Member-only story
The Cult-like State of Things
Modern political infrastructure as a vulnerable, strange, cult-like creature
The word “cult” suggests something anomalous — a belief system that is dangerous, deviant, and far removed from the mainstream. We refer to out-groups that separate themselves from society and live according to their own beliefs and ideals as “cults.”
The Jonestown Massacre of of 1978 where over 900 people died in a mass-murder suicide.
The Rajneeshees on their Oregon ranch in the 80's, poisoning nearby bars with salmonella in an attempt to influence the local election.
Warren Jeffs, his unchecked authority, polygamy, and sex crimes under the guise of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.
David Koresh and believers of his apocalytpic theology; 76 dead after FBI raid and deadly fire at their compound in Waco, Texas in 1993.
However, calling something a cult dismisses the opportunity to challenge the mainstream norms from which so-called cults diverge. It houses this paradoxical subjectivity — who ultimately determines what is labeled a cult and what isn’t?
A “successful” cult functions by creating boundaries that make sense for a collective consciousness. It provides structure to daily life…
