A Gem From This Week's TMS

torn in two son

Before I get to the gem in this week's TMS, let me let any of you newbies here up to date with us JDubs and schooling. In the February 22, 2002 Watchtower, the WTBTS released the article titled "How My Dream Was Fullfilled". It was one of many typical JW stories of a good devout JDub "resisting temptation" and accepting the borg as absolute truth. One of the dillemas of this JW youth was the topic of college. Here's a little excerpt.

"Eventually, in September 1982, I was accepted as a student at a college in Prague, where I studied agronomy. Soon, however, I found that I couldn’t care for my college courses properly and at the same time give the attention I desired to Bible study. So I told one of my professors that I was thinking about quitting college. "

FYI according to Wikipedia, agronomy is "the science and technology of using plants for food, fuel, feed, fiber, and reclamation." So a good, growing field. (Pun not intended). And yet, of course, this JDub youth turned down college and eventually became a pioneer yatta yatta.

According to freeminds.org, Jehovah's Witnesses are #30 in a list of percentage of college grads in religious backgrounds. Unitarians came in at #1 with 49.5% (no surprise there), Hindus were #2 at 47%, then the Jews at 46.7%, Agnostics at #7 at 36.3%. JDubs? 4.7% FOUR POINT SEVEN. That's 1.5 million college grad JDubs, not necessarily with doctarates or masters, but with at least a bachelors. 1.5 million, WORLDWIDE. That is an overwhelmingly small number.

And yet. This week. An elder in our congregation at the Theocratic Ministy School said, nothing out of context, a verbatim quote, he said,

"We are the most educated people on the planet."

ACCCKK BLAAAGGH HAIRBALL

torn

Gayle

1.5millioncollege grad JDubs,

That seems to be too high,,can't be that many

torn in two son

Whoops! Don't have a college degree yet. I did the math wrong, and ran it through again:

7500000 x 0.047 = 352,500

352 thousand! Worldwide! Amazing yet depressing.

torn

WTWizard

Math errors aside, that is pathetically small. With close to half the Unitarians educated with college, how can the witlesses claim to be the most educated in the world? Perhaps if they presume that a theocraptic "education(??)" is superior to a college education.

However, with the coming Greater Depression, theocraptic "skills(??)" aren't going to do jack squat in helping people survive. You are going to need to barter. To barter, you are going to need to develop a skill you can trade for goods and services you need. For instance, you might be able to trade fixing a computer for having someone fix your roof. Or, you might decorate someone's house for Christmas in exchange for food. Or do some maintenance work in exchange for a place to stay. Since when is wasting the time and energy to go door to door spreading a message that most people view as worthless going to get anyone anything useful in exchange?

Little Imp

I remember once the Book Study Conductor at our Group saying that witnesses have the equivalent to a degree with all their education!

Juan Viejo2

WTWizard -

Maybe the Watchtower figures that there will always be a need for people to clean toilets, mop floors, and take out the trash. In some small communities in the USA south and midwest, the local JWs have a lock on the janitorial services in town. In some smaller towns in Arkansas, Missouri and Mississippi they have a near monopoly.

While most of us would consider a computer and a decent desk phone as necessary for conducting business, many JW families invest their funds in floor polishers and shop vacuums.

A few years ago, back when Wal-mart was still a relatively small and regional discount retailer, everyone in the local Kingdom Hall in some smaller towns worked in one of their stores as late-night shelf stockers or janitors. That may have changed since Wal-mart has become so much bigger and widespread.

This is not intended to knock JWs that work in any trade - or even to knock Wal-mart (even though they have often earned well-deserved criticism) - but rather to attest to the fact that for many JWs owning your own janitorial service is considered something to aspire to.

That and, of course, a new high-powered floor polisher...