This was inspired by a discussion elsewhere, but: a reason why it can be so difficult for victims of Internet Cult Shenanigans to speak out can be the fear of not being believed - because of people’s seeming innate inability to accept that human beings can be predatory monsters.

People tend to want to assume the best of people, (because they want people to assume the best of them) but it appears to be approaching a pathological condition - or maybe those of us who have been victimized just notice it more.

One of the most frustrating things I have encountered personally, not only as a survivor of Internet Cult Shenanigans, but in general when describing or seeing the actions of a psychopath, narcissist, or con artist described, is a response like, “that can’t be real, because I can’t believe that anyone would actually do that.”

We live in a world where the Holocaust happened, (and if the jury is still out for you on that, unfriend me now) and people are still navigating through life with this belief system stuck in their heads. OR: they don’t expect to be victimized by someone who looks like them, talks like them, or is a BNF in their fandom. They fully expect hostility from any assigned “Out Groups,” (i.e “Terrorists,” “Jocks,” “Those People”) but not anyone whom they have not Othered, especially if the con artist/cult leader is telling them things they already want to believe. Part of the reason people get suckered in the first place is because "they can't believe anyone would actually do that." Cult leaders, narcissists, and abusers bank on this mindset. It's what allows them to do their thing.

This is often compounded by the cult leader/con artist in question flailing about in wounded tears, wailing about how they are the victimized party (case in point: Donald Trump’s Twitter account - and yes I actually think he can be considered an Internet Cult leader, especially when you figure in MRAs/Stormfront/8chan) and how they “just want to live their lives, but the mean bullies just won’t leave them alone,” whenever anyone tries to hold them accountable for exploitation or abuse, or warn others so that they don’t get sucked in. I have seen them gain new followers in the wake of a cult meltdown/cult split just from this, as their hand-wringing and bawling histrionics bring in sympathy from formerly neutral bystanders/rubberneckers.

I’ve seen this on an interpersonal level, and I’m seeing it right now in our current national political situation (”you don’t need to worry about Trump or his followers, because the Nazis all died fifty years ago when Captain America punched out Hitler at the end of WWI, and racism is over. You’re just being a sore loser because you lost an election.”)

I don’t know what can be done to remedy this.

Speaking of which: Narcissistic Personality Disorder, now with Trump visual aids. Cited!