No, I never felt abused by them, but I often butted heads with them and was singled out for a lot of 'counsel' that was questionable to say the least due to me having a somewhat strong personality for a JW.
Apeman
JoinedPosts by Apeman
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49
Did YOU Feel Abused By The Elders?
by minimus ini know some here have said they pretty much hated the elders.
did you personally feel the elders were abusive men?.
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Are Jehovahs Witnesses a Cult?
by mankkeli inthis is an excerpt from the 1994 watchtower, february 15. in the entire article, the watchtower tries to debunk any claim of their cultism.
see how they go about it.. " would it be accurate to refer to jehovahs witnesses as a religious group with radical views and practices that clash with what is accepted as normal social behavior?
are jehovahs witnesses a cult?.
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Apeman
Tools of Mind Control:
1. Control environment: Loved ones are cut off from family, no communication.
2. Break down sense of self: Break down their sense of self-esteem, literally attack them as individuals on the basis that they are wrong and that the group is right.
3. Instill new sense of identity: New identity is reinforced by the group environment, where you get no feedback except from other members who tell you that they understand the right behavior and the right way of being.
4. Isolate: Cut off from outside world. Fear keeps them trapped inside the environment of the group.
Warning Signs of a Potentially Harmful Group/Leader:
1. Totalitarian: Absolute authoritarianism without meaningful accountability.
2. Little tolerance: No place for questions or critical inquiry.
3. Unreasonable fears: Unreasonable fear about the outside world, such as impending catastrophe, evil conspiracies and persecutions.
4. Never good enough: Followers feel they can never be good enough.
5. No reason to leave: Former followers are always wrong in leaving, negative or even evil.
People Who Are Vulnerable to Mind Control:
1. Recently divorced
2. Illness
3. Personal tragedy
4. Career failure
5. Away from home for the first time
Warning Signs of a Brainwashed Victim:
1. Obsessive: Extreme obsessiveness regarding the group/leader resulting in the exclusion of almost every practical consideration.
2. Dependency: Dependency upon the group/leader for problem solving, solutions, and definitions without meaningful reflective thought, a seeming inability to think independently or analyze situations without group/leader involvement.
3. Agrees with group: Anything the group/leader does can be justified no matter how harsh or harmful.
4. Loss of spontaneity: A dramatic loss of spontaneity and sense of humor.
5. Isolation: Increasing isolation from family and old friends unless they demonstrate an interest in the group/leader.I'd say the witnesses meet every single one of these.
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Awakes left at work....
by charlie brown jr. inthe awake about music was left behind and ended up at the break station... and one of the girls working was reading it and burst out laughing..... are these people serious listen what it says.... after listening to heavy metal music i abused alcohol and started using drugs......... they can't really believe that?
she asked laughing.......
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Apeman
I laughed at that article. I'm a huge metalhead, and yes I do drink, and smoke pot, but that's because I enjoy those activities, not because I listen to heavy metal. Most of the potheads and alcoholics I know are fans of rap and hip hop, and actually hate heavy metal a great deal.
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THE NINE INCH NAILS...
by dontplaceliterature in...have a lot of appropriate lyrics given my current situation.
i coincidentally have been listening to a lot of their tracks lately, and started noticing that i identified with a lot of them.
"every day is exactly the same".
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Apeman
I'm a huge NiN fan. I'm rather bummed that Reznor is done touring though, and possibly going to cut down his output with NiN, although he is going to be composing industrial soundtracks for movies and show, so we'll still get to hear his work everywhere I'm sure.
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Name Actors/Actresses & Singers Who You Think Really Are Not That Good
by minimus insome people rave about certain celebs as being so great and in reality, what's so great about them?.
i think harrison ford is a good actor but not great.
same goes for tom cruise.. patty labelle, i've seen a few times live.
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Apeman
Amy Winehouse, Justin Beiber, Adam Lambert, Ryan Gosling (YES, I said it! he SUCKS!), Tom Cruise, anybody who plays in the kind of movies along the lines of 'Superbad', "Get Him to the Greek", 'Zack and Miri Make a Porno'. John Cusack, Angelina Jolie, Megan Fox, Justin Timberlake (acting and singing is terrible), Cameron Diaz, Dane Cook, Matt Heafy (singer for Trivium), Adele. The list could go on, but I don't feel like typing that much. I'll just post em when they come to mind.
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What would you think or do if you saw A active JW acting contrary to what they preach?
by jam ina few years ago i attended the bar in a lodge.
a private establishment, but groups could rent it out.
for private parties.
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Apeman
I don't do a damn thing. I'm a fader, and as such am still subject to getting disfellowshipped, which would cause a great deal of hardship for my family, so I treat them they way I want them to treat me. When I meet other JWs acting up (I even talk to a few back home in OH), I let them know that it's not my business to tell anyone, but if they get caught, that they better not finger me.
I was in a bar one time, and a young sister I had a crush on was in there with a few other young ones from an old hall I went to. TO say they were getting plastered is an understatement, and since they had last seen me about 2 years prior, and I had lost about 100 pounds and grown my hair out, it took them a good while to remember who I was. The panicked expressions on their faces were priceless, but instead of being an ass, I proceeded to party with them and we had a ball. It was nice to hang out with her outside of the bounds of the WTBS' insanely strict rules on what constitutes a 'good time', and boy, she was a party animal. Never seen someone that small (5'1" 90lbs) drink that much and still be able to stand up.
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What is the oldest car you have owned?
by moshe inhere is mine- a 1947 chrysler windsor club coupe.
i overhauled the engine under a big oak tree- push button starter- flat head 6cyl engine- a carry over from ww2 technology.
a real tube radio, which after i fixed, could pick up am stations over 500 miles away- seats like an over stuffed sofa.
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Apeman
1987 Linncoln Continental. I miss that car. Plenty of get up and go, smooth ride, and handled great for such a boat of a car. Unfortunately, got totalled by some stupid 15-year-old joy riding in his mother's car. I put $2000 into that car, and the insurance company gave me a whopping $600 for it.
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Any Tourettes syndrome in your congregation?
by fade_away ina huge number of jws have mental illnesses.
i knew someone with a schizophrenic disorder and he would occasionally forget/refuse to take his pills which made for some very embarassing moments at the meetings and on service.
he would come to our house claiming he is jesus christ in the flesh and would get upset with anyone that didn't believe him.
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Apeman
My younger brother has Tourettes, although he doesn't blurt out obscenities. He has grown out of most of it, but he still does little things like scrunch his nose, and makes small chriping sounds when he's nervous or excited. There were several sisters in the Hall I went to that tried to tell him to control his tics (for those who don't know, that's the term for the little odd things they do as a result of the Tourettes), which pissed me and my mother off to no end. As far as it goes though, he had a good sense of humor about it with us, but what those sisters said to him really scarred him and caused a lot of resentment and social issues.