Posts by Deus.ex.Machina

34

Atlanta International Convention Hotels Not Being Filled Up!

by James Jackson in

this week our kh devoted the whole service meeting to the upcoming international convention in atlanta.

they read a 5 page letter from the branch which stated basically that we should feel priviledged to be invited to this convention.. however, many are not using the "recomended lodging list", "many hotels still have plenty of rooms available", "we must be loyal to this arrangement", (or the organization will not get their comp rooms)..

Deus.ex.Machina

Bump, anyone else form geogia that can tell me more about the parking situation at the dome?

I've gone back into lurking mode (school and whatnot), but thought I would take a break to give some insight.

The parking situation at the Dome is the stuff of nightmares. When there are events and games, attendants are ACTIVELY encouraged to take MARTA. There are two MARTA stations on either side of the dome. I believe the Dome holds about 80,000 people. If everyone drove a car, maybe 10% could park in the decks shared by the Dome and Georgia Word Congress. And I would not be shocked if the percentage was less. There are private parking lots in the area, but they can be expensive if you want to park close by. Hotels that are close to the Dome might offer a free shuttle for those lodging with them, but I imagine those rooms were the first selected.

My parents have mentioned that some are coming back home everyday either on rented busses or in their own private cars. As of now they are still looking for a room, but they keep mentioning places in the suburbs (Marietta, Lawrenceville, Duluth, etc). They are very overwhelmed by the extra burden created by moving the convention to downtown and the idea of navigating the city. I really believe they will ultimately be driving back and forth each day. They have also mentioned that brothers will be there to help them with MARTA, but I think they are underestimating the logistics of this especially if people have to get hotel rooms in the suburbs where MARTA does not go. Gwinett and Cobb counties have express busses that drop off riders at MARTA stations, but I am not certain if they alter their schedules during the weekend and run less often because there are less commuters.

This was a very bad idea by the WTBS.

Edit to add: If you use a private parking lot futher away, the price may be more reasonable, but you will be walking. Atlanta is very well paved and this makes the June/July heat almost unbearable.

Again this is a very bad idea to move this convention to the Dome.

6

Beware Of Fakery On The Internet

by metatron in

jw
friends

http://www.businessinsider.com/reputation-management-2013-12.

the above will explain how so many awful people and organizations can look ok on internet searches.. when judging reviews on the internet, i always read the most negative first.

then, i ask myself, "is this opinion really a deal breaker?

Deus.ex.Machina

I've found that most people are just more motivated to share bad experiences than good ones.

If I can, I look at a reviewer's other reviews and I always try to get sense of whether our interests/lifestyle are similar. For example, I'm single, no kids and prefer the city. My impression of a family friendly chain restaurant might be different from a suburban family with kids.

6

Wait!wait! But I DO want people to have a merry Christmas!

by stillin in

jw
friends

is it really sharing in their wicked ways to bid people well wishes on their holiday?

i mean, i'm not doing christmas myself, but if they want to have it, what's wrong with saying "enjoy!".

witnesses extend best wishes to newlywed pagans all of the time, even though they know that the marriage is a godless, heathen, false-worship-filled union of sex-driven materialistic people.

Deus.ex.Machina

Thanks for the welcome, clarity. I hope you're having a great Christmas as well.

SAHS, that would mean granting unconditional love to everyone, not just fellow JWs. Per my mother's black and white understanding definition of love (and pretty much everything else), that love simply isn't deserved.

6

Wait!wait! But I DO want people to have a merry Christmas!

by stillin in

jw
friends

is it really sharing in their wicked ways to bid people well wishes on their holiday?

i mean, i'm not doing christmas myself, but if they want to have it, what's wrong with saying "enjoy!".

witnesses extend best wishes to newlywed pagans all of the time, even though they know that the marriage is a godless, heathen, false-worship-filled union of sex-driven materialistic people.

Deus.ex.Machina

I was thinking the same thing.

My mother was talking to my JW aunt regarding two experiences: a woman showing off some handmade Santa earrings and a cashier wishing her a Merry Christmas. On both occasions she was proud to report to my aunt her cold and rude response to both people and added that she wanted to tell the cashier to keep her damn Merry Christmas to herself.

She honestly thinks she is bringing honor to Jehovah by being snobbish with strangers who probably have innocent intentions and then by further belittling them in private. To me she just sounds rabid and mentally ill. I know it's cliché to say your parents are crazy, but I think her out-of-proportion reactions and vicious comments are a sign of deeper problems.

Often I genuinely hate being around both my parents during the holidays. They both give a fine witness to the judgmental and unwelcoming nature of Jehovah's Witnesses.

63

The " HIGHER EDUCATION" thread!!!

by DATA-DOG in

jw
friends

alright.

let's have the ultimate discussion on "higher education.

" let's talk about the good, the bad, and the ugly.

Deus.ex.Machina

Ultimately I think it comes down to personal choice and circumstance. If your career interests require addiitonal training beyond high school, then I completely understand why a person would choose to pursue higher education. I don't see any logical way that undermines one's love of Jehovah or morality. I attended a university in a major city where I knew no one. I did not become addicted to drugs, sex, or alcohol. I have no out-of-wedlock children. I was never arrested. I did not smoke. While I did not continue to dress like a 60-year-old women, I was far from a scandal. I did not beat up little old ladies to steal their Social Security checks. According to JW logic, this is damn near impossible even for the spiritually strong, but I managed as an unbaptized born-in. I'm sneaky that way I supposed.

Love is about encouraging people to get the tools that will enhance their happiness. The anti-education stance really emphasizes the conditional nature of JW love. One of the reasons that I chose not to get baptized is that Jehovah's neediness was a black hole, stripping every bit of individualism from a person until there was nothing left. It's too overbearing and all consuming and there is so little in return.

Plus you spend a lot of time at work and it really should be something that you enjoy and not some daily drudgery.

40

Still in with kids

by thinking_ability in

jw
friends

Deus.ex.Machina

Slightly topic hijacking to say thanks for the warm welcome.

Also I hope the advice given by all has been helpful.

40

Still in with kids

by thinking_ability in

jw
friends

Deus.ex.Machina

Encourage any non-JW interests they may have and stress the importance of education.

Also encourage them to have friends outside the JW circle. I think that's important for developing certain social skills that are difficult to master being raised as a JW. Because everyone at the Kingdom Hall is automatically your friend (supposedly at least), a lot of young people raised as JWs don't know how to make and maintain real friendships. They don't understand the real give and take dynamic of social support systems.

49

Are we all bitter?

by LouBelle in

jw
friends

i posted a link on fb that lead to a topic here.

i then had one of my 'friends' start having a go about how bitter everyone is here....fact he said.

(he used to be a jw elder but left a while back, not sure why he left or if he has even researched the faith since leaving) the more i tried to reason with him that actually it is a support forum, the more he lashed out that everyone here bad mouths the jw's and only attack the jw's.

Deus.ex.Machina

Though I was not baptized (so my struggle may be different from those who were), I was raised in "the truth." In fact, my mother was pregnant with me when she was baptized. I spent the first 18, 19 years of my life being told that everything about me was wrong for my refusal to be a joiner. It takes a toll on the spirit to be told that you are a bad person, defective. So I am quite bitter because I was denied unconditional love as a child and very little self-value was instilled me.

In fact I have recently moved back in with my parents. I believe they are geniunely disappointed that I am not shaking my fists with rage at the world because I've had a hard time finding a new job, and this should have proven to me that the world is full of evil and to store treasures only with Jehovah, blah, blah. The first week I was here my mother asked if I was attending the meeting that night. I said no. (I have not been to a Kingdom Hall in over 10 years. So it's not like I have ever sent a mixed signal about my choice.) She did not speak to me for three days. The rejection still burns.

But with that said, I don't think it's fair to lump everyone together as all our histories and motivations will vary. Also I don't think bitterness is an unreasonable emotion when one looks at all that was lost and wasted. But I do think it's terrible to remain bitter forever. While I haven't worked through the bitterness phase, I don't want to be in this place forever.