Posts by eljefe

14

Ads We'd Like To See If Watchtower Publications Allowed Advertising

by Stephanus in

paradise acres condominiums

startling views guaranteed: majestic pine fringed mountains with waterfalls, men working hard in the fields, women picking flowers and children frolicking with wild beasts.

only baptised publishers with up to date field service records and those who are good association will ever be allowed to partake of this offer - call now!

eljefe

I would like to see personals in the WT. "Eccentric elderly man seeks sister in her 20s."

Or condoms "Trojan condoms, keeping pioneers pioneering since 1890".

Or alcohol "Johnny Walker helps you escape the drudgery of your JW existence and makes the meetings go by quicker!"

67

The most condescending thing said to you by the (sm)elders.

by diamondblue1974 in

i wasnt the most academic of children although i had some capability but i could read quite well by the time i was 4 years old at least for my age; i have always read as a child and still read now as an adult both professionally (research) and for pleasure.

i have always been able to write too...and pretty much advanced as well as my peers did in school...perhaps i am lucky, i certainly feel like i am when illiteracy amongst adults and children is rife at present...however.. i remember when i was 16 the wts in the uk were pushing through a scheme teaching those who were not as able to read and write...and an elder in the hall made a point of coming to me and suggesting that i should actually attend the training!!

!....i explained that i could read and write well enough and didnt need to be taught basic literacy... he said that i might learn something new and should respect jehovahs order of things and show appreciation...i did decline his kind offer rather abruptly....but wtf??

eljefe

I used to have a roommate who was the PO. He decided that I spent too much time on the computer. So for the 3 months every talk on the platform was applied towards not using the computer so much. He wasn't the only one giving this advice, every other elder and MS was doing it. They even took the time to look at me while they dispensed this counsel. Ah the good old judgemental times.

73

Guns and JWs

by VM44 in

did the watchtower society ban jw's from owning handguns for self defence?.

if they did, when did they issue the ban?.

didn't some of jesus's apostles carry a sword when the group traveled, to protect agains wild animals and human thieves?

eljefe

In any case, you didn't counter my central argument (nor has anyone in this thread for that matter) which is a very simple one: if guns were restricted in the same manner as even say "dynamite" (or whatever "equivalent" would be "strong" enough) the world would be a far better place. Criminals would not have access to Guns like they do and they would certainly be less prone to using them if they were so expensive to acquire due to their highly being regulated. Not too mention yes, enforcing even stricter penalties on their use.

Both myself and others have already refuted this point. Here it is again.

If guns were banned:
1. Criminals will still have access to them no matter how costly they are. Criminals flout the law, why would banning them make any difference?
2. A poor criminal will use a different weapon (like a knife) to commit crimes instead of a gun.
3. A law abiding citizen will not have any means to defend himself against the gun toting criminals.

73

Guns and JWs

by VM44 in

did the watchtower society ban jw's from owning handguns for self defence?.

if they did, when did they issue the ban?.

didn't some of jesus's apostles carry a sword when the group traveled, to protect agains wild animals and human thieves?

eljefe

Thirdly the 1994 ban on automatic weapons was not renewed (despite his promising to renew it while campaigning) by Bush and so lapsed in 2004, at present they are not illegal to buy to sell unless covered by other less specific legislation. In fact in my state they never were, all that was needed was a permit and excuse such as "I need it for my collection". My brother in law collects guns.

The 1994 Assault Weapon ban did not ban automatic weapons it banned things like "high" capacity magazines and arbitrarily limited it to 10 and telescoping stocks. For more information about the ban you can go here.

Saying automatic weapons was a ploy liberals were using to scare people into voting for gun banning liberals. I remember Kerry using this quite a bit during his election to scare people. He would hold up an AK-47, and imply that this is what the 1994 ban was about the banning of AK-47's. In reality the semi-automatic AK-47 has never been banned. Fully automatic weapons were banned before this and are not set to sunset.

27

What are some Bible contradictions that JWs can't reconcile?

by marked in

i remember reading in the reasoning book about how to approach someone at the door who said the bible was full of contradictions.

one of the answers was "many say the bible's full of contradictions but no one's been able to show me an example of one.".

so, what are some examples that jws would have no real canned answer to?.

eljefe

The Watchtower doesn't even attempt to go into many of the contradictions in Gospels about Jesus' resurrection (e.g. how many saw Jesus behind locked door).

73

Guns and JWs

by VM44 in

did the watchtower society ban jw's from owning handguns for self defence?.

if they did, when did they issue the ban?.

didn't some of jesus's apostles carry a sword when the group traveled, to protect agains wild animals and human thieves?

eljefe

Eduardo,

your argument is a popular one with pro-gun advocates but it is not only unsubstantiated by facts and real world evidence it is also illogical because it presumes that guns would be easily available to the criminal element.

Speaking of unsubstantiated, you made up all of your numbers and ideas.

99.9% of gun owners have never been in a situation

Can you substantiate this with a link to a relevant news site?

So, your argument is a popular one with anti-gun advocates but it is not only unsubstantiated by facts and real world evidence it is also illogical because it presumes that guns would not be easily available to the criminal element.

73

Guns and JWs

by VM44 in

did the watchtower society ban jw's from owning handguns for self defence?.

if they did, when did they issue the ban?.

didn't some of jesus's apostles carry a sword when the group traveled, to protect agains wild animals and human thieves?

eljefe

Rumor has it it was due to a brother shooting an unarmed intruder in his house in Reno, NV.

Do you know how much validity there is to that rumor?I have never heard anything to that effect.

73

Guns and JWs

by VM44 in

did the watchtower society ban jw's from owning handguns for self defence?.

if they did, when did they issue the ban?.

didn't some of jesus's apostles carry a sword when the group traveled, to protect agains wild animals and human thieves?

eljefe

Eduardo,

Your opinion on the second ammendment differs greatly from the DOJ's (Link).

Also, I think we need protection by weapons more than ever. Taking guns away from law abiding citizens allows criminals, who will keep their guns legal or not, to easily overpower everyone else. An armed populace allows an individual citizen to defend himself should the need arise. When was the last time the police arrived within 1 minute of being called? I haven't ever seen that happen. If a citizen is armed he can defend himself until the police come (which is usually about 10 minutes).

73

Guns and JWs

by VM44 in

did the watchtower society ban jw's from owning handguns for self defence?.

if they did, when did they issue the ban?.

didn't some of jesus's apostles carry a sword when the group traveled, to protect agains wild animals and human thieves?

eljefe

20 For example, when the July 15, 1983, Watchtower magazine pointed out that guns were not for Christians, Jehovah?s Witnesses in New Caledonia got rid of their firearms. Shortly thereafter, a local political group searched through a town, burning down every house where they found firearms. But no Witness houses were destroyed. Known neutrality is often the best defense, as has proved true in Northern Ireland, Lebanon, Zimbabwe, and other lands.

Watchtower 85 7/1 pg 23

Here is an overt ban on guns.

73

Guns and JWs

by VM44 in

did the watchtower society ban jw's from owning handguns for self defence?.

if they did, when did they issue the ban?.

didn't some of jesus's apostles carry a sword when the group traveled, to protect agains wild animals and human thieves?

eljefe

Watchtower 84 3/1 pg 14

Christians today likewise abstain from trusting in weapons such as guns and knives?even during these dangerous, ?critical times hard to deal with.? (2 Timothy 3:1) They take seriously the Bible?s command to ?beat swords into plowshares,? and they do not seek to harm their fellowman. (Isaiah 2:4) Because they do not carry weapons for purposes of self-defense, instead of resorting to violence they are more inclined to try to reason with people who would do them harm. ?If possible, as far as it depends upon you, be peaceable with all men,? is the counsel they follow. (Romans 12:18) Nevertheless, it is not always easy to refuse to ?live by the sword.? Situations can develop that severely test a Christian?s desire to ?be peaceable with all men.?

This sounds like a ban on self-defense to me.