Posts by Cadellin

26

The Utterly most appalling terrible JW music video you will ever see

by Diogenesister in

........so far to date.

you've been warned....https://youtu.be/jjjnt5l5ts0.

Cadellin

Okay, honestly, I thought it was kind of adorable in a hokey way. I agree with the poster who said that the truly appalling videos are the ones professionally made by the WT. This was so obviously homemade and yes, kind of cringeworthy, but kind of sweet and naive at the same time. This just showed people who genuinely appreciated having a new KH. Compared to the professional-level emotionally-manipulative propaganda videos being churned out by the WT (like the bunker features), this was mild.

15

Cost of Attending the International Conventions

by RubaDub in

jw
friends

i have never been invited/requested/applied to any international convention, other than it happening to be our own convention in new york city where we were already assigned (i think back and maybe this happened two times or so when i was growing up).. anyway, people here keep commenting about the cost to attend; the inflated airfares, rooms, transportation, etc.. does anyone have some actual numbers to provide?

i realize that the cost of attending a convention in a different country will be affected by some variations in airfare from the departure city but generally how much do these things cost?

are they comparable to a tour from an expedia, travelocity or other travel site?.

Cadellin

My mother-in-law went as a "delegate" via a WT-arranged tour to an int'l convention in Hawaii a few years ago. She paid an exorbitant amount, considering she was already in the US and that Hawaii already is a tourist destination (meaning you can get pretty good deals via Hotwire, etc.). I cannot recall the exact amount now, but it was easily twice what she would have paid through a package deal via Hotwire or Expedia.

11

This Year's "Love" Conventions -- The JW Version of "Love-In"

by Room 215 in

reports from the locals who attending the recent "love never fails" convention reported little-to-no references to the more brutal jw doctrines, i.e.

no mentions of the blood ban, no mothers refusing to take phone calls from her estranged daughter, no bunkers, etc.... just lots of "warm and fuzzy" videos featuring loads of hugging and tears at places across the globe.

are they getting soft?

Cadellin

It's become (or trying to become) a charismatic religion, all about how you feel, which was exactly the kind of strategy that the WT derided back in the 80's (when I was pioneering). Forget "new light," --it's all about "WT-lite."

236

Do You Think Trump Bares Any Responsibility For The Mass Shootings Occuring?

by minimus in

jw
friends

when any mass shooting happens is it the president’s fault?

i’m talking over the last few decades..

Cadellin

By the way does anyone think a "crazy with a knife" would be able to do this?
The Dayton gunman killed 9 people by firing 41 shots in 30 seconds. A high-capacity rifle helped enable that speed

Exactly my point.

236

Do You Think Trump Bares Any Responsibility For The Mass Shootings Occuring?

by minimus in

jw
friends

when any mass shooting happens is it the president’s fault?

i’m talking over the last few decades..

Cadellin

Because society and gun crime rates can vary dramatically.

True, but these mass shootings don't just occur in Baltimore or Chicago, etc. They occur in places like Dayton, Ohio, Aurora, IL, Virginia Beach, VA, Annapolis, MD, Thousand Oaks, CA, and Parkland, FL. I could go on.

If gun control is immaterial, then gun deaths in the US should be around the same as in other developed nations. Instead, it is exponentially higher. Strict gun control is a key step to stopping the madness. Not the only step, but a significant one.

236

Do You Think Trump Bares Any Responsibility For The Mass Shootings Occuring?

by minimus in

jw
friends

when any mass shooting happens is it the president’s fault?

i’m talking over the last few decades..

Cadellin

Is the US top for mass shootings?

Simon--it is not about being top for mass shootings. There are plenty of other countries that have more gun deaths than the US. But you have to compare apples-to-apples. Those countries who DO top the US include El Salvador, Guatemala, the Philipines and other third-world countries with serious economic, gang and drug issues. When you start comparing the US with other developed/prosperous countries, the difference is staggering and you cannot simply explain it away by invoking the oft-misused canard of mental illness. For example, Japan has 0.04 gun deaths per 100,000 people, the UK has 0.06 per 100,000, while the US has 4.43 per 100,000.

And why is it misleading to show gun stats for the US as a whole? Gun owners can travel from state to state and gun ownership is defended vociferously under the Constitution, which applies to the entire country.

And who said that the answer is as simple as "banning guns"? Of course, other issues are involved. Yet, the cost of lives that we have seen recently due to mass shootings means that serious steps have to be taken--it is naive to think that serious gun control does not need to be a significant part of it.

236

Do You Think Trump Bares Any Responsibility For The Mass Shootings Occuring?

by minimus in

jw
friends

when any mass shooting happens is it the president’s fault?

i’m talking over the last few decades..

Cadellin

RubaDub--That might be true but it is awfully hard to kill and wound multiple people in a few minutes with a billy club.

236

Do You Think Trump Bares Any Responsibility For The Mass Shootings Occuring?

by minimus in

jw
friends

when any mass shooting happens is it the president’s fault?

i’m talking over the last few decades..

Cadellin

It has been said before: Guns do not kill people. People kill people.

No, people with guns kill people.

The level of gun violence in the United States is completely outsized compared to what's seen in other wealthy countries. In fact, the rate of gun violence in the U.S. is higher than in many low-income countries.
Those are the findings of the latest version of an annual report on gun violence from the University of Washington's Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, which tracks lives lost in every country, in every year, by every possible cause of death.

The above is from an excellent article published by NPR.

The US has more guns than people, relatively easy access to military style weaponry and high capacity magazines and a culture that adulates gun ownership as a God-given right. When you combine that with anger, alienation and hatred, you have disaster. I would hesitate to say that Trump is to blame outright but he hasn't helped, that's for sure.

6