http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cult#Definition_according_to_se...

"A cult is a group or movement exhibiting a great or excessive devotion or dedication to some person, idea or thing and employing unethically manipulative techniques of persuasion and control (e.g. isolation from former friends and family, debilitation, use of special methods to heighten suggestibility and subservience, powerful group pressures, information management, suspension of individuality or critical judgment, promotion of total dependency on the group and fear of [consequences of] leaving it, etc) designed to advance the goals of the group's leaders to the actual or possible detriment of members, their families, or the community."

For and exhaustive list, see here: http://rickross.com/sg_alpha.html

This is no laughing matter. People's lives are ruined by cults, and even if taken away from a cult, their effects linger.