Tech49

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Posts by Tech49

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  16

  Continuing congregation mergers

  by Are you serious in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  in the area i live in the pacific northwest, three spanish congregations we're merged into two a couple of years ago and in the next month or so four english congregations will be cut down to three.

  both situations happened because of lack of growth.

  a few years ago, i would never have imagined spanish congregations disappearing or merging but it's happening.

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  Tech49

  Are you serious.....

  Send me a PM, I too am in the PNW.

  Where exactly are you? Sounds just like what is happening in my area also!
  
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  29

  Russia is Smart

  by Kohanic in

  1. social
  2. current

  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nhnseocpffq.

  so according to the law department's meeting in feb 2016, russia has been studying the linguistics of the watchtower articles and discovered its brainwashing abilities!.

  lol it's funny now that i'm on the russian side of this debate now, ban them all!.

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  Tech49

  At first glance, one might think....the Bible Stories Book??? How is that subversive and extremist. But then I remember back to when my kids were young. We studied with them in that book, like good little JWś are supposed to do. But now in retrospect, I remember distinctly skipping over many chapters, because I just didnt think they were appropriate for children. I remember having that conversation with my wife, and we both agreed that we didnt need to expose our young children to sex, rape, murder, bestiality, genocide, etc etc. Sadly, at the time, we couldnt see the forest for the trees.

  Extremist..... yes.
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  8

  committees

  by dogisgod in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  i have had some conversations with ex-jw women and i am more than a little concerned at how, if a female, is treated in committee meetings.

  it sure seems (i experienced this when i was young) that the elders have a commonality in trying to create such shame and sexual guilt (especially where none is deserved) that it is beyond abuse.

  i know there are a lot of former elders here.

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  Tech49

  Former elder here. The key to remember is this: The WT Org does NOT train elders to be any more sensitive to women than anyone else. They have ZERO sensitivity training, which is especially appalling given the fact that any type of committee meeting will ALWAYS be intimidating and degrading. And yes, some elders are ridiculous in their thinking, and their way of treating women as a lesser class. Yes, some just love hearing all the juicy details of affairs, sexual escapades, and so on... Yes, for the most part, JWś are a sex-starved bunch.

  On the other hand, there are a few good elders out there that try their best, given the LACK of training for anything other than enforcing rules.

  I can remember very clearly sitting in on judicial meetings with several women, on sex-type issues. It was embarrassing for me to be a part of the meeting with them (granted, not as embarrassing as it was for them), because I felt bad that they were pouring out their hearts in great detail over such insanely personal matters. The other brothers wanted DETAILS! I can also remember vividly STOPPING other elders from asking stupid questions that did nothing other than give them a chubby... like ¨how far did he put it in there? How many times? What other positions did you do it in?¨ Yes, for real.

  The first time that happened, I called a recess, dismissed the poor young lady, and gave the guy an earful! Any time after that, I made it very clear in our discussion beforehand, that such details were NOT part of the process. They were merely a way for these semi-perverts to justify their personal fantasies.

  One young lady in particular, who was actually a fairly close friend, told me later that she really appreciated me standing up for her. Yes, she had done the nasty, repeatedly, everywhere, for quite a while....... but it did not need to be rehashed and dwelt upon by a group of creepy old dudes! UGH!

  So in a nutshell.....no, WT does not train for this. WT doesnt care about women. If you dont have a penis, you arent worthy. I dont think they necessarily TRY to create an atmosphere of shame and guilt.... they just arent trained to do otherwise. And because they DO have a penis, they get away with it.
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  24

  Side effect of Downsizing......$$$

  by Tech49 in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  so here is a tidbit you will all just love!.

  we all are hearing of the trend right now to ¨downsize¨ the congregations...ie... eliminate by combining, in order to blah blah blah... .

  here is what you didnt know: every time a congregation is dissolved, for whatever reason, including merging or dispersing, wt makes money!

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  Tech49

  And speaking of KH remodel projects. One of our local KHś is scheduled for a remodel facelift, as it is about 20 years old.

  Recently, there was a letter from the LDC read to the congregation. I will paraphrase here, but In essence, it said that YES, you have been approved for a remodel. HOWEVER, a date has not been yet approved... SOMETIME next year, maybe.

  ALSO, please set up specific box, beginning today, in the donation box to be labeled ¨LOCAL REMODEL¨. Begin donating NOW. Send that money to WT monthly. When we feel that enough funds have been gathered, we will let you know when you can start your remodel.

  WTF?
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  24

  Side effect of Downsizing......$$$

  by Tech49 in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  so here is a tidbit you will all just love!.

  we all are hearing of the trend right now to ¨downsize¨ the congregations...ie... eliminate by combining, in order to blah blah blah... .

  here is what you didnt know: every time a congregation is dissolved, for whatever reason, including merging or dispersing, wt makes money!

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  Tech49

  So here is a tidbit you will all just love!

  We all are hearing of the trend right now to ¨downsize¨ the congregations...ie... eliminate by combining, in order to blah blah blah...

  Here is what you didnt know: Every time a congregation is dissolved, for whatever reason, including merging or dispersing, WT MAKES MONEY! How so?

  Like this: example: KH has 3 congregations in it. Someone determines that 3 is too many, as attendance is low in all 3, so they dissolve 1 and disburse the people to the remaining 2. All 3 congregations have money in the bank, or funds on hand. When the 1 congregation is dissolved, their funds on hand DO NOT get transferred or shared between the remaining 2. If they have been saving for remodel or seats or TVś or anything..... GONE.

  The bylaws in the instructions to the congregations show that any funds on hand for the dissolved congregation ALL go to the almighty WT Headquarters. No one gets a say in it, no voting, no discussion. The older couple that donated their savings to their local congregation account to help out with something, or to cover expenses during disasters, or new carpet, or anything..POOF! GONE.

  Now granted, we are probably not talking about huge amounts of money per congregation, as previous instructions dictated that congregations only keep a few months expenses on hand at any given time (and send the rest to ¨mother¨ asap). But still, $5000 for every congregation dissolved could add up quick!

  All hail the money machine!
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  38

  October 31, 2017 TO SELECTED BOEs IN THE US BRANCH TERRITORY Re: Discontinuation of the Funds-on-Deposit Arrangement

  by wifibandit in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  october 31, 2017 to selected bodies of elders in the united states branch territory re: discontinuation of the funds-on-deposit arrangement.

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  Tech49

  So, in review:

  Any extra funds on deposit should be sent to us via the KHC fund, 'cause we plan on bulding lots of KH's in the future...we promise...... If that doesnt happen for some reason (like you all get lazy or something), then the funds will be returned to your bank account. At which point you will be asked to donate it back to us to the World Wide Work....because.... you dont really need that money anyways.... so...... ya.

  PS. make sure to keep 2-3 months worth of operating expenses on hand tho, because thats all you really need. Hey, and thanks for your generous spirit!
  
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  11

  Amarillo TX RBC Liquidation- Branch Resource Recovery Team

  by jwabuse.com in

  1. watchtower
  2. scandals

  got this in my inbox today, thought it was kind of interesting.

  i like the wording "all proceeds go to non-profit programs.

  " i wonder what all exactly the "branch resource recovery team" gets involved in?.

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  Tech49

  This one just popped up for the Pacific NW.
  

  (forwarded to me by a friend)
  

  
  

  Dear RBC/LDC Volunteers!

  Final Northwest RBC Liquidation The US Branch Resource Recovery team has arranged for a final Northwest RBC liquidation. This event at the Douglas County Fairgrounds - Douglas Hall, will be a 2-day Public Sale followed by a 1-day Public Auction. LDC volunteers from 25 states have been invited to work at this event.

  Private Pre-Sale RBC/LDC workers are invited to a private pre-sale for JW families only, to have first pick on Thursday October 19 starting at 9am. Please forward this invitation to your former RBC crew by clicking the "Forward" button below. You may also invite non-RBC volunteers as your guests. This 24,000 SF building will be filled with RBC tools and trailers (no tables). Pictures are being added daily HERE or click on the flyer above. Requests for a flyer without this invitation may be sent to [email protected].

  Sunday Auction

  Items not sold during the 2-day Public Sale will be included in a no-reserve auction on Sunday October 22. There will be no buyer's premium added. Unsold trailers and other large assets will be auctioned with a low-reserve.

  Hurricane Disaster Relief

  JW.ORG Breaking News is found here. LDC Disaster Relief and Construction Group oversight will come to this sale location on Wednesday October 18 to obtain needed equipment and supplies.

  To reduce the email volume on the jw.org branch network, this invitation is coming to you from a Gmail account linked to JW Congregation Support, Inc., the branch corporation for RBC equipment. Replies and questions may be sent to [email protected].

  Hope to see you in Roseburg OR!
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  11

  Is this a World Wide Pattern?

  by Slidin Fast in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  hundreds baptized at jehovah's witness convention.

  at first sight this afican rc looks as though it's acheiving the quantity of baptisms of another era.

  348 is a substantilal number and impressive until you see the sunday attendance 28,300. so a baptism rate of 1.2%, in africa.

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  Tech49

  It is definitely a trend in the USA. I remember just a year or so ago, it was the first time in my life that I saw a big fat ZERO baptized at a circuit assembly. It was almost shocking. Even for me, I was pretty amazed! Even the speaker seemed a little unprepared for it! He stumbled and stammered his way thru his talk..... looking at the empty front row.......I couldnt help but think ¨so for 1500 of you, you couldnt even con 1 person into getting baptized??¨" Crazy? For all those hours and hours reported?

  Since then, I had heard that an ¨unofficial¨ word went around from the CO to NOT let that happen again. And since then, we always have had at least 3 or so baptized, even if they are all under the age of 15.

  Just a few weeks ago, at the Circuit Assembly, there were 1300 in attendance, 4 baptized, 3 kids under 15, and 1 really old dude!

  Almost embarrassing!
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  40

  How Are Ex Elders Treated In The Congregation?

  by minimus in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  are they pretty much left alone?

  are they respected for their having been elders at one time?

  are they treated like crap?.

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  Tech49

  A good friend of mine is/was a circuit level elder, for many years. We have known each other for probably 30 years. His wife is a regular pioneer, has been for years, and is very well known in the circuit. He was a regular fixture of RBC for many years.

  Last year, the whole beard issue took place, and the body of elders he was with had a heated argument about it all. He got so fed up about the hypocrisy and namecalling that he turned in his badge. He told them he couldnt in good conscience ¨serve¨ with grown men that acted like highschool buffoons. Double-standards, and petty ¨rule-making¨ were running rampant. So he stepped down. He had had enough.

  Well guess what!? Suddenly a whole new world for him and his wife. Basically, shunning to a degree. No more invites, no more popularity. Gossip and backbiting were like wildfire. No one cared about WHY he was announced as NO LONGER AN ELDER. Didnt matter, as he had OBVIOUSLY done something wrong.!! And ZERO priviliges in the congretation! ZERO! Suddenly, him and his wife were LESS SPIRITUAL than a 13 year old boy., in the eyes of the congregation and the elders. It tore them up for a while. They couldnt understand why they were almost no better than someone who had been DF´d !

  It was a real eye opener for them. They are good people tho, and bounced back fairly quickly. What they found was that suddenly they had TONS of free time to travel and PLAY!!

  No more grinding out the hampster wheel with assembly parts and elder stuff.

  I had a beer with him the other day. He said his fellow ¨elders¨ still basically ignore him. For no other reason than he didnt agree with them and their ¨rule-making¨.

  Lame bastards, those borg elders. They keep pushing out the good ones that show real compassion.
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  37

  Protect Your Family??

  by Tech49 in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  here is an article in the current study copy of the wt.

  tell me your thoughts and i will tell you mine.!

  this is a topic that i am very sensitive about, as i could never see not protecting my family, even if that meant using whatever means at hand to do so!

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  Tech49

  LHG, I completely agree with you. I find it morally wrong and insulting when the same dimwits spout personal opinion, and in the same paragraph, insinuate HIGHLY that their words are now to be taken as RULES and LAW, as defined by a select few, or one, cherry-picked scripture. They never come right out and say it, but you are definitely left and/or forced to come to the same ¨conclusion¨ as them, to ascertain what is ¨right¨.... or you are thrown in the mix with descriptive words that are definitely that of a negative tone: Unchristian, immature, mentally diseased, apostate, etc.

  I just get so tired of the double-talk and the style of writing that talks down to anyone who might try and think on their own! All topics and discussions from the GB lately seems to be heavily salted with fear, guilt, and general name-calling.

  As you mentioned, the natural desire to be self-protective, and to have genuine empathy and compassion, is being beaten out of the ¨brothers and sisters¨ to the point of them becoming truly and honestly broken!

  Broken to such a degree that they let themselves be eaten alive! Its frustrating and so sad, all at the same time.