done4good

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Posts by done4good

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  16

  Born to Be Conned - The New York Times

  by paul from cleveland in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  born to be conned - new york times.

  when people want to believe what they want to believe, david sullivan, a professional cult infiltrator, told the commonwealth club of california, a public affairs forum, in july 2010, they are very hard to dissuade.

  and the reason it happens (and often happens to the most intelligent people) is that human nature is wired toward creating meaning out of meaninglessness..

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  done4good

  Good article, typical of NYT. Pegs human nature precisely.

  d4g
  
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  55

  "High" education

  by Esmeralda001 in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  did any of you guys disregard the wt recommendations and pursue a career.

  if you answer "yes": was your journey easy?

  are you happy with the end result?

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  done4good

  "High" education? Well that is a different subject entirely, I think...;-)

  As for higher education? Yes, I went to uni despite the org.'s message not to, (pre-1992, before they "softened" their view).

  No, it was not always easy. Not so much because of JW lack of support, however. I had two dear JW friends that gave me support to go. I am forever grateful for that. Most of the difficulty was actually my own apprehension about going to begin with, ironically.

  Yes it has been beneficial, beyond my dreams, almost 25 years later. I also recently completed an advanced degree in my field.

  d4g
  
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  34

  Do most ex JW's go politically left?

  by Lightgrowsbrighter in

  1. social
  2. current

  i've found it interesting that- imho- most of the politically vocal ex-jw's at this website seem to lean left.

  i'm personally pretty centered- right on some issues, left on others, but overall have a pretty cynical view of all political/religious leaders.

  i find it somewhat ironic that people who leave such a dogmatic group like the witnesses become so politically dogmatic.

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  done4good

  Most of us are just cynical, and naturally distrust anything that traces an authoritarian path, and backs it with a propaganda machine.The WT and the (current), Republican party in the USA are both. Perhaps in other countries, (given a very different context), the left might be equally as authoritarian and propagandist, (Russia might be a good example). In a different time, (pre-Nixon), the Republicans in the USA were actually more socially liberal than the Democrats of the era.
  

  The very term "liberal media" is a straw man invented by the conservative controlled media to set the center farther to the right. Apart from the NYT, MSNBC and scant few other sources, little media in the main is "liberal".

  d4g
  
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  16

  Even Now, You Haunt Me...

  by Garrett in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  even after leaving the organization, it still lurks in the background like a shadow.. as some of you know, i met a wonderful girl a while ago (which i'm going to need your help with).

  she is a catholic and i am open and very respectful of her beliefs.

  however, i know there will be a time where i will have to tell her that i once was a witness... and to be honest, i'm quite scared of that.. i don't want things to be ruined between us because of a disgusting cult that i was in.

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  done4good

  If she is even a little normal, she will not care at all about your past affiliation. If she does, you are better off without her.

  d4g
  
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  88

  Legalized marijuana. It's coming to canada and I want to try it.

  by hoser in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  as a good jw i never smoked a joint or nibbled on some brownies.

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  done4good

  Well said, Tal.

  d4g
  
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  21

  WTBTS Submissions to Royal Commission on abuse: The response document in FULL

  by JWchange in

  1. watchtower
  2. child-abuse

  it is not obvious if someone has already put the responses and excuses to the findings of the royal commission, by watchtower on this forum somewhere, sorry if it is already posted.

  click on the link below, and scroll down to 'submissions' near bottom of page and you can download the full document.

  if this link doesn't work.

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  done4good

  Vidiot - All this obfuscation on the Org's part simply reinforces what I already suspect...

  ...that if they implemented the recommended measures and reforms needed to fix the problem, the repurcussions would be worse (from their POV) then if they refused.

  
  

  ^^^^This.

  
  

  They cannot make the necessary reforms without seriously affecting their system negatively, from their perspective. I have stated more than once on this forum that any change to how they handle judicial matters is a slippery slope, (for them), and will lead to the entire process falling apart. If that happens, a key control mechanism is removed, and that will have repercussions they cannot live with.

  
  

  d4g
  
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  21

  How do you overcome SHUNNING after leaving the organization and move on?

  by suavojr in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  it amazes me how many of you have left it all behind, including family, brothers and sisters, friends and a full network of people.

  i for one cannot find the courage to breakaway, and this causes me great anxiety and stress.

  it eats me alive to think that if i open my mouth everyone i know will simply turn their back on me.

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  done4good

  Simon-One true friend is of far more value than all the fake friends and relatives you have ever known.

  Very true. When I left 10 years ago, losing relatives and fake friends meant very little. Almost all JWs I knew fell into this fake friend category.

  I did lose a good JW friend though much more recently, (2 years ago), and that pain never goes away.

  Living a lie is NOT an option though.

  d4g
  
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  88

  Legalized marijuana. It's coming to canada and I want to try it.

  by hoser in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  as a good jw i never smoked a joint or nibbled on some brownies.

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  done4good

  jookbeard-Question_Mans; there are clear sighs that manifest themselves as addiction , I know many people at the moment who are trying to quit mj and are showing them; shakes, insomnia,headaches,irritability, anxiety, extreme mood swings, to ignore these signs is very churlish.

  You are talking about people that use the drug to deal with existing anxiety disorders. I 100% agree that using this drug, (or anything), done to excess or to assist in dealing with real life is dangerous. Much of this has to do with mindset. Anyone that thinks they "need" to get high to have a fulfilling life, has issues that need to be reconciled, likely by a professional. Does that mean the addiction is physical? No. These people likely have anxiety disorders to begin with, that are exacerbated by marijuana use. Yes, they should stay away from it. The drug use is a symptom for these people, not the root cause of their problems.

  Physical addiction is a very specific thing. This type of addiction is marked by physical dependencies that prevent certain body functions from working normally, and can lead to serious life threatening situations. It is irresponsible to label any "dependency" on marijuana this way. Other substances, (like heroin and alcohol), do have physically addictive properties that can kill if the withdrawal is not dealt with.

  Physiological addictions are a much broader category, and MJ does not even fall into this camp, clinically speaking. I am enjoying a cup of coffee at the moment, because I know I have a physiological caffeine addiction that I would like to care for. I would feel lousy at this hour if I did not have it, but it wouldn't kill me. MJ produces no such withdrawal symptoms, either physiological or physical. I get up at 4 AM every day, work a 6 figure career job for 12-14 hours, go home and take care of domestic stuff, and maybe decide to use some MJ on the weekend, at night if there is the right time and place for it. Hardly an addiction by any means, although certainly psychologically gratifying at times.

  YMMV.

  d4g
  
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  88

  Legalized marijuana. It's coming to canada and I want to try it.

  by hoser in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  as a good jw i never smoked a joint or nibbled on some brownies.

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  done4good

  BTW, I'm 43, 167 pounds, I workout, and I in the best shape of my adult life. This nonsense about sitting around and eating everything in sight, is once again, just another myth. I am actually more balanced and healthy about what I choose to eat, drink, and spend my time doing than ever. I was over 200 pounds a couple of years ago.
  

  d4g
  
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  88

  Legalized marijuana. It's coming to canada and I want to try it.

  by hoser in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  as a good jw i never smoked a joint or nibbled on some brownies.

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  done4good

  To be clear, people respond differently to different stimuli, and response to MJ is no different. MJ is certainly NOT for everyone, and can be abused. Addiction takes one of three different basic forms, (physical, physiological, and psychological), and marijuana can fall into the last group, (but so can watching too much TV, snowboarding, golf, whatever...). The point is anything someone likes too much has the propensity to become psychologically addictive. To say marijuana is addictive in the sense the drugs mentioned below are, is a myth.
  

  Caffeine, nicotine, cocaine, and many other drugs are physiological in their addictive properties, and produce side effects of physical discomfort when someone is experiencing withdrawal from those drugs. Pot does not fall into this category. Nicotine is extremely addictive in this area, by contrast.
  

  Alcohol, (yes, alcohol), heroin, and other opiates, are physically addictive. The human body actually builds a dependency upon these. Many older alcoholics actually die in hospitals, (for treatments non-related), because alcoholics are denied alcohol during their stay, and die of "complications", (actual alcohol withdrawal). Alcohol also contributes to sugar addiction which leads to type 2 diabetes, hypoglycemia, etc. Alcohol IS the ultimate gateway drug.
  

  Marijuana abuse is over-hyped. Sure, there will always be people that cannot be balanced about using or doing anything they enjoy. This almost always points to something else wrong in their lives that they need to address, and as a result should avoid things they have the propensity to abuse. However, to put marijuana into the same category as physically or physiologically addictive substances is either ignorance on the part of those repeating this rhetoric, or outright misinformation campaigns from those with an agenda. It is what is known as "junk science".

  d4g