Similarities between the Governing Body and an abusive spouse (page 2)

Vidiot

Jeezus.

At least with an abusive spouse thing, there's (sometimes) sex...

As someone who has had several close female friends abused by their spouses your analogy of the GB and abusive spouses is a rather stupid one. I mean do you know women who have been abused? You must not to use this analogy.

As much as you may disagree, dislike, or loath the GB of the JW's making an analogy to spouses who are monsters is rather vitriolic and makes you seem like you are completely blinded by your emotions. By your analogy anyone in the workplace or Corporate America or the government falls into this same definition, including the military, labor unions, etc., etc.

I mean you come on here and you see these analogies of the JW's to crazy over-the-top things like ISIS, Hitler, Stalin, Pol Pot, and abusive spouses and you start to sound like you're drinking your own off-brand of Kool-Aid. Who in the world would take that kind of analogy seriously? Not a thinking person that's for sure.

Zoos

Mad Irishman, you'll be happy to know I respect your right to have an opinion. Hell, I even respect your right to express it because I am a really nice, non-angry person.

Mad Irishman

Thanks Zoos.

My point is simply that finding a bean in a bag of rice doesn't make it a bag of rice. You can make anything correlate to something else if you try hard enough; and too many times people go to these great lengths and try and make these mental gymnastics to try and make a point about something that doesn't fit the topic at hand at all.

My boss tries to exert some kind of control over me. That doesn't make them equivalent to an abusive spouse.

LoisLane looking for Superman

@MAD Irishman: Speak for yourself. Did any of the above happen to you? You have some female friends... What did they tell you? Everything? Or just what they felt you could take, comphrend, listen to, which doesn't sound like much and most obviously, you coud never grow up to be a Professional Therapist dealing with abuse victims. You are a squirt kid talking out your butt about things you do not know! So maybe sit in the corner, with your face to the wall and keep your thoughts on abusive mates with such strong similaries between the Governing Body and WT to yourself and listen to what the adults have to say on this issue.

I have often wanted to bring this analogy up, just as you have Zoos but I want to be happy every day and not think back to both my WT decades and an abusive mate of decades.

It IS so very much the same thing.

LoisLane

Mad Irishman

LoisLane,

My female friends have told me EVERYTHING about their experiences.

Punched in the face. Check. Punched in parts of the body where no one can see the bruises unless they were undressed. Not having access to the checkbook. Not being allowed to drive. Not being allowed to work. Not being allowed to have anyone over the house. Insulted with the most heinous words and name calling. Being told they were worthless. Scum. Losers. How about being punched in the stomach when they were pregnant? How about being dropped off in the middle of the woods and told to walk home? How about killing the family dog in front of them?

How about being raped after an argument? Would you like to know in what why their husband raped them because they confided in me that too.

From my sixty years of experience I don't remember the Governing Body doing any of the above, so to make the analogy of the GB being like an abusive spouse is emotionally immature, really reaching, and an insult to real spouses who have been abused. Make another analogy, but not that one.

If you can't take dissent maybe you should go back to being a JW. Seems like you would fit in fine there. I'll go sit in the corner now.

GrreatTeacher

Mad Irishman, looking at your empty post above, I see you changed your mind about your post.

And, that's a good thing. Thinking before you speak is always smart.

Mad Irishman

Sorry GrreatTeacher. It was simply a double post.

GrreatTeacher

Mad, I don't think the point is to focus on the intensity of abuse. Your experience sounds pretty horrific and may objectively be "worse."

What's truly interesting about this post is the idea that the tactics used are similar. The Watchtower as abuser and the member as codependent is a useful way to conceptualize cult involvement that is ultimately not in the member's best interest. So, why do they stay even as they suffer? The OP is suggesting that we can gain more insight into that reason by comparing abusive / codependent relationships since there is much that we do know about those kind of relationships as studied in the domestic sphere.

blondie

The WTS is an abusive organization whether it be in the marriage setting, parent to child, supervisor to employee...I found that out when I started dealing with familial abuse and realized the WTS treated its members the same way.

Similarities between the Governing Body and an abusive spouse

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