by Vanderhoven7 15 Replies latest watchtower bible
&&&&,,,with this,, we clearly see how the Borg has been struggling in the 21st century
The ''tax ruling' on Jimmy Swaggart in 1990 in combination with the release of the internet in 1993- 1995.
The revenue streams dried up.
We saw it in the yearbooks becoming paperback(I remember that in about 1997)
Tne reduction of printed material.
To almost,,NO mater now.
Expect more sale of KHs.
The Borg has to reinvent itself.
It was a double whammy for the Borg.
The Swaggart rulings. Then the internet release just a few short years after.
Not 1 ,, but 2 whammies.
The Borganization never expected either of these.
And is still reeling ever since.
The next thing is the borgs tax free status.
The Borganization simply cannot exist or function without it.
Voici les tarifs pratiqués avant que ces publications ne deviennent gratuites
Voici les prix pratiqués avant que ces publications ne deviennent gratuites
Marcial
When I was in Bethel in the mid-late 70s the governing body was aware that the IRS was looking at them and the "income" from literature. I remember discussions with Ray and Cynthia Franz about this. How did they know?
Remember this was before personal computers and all government agencies had armies of secretaries who took dictation and TPYED all investigative reports. Well, it just so happened a few JWs worked in those secretarial pools...and word was passed on to Bethel stat.
The Swaggart case and dates are below.
https://law.justia.com/cases/california/court-of-appeal/3d/204/1269.html
EDIT: Reconsidered my previous point.
I can remember when they removed the charge for literature.
In the UK, initially we were specifically told NOT to say the literature was "free", but to say it is offered "without charge". Were advised not to solicit for donation, but if anyone did ask how it was funded, we should say it was by "voluntary donation" that goes towards printing more literature.
I presume the very strict wording was in order to comply with UK HMRC regulations, as soliciting for funds would presumably be illegal without some kind of trading licence.
Gradually that all faded away, and frankly hardly anyone ever asked or asks how JWs or the literature are funded anyway. Now, JWs are forbidden from accepting any cash donations on house-to-house or at the carts, and are told to direct "interested" ones to pay online if they wish to donate.
The irony is that this now causes more awkwardness, because the few people who might wish to give a small donation just want to give a few pennies or a pound from their purse/wallet, not go through the hassle of signing in to a website and paying by credit/debit card. I've been in a couple of embarrassing situations where I've had to insist I couldn't take someone's well-intended money because of this rule, despite their desire to actually contribute something!
As a result, I presume the Org gets pretty much nothing from "the public" anymore, hence all the nagging about donating directed at members of the congregations these days.
