the all-wise, all-knowing, all-seeing watchtower society peers into and explores all possibilities of thought and logic.
yes, right back to human beginnings they look at how adam needed to determine who or what would serve as his companion!
where did adam search for a companion?.
Rebel8,
I am fairly saavy with Internet acronyms ... but I missed OFSM ... so I searched and here is what I found:
| OFSM | - Online Ferrari Service Manual |
OFSM - Oh Flying Spaghetti Monster! - Used by Atheists as a replacement for OMG (Oh My God) and other variations.
OFSM - Oculo-Facial-Skeletal Myorhythmia
And it goes down hill from there ... would you explain the initials for me?
Thanks!
the all-wise, all-knowing, all-seeing watchtower society peers into and explores all possibilities of thought and logic.
yes, right back to human beginnings they look at how adam needed to determine who or what would serve as his companion!
where did adam search for a companion?.
Villabolo:
Yes, I recall at the 1974 District conventions how the Society started to 'soft-peddle' the 1975 date. It made the news in the Seattle PI. However, the speakers stressed that while the end may delay some, not to be seduced 'to suppose that the old system will last another ten years.' That was 35-years ago. In a way, the speaker was right ... this old system did not end within ten years ... and shows no sign of ending yet. With the mentality like that of Freddy's book, it is a wonder that the WTS is able to keep a hold on its people.
Is this guy a preacher or a political activist? Did he not read, "Render unto Caesar what is Caesar's? If he is a preacher, then he should have simply cooperated and been done with it. If a political activist - then by all means, he is on to something ... and more needs to be made public. However, this stuff is not new. Our civil rights and liberties have been eroding for the past 50 years to the point where the Constitution is barely recognizable ... and both political parties are responsible for that erosion ... and we the people bare some blame for letting them get away with it.
But there is still something fishy about this "preacher's" story ... I just can't quite completely swallow it ... I would like to hear the cops side of the story ... and see the police video ... maybe it will show up on the TV show "Cops" or one of the Cable TV reality police shows.
When returning from Canada in the 1974, with my family and brother-in-law and his family ... the US Border guards, in military-style uniform, were rather cocky, carried automatic weapons, inspected us for illegal drugs, and acted like we were guilty of something ... fortunately our little children stayed asleep. They asked if we had any products from Cuba that we bought in Canada ... as it was illegal at the time to import products made in Cuba, like cigars, rum, etc. It was tense, and surprised me to see how they treated us. My subsequent trips back from Canada have all been much nicer, even after 9-11 ... and the Border personnel were all dressed in civilian clothing and unarmed.
the all-wise, all-knowing, all-seeing watchtower society peers into and explores all possibilities of thought and logic.
yes, right back to human beginnings they look at how adam needed to determine who or what would serve as his companion!
where did adam search for a companion?.
The all-wise, all-knowing, all-seeing Watchtower Society peers into and explores all possibilities of thought and logic. Yes, right back to human beginnings they look at how Adam needed to determine who or what would serve as his companion! Where did Adam search for a companion?
"Before God created anything new, a woman, God left the man free to determine whether there was a suitable companion for him among all the lower animals. He did not oblige the man to go seeking a companion among them, thus requiring the use of much time on the man's part, but Jehovah God brought various beasts of the earth and flying creatures of the heavens before the man."- Life Everlasting - In Freedom of the Sons of God, p. 45, para. 22 (c)1966 Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society of Pennsylvania
Why, God even brought these creatures to Adam, because he might spend too much time deciding whether to marry a dog or a bird or to determine if he was more oriented toward sheep or an ass. Thankfully, Adam was not an animo-sexual. We would not want Adam to have married a donkey and turn us into jackasses with wings.
Oh, Watchtower, and you silly GB boys ... what would the GB been like had any of them gotten an education beyond the third grade ... opps, according to rumor, Fred Franz, the so-called Greek expert, wrote the above book ... and he had two years of college ... yikes! He must have done well in creative fairy-tale writing classes.
last october 2008, someone named jim whitney opened a coffee shop named "j. dubs coffee" which we know is slang for jehovah's witnesses.. could it be me?
i am neither confirming nor denying it!
http://www.jdubscoffee.com/j_dubs_in_the_news.html.
Proandcon:
Amen! At last, someone who thought to read the bio ... there is hope afterall! The J. dub link was sent to me by Outaservice. He thought it was kind of cool that someone with the same name, a former j-dub at that, would use such a title for a coffee shop ... and then teased me as to whether I might own it. I jokingly replied that I am neither confirming nor denying it. I thought it was fun to play with it for a while. But, alas, you have solved the puzzle with a keen eye for the written text ... and my little charade is over ... if there was ever a charade.
Amazing ...
i've jumped in on several threads about the issues contained in the title and not gotten real responses.
i'm not attributing any meaning to this or saying it means the proponents can't defend this.
i still want to know from those whose view entails the following set of propositions just what your arguments are.
Spook,
I will look over and respond to your comments ... but you can see by the added commentary by "beksbks" that she is clearly bias as an example of what I mean when both sides talk past one another.
I do not for a moment believe that either party or philosophy sticks to its "principles." Both fall far short of accomplishing anything really well. I was simply stating theory and platforms. But, before I continue further commentary ... I want to assess whether it is worth the risk of getting into a heated debate over this topic.
last october 2008, someone named jim whitney opened a coffee shop named "j. dubs coffee" which we know is slang for jehovah's witnesses.. could it be me?
i am neither confirming nor denying it!
http://www.jdubscoffee.com/j_dubs_in_the_news.html.
Minimus: mmmmmm works it everyday ... I make coffee everyday ... mmmmmm could it be? I did move from Illinois and no longer work at a job site, but from home ... so, could I also have the time to make some coffee and check in on a coffee shop? I am neither confirming nor denying it.
several ex-elders, bethelites, ministerial servants, the rank and files of ex-jws on this site are writing about being stalked, harrassed, having their homes peeped through, car broken into while others such as gubberningbody, reports of recieving unsolicited calls from kh elders from another congregation.
the numerous stories are very troubling.
although some members have denied this existance of this lllegal activity, the underlying question continues to puzzle our minds: is wts behind stalking, espisonage and harrassment of ex-jws?
Scott77:
Stalking does happen for various reasons. Sometimes, local Elders take it upon themselves to watch some JW suspected of wrongdoing.
When I was giving testimony on behalf of abuse victims against the WTS, I was concerned about being monitored. I was able to establish that some party at the WTS headquarters attempted to hack my computer. My special designed security program stopped it ... and I moved my PC off line for several years. I used another PC without any data one it to conduct online activity.
But, I do not believe that the Society or most Elders care to spy on JWs ... just when it becomes important to the interest of the Society in serious matters ... or in some cases where the local Elders are weird and feel the need to do so.
last october 2008, someone named jim whitney opened a coffee shop named "j. dubs coffee" which we know is slang for jehovah's witnesses.. could it be me?
i am neither confirming nor denying it!
http://www.jdubscoffee.com/j_dubs_in_the_news.html.
Minimus:
Correct, I am an electrical engineer and work on nuclear power plants. That does not mean that I could not decide to take some of my hard earned money and invest it in a coffee chain, hiring my brother to run it. Did I, or did I not? I am neither confirming nor denying.
PS: I also currently hold a real estate license and manage commercial investment properties in various locations.
i've jumped in on several threads about the issues contained in the title and not gotten real responses.
i'm not attributing any meaning to this or saying it means the proponents can't defend this.
i still want to know from those whose view entails the following set of propositions just what your arguments are.
Spook:
The two opposing sides have these fundamental difference:
Conservatives distrust big government, and therefore want smaller government. To achieve this, low taxes keeps the government from growing and controlling our lives. Also, by keeping taxes lower, individual people and businesses have more to spend, and can find more efficient ways to achieve better results. Conservatives understand that when you raise taxes, business will only have to offset this raise by increasing prices ... and thus the individual consumer/taxpayer ends up paying the tax anyway. They see it as slight of hand and dishonesty by the government. The keynote is individualism and personal liberty ... and not a guarantee of total equality when it comes to personal wealth and achievement.
Liberals distrust big business, and therefore want greater government involvement. To achieve this, they want higher taxes on the wealthy and big business, which keeps big business under control through either tax benefits-incentives, or punishment. By raising taxes, Liberals can finance programs and benefits that they believe the people need, and could not have without big government. An example is universal health care programs, designed to equalize the health care needs of all citizens. The key note is fairness and an equal playing field, a sense of community ... and not individual advantage ... personal wealth is considered as unfair.
I personally favor the conservative approach, as it more closely resembles the theme on which the nation was founded, and specifically many of the founding fathers condemned what they saw as the welfare state that Liberals want today. I distrust any central authority and power arrangement ... whether big human government or big theocratic-religious government. We see how big Soviet government, big Nazi government, and big Muslim governments have become abusive ... and our own American government has become abusive at times. My theme: Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.
However, Liberals do have a point in the sense of community, and in caring for one another when times get too tough to individually handle. BUT, I prefer a local approach and local community to develop and deliver needed assistance, such as what many Churches do.
THE PROBLEM is that both sides talk past one another and fail to listen, often engage in applying labels and slogans, and do not engage in educated exchanges. It may be a reflection of not growing past some JW traits ... but I think the problem is generally systemic in society at large, and not a JW social issue. Notwithstanding these thoughts, I tend to avoid political discussions on this and other ex-JW forums, as I am not skilled at moving the discussion in a better direction.
I edited some of my statements for clarity and spelling.
