Thanks BluesBrother. That's likely where the idea I remember came from. Ostentatious display of wealth. Detracting from the truth. Stumbling others. Crazy stuff.
Mephis
JoinedPosts by Mephis
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39
No Sports Cars Please!
by snugglebunny ini read on a jw forum that jw's came in for disapproval if they drove either sports cars or 2-door cars.
the reasoning was that a driver couldn't easily take fellow dubbies out preaching in such a vehicle.
was that ever official policy or just local nonsense from a grumpy po?.
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Evolution is a Fact #1 - Protein Functional Redundancy
by cofty ini intend for this to be one of a series of bite-sized ops on the evidence for evolution.. introduction to dna genes are sequences of dna made up of words (codons) each of which are three letters (bases) long.
there are only four letters in the genetic alphabet (acg&t) each word or codon is the recipe for one amino acid.
there are 20 different amino acids in living organisms.
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Mephis
No science please, I'm common sensing a theory which validates my current bronze age explanation for how life developed. Of course everything is a little bit similar if Atum masturbated all the other gods into being and cried happy tears which became humans. Everything carries a little part of Atum with them and that's clearly what you're trying to describe. We had this figured out 4000 years ago guys. Why the debate? -
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Why the Governing Body caught a frightful fright
by Saintbertholdt init has been extensively reported on the forum that there has been a marked increase in effort over the past two years by the governing body of jehovah's witnesses to encourage an increase in monetary donations.
this has also been accompanied by the stripping of financial capital from the local congregations.
as has also been reported on this forum, this has in all probability been done to facilitate the financing of the vast new hq building project as well as the financing of the shift from a publishing company to becoming an internet based charismatic multimedia company which produces lame pixar/disney animation knock offs while simultaneously parading the governing body's ever expanding waistlines, blingy accoutrements and stupid grins.. meanwhile the financials of the organization remains as murky as ever.
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Mephis
Just on this point.
So how could we know that the measurement is at least consistent?
Are asset values assessed annually, or is it done on an as needed basis? If it's annually, then there will be variability as JeffT suggests, but it can be tied to the wider economic background to some degree. If it's more irregularly done then it would obviously need more info to help interpret anything radically off trend. My suspicion would be that assessment would be fairly irregular just from the costs associated in doing it.
eg 2016 could see a major bump to assets if they've not had the Brooklyn properties currently being sold assessed for several years. And then a drop down the year after as they're sold and the money spent.
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39
No Sports Cars Please!
by snugglebunny ini read on a jw forum that jw's came in for disapproval if they drove either sports cars or 2-door cars.
the reasoning was that a driver couldn't easily take fellow dubbies out preaching in such a vehicle.
was that ever official policy or just local nonsense from a grumpy po?.
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Mephis
Was certainly something frowned upon as being too ostentatious, too worldly looking, Then they'd try to buttress the argument with the 'and if you go on field service...' thing in my old congo. Not anything official though, one of those which would get filed under 'matter of conscience' and only mentioned in talks by visiting speakers/COs or at assemblies. -
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How will the Watchtower Cult end?
by WireRider insome announcement of sorts?.
there are all kinds of conspiracy theories.
their head count and time cards are all faked by the gb, and "congregations".
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Mephis
You're right, they need to reform.
They won't, though, because if they did, they'd no longer be Jehovah's Witnesses.The paradox they've built themselves, isn't it? They've become increasingly repressive but it's at best just leading to stagnation with a demographic time bomb building up in affluent countries. But without the repression, then it's not the same religion and the numbers will plummet just from people no longer being shut away from the outside world.
Would rather the boom. Would rather Lett stand up in a broadcast and gurn for a bit before saying, "I am the chief chumpawolla, we're really sorry but this was a bad joke we let go on too long". But not going to happen. It'll be new light and more new light and old light as new light with a slight hint of a sepia filter etc etc etc.
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23
How will the Watchtower Cult end?
by WireRider insome announcement of sorts?.
there are all kinds of conspiracy theories.
their head count and time cards are all faked by the gb, and "congregations".
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Mephis
There'll be no single end date, just the slow slide into being an increasingly obscure historical artifact of the adventist movements. At some point it will fully cross that boundary into being as much a cultural thing as a religious. Sort of hovering close to that boundary already. They need to reform, which won't happen while they're still in full delusional mode, or they get ever more repressive and isolated from broader society. I'm sure they'll still be knocking about in some form or another in another hundred years. Going to be interesting to see whether they tap into fundy christianity's populist techniques and politics, or whether they head into Plymouth Brethren style isolation. Curious tension they've built up internally which will have to be resolved at some point. -
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Where does the money come from to operate the Hospital Information network?
by OrphanCrow inthe recent buzz that has hit the online communities concerning the watchtower society and their evil offspring - the jw org - revolves around their apparent financial difficulties.
many factors have been discussed - the real estate flips (and flops), the changes in meetings and field service, the need for donations to cover expenses, the push for donations.
where does the money come from to operate the hospital information network?
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Mephis
In Britain, the Hospital Services is run out of IBSA House. Can't find anything charitable registered (or mentioned in hospital policy documents which deal with them) which seems linked, so assume that it's run as a department of the monolithic whole. -
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Why the Governing Body caught a frightful fright
by Saintbertholdt init has been extensively reported on the forum that there has been a marked increase in effort over the past two years by the governing body of jehovah's witnesses to encourage an increase in monetary donations.
this has also been accompanied by the stripping of financial capital from the local congregations.
as has also been reported on this forum, this has in all probability been done to facilitate the financing of the vast new hq building project as well as the financing of the shift from a publishing company to becoming an internet based charismatic multimedia company which produces lame pixar/disney animation knock offs while simultaneously parading the governing body's ever expanding waistlines, blingy accoutrements and stupid grins.. meanwhile the financials of the organization remains as murky as ever.
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Mephis
Market rate valuation can create wild swings in the value of assets held, which are meaningful only if you have to convert the asset into cash immediately.
The curious thing to me is that the trend (of the 'known' numbers) is up coming out of a major property recession, and then start to fall what seems to be in line with the Brooklyn property sales. That seems to suggest the money's gone out as soon as it's come in, if the cash isn't there to list as an asset. What am I missing there? Got to be something I'm not seeing, it's too odd.
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Why the Governing Body caught a frightful fright
by Saintbertholdt init has been extensively reported on the forum that there has been a marked increase in effort over the past two years by the governing body of jehovah's witnesses to encourage an increase in monetary donations.
this has also been accompanied by the stripping of financial capital from the local congregations.
as has also been reported on this forum, this has in all probability been done to facilitate the financing of the vast new hq building project as well as the financing of the shift from a publishing company to becoming an internet based charismatic multimedia company which produces lame pixar/disney animation knock offs while simultaneously parading the governing body's ever expanding waistlines, blingy accoutrements and stupid grins.. meanwhile the financials of the organization remains as murky as ever.
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Mephis
Wondering why there's no evident dip until 2014? How often do adjustments have to be made to value of assets held? Not cumulative impact of 2006 to 2012 drops finally hitting their accounts or something like that?
Interesting, thanks for pulling the non-profit information out.
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Did Jesus actually start a church to himself?
by TTWSYF inwith some 30,000 different christian denominations, how would one know which one was for real?
some folks think jesus did start a church, others think no.
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Mephis
It's certainly a learned response. One reads, one examines the evidence, one learns. Or not, as the case may be. :)
We must agree to differ on whether saying something will happen is the same as saying it has happened. You say it clearly means the same thing, I disagree. Your view is supported by your opinion, mine by reading comprehension.
The rest of your post isn't really something I'm even interested in discussing, as you obviously have your faith and beliefs and opinions and my general view is that I'm glad I don't live in an era where the church gets to burn anyone who asks questions.