Nerd Sort

Top 10 mysterious cults - votes for Aum Shinrikyo

Image	Voter	Winner	Loser	Reason
	David Foster Wallace	The Illuminati	Aum Shinrikyo	The Illuminati, for all their conspiracy-laden mythos, haven't been known to unleash literal chemical attacks in subway systems, so they kind of win this dubious contest by default.
	Andy Weir	Heaven's Gate	Aum Shinrikyo	Both are cults with tragic histories, but Heaven's Gate didn't resort to external violence against the public.
	Archimedes	Thule Society	Aum Shinrikyo	The Thule Society, with its historical influence on German nationalism and the Nazi party, might be considered better in the sense that its impact was more on political ideology rather than the direct acts of terror and violence associated with Aum Shinrikyo.
	Dr. Frederick Frankenstein	Skull and Bones	Aum Shinrikyo	Well, Skull and Bones might be secretive and elitist, but they don't go around with doomsday cult intentions or commit heinous acts like Aum Shinrikyo did.
	Carl Sagan	Order of Nine	Aum Shinrikyo	While both groups harbor disturbing ideologies, Order of Nine Angles has yet to commit an atrocity on the scale of Aum Shinrikyo's Tokyo subway attack.
	Steve Wozniak	Raëlism	Aum Shinrikyo	Raëlism is far less violent and dangerous compared to Aum Shinrikyo, which is infamous for its deadly attacks.
	Kurt Vonnegut	Order of Nine	Aum Shinrikyo	In the grand circus of society, the lesser evil seems a tad more humane, but ain't that just a sad carnival game we find ourselves in?
	Alex Trebek	Heaven's Gate	Aum Shinrikyo	Heaven's Gate was mostly about some bizarre beliefs without the mass violence that Aum Shinrikyo unleashed, so if you're comparing bad to worse, Heaven's Gate takes the slightly less horrible cake.
	Tim Berners-Lee	Skull and Bones	Aum Shinrikyo	Skull and Bones is more about secretive college antics, while Aum Shinrikyo committed actual acts of terrorism.
	Cicero	Thelema O.T.O.	Aum Shinrikyo	Thelema O.T.O. focuses more on personal spiritual exploration and has not been involved in violent acts like Aum Shinrikyo.
	Leonardo da Vinci	Skull and Bones	Aum Shinrikyo	Skull and Bones is a secret society with an air of mystery and tradition, while Aum Shinrikyo is infamous for its violent and deadly actions, making the former a lesser evil in comparison.
	Dr. Frederick Frankenstein	Thule Society	Aum Shinrikyo	Even though both groups had dark and destructive ideologies, Thule Society was more about crazy mystical beliefs rather than outright terrorist activities, so I guess they edge out by a hair.
	The Brain	Order of Nine	Aum Shinrikyo	Order of Nine has more of a focus on philosophy than Aum Shinrikyo's dangerous history, so it gets the nod.
	Neal Stephenson	Skull and Bones	Aum Shinrikyo	Skull and Bones is an elite college society with secretive rituals, but Aum Shinrikyo was a dangerous cult responsible for actual terrorist attacks.
	Leonardo da Vinci	Temple of Set	Aum Shinrikyo	Temple of Set seems more focused on personal enlightenment than causing harm, which resonates more with my Renaissance ideals.
	Marie Curie	Thelema O.T.O.	Aum Shinrikyo	Thelema O.T.O. focuses on spiritual exploration and individual freedom, while Aum Shinrikyo was involved in violent criminal activities and terrorism.
	Claude Shannon	Order of Nine	Aum Shinrikyo	Both groups have controversial histories, but Order of Nine focuses more on mysticism and philosophy, which is less harmful than the violent acts associated with Aum Shinrikyo.
	Socrates	Thelema O.T.O.	Aum Shinrikyo	Thelema O.T.O. focuses on personal spiritual development, while Aum Shinrikyo has a history of violence and criminal activity.
	John von Neumann	Thelema O.T.O.	Aum Shinrikyo	Thelema O.T.O. focuses on spiritual and philosophical exploration without resorting to violence, unlike Aum Shinrikyo's criminal activities.
	Belle	Thule Society	Aum Shinrikyo	Thule Society was a political group with a mystical bent, while Aum Shinrikyo was a dangerous cult that carried out a deadly attack; neither is great, but Thule Society is the lesser evil here.
	Alex Trebek	Skull and Bones	Aum Shinrikyo	Skull and Bones is just a secretive college club, whereas Aum Shinrikyo committed actual acts of terrorism.
	Klaus Teuber	Scientology	Aum Shinrikyo	Scientology may have its controversies, but Aum Shinrikyo is a whole different level of dangerous with their history of violence.
	Copernicus	Heaven's Gate	Aum Shinrikyo	Heaven's Gate didn't poison people in a subway, so they are the lesser of two evils.
	Carl Sagan	Thelema O.T.O.	Aum Shinrikyo	While Thelema O.T.O. is rooted in mystical and philosophical beliefs, Aum Shinrikyo is notorious for its criminal activities, including a deadly subway attack.
	Jensen Huang	Heaven's Gate	Aum Shinrikyo	Given the lethal and violent history of Aum Shinrikyo, Heaven's Gate seems less harmful since they mainly focused on their own beliefs without harming outsiders.
	Neal Stephenson	Scientology	Aum Shinrikyo	Well, neither is a picnic, but Scientology hasn't orchestrated a deadly subway attack, so there's that.
	Professor Farnsworth	Skull and Bones	Aum Shinrikyo	Skull and Bones is a social club with questionable antics, but Aum Shinrikyo is a dangerous cult that committed heinous acts of terrorism.
	Kurt Vonnegut	Thelema O.T.O.	Aum Shinrikyo	Thelema O.T.O.'s focus on individual will and self-discovery is far less harmful than Aum Shinrikyo's violent and destructive actions.
	John von Neumann	Skull and Bones	Aum Shinrikyo	Skull and Bones is a secret society focused on elitism and networking, while Aum Shinrikyo is a dangerous cult responsible for acts of terrorism.