Posts by DanTheMan

17

Preaching the kingdom or what?

by acsot in

i was at the meeting on sunday and one brother mentioned how jws are heeding the scripture at matthew 24:14, you know, about the kingdom being preached, and he said how in every corner of the world jws are now found and it's a fulfillment of the scripture.

then the thought struck me that if that were true, then when people think of jws they should think "god's kingdom".

not in my experience, as when going from door to door or what colleagues at work have said.

DanTheMan

excellent points ascot.

During my unfortunate tenure as a JW, I often found that people I came across knew little or nothing about JWs. Lucky them!

The "ministry" performed by JW's is a figment of their imagination, fed by a neverending indoctrination program from their megalomaniacal leadership.

Hardcore JW's are, imho, religious addicts. Grandiosity is a mark of addiction. The grandiosity of the WT leadership is a big part of what makes the JW religion so intoxicating and paralyzingly addictive for so many unfortunates.

Faith in a holy cause is to a considerable extent a substitute for the lost faith in ourselves. - Eric Hoffer

10

Europeans Outlaw Net Hate Speech

by NewLight2 in

jw
friends

http://www.wired.com/news/business/0,1367,56294,00.html.

europeans outlaw net hate speech .

by julia scheeres .

DanTheMan

Specifically, the amendment bans "any written material, any image or any
other representation of ideas or theories, which advocates, promotes or incites
hatred, discrimination or violence, against any individual or group of
individuals, based on race, colour, descent or national or ethnic origin, as well
as religion if used as pretext for any of these factors."

It seems to me that, if this were taken to an extreme degree, that this website, and any anti-JW website, could fall into this category.

It seems like that the more you try to censor people, the more radical they become. I think that the holocaust-denier crowd will only be boosted by something like this. Europeans, you aren't using your noggin on this one!

3

A Flood Geologist Recants

by DanTheMan in

this was a "post of the month" on www.talkorigins.org a few months ago.

i found this very interesting!!.

a noted geologist once delivered a remarkable statement in a public address before what was, at that time, the premier geological society in the world:...but theories of diluvial gravel, like all other ardent generalizations of an advancing science, must ever be regarded but as shifting hypotheses to be modified by every new fact, till at length they become accordant with all the phenomena of nature.. .

DanTheMan

trying to find evidence that supports those assumptions, as in the case of Young Earth Creationists, can often become problematic

I once ran across a guy on a cable station that was trying to prove that man co-existed with dinosaurs. It was sad.

I wish that the YEC's had the same spirit as Reverend Sedgewick.

I wish that the WT had the same spirit also, in regards to the 607/1914 chronology. No such luck there though!

"It had to have been 607! Or else this whole thing's a sham!"

Oh, and by the way, except for my initial comments before the line break, the entire post is copied and pasted, none of those comments were mine. Believe me, I'm no scholar. I'd be tongue-tied and lost debating with a YEC!

Edited by - dantheman on 10 November 2002 22:9:59

28

Mother Teresa Comments WT 09-15-2002

by jgnat in

i have been waiting to see what the wts has to say about this little nun.

here it is in can saints help you?

wt september 15, 2002, introductory article, the modern appeal of saints .

DanTheMan

Good points BB.

I remember making a comment to a very prominent bro in my area about how I thought JW's could do more charity in addition to the preaching work.

His glib, borg-brained response was, "well, if you give a man a fish, you feed him for 1 day. If you teach a man to fish, you feed him for the rest of his life".

Sorry, but the ppls in India need a little something more than for someone to come along and "teach them to fish".

17

commendation for discernment

by derrickb007 in

please forgive me if this goes to the wrong forum.

it's the first time i've posted anything on the internet.

i must commend you on the time and research you all have done on this subject.

DanTheMan

However, even though I plan to leave, I also need to make this knowledge public to others who are in the congregations so they can draw their own conclusions. If I leave now, no one will fellowship or talk to me. Does anyone have any suggestions?

There have been dozens of threads on this forum concerning disasociation, as to whether or not it is a good idea. It is a case-by-case basis.

I mistakenly thought that my disassociating might get some to think, but I don't think it has. Dubs are not trained to think on their own, rather they are to "guard against independent thinking"(tm). And even if they see some of the BS, they prefer their comfortable JW life to the uncertainties of life outside the borg.

I think it is better to do a fade-out. The Watchtower seems to have caught on that many are doing this though, so it is becoming more and more difficult. The current state of paranoia in the halls of Brooklyn is becoming increasingly palpable. Be careful.

29

What am I feeling for her?

by Kingpawn in

this is going to be a little rambling but i hope it makes sense.

i won't use names out of privacy concerns, but it's as true as i can make it.. where i work, i've begun developing very strong feelings for a co-worker.

her shift and mine overlap for a few hours each day, and i see her when one of her duties brings her to my area of the plant (otherwise we work in separate areas).

DanTheMan

Often I have found myself in a similar situation of becoming infatuated with a woman who seems to be in a bad relationship. Kinda like I want to be a big hero or something. As a matter of fact it is this sort of "rescuer" mindset that fires my romantic passions, it seems like it is hard for me to get excited over a single, well-adjusted female.

All of the girls I dated in high school had terrible fathers who either were no part of their life or abused them in some form. These are the girls who grow up to marry abusive men. Gotta stick with the familiar.

When I was in the troof I became very attracted to what seemed at first to be the most wonderful, sexy sister I had ever met. The attraction was felt by both. God I went out of my mind over her (literally, I almost checked in to a mental hospital over her). She had recently divorced a man that she was married to for many years. He was extremely verbally (and sometimes physically) abusive towards her. The more I got to know this sister however, the more I could see that she was just the type of woman who would slavishly submit to an abusive man. She had some very deep issues that needed dealing with. And she had the same sort of cheery, sociable attitude that you attibute to your coworker. She was the most intoxicatingly attractive woman I've ever known, but a real relationship between us would have been a complete disaster. By the way, her father was an old-guard JW, and never once spared the rod in raising his kids. I think this is where many of her issues may have stemmed from.

I don't mean to blame the victim, but women who are in these sort of relationships are often emotional powderkegs. Dude, get your mind off this lady real fast. Stop sexually fantasizing about her, that is what feeds the obsession.

38

What is your zip code? Warning: FLUFF!

by gilwarrior in

jw
friends

my goodness, more fluff.

ok, so what is your zip code?.

i live in las vegas.

DanTheMan

That was fun. Now everybody give your date of birth, social security number, and mother's maiden name! This is so fun!!

Edited by - dantheman on 9 November 2002 10:48:42

10

Uxoriousness. Can a JW Be Uxorious and Progress?

by Englishman in

jw
friends

.

probably not, which is a sad indictment imho.. englishman.

DanTheMan

I can't think of many bros I knew that were "dotingly or irrationally fond of or submissive" to their wife. Maybe submissive though. Regardless of how the boys in Brooklyn think things are, the reality is that many JW women are the ones "wearing the pants" in the family.

One of the depressing things I found about JW life was hearing brothers complain and complain about their wives, and how they wished they were free of them. I've always been the romantic idealist, and of course when I was a newbie JW I had very idealistic notions about the sort of marriages JW's must have, because of this wonderful religion that they have in common. Those notions got blasted away really quick.

18

Have you ever saved a life?

by Crystal in

jw
friends

when i was about 11 years old me and my two(not so bright)sisters were at a hotel swimming pool.i was sitting by the pool watching my one sister(we will call her k) that could barely swim herself teach my other sister who was terrified of water(we will call her b) how to swim.they started out in shallow end swimming underwater when b went off course and ended up in the deep end.when she came up she started panicing and k went over to help her.

b grabed on to k pushing her under water and then k paniced and pushed b under trying to stay above water.they did this cute little routine for a while (up pops k down goes k up pops b down goes b)if it was'nt so life threatening it would of been hilarious.

(i did start laughing...at first)then it got to the point where i knew i had to do something because they were getting ready to drown...they were swallowing tons of water and there was no time to get help.

DanTheMan

About a year and a half ago I was living in an apartment not too far from where I live now. There was an elderly woman who lived across the hall. I think she was an alchoholic. She often would come to my door drunk and would cry a river to me about something or another. I felt bad for her, she was a mixed-up, lonely old broad.

One time I found her passed out on the stairs leading up to our hall. She was breathing OK, but out cold. I nudged her a few times, but she didn't respond so I called the fire dept and they sent some medics out. They managed to wake her up but she was drunk as a skunk and started saying all kinds of crazy things to them.

Another time I left my apartment and was heading down the hall, but I noticed the smell of smoke, and it wasn't cigarette smoke. I looked up at the light in the hallway and I saw a halo of smoke around it. It was then that I noticed the sound of a smoke detector coming from my neighbor lady's apartment. I began pounding on the door, but there was no response. I called the fire department. They came and busted down her door. Smoke just rolled out from her apartment. It turned out that it was just a couch cushion that was on fire from a cigarette, but it sure put out a ton of smoke! It stunk like hell too. They got my neighbor out of the apartment (she was drunk and babbling incoherently) and they put the fire out.

I'm glad I noticed the smoke, or the whole place (including mine) might have gone up.

34

Where were you born, raised, and live now?

by gilwarrior in

jw
friends

ah, yes, another fluffy topic!.

ok, here is how is works.

type where you were born, raised and where you live now.

DanTheMan

Born: Columbus Ohio

Raised: Columbus Ohio

Current Residence: Columbus Ohio

Likely will die in: Columbus Ohio