Need confirmation: WT bought an entire mountain in China to mine the granite needed for new WT HQ

WingCommander

Someone asked for a second source on this, so I'm putting this out there to those who may have visited the new WT HQ lately and know it to be true. I had read from others on the ex-JW subreddit that had taken a tour recently at WT HQ, that they had been shown photos of a mountain in China, and told that this is where all of the granite is being mined from and shipped over to New York to use at the site of the new WT HQ. Apparently, it was cheaper for them to do this and have the local brothers in China mine it, then having to by tons upon tons of granite here in the USA, even wholesale. I can tell you for a certainty, that TONS of high grade granite are being used on site, and not just for trim or decoration, but for actual retaining walls and even at the shipping docks! Apparently, no expense is being spared in the re-building of Solomon's Temple. I wouldn't be surprised if they had a full mock-up (in Gold, matching Bible's description) of the Ark of the Covenant.

So please, anyone reading this who may have toured the new WT HQ or who even may be volunteering or working on the new cult compound....errr......WT HQ, please confirm this. I know for fact there are at least SOME apostates high up on the construction crew, as I've seen actual photos from site on reddit and even CAD renderings.

Let everyone know how the ice cream money is being spent. Thanks!

ttdtt

That sound just nuts, and made up.

All the "brothers" in China are underground, and buying a mine would not be cheaper than buying granite which is just a commodity.

By the way - Tons of granite is not a big number when you are talking about rocks.

Wild_Thing

I believe it is very possible for the Watchtower to buy their own quarry and harvest the granite themselves. They seem to have endless money, and are very predatory .... err resourceful using volunteer labor. This is a bit more complicated than making their own glue, which they have done for years, but it still falls within the realm of possible.

I do question how this was able to happen in China. I can't imagine them being able to do this under the Watchtower name. I imagine they would need to do business in China with a more auspicious name that has no connection to the Watchtower.

But, I imagine the "volunteer labor" is easy to come by in China. People are starving over there, and sending your young uneducated son that you can't afford to feed off to the Watchtower where they will take good care of him ... provide shelter and plenty to eat in exchange for work ... would seem like a great deal to them. Over there I don't think they would even see it as slave labor. They would just see it as a job.

I am anxious to hear confirmation of this and I hope someone can find out what name they are doing business under.

juandefiero

ttdtt gives a logical, rational response...then gets a dislike.

This forum is completely ridiculous sometimes.

WingCommander

Here is a link to the thread where I saw this. It's about half way down in a paragraph. The brother describes his recent visit.
https://www.reddit.com/r/exjw/comments/4ak48i/to_all_congregations_in_the_united_states_branch/

Here is the actual text (copy and paste) for those that don't want to click the link.

When speaking about his recent visit to Bethel, this guys responds:

It was actually really boring if I'm going to be honest. I enjoyed the tours at all the other bethels despite being an apostate, but this one was especially boring. The main lobby looks nice and modern, with a big wooden QR code on the wall that leads to JW.org.

The tour itself was mainly just showing us where they eat, where they all load the busses, some offices and some store rooms. But there were a few interesting things we saw and learned.

The most interesting thing I learned was that they literally bought an entire fucking mountain in China. A lot of the outside of Warwick is going to be solid granite. They literally need so much granite to complete the project, it was cheaper to buy an entire mountain half way across the world and have the brothers over in China mine it than it was to buy granite from a retailer or wholesale.

We were showed this area that they refer to as the snake pit, and we were shown a mockup of what will be the governing body offices. They looked super modern and well design, and were quite large. The guy giving the tour told us that they originally had a different design, but they decided to go with this design because it would save them millions of dollars. Millions. For the fucking offices of 7 stupid men.

We were also showed the future location of JW Broadcasting. We saw some mockup walls of what the auditorium would look like. They're using the wood they cut down on the actual property for a lot of the project. We even saw the sawmill where they cut the wood when we got a tour of Walkill. They're doing the whole grass on roof thing which is cool. As much as a I wish I could say that they suck at building Warwick, it really is beautiful and cutting edge.

Also someone died while at Warwick. They briefly mentioned it and it really peaked my interest so I was all like, "OMG really?" To which they shut me down and said he drowned when he was off the clock. They made sure I knew he died off the clock. But I mean, the poor guy still died. :/

Londo111

By China, could this mean Taiwan? And how would one define a mountain?

Barrold Bonds

It's entirely possible they are buying and importing granite from China. It's less likely they 'bought' a mountain. It is however, totally impossible that they are using JW labor in China to get it. No fucking way.

I wouldn't be surprised if the tour guide was making shit up or passing down rumors. I did it all the time when giving tours in Brooklyn.

ttdtt

The story is crazy. There would be NO cost savings.

Yea a Banned Religious group is going to start or buy a mining company in China to get some rocks cheep.

No problems with the Chinese government, you just bribe them to get what you want.

No problem getting skilled labor to run a mining company. We get the 32 underground JWs to work there from all over the country. And they can have Morning Text, and WT studies at lunch break.

And saying they are going to China for High Quality granite? :) Interesting little article about that - http://www.ehow.com/info_12183280_chinese-granite-problems.html

OrphanCrow

I find it entirely plausible that the WT is involved in granite mining in China. Maybe they haven't bought a whole mountain, but it wouldn't surprise me if they are using granite from mines that the WT is either investing in themselves or, as per usual....probably the money bag men who pull the WT's strings have ownership in Chinese mining projects.

I wonder what the quality of stone is that they are getting.

http://solidsurfacealliance.org/ss-better-than-granite6.html

Many countries, alarmed by the surge in granite use in homes, have sponsored
studies into the health aspects of granite, mostly radiation issues and Radon
gas exhalation rates. China was so concerned with the radiation levels of
granite that they started classifying and regulating it into four levels, with only
the safest level being suitable for use in Chinese dwellings. Silicosis is a well
studied problem from the last century, once almost eradicated as an industrial
disease, yet making a comeback due to the boom in granite countertop
fabrication.
The lower prices of exported granite from China is mostly due to the banning of
the three lower levels from being used inside Chinese dwellings, yet the
regulations do not prohibit export.

And, apparently injury to workers is the biggest problem that granite mining faces:

By far the worst problem caused by the large slab sizes is the injury and
accidental death of workers. A full size granite slab will weigh over one
thousand pounds, enough to crush a man, even amputate limbs. Slabs are
handled with slab clamps which grab the center of the sheet. If the slab breaks,
the suddenly unbalanced slab can easily crush feet and hands, even swinging
out of control to kill workers. A-frame failures have killed many workers, falling
like dominoes, dozens even hundreds of slabs collapsing in some cases.

oppostate

Thanks for that link, ttdtt.

"Chinese granite is its high levels of radiation. Radioactive isotopes of potassium and radium exist in most Chinese granite in higher levels than elsewhere. Chinese chemist L. Xinwei and his colleagues claimed in 2005 that six types of the most sought-after granite mined in China contained more than the normal radiation limit for home use."

Need confirmation: WT bought an entire mountain in China to mine the granite needed for new WT HQ

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