LW has a cult-like social structure.

I agree wholeheartedly, you beautifully managed to capture my feelings of unease. By targeting socially awkward nerds (such as me, I confess) it becomes unclear whether the popularity of LW among intellectuals (e.g. university students, I am looking for a better word than 'intellectuals' but fail to find anything) is due to genuine content or due to a clever approach to a vulnerable audience.

I have been contemplating this point. One of the things that sets off red flags for people outside a group is when people in the group appear to have cut'n'pasted the leader's opinions into their heads. And that's definitely something that happens around LW.

Note that this does not require malice or even intent on the part of said leader! It's something happening in the heads of the recipients. But the leader needs to be aware of it - it's part of the cult attractor, selecting for people looking for stuff to cut'n'paste into their heads.

I know this one because the loved one is pursuing ordination in the Church of England ... and basically has this superpower: convincing people of pretty much anything. To the point where they'll walk out saying "You know, black really is white, when you really think about it ..." then assume that that is their own conclusion that they came to themselves, when it's really obvious they cut'n'pasted it in. (These are people of normal intelligence, being a bit too easily convinced by a skilled and sincere arguer ... but loved one does pretty well on the smart ones too.)

As I said to them, "The only reason you're not L. Ron Hubbard is that you don't want to be. You'd better hope that's enough."

Edit: The tell is not just cut'n'pasting the substance of the opinions, but the word-for-word phrasing.