That One Where The World Almost Ends in 1997

"Cristina takes on a train to Bummersville to talk about a cult in Japan responsible for poisoning people with sarin gas and Chelsea brings up back up to talk about the Bloop!"

Presented by: Cristina
Category: Cult

Aum Shinrikyo is a cult from Japan founded in 1985 by a man going by Shoko Asahara (later "Christ"). He drew from many religions and practices, such as Buddhism, Hinduism and Christianity to form his vision of the world. Unusual for most Eastern-born cults, it was a doomsday cult. Shoko believed America was the Beast form Revelation and would bring about the end of the world in 1997 (aside from the year, he probably wasn't wrong). Only he could bring salvation to his followers.

In 1989, the group went from cultists to terrorists. They abducted and murdered a lawyer and his family for his suit against them. In the early 90s, they began making chemicals, including sarin gas, and carrying out attacks. They are believed to be responsible for the first VX death.

In 1995, the group carried out an attack on 5 Tokyo subways as a ploy to prevent police raids on them. 13 people were killed and more than 1000 more were injured. The attack was traced to them and many were arrested.

Unlike most cults on the podcast, this one is still around. However in 2018, 13 members who participated in the attack, including Shoko, were executed.

Presented by: Chelsea
Category:

The Bloop was a sound recorded by NOAA off the coast of South America in the south Pacific. It was recorded in 1997 and it was picked up by multiple recording devices.

You can listen to the Bloop on line and most people believe it was made by some sort of living creature. It's coordinates being close to the last known resting place of the elder god Cthulhu, many believe that he is finally awakening to consume the Earth. Far more outlandish theories suspect a megalodon, and extinct species of shark that is still sometimes cited. It should be noted that we don't have a clear and complete idea of what lurks beneath the surface of the ocean.

NOAA does not believe this to be the case. While the online version of the Bloop sounds organic, it's in fact sped up 16 times. The real speed version sounds more like a thunder clap and scientists believe it was an ice quake.

It was probably Cthulhu.