gcc2k

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Posts by gcc2k

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  15

  United Nations reply letter

  by HoChiMin in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  .

  this recent letter was an answer given to a request of the un for wt information.

  minimus and i know the individual, who wishes to remain anonymous.. .

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  gcc2k

  It's natural to doubt. In my case I just asked the UN librarian to verify that the emails posted on the web were in fact of her writing.

  Playing JW advocate for a moment, is it possible that, since the above letter is dated January 1992, that the Society applied in 1991 under different guidelines, and became approved in 1992 but were grandfathered in under different guidelines?

  I'm not sure why most of the letters say "have not changed since 1991" since it appears that those guidelines go way back. What did change in 1991, if anything?

  To me, the problem is not if they used theocratic warfare to get something out of the UN, it's that they lied to the entire JW population by means of that circular letter.
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  15

  What happens to old worn out Kingdom Halls?

  by gitasatsangha in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  seems like there are differnet tier's of kindgom halls.

  the old hall i went too was orginally supposed to be large house, iirc.

  when our congregation outgrew it, it was sold to a company next door that build coffins and caskets.

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  gcc2k

  Some are sold to Babylon the Great to be used as churches or temples. That one never made any sense to me.
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  13

  what should I do...

  by davidsf in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  unbelievable... the guy i studied with called my house tonight after 10 years i left.

  fortunately my wife answered and told him i wasn't available so i have time to think about my options.

  he left his name and number.

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  gcc2k

  If you do a search you will find that there is a general campaign to visit the inactive and try to "encourage" them to come back to meetings.

  Many have echoed your concerns about "what if", and there really are no hard and fast answers. If you tell them to bugger off, odds are good that it will have a worse effect than meeting with them and saying you are just not in a place right now where you can deal with this, due to work, family or whatever.
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  52

  What are your 5 favourite films of all time?

  by ScoobySnax in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  been done before i'm sure, but here we go......... 5. shawshank redemption.

  4. air force one.

  3. wizard of oz.

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  gcc2k

  In no particular order:

  Holy Grail
  Life of Brian
  Matrix
  Blade Runner
  Top Gun
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  5

  CB Radio

  by ballistic in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  ok, my fluff post for the week is: .

  is anybody still doing cb radio???

  here in the uk we went mad on it in the 80's and every other house had either an aerial or a "dipole" going up.

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  gcc2k

  For the most part, CB is a dying breed. Some automobile drivers still use them for keeping an eye on traffic and police, especially those with heavy feet (ahem), but otherwise CB is the domain of the truckers, and even they seem to be using it less and less as more people have cellular phones and two way radios. It's hard to find a CB sales/repair shop, except for truck stops, though there are many mail order places that still carry them.
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  38

  JW Wife Tells DFed Husband "You've killed us all."

  by Swan in

  1. watchtower
  2. scandals

  this was posted just minutes ago:.

  http://katu.com/news/story.asp?id=55999.

  katu 2 news - portland, oregon.

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  gcc2k

  He should die a very slow, painful death.
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  30

  Newbie question about the NGO story

  by gcc2k in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  i've seen the reproductions of evidence in the ngo story.. let's say i was to discuss this matter with a local friendly elder.

  i imagine that the following criticisms would ensue:.

  1) that is not a real letter sent by the society (saying it was just for a library card, or as the version from portugal said, to gain favor in certain nations).. 2) the reply from the librarian at the un saying that becoming an ngo is not a requirement for a library pass is not real.. my main concern is with the latter.

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  gcc2k

  Thank you for the replies.

  By "bigwigs" I was referring to those who have brought these matters to our attention, spearhead attention towards these various issues, etc. I haven't been on this site long enough to know who is who, but I was thinking of Randy and others.

  I understand Alan's analysis. I'm not sure I agree that this was all to get a library card. Again, the Society would not take the risk of damning other religions for being NGOs when they themselves enjoyed the same status, unless as you suggest this was something that no one knew.

  Also, I disagree that disassociating themselves is any indication of guilt. It would be more problematic for them to remain members and meet conditions they could not agree to, as they said in their letter. I do think that they probably pulled out before the UN could terminate their status, since, as we know, the WT has never exactly been a UN advocate.

  Would being an NGO have helped with trying to gain approval in Russia, Bulgaria or other countries? I could see them taking some risks there, but not just to get a library card.

  I have half a mind to write the Society and ask what the deal is.
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  12

  The "Visit"

  by Jewel in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  hey folks,

  i haven't posted for a loooong time, but had an interesting experience the other day.... my mom is still an active witness.

  i did the slow fade years ago.

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  gcc2k

  See a thread by Jourles for more information on this.

  Someone here asked me if I thought these visits are motivated by love to try to bring back the inactive, or a plan to weed out the fence-sitters. I told him that I would hope the former, but suspect the latter. If they weed out too many though, that would drop their numbers as well, or are the inactive not counted in the annual report? If that is the case, then the plan would work well in both situations I guess, weeding out those with bad hearts while trying to regroom the good hearted into becoming publishers again.
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  19

  Are the GB Members Rich?

  by sandy in

  1. watchtower
  2. scandals

  i remember hearing a long time ago that "apostates" were spreading lies that the governing body members were all rich and had huge extravagant homes.

  is there truth to theses stories?

  if so, is there evidence?

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  gcc2k

  Sandy, you raise a good issue. A parallel issue which I raised in my other thread on the UN is "ok, so if they are crooks, where's the money going?" I don't think that the WT leadership can easily possess wealth, such as cars, planes, houses, etc, and if they are travelling someone somewhere must know.

  I can tell you that it bothers me that a circuit assembly hall or KH is built using volunteer labor and donations, and when it becomes too small or outdated, is sold (at a large profit) and a new hall is built, using volunteer labor and donations. Add to this that (correct me if I am wrong) the Society self-finances the mortgage on the property, charging the brothers interest. I'm not sure if they hold title to the land or not. In the case of an assembly hall, I just read yesterday that the circuit is charged a fee per head for use of the hall. If anyone has hard proof of this I would like to see it.

  Personally, since I have donated to the worldwide work, I don't see any reason, scriptural or otherwise, that I should not be able to walk into Brooklyn and ask to see their financial records for the last 10 years. Has anyone actually tried this?
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  30

  Newbie question about the NGO story

  by gcc2k in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  i've seen the reproductions of evidence in the ngo story.. let's say i was to discuss this matter with a local friendly elder.

  i imagine that the following criticisms would ensue:.

  1) that is not a real letter sent by the society (saying it was just for a library card, or as the version from portugal said, to gain favor in certain nations).. 2) the reply from the librarian at the un saying that becoming an ngo is not a requirement for a library pass is not real.. my main concern is with the latter.

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  gcc2k

  None of the bigwigs want to jump into my thread? Am I unworthy?