Posts by dedalus

What a bunch of circular nonsense. By this reasoning you can say that any behavior you exhibit is motivated by "love," since love is a mere force unto itself.

No doubt you're going to trump up some outrageous scenario, like, what if my child joined a gang of pygmy marauders and became a serial rapist and robbed monasteries and assassinated nuns -- would I still love my child then, or would these conditions impose limitations on my love?

But in the real world, I see parents withdrawing love over theological differences -- period. The gang of pygmy marauders is usually no more than a difference of opinion. And your highfalutin "conditional love," so philosophically pure, is really just an excuse to indulge your own prejudices.

Dedalus

10

Shining examples of ex-dubs

by Rex B13 in

jw
friends

is this the kind of compassion we get from secular humanism?

true apostasy in action!.

naeblis.

dedalus

Since you all like to villify me on a regular basis, I thought it would be nice to point out just how compassionate Kent and his minions are toward JWs!

I don't vilify you. You do a good job of that yourself.

Now this may come as a shock to you, but I agree with you about Kent's lack of compassion here. I feel sorry for the woman who was murdered, and I believe that her impulses were noble and good. Her cause, however, was not.

You hypocrites turn a blind eye to your own apostate heroes while accusing me and a few others of their very sins.

I don't have any "apostate heroes." At times I've disagreed with statements made by Kent, Farkel, Norm, AlanF, Tina, Seeker, etc. However, these individuals usually back up their claims logically, and their prolific contributions over time has been helpful to me in a way you can't possibly understand. Two more things: first, none of these "apostate heroes" has been above an apology, something I've never seen from you; second, none have been caught in a bold-faced lie, as you have.

So yeah: bad Kent, bad, for saying what you did. Grrrrrrrrr ...

As for you, Rex -- you're a man who believes women should expect to get raped if they swear too much, so it's time to get off the pulpit. Do you also believe that if a woman doesn't scream when raped, she is guilty of fornication?

Dedalus

[edited for content]

77

Conditional love

by noidea in

jw
friends

being raised a jw sometimes you feel you only know conditional love.

you are only loved if you tow the line.

i only have one thing to say,.

dedalus

I'm going to be a father soon, so this is something I given some thought to recently.

The way I see it, raising your children as Witnesses (i.e. with conditional love only) amounts to issueing your baby a contract the moment it is born:

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I, Dedalus Daddy, being of sound mind and body, promise to love and demonstrate my love for you, Dedalus Jr., providing the following criteria are met:

1) You abstain from celebrating this, the very day of your birth.

2) You abstain from celebrating any other holidays save the death of Jesus Christ, who's been missing in action for the last two thousand years.

3) You abstain from any other church, doctrine, belief, thought, philosophy, etc., except that which I have chosen for you.

4) You abstain from making friends other than the ones I choose for you.

5) You abstain from dating and falling in love until you have the financial means to purchase a house, car, and related amenities.

6) You abstain from all criticism of the Organization, even when it is obvious that it is committing grave atrocities against the innocent.

In addition to the above prohibitions, Dedalus Jr. must also agree to:

1) Attend all meetings designated by Jehovah's Witnesses.

2) Distribute Watchtower propoganda every month, without fail.

3) Speak the "pure language," in the form of mindless cliches echoed out of the aforementioned Watchtowers.

If the above criteria are not met, I reserve the right to withdraw utterly from my child's life, to shun and slander him/her, to degrade, discourage, and bitterly disparage every effort my child makes that runs contrary to my will. I reserve the right to threaten my child with foster care, the right to remove my child from my home should he/she persist in a mode of thinking contrary to my own, and the right to encourage other family members to follow my example.

With Christian Love,

Dad

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I can't imagine having these kinds of thoughts in my head as I watch my son or daughter come into this world. But for Witnesses, such thoughts are prerequisites for parenthood. How can you properly cherish your own child, if you are mentally prepared to abandon it someday, simply for not holding an abstract belief?

Not for me, that. Sure, I'll be disappointed in choices my son or daughter makes ... that's inevitable, I suppose. But my child would always have a place to come home to, period.

Dedalus

5

Dull subject of evidentialism

by proplog2 in

jw
friends

remains that we do not have good reasons for believing in fairies,.

faith or not, proof or not - we still have to.

that is a difference in kind.. chesterton was correct up to a certain point.

dedalus

5

a C.O.s talk?

by NikL in

jw
friends

but just what is soundness of mind?

how do we get soundness of mind?

once we get it ,how do we keep soundness of mind?

dedalus

Do you like to go on trips? Well, most of us do don't we? This evening we're going to take an imaginary train ride ...

There are books for toddlers written more intelligently than this. [8>]

Dedalus

60

White House Lunatic Imperils Us All.

by Englishman in

jw
friends

not just content with attempting to scuttle the kyoto accord by claiming it was anti-american, bush has now pulled the usa out of an international agreement on tightening up controls on chemical warfare, citing almost exactly the same concerns.

can't you blokes across the atlantic impeach this lunatic?.

..... fanaticism masquerading beneath a cloak of reasoned logic.

dedalus

Amazing

Hi Dedaldus: Yes, Americans did elect George Bush. This is why I am going to post a civis lesson for non-Americans and a few Americans who do not understand how the process works. But, I find that those who voted against him are the ones who keep saying this. These people filled with 'sour grapes' fail to understand that by using their own logic, then Bill Clinton was never elected by the American people. This will be fun. - Amazing

Lighten the fuck up.

I understand how the electoral college works. But if you don't believe that ballots were tampered with in Florida, and if the fact that Gore won the popular vote is entirely insignificant to you, then you're more ignorant than the people you think need a civics lesson.

When the democratic process is inherently corrupt, and any one candidate can manipulate his way into office, there is good reason to be filled with "sour grapes."

Dedalus

60

White House Lunatic Imperils Us All.

by Englishman in

jw
friends

not just content with attempting to scuttle the kyoto accord by claiming it was anti-american, bush has now pulled the usa out of an international agreement on tightening up controls on chemical warfare, citing almost exactly the same concerns.

can't you blokes across the atlantic impeach this lunatic?.

..... fanaticism masquerading beneath a cloak of reasoned logic.

dedalus

Can't you blokes across the Atlantic impeach this lunatic?

At times like this I feel compelled to point out that Americans never elected George Bush in the first place.

Dedalus

15

Wow! Pioneering's in Trouble!

by metatron in

jw
friends

april service report 88,735 pioneers (u.s.).

may service report 86,515 pioneers.

i know they'll pick up a couple thousand suckers in.

dedalus

I tend to agree with Grunt -- Jehovah's Witnesses is essentially an American religion. Even in Europe, according to my British friend, it's regarded as an American import, a religious curiousity. As for all of the other "lands" where the WT and Awake are being distributed, being a Witness seems to either be a passing fad, an attempt to approximate Western culture, or outright exploitation.

Dedalus