The messages from Farsight are unfortunately oversimplifications, I think. It's hard to make sense of, but I assume this is less of a deliberate cult phenomenon, getting recruits with one-liners "we are free will" . . . but probably because psychic relay from ET to human is still pretty limited. Let me try to extrapolate what I think the message is, based on Farsight ethos.

The exchange is resources for philosophical conviction. This is not a new idea, but a pretty specific one.

Part of Rome's success was to convert its conquered subjects convert to their religion. I wouldn't call it a fundamentally usurper's or enslaver's strategy, I also wouldn't call it a strategy of pure love and voluntary gift. Rome itself was pretty bad. But this specific strategy is visible across empires everywhere.

To say that the "Good ETs" want nothing in return is false. But let's make their quid pro quo as clear as mud.

-Collectivism: While the premise of the demand is about individual sovereignty, the requirement for collaborative effort from the Good ETs does require some level of collective agreement with humanity. If a bunch of humans are all for the "good ETs" but the vast majority are against them . . . likely there will be a result that affects the collective population, and not a careful laundry list of some haves and some have-nots.

-Freedom-based religion: People don't like the word "religion" but I'm just using the colloquial based on "reaffirming legion" . . . a group that continuously supports the same idea.

I really don't like when the message is relegated to a jello-pudding mix of "love and light." I think it's worth acknowledging that there's a bit of a cold quid pro quo. This is the cost.

If we can't collectively exhibit the behavior of free will initiatives, their help is declined. It's not a soft bridge. It's a hard bridge, from slavery to freedom.