Posts by violias

36

Has This Site Ever Hurt You In Your Journey Out Of The JW Religion?

by minimus in

jw
friends

this site has gone through many metamorphosis over the years.

i believe it is a kinder, less edgy place tan it was a few years ago.

i wonder how many people were helped versus turned off by this place.

violias

In the early years the debate and arguments were stimulating to read. I can have a thin skin so got hurt many times by what people would say. Still, at least on the board we had the freedom to argue and yell and even curse. I remember most of the board fallouts since 02 and some were hard to deal with. I visited other sites for about a year, but never posted much anywhere else. Even if I was not posting much here I was still reading. This board has always had the best information regarding what is happening in the JW world and I know if there is breaking news I'll find it here first.

A lot of people have passed through here (and sadly are no longer with us as they have passed on ) and I wish we had a Remembrance wall type forum for them.

68

15 Years of Jehovahs-Witness.com

by Simon in

yes, today is the forum's 15th birthday!.

i never thought for one moment that it would survive this long or have so many people post so many great subjects over the years.. it is still humbling when i get pm's or emails from people expressing how the site has helped them and of course thanks goes to all the posters who have shared their experiences and make helpful and supportive comments to others who are in the sometimes difficult process of learning the real truth about 'the truth'.. the site has gone through several different incarnations over the last 15 years running on different platforms, different databases and different hosts but we've been able to keep all the old topics.

the current site is still being developed and i'm hoping to push another major upgrade soon.. i also may have some other news to share soon about the future of the site so stay posted.. until then, here's the the next 15 years!

violias

I have been here in one form or another ( two incarnations ) since 02, about the time Silent Lambs went on 20/20. It was an exciting time. The forum has helped me a lot. I was suffering a lot of sorrow and intense bitterness when I first found the forum. B/C of so many amazing posters ( some wrote books and now have sites of their own) I was able to see I was not alone. There is no way to pay for this kind of therapy, it would cost a fortune.

Thanks so much to you and your wife and all the amazing posters who have passed through here. Some are no longer with us. I wish we had a Remembrance forum or page.

I have only met a few in person at the old ApostaFests. I was so paranoid about being outed .

Finally, This forum has been on my Favorites Bar since 02. Happy Birthday!! 15 years.

7

i will just set this right here.

by Defianttruth in

jw
friends

http://www.cracked.com/blog/5-reasons-you-get-tricked-into-believing-stupid-things/

violias

I'm sharing it too, love cracked.

274

Indiana "Religious Freedom" (right to discriminate)

by Simon in

sickening to see the photo of the religious zealots all stood around the governor signing into law the right for people to discriminate against others (gay, lesbian, trans-gender) based purely on religious dogma.. if religious people want those freedoms then the can't have it both ways - they cannot complain if *they* are discriminated against.. "sorry, we don't like zionists, get out".

"oh, it's some special mass and you can't work your shift?

you're fired!"..

violias

He goes to the gas station attendant to fill up his tank. The gas station attendant refused him service because he and his partner look gay.

that would be very foolish of the gas station attendant . If he really hates gays, why does he want them hanging around his town? sell them the gas and they leave.

12

Patient dies as JW paramedic refuses to administer blood product -- thanks, Religious Freedom Act!

by FatFreek 2005 in

(i realize this topic may have already been addressed so i apologize in advance.).

no, that's not a real headline but i suppose it could be one here in arkansas -- one of several states in the us that has a religious freedom law on their books.. as i understand it, if i, as a jw paramedic, am ordered to deliver a blood product to my patient, i can refuse to do so based on my religious freedom.

as a logical consequence, a patient could die.. would paramedic be an occupation be that one of jehovah's witnesses simply cannot accept, knowing fully well that you would be in a likely position to administer blood..

violias

Yes, it was a bit of a sticky mess in the past but jws nurses have it easier now. I am retired but it was a big issue in my time.

Yes it is clear about not administering blood to another jws.

12

Patient dies as JW paramedic refuses to administer blood product -- thanks, Religious Freedom Act!

by FatFreek 2005 in

(i realize this topic may have already been addressed so i apologize in advance.).

no, that's not a real headline but i suppose it could be one here in arkansas -- one of several states in the us that has a religious freedom law on their books.. as i understand it, if i, as a jw paramedic, am ordered to deliver a blood product to my patient, i can refuse to do so based on my religious freedom.

as a logical consequence, a patient could die.. would paramedic be an occupation be that one of jehovah's witnesses simply cannot accept, knowing fully well that you would be in a likely position to administer blood..

violias

At one time jws nurses were advised ( told) not to administer blood and most did not. Sometimes jws nurses trade patients to avoid this issue. In the state of Texas as far as I am aware only Rn's or nurses supervised by Rn's can administer blood. It used to be quite and issue for jws nurses but there is new thinking . A CO who was in the hospital and under my care said it was a conscience matter . Many jws nurses work in areas where blood is not likely to be administered and today they use blood less than 20-30 yrs ago. it is not the first treatment for a low blood count but of course is used in ER and OR , ICU, NICU and other high risk areas. I did administer blood a few times but being a devout jws at the time chose to work in areas where blood would never be administered . It would not bother me now but at the time it did offend my conscience as a jws. Administering blood is a big job ( lots of paper work and time involved) so most nurses don't like to trade patients. You'd have to have your best friend working on the floor with you to get away with that very much. So as a jws you either decide to administer blood or not.

btw, the religious freedom law would not cause a patient to die unless a jws nurse/ was the only nurse/person in the entire hospital. Your license says you must provide care and if you personally object to administering blood you MUST find another nurse to do it. Otherwise, You can and most likely would lose your license.

I saw a lot of Catholic nurses who refused care for D/C patients-- as ABO was not allowed in that hospital and many docs did D/c's as disguised abortions. I often got to trade off and take those patients b/c I do not believe in abortion but I did not perform the abortion and taking care of the patient afterwards certainly did not violate my conscience but it did many a Catholic nurse.

btw the title to your thread is RAG worthy.

274

Indiana "Religious Freedom" (right to discriminate)

by Simon in

sickening to see the photo of the religious zealots all stood around the governor signing into law the right for people to discriminate against others (gay, lesbian, trans-gender) based purely on religious dogma.. if religious people want those freedoms then the can't have it both ways - they cannot complain if *they* are discriminated against.. "sorry, we don't like zionists, get out".

"oh, it's some special mass and you can't work your shift?

you're fired!"..

violias

. Religious freedom goes both ways, Christians have rights too. Most Christian shops ( and other religions who oppose gay marriage ) have a FISH on the cards or door. This lets others know it is a christain business. They should take their business elsewhere. Why on earth would a gay couple want to FORCE a flower shop or cake shop to service their wedding - unless it was to just cause a big Brouhaha . People who own a business have rights too. Nearly every café I have ever been into has had signs, " no shoes, no shirt, no service". This is YOUR board. Do you want someone telling you how to run it?

Indiana is not the first state to do this, It has been signed into law since 93 by Clinton and 25 other states have same laws.

We fight so hard for Muslims and other religions to have "rights" , what about Christians? Don't they get rights?

I want you to know I am playing the devils advocate as I have no issues with whom anyone chooses to love. But I do believe in business owners rights too.

104

The Secret is out....but nobody cares

by MrTheocratic in

i've been looking on this site for some time but never posted.

i'll give a little about myself, but not too much.

i'm a ex-bethelite ( brooklyn )and currently serving as an elder (10 years) (thinking about stepping down) on the service committee.

violias

No we were not stupid. We just wanted to serve God (MT)

thank you.

104

The Secret is out....but nobody cares

by MrTheocratic in

i've been looking on this site for some time but never posted.

i'll give a little about myself, but not too much.

i'm a ex-bethelite ( brooklyn )and currently serving as an elder (10 years) (thinking about stepping down) on the service committee.

violias

MT ( OP)

I guess your post "hit" me a bit different than a lot of others. I am a born in and my grandparents were jws too. Long family history during WW2 during some of the worst persecution of jws. I knew many sincere jws ( ande a lot of jerks too) who really believed the Org and it was often called "mother". I do not believe I lived under a rock. I went through 1975 as a young adult and it was finally this and the fallout at bethel and widespread apostate paranoia in the 80-90's that helped me leave ( at least physically). My family goes back to the time when Rutherford came in.

I found you to come across as a disrespectful of those before you who gave their lives for the Org and were true believers. They were not stupid. I met many like you before I left. Many of us called them "social jws". I knew and elder who converted just b/c of the social life and he thought it would be a good place to raise his kids. He did not believe most of it- he was there b/c of the social aspect.

In fact, the social jws were a large reason I started questioning the Org. So many of them got away with things that the true believers would never have done . Many should have been DF'd per the wts standards but got away with gross conduct due to being popular.

In short, you and those like you are one of the reasons I know the TATT,

but hey welcome to the board.

74

DC2015 New Release: Brochure "Return to Jehovah" for those who faded/left

by Designer Stubble in

it appears that a new 16-page brochure, with the title "return to jehovah" is to be released at the regional convention (dc) this year.

it would be written specifically for those faded or da/df.chapters are:a letter from the governing body1.

the lost one i will search for2.

violias

the cynic in me sees this as a bit like a rogue virus program.. It looks good, promises to help, but I believe their intent is to flush out those they can officially DF or DA and get them off the books. If you fall for it --it will cost you dearly.

Always remember with the WTS the rule of thumb is

follow the money ( or lawsuits etc)