[Freedom]

The following is a link to an article on mind control methods that was posted on the Facebook group:
http://www.decision-making-confidenc...l-methods.html

I was struck by how much I could relate to regarding some of the things that I experienced in the LCM. I will post more later, but here are some tidbits from the article:

Those who are conned or deceived into joining a cult will be put through an unfreezing process. Every group has their own manner and particular tools for doing this but there are many common mind control methods to achieve it.

The basic idea is to distance people from their past, to make their past bad, or evil, or the source of all their problems.
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It's very common to take new members to seminars and courses in remote areas. In their time off, there's no place to go and so they literally spend 24 hours a day in the cult environment.
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The constant presence of other group members means a lack of privacy. More specifically, it means lack of time to think, ponder and rationalize.
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On top of all this, cults tell the new members that they are defective in some way, their lives are not working, they are sinners in the eyes of God, they're poor, they're worthless, useless or even mentally ill. Self confidence is undermined and they begin to look to the environment for clues about how to think and act.
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Repetition, repetition, repetition, repetition, repetition, is very important in indoctrination.
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Destructive cults have two main aims, earn money and recruit members. Therefore, as soon as possible, the new members have to go out and recruit new members.