre. The only thing I managed to do well was ride a horse, I think it was because of being very sensitive, the magical bond one can experience with an animal was something I lived for and still do.
oddly_informed_raven 3 years ago
it can be fun and non-toxic, IF you find the right studio. unfortunately most of them expect far, far too much from very young people whose parents force it
Shyla Bouche 3 years ago
In fourth grade (aged 10) the school offered instrumental training. I asked my parents to let me join band. They struck a deal with me. They'd buy my instrument, but I had to stay in band through grade school. If I wanted to quit in high school, that was fine. It seemed fair to me. I didn't stop playing until I broke my arm in my twenties. I'd still play if I could.
Ab Jaworski 3 years ago
What about organized sports, pageants,or politics in general? Any of these require the same needs and can unfortunately get violent results these days.
Stannous Flouride 3 years ago
Likewise gymnastics and a bunch of other kids' sports/activities.
#22
MLMs, particularly Mary Kay. I once attended a convention as a consultant's guest in an effort to persuade me to go. Very stepford-like. She also failed to inform me that you were supposed to dress up, so I arrived in jeans and a hoodie.
Rider 3 years ago
I don't like to admit it, but I was in amway for several months. Very cultish. But I did get some good out of the audios, it helped to put me in a frame of mind to get my finances back on track.
lauralett50 3 years ago
I used to sell Avon. You don't work for yourself. You work for them. Rarely Idid I make any profit. Mostly all went to the company. That's when you could get the items you ordered. So glad imt out .
Kensi 3 years ago
This is so true. I remember my friend once told me about their meetings and conventions and them pursuing her (on phone, email etc.) for weeks and weeks even when she was clear with them she didn't want to participate anymore (after a very short time period she actually visited the meetings and talked to them)
Moya Satterwhite 3 years ago
I was thinking of being a Tupperware lady, till I found out they a song. Creepiest thing is when the organization has a song to sing their praises.
Minath 3 years ago
My dad's business partner's wife was involved with Mary Kay for years, she was really successful and made a lot of money. She was always obsessed with image and being thin and attractive was the most important thing, she convinced her daughter that she had all sorts of allergies to make sure her daughter never gained weight.
bottomless.abyss.of.bordem 3 years ago
Selling makeup. They got my grandma decades ago. She had to invest in hundreds of dollars worth of product to be eligible to sell it.
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Celtic Pirate Queen 3 years ago
And the product is cr*p. Never had my face blow up with acne like that before (in my 30s). Tried to tell me it was my body "releasing toxins". Really, because plain old Dove soap NEVER did that.
#23
Literally all of them. There isn’t a single cult, including the really scary ones that people make documentaries about, that believes it’s a cult. Source: I was raised in the Children of God/Family International. We never thought we were in a cult, but we very much were.
Deborah Harris2 3 years ago
I'm only upvoting you because I love your name :) x
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Lisa Samuelson 3 years ago
Is that the one Joaquin Phoenix’s family was involved in? Definitely a sexual cult!!
#24
The Duggar Family.
lemonrence replied:
They’re associated with IBLP and Gothard was their leader so definitely a cult. Someone is dropping a highly anticipated documentary about it some time next year, really can’t wait to watch it
If you go to r/DuggarsSnark there was a recent AMA done with a childhood friend of Anna Duggar, wife of convicted pedophile/oldest Duggar son. Very enlightening read
BrownTabby 3 years ago
I used to be on a forum that talked about the cultishness of the Duggars. Their nickname for Gothard was Got Hard.
Enlee Jones 3 years ago
Well golly gee, Josh Duggar was raised in an abusive patriarchal cult by his zealot parents and was taught from birth that women were subservient second class citizens and breeding cows for their husbands, and yet they stand around and scratch their heads and wonder why he turned out the way he did.
MiriPanda 3 years ago
I hear what you are saying. However, he not in prison for sexually assaulting women, he is a child predator. This adds another dimension which cannot solely be explained by misogynistic upbringing.
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Snorkeldorf 3 years ago
I was always fascinated by the fact that with all their children they still found the time to get pregnant again.
Minath 3 years ago
The older children look after the younger ones, the parents do very little childcare. It's thought that the reason Jana is unmarried at 30 is because she is needed to do the homeschooling etc. Wives are taught to be joyfully available to their husbands at all times.
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ƒιѕн 3 years ago (edited)
I suspect she didn't birth many of those kids, I would assume after a dozen or so they just dropped on out of there when ripe, hitting the floor with a slight thud..
Jen Hart 3 years ago
* knickers slide down and baby plops out * "Ooh, could you get that one for me Dierdre?" -Monty Python and the Meaning of Life.
Load More Replies... Limey 3 years ago
All of these comments are true. Creepy, cultish, archaic …. And yet, TLC gives them a show. When the creepy, incestuous, pedophilic nature of who they are becomes too hot to handle, they cancel it but then give the poor deluded daughters a show, every time one of THEM drops a kid, People magazine does a piece on it as if 19 year old girls having a baby a year is perfectly normal and even laudable. Like all cults, the only publicity they should get is as a warning to others and yet the media keeps promoting it as a wholesome family life’s and all the mommy cultists can’t get enough of it.
I'mNotARoboat 3 years ago
Circus side shows never actually went away. Today, they are called the TLC line up.
Load More Replies... Reinaldo Fuentes 3 years ago
I was grossed out from word GO. "Tonight, on an all-new (Fill in the current #) and Counting - How many babies can one woman squeeze out before her entire body prolapses inside out? Watch tonight for the answer! And stay tuned next week for "How many sisters can one dude have before he fails to understand the issue with incest?"
Kay Christensen 3 years ago
Arkansas' favorite freak show--the Duggars!!! Often wonder how many years Michelle has spent looking at the ceiling over Jim Bob's shoulder thinking of more names beginning with 'J'. Betting every time they announced yet another pregnancy Josh jumped up & down shouting, "I hope it's a girl!!!!!!!". Freak show doesn't begin to describe these freaky freaks. Embarrassed Arkansan 😟
Show thyself 3 years ago
IBLP = "Institute in Basic Life Principles" ||| A weird, creepy parent-like-organisation for several smaller organisations/cults/ministries/families/how ever you like to call them ||| according to wiki itˋs an "umbrella organisation"
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#25
Masons! My husband joined and was in it for a long time. I used to joke with him that it was a cult and he’d defend the masons. He tried for a while to have me join the Order of the Eastern Star and I declined. Then one day I noticed he didn’t go to his meeting, then his missed another and another. When I asked he just said he no longer had the time. I jokingly said oh did you finally realize that you joined a cult? He turned 3 shades lighter and walked away.
The Radio Demon 3 years ago
My grandpa's a mason, and I have no f*****g clue what it means to be one. I don't know if I'll ever know, and I don't want to be one to find out.
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3 Owls In A Coat 3 years ago
Who keeps the Martians under wraps? We do, we do 🎵
Load More Replies... Brightly 3 years ago (edited)
I had some random guy stop me in the post office parking lot because he overheard my name and wanted to know if my dad was a mason (he is not) because that name holds a lot of symbolism for them. He kept wanting to talk to me and getting way to close to me for my comfort level and I got out of there ASAP!
Lauren Caswell 3 years ago
quick check on a theory: Lewis. I'm happy to delete this lol on the off chance I need to 😅
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Jan Gardner 3 years ago
Shriners hospitals for crippled children, Service Dogs, scholarships for high school seniors. Just a few of the charities supported by Masons and OES. You can be as involved or not as you want. BTW, many of our founding fathers were Masons, including George Washington. Do you research and please make up your minds - we used to be called pedophiles. Your misconceptions are astonishing. Visit a lodge or chapter. Nobody will assault you.
Dan Holden 3 years ago
I've tried researching out of curiosity. I've yet to receive a satisfactory answer as to what goes on at meetings and what it's all about. Perhaps you could enlighten us by running us through a typical freemason meeting. People will always think it's cult-like as long as it comes off as a secret boys club, regardless of any sort of charity work you do.
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T. Unnamable 3 years ago
My mistake or bad eyes. I first read this as "Mansons". I'm thinking "Wait? What? Are they still together?"
Gina Beatty 3 years ago
Husband is a mason and I am Eastern star. Nothing to see here... antiquated parliamentary procedure and charity work. Sorry to disappoint.
Jan Gardner 3 years ago
I'm a 63 year old in the same situation. Antiquated is an accurate adjective. I fear if that doesn't change soon we won't exist in 2 generations.
Load More Replies... SparkleFarts 3 years ago
My in-laws are WAAAAAAYYYY into the Masons/Scottish Rite/Shriners/Daughters of the Nile. Yeah they do a lot of good work, but it's a bit to all-consuming to me.
Vix Spiderthrust 3 years ago
My dad's dad was a Mason, told my dad not to bother joining. Waste of money, he said.
KikiM 3 years ago
My Dad was a Mason. It's a civic and charitable organization that has a lot of ceremonies with pomp and circumstance. I once mentioned that my Dad belonged at work and one my coworkers flipped her lid. She launched into all of the conspiracy theories and I stopped her and said "I'm fairly sure that my Dad isn't a Satan worshipping pedophile. I mean, I think I would have noticed that by now". She got really mad and red in the face and stomped off. Still makes me laugh.
#26
The troubled teen industry (youth residential “therapy” programs that are underregulated and rampant with abuse, SA, and children’s deaths)
Edit: the earlier programs were closely based off the teachings of a cult called Synanon. Not every program open right now is a cult itself but their history is abusive and most programs do significantly more harm than good.
James016 3 years ago
Where they kidnap kids in the night with the parents' consent? Is it that?
Upstaged75 3 years ago
My parents sent my brother away to a program after he had been kicked out of 3 high schools and been in trouble with the law. They had tried everything they could think of. He was out of control and sometimes dangerous. He was 17 when 2 guys showed up at their house at 5am. (I was away at college) Our mom had already packed his bags. My parents were there, so it wasn't really kidnapping. But he was told he had no choice but to go. It was a residential high school for teens with behavior disorders. It took quite a while but he's now a productive member of society with a beautiful family. Thankfully he ended up at a good school where he was not abused or anything. He was angry, but he got over it.
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Bad Alchemy 3 years ago
I think the "troubled teen industry" is a bit broad to be an actual single thing. There are good, evidence-based, residential substance use disorder treatment and/or mental health programs for youth. How well regulated they are depends on the state it operates in. Many youth programs are residential because the home environment is one of the contributing factors to SUD and mental illness in the lives of young people, and some youth are already out of the home and in systems of care before entering these programs. Any program that "kidnaps" a kid with a parent's consent is not to be trusted. They do not respect the rights or mental health of the kid. The best way to find a treatment program for your child or adolescent is through your local children's hospital (if you have one - see this list, https://bit.ly/3U0sbOU) or through the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) website at https://www.samhsa.gov/families
I'mNotARoboat 3 years ago (edited)
Pretty sure none that are/were promoted by Oprah or "Dr". Phil are the good ones.
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#27
Here in the Philippines, we have a pretty big one called "Iglesia ni Cristo / Church of Christ". Don't even think about leaving once you become a member. You'll be heavily ostracized and shamed on by your family, friends, and other church members. They'll even send an official out to "convince(harass)" you until you come back. It's gotten so bad that there's many support groups for ex-members. There's even one on Reddit called: r/exIglesiaNiCristo It's not as bad as the f****d up cults in the world that do very bad things, but they're still generally hated here. If I were to compare them with another religion, they're probably like those aggressive super-Mormons you hear about here. But to me, INC is worse since they actually meddle in the country's politics for their own interests.
censorshipsucks 3 years ago
https://edition.cnn.com/2019/04/19/asia/philippines-crucifixion-practice-33rd-year-trnd/index.html
BlueHunter 3 years ago
I live in Queens, NY and there is a huge white church they built right on a residential block and have a large parking lot. Right where people have million dollar homes. Very active congregation times at night when I walk my pup. It is basically empty all week during the day.
Gypsy Lee 3 years ago
Mormons don’t care if you never go, in fact if you’re a member & you have nothing to do with the church.. nobody cares. This isn’t to say some families aren’t extreme & abusive; like any religion they have their hardliners. But in general Mormons are more overly naive than aggressive. - This from someone raised in the religion with a s*t ton of issues due to being female in said religion. I have nothing to do with it anymore & I’ve anger for the blind patriarchy but the majority of Mormons aren’t “super-Mormons”. Those that are though.. Yikes! Incredibly destructive. But those types of people would be damaging regardless of which religion/ set of beliefs they followed.
#28
The Andrew Tate fandom.
SomeEntityHere replied:
Andrew Tate's War Room is definitely a cult as well.
JoyfulZebra 3 years ago
I keep on hearing about him, but have no idea who he is, and I'm fine with keeping it that way.
JERRY NO YOU DON’T supports Ukraine 3 years ago
I hate this guy so much. The boys at my school are always talking about him. "Ooh Andrew Tate" he's a f*****g anti feminist.
General Anaesthesia 3 years ago
Misogynistic (among other things) xx kick boxer, according to wiki, and here we go again, "influencer". So I suppose he he got kicked in the head a few times too many.
#29
My parents sent me to this all girls "Christian reform" school. Long story short, it was a cult, only took me 30 years to figure out through therapy. F'd me up
#30
Jared Leto and his followers. That mf is fake, and has a messiah complex. And his followers, don't get me started on them
Eris Kallisti 3 years ago
One time I went to see the Dead Kennedys, but instead of Jello Biafra, they had Jared Leto on vocals. It sounds like a bad dream but it really happened
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Mrs. EW 3 years ago
The guy that got his face bashed to gore in Fight Club and the worst Joker of all time.
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#31
Crunchy moms especially since many of them have started being far right or involved in the quiverfull movement. I used to be one and its insane the amount of money and dedication I put into that c**p and if you veered just a little bit you were shunned. I offered a mom once a packet of organic gummies for her kid and you would have thought I was handing her poison because goodness forbid it's got dye and sugar in it. They are constantly trying to "one up" themselves to see who is more "pure" and "natural". I saw mom's on FB groups try to treat their kids burns with EOs and have them on sugar fasts where they weren't even allowed fruit. My husband and I have a kid who was high in medical needs and didn't make a lot of money but I spent so much on organic food, "natural" everything, I made my own cleaning supplies, read all the mommy blogs and worried about microwaves,toxins in the air, vaccines,etc. There was always something new to worry about and some new solution I could buy or make to "help". I was a nervous wreck most of the time and broke asf. Plus my kid started worrying all the time about toxins and that was a big wake up call for me. I also went to a church where it was believed you needed to have as many kids as possible, didn't celebrate holidays,etc. Also you weren't allowed to talk about anything that contradicted their teachings and you were limited on what you were allowed to read. I was told I didn't have enough faith because I only had one kid never mind the fact another could literally kill me.I left after I started seeing things that really bothered me like child abuse that was being hushed about plus once again,trying to stay that damn "perfect" in their eyes was stressful asf. I'm much happier now in my heathen and anti crunchy ways 😂😂
Michelle Carlson 3 years ago
Moms super into organic and chemical-free living, very focused on what could be construed as 'natural'.
Load More Replies... Tjoori Vids 2 years ago
The trouble is, a lot of the organic stuff is okay and better for you. A lot of herbal remedies are also good. But there are a lot of people who simply go too far and shun all "pharmaceuticals" and whatnot. However, most of them wouldn't know organic if it bit them. I have horses. My horse muck is rotted for at least a year, without wormers (I have worm counts done), without antibiotics, or bute or any other meds. The rotted muck is in a corner by the woods, half a mile from the nearest road. You can't get much more organic than that. I offered the stuff to local gardeners (free), saying exactly that. Free of anything. -- And got asked if it is organic. "We only grow organic veg" I rolled my eyes. (Reading comprehension, nil.) THEN she wanted me to deliver it for free on top of everything else. I refused. "It's only 10km" (20+, madam. I looked up the address.) The kicker? Her veg plot? I went to streetview... it's right next to the main road. Very organic, yeah...
#32
A Christian affiliated dénomination called *United Church of God* I grew up in this church. I remember hearing several sermons about what a cult is and how many people called the United Church of God a cult (wikipedia even classifies it as a cult lol AND THEY WOULD MENTION THAT FACT IN SERMONS". They'd go on and on about how catholicism is really the biggest cult of all. Lol the denial is really deep within this one. My whole immediate family still attends and is baptized. At least they finally gave up on trying to reconvert me.
Robert McKenzie 3 years ago
"They'd go on and on about how catholicism is really the biggest cult of all." Well at least they managed to get one thing right!
oktopus 3 years ago
I once heard Catholicism described as a "Rome-based faith cult practising symbolic cannibalism".
Vix Spiderthrust 3 years ago
Not symbolic. That's Protestants. Catholics believe they practice real cannibalism, because the eucharist miraculously becomes Christ's literal flesh.
Load More Replies... #33
Texas A&M. mrbuh replied: My mom likes to tell the story about when I visited there as a high school senior. It was a one night sleepover tour. I hated it. When she came to pick me up the following day I was waiting at the curb, sitting on my packed suitcase. I hopped immediately into the car and the first thing I said was, "It's a cult. Let's get out of here."
Xenon 3 years ago
Texas Agricultural and Mechanical college in College Station, Texas. Not too far from Austin, Texas. Football team is called the Aggies. Never heard about anything cult like, maybe the football program?
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#34
My wife grew up in a cult that her mother is still part of/a heavily active member. They tell you where to live, how long to live there, who to MARRY, & how much money you make. They rent abandoned warehouses every few years throughout the country & it is invite ONLY to get in. & then they disappear without a trace. One of the ex members wrote a blog about it like 10 years ago & I'll link it if I can find it. Also, it's just called The Church of Christ AMA
#35
Peloton. Otmfer replied: Absolutely. The Facebook page is so toxic. If you say anything negative about the company, hundreds of people come for you. It’s so strange. It’s like they think you’re talking about their family.
Iustin Vreme 3 years ago
maybe the study they needed thus data for was also concluded.
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#36
Christian science.
ALEXANDER DALE 3 years ago (edited)
BoredPanda just glitched. I upvoted twice. I upvoted, or whatever its called, clicked view more comments, and could upvote again. 10 minutes later, have tried again, didn't work. May have just been a bug.
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Jacquelyn Paull 3 years ago
Not a cult. There is no problem leaving. People are kind and loving.
john s 3 years ago
I think there are off-shoots? Some more traditional, some who see doctors, etc but follow more of the faith/love-based teachings?
Load More Replies... #37
Disney. CPA0908 replied: there's the Disney adults that will go to Disney a few times a year or at all, and that enjoy the parks like normal people. then there's the Disney adults with entirely Disney merch, magnets, bumper stickers, cups, shirts, all that kind of s**t. those are the bad ones
GlitterQueen541 3 years ago
Let people like what they want. They aren't trying to convert anyone and they are doing no harm by enjoying things.
Karen Lyon 3 years ago
Oh, please. I work with someone who loves Disney stuff. She's as grounded as they come. Not al Disney fans are delusional.
#38
Whatever ridiculousness The Transformed Wife spreads.
Bad Alchemy 3 years ago
It's just another variant of the Surrendered Wife b.s. that evangelicals like to spout. There's a website, if you can stomach it, at https://thetransformedwife.com
Karen Lyon 3 years ago (edited)
Yes with her claim that feminism makes women unhappy, unmarried, and childless. That women aren't meant for the workforce but men because they have ten times the testosterone women do. What?? I'd laugh if it wasn't so stupid.
#39
Apple users. 512165381 replied: I was in a mall one weekday & there few a few people in each store. Walked into the small Apple store & there were about 80 people there. Like a cult convention.
Karma Black 3 years ago
I must be weird. I have an iPad and an iphone, but they're honestly just a phone and tablet that suit my meds more than my Androids did. None of my accessories are Apple. My smartwatch isn't Apple. My laptop isn't Apple. I just don't understand the cultish attitude around the products.
T. Unnamable 3 years ago
It was Ford verses Chevy when I was young. Huh? A car is a car, thinking otherwise is cultish.
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DragonflyGreen 3 years ago
Why so much hate on those of us who prefer Apple products? I do graphic design, and as Apple was once the only computer that you could install those programs on, I naturally migrated to using all Apple. I love how every device speaks to each other. It makes my life 10x easier. Plus, I think the interface is much more intuitive. Whenever someone hands me an Android device, I cannot for the life of me figure out how to use it.
Christos Arvanitis 3 years ago
I worked at an Apple store in a large American city. It was very cult-y and actually quite nasty if you didn't conform. I didn't conform and only lasted 7 months. They constantly talked about "transforming people's lives". Huh? That said, I'm all in on the Apple stuff because it integrates well and I love being able to text from my computer keyboard. It's easy, not necessarily the best technology.
Frando Bone 3 years ago
Agree. I'm a designer. I learned on a mac and have always used one. That's why all my devices are apple because of integration. I'm totally fine with that and have no desire to change.
Load More Replies... Frando Bone 3 years ago
I don't see how google products are any different other than they blossomed much later than Apple.
SlothyK8 3 years ago
I own exclusively Apple products, but not because I worship at Steve Jobs' sarcophagus. As an IT person, I like Apple because I don't have to fix their products all the time. They work, they work well, and I don't have to think about anything. I spend my days constantly analyzing and fixing issues...I don't want to do that at home, too. But I don't watch Apple's big products, don't buy the latest and greatest, and don't give a flying flop about the company or its ethos. Whatever....
Duane Ringlein 3 years ago
I have an iPhone for the simple reason that my daughter and her family have iPhones and we can use facetime. My tablet is android, and my laptop is windows. But my son-in-law loves his apple products.
Jordi Sharpe 3 years ago
I saw the Apple Store in our mall the day it reopened after the pandemic, and I swear there were at least 100 people outside, waiting in line.
Tjoori Vids 2 years ago
PC user here. I avoid all things Apple like the plague. Not because it's "culty", or the products are "no good" (I'm sure they are fine) But because of the prices and the forced "You will use only what we approve." scenarios. I'm sure people don't know this, but Apple just changes the currency sign for their prices. At a time when an IMac was $999 in the US, the identical IMac was £999 in the UK -- which was almost double the $ price at the time (I think it was $1.80 to £1 at the time.) They did the same for mp3's, which was absolute extortion ($0.99 vs £0.99) PLUS tax -- which was 14% in the UK at the time. Eventually they got hammered for charging twice as much for downloads and had to adjust the prices for music, but the prices for computers, tablets and phones remained. The IPad Pro is €1069 in France (plus 20% tax) vs the identical IPad Pro in the US being $799. That's today. And today, $799 = €744.85. So Europe pays €1282.80 for the same IPad. (Sept 2023)
UpQuarkDownQuark 3 years ago
I mostly like the products, hate the cult. And that damn Apple sticker goes straight in the garbage.
Francine Govan 3 years ago
I can see how the work environment at Apple could be seen as "cultish" ... that your inclusion or advancement might depend on more than just knowing how to do your job well. But Apple users? c'mon, Pandas! They're not telling you how to live what to believe or dictating every aspect of your life. If you decide to switch to android, it's not like everyone in your life shuns you and your support system disintegrates.
#40
There's the usual answers like religions, tech start-ups, etc. And then there's the BTS Army.
BrownTabby 3 years ago
To add to what others have said, BTS fans REALLY don’t like even the slightest criticism of the group. Personally I think there are much better Kpop artists than them, and I think Jpop artists are way underrated.
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Mulberry Juice 3 years ago (edited)
As a BTS fan, this is so true. Individually they are fine, but together they can be really toxic. There are some really extreme ones as well. Many other Kpop fandoms are basically cults as well
Brightly 3 years ago
Wasn't the Army responsible for or at least part of flooding the accounts of all the racist anti BLM Twitter trolls with messages of BLM support and anti-racist messages?
JoyfulZebra 3 years ago (edited)
Dont know, but I vaguely remember during the George Floyd protests, hackers flooded police radios with Kpop songs. Edit: you are correct. Some BTS stand, as well as other Kpop fans flooded twitter, as well as flooding a police app: https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.vice.com/amp/en/article/g5pg4y/k-pop-fans-took-down-a-police-snitching-app
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Snorky The Pig 3 years ago
As an ARMY, I can confirm this, but to an extent. I personally love BTS and fully support them, but I would never push my beliefs onto others. Just like with anything else, there is a healthy balance in this fandom.
Myriah Fields 3 years ago
ok i am an army and there are super toxic fans who are really obsessive but me personally i own a couple of albums for the goodies inside and just vibe to the music
OmBoyGanesh 3 years ago (edited)
These kids are crazy. I’m actually worried for how this affects them long term.
Iustin Vreme 3 years ago
they made their choices, the only problem is how its affects others.
Load More Replies... #41
Avatar EPC, founded by an ex scientology member. Their vision is to "enlighten" the world. I've done their basic course, 9 days, which did have real good parts (mid week), but the people there were weird. Some of them were straight outcast, weird, probably rejected by society somehow. One guy had a "happy face". He kept on smiling because that would make him happy. I believe it to some extend that if you smile, you get to feel more happy, but this only works for a small part. He did it all the way. He coached me with some excercises, and surprisingly he really did help me - but man, was he weird! They told me that all they did was give you a training for money, but while doing the training they tried to trick you into doing the next course, the master course. The first course you did for yourself, the second one you did for the people around you - family, friends, name it. It felt really wrong, and I didn't do the master course. During the day-opening they gave all of these subliminal messages, pushing you to subscribe to the master course. If you did, you got a badge with a star on it, so everybody could see it, and the rest of the week you got compliments and friendly conversations because of it. Right after lunch they showed videos of Harry Palmer, the founder, who did instructional or educational videos. These were horrible to watch, and after two days I skipped them. You had to leave lunch early, sometimes with an excuse, because otherwise they wouldn't let you go. They even checked the toilets. With 400 people doing the course, they didn't notice my absence, so that was good. It was amazing how quick I ended up talking to the top three people during that week, probably because I resisted. They were fascinated with me somehow. It was a strange group of people. After a while I realised that I didn't want any of them becoming my friend. After that week they kept calling me each month, and I couldn't pick up because I didn't know how to say no to these people. They are excellent salesmen and know how to keep you from saying no, like "but don't you want to be happy?" The trick was to say "no" real plain, decisive but not too, and never to use an excuse. If you said that it was too expensive, or that you had a holiday planned, they offered to help you ask for money from your boss for this training, or to help you to cancel the holiday. They did teach me some real good tricks, and it did help me clear my head for some time, but in the end I didn't want to be part of it. If you went all in, it meant daily contact with another Avatar-"friend" to do the excercises to keep you awake. It creeped me out.
#42
High end raiding guilds in World of Warcraft. I'm not sure how much anymore, I haven't played in a couple years, but especially back in Vanilla-WotLK days Being in a raiding guild really felt like being in a cult. Like, you were pretty much expected to give up everything outside of raiding. It would take hours upon hours a week of scheduled time with the guild, then many more hours outside the raiding to work up your professions, grind dailies, I've known people to neglect their health, kids, jobs, school, family, everything because their guild was determined to be the best on their server. You listen to the guild leader for your schedule and you live by it. You follow orders. And of course you /can/ technically leave at any time, and you'll be kicked out if you don't perform well, but, it's such an addiction that quitting it is like quitting a drug. It was easier for me to quit smoking than to quit raiding.
Roland Gosselin 3 years ago
Yeah, same with many other MMORPG or just MMO games. Super addictive, take over your life, siphon your bank account.
Java Addict 3 years ago
Some top raiding guilds used to have rich sponsors backing them, it was insane.
Deborah Harris2 3 years ago
You haven't played in a couple of years? I've never known a raiding guild like this, not even Method who were deemed pretty good at the time. However, the last expansion, Shadowlands turned WOW into a total crapfest encouraging the type of toxic elitest jerks mentioned by this poster, making the entire game about being 'the dedicated best' and totally ruining the game for a lot of regular people.
ThreeAngryLlamas 3 years ago
Yeah, my partner doesn't process that the amount of time she dedicates to it, and the number of other commitments she cancels because of it, is abnormal and a little problematic.
Samantha Mannion 3 years ago
I feel this I took over a top raiding guild back before wotlk..... it was intense for awhile u til I definitely had to go back to work. Quit the game never went back cuz I know if I did/do I'll fall right back into that
#43
SEC College football Sauce: Live in the South. I've seen people nearly get into fist fights over this s**t.
JoyfulZebra 3 years ago
The Auburn-Alabama might just be the most toxic sports rivalry in the U.S., and that's saying something.
T. Unnamable 3 years ago
Used to be ACC rivals South Carolina and Clemson. They're still sports idiots.
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Matthew Fox 3 years ago
All sports. It can completely take over some people's lives. Being a fan should not be your entire personality.
Enlee Jones 3 years ago
Oh yeah, I live in a college town whose football team is doing well for the first time in years. Everyone is going insane. As someone who has never cared for sports I just don’t get it and don’t care.
TeenieMeanie 3 years ago
Anyone else find it weird that people root for a university that they didn’t attend?
#44
The parachute regiment
Iustin Vreme 3 years ago
all specialized, high risk, murderer at soul - marines, special forces, satellites, intelligence and such.
Nicky Hands 3 years ago
Even in South Africa pre1992 when the army was compulsory for young men, the ParaBats were always the craziest dudes ever....takes a special man to become that!
TailsFangirl03 3 years ago
I think a few of the toxic Undertale fans are probably a cult. Not me. I'm disgusted by some of the fanbase's behavior. I'm just surprised no one tried for UT fanbase.
What do you think ?
Nicholas Montgomery 3 years ago
yes. they get you to by merch and hype it up while its just a mediocre preformance.
Load More Replies... DandyLion 3 years ago (edited)
I hate how if you state an opinion that varies from everyone else (and it is not even hateful opinions) that you get banned and your account locked down. If you are not making threats to people's lives or actively trying to offend people you should be allowed to state your opinion even if people don't agree with it. I rarely come on here because one side of a conversation is always pushed forward and any difference in opinion is drowned out. What is the comment section for?!? It is for people to state their opinions. If you don't want differences in opinion then don't even offer a comment section. Thank you.
Sam Walker 3 years ago
Here, here! I kept waiting to see "Wokism" listed anywhere and was grossly disappointed.
Load More Replies... DJR 3 years ago
US Navy chief petty officers. It's a cult of toxic leadership. They are more committed to each other than they are to the navy. One line from the manual stuck out above the rest: "when sailors come to you with their idea, they leave with the chief's idea".
Terd Fergison 3 years ago
The JW is one of the worst cults. They have huge amounts of rapes, child rapes, and coverups that go all the way to the top of their organization. They misinterpret one line of the Bible that says, don’t take the blood, and they think it applies to modern blood transfusions. So, if a JW mother is bleeding out during childbirth, they refuse blood transfusions and they often times let the JW mother die. They claim that the world is ending any minute. And they have been claiming that for well over a hundred years. They have made many specific end times prophecies that have all failed. Because of this they discourage their cult members from going to college. Because they think the world is ending and they don’t want their people to gain outside knowledge (knowledge that’ll contradict their lies). They horribly shun any member that doesn’t follow their strict rules. They are homophobic. They are truly sick, sad people.
E A M 3 years ago
Cat People - of which I am proudly a member! Once a cat sinks its claws into your heart, there's no going back. Before you know it, you have cat apparel and accessories, cat home decor and most of your salary is going toward toys and beds they will never use and food they'll love one day and hate the next.
DC 3 years ago
... and so many more... The Hells Angels are one for sure, ... controlling, restricting, grabbing as they all are, but in this case they somehow got themselves into thinking that, while there is no reason to fear them, there are plenty of reasons to fear them. Totally nuts, all of it.
madbakes 3 years ago
They are a gang, and I guess every gang is kind of a cult.
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Nicholas Montgomery 3 years ago
yes. they get you to by merch and hype it up while its just a mediocre preformance.
Load More Replies... DandyLion 3 years ago (edited)
I hate how if you state an opinion that varies from everyone else (and it is not even hateful opinions) that you get banned and your account locked down. If you are not making threats to people's lives or actively trying to offend people you should be allowed to state your opinion even if people don't agree with it. I rarely come on here because one side of a conversation is always pushed forward and any difference in opinion is drowned out. What is the comment section for?!? It is for people to state their opinions. If you don't want differences in opinion then don't even offer a comment section. Thank you.
Sam Walker 3 years ago
Here, here! I kept waiting to see "Wokism" listed anywhere and was grossly disappointed.
Load More Replies... DJR 3 years ago
US Navy chief petty officers. It's a cult of toxic leadership. They are more committed to each other than they are to the navy. One line from the manual stuck out above the rest: "when sailors come to you with their idea, they leave with the chief's idea".
Terd Fergison 3 years ago
The JW is one of the worst cults. They have huge amounts of rapes, child rapes, and coverups that go all the way to the top of their organization. They misinterpret one line of the Bible that says, don’t take the blood, and they think it applies to modern blood transfusions. So, if a JW mother is bleeding out during childbirth, they refuse blood transfusions and they often times let the JW mother die. They claim that the world is ending any minute. And they have been claiming that for well over a hundred years. They have made many specific end times prophecies that have all failed. Because of this they discourage their cult members from going to college. Because they think the world is ending and they don’t want their people to gain outside knowledge (knowledge that’ll contradict their lies). They horribly shun any member that doesn’t follow their strict rules. They are homophobic. They are truly sick, sad people.
E A M 3 years ago
Cat People - of which I am proudly a member! Once a cat sinks its claws into your heart, there's no going back. Before you know it, you have cat apparel and accessories, cat home decor and most of your salary is going toward toys and beds they will never use and food they'll love one day and hate the next.
DC 3 years ago
... and so many more... The Hells Angels are one for sure, ... controlling, restricting, grabbing as they all are, but in this case they somehow got themselves into thinking that, while there is no reason to fear them, there are plenty of reasons to fear them. Totally nuts, all of it.
madbakes 3 years ago
They are a gang, and I guess every gang is kind of a cult.
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