Hello everyone, I still lurk here from time to time but this topic did catch my attention that I wanted to comment on. Watchtower is a corporation that represents a religious order. People that offer/sell watchtower publications are its agents. So regardless what wts says regarding jws, jws are agents for wts and thus wts is vicariously liable for jws but also they are liable for their publications' content.
As a religious body they have the right to believe in flying pigs and unicorns but do they have the right to misrepresent themselves to others? Personally I feel I have been deceived about the cult when I was young and naive, in the days when there was no internet. As a minor I trusted the words of JW - agent for WTS. What were the problems with the things I've been taught? 1914 is the first thing that comes to mind. I was taught that wts foretold 1914 some 40 years prior to the event, I was made to believe that for some 40 years prior to 1914, wts taught that JC was to return, the last days were to start and the signs of ww1 and all these were clear signs of the end prophesies in the bible which Bible Students preached prior to 1914. We all know that was not even close to what wts taught prior to 1914.
I would say that JWs who studied with me (ignorant or not) basically misrepresented what wts really did teach in the past, and wts fraudulently misrepresented their history in many of their publications to make the reader imagine that 1914 was "prophesied" by wts prior to the date. By being selective in what quotes they use, what information they tell the public, wts through its publications and agents is being deceitful. I believe that through their actions they are negligent of not only giving the public false information about themselves and often about science and history of ancient times but wts also is negligent in causing untold number of deaths due to blood ban.
While blood products may be a religious teachings, this teaching has evolved to being quite watered down to the point that many JWs don't know what to accept or what not to, and thus they need the "help" of wts' agents to represent them at hospitals which again there is conflict of interest while dealing with private, personal matters where outside party should not be entitled to your personal health information. This information is given to wts agents because wts creates the fear of df (auto da) for acceptance of blood which causes jws to "voluntarily" seek medical advice from wts which wts is in no position of giving which also makes them liable for deaths caused by their teachings and advice. Especially since wts has changed their teaching were had the people accepted fractions they wouldn't have been df thus be able to live while many have died for refusing even fractions which were banned at one time.
If baptism is a contract, then there is plenty of false statements that wts is guilty of through written or spoken words.
Should we talk about assault? How many of us have been assaulted or intimidated? Assault is when a victim is in fear or anticipates unwanted physical harm. But wouldn't articles that tell jws to stay away from df family members, calling apostates mentally diseased and so forth not represent libel and slander but through this repetitive intimidation also constitute assault on our freedoms of thought? I think those articles do put fear in people of leaving the cult because of losing friends and family but also those of us who have left often realize the assault on our freedoms by wts' written works.
When jws talk badly about us for leaving wts, they are slandering us and when wts writes lies about us it's libel. Sure it may piss us off, and may be too expensive to sue individuals but jws are agents of wts, whether hired workers, its representatives or simply by appearing to be agents of an agency. Even if wts wants to distance themselves from r&f by claiming jws aren't its representatives it really would be difficult to disprove that idea. JWs, dress and behave in a manner that wts tells them, they carry wts publications and they teach wts dogma which makes them wts agents when they come to your door.
A reasonable person would expect not to be lied to by an agent or by an agency. An organization has fiduciary duty to others to be honest. Fiduciary duty may deal with professionals but wouldn't jws be considered professional agents of wts when they come to your door offering publications? They aren't "selling" you the bible and study from the bible, they are "selling" you wts wares which they represent. These professionals have the duty to act in the clients best interest, which IMO would mean a lot if they told the people they studied at the door about what they really taught regarding 1914 for example. Or that wts tends to misquote scientists or historians and tends to spin their words in direction the authors didn't mean to. So while JWs, may be ignorant of their own teachings and what they tell people at the door, the agency is vicariously liable for them and wts is the one that carries the full responsibility what it presents to the public. I don't know if they can totally hide behind freedom of religion because I don't think they have the freedom to misrepresent and deceit others.
I think in the class action law suit, one would have to gather as many legal issues as possible so to build as strong of a case as possible. It would be too expensive for an individual person to go after a corporation like wts but as a class suit it may be possible. I think that wts has right to teach whatever they want, but they don't have the right to misrepresent themselves or deceit others without being liable for their actions that have caused harm to many of us. This may be easier to fight where common law is in practice - US, Canada, and UK are few that use common law.
Just wanted to add my 2 cents to this topic.
