Bungi Bill

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Posts by Bungi Bill

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  48

  American Sniper - courage or cowardice?

  by Simon in

  1. social
  2. entertainment

  the movie american sniper is breaking box office records and of course there is some irony that a movie about a sniper is released on martin luther king day (who was shot by one).. but of course there is a world of difference between an assassin and a military sniper ... or is there?.

  some are making a big stink about it and claiming that "snipers are cowards".

  it seems unfair to me.

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  Bungi Bill

  There are no Queensberry Rules in warfare, anymore than there are in a street brawl. To somebody ingrained with a Queensberry Rules mentality, much - if not most - of modern warfare involves widespread use of "cowards" weapons:

  - Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles, bombing from high altitudes, and anti-personnel mines being just several examples of such. Singling out the snipers as "cowards" seems to me to be an exercise of somebody who knows very little of what they are talking about. Snipers actually often work from behind enemy lines, where they are as exposed to danger just as much, if not more, than most other combat soldiers.

  As for the movie, I would have thought that the time to form an opinion is after having watched it. That is what I will be doing, anyway!

  Bill.

   
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  9

  Kingdom Hall science.

  by DATA-DOG in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  my wife is listening in today.

  i hear the speaker talking about "godless" people.

  they have not made a thorough investigation about creationism vs evolution.

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  Bungi Bill

  "Pseudo-science" I would call it, and the list goes on and on. For example, that 1967 magazine (can't remember if it was Watchtower or Awake - one of their propaganda sheets, anyway) that made the claim that men were better suited for headship than women because their brain sizes were larger. That's what they said!

  Bill.

  
  
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  52

  Why I like Jehovah's Witnesses

  by undercover witness in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  i keep reading that jehovah's witnesses are in effect monsters.

  i keep reading that they kinda leave chaos and distrust in their wake.

  so i simply wondered if anyone had anything nice to say about them?.

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  Bungi Bill

  They have got some stunning information. 

  Which they use an ineffectual means to disseminate. Many decades into this electronic age, you would think more effective means to communicate a life and death message would be selected than knocking on people's doors:      -  doors of houses in which the occupants are usually not at home.

  Of course, if, after all, this message is in fact not  a life and death issue, then it matters not one jot!

  
  

  Bill.
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  76

  What is the biggest regret or source of resentment because of being a Jehovahs Witness?

  by stuckinarut2 in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  i'm sure we could all write long paragraphs about this question, but in a few words, what is your biggest regret, or frustration in life due to being a witness?.

  what missed opportunities did it cost you?

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  Bungi Bill

  TTWSYF,

  Thanks for sharing yours with us, too.

  From my experience, all of us in our own different ways have regrets - regrets that could often totally consume a person. I guess we all, too, in time discover ways to live with these regrets. In my case, I try to remind myself that it is impossible to turn back the clock. What you can do, though, is make sure that you work things so that you have no further regrets.

  My five cents worth, anyway!
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  76

  What is the biggest regret or source of resentment because of being a Jehovahs Witness?

  by stuckinarut2 in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  i'm sure we could all write long paragraphs about this question, but in a few words, what is your biggest regret, or frustration in life due to being a witness?.

  what missed opportunities did it cost you?

  .

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  Bungi Bill

  A very easy one for me to answer right now - while working into the late evening on the On line Engineering Course (Advanced Diploma) that I am in the process of completing!

  Not only did they prevent me from going to university, but the local elders even stopped me from completing the apprenticeship that I subsequently started, as a telecommunications technician (I gave that away after just 12 months on the job). That is an example of what lengths they took things to in the pre-1975 hype, at least in this part of the world.

  While I was later able to gain a trade by the "Mature Age Apprentice" route, that still none-the-less inflicted great hardship on my family, something I deeply resent to this day. While it is true enough that it is "never too late" to gain a qualification, it can still be too late for that same qualification to have an effect on ones career prospects.

  This is why I elected to go for the two-year Advanced Diploma Course, rather than the Bachelor of Engineering Degree. By the time I completed the Bachelor Course (part time - so that would be eight years) I would expect to be well and truly retired from the workforce (at least, my wife certainly hopes so!)

  So, yes, #!%^ them and their damn-fool ideas about "Higher Education."

  Bill.
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  6

  Charting the 1975 Debacle.

  by runForever in

  1. watchtower
  2. scandals

  this chart is charted using the specific phrase: "jehovah's organization" in the watchtower magazine.

  notice how they really start de-emphasizing this phrase in the few years before 1975 and for some years after.

  looks like they were waiting for it to blow over.. .

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  Bungi Bill

  runForever,

  That de-emphasis on The Organisation ran currently with a number of Watchtower articles about using ones own conscience as a guide. However, once it became apparent that use of ones conscience also required a person to think for themselves, the WTS back-pedalled on that one.

  The hard line started to be re-applied, and we once again began to hear much about The Organisation. (That was when reference to "Jehovah's Visible Organisation" was introduced into the baptismal vows). 

  
  

  Bill.

  
  
• 
  6

  Charting the 1975 Debacle.

  by runForever in

  1. watchtower
  2. scandals

  this chart is charted using the specific phrase: "jehovah's organization" in the watchtower magazine.

  notice how they really start de-emphasizing this phrase in the few years before 1975 and for some years after.

  looks like they were waiting for it to blow over.. .

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  Bungi Bill

  The thinking in those years 1973 - 1975 was that when "The Persecution" hit, JWs would be forced to operate in small groups, completely cut off from "The Organisation". Consequently, much emphasis was placed on ones "relationship" with Jehovah - and reliance on the conscience as a guide, rather than directives from that same "Organisation".

  From about 1982 onwards though, we once more started to hear much about "The Visible Organisation". 

  Bill
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  43

  Je Suis Charlie

  by Slidin Fast in

  1. social
  2. current

  this incident in paris makes me feel absolutely furious.

  yes i feel desperately sorry for the victims and their families no one should have to deal with that.

  the thing that makes me feel absolutely incandescent though is the attack on freedom of speech and expression.

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  Bungi Bill

  Everybody does indeed have biases, Simon, and in evaluating the validity of any piece of writing (even one section of a piece of writing), it is absolutely critical that you know what the writer's biases were.

  None of this is exactly black magic, by the way - I remember this fact being spelled out in fourth form history. 

  Poor form? I think not. Common sense, I would call it!
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  43

  Je Suis Charlie

  by Slidin Fast in

  1. social
  2. current

  this incident in paris makes me feel absolutely furious.

  yes i feel desperately sorry for the victims and their families no one should have to deal with that.

  the thing that makes me feel absolutely incandescent though is the attack on freedom of speech and expression.

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  Bungi Bill

  Leon Uris is amongst my favourite authors, and I have a number of his works (including The Haj) in my home library. However, you have to realise that The Haj is a work of fiction. Also, Leon Uris, being Jewish, could hardly claim to be an unbiased commentator on matters to do with the Arabs.
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  43

  Je Suis Charlie

  by Slidin Fast in

  1. social
  2. current

  this incident in paris makes me feel absolutely furious.

  yes i feel desperately sorry for the victims and their families no one should have to deal with that.

  the thing that makes me feel absolutely incandescent though is the attack on freedom of speech and expression.

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  Bungi Bill

  LUHE,

  Add to that list Cuba, whose citizens - to this very day - still enjoy the freedom to do as they are told!

  
  

  Bill