Posts by DJS

How can I get me some of that? No, what you are describing about her living conditions is not typical of JWs, at least based on my experience. Others may shed better light.

Yes, love can have goggles, but you have only known this woman for a few months. I could understand 'loving' her if her dad owned a liquor store and she liked girls - and would share occasionally. But . . .

I have a rule. I don't commit to anyone in any manner until I've known them for 2 years. People can fake who they really are for a while, but most can't fake it for 2 years. Three months is nothing in relationship terms, and as you state you are rarely at her zoo, I mean home.

Stan, there's this thing-ey called a plan. Make a new one.

89

Need advice

by Drwho in

i'm a middle aged man.

i dated a jw lady for 3 months ., we never had sex, just made out , half naked , well everything except underwear .

she has been a jw for 40 years ., was married to a jw but he committed adultery 13 years ago so they divorced .

DJS

3 months and foreplay is all you got? I would ask for my money back.

Find a bus. Hop on it. Gus. OR, to put it another way, there are between 3.5 to 4 billion women on the planet who arent JWs.

Find one of them.

4

Origins of ISIS

by Coded Logic in

so somebody asked me what the origins of isis were and after doing some research this is what i came up with.

but as the identity of these groups really overlaps it's hard to know where one stops and another begins.

can somebody fact check me please?.

DJS

Coded,

Nice OP. Intelligence Analysts consider, among others, two things when they analyze and evaluate threats or potential threats: Intentions and Capabilities.

We probably have to give the US’ Intel Analysts a bit of slack on whether it was possible to accurately determine the intentions of the early ISIS groups. Islamic groups desiring a caliphate is commonplace in the ME, so clearly determining intentions would be difficult.

The Arab Spring helped lead to Syria and Assad’s current problems, as well as Assad’s harsh oppressive rule. Wanting to establish a caliphate and actually being able to do so are two very different things. The Arab/Islamic countries have tightly controlled these intentions for nearly a century, including banning or monitoring groups such as the Muslim Brotherhood and others.

The fall of so many Arab governments would and has obviously provided opportunity for those with caliphate intentions. Was the US Intel community a bit slow in identifying intentions? Possibly, but the Commander in Chief has the ability to disagree with Intel findings. It seems Obama may have done so, based on reports. We probably won’t know clearly until a few years after Obama leaves office.

The capabilities of ISIS are really the issue, and these were created by the overthrow of Saddam’s Iraq and especially by the dissolving of his army a few years later. ISIS’ capabilities didn’t come from rag tag collectibles from the post-Arab spring uprisings, nor did they come for the most part from internal Syrian sources.

They came from the only battle and strategy tested and conditioned people in the area, Saddam’s generals and military experts.

Without these men ISIS would have been a glorified version of Al Queda, capable of terrorist attacks and disrupting a government but completely incapable of funding, planning, and carrying out military tactics and strategy that enabled them to both take territory inside and outside of Syria by force and hold onto it by force.

The military and financial logistics and resources necessary to do that are enormous. No rag tag assemblage of Arab/Islamic militants could accomplish that. Ever.

Saddam’s military chiefs scurried to Syria like rats. They have returned with a vengeance. They had incredible resources. Battled Tested. Military strategists. Access to resources with a deep and extensive rolodex of support, financial aid and how to recruit, train, equip and carry out military objectives. Again, a few or a few thousand rebels or those desiring a caliphate couldn’t do what ISIS has done without this leadership and knowledge. History suggests that Hussein’s somewhat secular Baathist regime had been embracing strict sharia and Islamic fundamentalism for some time, which is the rocket fuel for the brutality we see in ISIS’ ‘management’ of ‘infidels’, x-tians, hybrids and gays.

http://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/1.670177

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/23/opinion/how-saddam-hussein-gave-us-isis.html?_r=0

8

When a man stops believing in God he doesn’t then believe in nothing, he believes anything - G KChesterton

by slimboyfat in

i have been reading rodney stark's new book triumph of faith, where he makes his argument afresh that religion is alive and well.

in fact he says it's doing better than ever, and we are in the middle of a revival of faith.

above is a particular quote he likes to use when refusing secularisation.

DJS

As Cofty says, bullocks.

The quote you are so fond of SBF is similar to one used frequently by the fundie preacher Billy Graham. If you try to take a middle of the roach approach to god you will get run over from both directions. Other fundies have opined something similar - those who don't believe in anything will fall for everything.

Utter bullocks and x-tian spin and nonsense at its worst. The rationals follow the evidence, without prejudice or emotion. That isn't believing in 'anything'; that isn't even belief. The only thing required to believe is to feel.

Whistling through the graveyard is Mr. Stark. Religion is dying a much deserved, slow painful death. Without a doubt it will re-born like a Phoenix into something our planet and species can tolerate. A lot of humans will seek out religion for generations, because we are a pathetic species. Religion is the single most barrier in the way of the evolution of our species. The sooner it can be vanquished, and the 'need' for it removed, the better we will be as a species.

And really, he wants to place ANY relevance to the word spiritual? Really, SBF? That word means anything and everything. I would use the word to describe many of the travels and excellent adventures I've been on the past 2 decades. I would use it to define my friendships and the relationships with my kids. I use it frequently to describe my GF's ass.

None of those things have anything to do with religion or god. Hanging his hat on the relevance of that word is more whistling whilst walking by Mr. Stark. Through the graveyard.

133

Why Are You Here?

by Believer in

i'm wondering why believers remain members of this forum which is clearly hostile to believers.

as one member said, nonbelievers pounce on any semblance of belief like piranhas on prey.

as former jws we should have had our fill of judgmental know-it-alls, but here we are.

DJS

@Believer, from your opening salvo across our bow:

"Jesus condemned the Pharisees because 'they traverse land and sea to make one proselyte and then made him a subject of Gehenna more so than themselves.’ At first I wondered what that meant but watching the progression of many exJWs evolve or devolve from blind faith to no faith seems to be the answer. Of course there are many who evolved from blind faith to true faith but those believers are relatively quiet here. "

And you say you aren't here to preach. Bullshit. That is the only reason you are here.

You judge all of us heathens, beating us with the jesus stick and by inference condemning us to Gehenna. Then you directly state that those of us who left faith (and obviously by faith you mean jesus/jah - more preaching) have no faith. Then you state that others have left JWdom to find the 'true' faith, inferring that 'no faith' is bad and also deserving of Gehenna I suppose. No faith in your belief system is clearly a reason for destruction.

Then you judge us again by inferring those with 'true' faith are being bullied into silence by those with 'no' faith. And clearly in Believer's belief system 'true' faith is what Believer - and no one else on the planet - has. Excellent. A delusional, egocentric, narcissist here to preach to and condemn us heathen atheists.

As Mr. Timberlake says, Go ahead, be gone with you. And take your maranatha papers, or whatever they are called, with you. You are here to preach and your spread your infection.

133

Why Are You Here?

by Believer in

i'm wondering why believers remain members of this forum which is clearly hostile to believers.

as one member said, nonbelievers pounce on any semblance of belief like piranhas on prey.

as former jws we should have had our fill of judgmental know-it-alls, but here we are.

DJS

Believer wouldn't be here either if this site was dominated by Hindus, Muslims and Jews. She is only here because she thinks she has some x-tian based bible learnin' that she can wow us all with.

Not a chance in hell Believer would stick around if the site didn't favor her particular gods. She was looking for an opening to preach and amaze. How did that work out for you, Believer? The truth stings a bit, doesn't it.

240

Introduction - Any Believers?

by Believer in

i’ve been reading it for a few of years off and on, but have been a little too ... maybe ... timid to join.

i left the watchtower organization almost 20 years ago but never abandoned my faith and belief in god.

i knew the gb/organization didn’t represent god, so when i lost my faith in them, i managed to keep my faith in an all wise benevolent creator.

DJS

Postscript,

There is a huge difference between believing that the universe was created by an intelligent godlike creator and believing specifically in, for example, the bible version or a specific god.

The evidence does not point to a creator, but since there is so much we don't know it really isn't worth arguing the point. If that changes and there is sufficient evidence that a creator created the universe, atheists will become believers. Atheism isn't a religion; it isn't associated with emotions of any kind. It is based on evidence.

Having said that, when any of you theists start talking about the bible, jah, jesus, god is love, this scripture or that scripture - you are preaching. When you make, as Simon pointed out, definitive statements about your beliefs, you are imposing your beliefs on the rest of us.

Why would you think that acceptable? Why would you think we should respect that? Why would any of you come on this site, which is full of people who have been damaged by religion in general and one in specific, and think it acceptable to preach your version of jesus? So yes KateWild, I find it disgusting and abhorrent when that occurs, and it happens a lot.

Why would you think your beliefs are any more valid than those of the Hindus, Muslims, Animists, Satanists, Janes, Buddhists or those who still think Thor is the man?

They are not any more valid. Believe all you wish, but take it outside or keep it to yourself. It's sort of like smoking; you are free to contaminate yourself with them, but you are not free to contaminate the rest of us.

I have zero respect for people who smoke indoors or around others. I have the same lack of respect for those who try to impose their religious beliefs, and I do not understand why you feel compelled to speak of them.

Take Believer, for example, she wasn't content to merely suggest that belief in a creator should deserve respect; no, she had to bring up jesus, the bible, the jah god dude and some idiot reading papers about the pre-jesus jesus. That shows what her real motive was and is - to impose her specific brand of x-tianity on the rest of us and expect us to be in awe of her awesomeness.

45

Do JW beliefs deserve respect?

by azor in

what say you?

.

DJS

jwundubbed,

Went and actually did some actual research between those 2 posts, huh? Excellent. When it is laser accurate, based on facts and evidence, and does not go too far ridicule is extremely effective.

And deserved.

If it doesn't meet those criteria it is counter productive