The costs associated with a legal challenge are enormous. It will take a very special
set of circumstances to put these actions into play but it is being done on the pedophilia
issue already and my belief is that we will see more - perhaps many more actions
in the future, especially if some precedents are won.
Lee Elder
JoinedPosts by Lee Elder
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7
Children, Advice, Agency and $$$$$$$
by Lee Elder inthe watchtower society has occupied an enormously important place in the lives of millions.
i believe this is especially true for those raised in the religion.
based on the wts published statements, the teaching of wts representatives and their parents, jw children are methodically indoctrinated to believe that the watchtower is god's organization - his channel for communicating with mankind.
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Lee Elder
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Here is the plan
by the follower inok... here is the plan.
i moved to this congregation years ago, but when i came it was the same secretary then as it is now.
when i arrived he just said "here is my address, give it to the secretary in your old congregation and tell him to send me your records.
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Lee Elder
The system can be manipulated. Some pedophiles have probably worked it very well. I'm not inclined
to post how someone can permanently obtain their records for that reason. Instead, I would suggest
the following. Choose a congregation that is some distance from where you live. Start attending meetings
there and ask for your records to be moved - then just fade away. The elders will quickly grow tired of
making long drives to "shepherd" you. If they try to move your records back tell them that you were stumbled
by the brothers at that hall and want nothing to do with them. That should do it in most cases.Lee
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Children, Advice, Agency and $$$$$$$
by Lee Elder inthe watchtower society has occupied an enormously important place in the lives of millions.
i believe this is especially true for those raised in the religion.
based on the wts published statements, the teaching of wts representatives and their parents, jw children are methodically indoctrinated to believe that the watchtower is god's organization - his channel for communicating with mankind.
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Lee Elder
The Watchtower Society has occupied an enormously important place in the lives of millions. I believe this is especially true for those raised in the religion. Based on the WTS published statements, the teaching of WTS representatives and their parents, JW children are methodically indoctrinated to believe that the Watchtower is God's organization - his channel for communicating with mankind. It is only reasonable to conclude that this creates an enormous responsibility for the organization to act in the best interest of these children.
JW children are literally inundated with advice from the Watchtower Society on every imaginable subject and if they are to please their parents and avoid being labeled as worldly and shunned, they must carefully follow the advice of the WTS. The level of coercion is significant and while society will generally condone this type of control when it is in the child's best interest - I believe that is becoming very clear that the actions of the WTS are frequently not in JW children's best interest.
The WTS has placed itself in the role of divinely authorized spirit
directed advisor, counselor and agent as a brief survey of their writings indicate. One of the ways that courts have recognized the creation of agency relationships is when one party in the relationship offers advice. Here are a few examples of where the WTS has used this expression:*** w71 9/1 526 Fortify Yourself So as to Maintain Integrity ***
"Contrary to the advice of the organization of Jehovah's witnesses..."*** km 2/84 4 Expanding Your Ministry as a Regular Pioneer ***
"God's Word and spirit, along with the good advice offered by Jehovah's organization..."*** g92 5/22 27 The Truth Has Set Me Free ***
"By applying the therapy along with the good advice from Jehovah's organization..."*** g81 10/8 14 The Real Brotherhood of Man Today ***
"Bryan Wilson, professor at Oxford University, England, made a study of "the recent rapid growth" of the Witnesses in Japan. He wrote: "Witnesses offer a wide range of practical advice . . . "By advising millions of persons on a whole range of issues, the WTS has likely created an agency relationship with its members. Once this point is established, the WTS then legally owes a fiduciary responsibility towards those whom it advises (its principals).
In addition to clergy, other common examples of agency relationships are ones we have with our lawyer, physician, accountant, real estate agent, etc. The courts set a high standard of what is required of those who act as agents. Here is a brief look at the standard and some examples related to the WTS:
Loyalty
In a fiduciary relationship, the WTS would be required to demonstrate loyalty towards its members - acting in their best interest. This requires their being entirely open and not keeping any information from members that has any bearing on the relationship. Does the WTS have a problem in this regard? I believe it does since they have worked diligently to prevent members from accessing information that could allow them to objectively evaluate its claims and advice.
Are WTS appointed elders who have advised Jehovah's Witness parents not to report allegations of child abuse to the authorities acting in the best interest of the parents or the child? Clearly not! Furthermore, these elders have given very bad advice for while some states may not require members of the clergy to report child abuse; all 50 states require parents, family members or friends to report. So in most cases JW elders, at the direction of the WTS, encouraged and at times insisted that the law be disobeyed.
Skill and Care
An agent is under a special duty to exercise more than an ordinary degree of skill and care. Consider how this relates to the WTS medical advice on the use of blood or various blood products. Life and death decisions are being made based upon the WTS analysis of the scientific and medical facts concerning the use of blood.
I believe that careful analysis of the WTS published statements concerning its position on the use blood clearly show that the WTS has either misrepresented the facts, or they have negligently failed to carefully research the available scientific literature and have provided millions of persons with bad medical advice. Following this advice has led thousands to premature death.
With regard to child abuse, it is becoming apparent that the leaders have failed to exercise even an "ordinary" degree of skill and care in protecting Jehovah's Witness children from pedophiles. The emphasis has rather been on protecting the image of the Watchtower Society and perhaps its assets.
Full Disclosure
One who advises or acts as an agent on behalf of another is required by law to make a full disclosure of all of the facts. Again, it can be easily demonstrated that the WTS has not complied with this legal requirement. Repeatedly they disclose only those facts that support the current WTS blood policy and they distort or withhold important information that should be made available to members who are facing life and death choices. Additionally, they go so far as to threaten, intimidate and coerce members so that they will not even seek outside information to supplement the medical advice they are receiving from the WTS.
Upon careful review, I believe that the WTS actions would violate the generally held moral standards of most communities and hence they are guilty of moral turpitude. It appears to me that any number of torts have been committed, and it is probably just a matter of time before we see claims against the WTS for wrongful death and possibly criminal charges in some jurisdictions. The actions related to child abuse have already begun.
Once the attorneys begin to see the potential for large awards and the WTS deep pockets, a flood of litigation will ensue. I have just briefly touched on one area of the law that I am somewhat familiar with and I imagine there are many other legal remedies available.
It is unfortunate that it has come to this but nothing else seems to get the attention of the leaders of the WTS. They are captives of a concept. For generations, Jehovah's Witnesses have encouraged singleness and held out work in the full time service as the highest calling. They have sent their young men to Bethel, Gilead and other WT assignments. In the organization, family and children have never been a priority but rather a distraction from full time service to Jehovah God.
These youngsters grew up and became the leaders of the organization. Can any of us really be that surprised by what we observe in this broken, dysfunctional system we call the Watchtower Society? Even the leaders are victims, as is so often the case with child abuse, and abuse others in turn.
Jehovah's Witnesses as an organization must change their priorities and place their children at the top of the list. It's my hope that the current scandal will open the eyes as well as hearts and minds of many JWs. That would be an important first step in addressing the problems in the Watchtower leadership.
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Lee Elder
A "Star Chamber" functions in secrecy. Turn on the light
of public scrutiny and the rats are scared back to their
hole for fear they will be seen for what they truly are.Lee
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True prophecy about the WTS and a novel approach
by Lee Elder inas i sit back and watch the pedophilia scandal unfold, it occurs to me that someone connected to the watchtower got it right - they prophesied what we are seeing.
my friend jim penton in "apocalypse delayed" wrote about the impact of "brain drain" on the organization.
no organization can afford to continually lose its brightest members, yet that is exactly what the wts has done for years.. what is the price of this constant "dumbing down"?
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Lee Elder
I promise to proof read and spell check in the future .
Lee
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True prophecy about the WTS and a novel approach
by Lee Elder inas i sit back and watch the pedophilia scandal unfold, it occurs to me that someone connected to the watchtower got it right - they prophesied what we are seeing.
my friend jim penton in "apocalypse delayed" wrote about the impact of "brain drain" on the organization.
no organization can afford to continually lose its brightest members, yet that is exactly what the wts has done for years.. what is the price of this constant "dumbing down"?
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Lee Elder
As I sit back and watch the pedophilia scandal unfold, it occurs to me that someone connected to the Watchtower got it right - they prophesied what we are seeing. Who? My friend Jim Penton in "Apocalypse Delayed" wrote about the impact of "Brain Drain" on the organization. No organization can afford to continually lose its brightest members, yet that is exactly what the WTS has done for years.
What is the price of this constant "dumbing down"? It has to be the inability to effectively evaluate and respond to crisis. The pedophilia scandal is a very good example. Take a look at how poorly the WTS has handled the situation. It is a snowball hurling down the slope completely out of control at this point and practically every thing they do or say escalates the situation! To quote Dr. Phil: "they couldn't be any dumber if someone cut off their head." I think Alan F. likened them to "Gog of Magog" with hooks in their jaws being dragged exactly to a point where they don't want to go - almost enough to make some of us rethink the role that God might play in human affairs.
It is an amazing thing to behold - the ship is on fire and listing.
My prediction:
Probabilities favor the WTS losing thousands and thousands of members over this issue - 1975 could pale by comparison. Some very serious reforms could come out of this debacle. I find myself wondering whether this is the time to reach out to some of the JWs I know.
For those who like me are still in good standing, it would be very simple to say something like:
"I've never spoke to you about why I've put some distance between myself
and the organization. If you would like to know, watch the Dateline
program on the 28th. If will give you an opportunity to see some of the
things that go on behind the scenes that I could not support."I'm not recommending that anyone do this, but can you imagine the backlash if all of the former elders who've done "the fade" made a dozen phone calls? Maybe its time to make a collective statement. Just a thought - I suppose it could backfire too. What do you think - I'd like to know.
Lee
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blood policy in the papers
by ballistic inthis was printed in june 2000 as far as i can make out.
what do you make of it?.
http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/dynamic/news/top_story.html?in_review_id=290588&in_review_text_id=235269.
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Lee Elder
Though widely unknown to the average JW, members are no longer disfellowshipped
for unrepentently accepting a blood transfusion. Rather, they are viewed as having
unilaterally "disassociated" themselves from the congreation. I have a letter addressed
to HLC committees that bears this out.Lee
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New slick WTS propaganda video
by Lee Elder ini just finished watching the wts new video - "transfusion alternative health care".
this is very sophisticated propaganda and a real piece of work.
the organization is trying to equate "blood conservation therapy" with their own irrational blood policy.
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Lee Elder
I just finished watching the WTS new video - "Transfusion Alternative Health Care". This is very sophisticated propaganda and a real piece of work. The organization is trying to equate "blood conservation therapy" with their own irrational blood policy. One major difference is that "blood conservation medicine has the safety net of life saving blood transfusions when necessary. The WTS blood policy has a safety net full of holes, thus many JWs exsanguinate or are forced to discontinue their chemotherapy or simply pass on crucially needed surgery when transfusion alternatives are exhausted or not available.
It's not clear whether this video targets JWs or physicians but its slick and professional. They spin matters to make it appear they have the high ground ethically! However, many physicians and practically all medical ethicists, have a good grasp of the issues following the extensive series of articles published in the "Journal of Medical Ethics."
The video focuses almost exclusively on elective surgery with only a brief mention of trauma and no mention hematological disorders. These are the big killers in the JW community. There is quite a bit of time spent discussing EPO, cell salvage, volume expanders, and other techniques to reduce blood loss. Discussion of the importance of pre-operative care is positive. JW patients, congregation elders and physicians need to see the necessity of not allowing JWs, especially the elderly, to become anemic in the first place. Since much of the surgery that is performed is elective, it is a simple matter to treat the anemia with iron, EPO, etc ahead of time. The video encourages older JWs to accept use of cell salvage - also a positive.
As we would expect, there is no mention of the controversy surrounding the WTS partial ban on blood. No mention of HemoPure or PolyHeme which are both being used by JWs in facilities where these products are being evaluated in FDA trials. Also, there is no mention of those JWs who feel coerced into supporting WT polices on blood products that make no sense to them.
Clearly, WT officials have some fight left in them on this issue. The recent situation in Canada with the 16-year old with Leukemia also demonstrates that. The video could be a useful piece of evidence for WTS lawyers to introduce in future wrongful death cases in order to demonstrate that the organization did in fact sincerely believe in its blood policy.
I see nothing here that alters my basic view of what is taking place inside the WTS with the blood issue. It is being systematically disassembled at a snails pace to protect corporate assets. The next hurdle will be trying to convince the rank and file JW that a transfusion of HemoPure or PolyHeme is not a blood transfusion but rather an "oxygen therapeutic" or something to that effect.
This, in my view, is nothing short of deception and demonstrates gross disregard for the lives of those JWs who are right now refusing medically necessary transfusion of red cells. Red cells are nothing more than tiny donut shaped bags of hemoglobin. If a JW can accept hemoglobin (HemoPure or PolyHeme), they should be able to accept red cells. It is insanity - pure and simple.
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Find meaning in your life
by Lee Elder ina life worth living is a life with meaning.
as former or inactive jws most of us struggle with this at various points in our lives.
this is especially true if we become "non-theists".
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Lee Elder
A life worth living is a life with meaning. As former or inactive JWs most of us struggle with this at various points in our lives. This is especially true if we become "non-theists". Here is something that has helped me - perhaps it will help you:
"For more than 30 years, the Paradoxical Commandments have circled the globe, featured in speeches and articles (See the latest New York Times Article), and passed from friend to friend. They have been preached from pulpits, put on refrigerator doors, and shared extensively on the web. They have made a difference in the lives of hundreds of thousands of people throughout the world."
The Paradoxical Commandments by Dr. Kent M. Keith
1.People are illogical, unreasonable, and self-centered.
Love them anyway.
2.If you do good, people will accuse you of selfish ulterior motives.
Do good anyway.
3.If you are successful, you win false friends and true enemies.
Succeed anyway.
4.The good you do today will be forgotten tomorrow.
Do good anyway.
5.Honesty and frankness make you vulnerable.
Be honest and frank anyway.
6.The biggest men and women with the biggest ideas can be shot down
by the smallest men and women with the smallest minds.
Think big anyway.
7.People favor underdogs but follow only top dogs.
Fight for a few underdogs anyway
8.What you spend years building may be destroyed overnight.
Build anyway.
9.People really need help but may attack you if you do help them.
Help people anyway.
10.Give the world the best you have and you'll get kicked in the teeth.
Give the world the best you have anyway. -
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I'm thinking of applying for reinstatement
by Cygnus inok, here's how it is.. i just finished reading the "dead" thread.
now, listen.
i do not believe in life after death.
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Lee Elder
I know plenty of people who seem pretty happy as JWs - I was one of them!
If you don't have children, tow the line, don't think critically about things, etc.
you can have a decent existence as a JW.I don't know anyone, however, who once informed about the inner workings of the
"Tower" that has been able to go back and fit in. Even dub elders are trained
in their "Kingdom Ministry Schools" to be very cautious about reinstating anyone
DF or DA for apostasy.Each of us have our own unique situation so you have to do what is best for
you. I would never criticize you for trying to get reinstated. I know others who
have done this simply to normalize relations with their JW family members -
then proceeded to do the "fade."It is all well and good to climb on one's soap box when you learn the truth about
"the truth", but all would be well advised to carefully consider the implications
for themselves and their family members.Building a support network of non-JW friends and mastering "the fade" will
generally produce the best long term result for those with JW family members.Good luck Cygnus,
Lee