I've seen it also. When I was younger, we believed...actually believed in Armageddon coming soon, in our lifetime. There was a sense of urgency to field service. There was a sense of needing the meetings and the conventions.
We were separate from the world. We didn't try to "fit in" with the world. We weren't "weekend witnesses". We walked the walk and talked the talk. We wore it on our sleeves.
Now, JWs are witnesses in name only. They try to dissolve into the background when it comes to the "world". They want to be as normal as possible.
How they dress even shows it. JWs today dress not much different than the rest of society. When I was young, we stood out as different.
The oldsters might still have some of the zeal from the old days, but anyone under the age of 40 doesn't know what it was like back in the day...just as my generation doesn't have a clue as to what it was to lug around a phonograph and have dogs loosed on us.
I see young JWs get away with shit that I never could have. Even normal things...like going to college. Choice in music, movies and books. Friends outside of the organization. Joining school teams and clubs.
I see adult JWs slacking off in service and meeting attendance. They put emphasis on relaxation and comfort. Nice homes, nice cars, vacations.
Yet...even though they aren't the same as we were, they are still trapped in a cult and can't see outside the life of being a JW, be it not the same as years ago.
