Color me confused. I just don't get it. What is the group fascination with longwinded and condescending posters? Thunder -- Thunder Rider
I like Farkel and, outside of Maximus and AlanF, I don't think anyone has contributed more. – Big Tex
I've been wanting to get this off my chest for a long, long time and here in this thread is as good a time as any.
First lemme say, "Yeah. What Thunder Rider said," and "Yeah... what Big Tex said"... but for different reasons.
Now, the big stuff...
It's true. Over the years folks like Norm, JanH, and kent (the great Norwegian Trinity); Farkel; and AlanF have written many commentaries, exposes, essays... whatever you want to call them, that – like literary laser beams – accurately and pointedly exposed the fallacies of the Watchtower Society's peculiar brand of Christianity. And written them well, I might add. Hundreds of thousands of words, millions maybe – and I haven't done more than scanned any of them.
Ever since the lights went on for me, reading the commentaries of ex-JWs has always been as distasteful as reading the watchtower and awake themselves. And that's what makes me wonder about the thousands who have been "helped" by reading them. After reading the pivotal Crisis of Conscience and learning 'firsthand' what really went on behind the scenes, I personally forever threw off the shackles of allowing myself to ever be guided again by the thoughts—and thought processes—of another human being, no matter how eloquent. Just give me the facts and let me figure it out for myself.
I could be wrong and forgive me if I am, but IMO people aren't really free if seeing new truths can only be accomplished by reading another's words. Such ones have simply exchanged one leader for another. They are in a position of forever allowing themselves to be led – if not by the Watchtower Society, then by another individual or group. I mean no offense, but the Cult of Farkel is no different than the Cult of AlanF. And the Cult of AlanF is no different than the Cult of Charles Taze Russell or the WtB&TS. Until a person is willing to step out on that mental limb and truly risk being "wrong" and thinking for oneself, they are subject to being forever led by someone else.
Why exchange one leader(s) for another? Why not, instead, completely throw off the follower mind-set and think for yourself? It's a widespread aspect of the ex-JW community that I've never been able to come close to understanding.