Posts by King Solomon

26

The Way Things are, Not How You'd Like Them To Be

by AllTimeJeff in

jw
friends

at 37 years of age, i'm much to young for feeling this damn old, so apologies for sounding less than idealistic, but...... we need people who will be honest and true to themselves.

having offered jws the entire decade of my 20's while they tried to suck out my soul, i have come to appreciate how little of a desire these days i have to change the world.

which was sad at first.

King Solomon

Hate fo break it to you, but waiting to witness the downfall of WT is as pointless as waiting for Armageddon: both just are not going to happen... Your words were said by many after 1914 failed, and here we are, 100 years later with WT and 7 mil members.

Throughout mans history, there have ALWAYS been doomsday cults, some which survive the failed predictions, some that don't. Psychologists will tell you how a seemingly failed prophecy is denied by members, or claimed to have been "invisible" (sound familiar?), and their will ALWAYS be sheep to be fleeced (hint: any religion that refers to you as a sacrificial animal MAY NOT be legit).

Those waiting for justice are showing the old thought patterns of the JW's Stinking Thinking: that the righteous prevail, and the bad guy gets his come-uppance in the end. Life isnt a TV movie that predictably wraps up in 1 hour.... The freedom will begin once you let it go of such assumptions and wishes (and those with family members trapped in, I understand there's no easy escape)....

8

What to tell your kids

by TheListener in

what did you tell your children about why you don't go to meetings anymore or aren't a witness?

especially if you have a witness spouse..

King Solomon

Finally awake said:

" They craved normalcy, a regular family life, and a regular childhood. So we had it really easy"

I can imagine the disappointment on their faces when you said, "Kids, we're really sorry to break it to you, but we'll be celebrating Xmas this year....". ;)

Definitely a 'teachable event' for the kids: rather than trying to tip-toe around it (as some may be tempted to do), what a great opportunity for them to learn about the dangers of peer-pressure (hint: its not just teens who are susceptible), not just going along with the group, but using their own heads....

25

A JW told me the reason why the protestors at the Tacoma Dome District Conventions are gone.

by AndersonsInfo in

a jw, who i know and trust, sent me the following email:.

"this year in tacoma i met a man at a retail store who said the watchtower societys nwt bible changed the original scriptures, especially john 1:1. he told me he owned all the old wt publications, including studies in the scriptures.

seems his non-jw uncle had collected them.

King Solomon

Designs said:

A Catholic telling a JW to read their Bible and examine their teachings? lol That's almost to pathetic to comment on."

Maybe he should hold a sign accusing JWs of sheltering child molesters? ;)

Ahhh, the memories of 'Tacoma Aroma', a pungent (some call it fragrant. But not me!) aroma enjoyed during my days back at McChord AFB in the early 80s.

25

A JW told me the reason why the protestors at the Tacoma Dome District Conventions are gone.

by AndersonsInfo in

a jw, who i know and trust, sent me the following email:.

"this year in tacoma i met a man at a retail store who said the watchtower societys nwt bible changed the original scriptures, especially john 1:1. he told me he owned all the old wt publications, including studies in the scriptures.

seems his non-jw uncle had collected them.

King Solomon

Bobcat said:

"On the freedom of speech front, that's interesting. The Legally Defending booklet makes out that all Americans should be grateful for the freedoms that the WT won 'for all.'"

Pfffftttt... As if THAT'S why they did it, as their form of protecting the constitution for their fellow Amerikuns.

I've seen that logic, and it's fallacious, disingenuous, intentionally misleading, and no doubt done to quell the nagging doubts some JWs must feel over being free-loaders in their communities, not engaging in any civic participation activities (voting, military, volunteer work, donating blood, habitat for humanity, etc). They can point to freedom of speech cases, and say "see, we did THAT!", oblivious to the fact they don't give free speech rights to their OWN members, let alone any other individual.

The WT Society is trapped in a catch-22 with their neutrality stance, and this is their attempt to "serve two masters".

".' When I replied that the man was simply doing what we do, the brother replied; 'Yea but he was wearing shorts and a t-shirt.' (Which told me that he WAS there to block the preacher."

Ohhh, I firgit that JWs think buying a cheap suit embues one with powers to preach, lol! And don't forget the hair gel!

6

The logical fallacy of using Pascall's Wager to defend God!

by AK - Jeff in

his arguments are succinct against such foolish conclusion that we have nothing to lose by worshipping god if unsure, and is defeated in it's very premise.. http://www.ebonmusings.org/atheism/wager.html.

this paragraph is key to the defeat, and powerful:.

the first and most serious objection to the wager should be immediately obvious to anyone who sees it.

King Solomon

Another flaw with Pascals reasoning is it assumes a God that cannot sniff out a faker, a poseur, someone who's simply going thru the motions in order to save their own skinny arse and put one over on God. It only works if God does not have a BS detector, or cannot read "hearts" or thoughts.

Besides, you cannot force yourself to believe anything, if you don't truly believe it.

(Although, that's not actually true, is it? Dawkins wrote an entire book about how this is accomplished: its the psychological phenomenon of delusion, fooling oneself. Presumably those struggling with their "weak faith" will be given some extra slack, since they were TRYING SOO HARD to believe in Him... Apparently some scripture somewhere must say that God gives an E for effort, or grades on a curve, as if it's the thought that counts. How contradictory is THAT thinking?).

But even there, suppose God decides on the basis of personal integrity and honesty, valuing those who actually stand up for what they believe, who have the personal conviction and character to follow their own strong moral compass, and not just what others tell them to believe and do? (Gandhi, MLK, etc?)

13

Sparlock spotted in Taiwan

by Steve_C in

jw
friends

no, not 'made in taiwan,' but actually in taiwan.. i thought you might enjoy some photos of yours truly engaging in heathen activities while wearing my new sparlock t-shirt.

i'm not really a taoist/buddhist, but sporting the warrior wizard shirt while burning incense in the temple made me feel like some kind of naughty double-apostate .

the one-hundred+ year-old wu fu ("five fortunes") temple, near my apartment.

King Solomon

You drop that burning incense right now into a pail of water, Mister! The only thing that should be burnt is that Sparlock t-shirt!

(never mind the irony of telling you that burning of one object constitutes idolatry, then to claim that burning another item is NOT!)

;)

69

I left the Witnesses over 10 years ago, but finally went back

by JakeMarley in

jw
friends

the entire time i was gone it was nagging at me.

i hadn't been previously baptized, so leaving wasn't that big a deal.

now i'm back in the swing of it, going to all meetings and field service.

King Solomon

Jm said:

" The world is too messed up to take a chance."

Welcome!

This sentence caught my eye. Care to explain why you think the world is "messed up"? (and having been raised in the JWs since the 60's, i know they were saying it then, as even 100 years before that).

And what is "the chance" you'd be taking? What does that refer to?

25

A JW told me the reason why the protestors at the Tacoma Dome District Conventions are gone.

by AndersonsInfo in

a jw, who i know and trust, sent me the following email:.

"this year in tacoma i met a man at a retail store who said the watchtower societys nwt bible changed the original scriptures, especially john 1:1. he told me he owned all the old wt publications, including studies in the scriptures.

seems his non-jw uncle had collected them.

King Solomon

The story rings true, in that JWs don't actually believe in 1st amendment rights of others, including their own family members and relatives who feel compelled to express differing ideas; if they dare to exercise their rights on others, they will be shunned for apostacy.

However, the threat of arrest rings bogus, and stinks to high heaven of a lie (protesters often DO need to get a city permit, in advance: that is true. The city has a right to pre-arrange the details of protests, such as location, times, etc to maintain public safety). Did they obtain a permit first?

But what a great story it would make for the papers, if true: JWs AND City officials should be embarrassed by the adverse publicity.

However, some protesters would have to be willing to be arrested to know if it would actually happen (after getting a city permit, of course: I'm betting they didn't, and hence why the city threatened to arrest them).

5

The meaning of life, revealed

by King Solomon in

jw
friends

men have struggled with the same big questions since gaining self-awareness, millions of years ago, asking "what is the purpose of life?

" some have attempted to simply numb their brains to not feel the pain by turning to mythical and magical nepenthe-like substances; others have tried to fill in the uncomfortable gaps with religion, career, personal accomplishments, and so on.. i think no one has expressed the simple truth of the matter in words more eloquent, yet simple, than james taylor.

his song strikes me as a truth that is universal, honest, and more transcendent than any..... try not to try too hard.... .

King Solomon

Men have struggled with the same big questions since gaining self-awareness, millions of years ago, asking "what is the purpose of life?", "why am I here?", "what does it all mean?" Some have attempted to simply numb their brains to not feel the pain by turning to mythical and magical nepenthe-like substances; others have tried to fill in the uncomfortable gaps with religion, career, personal accomplishments, and so on.

I think no one has expressed the simple truth of the matter in words more eloquent, yet simple, than James Taylor. His song strikes me as a truth that is universal, honest, and more transcendent than any....

Try not to try too hard...

Hang in there, Chappy!

2

Baptist Church refuses to marry black couple

by Steve_C in

excuse me, but isn't this the 21st century?!.

they had booked their wedding far in advance.

the invitations had been sent, the programs printed.

King Solomon

Signs you may be in the wrong religion:

Ah, never-mind.... ALL religions are the wrong ones (although I fully expect to see at least one poster try to defend this practice on Biblical grounds, within a day or two. Curse of Ham, anyone?).