# Why do the secret societies have so much power and freedom in America? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 4, 2013, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-the-secret-societies-have-so-much-power-and-freedom-in-america/660121 "2013-06-04T16:24:21Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![moriah](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b2d939/32.png) [@moriah](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/moriah)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2013, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-the-secret-societies-have-so-much-power-and-freedom-in-america/660121/41 "2013-06-04T22:35:30Z")
> [@msmith537](#): > > [From Wikipedia regarding membership in Skull & Bones](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skull_and_Bones): > > “If the society had a good year, this is what the “ideal” group will consist of: a football captain; a Chairman of the Yale Daily News; a conspicuous radical; **a Whiffenpoof** ; a swimming captain; a notorious drunk with a 94 average; a film-maker; a political columnist; a religious group leader; a Chairman of the Lit; a foreigner; a ladies’ man with two motorcycles; an ex-service man; a negro, if there are enough to go around; a guy nobody else in the group had heard of, ever …” > > How could Obama NOT be in such a group! I mean other than he didn’t go to Yale.😃 What?!! How could they allow a Whiffenpoof without also allowing someone from Gryffindor? ---
**Author:** ![Mr\_Quatro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/bc8723/32.png) [@Mr\_Quatro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr_Quatro)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2013, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-the-secret-societies-have-so-much-power-and-freedom-in-america/660121/42 "2013-06-04T22:37:32Z")
> [@CC](#): > > _What??!!_ Citizens in those clubs have the power to vote??!! I say there’s something dangerously wrong in this country when members of fraternities can vote! What’s next? Freedom of speech? Man, someone ought to do something about this. I’m glad you’ve brought it to our attention, **Mr. Quatro**. by the power to vote … I certainly didn’t mean the poor people’s vote. It was directed at the law makers in Washington … the congress and the senate votes one phone call to Sam Rayburn is all President Johnson needed, not that he was part of any secret society that is ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2013, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-the-secret-societies-have-so-much-power-and-freedom-in-america/660121/43 "2013-06-04T22:39:24Z")
> [@Mr\_Quatro](#): > > by the power to vote … I certainly didn’t mean the poor people’s vote. > > It was directed at the law makers in Washington … the congress and the senate votes > > one phone call to Sam Rayburn is all President Johnson needed, not that he was part of any secret society that is Texas is just one big secret society. ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2013, 11:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-the-secret-societies-have-so-much-power-and-freedom-in-america/660121/44 "2013-06-04T23:15:42Z")
> [@Mr\_Quatro](#): > > by the power to vote … I certainly didn’t mean the poor people’s vote. > > It was directed at the law makers in Washington … the congress and the senate votes > > one phone call to Sam Rayburn is all President Johnson needed, not that he was part of any secret society that is Today on Facebook I checked into the LBJ Presidential Library and Museum. Coincidence? You decide. ---
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2013, 12:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-the-secret-societies-have-so-much-power-and-freedom-in-america/660121/45 "2013-06-05T00:54:24Z")
So… intelligent, talented, driven, ambitious, wealthy, charismatic people meet and associate with one another and form social bonds. As they climb the ladder of their ambitions, they help one another out when opportunities arise and work to give one another and their circle of friends and relatives a hand up. By and by they build a strong network composed not just of themselves but also of those who owe them favors or to whom they owe favors, and they prefer to associate with and direct work towards those who share that bond or who at least support their position. That’s no conspiracy. That’s common human social practice since societies became sophisticated enough to have politics. When the society is large enough you have to establish at best a representative democracy and then the populace is voting for which elite do they trust to have its best interests coincide most closely with the People’s. And I find that given that, it’s a very desirable situation to have private entities enjoy “freedom to act independently of the ruling parties’ will”. ---
**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:** [June 5, 2013, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-the-secret-societies-have-so-much-power-and-freedom-in-america/660121/46 "2013-06-05T01:51:07Z")
> [@Mr\_Quatro](#): > > one phone call to Sam Rayburn is all President Johnson needed, not that he was part of any secret society that is Right! And look how well that’s working for Obama! ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2013, 2:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-the-secret-societies-have-so-much-power-and-freedom-in-america/660121/47 "2013-06-05T02:09:34Z")
> [@moriah](#): > > What?!! How could they allow a Whiffenpoof without also allowing someone from Gryffindor? Gryffindors are their own secret society. Much more secret than Skull and Bones. ---
**Author:** ![Saintly\_Loser](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saintly_loser/32/4045_2.png) [@Saintly\_Loser](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saintly_Loser)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2013, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-the-secret-societies-have-so-much-power-and-freedom-in-america/660121/48 "2013-06-05T02:30:11Z")
> [@Mr\_Quatro](#): > > but President Obama did attend Harvard it’s just not quite clear how he paid for it (another secret) Oh, for Pete’s sake. Of all the conspiracy theory crap out there, this one has absolutely the least substance behind it. There’s none at all. Look – my wife, who is from a desperately poor rural area, and whose family basically grew or hunted all their food, went to Harvard as an undergrad. She was a smart girl, studied hard, tested well, and was accepted. The Ivies are generally needs-blind. If you’re accepted, you can go. They will work out whatever financial aid is needed, all the way up to a free ride. They’re sitting on enormous endowments, so this isn’t a big deal for them. After graduating, my wife applied to law school at the same university. Again, she was accepted. Law schools don’t throw money around. She financed law school with loans. That’s how Obama went to Harvard Law. And that’s probably how he went to Columbia as an undergrad, too. **THERE IS NO MYSTERY HERE.** ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2013, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-the-secret-societies-have-so-much-power-and-freedom-in-america/660121/49 "2013-06-05T02:37:21Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > Texas is just one big secret society. It’s not. But, hooboy, do plenty of us who had the misfortune to spend more than a few days there wish it were! Well, except for Austin. Let’s not keep Austin a secret. ---
**Author:** ![drachillix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/48db29/32.png) [@drachillix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drachillix)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2013, 2:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-the-secret-societies-have-so-much-power-and-freedom-in-america/660121/50 "2013-06-05T02:43:58Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > Texas is just one big secret society. That we wish could stay a secret… ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2013, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-the-secret-societies-have-so-much-power-and-freedom-in-america/660121/51 "2013-06-05T03:20:58Z")
> [@jayjay](#): > > That’s kind of like asking why the Whiffenpoofs are able to operate so freely… Yes, but they are doomed from here to eternity. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2013, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-the-secret-societies-have-so-much-power-and-freedom-in-america/660121/52 "2013-06-05T03:52:39Z")
> [@JRDelirious](#): > > So… intelligent, talented, driven, ambitious, wealthy, charismatic people meet and associate with one another and form social bonds. As they climb the ladder of their ambitions, they help one another out when opportunities arise and work to give one another and their circle of friends and relatives a hand up. By and by they build a strong network composed not just of themselves but also of those who owe them favors or to whom they owe favors, and they prefer to associate with and direct work towards those who share that bond or who at least support their position. > > That’s no conspiracy. That’s common human social practice since societies became sophisticated enough to have politics. But not anywhere else in the world! There, the power resides in shared extraterrestrial reptilian bonds. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2013, 5:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-the-secret-societies-have-so-much-power-and-freedom-in-america/660121/53 "2013-06-05T05:12:14Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#): > > Yes, but they are doomed from here to eternity. That’s their fate. Poor little lambs, who have lost their way. ---
**Author:** ![Leo\_Bloom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leo_bloom/32/10377_2.png) [@Leo\_Bloom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Bloom)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2013, 12:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-the-secret-societies-have-so-much-power-and-freedom-in-america/660121/54 "2013-06-05T12:21:24Z")
They do like sheep, though. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2013, 12:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-the-secret-societies-have-so-much-power-and-freedom-in-america/660121/55 "2013-06-05T12:32:18Z")
fnord ---
**Author:** ![johnpost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f17d59/32.png) [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2013, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-the-secret-societies-have-so-much-power-and-freedom-in-america/660121/56 "2013-06-05T14:07:56Z")
Who keeps the metric system down? ---
**Author:** ![Leo\_Bloom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leo_bloom/32/10377_2.png) [@Leo\_Bloom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Bloom)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2013, 2:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-the-secret-societies-have-so-much-power-and-freedom-in-america/660121/57 "2013-06-05T14:19:11Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > fnord Wanted to look this up, but couldn’t find a single reference on the Internet. Creepy. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2013, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-the-secret-societies-have-so-much-power-and-freedom-in-america/660121/58 "2013-06-05T14:20:42Z")
> [@Mr\_Quatro](#): > > one phone call to Sam Rayburn is all President Johnson needed, not that he was part of any secret society that is Actually, Johnson was a member of a collegiate fraternity called the Harris Blair House, which was later absorbed into Pi Kappa Alpha. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2013, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-the-secret-societies-have-so-much-power-and-freedom-in-america/660121/59 "2013-06-05T14:31:18Z")
> [@Leo\_Bloom](#): > > Wanted to look this up, but couldn’t find a single reference on the Internet. Creepy. I have a vague sense of unease. ---
**Author:** ![Leo\_Bloom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leo_bloom/32/10377_2.png) [@Leo\_Bloom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Bloom)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2013, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-the-secret-societies-have-so-much-power-and-freedom-in-america/660121/60 "2013-06-05T14:43:16Z")
Oh fuck. I just realized. We’re Jews. If _we_ don’t know about the true secret controllers, shit has just gotten very real. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-the-secret-societies-have-so-much-power-and-freedom-in-america/660121.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-the-secret-societies-have-so-much-power-and-freedom-in-america/660121.md?page=4)