Posts by Spectrum

73

Nearly a week smoke-free, and I am MOODY!!!

by AlmostAtheist in

jw
friends

i've been off of cigarettes for almost a week now.

i'm chewing nicotine gum like mad, but i can still feel myself melting down inside.

the world seems like such a crummy place to be right now.

Spectrum

When I was trying to cut down on chocolates I just reasoned with myself that in 1 minute it's all going to be gobbled and I'll be right back where I started craving for chocolate. What's that 1 minute going to do? I convinced myself of that as it was true and it worked - I could have chocolate lying about and not touch it or want it.

59

What weird things have you read in the bible?

by stillAwitness in

jw
friends

the fact that nimrod's name means: "he stirred up the whole earth to rebel"

and yet ezra's name means: "help"

what caused nimord's mother to name him something that had such a negative meaning and yet he turned out to be just that?

Spectrum

dorayakii,

Can you translate them in plain english please.

64

1975 - serves you right. No extra brownie points sycophants

by Spectrum in

this issue came up with my jw nephew(17).

i jumped at the chance at using it to prove that the org is a fraud but then the focus changed slightly.

i said, "do you know how many people's lives were disrupted by this event.

Spectrum

VMM,
It's very powerful stuff, believing that you are never going to die. It took my almost 2 decades to finally accept that one day I'm going to be worm fodder in a cold dank grave.
That could be the reason that so many of us found it difficult to disassociate our minds from this brainwashing we received.

53

Anyone ever seen a ghost?

by Clam in

jw
friends

have you ever seen a "ghost"?

if you did, were you scared, fascinated or straight to denial?.

if you did see one, were you a jw at the time and therefore did you believe it to be an apparition projected by the demons?

Spectrum

Never seen a ghost but I have at times felt fear come over just standing in the kitchen or anywhere in the house.
It's as though there is a sinister presence near me and I feel it as fear rushing through my body. It doesn't happen often and I can't explain it. I'm not a jumpy person at all and I rarely get startled by people approaching me quitely from behind.

Has anybody else felt this fear?

64

1975 - serves you right. No extra brownie points sycophants

by Spectrum in

this issue came up with my jw nephew(17).

i jumped at the chance at using it to prove that the org is a fraud but then the focus changed slightly.

i said, "do you know how many people's lives were disrupted by this event.

Spectrum

"Is it possible to be self-interested and also be interested in the welfare of others,"
Yes you can have interest in yourself your well being and look out for the walfare of others, though far and how deep one can take it before your own welfare is affected i don't know. I don't think altruists should help unappreciative people it's such a waste of kindness and energy that can be put to good use somewhere else.

"or should the world be divided between the completely altruistic and everyone else?"
You mean all altruists only help each the other? Not really, I think that anyone that can appreciate the help they have received is worth helping.

64

1975 - serves you right. No extra brownie points sycophants

by Spectrum in

this issue came up with my jw nephew(17).

i jumped at the chance at using it to prove that the org is a fraud but then the focus changed slightly.

i said, "do you know how many people's lives were disrupted by this event.

Spectrum

Lea,

"I think you should have called your nephew on his judgmental attitude."
I've answered that earlier by saying that he was judging them be their own standards so it wouldn't havehad any effect.

"You should ask him why, if he's so capable of discerning motives of and placing blame on people for their actions, he isn't able to place accountability on those who were responsible for creating the situation to begin with."
That's a very good point but part of the purpose of this thread is to show that some of those that got caught out by selling up did it with ulterior motives regardless of who instigated it.

59

What weird things have you read in the bible?

by stillAwitness in

jw
friends

the fact that nimrod's name means: "he stirred up the whole earth to rebel"

and yet ezra's name means: "help"

what caused nimord's mother to name him something that had such a negative meaning and yet he turned out to be just that?

Spectrum

So save himself the Levite chucked his wife out of the safety of the house to be raped (Judges 19:25).
But then it got worse when tens of thousands of the Israelites were told by Jehovah to attack the Benjamites as punishment for their sins only to be massacred by the Benjamites. But then it got worse Jehovah told them to have another go at the Benjamites and the Israelites got massacred again. Third time they were lucky but then it got worse again as the Israelites put to death all the benjamite, men women and children as punishment for a few rapists in their midst.

The carnage then continues followed by abduction of young girls:
the israelites refuse to give their own women to the only remaining 600 benjamites(men) out tens of thousands pre massacre so they go and massacre another tribe all the men, women and children but spare and abduct the virgins. Which tribe? The one that wasn't involved in the carnage in the first place.
Judges 21:6
6 Now the Israelites grieved for their brothers, the Benjamites. "Today one tribe is cut off from Israel," they said. 7 "How can we provide wives for those who are left, since we have taken an oath by the LORD not to give them any of our daughters in marriage?" 8 Then they asked, "Which one of the tribes of Israel failed to assemble before the LORD at Mizpah?" They discovered that no one from Jabesh Gilead had come to the camp for the assembly. 9 For when they counted the people, they found that none of the people of Jabesh Gilead were there.

How can you ever reconcile Jehovah with Christ? If there was ever proof that there is no trinity this is it or else it's a cruel joke for the believers

64

1975 - serves you right. No extra brownie points sycophants

by Spectrum in

this issue came up with my jw nephew(17).

i jumped at the chance at using it to prove that the org is a fraud but then the focus changed slightly.

i said, "do you know how many people's lives were disrupted by this event.

Spectrum

TO ALL,

Thanks all for your contribution this has been an interesting foray into this issue from the point of view of, "did they deserve it?"

I have come to this conclusion based on what I read on this thread and some of my own experience. I believe that all the people that sold up were genuinely duped but there were probably two class of motives. Those that did it thinking in their hearts that they must save as many people as possible and those that thought they'ed be saving themselves.

My nephew only saw one type of person being duped and like I said at the beginning that's the nature of the beast in most JWs.

Auldsoul,

I take your point, very finely analysed word for word and mostly true but at the same time I know a couple of things.
1. We were introduced into JWism in 1973 and there was no such talk of the end being immiment not because it wasn't mentioned by the Org but it didn't play a role by the looks of it where we were. Nobody we knew was willing to sell up based on whatever info was available.
2. I've known all sorts of JWs and I'm pretty sure some of them would sell up last minute and preach to save them themselves. That's just the way they think - I'm in this for me. I've met only one JW in my life that was a truly altruistic and he was not respected at all by the congregation. For some reason nobody took him seriously, for me he was somewhat of a role model.

9

speed reading - what's the technique?

by Spectrum in

there is so much good stuff on this forum to read and not so much time to read it all.

i once knew a girl that could read a page from a novel in about 15 seconds and understand it.

i had a teacher who could read a page by looking at the centre of the sentence and somehow absorb the words on either side and just go down the page at lighting speed.

Spectrum

It seems that just reading fast and not re-reading is the key. I try to skip non key words but I lose the meaning and have to re-read the sentence which means I'm back to square one.

dolphman,
are you 1000 per minute?

9

speed reading - what's the technique?

by Spectrum in

there is so much good stuff on this forum to read and not so much time to read it all.

i once knew a girl that could read a page from a novel in about 15 seconds and understand it.

i had a teacher who could read a page by looking at the centre of the sentence and somehow absorb the words on either side and just go down the page at lighting speed.

Spectrum

There is so much good stuff on this forum to read and not so much time to read it all.
I once knew a girl that could read a page from a novel in about 15 seconds and understand it. I had a teacher who could read a page by looking at the centre of the sentence and somehow absorb the words on either side and just go down the page at lighting speed.
Does anybody know any techniques for speed reading?
Are there any of you here that can win competitions?!