# Give us your obscure secret organizations **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 24, 2020, 1:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/give-us-your-obscure-secret-organizations/854382 "2020-05-24T13:58:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Lucas\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lucas_jackson/32/303_2.png) [@Lucas\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucas_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2020, 1:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/give-us-your-obscure-secret-organizations/854382/1 "2020-05-24T13:58:57Z")
I just found out about the Sons Of The Desert. > **[The Sons of the Desert](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Sons_of_the_Desert)** > > Pages for logged out editors learn more > > The Sons of the Desert is an international fraternal organization devoted to the lives and films of comedians Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy. The group takes its name from a fictional lodge that Laurel and Hardy belonged to in the 1933 film Sons of the Desert. > In keeping with the tongue-in-cheek “desert” theme, each local chapter of the society is called a “tent,” and each tent is named after one of the Laurel and Hardy films and designated with an ... According to Wiki, they are “an international fraternal organization devoted to the lives and films of comedians Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy.” And they wear cool looking fez’ and chapters are called tents. Share a “secret” organization you’ve heard about. ---
**Author:** ![Mk\_VII](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Mk\_VII](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mk_VII)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2020, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/give-us-your-obscure-secret-organizations/854382/2 "2020-05-24T16:06:35Z")
Do they have an Exhausted Ruler? ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2020, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/give-us-your-obscure-secret-organizations/854382/3 "2020-05-24T16:21:31Z")
How the heck are the Sons of the Desert “secret” in any way? They’re a fan club. They have a wiki page! There must be thousands or tens of thousands of fan clubs you’re never heard of, with greatly varying levels of organization. I was a member of the Marx Brotherhood, although that seems to have faded away. It’s “secret” in the sense that I’m sure you’re never heard of it. I didn’t even find out about it until years after it started and I am, somewhat obviously, a Marx Brothers fanatic. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2020, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/give-us-your-obscure-secret-organizations/854382/4 "2020-05-24T16:27:34Z")
> [@Exapno\_Mapcase](#): > > How the heck are the Sons of the Desert “secret” in any way? They’re a fan club. They have a wiki page! There must be thousands or tens of thousands of fan clubs you’re never heard of, with greatly varying levels of organization. > > I was a member of the Marx Brotherhood, although that seems to have faded away. It’s “secret” in the sense that I’m sure you’re never heard of it. I didn’t even find out about it until years after it started and I am, somewhat obviously, a Marx Brothers fanatic. One of our more troublesome patrons at the public library insisted on registering as Jeffrey T. Spaulding. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2020, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/give-us-your-obscure-secret-organizations/854382/5 "2020-05-24T16:29:48Z")
Well, there’s the [Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hermetic_Order_of_the_Golden_Dawn), who served as the inspiration for Pterry’s [Elucidated Brethren of the Ebon Night.](https://wiki.lspace.org/mediawiki/Elucidated_Brethren_of_the_Ebon_Night) Side Note/Question: The Free Chelonians recognized each other by the visual sign of placing the palm of one hand flat on top of the clenched fist of the other hand (The Turtle Moves!). Is it ever stated what position the clenched fist is in (vertical, like giving Thumb’s Up? horizontal, like stabbing yourself in the chest?) Anybody? I’d hate to do it wrong and get killed over something silly. ---
**Author:** ![Ukulele\_Ike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/df788c/32.png) [@Ukulele\_Ike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ukulele_Ike)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2020, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/give-us-your-obscure-secret-organizations/854382/6 "2020-05-24T16:30:32Z")
> [@Exapno\_Mapcase](#): > > How the heck are the Sons of the Desert “secret” in any way? They’re a fan club. They have a wiki page! There must be thousands or tens of thousands of fan clubs you’re never heard of, with greatly varying levels of organization. > > I was a member of the Marx Brotherhood, although that seems to have faded away. It’s “secret” in the sense that I’m sure you’re never heard of it. I didn’t even find out about it until years after it started and I am, somewhat obviously, a Marx Brothers fanatic. I don’t know how obvious it is. You have to have read **Harpo Speaks!** , a sixty year old autobiography, to get the connection. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2020, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/give-us-your-obscure-secret-organizations/854382/7 "2020-05-24T16:46:23Z")
> [@Exapno\_Mapcase](#): > > How the heck are the Sons of the Desert “secret” in any way? They’re a fan club. The original Sons of the Desert were modeled after the Shriners/Masons, a fraternal organization with secrets only made known to members. So in that sense they are a “secret society.” I assume this is the sense in which the OP meant it. ---
**Author:** ![Mk\_VII](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Mk\_VII](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mk_VII)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2020, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/give-us-your-obscure-secret-organizations/854382/8 "2020-05-24T16:52:11Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > One of our more troublesome patrons at the public library insisted on registering as Jeffrey T. Spaulding. “One morning I shot an elephant in my pyjamas. What he was doing in my pyjamas, I’ll never know.” ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2020, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/give-us-your-obscure-secret-organizations/854382/9 "2020-05-24T16:54:38Z")
\*Duck Cultists. \* I’ve said too much! ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2020, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/give-us-your-obscure-secret-organizations/854382/10 "2020-05-24T16:57:51Z")
> [@Ukulele\_Ike](#): > > I don’t know how obvious it is. You have to have read **Harpo Speaks!** , a sixty year old autobiography, to get the connection. Or the seven zillion times people here have mentioned where the name comes from. I bet more Dopers know the source of Exapno Mapcase than of Cliff Edwards’ existence. And my name isn’t even spellable. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2020, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/give-us-your-obscure-secret-organizations/854382/11 "2020-05-24T17:42:26Z")
> [@Exapno\_Mapcase](#): > > Or the seven zillion times people here have mentioned where the name comes from. I bet more Dopers know the source of Exapno Mapcase than of Cliff Edwards’ existence. And my name isn’t even spellable. 😃 I think you wildly overestimate how much people pay attention to things like that. I’ve often explained the source of my username, and while many people may remember, there’s lots I’m sure who don’t. ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2020, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/give-us-your-obscure-secret-organizations/854382/12 "2020-05-24T17:58:37Z")
> [@Colibri](#): > > I think you wildly overestimate how much people pay attention to things like that. I’ve often explained the source of my username, and while many people may remember, there’s lots I’m sure who don’t. I was being hyperbolic. I even used a smilie. Have you noticed how few people use smilies these days, BTW? Their use is way down. ---
**Author:** ![Guest-starring\_Id](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guest-starring_id/32/21736_2.png) [@Guest-starring\_Id](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guest-starring_Id)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2020, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/give-us-your-obscure-secret-organizations/854382/13 "2020-05-24T18:11:29Z")
My obscure, secret and somewhat terrifying orginization is F.E.A.R., the Federal Egg Answering Room, (which is, in reality, a front name for F.E.E.B.L.E. - the Free World Extra-Earthly Bodies Location and Extermination Centre), commandeered by an armpit fetishist ([scroll ahead to 8:40](https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x6viev3)) > [@Colibri](#): > > I think you wildly overestimate how much people pay attention to things like that. I’ve often explained the source of my username, and while many people may remember, there’s lots I’m sure who don’t. I’ve always associated Colibri with that fantastic pure butane for blasting concentrates. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2020, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/give-us-your-obscure-secret-organizations/854382/14 "2020-05-24T18:25:12Z")
I give you– **The Black Chamber**. > **[Black Chamber](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Chamber)** > > The Black Chamber (1919–1929), also known as the Cipher Bureau, was the United States' first peacetime cryptanalytic organization, and a forerunner of the National Security Agency. The only prior codes and cypher organizations maintained by the US government had been some intermittent, and always abandoned, attempts by Armed Forces branches prior to World War I. > Headed by Herbert O. Yardley (1889–1958), the Black Chamber was founded in May 1919 following World War I. Yardley had commanded the U.... ---
**Author:** ![furryman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/furryman/32/99_2.png) [@furryman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/furryman)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2020, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/give-us-your-obscure-secret-organizations/854382/15 "2020-05-24T18:26:45Z")
I don’t know how secret or obscure they are but I was kind of surprised when I came across a chapter house for the International Order of Odd Fellows. ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2020, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/give-us-your-obscure-secret-organizations/854382/16 "2020-05-24T20:33:36Z")
I was surprised to find out there is a Federal Reserve Police force. Started in 2000. I found out because I saw one of their cars. They have 1000+ officers and 37 stations. They protect Fed facilities. ---
**Author:** ![Lumpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lumpy/32/446_2.png) [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2020, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/give-us-your-obscure-secret-organizations/854382/17 "2020-05-24T21:00:52Z")
The most influential organization most people have never heard of: [The National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws.](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uniform_Law_Commission) As the linked article states: > [@](#): > > Established in 1892, The ULC promotes enactment of [uniform acts](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uniform_act) in areas of state law where uniformity is desirable and practical. In other words, the NCCUSL promotes interstate cooperation on passing mutually uniform laws in a manner that keeps the participating states from being in violation of the federal Constitution’s Compact Clause. This body has for decades made and promoted policy largely out of sight of the public. For example, the movement in the early twentieth century to suppress public carry of firearms with “May Issue” permit requirements was championed by the organization with “A Uniform Act to Regulate the Sale and Possession of Firearms”. State laws criminalizing drug possession in addition to federal laws were another example. ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2020, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/give-us-your-obscure-secret-organizations/854382/18 "2020-05-24T21:14:22Z")
Does the[Church of the SubGenius](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Church_of_the_SubGenius) qualify? ---
**Author:** ![Ukulele\_Ike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/df788c/32.png) [@Ukulele\_Ike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ukulele_Ike)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2020, 2:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/give-us-your-obscure-secret-organizations/854382/19 "2020-05-25T02:43:29Z")
> [@Exapno\_Mapcase](#): > > Or the seven zillion times people here have mentioned where the name comes from… Well, yes. There _is_ that. (I was trying to sneak in a plug for **Harpo Speaks!,** one of the most enjoyable memoirs I’ve read) ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2020, 3:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/give-us-your-obscure-secret-organizations/854382/20 "2020-05-25T03:22:01Z")
> [@blondebear](#): > > Does the[Church of the SubGenius](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Church_of_the_SubGenius) qualify? There’s also the [Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster,](https://www.spaghettimonster.org/) although not much about it is secret. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/give-us-your-obscure-secret-organizations/854382.md?page=2)