my wife, my m-i-l and i were driving over to my wife's aunt's home on christmas day to celebrate christmas - which involved letting the aunt's great-great-grandkids open their presents, and eating an early supper (or late lunch).. we were on the way at around 10:30am to 11:00am to the house.
about a couple of miles away, whilst driving through the neighborhood, i spotted a couple of middle-aged young women wearing skirts down to their ankles, and carrying large handbags (aka 'bookbags').
they were between houses, and walking slowly... pioneer stroll?....
Working on Christmas or Thaksgiving is obviously NOT to win converts.
It is done to self-manifest the JW delusions of persecution and being "different" to the normal people in the world.
It is done also to reinforce the cult mindset in the people who they coerce to do this work.
Marching through the steps - it makes them better slave people.
i've been doing quite a bit of research into books recently, and i've noticed that the book "proof of heaven" is selling very strongly at the moment.
it's currently no.1 in the new york times bestseller list for nonfiction paperbacks.. the book is by a qualified neurosurgeon who converted to religious faith after going into a coma and having what he later described as an experience of heaven, which he elaborates on in great detail in the book.
he argues that the experience must have been supernatural, because his cerebral cortex was "offline" for the duration of his vision.. .
I especially liked the story of the guy who tried to "weigh the soul" - he would bribe hospital or nursing home officials to let him put a soon-to-die patient on a sensitive scales and then reweigh them at the moment of death.
Supposedly, the soul could be weighed in this manner - thus "proving" that it existed.
Completely barking at the moon mad.
Of course, the data was meaningless.
I will let him remain nameless, but I knew an elder who was actually removed for "insincerity".
You have to go a ways to get things to that point.
For one thing, he was notorious for NEVER going door to door - all his time came from giving public talks.
And, of course, he had the arrogant personality to go with it.
this link contains news of a letter sent to the elders about witnesses setting up stands to peddle literature in public places!
how desperate are they?
it sounds sad honestly... and they are told not to argue with apostates .
Scientologist have been doing this for years as well...
i never have.
i seldom get the "flu" and if i do, it usually happens after everyone else has gotten it.. i know of many people who regularly get the flu shot and they seem to always still get sick..
Individuals may get sick from a vaccination, but as a group WE are all better off if everyone gets the flu shot, the measles shot, whatever.
Yes, I understand the logic.
But to really work, this has to be a vaccination against a static virus - like polio.
Flu is a different animal.
Perhaps you need to prove your title thesis.
I do not believe that it is actually true.
i never have.
i seldom get the "flu" and if i do, it usually happens after everyone else has gotten it.. i know of many people who regularly get the flu shot and they seem to always still get sick..
Five to six months lag? Nobody gets a flu shot more than once a year...and the question is whether they picked the correct strains that year.
All I am saying is that I understand how it works and what they are trying to do - but that I am somewhat skeptical.
inspired by minimus's latest thread about controversial topics, i thought it would be interesting if we brits could have a nice friendly non-confrontational conversation about politics without getting all hot under the collar, thus teaching our more boisterous american counterparts a lesson in how to be dignified in these matters!.
i'll start the ball rolling.... my political persuasions are not very well formed yet, since i'm still only fairly recent in exiting the witnesses and giving serious attention to these sorts of things.. i think if i had been involved as a voter in the last election i would have voted conservative, but i'm dreading the next election because i suspect my options may be more limited.. there are many things i like and admire about david cameron, but also things about him that irritate me.
i like the way he sticks to his guns and doesn't give in easily on issues he cares about, but this can also make him unresponsive to the national mood at times, making him appear somewhat out of touch with reality.
From what little I have seen of the standards of debate in the British houses of Parliament -
British politics is anything BUT dignified and friendly.
i never have.
i seldom get the "flu" and if i do, it usually happens after everyone else has gotten it.. i know of many people who regularly get the flu shot and they seem to always still get sick..
The thing is - the flu vaccine (yes, I scientifically understand that it does work for the specific strains that it is made for) - is really a sort of biological lottery. Provided, of course, that you have a healthy immune system that it can activate.
They make the vaccine for the primary six or so strains of the past two or three years.
Every year, (or almost every year) a new flu type mutates into being - therefore the shot is usually not able to prevent the primary threat.
I guess it is better than nothing, but I have just never found it to be personally all that effective.
i never have.
i seldom get the "flu" and if i do, it usually happens after everyone else has gotten it.. i know of many people who regularly get the flu shot and they seem to always still get sick..
Speaking of the flu - how do you tell if you have the flu versus just having a regular bad cold (for which there is no vaccine or cure)?
