The earliest WT annual service report I've found was in the January 1, 1948 issue for the 1947 service year. Was this the first annual report? Or where there earlier ones in other publications?
no-zombie
JoinedPosts by no-zombie
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When was the first annual report first issued?
by no-zombie inthe earliest wt annual service report i've found was in the january 1, 1948 issue for the 1947 service year.
was this the first annual report?
or where there earlier ones in other publications?.
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no-zombie
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Elders getting burnt up.
by biblexaminer inthe elders in this area are getting burned out.
i have overheard comments that demonstrate this, but in my dealings with them, i clearly see it.
they can't keep it straight.
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no-zombie
Its been a few years since I stepped down from being an elder and as a result I rarely visit other congregations, however knowing what I used to do and seeing my local elders, I have to say that 90% of the appointed brothers my generation and older have 'checked out' and are in full time pension mode. Most are on holiday somewhere or planning their next one. It was getting so bad in fact that I said to my full-in wife one night at the hall ... "You know darling, even with my bad attitude ... its funny that my meeting attendance is still a lot better than all of our elders". She just had to agree.
So, there's a rot. It can't be treated with Organizational bling, cinematic videos, flashy apps or up beat 'Walt Disney" music. And nothing going to stop the collapse of the classic congregational structure that we've known for a very long time. Because everything that is born ... dies. And if you look into the window of most congregations, you'll see that they are all, very old indeed.
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Honest Questions About Child Abuse
by Richard Oliver ini have two honest questions for everyone here.
i understand that most here want retribution from the courts against watchtower for child abuse allegations.
but let us take away the instances where someone was accused of child abuse and then later put back into a position of authority, such as an elder or an ms. let us just take the cases where a regular publisher or even an appointed person, with no previous accusation of child abuse has come up against that person.
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no-zombie
To Richard,
I think that there is two or three motivators at play that drive those who post on this forum regarding the child abuse issue. While the weighting of those motivators may differ between individuals, perhaps the one that drives most of us who have not been directly effected would a reaction against the totalitarian rule of the Governing Body and their claim to be God's one-and-only spokesmen. Every person understands the principle of "with power comes responsibility". Yet, despite the fact that the Governing Body has claimed and exercises the total power over every action (and thought) of the brotherhood, they have never accepted the responsibility for the consequences when their decisions result in something bad. As we all know, they have created a history of passing these failures down the line to "some brother's" or have ignored the problems all together. Everyone has a sense of natural justest, and because its clear that the Organization cares more to money than for being honest and helping the victims of child abuse (in one way or another), people can see that just not just right and comment accordingly for action.
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Making a list of the WT properties that's been sold
by no-zombie inin harmony with gorbatchov's topic about the income derived from property sales, i have thought for a while how good it would be to have one combined listing of all the assets the gb has sold together with a "worldly reference" to their prices.
it would be a bit of a task, but if a dump of all the links were made in one place, i could recompile it into one neat listing and repost it..
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no-zombie
In harmony with Gorbatchov's topic about the income derived from property sales, I have thought for a while how good it would be to have one combined listing of all the assets the GB has sold together with a "worldly reference" to their prices. It would be a bit of a task, but if a dump of all the links were made in one place, I could recompile it into one neat listing and repost it.
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When will the construction at Warwick finish?
by no-zombie ini'd like to as the question, when will construction at warwick finish?
will it be before the 2017 agm?i'm asking because, if the construction is basically finished by then, the gb could be free to release more 'new light'.its hardly likely that they would announce big changes that might effect the willingness of their laborers to continue working for free.
so i'm sort of hoping, all the big stuff will be done by then.
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no-zombie
hi scratchme1010
Its clear that the GB don't really care about the brotherhood in any way or on any level. What they do care about is money. But free labor equals money too. And one day, when they are forced to disavow some a long held teaching, whether it's 1914, blood transfusions, disfellowshiping or admit to the child abuse situation, they will find that quite a few may no longer want to turn up at construction sites ... and the GB will have to start paying for "worldly workers". And it would be terrible for them to withhold some "new light" just because their lake-side palace isn't quite finished.
And I actually do look forward the the AGMs and "new light". Not because I believe in, it but because I hoping that they one day they will say or change something that might get my family to start thinking. That all ... you got to have hope.
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When will the construction at Warwick finish?
by no-zombie ini'd like to as the question, when will construction at warwick finish?
will it be before the 2017 agm?i'm asking because, if the construction is basically finished by then, the gb could be free to release more 'new light'.its hardly likely that they would announce big changes that might effect the willingness of their laborers to continue working for free.
so i'm sort of hoping, all the big stuff will be done by then.
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no-zombie
I'd like to as the question, when will construction at Warwick finish? Will it be before the 2017 AGM?
I'm asking because, if the construction is basically finished by then, the GB could be free to release more 'new light'.
Its hardly likely that they would announce big changes that might effect the willingness of their laborers to continue working for free. So I'm sort of hoping, all the big stuff will be done by then. -
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New IBSA Britain Branch Construction Letters
by wifibandit indecember 12, 2016 re: branch relocation project - regional event registration.
december 5, 2016 to all congregations re: branch construction project.
december 5, 2016. to all congregations.
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no-zombie
How much in Dollars (or Euros ... you know what I mean) have they already gained by the sales of their existing properties in London?
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Mass JW exodus
by stockholm_Syndrome inmaybe there will be a mass exodus from jws when thinking people read feb 2017 watchtower telling them the governing body stuff up, shouldnt expect correct/ perfect information and basically make up guff as they see fit.....ya reckon?.
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no-zombie
I think that by far the majority of those in the congregation have turned off their higher brain functions. To the point that most do not expend the mental effort in considering what they believe, nor what has transpired in the past. Just listening to the answers during the book study these days (which is talking at the moment about the Russel/Ruderford period of the Organization) shows this to be quite true. However, I recon this has happened not because the brotherhood doesn't care anymore about the Bible but rather they have become "change fatigue" and are now happy to give up the heavy thinking to the GB. As a consequence, the Warwick elite may get way more radical changes because the brothers most likely would say ...."cool, is now what we believe".
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Learning from History
by no-zombie ini was reading the book 'five stages of collapse' by dmitry orlov, which discussed in part, people's attitudes toward the probability of societal collapse.
one group of people, those who dispassionately examine facts, like scientists, engineers and accountants ultimately become diametrically opposed to the group of people with vested emotional interests, like politicians, businessmen and economists.
and he made some interesting comments that parallel our situation when we consider how people are polarized over the future of the organization..
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no-zombie
I thought that the Organization would slowly evolve over time in the past too. However these days I don't believe that the GB has the time left to do something without making radical changes. This is because the world is changes faster than large corporations like WT can adapt. And when you think about the woes the Society has had to endure even just recently with the various law suits and inquiries, one has to wonder what the next few years will have in store for them. Let alone the other factors that I mentioned, in particular the Popes of the USA.
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Learning from History
by no-zombie ini was reading the book 'five stages of collapse' by dmitry orlov, which discussed in part, people's attitudes toward the probability of societal collapse.
one group of people, those who dispassionately examine facts, like scientists, engineers and accountants ultimately become diametrically opposed to the group of people with vested emotional interests, like politicians, businessmen and economists.
and he made some interesting comments that parallel our situation when we consider how people are polarized over the future of the organization..
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no-zombie
I was reading the book 'Five Stages of Collapse' by Dmitry Orlov, which discussed in part, people's attitudes toward the probability of societal collapse. One group of people, those who dispassionately examine facts, like scientists, engineers and accountants ultimately become diametrically opposed to the group of people with vested emotional interests, like politicians, businessmen and economists. And he made some interesting comments that parallel our situation when we consider how people are polarized over the future of the Organization.
As we are well aware, just believing something will continue to grow or even continue to exist doesn’t necessarily mean it’s going to happen without the cold hard numbers to back it up. Just wishful hoping in Santa for example, isn’t a guarantee that that some fat guy will be sliding down your chimney in a few weeks’ time.
Yet what is more interesting, is when we start thinking about how and why societies have collapsed in the past. And we have quite a few historical examples to learn from. The Mayan civilization, the Rapa Nui peoples of Easter Island and the Indus Valley civilizations are just some of the many to consider.
And while the end of each civilization has its own unique story, there always 3 common factors seen; a lack of resources and the potential for growth, an inability to work with neighbors and an insulated ruling party.
Sadly and perhaps relevant to us, is that dying civilizations (and in fact any highly organized structure) rarely wither away but rather have their population numbers crash violently just after reaching its peak. A common analogy used to illustrate this is the growth of bacteria in a petri dish. In the beginning the bacterial colony has plenty of room and food to grow. And it does so, exponentially enlarging until it hits the petri dish walls. With no food left, with where to go and without an ability to change its nature … the whole colony dies overnight.
Can we see the parallel with the Organization? Even by using the very rubbery figures issued in the annual report, it is clear that it’s past its peak. The age demographics of the average Witness, the lack of fiscal income, the increasingly hostile environment due to the child abuse and blood transfusion issues is has created and the incredibly naive and insulated Governing Body, all show that the Society … re-branded or not … is not going to last.
And while, we cannot know when things will fall apart, judging by the consolidation of WT funds and the circling of the wagons by those in power at Warwick, even some of them have seen the writing on the wall.
As a post-script, if anyone is interested in societies and history, there is a very thought provoking TED talk by UCLA professor Jared Diamond found here … https://www.ted.com/talks/jared_diamond_on_why_societies_collapse#t-786291