Posts by daniel-p

89

Healthcare reform has passed and is signed into law... this is a Big F*cking Deal!

by Elsewhere in

jw
friends

just ask our vice president joe biden.

once again, he has put his foot in his mouth by dropping the f-bomb when he shakes obama's hand.. granted... i'll take biden's "this is a big f*cking deal" over dick cheney's "go f*ck yourself" any day.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mqenikp1rj8.

daniel-p

It is a big fucking deal. Obama is now "the man," and this country will finally join the civilized world in taking care of its own people. Like the Democratic Party or not, this is a huge boon for them, and even Republican voters will not want to give up their entitlements once they have them because of human nature.

I appreciate some of the conservative arguments against health care legislation, but in the end, I will gladly pay more taxes for it. Hopefully, this will eventually morph into total universal health care for all US Citizens, and not just restrictions on the Health Insurance industry.

34

Is Atheism a 'Personal Rebellion' Against God?

by leavingwt in

jw
friends

i try to understand why other people believe what they believe.

the author discussed in the article below evidently wants to hide his head in the sand and paint all atheists with the same broad, incorrect brush.

it's as if he's never actually sat down with an atheist and had friendly conversation.. .

daniel-p

Gladiator: I agree somewhat. What some traditional "believers" define as Atheism seems oftentimes, to be a different way of defining the god-concept. Intellectually, emotionally, spiritually, the traditional god-concept may simply not be satisfying, at least not how the Western Christian Conglomerate defines it.

34

Is Atheism a 'Personal Rebellion' Against God?

by leavingwt in

jw
friends

i try to understand why other people believe what they believe.

the author discussed in the article below evidently wants to hide his head in the sand and paint all atheists with the same broad, incorrect brush.

it's as if he's never actually sat down with an atheist and had friendly conversation.. .

daniel-p

The man assumes Atheists still believe in God and act according to that belief by "rebeling", like little children not wanting to accept the authority of their parents. In other words, this guy is farking stupid. How can you rebel against something you don't believe exists?

19

Best way to get Netflix on my tv?

by AK - Jeff in

i know about roku, but currently don't think it any better than the laptop i have connected to my television to stream netflix.. i have considered a media-pc with remote or perhaps a remote keyboard and mouse.

i like the idea of the tv subbing as an extra pc on occasion - plus i would like to be able to stream other programs besides just netflix [like fancast or national geo or history or some news clips].. any suggestions beyond or in addition?.

thank you in advance.

daniel-p

I thought Netflix sold a box-thing for streaming. Also, I heard --was it the X-Box?-- or some other console device was going to enable netflix streaming. I currently do it with a laptop, which can be cumboersome with all the wires and programs and so forth.

On a related note... if you have back-ups of your personal DVD collection on an external HD, you can get a 100-dollar device by Viewsonic that hooks up to it and plays them directly to your HDTV in 1080p. I just got one and it is defintely the best money ive ever spent on TV-related devices. Absolutely awesome. This thing: http://www.cdrlabs.com/News/viewsonic-introduces-vmp70-direct-connect-hd-media-player.html

62

Can You Get DFd for Working for the Department of Defense?

by daniel-p in

jw
friends

so, as some of you may be aware, i got a job offer with an agency under the u.s. department of defense.

the other day i told a member of my family, and they nearly went apeshit.. my question: what reprecussions could this reasonably have?

does the wts speak of this in any of their publications?

daniel-p

Blondie: Thanks for the article citation.

Restrangled: I have every intention to take the job. I know what a great opportunity this is (especially at the generous pay I am being offered), and will not let it slip away.

So he wrote me an email, basically giving these veiled threats of "repreccusions and consequences" to my decision... I wrote him back and am now waiting. Here is the reasoning I used for the neutrality thing:

About neutrality: This job is about 10 degrees away from anything that would test a neutrality stance. Just as I do now, I would provide objective information to decision makers. In my present case, some of those decision makers are elected officials. Does that mean I support elected officials and their political positions? No, because I simply give them the information they want and/or need to make their own decision. I'm a professional member of hired staff, providing information to decision makers, the same information they would gather from anybody in the same position. The XXXXXX position would require me to work with facilities and communities at naval bases in much the same way I do now for facilities and communities in civilian areas. I seem to remember an '04, or '05 article mentioning how JWs could serve in law enforcement (albeit with no privileges), carrying a weapon, enforcing the law of the land, working for elected and appointed officials. This applies to local law enforcement, prison guards, state police, even the FBI. Law enforcement supports, in a much more direct manner, the mission of the government to maintain order than my position would support.

62

Can You Get DFd for Working for the Department of Defense?

by daniel-p in

jw
friends

so, as some of you may be aware, i got a job offer with an agency under the u.s. department of defense.

the other day i told a member of my family, and they nearly went apeshit.. my question: what reprecussions could this reasonably have?

does the wts speak of this in any of their publications?

daniel-p

I think "US Government" would suffice. But since you feel compelled to give out the details, just be aware of the consequences.

Well thanks for letting me know! As I mentioned before, I never gave a second thought that this would be against JW rules. I haven't been thinking in that frame of mind. Your belated advice doesn't do much good, man. I didn't mean to go int ospecifics, but my brother asked who Id be working for and I told him. WHY? Because I didn't think about it!

62

Can You Get DFd for Working for the Department of Defense?

by daniel-p in

jw
friends

so, as some of you may be aware, i got a job offer with an agency under the u.s. department of defense.

the other day i told a member of my family, and they nearly went apeshit.. my question: what reprecussions could this reasonably have?

does the wts speak of this in any of their publications?

daniel-p

Not to harp on the same point, but you mentioned that the offer came from "an agency under the Department of Defense."
Why in the world would you even mention the Department of Defense to anyone who might take it the wrong way ??? You would work for the agency, not directly for the DoD. In the past 10 years, I don't think most people that have worked making Kraft Cheese, Oreo cookies, Miller Beer or about 50 other household products would say they work "under" Philip Morris (tobacco).
No, just becase Philip Morris owned all or parts of these companies, didn't mean the people were making cigarettes.
If you want to stir things up that's one thing, but you could have made it a non-issue by just being a bit more discreet.
Rub a Dub

Rub, no where have I actually told anyone that I got an offer from the DoD, that's just what I've been saying on here because I don't want to say the specific agency it is. In all the conversaions above with my brother I am telling him the specific agency, not the DoD, as I've inserted here just since its public. In reality, it is with a certain benign agency under the Navy (which is, in turn, under the DoD), not that "Navy" sounds any better from a JW perspective.

62

Can You Get DFd for Working for the Department of Defense?

by daniel-p in

jw
friends

so, as some of you may be aware, i got a job offer with an agency under the u.s. department of defense.

the other day i told a member of my family, and they nearly went apeshit.. my question: what reprecussions could this reasonably have?

does the wts speak of this in any of their publications?

daniel-p

1:59 PM Brother : what's up man 2:00 PM sorry took me so long to respond at work now and trying to watch march madness online at the same time... 2:06 PM me : hey, yeah i got the job offer 2:10 PM Brother : Really!? Where? 2:12 PM me : ************ Brother : wow! For who? 2:13 PM on the ****** River. Cool 2:15 PM me : yep good pay, good benefits, even a recruitment bonus for moving expenses pretty thrilled 2:16 PM Brother : That's great, man! How's [WIFE] feel about it? 2:17 PM me : pretty good you know how change is moving and everything 2:18 PM she probably would have preferred staying closer to family for a while, but this is a pretty good break that we shouldnt pass up and there should actually be more jobs for her too 2:19 PM i mean she would have a job with the *******l here where she already has an internship, but even ******** have not been doing too much hiring out here in ** 2:20 PM plus this gets us out ****, a little closer to where we want to end up 2:22 PM Brother : I see. 2:23 PM So, sounds like you've decided to accept the offer? How much time are they giving you to get there? me : and I need work by June anyway, and this would start around then im pretty sure im going to accept it 2:24 PM it takes them about 8-10 weeks to get it through HR so Im figuring around June Brother : Well, you will be a daddy by then. me : yep 2:27 PM Brother : Hey, what's the name of the company you'll be working for? 2:28 PM me : I would be a Navy civilian ****** ******* ****** ******* [Name of agency and type of work] 2:29 PM Brother : Are you serious? Have you really thought that all the way through? 2:30 PM me : yes what do you think? 2:34 PM Brother : What do you think? What's the difference between serving in the military or helping them at their bases/facilities so they can more effectively carry out their "duties"? 2:38 PM me : well one involves "taking up arms" and the other doesnt there is no difference between what id be doing and what they'd get from a private contractor providing the same services 2:39 PM but what this really comes down to is the difference between your choices and my choices you exercise your conscience for your choices, not my choices 2:40 PM Brother : You asked what I thought and I told you. I need to think about it some more. I'm not making your choices for you. It's not between me and you. It's between you and Jehovah. 2:41 PM me : i was being mildly sarcastic by asking "what do you think" as in, yes i have certainly thought about it sorry 2:43 PM I remember society articles in the past discussing performing janitorial services for a casino 2:44 PM cleaning up every night certainly helps the casino "perform its duties"

2:52 PM Brother : Yeah, I haven't really done that type of research lately. I'm just thinking of a brother we had in our congregation here in ***** He's dead from liver disease now, but when he came into the truth he was working for the Department of Defense He handled satellite technology and stuff like that. 2:53 PM Before he could get baptized he had to change his employment He went to work for a power company instead The difference is who pays you. 2:54 PM Like with a janitor service, are you the employee just going to clean where your boss tells you? Or are you the boss negotiating and getting the contract with the casino/church/whatever. There's a difference. me : not by much 2:56 PM even then, plenty of jw janitors get contracts with casinos in any case, this does nto involve "taking up arms" 2:57 PM Brother : Yes, I understand that. It's not the same as carrying a gun. The point isn't to get my view or yours. It's trying to understand Jehovah's viewpoint. 2:58 PM We all carry our own load as you know and we each must stand before his judgment, not each other's. me : yes but inevitably someone feels the need to expound Jehovah's viewpoint for me 3:00 PM Brother : Their motives are not bad Daniel-P. You do what you want, but the fact is Jehovah has an organization that operates in heaven and on earth, as you well know. And that organization is designed to keep our relationship strong. What we do individually affects other people. That's all there is to it 3:02 PM me : so what youre saying is, We all stand before Jehovah's judgment but we'll determine if someone can exercise their own conscience or not 3:04 PM Brother : Not true. Your conscience is not infallible. Just because you feel something is right, doesn't mean it is. 3:05 PM me : who declares that infalability? Brother : What I'm saying is the exercise of your conscience affects your relationship with Jehovah. 3:06 PM me : ok i understand that but are you now going to tell me how it affects it? or is someone else going to come and tell me how it affects MY personal relationship with him? 3:07 PM Brother : Excuse me for a minute. I'm at work.. 3:10 PM me : Brother, I'm sorry if me doing [type of work] for the [DoD] offends you, but in the end its not your choice. As you said, we all make our own choices, and we all stand before judgment to Jehovah. You simply cannot say that with one breath, and then imply that such judgment between people would be ok if it "keeps our relationship strong." That's a double standard. if it offends you, that's fine, because youre not doing it

62

Can You Get DFd for Working for the Department of Defense?

by daniel-p in

jw
friends

so, as some of you may be aware, i got a job offer with an agency under the u.s. department of defense.

the other day i told a member of my family, and they nearly went apeshit.. my question: what reprecussions could this reasonably have?

does the wts speak of this in any of their publications?

daniel-p

I'm chatting with my brother as we speak. It's not looking good.

62

Can You Get DFd for Working for the Department of Defense?

by daniel-p in

jw
friends

so, as some of you may be aware, i got a job offer with an agency under the u.s. department of defense.

the other day i told a member of my family, and they nearly went apeshit.. my question: what reprecussions could this reasonably have?

does the wts speak of this in any of their publications?

daniel-p

NEVER EVER tell a JW about ANYTHING to do with your life. Got that?? (if u wanna remain under the radar).

! My brother asked me who the company was. I told him. It would not have sufficed to just say "US Government"