Posts by TonusOH

32

Is the ministry really taken seriously by most JWs?

by XBEHERE in

jw
friends

what say you?.

TonusOH

I think that most of us took it seriously, but it was also something of a grind. The lack of enthusiasm was usually due to being in a rough environment and dealing with lots of negative reactions. On days with nice weather, where we were visiting houses and not apartment buildings, it could be pleasant.

I didn't like feeling as if we were annoying people, even though we felt the work was important. So many people knew that when the doorbell rang at 10:30am on a Saturday or Sunday, it was those -bleeping- Jehovah's Witnesses. And they made sure we knew that they were aggravated. The few times we would find someone who would listen at all were nice, but those got fewer and fewer, it seemed.

If I had been given the option to stand next to a magazine rack and smile as people walked past, it would have felt as a bit of a relief. It wouldn't have felt like real preaching, but it would have been less stressful.

21

We're you regular at all the meetings?

by Hellothere in

we're you regular at the 3 meetings days watchtower hade?

i remember our was tuesday, thursdays and saturdays.

in reality it's crazy they hade so many meetings.

TonusOH

I attended all meetings for most of my time as a JW. As I began my slow fade, I started missing meetings. It was a real grind. Even now, I tend to feel like I have to hurry home after work, even though I don't have any obligations in the evenings anymore. It stays with you.

11530

It's been a long 9 years Lloyd Evans / John Cedars

by Newly Enlightened in

original reddit post (removed).

TonusOH

Nor does he have millions of subscribers. His YT page shows 109,000. As the screenshot above shows, his views are a very small percentage of his subscribers. You can make up some of that with volume, but it still doesn't seem like he's generating a lot of income via YouTube.

He has convinced himself that he cannot be an activist if he isn't a "professional" one, by which he means that his activism work generates enough income for him --and his family, and Tibor-- to live comfortably. Many activists (most, would be my guess) do this kind of work with little or no remuneration, and have to work or find financial support elsewhere. His activism is only possible if it is convenient to him. If it was important to him, he could do his videos and other content with even less than he receives now.

22

AI Generated Art - Impact on Artists

by Simon in

unless you've been hibernating under a rock for the last couple of years, you're probably aware that ai is the new hotness.. chatgpt gets a lot of attention but equally amazing is how capable ai is at generating art.

if you'd been ask to name anything that would be the last holdout for humans, creative arts such as writing, painting, and music would probably be some of the things at the top of the list.. yet those seem to be the things that ai can do best.. it's fascinating to use the tools, but one thing you realize is that they are just combining patterns and shapes, there isn't yet any real "intelligence", artificial or otherwise.. as an example, you can ask it to create a painting in the style or a particular artist, with a whole raft of things you want to include.

it will do a great job on first glance, but can often give people more arms or fingers than is normal, and lamp-posts can grow to different heights, like trees.

TonusOH

Some of the early efforts I've seen have been mixed, but I think AI art will continue to separate those who make the effort from those who don't. I've seen people spamming art sites with AI generated works, apparently as a cheap and easy way to make a quick buck, and I've seen people who use AI to enhance their work and add a depth to it that they couldn't previously. Sure, it may seem as if they're cheating a bit, but they're taking advantage of a new tool to produce better artwork. Because they make the effort, their work looks very nice. The spammed artwork is full of glitches and just plain bad design.

As someone who dabbles in both art and writing, I'm more ambivalent about it than you might think, but that is because the market has changed. Already, people are able to steal both artwork and writing to make easy money at the expense of creators. I think that the future opportunities for creators are to build a small but loyal following that wants your work, not facsimiles or poorly-designed copies. Art/writing mills will make some money in the short term, but those who build a real following will have sustained income and sustained engagement for as long as they want.

And yes, AI might shake up some of the industries or communities where there was easy money to be made by stealing from others. When you can generate art without technically stealing it, and when you can get 'good enough' results with a few queries... this could lead to hard times for art/writing thieves. I'm not going to shed any tears over it.

173

Is the tide turning against covid vaccines?

by slimboyfat in

have you seen this video about the covid vaccines?

have you got any views on the information?

i find it worrying at least.

TonusOH

Many in the media --and some in academia-- also bought in 101% on the mask/vax side of the issue. News and information will get out over time, but it will be an effort because people will feel as if their backs are against the wall and they will fight to protect the narrative. It has been disappointing to see, not the bias in the media (this isn't a new thing) but the extent to which people and departments with a serious duty to the public have become compromised. Politics has seeped deeply into every facet of our society, and it has made a mess of things that we will be digging out of for a long time.

10

The fool hath said "There is NO God"

by JW Answers in

the bible says, that those who say 'there is no god' are fools.. april fools day yesterday, showed that people can be fools for believing something that did not happen.

yet, the bible says that fools are those who refuse to believe that which is true.. god can still save fools.... feel free to watch the latest short message of hope:.

[drivel removed].

TonusOH

I have to admit, I'm partial to "beer and hockey = there is a god," myself.

23

If you have a question maybe I can help doctor of theology and one of Jehovah's witnesses

by Jehovahisgod in

my name is ari matthew davies.

i am a life experience consultant counselor i have a doctor's degree theology psychology clinical addictions and computer sciences.

i am also baptized as well as jehovah's witnesses.. if you have a question i've got a lot of experience and a lot of real life training.

TonusOH

I think someone else already recognized it as an April Fool's joke. He got me, I'm a sucker for April Fool's gags.

38

Has Tony been abducted by Aliens?

by Mit123 in

probably but they’ve sent him back pretty darn quick!

i have from a very reliable source that he attends one of the poughkeepsie ny congregations.

i think there are 5 congregations there might be worth paying a visit if anyone lives near there..

TonusOH

Vid - if you click the like option, it will reverse the dislike you accidentally added.

38

Has Tony been abducted by Aliens?

by Mit123 in

probably but they’ve sent him back pretty darn quick!

i have from a very reliable source that he attends one of the poughkeepsie ny congregations.

i think there are 5 congregations there might be worth paying a visit if anyone lives near there..

TonusOH

If he was, how long do you think before they return him?

259

The Gentile Times Reconsidered (607 B.C.E.) -Part A1 - Jeremiah 25:10-12 Reviewed

by FaceTheFacts in

during the last three to four months, i have spent a great deal of time sinking my teeth into various critical biblical commentaries and lexicons.

naturally, after beginning to research "the truth about the truth" one of the most commonplace yet controversial arguments revolve around the "gentile times" doctrine (i.e.

the application of the seven times of daniel 4 from 607 b.c.e.

TonusOH

The 607/587 debate remains relevant* because the WTS couldn't just drop that date, since it was tied to the 1914 predictions that Russell made. There is a lot that they can revise, such as the predictions themselves, which they modified to make it seem as if Russell was given direction from Jehovah, and which was a big part of the sales pitch for so long. But Russell's math needed the year 607BC to get to 1914, so they couldn't give in on that point.

I wonder, though, if that will change soon. 1914 itself is becoming an albatross for the WTS and no longer serves the purpose it once did, both as a recruiting device and as a way to keep the rank and file on tenterhooks. I suspect that they will ignore it and let it fade into irrelevance until they feel it's safe to discard it, at which point they'll gain new light about the 607/587 dates.

* Well, I mean that it remains relevant as a discussion point amongst JW supporters and critics. It serves more as a curiosity for exJWs and a defend-at-all-costs concept for JWs, at least for now.