I was surprised Rick posted a thread the other day that was worth reading...but as always, it seems he pulled a post and run. Very rarely does he return to his threads to post something else in response to questions or what have you...unless his character is under attack.
He can't answer questions about JTB because JTB isn't a real person, he's a character that is being portrayed. Unless a JW who is not a believer is trying to explain to someone who has never been involved with the JW's exactly what disfellowshipping is, they would NOT use the term "excommunicated". Any JW (ex or otherwise) knows there's a HUGE difference between being excommunicated by the Catholic church and being disfellowshipped by the JW's. There's no way to confuse the two, ESPECIALLY when the person speaking is a Bethelite!! My opinion? NO WAY IN HELL Johnny is a real Bethelite. No way in hell there's a "Reform Movement". No way in hell "someone's trying to injure him" or "do things to make him stay at Bethel" or "discredit him if he leaves".
Conspiracy theories. Sometimes they prove true. Sometimes, they're the product of a bored, deranged, and vindictive mind. I think Rick just wants the Watchtower to fall so badly that he makes shit up because he thinks if people believe this, they'll get out or never get in. And I think that underneath it all, he's just another religious leader trying to scrape off the cream that rises to the top of the bucket and keep it for himself. He wants his own followers...and who better than people who are used to being manipulated and controlled? As many have said...he is the epitome of the Watchtower's definition of Apostate.