Posts by Coded Logic

48

Modern Morality .

by jhine in

jw
friends

having recently been posting on a thread about ot moral values , which are not widely "appreciated " to say the least , i have been thinking about our modern morals about sex and reletionships , or more acurately the lack of any sexual morals todays .

i don't think that we are better off as a society which has gone so far to the do want you want , with whom you want and when you want approach to sexual ethics as we have .

i don't think that women are actually liberated by this attitude .

Coded Logic

How many young women cannot have children because of Chlamydia , how many(men and women ) are coping with AIDS . How many women are left literally "holding the baby" or going though the pain , and often guilt of abortion .

Here in the United States I often speak with theist who try to use the "We are more morale than atheist/agnostics" card. While there is no direct way to measure morality, there are certain factors at which we can look. For example, atheist have both lower rates of both STDs and also teen pregnancies then their Christian counterparts. And Christian women is six times more likely to have an abortion than atheist women.

In order to make good decisions you have to have a good model of how reality works. There are plenty of couples who watch pornography and still have a great sex life. Because they can talk about it openly and have good lines of communication. There are plenty of individuals who sleep around a lot and don't get STDs. Because they exercise safe sex practices. There are many men and woman who are comfortable in their bodies and don't feel sexually degrigated. Because they have learned to accept themselves for who and what they are.

The problem isn't that people are "too liberal". The problem is that, in a large part due to religion, many people think of human sexuality in negitive terms. They try to surpress their feeling and emotions which often leads to lower self esteem and greater liklyhood of taking unneccissary risks - like not using condoms or other kinds of protection.

When we accept who we are - then we can make good decisions. But when we reject who we are - it's a recipe for disaster.

Sex is a naturall part of being human. If you want to share it with just one person - that's a beautiful and wonderful thing. If you want to sleep around a lot and you are honest with your partners - that's great too. Not everyones the same. And no one should be advocating that we all should be.

10

Will you out live the WTBTS?

by Coded Logic in

one year an elder, his special pioneer wife, and their two aux-pioneer children flew out to ny so that they could tour bethel.

while visiting they noticed an old man standing on top of the headquarters with a pair of binoculars.

the elder was perplexed by this and asked their tour guide, what's that old man doing on top of the roof?.

Coded Logic

One year an Elder, his special pioneer wife, and their two aux-pioneer children flew out to NY so that they could tour Bethel. While visiting they noticed an old man standing on top of the headquarters with a pair of binoculars. The Elder was perplexed by this and asked their tour guide, “What's that old man doing on top of the roof?”

“Oh, Brother Watchmen?” Said the Bethelite, “He’s our sentry. He keeps on the lookout for the return of Jesus and the four horseman of the apocalypse.”

The whole JW family was surprised by this. They had known the end was soon - but they hadn't realized the Society was expecting it any day now. When their tour was over they asked if they could speak with the sentry. After getting permission, they were taken up to the rooftop and introduced to the old man.

The Elder's exciment had been building over the past few minutes and, unable to contain himself, he enthusiastically asked, “Please tell us Brother Watchmen, what’s it like being up here keeping on the lookout for the return of Jesus?”

The Old Man pondered thoughtfully and said, “Well, what can I say . . . it’s nice to know I have steady work.”

43

How old were you when baptized?

by Coded Logic in

i was baptized at the age of 11. like most of us, my commitment wasnt to honor god but rather i was gang pressed into the service of the wtbts.

and, at such a young age, it was impossible for me to appreciate the enormity of my actions.

honestly, how could i possibly have known any better?

Coded Logic

Congradualtions! That's awesome :)

43

How old were you when baptized?

by Coded Logic in

i was baptized at the age of 11. like most of us, my commitment wasnt to honor god but rather i was gang pressed into the service of the wtbts.

and, at such a young age, it was impossible for me to appreciate the enormity of my actions.

honestly, how could i possibly have known any better?

Coded Logic

I was baptized at the age of 11. Like most of us, my commitment wasn’t to honor God but rather I was gang pressed into the service of the WTBTS. And, at such a young age, it was impossible for me to appreciate the enormity of my actions. Honestly, how could I possibly have known any better? All my friends and family told me it was the right thing to do. And never once did I stop and consider that if I ever wanted to change my mind I would be outcast and called an apostate.

The more I think about it, the more I realize just how insidious the JW practices' are. They enslave the minds of children and vandalize everyones thinking with superstition and their perpetual accusations of thought crime. It’s an absolute travesty, because no one should ever be held hostage by their beliefs . . . nor enchained to anyone else's.

31

My neighbor is a return visit. Should I say something?

by Zoos in

jw
friends

i stayed home sick from work the other day and noticed a car group pull up to my neighbor's house.

she's a stay-at-home mom.

i decided it was time to retrieve something from my truck to see if i could recognize the visiting sisters.

Coded Logic

How well do you know your neighbor? Do you regularly talk with her?

50

Question for the nonbelievers and atheists

by nykid in

what specifically made you stop believing in god and the bible?

was it a steady road of doubts or it was reading one book or one major event that made you realize the bible was not what it's claimed to be?.

.

Coded Logic

It was a long road as the more I researched about the Bible the more I realized it was just the words of men. But the final knock down arguement came from Sam Harris (The Moral Landscape). He referenced the genocide the Israilites committed against the all the different nations because God told them to. Specifically, when Moses told them to kill all the Midianites - men, women, and children - and only preserve the virgins so they could be parceled out to the Israilite men along with the Midaintites cattle later on.

Sam Harris asked, if you were an Israilite man in the Bible and you're told to kill a woman and her child what is the most humane way to do it? Do you run the family through with your sword? Or do you decapitate them? Perhaps you just bash their heads in with a rock? Do you kill the mother first - and make the child watch? Or is it more humane to make the mother watch you kill her son before you kill her? Exactly what method would a loving God want you to use to slaughter unarmed women and children?

It was then that I realized that the charachter of Jehovah in the Bible was completely immorale. And that the Bible was written by men not by the creator of our universe. About a week later, I realized that, if the Bible wasn't true, I didn't really have any good reason to believe a God exists. I remain open to the possibility, but the time to believe something is after it has been demonstrated to be true. Not before. There's no point in drawing conclusions in the absence of evidence.

39

The frustration of talking to a person with a closed mind

by TheStumbler in

okay, this is going to be a bit of a general rant.

i had a long conversation with a jw elder recently about shunning and evolution.

i became qunite frustrated with the conversation and admitted this at the time.

Coded Logic

If I may add my two cents here, I have found the socratic method to be highly effective in these situations. When they make a claim like, "Evolution is a religion." Ask them why they think that. If they say because its a myth - ask them why they think its a myth. If they say its just a theory - ask them what they think a theory is. Ask them if they accept the scientific theory of gravity, atomic theory, or germ theory? If they say yes they accept those - ask them why they accept those but not evolution. What metric are they using to discrimate between them?

The point is, keep asking questions. Keep the burden of proof on them. They're the ones making the claim that evolution is false. When they start getting fusterated because they can't support their position, then you start in with your facts. It will then becomes apparent to them, even if only on a sub-concious level, that there is a huge difference between their position of just making assertions vs. your position of actually having evidence that supports your claims.

Why do I believe in evolution? Because it is supported by all the life sciences such a developmental and molecular biology, embryology, ontogeny, osteology, paleontology, etc. Because the genetic evidence is overwhelming. Mitochondrial DNA, alone, proves common descent. Endogenous retrovirus’, alone, prove common descent. The Y chromosome, alone, proves common descent. The genetic evidence is undeniable. And it falls perfectly in line with other things like atavisms, physiological and molecular vestiges, biological and chronostratigraphy, geographic speciation, the nested hierarchy of phylogenetics, ring species, transitional fossil forms, and a million and one other things. And because evolution is an applied science, without understanding evolution we couldn’t produce antivirals and antibiotics. That’s why I believe in evolution. Now tell me again self righteous elder, why do you think its false?

Sorry, didn't mean to rant there. Gets me worked up too!

18

Will it someday be possible to read another person's mind, without his or her even knowing it?

by Pinku in

scientists transmit thoughts from one brain to another.

sep 7, 2014, 6:27 am et.

column by lee dye.

Coded Logic

The fact that our thoughts go on waves, similar to radio waves

-End Of Mysteries

No, our thoughts do not work similar to radio waves. They're made up of a complex wiring of nerve impulses that travel along a physical medium. Your brain can't beam your thoughts across the room much less out into space. Instead, there is an electric signal that travels along the axonal branches of our synapses using the charge difference between the inside of the axon and its surroundings, like a tiny battery. When the nerve is activated, there is a sudden change in the voltage across the wall of the axon, caused by the movement of ions in and out of the neuron. This triggers a wave of electrical activity that passes from the cell body along the length of the axon to the synapse.

21

How Have You Changed Much In Attitude & Actions Since Leaving The Witnesses?

by minimus in

jw
friends

it takes time to stop thinking or reacting like a jehovah's witness.. are you still judgmental?

a know it all?

a person that listens more with their heart instead of their head---like jehovah's witnesses ???.

Coded Logic

I feel I've really toned my need to judge people all the time. Though, to be honest, the inclination still persits. Introspection isn't a one time thing. It's a continuall evaluation of where you stand and why you're behaving the way you're behaving. But by being cognisant of my backround I do find it much easier to accept people for who they are now - instead of just stressing over who I want them to be all the time.

As far as being a "know it all" - well, I can't really say that's really changed too much. But I am much more comfortable with saying the words, "I don't know." And when I find out I'm wrong about something I can now pallet the saying, "Hey you know what, you're right about that." (It's amazing the amount of respect you get when you can admitt you're wrong). More importantly, I have done a tremendous amount of research since I learned the TTATT. And the more I learn, the more I realize just how little I know.

The real problem with being a JW isn't how little you know about everything like the Bible. It's that you think you know everything about the Bible. But when you're a witness you don't know who wrote it, when it was written, how it was compiled, how many versions exist of it, old books that used to be in it, new books that were added later, the metrics to use to tell historical accounts from litterary devices, etc. The JWs just do kindergarten theology. They think they can read a 10 page creationist brochure and become an expert on biology. Or read one of Paul's letters and become an expert on psychology. Or cherry pick Bible versus and become an expert on ethics. The WTBTS discourages higher education, philosophy, research, and evidence based reason. It's no wonder I was so judgmental and opionated - I didn't know what it meant to be rational.

18

Will it someday be possible to read another person's mind, without his or her even knowing it?

by Pinku in

scientists transmit thoughts from one brain to another.

sep 7, 2014, 6:27 am et.

column by lee dye.

Coded Logic

The "wiring" in each and every single persons brain is different. What a particular pathway means to one person wouldn't neccissarly translate to another person. And our neuroplasticity continues changing over our entire lives.

We may be able to learn to send specific commands and controll things with our brains - but that is not the same as being able to read a persons thoughts.