Consistent with the factions working behind the scenes, the
organization is being pulled in two directions:
First, to survive, they must get dumber and crazier. They must close
their eyes and minds every day to keep contrary evidence out.
They must go closer and closer to a nearly psychotic view of
the world around them - muttering about apostates, persecution,
and the Devil.
On the other hand, they must adapt to legal challenges, declining
resources (money), internet exposure, defectors, and disaffected
Witness youth.
Hard line - Compromise - Hard Line - Compromise
The likely result is more of what the Watchtower excells at
PRETENSE!
Towards the end of the Soviet Empire, a joke made its way
thru Russian society. Stalin, Khrushev and Brezhnev are riding
a train that suddenly stops.
Stalin says "Let's shoot the engineers and get the train moving"
Khrushev says " Let's offer them higher incentives to fix the train"
Brezhev says "Let's sit quietly and make train noises and pretend
the train is moving"
Exactly!
More pretense, more lies, more make believe, more platitudes,
more 'things-you-didn't see', more illusions
The interesting thing to observe will be individual Witnesses
who 'snap' under the strain - either suddenly 'waking up'
to 'apostasy' - or ending up swallowing a handfull of sleeping
pills - or reacting in bizarre ways we can't even predict.
I've seen it all happen!
Take a crazy system and put pressure on it
and what will it generate - except more craziness?
metatron