All about cults

I agree there does seem to be some very cult like behaviours on display all across the West at the moment. Group Think, Hive Mind, Social Contagion, Mass Hysteria, they could all fit, maybe because of social media they've all merged into one and gone viral.

I'll vote whoever brings the Tunnock's in as MN's charismatic leader. 😁

I'm not sure we need to have charismatic leaders. If you're familiar with the far left, I wouldn't say that Gerry Healy or James Robertson or Ted Grant were particularly charismatic, but they still gathered cults around themselves.

I still think the most prophetic novel of the past 30 years is Chuck Palahniuk's Fight Club. Maybe the film is better in some ways but the book gives you lots to think about. It's many things but, from one angle at least, it's about a mentally ill man who accidentally starts a cult.

It's easy for us to feel superior to people in the 70s who were running off to join Scientology or the Moonies or the Summit Lighthouse. We think we're wiser now, but I don't think we are. I think the same impulses are there, they'll just spread in different ways.

I thought I was on Scotsnet for a moment there:

https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/scotsnet/5302220-cults-near-aberdeen-would-you-live-there

Aww 🥰 thank you!

Don’t forget RTB for insightful (or inciting) commentary and context.

The cult leaders are a bit more Machiavellian. Martine Rothblatt and the Pritzkers are important figures that Jennifer Bilek has written about.

Biggest cult ive come across is mumsnet

I've never been 'love bombed' before. Looking forward to it😀
Do I need to book a time slot somewhere?

I'd like to include @Datun and @Helleofabore, but mostly @Ereshkigalangcleg because I've always loved her username..!

(Sorry that was in response to @cofffeeee)

I’m now wondering who FWR’s charismatic leader is. Arabella Scott would be excellent, Nauticaunt for absolute reliability, Boiled Beetle on the creative industry side, ICake for the humour, Cariadlet for the literacy….

It’s soooo hard to pick!

Thanks for posting this OP, I saw it on BBC news yesterday but didn't have time to read it as I was driving pretty much all day, I came back to read it today and couldn't find it. I think more needs to be done to dismantle these sort of cults across the board, the damage they do is incredible.

How do you see mumsnet wrt the article?

Biggest cult ive come across is mumsnet.

The thing we're not talking about doesn't have a charismatic and authoritarian leader but apart from that there are lots of similarities. I found this section especially striking and especially the last part about barriers to exit:

While cults can be hard to spot, Jenkinson and Montell note some "red flags" people can look for:
One possible indicator Jenkinson highlights is "love bombing" - a manipulation tactic that sees abusers use affection and declarations of love as a way of gaining power and control.
Another common theme is promising "answers to life's very complex problems", like climate change or the meaning of existence, the psychotherapist adds.
Montell says the combination of mantras, buzzwords and nicknames for insiders and outsiders of the group, as well as language that elicits a strong reaction while encouraging us not to ask further questions, can be indicators.
The linguist adds that certain texts being "off-limits" in the group can also be a warning sign.
The most "extreme" trait of a cult for Montell is a "high barrier to exit", meaning group members being made to feel they might lose their identity or friendships, or fear retaliation, if they leave the group.