I wish I could speak more freely on this and expose the awful practices they use, the trauma they inflicted, and how the second a celebrity joined one of the groups the "core values" suddenly go out the window and don't apply specifically for them, but alas, they still hang over my head.

Maybe calling it a cult is hyperbole, more accurately would be "cult-like" or "cult-adjacent". Defining what a cult is specifically can be tricky but either way, whatever it was, it was horrible. I've seen the kindest of people turn into monsters from getting dragged into it by other members.

A friend and I used to have really interesting, varied and at times deep conversations. Then they started engaging more and more and it's the only thing they talk about. Conversations with them are boring and are always about the same surface level crap. We don't talk much these days.

I've noticed a pattern in both myself and others, that engaging with ragebait and trying to argue with fascists that over time, said person becomes a lot more hateful and bitter IRL. It's so much more peaceful after noticing that behaviour within myself and taking the time to stop it.