I have seen a number of threads lately that suggest the Washtowel Slaveholdery is making moves toward going mainstream. But is it really so?
Notice a few examples. The stand on people that are incorrigible being the only ones that are going to die at Armageddon is one cited fact that people are pointing to. Notice that the statement was in the showcase washtowel, not the Kool-Aid. This gives the public that they are middle of the road (only the worst people are going to die), but is not their true stand. Really, why would they disfellowship and condemn people to death if they are questioning the Filthful and Disgraceful Slavebugger, with proof at hand from the Bible?
Another is the blood issue. Notably, they have cited that people that take blood will no longer get disfellowshipped. Instead, they will "disassociate by action" such people. It accomplishes exactly the same thing, but many people will think they have eased up a bit. No dice.
Fewer boasting sessions? The spin was that they are moved by high gas prices and to ease the burden on families. As Wing Commander pointed out, they are more interested in reducing the opportunities of outlier comments in the book study. The other boasting sessions have just about limited the comments to two or three per person per boasting session, and then to within what the paragraph says. Now they are going to do it with the book study as well. It will also eliminate the last fun for many witlesses, and I think there is going to be more guilt to go out in field circus. Hardly reducing the burden on families or saving gas. It's all about control, and many people do not see it that way.
On the other side, they have tightened up in many ways. If they were mainstreaming, they would be easing up on using independent sources to verify the accuracy of doctrine (the Sept 2007 Kingdumb Misery went the opposite direction). They are spending more time hounding people to wear their embarrassment badges through the whole Grand Boasting Session, even when not in session. They cracked down hard on college at the last Grand Boasting Session. They had the Oral Sex study (that is, when they started cracking down on oral sex again) last fall right after the NBC pedophile expose. And now they are going to bash "valueless things", which include too much fun, sex, or relaxation. And I am hearing them telling people that field circus is more important--wait until the next Washtowel Kool-Aid comes out.
I don't think they have a ghost of a chance of actually going mainstream, the way the Filthful and Disgraceful Slavebugger are running it. What they want is to create the illusion that they are easing up, while what they are really doing is cracking down. Excessively wordy resolutions with wacky points buried in the fine details, washtowels that are not clear, and letters from the Filthful and Disgraceful Slavebugger that get handed down through hounder-hounders and the hounders (hence no verification) are prime examples.
The religion will not be truly mainstream until (1) they stop hounding people for things that make no difference, (2) they allow people to use independent sources to research and verify, (3) they stop busting up families for trivial infractions (marking or disfellowshipping), (4) they start allowing people to get a full education, and (5) they stop demanding ever-escalating demands of people's time for field circus. None of which I see coming anytime soon. Nope, the Washtowel Slaveholdery is not going mainstream any time soon, no matter what illusions they continue to come up with.