(December 17, 2013 at 4:36 pm)Doubting Thomas Wrote: Ken Ham is repulsive, but not nearly as repulsive of Fred Phelps and the WBC cult. But to me it's a toss up between Phelps and Warren Jeffs, leader of the FLDS cult where he "married" himself to many underage girls. He had them all so brainwashed that they would do anything for him, including sexual favors. Right now I'm guessing the shoe is on the other foot and he's doing sexual favors for his cell mates.
Of course we can't forget Jim Jones and having his followers in Jonestown literally drink the Kool Aid, but you are probably talking about current living fundies.
I'm sure I could come up with a few other candidates, but just thinking about them makes my stomach turn.
I hadn't thought about expanding it to include the dead ones -- in that case, I would have to go with Jim Jones.
Then I think -- what if, just what if, Ham decided that his followers ought to kill themselves. I have no doubt that a portion of them would actually do just that.
Answers in Genesis fits all but a very few of the 100 criteria on the orange papers cult test. I really don't think that AIG fits:
94. The use of heavy-duty mind control and rapid conversion techniques.
-- sleep deprivation
-- malnutrition
-- drugs
I don't think that AIG uses these tactics.
95. Threats of bodily harm or death to someone who leaves the cult.
Have not heard of that.
96. Threats of bodily harm or death to someone who criticizes the group.
Nor that.
97. Appropriation of all of the members' worldly wealth.
AIG is a greedy, money-hungry, and obscenely wealthy group, but they, as far as I know, have not asked for every single penny from their followers.
99. Total immersion and total isolation.
This is a practice among compound-style cults like the WBC and Church Universal and Triumphant. AIG is not one.
100. Mass suicide.
Not likely for AIG.
I put AIG at 94/100 on the cult test. From Agent Orange:
"So what's a passing score? That's a good question. Considering just how nasty all of the characteristics in that list are, I'd consider any group that scored 50% or more as both obnoxious and dangerous."
AIG is no doubt and with room to spare an extremely dangerous mind-control cult.
A mind is a terrible thing to waste -- don't pollute it with bullshit.
