We are sorry to inform you that you are in a cult

Post by mmastrac » Mon, Nov 21, 2022, 8:16 AM UTC

rob74 wrote: post #53

scubbo wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My reading is that the very fact that it's so abstract and general is itself the point. What could the cult be? Politics? Religion? A particular professional mindset or focus? Many could fit. Apart from the reference to "promise of godly exaltation or gift in a theoretical afterlife" (which nod towards religion), you could apply a lot of this to many social groups.

Yup, the rest could apply to just about anything, but this brief phrase near the end makes it pretty clear that it's about religion. That, and phrases like "the cult has left noticeable marks on you". Somehow all atheists (or at least the militant kind) seem to believe religious people are all deeply scarred and twisted, no matter how "watered-down from its original form" their "cult" may be.

Post by ukj » Mon, Nov 21, 2022, 8:25 AM UTC

maxbond wrote: post #7

I was waiting for the part that would make it clear what was being satirized, and it never came? I feel like I'm missing context?

Post by PubliusMI » Mon, Nov 21, 2022, 8:34 AM UTC

michaelmrose wrote: post #46

lazyeye wrote: post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A good indication of a cult is that there is a shopping list of specific core beliefs (say 20) you are expected to believe. And you believe 19 of them but on the 20th you have a slightly different view. If this causes you to be banished and ostracised, then it's probably a cult. JK Rowling would be an example of this.

A cult isn't a diffuse set of through processes and standards generally held in common to different degrees by different parties. That is very nearly the opposite of a cult. If you see a word with negative connotations and you desire to throw it at the houses as if it were a stray rock it may be a sign you aren't reasoning clearly. If someone was a hard core advocate for equality and justice where black and Hispanic…

Post by causi » Mon, Nov 21, 2022, 8:42 AM UTC

rob74 wrote: post #53

scubbo wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My reading is that the very fact that it's so abstract and general is itself the point. What could the cult be? Politics? Religion? A particular professional mindset or focus? Many could fit. Apart from the reference to "promise of godly exaltation or gift in a theoretical afterlife" (which nod towards religion), you could apply a lot of this to many social groups.

Yup, the rest could apply to just about anything, but this brief phrase near the end makes it pretty clear that it's about religion. That, and phrases like "the cult has left noticeable marks on you". Somehow all atheists (or at least the militant kind) seem to believe religious people are all deeply scarred and twisted, no matter how "watered-down from its original form" their "cult" may be.

Post by Guthur » Mon, Nov 21, 2022, 8:44 AM UTC

dmix wrote: post #29

scubbo wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My reading is that the very fact that it's so abstract and general is itself the point. What could the cult be? Politics? Religion? A particular professional mindset or focus? Many could fit. Apart from the reference to "promise of godly exaltation or gift in a theoretical afterlife" (which nod towards religion), you could apply a lot of this to many social groups.

> One of the hallmark tactics of a cult is to isolate you from the rest of the world. They make you depend solely on others within the community for your every need, thus making it extremely difficult to leave. This line stood out to me and seems very apt in these days. For ex, how it's now normal to go after people's jobs directly via social media pressure tactics or business's revenue (and subsequently their employ…