serendipity

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Posts by serendipity

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  21

  Hello again! What did I miss?

  by serendipity in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  it's been a couple of years since i checked in here and wanted to see what's up with y'all.

  .

  what's the most interesting thing to happen in jw land in the last two years?.

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  serendipity

  It's been a couple of years since I checked in here and wanted to see what's up with y'all.

  What's the most interesting thing to happen in JW land in the last two years?
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  36

  Looking for examples of how the Watchtower usurps Jesus position.

  by Indian Larry in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  i am doing a personal research project and looking for examples of how the watchtower usurps jesus postion.

  scriptural or wt references would be great.

  thanks!.

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  serendipity

  I haven't been to a meeting in several years, but I know that there was more mentions of the FDS than Jesus. When my daughter was young in the mid 90's, I used to have her make tick marks to count the frequency of Jesus & Jehovah. I remember there were a lot of meetings when Jesus was mentioned only during the prayers. That started bothering me - after all JWs are supposed to be CHRISTians.

  Years later, I would do counts of Jesus & Jehovah in the WT Library. The frequency of references to Jesus declined in the 90's and early 2000's, relative to earlier years.
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  5

  The Bomb Buried Inside Obama Care Goes Off Today

  by Justitia Themis in

  1. social
  2. current

  the bomb buried in obamacare+ comment nowi have long argued that the impact of the affordable care act is not nearly as big of a deal as opponents would have you believe.

  at the end of the day, the law is in the main little more than a successful effort to put an end to some of the more egregious health insurer abuses while creating an environment that should bring more americans into programs that will give them at least some of the health care coverage they need.there is, however, one notable exception and its one that should have a long lasting and powerful impact on the future of health care in our country.that would be the provision of the law, called the medical loss ratio, that requires health insurance companies to spend 80% of the consumers premium dollars they collect85% for large group insurerson actual medical care rather than overhead, marketing expenses and profit.

  failure on the part of insurers to meet this requirement will result in the insurers having to send their customers a rebate check representing the amount in which they underspend on actual medical care.. this is the true bomb contained in obamacare and the one item that will have more impact on the future of how medical care is paid for in this country than anything weve seen in quite some time.

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  serendipity

  I guess the days of an insurance company paying $1Billion in severance to get rid of it's CEO will be over. About time.
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  83

  Are You Going To the Memorial?

  by headisspinning in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i can't see myself not attending.

  i would feel horrible not to go.

  i don't know where i'm going to land and if i had to look back and think i didn't go... well, i would feel awful..

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  serendipity

  The price of keeping my family is attending the Memorial. I can make the sacrifice once a year.
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  45

  61% of Americans OPPOSE Limiting Union Bargaining Power

  by blondie in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  http://themoderatevoice.com/102199/usa-todaygallup-poll-61-oppose-limiting-union-bargaining-power/.

  themoderate voicean internet hub for moderates, centrists, and independents, with domestic and international news, analysis, original reporting, and popular features from the left, center, and right no more fear.

  this is why americans vote against economic self-interest .

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  serendipity

  The battle in Wisconsin is about stamping out the influence of unions which are historically supporters of Democrats. The governor and legislature passed tax cuts that led to most of the budget deficit. Why don't they just rescind the tax cuts? The unions have agreed to concessions but that isn't enough for the governor. Politics at its "finest."
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  17

  Any Stock Holders out there? I need Financial Advice. No...not which stocks I should buy.

  by Voices in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  ok first off let me ease your worry...i'm not asking you 'what stocks i should invest in.

  ' i have a stock in mind that i have seen progress steadily up and up.

  before i could even think about investing, i knew this company was going to take off and it's slowly climbing.

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  serendipity

  Back to basics advice:

  1. Use the money to pay down any debt with an interest rate above 7%. (Long term stock market gains are projected to be around 7% conservatively. If you are paying 12% interest, but can only earn 7% in the market, you are better off paying off debt.)

  2. Build an emergency fund of 6 months living expenses and invest in short term CDs/money market accounts at your bank or credit union.

  3. If your employer offers matching funds in the 401K, increase your 401K withholding to get all the employer match. Many employers match the first 3-6%. This is free money. Invest in indexed funds - either S&P500 funds or total stock market funds. There aren't a lot of employers who allow you to purchase stock from a 401K. If you can purchase stock, make sure it is no more than 10% of your total investments.

  4. Max out your 401K or other tax-advantaged account (e.g IRA or government't plan)

  5. Max out a Roth IRA. You can set this up at a brokerage and buy the stock in this account, and avoid having to pay the taxes as some have mentioned above.

  There is some disagreement among financial advisors s to how much to invest in a tax-deferred 401K VS. a Roth . If you think you will be in a higher tax bracket in retirement (either due to rising tax rates OR due to substantial wealth), you are better off in a Roth. Most people will end up in the same or lower tax bracket. If you are unsure, or want to hedge your bets, do #1-3 above. Then, if you have any extra money, split 50/50 between the 401K/tax advantaged and the Roth.
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  31

  Is Deporting Illegal Immigrants The Answer To American's Economic Woe? What Do You Think?

  by Scott77 in

  1. social
  2. current

  "... deporting the millions of illegal aliens in the united states will cost trillions and will make this country bankrupt; the beginning of slippery slope that eventually will destroy our country the working immigrants is part of the backbone of our country and they have always been and will always be.. i guess, you are blind to the myriad of studies concluding that immigrants benefits our culture and economy.

  a study was released by the center for american progress (cap) that establishes that the enforcement-only approach these restrictionist groups ad-nauseam advocate isnt sustainable in the long-term.

  the study estimates that a strategy aimed at deporting the nations population of illegal immigrants would cost the government approximately $285 billion over five years.

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  serendipity

  Americans complain about illegal immigration but conveniently overlook the fact that thanks to illegal immigrants, our food prices, housing costs, building/landscaping costs etc. are lower than they would be otherwise. How many Americans are going to spend 12 hours a day picking produce for minimum wage (or less)?
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  21

  The back cover of the next novel (directly JW related) will say something like this.

  by JeffT in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  [if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>normal</w:view> <w:zoom>0</w:zoom> <w:punctuationkerning /> <w:validateagainstschemas /> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:saveifxmlinvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:ignoremixedcontent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables /> <w:snaptogridincell /> <w:wraptextwithpunct /> <w:useasianbreakrules /> <w:dontgrowautofit /> </w:compatibility> <w:browserlevel>microsoftinternetexplorer4</w:browserlevel> </w:worddocument> </xml><!

  [endif][if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="156"> </w:latentstyles> </xml><!

  [endif][if gte mso 10]> <style> /* style definitions */ table.msonormaltable {mso-style-name:"table normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"times new roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} </style> <![endif].

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  serendipity

  Who would have thought Amish romances would sell, but they do. I think marketing will be key.
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  22

  The Five Languages of Love

  by Voices in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  has anyone read this book?

  i was wondering if people have reserched it.

  there's a website...that explains it...here: .

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  serendipity

  I've read it and felt it would be good for couples to discuss. It could save marriages if put into practice. It works great with kids too.
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  45

  Why I Disagree With Affirmative Action

  by snowbird in

  1. social
  2. current

  quietlyleaving asked this of me on another thread:.

  but snowbird i have to ask you why you disagree with affirmative action.

  one of the best things about a policy of affirmative action is that an establishement is saying 'you are welcome here' to minorities and that 'we regret that we excluded you in the past'.. while i acknowledge the good that affirmative action has done, ql, i've also been a witness to its downside.. let me explain: i was once sitting for an examination for a state job, and i overheard a conversation between two other ladies who were also taking the exam.. one commented on how difficult the exam was; the other somewhat flippantly replied that it was ok if they didn't do their best because the state of alabama is an affirmative action employer.

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  serendipity

  When I look at the org charts of all the corporations I've worked for and see 90% white males in leadership positions, I think affirmative action has been a failure.