Great thread!
When I first came to this board, I was little confused on what it meant to "fade". There were "faders" that still attend meetings and then there were "faders" that just walked awayed without DA'ing. I also noticed that were posters that appeared to have been "fading" for a few years.
Anyway, when I first accepted that the WT dogma was not "the truth" my first reaction was to DA. I was absolutely livid, for weeks. It was difficult for me to attend meetings and not just stand up and scream "GET OUT OF HER". So I left...simply walked away...no subtle fading, no fake service slips, no faking any of it...one day I was there, then in the middle of the meeting I left to go to the mall and decided I no longer considered myself a JW.
Although I was completely inactive, I deliberated for a few months whether or not to DA. Then I decided that I did not want the WT to have that type of grip on my life. If I DA'd, my family and friends would be forced to choose...me or the WT. Also, I could not come and go as freely as I wished. So I decided that walking away was right for me (as indicated by the number of times "I" is used in this post...LOL).
AllTimeJeff said:"A fade to me implies that you are putting other people, and other people's opinions ahead of you." I think this is true of people that are "faking it" but say that they are fading. I think we need another category for "fakers". There are a number of "fakers" on this board. To fade, in my opinion is rooted in selfishness, wanting your cake and eating it too. Besides, if its your cake why shouldn't you eat it? ;)