by be wise 47 Replies latest jw friends
I've only learned the truth about this Society over the last 5 months or so, so I'm not sure what the difference is to say - 2 years ago.
Do you think the Society will now get even more cultish in it's methods of teaching and more heavy handed if they feel things are slipping?
I don't feel I'm being over the top here because I've experienced very heavy handed talks at the assemblies and Kingdom Hall in the past that are just plain scare tactics but this just makes people ask more questions ???
They can do two things:
1) Trying to scare people away from the internet. Demonizing it to the core.
2) Ignore it as much as possible. hope it will go away like a bad dream.
This causes a huge dilemma: Demonizing it makes people curious as to what actually is the big deal. Ignoring it in the sense of not waking sleeping dogs will gradually erode their numbers because the youth is already introduced to the internet at an early stage at school nowadays.
They chose option one. They can't demonize it to much though because they are on the net as well. Like television it can't be stopped...they tried in the early days, calling the TV Satan's eyeball. Did it help? No. Nowadays every dub has one or more...
Ah...free information! It completely destroys one of their most trusted tools for submission: information control.
Greven
As the availability of the internet continues to increase, it will be harder to recruit outsiders.
Devon
As the availability of the internet continues to increase, it will be harder to recruit outsiders.
I think they are terrified of the internet. What is the first thing anyone does now if they develop a new hobby or interest? Oh lets look it up on the internet and see what else we can learn about it!
I think there will be more focus on media persecution etc to try and discredit anything anyone reads.
1) Trying to scare people away from the internet. Demonizing it to the core.They chose option one.
That was apparent at the DC this year. The part on "Beware the Voice of Strangers" was heavy handed indeed.
There were three distinctive areas that they covered:
1. Do not listen to any dissention or negative talk about the WTS. If it does not build up, it is not worth consideration.
2. The internet is evil, evil, evil. Sites are created just to lure people away from the "truth" and organization. Lies and smear campaigns litter it to create doubt and confustion. Flee from it.
3. Do not trust the media. The media is full of half-truths, misqoutes and outright misrepresentations.
It has to make any normal thinking person wonder: Any person, group or organization that is afraid of information and what someone might find out, must have something to hide. This part was so blatently ovbious that the WTS is trying to control how the dubs gather information. Looking at it from the outside in was scary. The propoganda machine was in high gear for this part. And what was scarier was that the dubs ate it up. They swallowed it hook, line and sinker. I overheard several talking about what a great part that was and how there must be a problem with apostates spreading lies. You just wanna shake em and say, "Wake up! How do you know what is truth if you're only allowed to see one side of the story? How can you decide for yourself what is right if you're not allowed to see both sides of the issue? If the "truth" is the truth, how can real information from any other source make it false?" I have always avoided using the word "cult" to describe the organization, but after this DC, I'm seeing it more like one than ever before.
It's going to continue to defeat them.
How do you encourage gossip and 'back-channel' communications? Easy! Tell people nothing amidst obvious trouble
and decay! This pushes people to look for answers to what's going on.
In addition, the Watchtower is simply losing control of the next Witness generation. The blind, selfish, and isolated
old men who run the organization refuse to do anything about Witness kids other than wag their arthritic fingers
disapprovingly and pretend that nothing's wrong. These kids will grow up embracing the internet, using it in school,
the local library, downloading music and porn, and generally using it as an effective tool to break free from Watchtower
domination.
Those who avoid the internet will increasingly be marginalized - as window washers and gas station bathroom cleaners who
shield their own view of an amazing world that's passing them by.
metatron
The interent is truly amazing. As ang. said, most of us do check out the net on anything new. I'm sure people at the door do the same thing. I know i would. this did not used to be an option for people. JWS more or less controlled what info u got about them. Not anymore. Previously it was not all that easy to locate "apostates "and find out what they had to say about JWS. Now it is easy. also, evne if we came in contact with "apostate" info a lot of us would have been afraid to take it for fear of getting caught. Now we can view this in the privacy of our home.
All they have left is to demonize it and hope that works. It may work for the oler ones who were not used to having the net anyway. But certainly not for the younger group. and some of us oldies have learned to love the net and there is just no going back.
It s a brave new world.
“Those who avoid the internet will increasingly be marginalized - as window washers and gas station bathroom cleaners who shield their own view of an amazing world that's passing them by.”
Great Point – hence the increase of JW numbers in these types of economic lifestyles?! I was wondering why my parents were concentrating so hard on the Mennonite population…hummmmmmmm What gets me is how are 'educated' people falling for this?
Question – are ‘they’ using the Internet as another case for being part of the ‘World’? I know of a few JW’s going to College this year, however they still live at home etc…anyway I really hope to see a generation gap in the coming years.
I think you guys are right, I don't see a next generation of witnesses. But as the numbers decrease the Organization will probably say that makes them even more sure they are right because very FEW will be on the straight and narrow road. They will pass is off as a sign that they have the RIGHT religion.
They will pass is off as a sign that they have the RIGHT religion.
This is true. And if there numbers were to grow, they would pass THAT off as a sign that they have the right religion. These guys have an answer for everything!
