five things you need to know to understand the latest violence in iraq.
29/03/08 "alternet" -- - heavy fighting has spread across shia-dominated enclaves in iraq over the past two days.
the u.s.-backed regime of prime minister nouri al-maliki has ordered 50,000 iraqi troops to "crack down" -- with coalition air support -- on shiite militias in the oil-rich and strategically important city of basra, u.s. forces have surrounded baghdad's sadr city and fighting has been reported in the southern cities of kut, diwaniya, karbala and hilla.
NGB,
There is no question that the United States is mired. We can't stay and we can't leave....
If you haven't seen Chalmers Johnson interviewed or read any of his books, you should check this out:
http://www.democracynow.org/2007/2/27/chalmers_johnson_nemesis_the_last_days
It will blow you away.
Alex
this just went up on freeminds regarding the jw elders in southern california, who have so far been stonewalling about their private conversations with accused jw child molester gilbert simental... the judge in the case has issued an order for them to testify:.
(the judge) said... "it was more like a third-party investigation into immoral conduct."...
the judge said, the elders' duty was to determine guilt and to protect the congregation, not to keep the communications under wraps.
You all know what is going to happen, don't you?
The local BOE is going to get thrown under the bus, as suggested by Mr. Flipper. The Borg will do whatever it takes to distance themselves from a local matter. I am sure they already have their legal mechanisms in place to give them an out. They are going to let the local BOEs assume personal liablity for this if they can get away with it.
Wow!!!! I had no idea what I was signing on for when I was appointed as an elder. And, speaking of that, it would not surprise me at all if the Borg started making elders sign very detailed contracts that would preemptively absolve the Borg from any responsibility for things occurring at the local level.
It will be very interesting to see how things evolve.
All the best to everyone,
Alex
http://www.watchtower.org/e/20031122a/article_03.htm
just browsing the site for kicks, and this annoyed me.
typical jw attitude - with the readership they supposedly have, they could have made a real difference ... encouraged all jw's to recycle, buy carefully etc.
In all fairness to the Borg (which I absolutely despise) I don't think they have ever espoused the view (often seen in other fundie religions) that they could pollute shamelessly and leave things in Jehovah's hands.
On the other hand, I don't think they ever did enough to affirmatively promote conservation and recycling. I have been a life long birder (including the time I was growing up and in the Borg) and I can remember being lectured by the elders about the futility of belonging to conservation groups "in this system of things," and that I should trust in Jehovah to solve the environmental problems. I was also counseled that belonging to conservation groups could be spiritually dangerous because they usually are politically active.
What a crock!!!
The numbers of people who believe that we can do whatever we want to the earth, because god is watching over everything, is downright terrifying. This is the only planet we've got and we are doing an absolutely horrible job of caring for it.
Americans are at the forefront of the disrespect. We have 3 to 4 % of the earth's population and we consume 30 to 40 % of the resources (>60% of the energy resources). We live in a greedy, consumerist society that is never, ever satisfied. It is always MORE, MORE, MORE....BIGGER, BIGGER, BIGGER...NEVER ENOUGH.
Well, guess what? That can't go on forever. We are at a breaking point on this planet. Either we deal with our excesses or nature will. When "MOM" plays the last hand it is not going to be pretty.
Sorry for the mini-rant...sometimes I just get started,
Alex
i am not sure if anyone has asked this before but i am curious.
does anyone know approximately how many of us have left the watchtower society in the past 20 years.
it seems to me that it is compounding monthly lately.
I'll see if I can find it for you.
Alex
i was told today by a heavyweight elders wife, both of whom were at bethel for many years and are very well connected to the brooklyn brass, that all brooklyn bethel operations will be moved to wallkill and patterson.
in fact, there is a very exclusive walk-through next week for some of the top real estate investors/developers who will see all the properties, starting with the sands, and its lobby has now been remodeled to look just like a high-end hotel..................just fyi.................................oompa
i suspect they've already got plenty of Swiss accounts fully stocked.........and, they'll be able to trot out convenient, trite, "scriptural" reasoning to anyone who asks once it becomes "public knowledge".........
You betchya' !!! The Borg elite at Bethel live like kings and they are able to do it without reporting any personal income. They are no better than the fundie televangelists who do the same thing. They probably have so many layers of fake corporations, trusts, holding companies, and divestitures that Sherlock Holmes would have a hard time tracing the money. If there is one thing the Borg leadership is, it is shrewd and coniving.
I can easily envision the leadership obscuring the wealth and the money to ensure that they continue to live a lavish lifestyle with relative anonymity.
Alex
i was told today by a heavyweight elders wife, both of whom were at bethel for many years and are very well connected to the brooklyn brass, that all brooklyn bethel operations will be moved to wallkill and patterson.
in fact, there is a very exclusive walk-through next week for some of the top real estate investors/developers who will see all the properties, starting with the sands, and its lobby has now been remodeled to look just like a high-end hotel..................just fyi.................................oompa
OTWO,
HOT DAMN!!! I love it -- that is hilarious!!!
Alex
By the way, have you ever seen that Tee shirt with the different religious versions of "Shit happens?" The buddhist version: Is there any sound when shit happens in the forest?
Dub version: Knock, knock...Shit happens.
Same kind of humor.
i was told today by a heavyweight elders wife, both of whom were at bethel for many years and are very well connected to the brooklyn brass, that all brooklyn bethel operations will be moved to wallkill and patterson.
in fact, there is a very exclusive walk-through next week for some of the top real estate investors/developers who will see all the properties, starting with the sands, and its lobby has now been remodeled to look just like a high-end hotel..................just fyi.................................oompa
OTWO,
I thought that Borg was an oblique reference to the Star Trek episodes that featured the Borg and their collective mind.
"Resistance is futile.... you will be assimilated...."
If that isn't where the expression originated it still fits, so you can still use "Borg" as an appropriate term.
Cheers,
Alex
moshe is walking down the street, and he sees a friend coming toward him & the friend is crying his eyes out.
moshe: davey, whats wrong?
davey: well, you know moshe, i tried to be a good father, i raised my boy jewish, sent him out into the world, and he came back a christian.
In the French version the Rabbi asks God "and what did you do? -- I made a new testament."
(Testament being the common word for "last will & testament")
Thanks, that's even funnier than the version I posted.
Alex
i was told today by a heavyweight elders wife, both of whom were at bethel for many years and are very well connected to the brooklyn brass, that all brooklyn bethel operations will be moved to wallkill and patterson.
in fact, there is a very exclusive walk-through next week for some of the top real estate investors/developers who will see all the properties, starting with the sands, and its lobby has now been remodeled to look just like a high-end hotel..................just fyi.................................oompa
Oompa,
Very interesting. It definitely seems like big changes are afoot for the Borg.
Cheers,
Alex
moshe is walking down the street, and he sees a friend coming toward him & the friend is crying his eyes out.
moshe: davey, whats wrong?
davey: well, you know moshe, i tried to be a good father, i raised my boy jewish, sent him out into the world, and he came back a christian.
Moshe is walking down the street, and he sees a friend coming toward him & the friend is crying his eyes out. Moshe: “Davey, What’s wrong?” Davey: “Well, you know Moshe, I tried to be a good father, I raised my boy Jewish, sent him out into the world, and he came back a Christian. What am I gonna do?” Moshe: “It’s funny you should mention that, the same thing happened to me. What are we gonna do?” So, they both walk together commiserating and crying. Just then another friend is walking toward them & he says, “Fellas, what’s wrong?” “Well you know Danny, we tried to be good fathers, we raised our boys Jewish, sent them out into the world, and they came back Christians. What are we gonna do?” Danny: “It’s funny you should mention that, the same thing happened to me. What are we gonna do?” So the 3 of them walk together commiserating and crying. So, after they commiserated and cried for awhile, they decided to go see the Rabbi. When the Rabbi saw them he says, “Fellas, why the long faces?” So they said, “Well you know Rabbi, we tried to be good fathers, we raised our boys Jewish, sent them out into the world, and they came back Christians. What are we gonna do?” Rabbi: “It’s funny you should mention that, the same thing happened to me. What are we gonna do?” So after awhile the Rabbi suggest that they pray. So the Rabbi starts praying, “Lord, we tried to be good fathers, we raised our boys Jewish, sent them out into the world, and they came back Christians. What are we gonna do?” And, the Lord’s voice came back, “It’s funny you should mention that…”
