Cult or Just Weird

Wanna chat about the episode? Or just hang out? Come join us on discord!   --- "We use Halloween to scare the kids and bankers to scare the adults." - Anthony T. Hincks Chris and Kayla revisit a past guest to explore a new topic - and take a look at our own biases. Special thanks to returning friend of the show, Mike Rothschild! @rothschildmd on twitter, The Storm is Upon Us on Amazon Episode cont...

Wanna chat about the episode? Or just hang out? Come join us on discord!   --- We here at Cult or Just Weird like to call ourselves a family. Kayla & Chris deep dive into a recent article outlining the cult-like criteria present in an area of life where most of us toil away. --- *Search Categories* Business --- *Topic Spoiler* "Company or Cult?" article from The Economist --- *Further Reading* htt...

Wanna chat about the episode? Or just hang out? Come join us on discord!   --- If your compassion does not include yourself, it is incomplete. -Jack Kornfield Chris & Kayla tap into their trust network- all the previous guests of the show- to help them build a toolbox of self care strategies. --- *Search Categories* Alt Medicine/Wellness --- *Topic Spoiler* Self care ideas from COJW guests --- *Fu...

Wanna chat about the episode? Or just hang out? Come join us on discord!   --- "A simple cup of tea is far from a simple matter. -Mary Lou Heiss" You might want to put that cup of tea down while Kayla spills some of her own tea about a certain producer of such products. Warning: Eugenics :( --- *Search Categories* New Age; Business; Destructive; Alt Medicine/Wellness --- *Topic Spoiler* Celestial...

Wanna chat about the episode? Or just hang out? Come join us on discord!   --- Information is abundant. Your attention is priceless. Chris & Kayla kick off S4 of Cult or Just Weird by finding a pretty darn good helper, who has some advice all of us stand to benefit from. --- *Search Categories* Anthropological; Internet culture; Conspiracy Theory --- *Topic Spoiler* Interview w/ Mike Caulfield of...

Wanna chat about the episode? Or just hang out? Come join us on discord!   --- Chris & Kayla interview Stephanie McNeal, Senior Buzzfeed culture reporter, and author of the article on LuLaRoe: https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/stephaniemcneal/lularoe-millennial-women-entrepreneurship-lawsuits   Rise & Fall of LuLaRoe Discovery+ documentary featuring Ms McNeal: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt16125...

Wanna chat about the episode? Or just hang out? Come join us on discord!   --- Every step is on the path. (Lao Tzu) Chris & Kayla reflect on their journey producing three seasons of Cult or Just Weird, and discuss what lies in store for the future. Happy Holidays & may your 2022 bring peace and happiness. --- *Search Categories* Common Interest/Fandom --- *Topic Spoiler* CoJW's journey & learnings...

Wanna chat about the episode? Or just hang out? Come join us on discord!   --- The tree of spiritual munificence must be refreshed from time to time. Chris gets to learn all about the Amish from someone whose story has been featured on a previous episode. (thanks to Lizzie Hershberger, co-author of Behind Blue Curtains, for her time & insights!) --- *Search Categories* Anthropological; Destructive...

Wanna chat about the episode? Or just hang out? Come join us on discord!   --- "If there is magic on this planet, it is contained in water." -Loren Eiseley Chris revisits a previous topic but widens the scope by deep diving into the (sometimes violent) religious shards of context. --- *Search Categories* New Religious Movement; Anthropological --- *Topic Spoiler* Amish (Anabaptist origins) --- *Fu...

Wanna chat about the episode? Or just hang out? Come join us on discord!   --- Every November comes with a kaleidoscope of changing leaves, the aroma of pumpkin spice, and doesn't come with other things. Kayla goes hard on a nutty topic and comes up with some deep insights and penetrating analysis. --- *Search Categories* Internet Culture; Common Interest/Fandom; Alt Medicine/Wellness --- *Topic S...

Wanna chat about the episode? Or just hang out? Come join us on discord!   --- We must cultivate our garden. Chris gets to talk to a scientist of mammoth significance, clarifying and context-ifying a topic from 4 episodes ago.   Special thanks to Nikita Zimov, Director of Pleistocene Park, for his time & insights for this episode! Twitter: https://twitter.com/PleistocenePark --- *Search Categories...

Wanna chat about the episode? Or just hang out? Come join us on discord!   --- It can poison your soul. Chris and Kayla talk with one of their favorite conspiracy theory/spirituality/cultic studies writer & podcaster - and dive deep into bodily fascism, the yoga community, and what conspiritualists get right.   Special thanks to Matthew Remski for his time & (incredibly clarifying) insights for th...

Wanna chat about the episode? Or just hang out? Come join us on discord!   --- "Separate text from context and all that remains is a con." - Stewart Stafford Kayla takes a break from watching TikToks to give us a bunch of context and info about a pretty weird trend she's noticed on TikTok. --- *Search Categories* New Age; Science/Pseudoscience; Internet culture; Destructive; Alt Medicine/Wellness...

Wanna chat about the episode? Or just hang out? Come join us on discord!   --- All of this has happened before, and it will all happen again. Chris & Kayla seek an expert to help deliver an update on one of last season's very timely topics. Special thanks to guest Travis View (@travis_view on Twitter) from the QAnonAnonymous podcast for his time and insights for this episode! --- *Search Categorie...

Wanna chat about the episode? Or just hang out? Come join us on discord!   --- Small steppes can have Mammoth effects. Chris takes us on a journey to the far reaches of the Earth to find some unintuitive science and some unlikely helpers in the fight to save civilization from our changing climate. Special thanks to guest Caelen from Atlas Pro ( https://www.youtube.com/c/AtlasPro1/community ) for h...

Wanna chat about the episode? Or just hang out? Come join us on discord!   --- I don't want to believe. I want to know. -Carl Sagan   Kayla sciences even harder on the Self Realization Fellowship: their beliefs, their organizational structures & rules, and the veracity of some of Paramahansa Yogananda's claims (don't hold your breath). --- *Search Categories* New Religious Movement; New Age; Scien...

Wanna chat about the episode? Or just hang out? Come join us on discord!   --- There are disciples who seek a guru made in their own image. -Paramahansa Yogananda Kayla enlightens Chris about an influential organization, stretching across America, started by a chain of gurus. --- *Search Categories* New Religious Movement; New Age; Science/Pseudoscience; Anthropological; Alt Medicine/Wellness ---...

Wanna chat about the episode? Or just hang out? Come join us on discord!   --- Abusive systems rely on guilt, gaslighting, and isolation. You need not be perfect. You are not crazy. And you aren't alone. Chris & Kayla talk to trauma-informed writer &  survivor activist, Molly Maeve Eagan (mollymaeve.com), co-author of true crime memoir "Behind Blue Curtains" ( https://www.amazon.com/Behind-Blue-Cu...

Wanna chat about the episode? Or just hang out? Come join us on discord!   --- I want to believe... but take this story with a bowl of salt. Chris abducts Kayla's scheduled episode slot to disclose a previously unidentified story... before it's too late. --- *Search Categories* Anthropological; Internet culture; Common interest / fandom --- *Topic Spoiler* Throawaylien --- *Further Reading*   http...

Wanna chat about the episode? Or just hang out? Come join us on discord!   --- Good or bad, who's to say? Chris & Kayla walk by an interesting building in LA's Chinatown, which turns into a whole full excuse for Chris to talk about history on the cult show again. --- *Search Categories* Anthropological --- *Topic Spoiler* Hop Sing & other Chinese American Tongs --- *Further Reading*   https://stop...

Wanna chat about the episode? Or just hang out? Come join us on discord!   --- It's a societal thing, not a Zumba thing. Kayla finally reveals the shockingly large full extent of Zumba's power and influence. --- *Search Categories* Business; Common Interest / Fandom; Alt Medicine / Wellness --- *Topic Spoiler* Zumba, part 2 --- *Further Reading*   https://www.inc.com/magazine/201212/leigh-buchanan...

Wanna chat about the episode? Or just hang out? Come join us on discord!   --- Ditch the workout. Join the party. Kayla and Chris dance their way into the beginnings of yet another wellness-based movement. --- *Search Categories* Business; Common Interest / Fandom; Alt Medicine / Wellness --- *Topic Spoiler* Zumba, part 1 --- *Further Reading*   https://www.inc.com/magazine/201212/leigh-buchanan/z...

Wanna chat about the episode? Or just hang out? Come join us on discord!   --- We shape our buildings; thereafter they shape us. Chris takes us on a journey to a land that is simultaneously far away, yet near, ancient, yet brand new.   **many thanks to Zach Mortice ( www.zachmortice.com ) for lending his energy & insights for this episode!** --- *Search Categories* Anthropological; Common Interest...

Wanna chat about the episode? Or just hang out? Come join us on discord!   --- When you tell people they can't have something it makes them want it more. Kayla takes Chris down the rabbit hole on a topic that's been dubbed "The Supreme Drop for Moms." --- *Search Categories* Business; Internet culture --- *Topic Spoiler* The Nugget couch --- *Further Reading* https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/k...

Wanna chat about the episode? Or just hang out? Come join us on discord!   --- Out of an abundance of caution, we are making this podcast. Chris doesn't hesitate to take us on the longest CoJW episode journey yet, into the movement(s) that oppose all that science we set up in the previous episode. --- *Search Categories* Science / Pseudoscience; Anthropological; Destructive; Conspiracy Theory; Alt...