[pretense]

But doesn't your non-ironic use of "cargo cult" permit unbridled use of other meme-like absurdities ad nauseam?

Like, now, I'm free to accuse you of being a secret agent of the notorious hacker group named Anonymous, infiltrating this site under an assumed pseudonym. And worst of all, I could make that claim non-ironically, if I so desired.

Do you see how ridiculous this is all becoming?

[ubernostrum]

The cargo cults which sprang up after WWII were based around imitating the behavior of the airfield staff, in hopes that doing so would summon the airplanes full of supplies.

Use of terms like "fiat currency" is, in my experience, similarly an attempt to mimic the behavior of people they've seen winning arguments, in hopes that doing so will result in winning arguments.