It's almost like they are giving up. They let an apostate in Australia dictate their policy on background checks. They're laying off workers and selling factory buildings. They're even going to shut down their main website. If they were a company, I would think they are going out of business.
Posts by DT
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29The Great Watchtower Internet Retreat
by DT inthere has been a lot of talk about the new watchtower internet strategy.
it appears that the watchtower is trying to improve their internet presence.
this could be true, but i think there are good reasons to think that the opposite might be the case.. i suspect that this new internet announcement was primarily designed to draw attention away from the announcement that they are cutting down on the printing of the magazines again.. they are basically dropping two of their websites and redesigning a website on a url that has the lowest rating of the three.
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29
The Great Watchtower Internet Retreat
by DT inthere has been a lot of talk about the new watchtower internet strategy.
it appears that the watchtower is trying to improve their internet presence.
this could be true, but i think there are good reasons to think that the opposite might be the case.. i suspect that this new internet announcement was primarily designed to draw attention away from the announcement that they are cutting down on the printing of the magazines again.. they are basically dropping two of their websites and redesigning a website on a url that has the lowest rating of the three.
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DT
There has been a lot of talk about the new Watchtower Internet strategy. It appears that the Watchtower is trying to improve their Internet presence. This could be true, but I think there are good reasons to think that the opposite might be the case.
I suspect that this new Internet announcement was primarily designed to draw attention away from the announcement that they are cutting down on the printing of the magazines again.
They are basically dropping two of their websites and redesigning a website on a url that has the lowest rating of the three. This will probably result in less traffic and fewer search results listings. (Google usually allows a website to have one or two results per search. With three websites, they could really dominate the first page of search results for some terms. With only one site, their presence will be greatly reduced. They will also likely lose their number one rankings for some search terms, at least for a while.)
They are also going to lose their media site, which means that reporters doing research are likely to spend more time on sites that are critical of the Watchtower Society. They are also losing brand recognition for their Watchtower.org site.
Why would they make a change with so many disadvantages for their Internet presence? I think that they may be afraid. They may want to avoid the confusion of having multiple websites. If they can just have people type in a few characters (jw.org), they can reduce the chances that people will actually do a search for their websites and see links to apostate sites.
It will be interesting to see if they prominently advertise their new website on their new thinner magazines. If so, it would be an indication that I'm wrong and that they are interested in using the web as a way to get converts. However, I suspect that they don't really want people to use the Internet to do research about them.
It may be that their websites have done them more harm than good. They do get a small number of Bible study requests from their site, but they probably have greater losses from those who stumble on apostate sites while trying to find their websites. They have discovered that they can cut costs by offering downloads, but other than that, it appears that their Internet experiment has been a failure which could be a reason for reducing the number of their websites.
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13
Kid scores dream prom date, school won't ler her in to dance.
by JeffT inhttp://content.usatoday.com/communities/ondeadline/post/2012/03/minn-school-quashes-seniors-bid-to-bring-porn-star-to-prom/1#.t2zgytwenrw.
minn. school quashes senior's porn-star prom date.
by douglas stanglin, usa today.
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DT
I assume it would sometimes be allowed to invite a date who isn't a student. If so, I'm concerned about the school making arbitrary judgements like this based on a person's occupation. That seems pretty discriminatory.
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34
Bart Ehrman...Jesus Existed
by XJW4EVR inwhen the uber-liberal, agnostic bart ehrman says it...it must be true.. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/bart-d-ehrman/did-jesus-exist_b_1349544.html.
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DT
I have enjoyed Bart Ehrman's books in the past, but I'm not sure if can fully agree with him on this point. (I should point out that I haven't read his latest book yet.)
There is certainly enough evidence to suggest that Jesus may have existed or may have even probably existed, but to make a firm statement that he definitely existed is a little extreme in my opinion.
I don't think we know nearly enough about various first century sects and their writings to make definite conclusions about their motivations for telling and retelling the Jesus stories. There likely was a lot of dishonesty, exaggeration, and possibly telling stories with moral lessons that weren't meant to be taken literally. Many, if not most, of these writings may be lost forever. We also might not have any surviving information from some of the groups that contributed to these stories.
What if more than one person or some combination of real and fictitious characters contributed to the Jesus stories? I don't think we can rule this out. In this case, would it be fair to call Jesus a historical person? Would it be fair to call Paul Bunyun a historical person? Some of his stories may have also been inspired by one or more real people.
Would it be fair to say that Big Foot is real? The total amount of evidence for Big Foot far outweighs the amount of evidence for Jesus. The problem is that none of it is particularly reliable and most of it can be interpreted in more than one way. I think the same problems exist for the evidence for Jesus.
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DT
So if you are a prominent witness in one of those countries you could use your connections in the organization to pressure the parents to give you a good deal on an attractive women that none of the other brothers can afford. It's just another perk of being well connected. I'm sure the threat of possible disfellowshipping is a great bargaining tactic.
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12
How About A Preparing For A Judicial Committee Booklet?
by DT inimagine if someone prepared a small booklet about preparing for a judicial committee that could be shared as either an actual booklet or a pdf.. i think it would be best if such a booklet were written in a neutral, nonjudgemental way, but have quotes from the elder's book that discuss the various rules that relate to judicial committees.
a complete list of disfellowshipping offenses could also be useful.
it could end with a few strategies and tips for dealing with a judicial committee.. it's only fair that jw's have access to the actual rules of judicial committees.
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DT
I just had another idea.
Suppose, the cover of the booklet said something like, "Not for general distribution. A copy should be made available to those who are invited to a judicial committee."
This might overcome the common initial fear of apostate literature. Someone who looks at it might conclude that it is a real publication and that they are just being a little bit nosy by looking at it.
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How About A Preparing For A Judicial Committee Booklet?
by DT inimagine if someone prepared a small booklet about preparing for a judicial committee that could be shared as either an actual booklet or a pdf.. i think it would be best if such a booklet were written in a neutral, nonjudgemental way, but have quotes from the elder's book that discuss the various rules that relate to judicial committees.
a complete list of disfellowshipping offenses could also be useful.
it could end with a few strategies and tips for dealing with a judicial committee.. it's only fair that jw's have access to the actual rules of judicial committees.
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DT
Thank you for all your comments.
Unfortunately, I don't have time for a project like this at the moment, but I would be willing to consider it for the future. I would also be happy to support someone else who would like to try this.
There is already a lot of good information about this topic and some great ideas for a possible future publication.
I thought I would elaborate some more about my specific ideas if I end up working on this.
I would make current, believing Witnesses my focus. Although, I would want to help those who are facing a judicial committee, my main goal would be to provide access to the elder's secret rules. Although, the Watchtower Society is able to block distribution of the Elder's manual due to copyright, it's my amateur, nonlawyerly opinion that a booklet that makes use of appropriate fair use quotes from that book should be safe.
I think that a well designed booklet would be almost irresistable for some witnesses. Ideally, it would be nice for current elder to put the finishing touches on the booklet and express his opinion that the publishers should have access to the information so they can prepare themselves. (Of course, he should protect his identity.) I don't think it's necessary to criticise or have a negative tone. The quotes would mostly speak for themselves.
The final document could be shared on document sharing sites and even printed. If it's small enough, it could be hidden in Watchtower publications in the library or the literature counter. It could even be designed in a way that it looks like an official Watchtower publication.
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21
Judicial Committee Preparation
by Marvin Shilmer injudicial committee preparation .
today i added a new article to my blog offering practical recommendations for individuals invited to attend a judicial committee hearing as an accused, and for those who then choose to attend.
it offers an approach that is completely within watchtower policy yet will give reason for any elder or potential witness to take great care moving forward.
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DT
Thank you for providing this useful guide. I thought that the elder book specifically states that the accused can't take notes. I could be wrong, and would be happy if I am.
I thought his quote was interesting.
"Though religious organizations have a great deal of latitude with internal judicial proceedings, some courts have found that if internal policies are not followed there is exposure to civil liability. Watchtower is well acquainted with these civil court findings and fears them. "
Does anybody have any additional information about this? I was under the impression that courts in the U.S. at least are generally prohibited from even investigating a religion's internal policies.
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Do Elders Have A Reasonable Expectation Of Privacy During Judicial Committees?
by DT ini should point out that i'm not a lawyer and i'm not qualified to give legal advice.. there has been much discussion about judicial committees lately and how to handle and possibly record them.. naturally, the question of the legality of recording judicial committees is a concern.
my understanding of the law in the u.s. is that it is legal to record private conversations in most states provided at least one party consents to the recording.
in the other states, it is required to get the consent of all parties to record a private conversation.. however, it would be reasonable to ask whether or not a judicial committee is a private conversation and whether the elders have a reasonable expectation of privacy.
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DT
I should point out that I'm not a lawyer and I'm not qualified to give legal advice.
There has been much discussion about judicial committees lately and how to handle and possibly record them.
Naturally, the question of the legality of recording judicial committees is a concern. My understanding of the law in the U.S. is that it is legal to record private conversations in most states provided at least one party consents to the recording. In the other states, it is required to get the consent of all parties to record a private conversation.
However, it would be reasonable to ask whether or not a judicial committee is a private conversation and whether the elders have a reasonable expectation of privacy. If the elders don't have a reasonable expectation of privacy, then it might not be illegal to record them, even in states that normally require consent from all parties.
I will make some observations and then ask for your comments.
1. Most judicial hearings outside the Witness world are public
2. Appeals sometimes take place where others review the events of the judicial committee.
3. An elder takes notes during the proceedings.
4. The Watchtower Society has resisted any attempts by courts to interfere or rule on the legality of their internal procedures. It would be unusual if they asked a court to investigate one of their judicial committees in an attempt to prosecute someone for recording it. Doing this could set a dangerous precedent that could result in courts ruling on the legality of other aspects of judicial committees.
5. Jehovah's Witnesses claim to follow the Bible and the precedent in the Bible is for these types of judicial matters to be public. It could be considered an unconstitutional interference with religion for a court to investigate and rule on whether these committees are public or private.
6. The judicial committees generally take place in buildings that are open to the public.
7. I believe some courts have ruled that clergy penitent privilege doesn't apply to judicial committees and that elders may occasionally have to testify about the proceedings of a judicial committee.
8. The results of a Judicial committee often get communicated to the Watchtower Society and the congregation.
9. Judicial committees involve implied and or explicit threats that could involve violations of the accused's civil rights. ( I don't know if this is relevant legally, but I have a hard time imagining a person being prosecuted for recording threats to himself.)
It appears to me that elders might not have a reasonable expectation of privacy during judicial committees. I welcome your comments and observations.
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How About A Preparing For A Judicial Committee Booklet?
by DT inimagine if someone prepared a small booklet about preparing for a judicial committee that could be shared as either an actual booklet or a pdf.. i think it would be best if such a booklet were written in a neutral, nonjudgemental way, but have quotes from the elder's book that discuss the various rules that relate to judicial committees.
a complete list of disfellowshipping offenses could also be useful.
it could end with a few strategies and tips for dealing with a judicial committee.. it's only fair that jw's have access to the actual rules of judicial committees.
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DT
Imagine if someone prepared a small booklet about preparing for a judicial committee that could be shared as either an actual booklet or a pdf.
I think it would be best if such a booklet were written in a neutral, nonjudgemental way, but have quotes from the elder's book that discuss the various rules that relate to judicial committees. A complete list of disfellowshipping offenses could also be useful. It could end with a few strategies and tips for dealing with a judicial committee.
It's only fair that JW's have access to the actual rules of judicial committees. Since the Governing Body hasn't seen fit to fill this need, we could help them out. What do you think?