Posts by Jourles

31

Oil Nears $100/Barrel--What Do You Make of It?

by owenfieldreams in

jw
friends

http://apnews.myway.com/article/20071101/d8skq1po0.html.

looks like we here in the good ole us of a may be paying $3.50/ gallon when spring hits next year, if this trend continues.

china's predominantly state-owned oil company surpassed exxon today in market value, and they are currently drilling not far off the coast of florida(by way of cuba).

Jourles

High oil prices? Easy - increased demand primarily from China and the threat of war with Iran - are probably the two top reasons for >$100 oil. If we were to untangle ourselves from the middle east, get completey OUT of there, let Iran develop nuclear energy for themselves, there wouldn't be any pressing reasons for oil to sustain its price at such high levels. Otherwise, just keeping the threat of war on the table causes an artificially high price on the cost of oil. Trading on "Oil Futures." This is one of the most ludicrous terms of our generation. It simply puts more money in the pockets of Big Oil and the oil producing countries themselves. If you're still one of those who feels that the oil companies need to maintain their high profit margins due to "exploration" and other "research and development" programs, you need to rethink that line of reasoning. Would the cost of oil stay high if there was true peace in the world and the demand flattened? As someone else mentioned, how much was the cost of gas pre-Bush and why has it tripled since? Honestly answer that question and then let's see where this discussion leads.

And Simon was partially correct on the dollar declining too. What happened when Iraq dropped the dollar in favor of the Euro? We invaded and restored the oil trade there back to the dollar. What is happening right now seeing that Iran is now gradually phasing out the dollar in favor of the Euro and the Yen? The threat of war once again. It's going to happen either by "western friendly(dollar favored is more like it)" regime change or all out invasion and takeover.

30

Would Witnesses Kill If Ordered? Probably!

by metatron in

jw
friends

as a functioning cult, would jehovah's witnesses kill someone, if ordered?

i believe that many would.. while some might think this is farfetched, i can cite some examples that manifest a lack of concern.

for the lives of others, that could easily be extended into murder or manslaughter.. 1) forcing older brothers into jobs at bethel that were far too strenuous for them - as a means of.

Jourles

Dying for the blood issue is extraordinary
Dying in the Malawi persecution was extraordinary
Betraying other brothers instead of playing ignorant ( or making stuff up as prisoners do) is extraordinary

The main difference between these scenarios and a jw actually taking another life by violence is just that. The individual jw is using his wt-trained conscience to passively allow the above scenarios to happen. To physically and violently KILL another human such as an apostate or some other type of unbeliever is a whole other matter. 99.9% of the jw community probably would not carry out such an order. Letting themselves or their children die due to the blood doctrine or any other doctrine is based on martyrdom. Contrast this with a parent killing their child because the child became apostate and da'd themselves. This is plain ol' murder. The WTS could never allow this to happen or even condone such an act. There are too many whistleblowers in the org(just look at the faders on this site). Such acts would tarnish their most holy name and reputation. And we all know how much they value their reputation above all else...

32

Do Witnesses REALLY Care About Other People?

by minimus in

jw
friends

i don't think so.. to me, the vast majority of jws become witnesses because they desire everlasting life.

they want to live in paradise.

they love feeling special.

Jourles

This was something that I noticed immediately after I was df'd. Once I was officially gone, my entire attitude towards people started to change. It really bothered me for the longest time. Even today, I still have to fight my natural tendency to not care. When I say natural tendency, what I mean is, I was born into this blackhole religion and stayed in until I was 32. I'm 34 now. What others said about caring only for your own self as a jw is very true. What's in it for ME? When you're raised with that mindset it's hard to shake later on. I honestly feel that this is one of my worst traits. It takes a little while for me to become comfortable around people I don't know.

I am trying more and more these days to consciously become more aware and in tune with the people I know so as to look out for their welfare. It's a slow process but I think I'm gaining some ground - ground that I never had growing up.

thanks min for making me feel like crap for the night.

10

Missing the significance of Putin & Russia

by proplog2 in

jw
friends

just as the watchtower has allowed russia out of .

its speculative cross-hairs the vast majority of .

people in the usa pay little attention to russia and putin.

Jourles

In our existing geo-political arena, there are only a handful of countries that benefit greatly from having these heightened tensions. Can you guess which two countries benefit the most from these tensions? Russia and Iran. Both are huge exporters of oil and at least one of them is unfriendly to the US - the other is somewhat neutral at this point. Putin's power, control, and popularity has been directly related to the price of oil. In your mind, would it continue to benefit Russia(Putin) if the price of oil dropped? Of course not! Which is why I believe we will continue to see rhetoric from Iran and Russia over Iran's "alleged" nuclear weapon's program. The US is simply helping these countries by inflating oil futures by saying there is a possibility of military strikes on Iran. I'm not sure if this is just dumb, stubborn Bush trying to keep to his word about regime change in Iran, or if there is another angle involved. If it is dumb Bush, I wonder if he realizes that he is directly responsible for these countries becoming wealthier than ever before. It is also in Iran's best interest to keep the rhetoric up on their end as well. The US started it, they are merely helping it along. All it is is words. Words that make the price of oil skyrocket. Imagine if we could get a fatter paycheck if we just said, "I want a bigger paycheck, I want a bigger paycheck." This is exactly what is happening in Iran right now. Only the words are: Israel. Nuclear rights. Great Satan. Little Satan. and on and on and on. Anytime the threat of WW3 is mentioned or anytime a major news article says that Iran is only months away from developing a nuclear bomb, the price of oil inches up. How messed up is that?

If the US were to declare permanent peace with Iran and open their arms to trading with them, the price of oil would plummet. As would the profits that goes into their pockets as well. Who knows what the real reasons are for the US's continued presence and nation building in the middle east is for.

The worst scenario I see in the US is this: The US or Israel attacks Iran pre Jan. '09. Iran does their thing and essentially hoses up the world's supply of oil. Gas stations in the US either jack the cost up way too high, or they run out. This causes mass panic and chaos. Bush declares martial law under the Insurrection Act or Exectutive Directive 51 and maintains power indefinitely. This allows him and his chums to do whatever they please, however they please. I wouldn't be surprised to find myself and other likeminded individuals being confined to the new Halliburton built "camps" across the US. That's what happens when our "elected" representatives give the president carte blanche to do whatever he pleases in the form of support for these bills.

34

Crocs and assisted suicide attempts

by RisingEagle in

jw
friends

they are the shoes that everyone loves to hate.

they are also the shoes that have fans that will disregard what others in this world say about them in regards to fashion and taste.

if you wear and love them, you just don't care, your feet are happy and that's all that matters.

Jourles

They hawk those things at all the AVP volleyball events. They are the main sponsor for the AVP.

I agree, they are not the prettiest looking shoes I've ever seen...

14

Does anyone here snow ski? Where do you go and are you going this year?

by Bourne in

jw
friends

i should add that i realize that this is more of a northern hemisphere question.

no offens(c)e to our southern hemisphere friends.. bourne.

Jourles

Crested Butte is having 3 weeks of free skiing this year -- Nov 25th through Dec 15th. No CO resort is ever open 100% that early, but the amount they do have open varies on the snowfall amount they get of course. On average, most resorts in CO are ~30-40% open that early in the season. By late January/early February, almost all are at 100%...unless they get an ungodly amount of snow sooner.

Keystone and Loveland are always trying to outdo each other every year on being the first to open. Both will have their guns running whenever possible, even if it's just for one or two runs. If one or the other says they are opening on such-and-such date, the other will try and match it or beat it by a day. I remember in the past when Loveland would announce their opening day, keystone would match it but would turn on their lights at 6am just to say they beat Loveland. It's all about bragging rights and being the first in the US to open for the season.

177

Jehovah's Witness here.

by nimzo in

jw
friends

i have a question about my religion.

when people turn apostate, why do they seem kinda... weird.

they turn back to false teachings and their bible knowledge even proves that.

Jourles

When people turn apostate, why do they seem kinda... weird.

You mean, normal? No religious crazy eyed look? Maybe it's just due to the fact that you're used to seeing fake smiles and feeling conditional love at the kh. Once people leave that situation, they are free to be themselves. I know that's a hard concept for you to wrap your head around, but that's just the way it is. Did you ever think that people looking in from the "world" feel that you're the weird ones?

177

Jehovah's Witness here.

by nimzo in

jw
friends

i have a question about my religion.

when people turn apostate, why do they seem kinda... weird.

they turn back to false teachings and their bible knowledge even proves that.

Jourles

I'm an apostate and I don't believe in the Trinity. Maybe you have the wrong definition of "apostacy" in mind...

14

Does anyone here snow ski? Where do you go and are you going this year?

by Bourne in

jw
friends

i should add that i realize that this is more of a northern hemisphere question.

no offens(c)e to our southern hemisphere friends.. bourne.

Jourles

Used to live in Summit Co. Colorado. Had the pass, etc. I've been to every ski area in CO except for two places. My top three picks in the state are, 1. Arapahoe Basin, 2. Aspen Highlands, 3. Crested Butte. I typically ski black/double black but sometimes crave a steep, smooth, and fast blue for laying out big carves. I grew up skiing the SoCal mountains (Big Bear) and have been to Squaw and Heavenly up in Tahoe. Since living in Michigan, I've been to most here in the state as well, except for the UP. My favorite one so far is Boyne Highlands. Whistler is on my to-do list. I wouldn't mind hitting a few European resorts sometime in the future before I get too old.

Monarch is a good spot in CO. I've heard they have some of the best snowcat skiing in the state - never did it. Monarch's the running favorite for most of the folks who live in Colo Spgs(and the local jws). If you're coming from there, I would recommend popping over the pass and heading to Crested Butte. It's not that much further. PLUS, they always have a Ski Free time period in the beginning of the season and usually at the end too. You can't beat that deal whatsoever. Who here likes to ski for free? That's what I thought. If you hit CB at the end of the season, there has usually been a ski naked day - typically the last day of the year. If it's warm enough for you to do it, no one cares. I've never done it. The most bare I've gone is skiing only in my shorts, boots, and goggles. Trust me, if you fall hard while skin is exposed, it's worse than a bad rug burn.

151

Just a little Update...(with pictures)

by RichieRich in

jw
friends

so today i was thinking... and i haven't posted here in quite some time!

i came and started reading through some recent posts... and boy have i missed a lot.

the whole trevorgate thing... and danny haszard... whew.

Jourles

Dude, in the way that Osama is Bush's poster boy for terrorism, you're the new poster boy for the WTS. I would love to see your pic in a WT article someday with the caption:

Unfortunately, some youths have left Jehovah's organization to pursue worldy goals

Damn, I could be a WT writer!