I think they are both sincere and insincere simultaneously. They are intellectually dishonest, and knowingly use falsehoods to convince themselves and others to believe. Thought stoppers and logical fallacies keep the cognitive dissonance in check enough for them to perform the mental gymnastics needed to keep the plates spinning. Being honest would be very uncomfortable, so they just block out the doubts by any means necessary and blame Satan - they are too invested to do anything else.
maksutov
JoinedPosts by maksutov
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58
Just a quick Poll...Do you think the GB is sincere?
by NikL ini've been thinking about this the past few days and curious what the honest consensus is here just for fun.. show of hands,.
is the governing body.... a: completely sincere.
they really do believe what they teach.. b: somewhat sincere.
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maksutov
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43
2520-607 = 1913
by schnell ini love math, i love calendars, and somehow, this always gets me.. 2520 - 607 = 1913. not 1914.. 2520 - 606 = 1914. from what i understand, russell realized this.
he had previously used 606 bc, of course, but then he switched it to 607 bc.
i know there was something about no zero year, so it actually should be less one, correct?.
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maksutov
CORRECTION:
607 - 607 = 01914 - 1 = 1913
1913 + 607 = 2520
There we go, that's better. Now we still have it leading to... 1913.
No, it does lead to 1914 (albeit, using solar years instead of the lunar years that the so-called prophecy is made up of). 1913 years after 1 CE was 1914, not 1913.
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JW.org as a Prank Tool
by schnell inthe moment i saw the "request a study" form on the site, i thought, "umm, that could be a bad thing.".
but to date, i have heard of only one case where it was used for less than genuine purposes.
that was in the case of a "game developer" who was selling crappy asset-flips on steam.
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maksutov
Does it track personal data of the person that does they request for the study? Like i.p. address, etc. ?
Almost certainly, yes, but it is trivial to use a proxy or VPN to hide your IP address (just search for free web proxy, or install a VPN plugin for your browser, such as Hola).
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Bro Knorrs Notes RE Disfellowshipping & Two Witness Rule
by pale.emperor inhi guys.
a fellow ex jw shared this with me.
haven't time to read them yet (i'm using my phone to go on internet).
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maksutov
It was around 1947 when they published an article saying that excommunication was pagan and not supported by scripture.
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the future for the borg
by pepperheart init look very possible that the borg could lose their charity status in both the uk and oz if this happens the jw will not have all the tax breaks for the buildings that they have now.and that the headquarters will have to start finding extra money.and as they have done so much cost cutting anyway these past years i think they will have to start selling kingdom halls off.
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maksutov
Their UK charity status is not under threat. They are under investigation, but losing their charitable status is not on the cards at all. The former lead investigator confirmed (in a phone call to Lloyd Evans, as reported by him) that they have neither the will nor the power to remove charitable status. The most they can do is replace trustees with those of their own choosing. They will undoubtedly put pressure on the org, and I am hopeful that there will be plenty of publicity, but the charity commission has no teeth.
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Raising Concerns To My Wife - Success!!
by pale.emperor inin case you havent read any of my previous posts the situation is im in the process of fading, my wife's dad is an elder and has the annoying habit of telling the body of elders anything and everything my wife tells him in confidence.
over the years she's started to see how we can tell her parents anything.
weather it be worries we have, music we listen to, movies we watch, decisions we make regarding our child etc.. anyway.
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maksutov
Good luck.
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Why don't people believe Facts?
by The Rebel ini have enjoyed some fascinating debates on the forum.
i have found it interesting when" facts" have been presented to support a viewpoint, yet the " facts" have then been rejected.. what does this mean?.
well the " truth" is as a dub, i was often presented with " facts" that the organisation was wrong, yet as this information challenged my belief system i convinced myself the " facts" were either completely wrong or misinterpreted, .
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maksutov
It gets worse - showing someone facts that disprove their belief often has the effect of making their belief stronger. It is called the backfire effect: http://youarenotsosmart.com/2011/06/10/the-backfire-effect/
Some people claim to have had some success working around it (eg. Peter Boghossian), but it takes a lot of effort, and success is certainly not guaranteed!
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when you went to an "assembly" did you wear a badge?
by greenhornet init embarrassed me.
when i was young my folks made me wear one and i opened it up and took the paper out making it look like it fell out.
after my folks ask what happen i said i dont know.
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maksutov
I would sometimes put the badge on my jacket, then 'accidentally' leave my jacket in the car. -
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If YOU had to make the decision, would you respect a JW relatives wish to refuse a blood transfusion?
by nicolaou ina few years after i quit the meetings my mum needed her medical directive signed and witnessed and she asked if i'd do it.
i was surprised to say the least!.
i think she was just angling to include me and maybe find some lever to get me involved again.
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maksutov
Good question. I would absolutely not witness a blood card, but if my wife needed blood, her blood card was unavailable, and she was unable to speak, I'm not sure what I would do. Is it really my decision? Hmmm. -
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Born to Be Conned - The New York Times
by paul from cleveland inborn to be conned - new york times.
when people want to believe what they want to believe, david sullivan, a professional cult infiltrator, told the commonwealth club of california, a public affairs forum, in july 2010, they are very hard to dissuade.
and the reason it happens (and often happens to the most intelligent people) is that human nature is wired toward creating meaning out of meaninglessness..
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maksutov
Thank you, a very good read.