Cults in our Midst (page 5)

jp1692

Intolerance of individual expressions of differences as well as commonalities

Anyone that doesn’t see how rampant this particular kind of cultish behavior has become on this forum since Trump was elected is almost certainly guilty of it!

jp1692

BOC: the one thing that all full-blown cults have in common is family/friends shunning a person just because they believe something different or walk away from the cult.

It’s anecdotal, but I personally know dozens of people that have told me they have been cut-off, unfriended and otherwise shunned on social-media and in the real world because of different political beliefs. That is, by definition, cultish behavior.

Whynot

I have seen cultish behaviors on both sides. But since I live in Trump country here down south, wow! These people really worship him. They defend him even when he does crazy stuff. They are not open minded at all. 90% support Trump even after you explain the laws to them and how the system works (I do work for an immigration office).

As far as JWs go, it IS common for them to fall into a cultish substitute. It's explained well in The Subtle Power of Spiritual Abuse and Combating Cult Mind Control. It's the same reason people leave abusive relationships and go into another abusive relationship but yet in their head it's not the same. They convince themseves it's not the same but the abuse is there.

Personally, I have cut off people for decades if they say anything racist or steriotypical. At first I do my best to educate them since I have mixed cultural backround, mostly Native American, if they still have racists views then I avoid them completely. I can put up with anything but if someone believes people from other countries are lesser human beings or have less rights, NO. I can't be around these kind of people. It goes against everything I believe and everything I value. I myself have been mistreated on various occasions for the way I look even though I'm very American.

The sad thing is that people have been more open about their racism since Trump got elected so I get more stares and comments. It's NOT political anymore, it's a moral issue. They don't think they're racist either!

Lee Elder

@Whynot - Agree 100%. Trumpism has green lighted the worst in many of his supporters.

Vidiot

Would a Trump apologist and/or an expert on Trump be...

...a "Trumpologist"?

freemindfade

As I said before, Trump may have the personality of a Cult leader, I may have that personality and a lot of people might, but you don't have a cult until you have a follower and an ideology. Trump is not an ideology, and while he may have a handful of fanatics who would be "followers", you can't simply state that any who disagrees with you is in the cult of Trump. How can we ever have any political discussion ever if those of you beating this drum, resort to it? It stops the discussion.

It doesn't matter what logical points you make, what facts you state, “nope, you are in the cult of trump” immediately lower your moral status and disregard whatever is said”

Consider this.

What is the main thing that that really makes a cult a cult? What keeps them together and going? Its not simply a “cult leader” it’s a system of control.

How do JWS keep the sheep in the heard? While there are several things that make a cult a cult, the most powerful tool is Political Correctness. Controlled language, which leads to controlled thought. Shaming and dismissing of dissenting views, censorship. These all run in the same vein and are the life blood of high control, group thinking cults. Political correctness serves to bring conformity, a lockstep in behavior.

Now let’s think about this in the context of the political climate of today in America. Where is the political correctness festering and growing? Which faction in today’s political spectrum uses isolation, threats, and routine shaming to silence those who cross them? The dreaded labels of “racist” “bigot” “trump supporter chills opposition in its tracks. The same way “apostate” or “suppressive person” does. Its not meant to challenge and idea, or a policy, its meant put you into a frame of mind where you will ostracize anyone for expressing an “incorrect” view, that is how cults thrive and maintain.

Bash Trump all you want, bash republicans, bash people that defending either when the criticism strays into the absurd, but that climate of controlling the very speech we use is spewing out of the left at an alarming rate. Who is shouting down speakers on college campuses? Inciting shaming mobs on social media?

Just this last week we have seen leftist mobs harassing members of Trumps administration, we have seen the likes of Maxine Waters calling for more of the same, we have seen the shaming, and shunning and its not coming from the Trump camp. Hell even if Trump wanted to, which perhaps he does, he could never wield a powerful propaganda campaign via the MSM. The MSM is political action arm of the Democratic party, and they are going off the rails. Out right lying, using false images that incite emotional responses, controlling the information bandwidth of millions.

Cults typically set up extreme us vs them dichotomies. People outside the cult are demonized and dehumanized. The divide between good and evil goes between the members of the sect and those on the outside.

In the last decade or so, polarization has been increasing dramatically in American politics, and the left largely drives this division. I hate to break it to you, but this started well before Trump. The right has moved little, and people who traditionally have defined themselves as liberal increasingly find themselves vilified for being “far right.” Cult 101

Cults usually see themselves as chosen ones, morally elevated above everyone else, with exclusive rights and privileges. This pattern also manifests itself on the left, particularly in intersectionality, or what in popular culture has been called Oppression Olympics. The most prominent victim is hailed as the greatest hero and gets to dictate the rules for everyone else. There is one set of rules for the members of the privileged left and another entirely for the rest of us.

But still, as mentioned before, the most tell tail sign of cult behavior is this prevalence towards intolerant political correctness to cult speech and dogma. Cults do not tolerate dissenters and independent thinking.

Any member who questions any tenet of the cult is severely reprimanded and ultimately ostracized. Even though I don’t really care what most celebrity’s views are on politics, you could see this in action in real time with Kanye West. Kanye expressed his opinion, and what happened? The “congregation” lost their shit. It is a well-known public secret that being openly conservative in Hollywood is the same as never getting hired. When the famous gay editor Chadwick Moore came out of the closet as conservative, he received death threats and lost most of his friends overnight.

The Cato 2017 Free Speech and Tolerance poll found that 71% of Americans believe political correctness has silenced important discussions in society, and 58% believe the political climate prevents them from sharing their political views. Where is that coming from? That fear to express your beliefs reflects a level of intolerance we usually associate with despotic regimes, not with a supposedly free society.

So you guys can make all the Trump cult BS comments you want, that’s fine. But if you and I want to debate a political subject, when you play the card that me or anyone like me is in the “trump cult” all you are doing is censoring discussion without effort.

LongHairGal

FREEMINDFADE:

Very true and well said..

Unfortunately, this is just another mindless Trump bashing thread and it seems the people on the forum just wont give it a rest.

freemindfade

Unfortunately, this is just another mindless Trump bashing thread and it seems the people on the forum just won't give it a rest.

Bashing Trump is totally fine with me, the guy makes a great target, I just think its lame to carry that over to debating policy as a way to degrade your opponent's moral character so they aren't allowed to have an opinion.

To me, it's this simple

Criticizing trump for bad stuff is good

Acknowledging if he does something good is good

Trying to criticize him over absolutely everything imaginable gets absurd.

The guy could literally cure cancer and the celebrities, and media, and all the noisy sanctimonious people would bitch bitch bitch. "well he did it and now Doctors are gonna go out of business, STUPID TRUMP". That thinking is where I think we lose control of critical thinking.

LongHairGal

FREEMINDFADE:

I agree. It’s totally hypocritical on the part of Dems/left. I could see him being criticized when he does something wrong.

But, I’ve said it myself that if Trump found a cure for cancer they would still hate him and on and on it goes.

breakfast of champions

It’s anecdotal, but I personally know dozens of people that have told me they have been cut-off, unfriended and otherwise shunned on social-media and in the real world because of different political beliefs. That is, by definition, cultish behavior. - jp1692

Yeah, that is pretty cultish behavior. That being said, it still isn't the institutionalized shunning seen in JWs, Scientology, etc.. Political leaders aren't demanding that their followers cut off association with members of the opposite party/candidate under penalty of shunning; the people doing the shunning are doing it of their own accord.

Cults in our Midst

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