How Many JWs Really Believe Everything They Are Told?
NOT MANY. Most will admit as much. But trying to get one of these to get specific and spell-out what teaching(s) they disagree with is rare.
Marvin Shilmer
JoinedPosts by Marvin Shilmer
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How Many JWs Really Believe Everything They Are Told?
by minimus ini think that 80% of jws do not truly believe in what they are taught .
the vast majority stay in because of family, friends, ignorance and a lack of caring about any of the facts regarding the "truth".
many people are lazy.
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Liquidation sale of RBC assets
by Darkknight757 ingot this very interesting email last night and i thought i'd share it.. this is from the local rbc.. "in harmony with our new ldc form we have been asked by the branch to liquidate all current assets of used tools and materials once owned by the rbc.
you are invited to visit the equipment trailers to acquire items being liquidated by the rbc asset team, these items will be offered on a first come bases with voluntary donation.
if you see any item you like please be in position to take it with you at that time, after you return to your congregation then you will make a donation of cash or check in the congregation contribution box designated for the support of the worldwide work.
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Marvin Shilmer
When you start selling your tools ... Just sayin.. -
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Book Review: The Hunt for Vulcan: . . . And How Albert Einstein Destroyed a Planet, Discovered Relativity, and Deciphered the Universe
by Viviane ini recently read this book and found it to be excellent.
it's the story of how we never stop knowing, how science works (even when it doesn't), how gracefully math can describe the world we live in and more.
the story begins with how sir isaac newton, author of pricipia mathematica and holder of the lucasian chair at cambridge, developed math to describe the gravity and the motion of the planets with no need god holding them in place.
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Marvin Shilmer
Hi Viviane. If you like good reads on physics I highly recommend The Road to Reality by Roger Penrose. It's not an easy read, but it's a great one! I enjoyed your book review, and would say it's spot on! -
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Document Blood Transfusion Deaths - please help
by Lee Elder inthe vast majority of deaths from the blood policy are undocumented because they are simply not newsworthy.
if you know of a death or serious injury/disability related to the blood policy, please help us document it.
send as many details as you can recall.
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Marvin Shilmer
stan livedeath: only this week i read--on this site--a figure of 50,000 have died through refusing blood. ive queried that now--and before. one death is one too many----50,000 is just beyond belief.
HI Stan,
Not sure what you read about 50,000 deaths or from where you read it, but not too long ago I presented an estimate of mortality suffered among the JW population between years 1961 and 2012. The number was c. 50,000. This figure is an extrapolation of a good sample size consisting of more than half the number of JWs in New Zealand. As it turned out a review of medical records showed this patient segment suffered a horrendous level of mortality related directly to refusal of red cell transfusion. The number of JWs (the sample) in the regions which medical records were gathered compared with the population of that sample that suffered death due to refusing red cells transfusion is astounding.
For a number of reasons this is a conservative estimate. For examples: 1) Though the estimate of 50,000 is based on the sample size of all JWs living in the New Zealand regions from which records were gathered these medical records did not include all deaths among JWs attributed to refusing red cells transfusion. There is no doubt that mortality occurred due to the same refusal of red cells in other trauma centers in the sample regions, but my estimate does not include this statistically because the documents were not retrieved to evidence those deaths. 2) Though my estimate covers years 1961-2012 the medical document retrieval only covered years 1998-2007, and mortality related to refusing red cell transfusion is arguably less in these latter years due to other medical technological advances. 3) My estimate (50,000) is based on a review of medical records in one of the most advanced medical regions of the world, which means if anything we'd expect mortality due to refusing red cell transfusion to be higher in less developed societies which are far more dependent on older medical means and methods to prevent mortality (not to mention morbidity).
A few years ago there was a rather drawn out discussion on this forum about this extrapolated figure of 50,000. Though the discussion raged on-and-on for many pages it was evident (to me) that the statistical sample vs. population was understood by very few for what each represents. I'm sharing this history for sake of any reader who wants to go back and find the discussion to read over it for themselves and make of it whatever they will. It's there for those who want to see how, at that time, readers here responded to the information. My own view is that nothing in the discussion ever came close to refuting the estimate. For that matter I'd opine there was never anything presented that really challenged the figure of 50,000. Mostly what I read was objections based on misunderstandings about how to use hard numbers for purposes of extrapolation. Perhaps the most significant mistake made by participants in that discussion was confusing sample with population of a sample. But the discussion is there for anyone who wants to go back and find it.
PS: I was encouraged to contact authors of the underlying review of medical records from which my extrapolation was made. The primary author responded to me saying that if anything my estimate was low.
Link to original article: More than 50,000 dead
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Reduce the size of your family!
by Marvin Shilmer inthe watchtower organization resists the idea that its workforce is comprised of employees.
instead it promotes the idea that these individuals comprise a family.
yet recently there is a directive that smacks a totalitarian tendency.
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Marvin Shilmer
It's the kind of family where sometimes the parents have to eat their young.
Now that you mention it, there is biblical reference to some ancient Israelites who fell to eating their own. Maybe there is some Frazian anti-type at work here?
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Marvin Shilmer
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Watchtower Shunning – Deadly by DesignIt's sad irony that the same organization that admits there "is no more potent killer than isolation" then goes on to use isolation on its membership.
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Rita Swan of Child Inc....
by Lee Elder in...wrote a piece on the work of ajwrb and what had been accomplished, as well as how it was done.
i had not read this before this evening when i came across it in their newsletter archives.
its interesting to see the perspective of someone who works as a child advocate and non-jw.
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Marvin Shilmer
Correctly maintains that reform on fractions was not clearly stated in a directive to the congs but (typically for another doctrinal flip flop) it is mentioned in passing as an answer to a phoney Awake mag "Question's from readers".
This habit of Watchtower to refrain from full disclosure is one of its most self-damning tendencies, and in this case one that literally jeopardizes health and welfare of its attendant followers.
One glaring instance of Watchtower's failure-to-disclose is found in a WORKSHEET Watchtower developed for its membership in year 2007.
Considering ramification to health and welfare of members, it staggers the mind to realize that on this document Watchtower failed to highlight the SINGLE LARGEST constituent from blood that JWs CAN ACCEPT, and when JWs do learn about this through back-channels a documented 96% are willing to accept this product from blood. (See: Over 96% Accept 99%!)
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They took all the circuit's money!
by BackSlider induring the assembly they made an announcement about contributions and as always mentioned how expenses outnumbered the contributions so far and we are at a deficit of $6700 or so.
however, they then said that our money on hand in savings for the circuit was $51,000 and that they voted and will be sending $45,000 of it to the society.
who voted?
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Marvin Shilmer
Once the accounts are cleaned out I don't see the average circuit or congregation building up that kind of cash reserve again.
Agreed. The sentiment I've heard expressed time and again in recent months to this very event (raiding of circuit funds) goes like this: Well, in the future when they announce a deficit I'm content to let the brothers draw from the funds they've already taken from us because that's what we used to draw from to pay our current bills.
The days of circuits and congregations building cash reserves is over. Donations are already falling and will continue to fall. Converts to JWs (those not raised in the truff) are having flashbacks to days when they tired of churches relentless pursuit of their hard-earned dollar, and they're sharing the feeling it leaves them with.
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They took all the circuit's money!
by BackSlider induring the assembly they made an announcement about contributions and as always mentioned how expenses outnumbered the contributions so far and we are at a deficit of $6700 or so.
however, they then said that our money on hand in savings for the circuit was $51,000 and that they voted and will be sending $45,000 of it to the society.
who voted?
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Marvin Shilmer
There's only so much they can take before there's nothing left to take.
True. But just wait and see what happens as more and more congregations get consolidated into distant KH facilities while the nearer KH everyone was used to attending gets sold off like just another piece of used-up real estate, with all proceeds going directly to Watchtower.
I'm telling you, JWs are starting to notice this relentless cash grabbing and they're tiring of it.
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They took all the circuit's money!
by BackSlider induring the assembly they made an announcement about contributions and as always mentioned how expenses outnumbered the contributions so far and we are at a deficit of $6700 or so.
however, they then said that our money on hand in savings for the circuit was $51,000 and that they voted and will be sending $45,000 of it to the society.
who voted?
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Marvin Shilmer
Truly I tell you today, Watchtower's cash grabbing is getting on everyone's nerves and will eventually be its undoing if it keeps on like it's going. Everyone, and I mean everyone, is noticing it.
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