maksutov

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Posts by maksutov

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  27

  Calm Down Everybody, We Will Know Soon Enough

  by OnTheWayOut in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  seriously, they will change the midweek meeting ever so slightly.

  it is just repackaging of the same old stuff.seriously, we don't know if construction is halted for days, weeks, months, forever, or what.. we don't know if new kingdom halls will still go up, old kingdom halls will be closed and sold.

  they have laid off bethelites before and they will lay them off some more.

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  maksutov

  My JW wife thinks the cutbacks and simplifications are all to make translation easier. There is so much focus on translating into as many languages as possible she says. What it "means" to any individual depends to a large extent on the biases they approach the information with.
  
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  73

  Everybody loves Raymond

  by Saintbertholdt in

  1. watchtower
  2. scandals

  a while ago the user vinman started a forum thread called: "ray franz was an idiot".

  the reaction to it was quite negative but i have to admit that the title of that thread was intriguing to me.

  by nature i am an iconoclast.

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  maksutov

  Making an accusation like that (about Greenless) would have overshadowed the other themes in the book, especially if there was some doubt as to the veracity of the allegation (removal from the GB might have been more of a precautionary measure than a punishment). Crisis of Conscience was not the place to make that kind of allegation. If there was enough evidence to make an allegation, it should have been made to the police, not published in a book.
  
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  13

  How wonderful is JW.ORG

  by Sabin in

  1. watchtower
  2. scandals

  there are some who still love the organization & the people in it.. who understand that every large organization has their own issues.. they believe the advice on what type of person you are supposed to be & how to treat others has made them a better person.

  and they believe, quite frankly, even if the g.b are a bunch of narcissistic wannabe powerful guys, the worest thing they have done is to wake up people on saturday mornings.. i`ve been awake most of the night thinking about this, wondering if this person had a point.

  then something came to my mind.

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  maksutov

  While I agree with the OP (excellent list of quotes btw), I find this statement a little odd:

  Sabin: If you think this organisation is so good then you absolutely don't believe in God.

  Surely, most JWs believe in God? When I believed in God, I thought the organisation was good. Now that I don't believe in God, I do not think the organisation is good. But there really is no connection between the two statements. Belief in God has no bearing on whether or not someone thinks the organisation is good.
  
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  52

  After Death Communications in the JW community

  by jack2312 in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  my name is jack and i'm looking for after death communications from the jehovah witness community.

  an after death communication (or adc) is when a loved one sends a kind of message to this side of life after their death.

  it can be a dream or smell (like perfume or roses that would be attached to them in memory) or a feeling of their presence.

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  maksutov

  I experienced a 'thing' when a relative died - I knew the exact second that she passed, even though I wasn't anywhere near her at the time. I can't explain it (other than by making up a story that fits what I want to believe).

  I also saw a man saw a woman clean in half, and she was fine afterwards. I can't explain that either. I saw someone walk on water (OK, I can explain that). I saw someone make the statue of liberty disappear. I looked at a drawing of some lines on a piece of paper and they started spinning. I've had a couple of premonitions that came true (and probably several thousand that haven't, but I don't remember those).
  
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  17

  A note on the Watchtowers property investments

  by Saintbertholdt in

  1. watchtower
  2. scandals

  about a year ago there was a thread regarding the 2008 watchtower bible and tract society of new yorks tax return.. http://www.jehovahs-witness.com/topic/287098/2008-watchtower-income-tax-return?page=1.

  a reference was made to the provictor property fund iv which was listed as their primary alternate business activity.. turns out that at that time 75% of the chrysler building was owned by the provictor property fund iv until it was sold during that year.. http://money.cnn.com/2008/07/09/news/international/chrysler_building/?postversion=2008070913.

  just thought you should know :).

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  maksutov

  Here is the relevant section that mentions that 7% figure:

  JPMORGANLIQUID ASSETS MONEY MARKET FUND	INSTITUTIONAL	WATCHTOWERBIBLE & TRACT SOCIETY OF PENNSYLVANIA ATTNTREASURERS OFFICE DOMESTIC CASH MANAGEMENT 25COLUMBIA HTS BROOKLYNNY 11201-1300	Record	7.337%
  JPMORGANLIQUID ASSETS MONEY MARKET FUND	INSTITUTIONAL	JPMORGAN TRUST CO NA PAUL G ALLEN—COLLATERAL ACCOUNT ATTN FUND OPERATIONS 3/OPS3 500 STANTON CHRISTIANA ROAD NEWARK DE 19713-2107	Record	7.229%
  JPMORGANLIQUID ASSETS MONEY MARKET FUND	INSTITUTIONAL	AGILENTTECHNOLOGIES ATTNTREASURY ACCOUNTING DEPT PLOT NO90 D SECTOR 18 UDYOGVIHAR GURGAON122015 HARRYANAINDIA	Record	6.020%
  JPMORGANLIQUID ASSETS MONEY MARKET FUND	INSTITUTIONAL	SPRINTCORP ATTNKSOPHF0302-3B372 SUP CASH OPS 6200SPRINT PKWY OVERLANDPARK KS 66251-6117	Record	5.516%
  JPMORGANLIQUID ASSETS MONEY MARKET FUND	AGENCY	JPMORGAN INVESTOR SERVICES CASH MGMT INVESTMENT SUPPORT ATTN CASH SWEEP OPERATIONS 14221 DALLAS PARKWAY 2JIP 6TH FL DALLAS TX 75254-2942	Record	40.207%
  JPMORGANLIQUID ASSETS MONEY MARKET FUND	AGENCY	JPMORGANINVESTOR SERVICES CASH MGMT INVESTMENT SUPPORT ATTNCASH SWEEP OPERATIONS 14221DALLAS PARKWAY 2JIP 6TH FL DALLASTX 75254-2942	Record	35.324%
  JPMORGANLIQUID ASSETS MONEY MARKET FUND	AGENCY	STROOCKSTROOCK & LAVAN LLP 180MAIDEN LANE NEWYORK NY 10038-4925	Record	8.384%
  JPMORGANLIQUID ASSETS MONEY MARKET FUND	PREMIER	JPMORGANINSTITUTIONAL TRUST SERVICES FBOVARIOUS TRUSTS ATTNVIRGINIA DELGADO 2001BRYAN TOWER 11TH FLOOR DALLASTX 75254	Record	58.756%

  
  

  But if you add up all those percentages, it comes to way more than 100%. So I am guessing it does not mean that each of those parties owns that percentage of the fund. I have no idea what it does mean though!
  
  
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  24

  If they go bankrupt, so what?

  by maksutov in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  it seems likely that the watchtower is worried about its finances, given the downsizing, property schemes, and money-grabs we have been seeing over the last few years.

  perhaps they suffered badly from the financial crisis.

  for sure, there will be more expenses to come from child abuse payouts.

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  maksutov

  Tenacious: it is Jehovah God who will ultimately manipulate their downfall or expose them for who they really are

  Would that it were so, but I'm far from convinced!

  Half banana: they may not even tell the bros

  Interesting thought - it would be a matter of public record though, so the rank and file would probably find out anyway (the media would report on it, surely). I think more likely that they would spin it as an attack from Satan.
  

  Vidiot: Bankruptcy = no money.
  No money = no Watchtower.

  Does it though? Perhaps no printed magazine, but an online Watchtower is still feasible even without funds isn't it?
  
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  24

  If they go bankrupt, so what?

  by maksutov in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  it seems likely that the watchtower is worried about its finances, given the downsizing, property schemes, and money-grabs we have been seeing over the last few years.

  perhaps they suffered badly from the financial crisis.

  for sure, there will be more expenses to come from child abuse payouts.

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  maksutov

  OK, so on this thread at least, most people seem to agree that they won't go bankrupt any time soon. But that wasn't what I was asking really! The question is a hypothetical one - what if they did? What would happen next? I'm not normally one for speculating about things that are not likely to happen, but I find this particular question intriguing because for some groups/organisations/companies, bankruptcy is game over - but not, I think, for a religious cult as large as this one.
  
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  24

  If they go bankrupt, so what?

  by maksutov in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  it seems likely that the watchtower is worried about its finances, given the downsizing, property schemes, and money-grabs we have been seeing over the last few years.

  perhaps they suffered badly from the financial crisis.

  for sure, there will be more expenses to come from child abuse payouts.

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  maksutov

  notsurewheretogo: They sold a billion dollars worth of property in the last 10 years...how are they going bankrupt??????????

  Sorry if I gave the impression I thought they were going bankrupt - I don't. It is impossible to get an accurate picture of their financial standing, as they don't publish comprehensive figures. However, some ex-JWs seem to be convinced that the org is in serious financial trouble (and there is some evidence to support that view, albeit far from conclusive) - my question is, so what? Even if that's true and they go bankrupt, I don't see it changing much. Just wondering what others thought.
  
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  24

  If they go bankrupt, so what?

  by maksutov in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  it seems likely that the watchtower is worried about its finances, given the downsizing, property schemes, and money-grabs we have been seeing over the last few years.

  perhaps they suffered badly from the financial crisis.

  for sure, there will be more expenses to come from child abuse payouts.

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  maksutov

  It seems likely that the Watchtower is worried about its finances, given the downsizing, property schemes, and money-grabs we have been seeing over the last few years. Perhaps they suffered badly from the financial crisis. For sure, there will be more expenses to come from child abuse payouts. But suppose they do actually go bankrupt, what then?

  They have so many different corporations and legal entities, that one could easily imagine one or two going bust and the rest carrying on as normal - insulating themselves from the worst of it, and perhaps even coming back stronger than before, having rid themselves of bad debt. But if that is not possible for some reason, and they genuinely have to sell up the printing presses and property to pay of creditors, will that really mean the end of the religion?

  I doubt it. I can run a business from home. I can publish books even though I don't have a printing press. Surely it wouldn't be hard for them to become an 'online religion'? They are already half way there. Each congregation is a separate charity (in the UK at least), and for those that don't own their own hall, or would have to surrender it, the members could probably all chip in to rent a hall or build a new one, or just meet in private homes. They will see it as a sign of the nearness of the end, and might even grow in membership. Depressing, but that's my best guess as to what would happen. Your thoughts?
  
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  98

  Music buffs.Here we go again. List you're all-time favorite Guitarists

  by flipper in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  hello ya'll.

  was just listening to great guitar music from some of my favorites.

  who are your all time favorites?

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  maksutov

  John Williams

  Julian Bream

  Craig Ogden

  Nicola Hall (Godess, hope that's OK, lol)
  

  Steve Vai

  Here's me:

  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zdfcUR2vBGw