Mad Sweeney

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Posts by Mad Sweeney

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  24

  "Unscriptural to say a former child abuser could never enjoy exemplary privleges of service." Oh really?

  by headisspinning in

  1. watchtower
  2. child-abuse

  it is a known fact that on average a pedophile will abuse as many as 200 children in his/her lifetime.. with that in mind.

  read an extract from an august 1, 1995 letter to all bodies of elders in the usa.. i guess these untrained elders are somehow experts in this area and can determine if someone will reoffend even though law enforcement, psychiatrists and specialists cannot offer the same guarantee and in many cases will even suggest that these known sex offenders are very likely to reoffend when the opportunity presents itself.... to all bodies of elders in the united states.

  august i, 1995.

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  Mad Sweeney

  I would love to have a scan of that letter...
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  19

  WRM: Watchtower Resistance Movement

  by ekruks in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  when france was invaded by the nazis, they established what was called the french resistance, which attacked the nazis.

  the cause was to fight evil, so it was called a guerilla movement.

  in each town, rebels would meet together secretly and sabotage the nazis, doing things such as blowing up railway lines, though they didn't attack civilians who were oppressed.. i don't see for us to fight the individuals in the organisation, because many of them are just misled, confused, brainwashed.

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  Mad Sweeney

  I like the sentiments generally speaking but I don't like the focus on reform or the encouragement of illegal behaviors.

  Even if they reformed the blood and shunning doctrines, they'd still be a cult. So you end up doing plastic surgery on a body that needs a heart transplant and brain surgery. Reform is not worth the effort to lobby for it and besides, they will NEVER reform based on the actions of apostates. They will only reform if and when THEY think it is in THEIR best interests to do so.

  Before you embark on any organizing of this magnitude I think it is important to not just read Combating Cult Mind Control but to practically memorize it, as well as any other psychology books you can get your hands on. Mistakes Were Made (but not by me) is another really good book. Festinger's book When Prophecy Fails is another one. Know exactly what you're up against before running off half-cocked.

  As Rebel8 points out, prevention is probably much more valuable. We all hurt over our loved ones still in but the sad fact is we can do a LOT more good and a LOT more damage to the Borg by educating people so that they don't join and helping those who leave or get DFd to adjust and adapt to the real world so that they don't return. The ones that are in are unlikely to listen to us.

  That doesn't mean we can't provide information and make it available for current JWs or that we shouldn't. I have only been out a couple years but I am continually surprised at how few people leave based on cult education and a well-though-out plan of escape. The majority of those who leave are DFd because there is one specific Borg rule they don't agree with (or they break) and the majority of that group continue to believe in a large amount of the Watchtower hogwash. Educating these people so that they are FREE from the cult, not just OUT of the cult is an important task, IMO. And if some of that educational work spills over into the congregation of active ones, too, that's great.
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  67

  Victoria, Australia: FYI-Far reaching ramifications of the criminal indictment of the GB

  by AndersonsInfo in

  1. watchtower
  2. child-abuse

  fyi: the following material that im providing comes from a source in australia, an xjw who is now monitoring the case and will provide feedback, comments, and opinions.

  barbara.

  the governing body of jehovah's witnesses was recently summoned to appear in the magistrates' court of victoria on september 13, 2011 in relation to a number of indictable criminal offences allegedly committed.

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  Mad Sweeney

  Exactly, Quendi. It isn't about hoping the GB get put into jail. It is about how they defend this case, what their attorneys say in their behalf, and how much publicity those statements (which are almost guaranteed to be hypocritical or otherwise damn the Borg in some way) can generate.

  Think of the circles they are going to have to speak in to explain to the judge just why "the Faithful and Discreet Slave" is a no-show. Can they come out and say in public, "really, your honor, the Faithful and Discreet Slave is just a metaphor that doesn't really exist?" No. Will their sleight-of-hand rhetoric that they use in their publications and talks to the faithful work on a seasoned judge and prosecuting attorney? Doubtful. But they have to say SOMEthing and that SOMEthing will be recorded.

  I, for one, can't wait to see what it is regardless of the outcome.
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  45

  New Ex-JW Documentary To Be Released

  by discreetslave in

  1. social
  2. entertainment

  about filmtruth be told is a feature length documentary that explores the lives of several individuals raised in the jehovahs witnesses religion.

  the title of the film refers to the tendency by jehovahs witnesses to regard their beliefs exclusively as the truth.. the documentary is not an indictment of religion but rather a retrospective.

  in a series of informal interviews, former jehovahs witnesses discuss life experiences within the organization including the impact the religion had on their childhood and family, schooling, adolescence, and approaches to dating and marriage.

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  Mad Sweeney

  This isn't the first documentary project to come along.

  Belief: A Documentary is in-progress little by little:

  https://www.facebook.com/pages/Belief-a-documentary-miniseries/146464845379633

  Losing My Religion is still raising funds, too, IIRC:

  https://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Losing-My-Religion/290648973074

  Not to dis' this new endeavor but I'd support the two that are being done by people already known in the ex-JW community first.
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  43

  What can I do when I feel i can't keep going....

  by Free!! in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i have been having an awful week/month/year/life and i just feel like i can not move forward anymore... is like life is passing me by and i am just observing from the side lines.... i am so tired, i just want to sleep and never wake up..... has anyone felt like this?

  i tried therapy (twice) an it did not work, i tried volunteering and surrounding myself with other people and things to do, and it works until i have to come home, then that feeling of emptiness returns.... .

  i am so tired... i do not know what else to do.... .

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  Mad Sweeney

  I concur with the advice that you find a new doctor and/or therapist and get medication and counseling again. It isn't the counselor that helps you, it is you talking to the counselor that helps you work through your issues. If counseling alone hasn't worked, then medication is a likely necessary step.

  And knowing that people care about you. Look at the love in this thread and it's only on page two.
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  79

  For the board atheists....

  by Jack C. in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  this is a personal observation and certainly not representative of all atheists.

  i enjoy discussions with folks of this persuasion; in general they appear well read and somewhat more educated than many believers.

  as a group most atheists cringe and become insensed when discussing the existence of a deity with believers especially fundamentalists.

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  Mad Sweeney

  Here's something I think non-believers would agree to:

  If believers are willing to discuss the topic without referring to any religious trappings (the Bible, etc.) then the non-believers are, too.

  But when believers refer to religion when discussing the possibility of a God, then religion becomes a fair-game part of the argument.
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  20

  Telling family / friends about researching JW religion

  by dozy in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  when a jw husband of a friend of mine found out that she had been researching online about jehovah's witnesses , he described it as a "breach of trust" and a legitimate reason to break up the marriage (or at least separate , citing the wtbts "spiritual danger clause").. thankfully my own wife has been more understanding but is this kind of reaction common?

  and is it in some way justified on the basis that snooping around online , talking to others on messageboards , not from day one telling one's mate etc is perhaps dishonest?

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  Mad Sweeney

  This is why you never "tell" a faithful JW anything negative about their religion. They have programmed defenses that are all too predictable and powerful.

  The only way to get through at all is to ask questions that get them to think and even then it doesn't always work. They have to be ready to do the most psychologically difficult thing it is for a person to do: accept the possibility that they've been wrong, duped, misled, for years or even decades.

  Think of what learning the truth about the Borg did to you at first? Remember the anger? The anguish? The denial? Now imagine there is a part of the psyche that KNOWS that anguish is a possible result of accepting new and contrary information; how will new and contrary information be treated? It will be avoided at all costs because nobody wants to go through those horrible emotions. It isn't done consciously but that doesn't make it any less real.

  And that is just a part of it that doesn't even take into account the mind control that's put on them by the Borganization.
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  11

  Fingers in the ears tactic

  by trailerfitter in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  hi again, some of you know my partner is going down the road to the kingdom hall and will be baptised soon.

  thanks to those who gave some expert and wonderful advice about this earlier.... i am opposed to the jws message.

  i wonder some times if i just agreed to everything all will be okay.

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  Mad Sweeney

  I am surprised how quickly she has learned "their" responses

  Don't be. Cult mind control works.

  Have you read Steven Hassan's book "Combatting Cult Mind Control"? It is indespensible to anyone with loved ones already in, or being recruited by, a cult.

  Good luck. And keep us posted.
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  34

  Fallout from the apostate-bashing WT article?

  by cedars in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  i've noticed there are a few excellent threads on here about sunday's 9/11 watchtower study.

  my own analysis of its more blatantly farcical claims (including that of apostates being "mentally diseased") can be seen here.. what i really wanted to know is - what has the fallout been?

  has it created any horror-stories within people's families or homes, etc?

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  Mad Sweeney

  All the mags are available at jw.org

  I gave my take on Cult Free Radio last Saturday night.

  http://www.ustream.tv/recorded/17196718 for video (which is basically audio with some pics - some episodes have more than others)

  http://ex-jw.com/web-directory/cult-free-radio-archives-1-6 for mp3 audio (show 7 is the one on this particular mag)
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  38

  Poll: What do you believe now?

  by Lunatic Faith in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i have been noticing we ex-jw's are very different in our choices of beliefs once we leave the wts.

  some choose christianity, others flee christianity.

  some find they can't beieve in anything any more.

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  Mad Sweeney

  I believe that the future sucks and I believe that future rocks and I believe that one day White Buffalo Woman is going to come back and kick everyone’s ass. ~Sam Black Crow, American Gods, Neil Gaiman

  I'm only sort of kidding. Religion is all metaphor and so in some way it is all true while literally it is almost all untrue. I'm really enjoying being able to explore without feeling obligated to believe or disbelieve. I take what I find on its own merits.

  That said, I believe I'm going to base my vote in the presidential election on whichever candidate talks the least about his/her imaginary invisible friend in the sky.