Tech49, you are right on all counts. Over the past decade, I have seen a marked increase in the COs being numbers men. We had one moron who analyzed our circuit with the same scrutiny that a Wall Street banker would use on a potential IPO. We were analyzed up, down, and sideways, and were told how we compared in every category to the other congregations in the circuit. Then when the week is over and the CO hands you your copy of the S-303 form (his report to the branch on his visit with your congregation), it is full of self-agrandizement and pats on the back for the marvelous achievements that he made happen while he was gracing us with his presence.
The 30 hour requirement was a major and in my opinion a non-reversible mistake by the GB or whoever came up with this ridiculous idea. Now they have worked themselves into the same hole as US carmakers did back a decade or so ago (one with which they are still struggling). In order to sell more cars, the most desperate auto manufacturer (I don't remember which one but it was probably Chrysler) introduced zero percent interest for 3, 4, or 5 years. Initially it seemed like a great idea because they definitely sold more cars. All of the other domestic manufacturers had to offer the same deal, otherwise they would lose sales. The problem is that they were teaching the American public never to buy a new car unless they can buy it with zero percent financing. Sure enough, once the incentives went away, new car sales dropped off dramatically. Another round of zero percent loans were put in place, and the cycle was firmly entrenched.
We see two things in our congregation. One is very similar to what you experienced, and that is that close to half the publishers sign up for 30 hours in one of the "special" months, and of those, about half fail to make the 30, including many of the elders and their families. The second thing we've seen is, NOBODY auxiliary pioneers anymore unless it's a 30 hour month. In the past two years that this program has been in place, I think I've seen 2 maybe applications that had 50 hours marked on them. So now the WTS has created its own monster. They have a big showing in March every year of 30 hour pioneers, they have a smattering of 30 hour pioneers on the months that the CO visits (a new "provision), but that's it, baby! Hung by their own petard!
These guys are not exactly rocket scientists up in Brooklyn or Patterson or wherever they're holed up these days!
