I'm sorry to hear about all these sad stories; it seems that many of us are still struggling.
It kinda piszez me off to read people acting like giving up a college education was nothing for them and they have been so successful. The old "I'm so talented I didn't go to college and still make $100,000's a year, plus bonuses, plus retirement, plus investments, health insurance etc., crap touches me and it turns to gold. " If that's your attitude, perhaps you need to be on a convention encouraging the youth to not seek further education. Perhaps you should teach you own children that they won't need an education, just look at yourself. I'll bet you won't, and your making plans to send your kids now to a University near you.
How many actually served in the pioneer service with a dead end cleaning job and a POS for a car, or got sucked into going to Bethel and giving your best productive years to a scam, learning to be obedient cleaning a toilet. Then, when you’re in your 60's are sent home from Bethel so you can retire.....On WHAT? Or who has been injured at Bethel and sent home handicapped for life with no money to fend for yourself, but all you were qualified to do is physical work; well no more your now physically handicapped. Again, no education to fall back on.
Or how about giving up a lucrative job to serve where the need is great, going through all your savings because the end didn't come as expected, had to pay for all the kingdom hall bills out of you own empty pocket because the congregation was so small and poor. Stayed in the assignment until you died because you believe WT Society's "end is imminent" crap, then end up dyeing with nothing, and your wife, children, and family have nothing but bills when you die, and they don't have an education either to fall back on.
Some families were given the opportunity for full scholarships for their kids, where they could live at home and go to school, but thanks to the fanatical ranting and demonizing of education by WT and her cohorts, these kids were forced to Pioneer, and these kids are now in their 50's and 60's and continue to get screwed. Unfortunately, the abuse is beginning again and there will be still more victims.
You can say what you want about "a college education is not needed, Look at me, I'm successful without it" but for most of the population you don't even get an opportunity, interview, consideration for, not squat for an adequate paying job unless you jump through the "tested for fitness" test that college provides. College and University is the world’s way of in measuring that someone is tested for fitness over a period of time and ready for a responsible position. Some have faked this with experience, but business today doesn't want to learn on experience, it's too expensive.
If you don't have an education, you will have only limited success, and that is what this thread is about. The experiences read here are not of all the successful doctors, nurses, engineers, and scientist, etc., but experiences of people that knew they could have done better in life, but because they listened to WT's faulty reasoning and empty promises, they are screwed for life.
How about the thousands of people worldwide that have gone to prison over the societies opinionated stance on alternative service, offered to both plant trees for the Forest Service and live at home or attend a University with no jail time. These young men that went to prison to substantiate their faith, could have went to the University, but NOOOO, WTS wouldn't let them "compromise". Some of them endured rapes and beatings in prison.
The Watchtower Bible and Tract Society holds a tremendous amount of culpability to its members and former members, that they have manipulated, mislead, lied to, borrowed from and did not pay back, by greatly influencing them in what is their PERSONAL decisions, NOT any of WT's business!
Instead of people making decisions based on a lifetime, WT promotes making short range decisions of a few years out because armageddon is so immenient, and life ends up being a hodgepodge of short sited decisions. WTBTS is a printing corporation that does not pay taxes and does not have to abide by the laws of the land on safety or most other things because they are using volunteer labor, and “are religious”, but they also can ruin young people’s future and force them into slavery for themselves.
