Posts by expatbrit

58

My story (in depth) PHEW!

by Aztec in

i've shared a bit about my experiences but i don't think i ever gone into much detail.

i'm setting this down as an example of what growing up a witness can be like for any lurkers who have doubts or questions.

i was born into a family of witnesses.

expatbrit

Aztec:

Thank you for your post. You endured a tough childhood and emerged from it as a blend of strength and goodness. You should be proud of yourself.

Expatbrit

207

The Watchtower & the cigarette company

by expatbrit in

i: some relevant quotes from watchtower publications

1: the position of the watchtower as regards smoking

*** jv 181 13 recognized by our conduct ***.

expatbrit

Hello Undercover:

Is it possible that they accepted the investment donation and didn't bother to look at how it was set up?

Good question.

The Trust has existed since at least 1998, as I have the return for that year. I also have the 2001 return, so I've just taken a look at it. There are no holdings of Philip Morris on the 2001 return. This means that those shares were purchased sometime between May 1, 2001 and April 30, 2002. Consequently I don't think the Society can say "we didn't know what we were getting" as an excuse, because they didn't get any Philip Morris shares to start with.

Expatbrit

20

Witnesses NOT a Cult.

by integ in

jw
friends

it has been mentioned on this board many times that the jehovahs' witnesses are a cult.. this connotation may not ring true with witnesses.

i have mentioned to certain ones that.

the witnesses fit the "definition" of a cult.

expatbrit

Of course Jehovah's Witnesses are not a cult! Don't you know that Jehovah's Witnesses are the first and oldest religion? Why, the first Jehovah's Witness was Abel! I know this for a fact, because I bought his bookbag off ebay.

Expatbrit

207

The Watchtower & the cigarette company

by expatbrit in

i: some relevant quotes from watchtower publications

1: the position of the watchtower as regards smoking

*** jv 181 13 recognized by our conduct ***.

expatbrit

Hello Pork Chop:

The trustees are Comerica Bank of Detroit. As such, they would look after investments. However, the Watchtower is sole beneficiary. Obviously if a sole beneficiary has ethical objections to a type of investment and this was made clear to the trustees, it would be good trustee practice to avoid those types of investments, thus avoiding ethical conflicts with the beneficiary. The Watchtower is careful to specify on financial statements of their own corporations that their investments conform to their "Christian principles". Why not here?

In addition, we can make the safe assumption that Henrietta Riley was a Jehovah's Witness. What would she think about an investment into Philip Morris? If she had made such an investment while alive for her own benefit, what would the Society's reaction have been? One could argue that this is a trustee failure, but it is also a Watchtower failure, for as mentioned, with a large $ trust like this, they will certainly monitor it and have copies of the annual returns.

The percentage of the total holdings comprised by this investment is small, as mentioned in the original post ( a market value of under $20,000). But, to repeat, it is a matter of principle, rather than amount. If principles were not involved, my only criticism would be that the trust didn't buy enough shares. However, the fact remains that the Watchtower will benefit from an investment in a tobacco products group, a type of business they have condemned publicly as immoral.

Expatbrit

66

Was music better years ago than today?

by JH in

jw
friends

.

so, was music better years ago, or is it better today?

.

expatbrit

I think that music largely went stale sometime around 1900.

Expatbrit

144

LANDMARK DECISION - Vicki Boer vs Watchtower Society

by Uzzah in

as most are aware, vicki boer has been long awaiting a decision to be handed down in a case she started against the society in canada.. the decision was handed down today.

as with any 55 page decision, it will take some time for the legal experts to hash it over and decipher what was said.

but, in a nutshell..... vicki won.

expatbrit

Hello Hawk:

Welcome back to the real world....lol

Since your knowledge of what Mr Marks was given and told is much greater than mine, I'll defer to your research (so long as you stop calling me sir). I do think that some kind of intensive information package for lawyers/paralegals etc would be a good thing.

Something else that has just hit me between the eyes was this:

You must also keep in mind that I have over 80 pages of case law from years gone by showing Mr. Marks representing Mr. Mott-Trill in numerous actions against the Watchtower and defending Frank against the Watchtower. Mr. Marks and Mr. Mott-Trill are the only lawyer in USA or Canadian history to have a disfellowshipping overtunred by the court because Frank Mott-Trill was not offered due process.

Can you clarify that? Are you saying that the Watchtower was forced to overturn a disfellowshipping decision by a secular court?!?!?!?!

If so, I really would like to get a copy of what you have on it.

Expatbrit

14

TV-Documentary About JW Trying to Become Public Body In Germany

by GermanXJW in

jw
friends

i know that some of you can see german tv via satellite and some of you even understand german.

maybe you just want to have a look at the pictures: .

next wednesday, july 2nd, 23:30h (german time) a 45-min-documentary is being broadcast about jw in germany trying to get hold of the status of a public body in germany.

expatbrit

Transcripts! We need transcripts! Und preferably in Britisher, danke!

Expatbrit (ignorant of forner-talk class)

144

LANDMARK DECISION - Vicki Boer vs Watchtower Society

by Uzzah in

as most are aware, vicki boer has been long awaiting a decision to be handed down in a case she started against the society in canada.. the decision was handed down today.

as with any 55 page decision, it will take some time for the legal experts to hash it over and decipher what was said.

but, in a nutshell..... vicki won.

expatbrit

I haven't yet got my mits on a copy of the decision yet, so can't offer any comments on it, but I thought this paragraph from Hawk's post is worth consideration:

7) Vicki lost on failure to report to children's aid and forbidding medical treatment. The reason why was simple. Charles Mark's case just did not have enough proof to show the court that the elders prevented Vicki from seeking professional help. Without enough evidence to present to the Judge (including Watchtower magazine articles etc. which were available ito him if he only used them) to back witnesses like Vicki and Frank Mott-Trille up, Charles Mark's case went into the toilet and the Judge had no choice but to rule the way she did on those issues

In Mr. Marks' defence, while there should certainly have been more presentation of Watchtower materials, it has to be remembered that he is not an ex-JW, and presumably before this case had the same level of knowledge of the Watchtower as any average member of society i.e. JW's are those odd people who disturb you on Saturday morning and that's it.

And this is something that the x-JW community can think about, imo. In future cases that happen in our area, how can we get the lawyer's up to speed on the Watchtower so they have the knowledge level they need in the courtroom? Could we put together some kind of information packages for them with Watchtower source material? Can we make sure they have some good idea of the Jehovah's Witness culture and how pervasive the Watchtower is in their lives?

Expatbrit

6

What is the WT view of donating to charity?

by sonofapreacherman in

.

i have been completely out of touch for over a decade, but i recall that the general sentiment was that charities are often corrupt or inefficient, and too often have some association with false religion..

expatbrit

Hi Sonofapreacherman:

The Watchtower actively encourages JW's to donate to charities. The hundreds of charities that the Watchtower Society has registered, that is.

Expatbrit

22

Swedish JW df'ed ...................

by TheOldHippie in

in case nobody else has heard it, the swedish jw who was the "main personage" in the television program aired a month or so ago, was df'ed yesterday.

the branch hung up upon him in the program and asked him to write a letter, giving his story how he had been abused etc.

the branch overseer told the reporters how sorry he felt for him, and that he had been helped, and how they wanted to help him in the future, too.

expatbrit

Hello Old Hippie:

Thank you for the update. How typical of the Watchtower to wait for a while before trying to disfellowship the abuse victim on the quiet. What a bunch of craven cowards!

Can I ask, are the media in Sweden aware of this latest development?

Expatbrit