Arg, we had this discussion before, but my response was deleted. Essentially none of the groups that prezhorusin04 listed have anything to do with each other and most of those groups aren't secret societies. The Illuminati is not every powerful organization out there. There is a form of freemasonry that was corrupted by the illuminati and is known as Illuminized Freemasonry. The only thing prezhorusin04 lists that is even associated with the Illuminati is the Order of the Skull and Bones, a fraternity at Yale that has such illustrious members as G. W. Bush and John Kerry, to name a few. If you want a better picture of secret societies, read "Rule by Secrecy" by Jim Marrs.