Posts by zarco

62

Historic Turning Point After Century in Brooklyn, Watchtower Pulls Out of Heights

by Dogpatch in

jw
friends

downtown brooklyn its definite.

rumors can be laid to rest.

the watchtower bible & tract society is moving its headquarters out of brooklyn heights and up to warwick, n.y.. we have submitted a proposal to the town of warwick to build a complex there that were calling the world headquarters of jehovahs witnesses, richard devine told the eagle tuesday.

zarco

The WTS has talked about moving out of Brooklyn for years. The primary drivers were/are cash flow. The donation arrangement decreased cash flows significantly and with donations from Japan decreasing at an even faster pace than other donations the WTS has to do something. The WTS has been looking to move upstate even before the Patterson project started. Part of the reluctance to move from Brooklyn was because the older governing body members and wives did not want to move. The sale of the Furman building bought them time.

As cash flow deficiencies continue, as the older members of the governing body, with deep ties to Brooklyn, are losing their influence through death and aging and with fresh memories of 9-11, it is now time to go.

The WTS in recent years has become more of a fringe group. Moving out of Brooklyn will further isolate them from society in general. Selling the Brooklyn properties will likely cover the necessary cash flows for a decade or more. A decade from now, when the cash flows are almost completely gone, it will be interesting to see how the desperation will be reflected in changing doctrines.

A prediction... the WTS will circle the wagons and get even goofier because they will have plenty of funds after the move. They will have a significant amount of enthusiasm generated from the large scale building project. They will think that Jah is blessing them, when in reality this is this last 10 to 15 years of them as a viable well funded religion.

zarco

30

Denver CO Congregations?

by feenx in

jw
friends

hellllllllllo all :)

so anyone from any denver congregations?

i was in the bear valley cong.

zarco

Lots of Colorado apostates, nice to see!

33

do jws cheat on their taxes?

by rockmehardplace in

jw
friends

i was on the phone complaining to my wife how much i owe in taxes this year.

no refund.

she started in about how sister soandso is a pioneer, and since she considers this her career, she claims things like shoes, gas, clothes, and even if she has a part on a circuit or district, she claims the expenses for hotels and such.

zarco

I don't think witnesses are any more dishonest than others. I do think that witnesses are generally not very good business people (there are some exceptions) because they have not been trained and in fact reject good financial training/education. Because of the lack of training and not looking at businesses as a life long endeavor they take shortcuts, maybe forgetting to make quarterly tax payments or keeping good records. If one misses a quarterly payment or two, it becomes tough to catch up.

One area that we observe the witnesses most egregious in in their abuse of the law is with regard to employment taxes. Many witnesses in the building trades hire people as contractors paying them without withholding taxes and making social security contributions, when in fact they are not contractors but employees. The majority of self-employed witnesses that we have known abuse employment law. I guess one shouldn't be surprised, as "mother" seems to do the same.

zarco

454

Post a U-tube of your Favorite Songs from Music groups or Singers

by flipper in

.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=weiyggwt6no.

zarco

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dm6qw_yeo6o

3

finally writing my DA letter

by leftchica in

jw
friends

hello freinds,.

i have not posted much on here in a while.

for those who might not remember me, i am a fader and have been fading for a year.

zarco

I am sorry that you are going through such a tough time.

I dont want to meet with the elders for I don't feel I HAVE to..these are "their rules" and I refuse to go by them. Even though the letter would be something I wouldnt normally do but the fact that my husband is still active in the congregation I don't have a choice.

I think you do have a choice. When you play by their rules you give them power over you. You may have reasons for giving power to them, maybe you want a clean break and a letter of disassociation will indeed give you a clean break. You will be treated as if you were disfellowshipped. I don't have any opinion as to what you should do. My suggestion is to visualize different outcomes from your actions long term. What I mean is think about:

If you write a letter, what will your life look like a year or many years from now? What will your relationship with your family be like? Are you comfortable making new friends to replace old friends? What are the personal costs and benefits from making a clean break?
If you refuse to meet or write a letter, ask similar questions. What pressure will your husband put on you?
If you choose to fade, what are the consequnces to the things important to you? Can you pull it off? Will faking some things to keep some relationships be something that you can handle?

The decision you make must be your own decision and making it with a long term view is probably the best advice I have.

All the best to you!

zarco

28

The most frightening time in this Worlds History!

by wannabe in

does the bible supply us with any information, that might give us, at least, some idea when this frightening time period will begin?does it show us, in some way, just how frightening this time period will be, and just what is the main cause of it?

" [matthew 24:8 niv}.

what was it that actually marked the beginning of these birth pangs?

zarco

The devastation brought on by the bubonic plague in the 6th century and the black death in the 14th century was so severe that the ability of the human race to continue - at least in Europe- was questioned. Living conditions in most of the world have become better during the last 200 hundred years. A study of the top 100 world altering wars also puts WWI in perspective. WWII was clearly a world altering event, but it is on a long list of catastrophes to humankind.

In my opinion, it is dishonest maybe devious to suggest that the conditions we face today are more difficult that other times in human history.

zarco

23

How did you feel when they let a 10 year old boy stand up on the podium and a sister couldn't ?

by RULES & REGULATIONS in

one thing that really bothered me about the ministry school was letting a little boy around 10 years old read an outline and scripture.

he faced and addressed the audience.

he was actually teaching.

zarco

Nice, Nathan, nice.

Maybe you were the kid .... ever live in the midwest?

23

How did you feel when they let a 10 year old boy stand up on the podium and a sister couldn't ?

by RULES & REGULATIONS in

one thing that really bothered me about the ministry school was letting a little boy around 10 years old read an outline and scripture.

he faced and addressed the audience.

he was actually teaching.

zarco

Years ago we had a question come up, a 10 year old boy was baptized and went out in service with his pioneer mother. Often, no brothers would attend the meeting for field service so the little guy directed the group. The sisters complained that they were being lead by a 10 year old and the decision was to have a qualified sister - with a head covering of course - handle the group. The WTS are not very female friendly are they?

zarco

38

Are JWs attracting more and more off-center people?

by undercover in

jw
friends

this thread is prompted by the thread about a jw woman who disprupted a funeral.

i don't know the details as i can't view youtube from work, but it did get me to thinking.... over the last couple of decades, at least, i've noticed that more and more 'fringe personalities', for a lack of a better term, have infiltrated the ranks of the everyday jws.

true, jws are themselves a fringe element to normal society, but even within their own communities, there used to be a sense of normalcy, or at least seemed to be.. has the cultic message of the wt society started attracting people with different thought processes over this time period?

zarco

It seems that over the last 25 to 30 years the majority of JW converts are those who do not fit in with "normal society". In other words, those with good jobs, an education, a stable family life or general contributors to society do not become JWs. Part of the reason is that the WTS has increasingly isolated itself and its followers from communities. The core principle supporting such isolation is that all who are not JWs will be destroyed by the JW god. Another factor is that "normal" people check out things before they buy... and now any with an internet connection one can see what the WTS is about before they join. The gullible do not check things about before they buy and are likely the only converts to the WTS with very few exceptions. So the WTS is stuck with the gullible (fringe) as its base of support. Bad for WTS in so many ways and horrible for those joining them.

zarco

4

Care to step up watchtower?

by zarco in

jw
friends

the watchtower demonizes the commercial enterprises of the world.

the commercial enterprises of the world not all, but many give back so much to the health, education and welfare of people of the world.

below is an part of the gates foundation mission.

zarco

The Watchtower demonizes the commercial enterprises of the world. The commercial enterprises of the world – not all, but many – give back so much to the health, education and welfare of people of the world. Below is an part of the Gates Foundation mission. The WTS does little to improve the lives of individuals. A strong case could be made that they harm individuals.

….Guided by the belief that every life has equal value, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation works to help all people lead healthy, productive lives. In developing countries, it focuses on improving people’s health and giving them the chance to lift themselves out of hunger and extreme poverty. In the United States, it seeks to ensure that all people—especially those with the fewest resources—have access to the opportunities they need to succeed in school and life. Based in Seattle, the foundation is led by CEO Jeff Raikes and co-chair William H. Gates Sr., under the direction of Bill and Melinda Gates and Warren Buffett.

How does one reconcile the fact that the world’s richest individuals give back the majority of their wealth for the good of others. Care to step up to the plate watchtower?

zarco