i am going way, way back.
history reveals that in the beginning the wt was just a publishing house, selling books and magazines; over the years it evolved into what it is today..
the placement of the original publications was mostly done thru sales people masquerading as preachers.
I always remember the experiences of trading food, chickens, whatever for literature.
I remember once when pioneering and a dude said that he had no money to "contribute,"
I saw a bunch of empty soda bottles (which have a refundable deposit), so I traded the mags for empty bottles.
What an f***ed up bunch (me included).
since the 2016 yearbook yearbook was released i've been tearing through the numbers, trying to figure a few things out.
i have several different projects i'm working on, and this is one of them.
i looked through all the yearbooks from the 1989 one through 2016, the only thing they really state about money is how much they spent on; special pioneers, missionaries, and traveling overseers.
Old people are expensive.
Any country with a social safety net monitors their demographics.
As the PEW report shows, WT's demographics are aging year-after-year.
All of those missionaries, special pioneers, and Bethelites of the olden days need care.
Elder-care is not cheap, even for a cult.
so donating to charities has always been discouraged by the society, as it is a form of support for this "doomed" system.
and of course, "the kingdom" is the only "real solution" to all the problems right?.
but in the meantime, this view gives witnesses a "free pass" from the normal human desire to help out those less fortunate, or ones who were born in another part of the world where life is not as privileged as our own.
EVERY year hundreds of millions of dollars are contributed by the public to what are termed reputable, legitimate and worthy charities, many of which are sponsored by religious organizations. The question is, Should true Christians, who are under the godly commandments to do good, contribute to these supposedly humanitarian money-raising schemes?
WT Dec 15, 1950
(What does one say to WT-speak?)
i am going way, way back.
history reveals that in the beginning the wt was just a publishing house, selling books and magazines; over the years it evolved into what it is today..
the placement of the original publications was mostly done thru sales people masquerading as preachers.
If you haven't seen this letter of 1923, it has some very interesting language.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BwV5UvzB3-67UGVUWk1FclhTREk
if so, they probably won't come forward for a while, then when they do, they'll probably be dragged into the back room for a talk about how the dubs don't gamble, then the winner says he'll donate some, and of course all will be forgiven, then the dub may finally see the hypocrisy of the cult and denounce them on national tv as they hold up that big giant check for all to see!
in a separate thread on the very latest figures for the current world wide annual report of jws, discussion turned to how "we'll know decline has really set in.
one of the posters said: .
the figure that interests me most is the number of congregations.
'decrease in the rate of growth'
Yes, the OP could have been better worded.
But, the upshot is that if you look at the growth line, it has already passed its zenith.
As a numbers-lover, I would expect the next 18 months are huge markers.
Many have said that the 2015 Memorial stats were due to whatever day of the week.
I think not.
I think that the real peak of the Borg was in 2013.
They know it.
And they do not know what to do.
They are throwing into the wind.
Some SE corp gave them good advice on the SEO end of their website (their SE results are impressive). Some marketing corp gave them Mormon copycat BS that is worthless.
The 2016 Memorial stats will reflect 2015's.
After that, it's a matter of milking the blue-haired grandmas as much as possible.
i've been drawing back lately and looking at the big picture going on in the org, somewhat like slimboyfat has also been doing, but i am wondering about different possibilities.
so the current gb has modernized recently in various ways.
they have done a strong and sudden about-face regarding the electronic world, from viewing the whole thing suspiciously and condemning bros. use tablets from the platform to suddenly embracing them and causing the r&f to do so to such a degree that old ones are spending hundreds of dollars to buy devices that they have no clue how to use; they have heavily embraced this media for their message, very much like the churches have been doing for years, especially with their jw broadcasting and their caleb and sophia animations.
They seem to only change things that affect their bottom line.
This is what it is all about.
Freddie actually believed what the mushrooms were telling him.
These c-unts? (Hey Simon - Have you watched GOT?) Not a chance.
Begging EVERY month.
Follow the money.
Do they have a horrific business model compared to the Mormons?
Not even close.
But these idiots have married themselves to doctrine.
The GB, Service and Writing Committees, have painted themselves into a corner from which there is no exit.
These idiots are going down with the ship, no matter how small that they make the ship in the next few years.
easing nature is it for christians?
easing nature the very phrase itself brings to mind the odious product of this activity.
yet, many people have the understanding that this natural bodily function is a practice in which true christians may engage.
En-dor or Endor?
This was Olde English vernacular for the more modern "back door."
"happy" vid.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=je6_855ucac @ about 2:25 is a bethelite with a "security" jacket.
and then here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ts23nn0emnw a "brother" at the gate claims to be sia security.
I think that the Happy video is the best JW vid ever.
Now, if only, that were reality.
some announcement of sorts?.
there are all kinds of conspiracy theories.
their head count and time cards are all faked by the gb, and "congregations".
The question in which they themselves do not know the answer.
In my mind, there is no question that they are in the process.
No corporation announces closure in advance.
Branches down, a lot. Yearbook stats, down virtually across the board.
Videos of newbies - dirt-poor Africans.
Not exactly the brightest business model.
I anticipate that 2017 will show, not just flat numbers, but genuine decline.
Meanwhile, donations are shrinking, and shark lawyers continue to circle.
After 2017, a death-spiral into "Bible Student" status.
