Posts by Razziel

29

Guns And Self Defense??

by Cold Steel in

i know jehovah's witnesses can have firearms for defense, but does the church ever attempt to set guidelines on the use of deadly force?

also, are there jurisdictions in the church where handgun ownership is frowned upon?.

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Sorry man, it's obvious you were never a JW and don't understand the mindset. It's very hard to explain to someone who hasn't experienced it. Yes I know of servants who got outed by family members with guilty consciences because they owned handguns and assault rifles. Had to get rid of them to keep their privileges. Having a gun for competition use is no excuse, because competition sports are all-but-banned for JW's, the rich unbaptized tennis sisters aside. You also couldn't hunt or fish for sport, you hunt or fish for food.

Yes, they would prefer a woman to scream Jehovah's name, then be raped and murdered rather than own a handgun. I can't begin to count how many times the account of Peter cutting off the soldier's ear with a sword in the Garden of Gethsemane, and living by the sword/dying by the sword was quoted in context with owning a weapon for self-defense.

I now own guns, and love to shoot for recreation, though I would still never hunt purely for sport. I'm not defending their views, just telling it how it was.

29

Guns And Self Defense??

by Cold Steel in

i know jehovah's witnesses can have firearms for defense, but does the church ever attempt to set guidelines on the use of deadly force?

also, are there jurisdictions in the church where handgun ownership is frowned upon?.

.

Razziel

Speaking of, that's something I never understood. As a teenager, I would housesit for elders while they went on vacations, and those who didn't own guns still had a baseball bat or golf club under the bed in easy reach. I asked myself many times why it was ok to crack someones skull in self-defense with a bat but it wasn't ok to shoot someone for the same reason.

29

Guns And Self Defense??

by Cold Steel in

i know jehovah's witnesses can have firearms for defense, but does the church ever attempt to set guidelines on the use of deadly force?

also, are there jurisdictions in the church where handgun ownership is frowned upon?.

.

Razziel

I'm from Texas, where JW's are pretty liberal with firearms. Rifles and shotguns for hunting were ok, and many owned assault rifles with the same premise, they shoot the same bullets, are semi-auto like hunting rifles, the main difference is how they look. Handguns were still a no-no. Many still owned them but it wasn't something you let become common knowledge. There were a few servants in my congregation who had to sell their handguns to keep their privileges when it became common knowledge they owned them. You can defend yourself with whatever item is laying around, including an item intended for hunting, but you can't have weapons for the expressed purpose of defending yourself. And for JW's, handguns have no other use except taking human life.

220

If you don't know what's wrong it can't be fixed

by N.drew in

that is what i heard last night at my yoga class.

she said for something to be fixed first it must become known what needs fixing.

it is true for the physical, but also for the spiritual i believe.

Razziel

Non sequitur. Complete lack of understanding.

23

How long do you want to live?

by jean-luc picard in

jw
friends

so the oldest man in the world, a japanese, has just celebrated his 115 birthday.. i was reading the other day that life expectancy in my country is around 78.2 today,.

that half the people born since 2000 are expected to see 100 years old, and that.

the first person that will live to 150 years old, is already alive.. so how long would you like to live?.

Razziel

I want to live long enough to make it with a robotic prostitute. Then my life will be complete and I can die happy.

39

my DF-ing letter - opinions

by raxxxx in

to the body of elders in xxxxx.. .

i no longer wish to recognised as one of the jehovah's witnesses due to the fact that i no longer believe that this 'organisation' is truly representing him because :.

i have experienced greater and unconditional love/friendship with the people i am supposed to hate 'worldly people' than i did in this congregation.

Razziel

Carefully consider the consequences of sending a letter. Then do what makes YOU happy. Do what gives YOU closure. Make a decision that YOU can live with tomorrow with no regrets. If that means sending the letter, then do it, don't worry about it, and DON'T look back.

Make your decision and go.

22

Are Your Morals The Same As When You Were A Witness?

by minimus in

jw
friends

even if you consider yourself a moral person, would you say that you are as honest, faithful, or any different than you were as a jw?.

Razziel

Helpful hint to guys who've recently left. When you're in bed and about to climax before it's time, visualize God and Jesus looking down on you with disapproval. You'll last 30 seconds more.

Other than that bit of advice, yeah my morals are about the same. But nearly every decision I make, I still have to consciously take off the JW-colored glasses that guide my reflexive decision-making process and ponder what decision I should make with what I know now.

26

I am a moody bastard. What is your main vice?

by usualusername in

jw
friends

discuss....

Razziel

My main vice is being raised as a JW turned me passive-aggressive, which typically pisses people off more than an aggressive personality does. I'm slowly fixing that.

36

Does George Zimmerman look guilty in his new mugshot?

by Iamallcool in

jw
friends

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/04/11/george-zimmerman-new-mugshot_n_1419402.html.

.

he does look guilty to me.

Razziel

@thetrueone - The legal lines have been skewed in the US about when deadly force is justified. It doesn't necessarily matter if Trayvon was carrying a weapon, will a jury believe that Zimmerman had reason to believe his life, his property, or that of his neighbor was in jeopardy? The victim is dead and can't testify. At this point it appears the couple of eyewitnesses saw Trayvon on top of Zimmerman hitting him, which corroborates Zimmerman's story. If I get in a fight in a bar, with loads of witnesses, generally someone is going to step in and stop the fight before I'm beat to death. On a dark night on the side of the road, I'm not assured of that and would fear for my life if I'm on the business end of two fists and a big guy on top of me.

Those are the types of questions the jury will have to consider. Not so much if Trayvon was carrying a weapon, but if Zimmerman was reasonable in fearing for his life given the circumstances. I'm not trying to justify what Zimmerman did, he obviously brought this on himself, and this is a case of good intentions paving the path to hell. The fact that he disregarded the 911 advice and acted stupidly will work against him even though it isn't legally binding. But I'm not sure that an unbiased jury will convict him of murder with the currently known eyewitness accounts, and the current law. Of course at trial, new information held back by the police may come out and change things. I'm just going off of what we've heard so far in the media.

36

Does George Zimmerman look guilty in his new mugshot?

by Iamallcool in

jw
friends

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/04/11/george-zimmerman-new-mugshot_n_1419402.html.

.

he does look guilty to me.

Razziel

@thetrueone - That's why I would have gone with manslaughter. The guy made a stupid decision by getting out of his car and forcing a confrontation. But stupidity is not a crime. And dead men tell no tales. If Zimmerman had even the slightest wound on the back of his head or evidence of a broken nose, most juries are going to take his side of the story, and believe he was in fear of his life based on reasonable doubt.

In some States, the jury may consider lesser charges, so they may consider manslaughter even if they decide against murder, but I haven't looked up if that is the case in Florida.