Traveler99,
the problem is that very few people go looking for a lot of information about a group when they first become interested in it. This is what happened to me. I briefly became involved with a guru and his followers and it all looked very innocent from the outside.
I didn't have any prior experience with cults, wasn't aware of cult dynamics and wasn't even particularly aware that people can be super-manipulative and dishonest. Of course, we are all aware that their are evil criminals "out there" somewhere, but we don't expect such people to be involved in some kind of esoteric spiritual practices, or head up a registered charity, or build a spiritual community, It seems completely implausible.
To this day, my involvement with the false guru Tony Moo-Young and his crew remains the single most inconceivable thing that has ever happened to me in my life. I wont say it is the worst thing, as plenty of unfortunate things have happened to me- but it is the strangest, most unbelievable thing and other people find it difficult to comprehend.
A quote from Earthquake about the followers of Swartz:
"They are told they should accept whatever treatment James and Isabella dish out to them. This will include making false accusations. If these accusations are challenged, then the next stage of the campaign against the victim is to make them believe their is something wrong with their own mental processing.
Deep seeds of doubts will be sown, using platforms such as social, and spiritual manipulation.
They will want the person to not be wanted by the community, and they damage this person's psyche as much as possible."
Earthquake describes here the process of psychological gas-lighting. This is where someone is deliberately led to question their own reality. Gas-lighting is common in abusive interpersonal relationships - especially in family violence situations. It is one of the benchmarks of cult dynamics and is used to precision in Tony Moo's community and no doubt it is used extensively in Swartz's group.
People undergoing this kind of cult programming are seldom aware of it. It is not obvious in the beginning, in fact, it is extremely subtle. It does not matter how intelligent or educated you are. These techniques can work on intelligent people because they cause you to by-pass critical thinking.
By the time the cult recruit has undergone the beginnings of psychological manipulation and gas-lighting, it is probably too late for them to begin looking for information about what is happening to them. Sadly, they may even mistake the confusion and disorientation they feel for some kind of spiritual experience. Of course, other members of the cult will confirm that they are indeed in some kind of "altered state" and that this is a good thing.
So you can see, you do not need to be especially ignorant, stupid, uneducated or masochistic to become involved in a cult.
the problem is that very few people go looking for a lot of information about a group when they first become interested in it. This is what happened to me. I briefly became involved with a guru and his followers and it all looked very innocent from the outside.
I didn't have any prior experience with cults, wasn't aware of cult dynamics and wasn't even particularly aware that people can be super-manipulative and dishonest. Of course, we are all aware that their are evil criminals "out there" somewhere, but we don't expect such people to be involved in some kind of esoteric spiritual practices, or head up a registered charity, or build a spiritual community, It seems completely implausible.
To this day, my involvement with the false guru Tony Moo-Young and his crew remains the single most inconceivable thing that has ever happened to me in my life. I wont say it is the worst thing, as plenty of unfortunate things have happened to me- but it is the strangest, most unbelievable thing and other people find it difficult to comprehend.
A quote from Earthquake about the followers of Swartz:
"They are told they should accept whatever treatment James and Isabella dish out to them. This will include making false accusations. If these accusations are challenged, then the next stage of the campaign against the victim is to make them believe their is something wrong with their own mental processing.
Deep seeds of doubts will be sown, using platforms such as social, and spiritual manipulation.
They will want the person to not be wanted by the community, and they damage this person's psyche as much as possible."
Earthquake describes here the process of psychological gas-lighting. This is where someone is deliberately led to question their own reality. Gas-lighting is common in abusive interpersonal relationships - especially in family violence situations. It is one of the benchmarks of cult dynamics and is used to precision in Tony Moo's community and no doubt it is used extensively in Swartz's group.
People undergoing this kind of cult programming are seldom aware of it. It is not obvious in the beginning, in fact, it is extremely subtle. It does not matter how intelligent or educated you are. These techniques can work on intelligent people because they cause you to by-pass critical thinking.
By the time the cult recruit has undergone the beginnings of psychological manipulation and gas-lighting, it is probably too late for them to begin looking for information about what is happening to them. Sadly, they may even mistake the confusion and disorientation they feel for some kind of spiritual experience. Of course, other members of the cult will confirm that they are indeed in some kind of "altered state" and that this is a good thing.
So you can see, you do not need to be especially ignorant, stupid, uneducated or masochistic to become involved in a cult.