Lett is getting OLDER. It is COLD and damp in upstate New York. Arthritis is common as a person gets older and even more common if you have a bad diet. Bethel food is made in huge vats so everyone can be served at the same time. Fresh fruit and vegetables were uncommon at Bethel, especially in the winter. Lots of potatoes, white flour, salt, and sugar in everyday food. Expensive booze is a frequent gift from rich JWs.
Affluent, social climbing JWs clamor to treat Governing Body members to nice restaurants or entertain them at their nice homes and serve them expensive and tasty meals every weekend. That kind of diet is an inflammation health bomb when you are older.
What I saw while in Brooklyn Bethel with GB 2.0 was that while UNEDUCATED and of average intelligence, the JW Governing Body is full of Corporate climber types, and TRUE BELIVERS who feel their every action is motivated by god. Both types of people speak and act with conviction and enjoy POWER. You see the same stuff in the Islamic world. I think poorly educated groups frequently promote confident but mentally ill leaders. My 2 cents.
"Thomas Szasz critiques the concept of religious auditory hallucination: those who hear the voice of God talking to them are experiencing schizophrenia, while those who talk to God but hear no response are simply praying".[47]