by Simon 147 Replies latest forum announcements
I would love a section just for download links to old watchtower literature and the BoE letters etc. or be able to search for them more easily.
(Could be I am doing it wrong of course)
Other than that I think this site is excellent and I come here every day without fail.
Is the new forum coming during the overlapping generations?
I used to really like the feature that allowed you to order topics by most viewed/most posts in the last month. It allowed you to identify the top topics quickly without having to log in all the time or wade through a lot of nonsense.
Also wasn't there a map that showed where most posters/readers came from (without identifying individual posters) that was interesting too.
Seriously, how about a best thread of the month by express vote? - not the most visited thread because that could be amplified by posters answering several times and with one word answers. The Best Thread of the Month would be an excellent way to see posters and others views on the very best.
There might be a place for experiences with other religions. For instance, you might have someone leaving the washtowel and going into a Catholic church for the very first time. What was it like? Someone else might find another denomination. What was it like? Was it similar to the witlesses though a bit milder, or more liberal? You might also entertain other platforms--Judaism, Islam, the Far Eastern religions, paganism, spiritual Satanism, LaVeyan Satanism, and so on. What were the experiences of those who tried one, or several, of the above? This might give people more information about what else is out there, so they can come to better decisions and report what they experience there.
And, bear in mind that religion is by nature a heated topic. They were designed that way on purpose, especially the Abrahamic ones, to prevent people from even looking outside them for answers. You are bound to get people that have experiences that are totally opposite from what was reported--or even alter their own viewpoint in time. Keeping this kind of discussion within its section helps prevent the kind of whole-board spamming that sometimes happens with this topic. Also, a tight lid must be maintained against the "My religion is the only right one, and everyone else can kiss my axx" type of discussions that turn into fights. Bear in mind that being an idiot is everyone's right--and so is having a viewpoint that differs from everyone else's. This would go as much for atheists that think all religion is hogwash and won't let anyone else rationally discuss their viewpoints as for Christians that think the pagan religions, Islam, or atheism are evil.
Within this section, people could also develop alternative religious platforms. While proselytizing is taboo, people could discuss various forms of "spiritism" freely. Just as some religions have their "Hail Mary's" and "Our Father's", others have mantras. Someone might try "Ohm"; others might get better results with "Aum" or some other variant. One person might discuss yoga; someone else might just try the physical yoga without the mental preparation or modify it and discuss the results. We might all benefit from that. It might get some hard-core Christians to "try" something without having to commit to a whole program, or it might create a merger between science and religion that those who will not see beyond Abrahamic religions could never see. And best of all, those who are going to remain Catholic without giving anything else a chance have that right, since they can simply bypass the whole section if they choose.
I find the 2 main categories 'wt' and 'jws' confusing, since to me, the are almost the same idea. Seems to me that they could be merged and then the distinction brought out in subcategories. Maybe the subcategories could be something like 'the corporation' or 'the gb' and then another or 'the people'. Dunno, maybe i'm the only one thats gets confused.
S
A 'Welcome' section under Members Only might be a nice addition. Would help keep track of all the newbs.
I have been regular in various online forums for over 25 years and can clearly see that this ones format is rather old and antiquated. The sections are disjointed, disconnected and navigation is a haphazard affair at best. Unless your name is Jonny Neumonic finding and tracking and following up one's own posts is nigh in an impossible task...
There is a lot of reall beautiful and well structured forum sofware out there.. why not utilise it? Why try to repair the Ark when you can just get a whole new ship?
Over 25 years?
Science should be a topic
