Mad Sweeney

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Posts by Mad Sweeney

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  20

  It's the closest thing to the Truth...

  by garyneal in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  this is what my jw wife has been saying as of late when it seems like she has no way to defend the doctrines of 1914, blood, as well as their false predictions, etc.. i've seen on this board where others have encountered this come back as well.

  it seems that the witnesses are getting a little slack and it makes me wonder how they can justify their position of their religion being the only true religion.. first off, being the "closest thing to the truth" implies that the truth itself is known.

  therefore, if the truth is known, why settle for being in a religion that is 'the closest thing to it?

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  Mad Sweeney

  I like the follow-up question about literal Israel/Judah.

  (assuming you believe the Borg version of the Bible) They were "the closest thing to the truth" in the bronze-age world and yet Jehovah not only allowed them to be taken over and destroyed, HE CAUSED it to happen through Nebuchadnezzar and the Babylonian Empire.

  Why does modern-day spiritual Israel express the same hubris and contempt for others that ancient Israel did but EXPECT DIVINE APPROVAL FOR IT?

  If Jehovah God caused the desolation of Jerusalem and 70 year (again, if you believe the BS) exile of HIS PEOPLE, then WHY WOULDN'T the parallel situation exist today?

  (this was one of the e-watchman points that helped jumpstart my thinking and analysis of the Borg - not that I'm endorsing his brand of wackiness)
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  32

  How important is it to you that Lawence Hughes wins his case against the WT and doctors

  by zengalileo in

  1. watchtower
  2. medical

  just curious.

  in my opinion it is the most importantr thing ex jws should be supporting right now.

  the case is at a crucial point.

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  Mad Sweeney

  This poster hasn't solicited funds. It is an ex-JW - blood transfusion case. Can we discuss it without TRYING to get it banned?

  I, for one, would like to know what's new in the case, and as long as nobody asks for money, there is no reason why we can't discuss it.

  BTW, the Australia case on child protection is more important than this, IMO.
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  89

  Victoria, Australia: October 11th hearing. All five cases made it through the court...just!

  by AndersonsInfo in

  1. watchtower
  2. child-abuse

  this is a preliminary summary only.

  i hope to obtain more details later.. .

  all five cases are still within the criminal justice system.

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  Mad Sweeney

  I still don't get why there wouldn't be a transcript. Isn't there ALWAYS a transcript in all court sessions?

  No.

  So the next day, or week, or month, they have to just REMEMBER what happened?
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  57

  Customers arrested for trying to take their money out of Citibank & Bank of America

  by flyphisher in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  http://geraldcelentechannel.blogspot.com/2011/10/customers-arrested-for-trying-to-take.html.

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  Mad Sweeney

  Wow, extremism from both sides in a JWN political thread? Who'd have predicted that?
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  35

  Whos is King of North?

  by sparki in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  i think it's iran.. they're straight up crazy wackos whos main goal is to create caliphate, world under one islamic law.

  they actually believe they can accomplish this by causing great tribulation themselves with nuclear attack.. according to their belief, when theres great tribulation in the world, allah will come down and destroy non-muslims and will bring paradise.

  so if they blow up nuke, it will speed up the process.

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  Mad Sweeney

  Right now it looks to me like the king of the north is the Green Bay Packers.
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  9

  What about this????

  by mouthy in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  http://www.jw.org/index.xjp?option=qryqcsvrgznt.

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  Mad Sweeney

  They've been giving the mags away free for almost 20 years.
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  106

  Is it possible for an apostate to get reindoctrinated?

  by foolsparadise in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  and if so why?.

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  Mad Sweeney

  Feed a troll once, shame on him. Feed a troll twice, shame on you.

  Define apostate however you like. If it means someone that leaves a religion - the most common use of the term - then yes, apostates can return to the Borg and get reindoctrinated. If it means someone that leaves the Watchtower cult, reads Crisis of Conscience and Combating Cult Mind Control and understands their implications, and then actively opposes the Borg, then the chances of returning to the cult become statistically high to the point that it can be treated as practically impossible.
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  30

  "There will be 0% Unemployment in Paradise"

  by Sour Grapes in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  last week the elder giving the public talk mentioned that in.

  the usa we have 9.1% unemployment but under god's kingdom.

  is a new house.

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  Mad Sweeney

  There will be a 0% unemployment rate because they won't keep track of or pay those without work. They'll just send a couple "shepherds" up to you and they will tell you: "get to work!"

  Everyone will work and it will ALL be free (aka slave) labor for the Borg.

  Paradise? Not really.
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  16

  Perpetual Cognitive Dissonance

  by sabastious in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  revelation 7:9nwt - after these things i saw, and, look!

  a great crowd, which no man was able to number, out of allnations and tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the throne and before the lamb, dressed in white robes; and there were palm branches in their hands.. every year, as an adolescent witness, i would eagerly await the arrival of the annual "watchtower world report" issue to come out.

  it had always bugged me that we were not in all the lands even though purporting to be the one and only "great crowd" decribed in the verse above.

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  Mad Sweeney

  Cognitive dissonance can be useful if you learn to recognize it in yourself whenever it occurs. If you understand the concept of cognitive dissonance then you can avoid (or at least minimize) the irrational justifications that humans usually employ to reduce it.

  I second the recommendation of "Mistakes Were Made (but not by me)" and would add "Influence: the Psychology of Persuasion" by Robert Cialdini and "When Prophecy Fails" by Leon Festinger to the reading list.
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  17

  Cult Free Radio on the air this Saturday night with special guest Barbara Anderson

  by Mad Sweeney in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  that's right.

  barbara anderson will be on cult free radio this saturday evening at 10pm eastern time.. show up to listen and post your questions on the social stream for me to ask her.. https://www.facebook.com/cultfreeradio.

  http://www.ustream.tv/channel/cult-free-radio.

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  Mad Sweeney

  I have no clue how to do it through a phone but over the Internet on computer it is fairly easy. 4shared is free on the internet - you can pay for "instant" access but the "free" version is usually just a 45 second wait.

  One of these days I'll get it all up on to iTunes. Sorry for the inconvenience.

  Anyone with a smartphone know how to help DarioKehl?