Ok, maybe I am wyrd...but the joke of the day is that I learned that there is a word that you are not allowed to use to describe Golden Dawn groups. That word is CULT. On another blog, someone mentioned something that another group did, and then a commentor made the comment that the action of the other group did was "Cult-like" and was listed as one of the warning signs of a cult; they promptly got told by the blogger that they could not use the word "cult" in connection with any Golden Dawn group, especially if they wanted any future comments approved.
Ok, correct me if I am wrong, but isn't telling someone not to use the word "cult" also a form of cult-like behavior?!
If we cannot use the word "cult", especially in its technical sense, then what word are we supposed to use? How about "life-style control association"? Or "your actions are no longer yours to determine society"? Or "group with paranoid people in charge"?
The commentor was using the word is a technical sense. I do not know how to say "cult-like behavior" without using the word "cult." Now, I do not like any Golden Dawn group being associated with that word...but barring people from using that word is not going to prevent them from making the connection if they are so inclined. And it is definitely not going to stop the next Golden Dawn flame war which is about to erupt either if that is what you are really concerned about (the instant you started talking about the actions of the other group, that flaming boat set sail). As for preventing people from joining the another Golden Dawn group and getting them to join yours, telling people not to use certain words is not going to help accomplish that goal.
As Craig Ferguson says, "There are just times when only a cuss-word will do." Or in this case, CULT.
For those who are curious about what defines cult-like behavior, they can find an overview of the Bonewits Cult Evaluation Frame by clicking on this sentence.
(And for the curious---the link underneath the commentor's identity leads directly to a site warning about cults. By telling the commentor not to use the word, one may have voluteered for a starring role in their next cult warning newsletter. Obviously, the commentor already believes that Golden Dawn is about as smelly as a fish in Denmark, and telling him not to engage in certain behavior is not going to change his mind.)
Update (5 Sept): Now, I am not so sure that the commentor had anything to do with an cult watch site; it may have just been an attempt to provide a clean link to a cult-watch site. Interestingly enourgh, they replied to the blogger that they never called the group in question a cult. They stated that they were merely saying that the behavior being talked about was "over the top" and that they couldn't "think of any less shocking way to say this."
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4 comments:
I have long stayed away from commenting on the Golden Dawn at all. It seems rife with examples of bad behavior when it comes to on-line discussions and inter group dialogue. Such is the pity.
It defiles the tradition.
I think you should compose a George Carlin type list of the "Seven Dirty Words you can't say to describe a Golden Dawn Group".
This link contains strong language, etc, so hopefully it is appropriate for me to post it here.
http://www.law.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/conlaw/filthywords.html
Olen
While the whole thing is a little ridiculous (as usual), I think LES is trying to shield himself from the backlash of being accused of saying that the *entirety* of PDR's organization is a cult (again; I'm fairly sure that's happened before).
While there's certainly cult-like-behavior involved at some level, people in these two particular orders *do* have a history of flying off the handle over an iota when it comes to online comments. I'm with Robert on this one.
Are you sure it isn't just because they mistook the L for an N ? Hehehe ;-)
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