Posts by Magnum

13

Just helped my kid get his first used car.

by GrreatTeacher in

my son, only child, age 19, college sophomore, just got his first used car.

most importantly, he learned the fun and exhilarating process of buying a used car from a dealer.

he had saved some money, but everything around the $5000 range was basically a shit box on wheels.

Magnum

Forget the kids; I need the info you posted. I'm actually looking now for a small pickup or Ford Transit Connect van in the $10,000 and under range. The info you posted was helpful to me. I don't have much experience buying vehicles because I was a poor pioneer for so long and only bought a couple of extremely cheap, but mechanically good, used cars over the years and drove them for years until they just couldn't go anymore.

dubstepped, I did the same. Always paid cash. I'm 60ish and have never had a car loan. About 15 years ago, I was desperate for a car. Found one in a neighboring state from a private seller. It was a Ford Escort wagon with 199,000 miles on it. I know that's a lot, but I was desperate, and she only wanted $1500 for it. She was a schoolteacher, and she told me the miles were mostly highway miles accrued during visits to her mother. She didn't have to tell me this, but she said that for some strange reason it just sometimes wouldn't start. She said she took it to a mechanic, but he couldn't figure it out. That made me really trust her. Also, I knew that it had to be something simple.

I asked her whether she would take any less, and she said her lowest was $1400. I wrote her a check (and she trusted it). I drove that car for years. It reached over 300,000 miles with no major issues. It started having valve problems which could have been repaired, but I figured that with the age and mileage, it would be better to just let it rest. Also, the lady was right about its not starting sometimes. The engine would turn over fine, but it just wouldn't fire up. You could roll it a couple of feet sometimes and that would make it start. I thought it must have been some kind of sensor. Sure enough, my mechanic found a bad sensor and replaced it, and I never had that problem again. That was an honest woman.

I'm about to have to get my first car loan, though, because I don't have the cash now for one. That's one reason why GreatTeacher's post was helpful to me.

OFF TOPIC: GreatTeacher, you just posted on another thread something about living near Maryland or something like that. For some reason, I always thought you were across the pond with the Brits that post on here. You're in the U.S.????

15

Please Watchtower Society : Not another '' LIVE FOREVER'' publication.

by RULES & REGULATIONS in

there will be another new generation of watchtower society followers that will be introduced to ''the.

carrot and stick.

'' promise something that will never be attained!.

Magnum

Just downloaded and looked at the introductory part. Noticed that all the artist depictions look more realistic - not so cartoonish and make-believe as in the Live Forever book. The colors are more realistic. I didn't see any with a bunch of fruit and panda bears in vivid colors.

I saw a realistic looking portrayal of a boy in shorts kicking a soccer ball and a man and woman hiking in mountains with shorts and backpacks (and the shorts aren't dressy, either; they look more rugged like they're meant for activity). I saw some people walking down a snow-covered road with dogs on leashes (so, you won't go to Gehenna for owning a pet now???). It just seems to be more in touch with actual life now - soccer balls? pets? hiking in mountains with hiking boots and stylish activewear?

So, again (we've been saying it here for a number of years now), it seems that the org is trying to go more mainstream and appeal to more people. In the old, bolder days, the org was more like "our way or the highway." Now, it seems to know its gig is up, and it's trying to be more hip and modern and appealing.

28

I have a deep seated hatred for the leadership of the JW Cult

by mrquik in

i look back on my life & realize all major mistakes fall at the feet of the jw leadership.

no college, no birthdays, basically no celebrations.

lived my younger years as an outcast.

Magnum

Damn, I feel your pain and anger. I'm a little younger than you, but I have friends my age (60ish) who have been retired with good pensions since their mid-50's. I, like you, don't have one. I have the same deep-seated hatred for the leadership that you do.

13

How Life May have Started on This Planet Without YHWH

by fulltimestudent in

jw
friends

some may be interested in this research from the scripps research institute.. this research and its conclusion builds on previous work, quote: "in a study published in the chemistry journal angewandte chemie, they demonstrated that a simple compound called diamidophosphate (dap), which was plausibly present on earth before life arose, could have chemically knitted together tiny dna building blocks called deoxynucleosides into strands of primordial dna.. the finding is the latest in a series of discoveries, over the past several years, pointing to the possibility that dna and its close chemical cousin rna arose together as products of similar chemical reactions, and that the first self-replicating molecules -- the first life forms on earth -- were mixes of the two.".

read more at this science daily web-site .... link: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/12/201228095428.htm.

Magnum

I'm still open to the possibility of some higher being(s)' being behind our existence. pistolpete writes that he thinks this being (or these beings) are dead. I have considered that possibility, but I hope it's not true. I still long for some kind of help from a higher source for all the problems (mainly suffering) we have on earth.

I've recently been watching some YouTube videos on particle physics, quantum field theory, etc. It's just mind-blowing. One who has no knowledge at all of such cannot begin to comprehend reality. The more I learn about such, the more I am inclined to believe in some higher being(s).

It's fascinating how our understanding has progressed. For a long time, it was thought that atoms were the fundamental building blocks of nature - that they were indivisible. Then, not too long ago (late 1800's) the electron was discovered, indicating that atoms aren't fundamental. It was then realized that atoms have a nucleus consisting of protons and neutrons. So, for a while, electrons, protons, and neutrons were considered to be fundamental. Then, it was discovered that protons and neutrons are composed of quarks.

According to our current, most accepted understanding, fundamental particles aren't really particles in the sense that many might think. In other words, they are not like little tiny balls or objects; they have no internal structure and are thought of as being zero-dimensional points in space. As best I understand so far, they are perturbations of quantum fields.

It just blows my mind to consider that our bodies and everything we experience come from perturbations of quantum fields. It blows my mind to think that consciousness could arise from such.

Learning more about particle physics, quantum field theory, etc. are making me more open to something I've considered the last few years - that some kind of programming or software could be behind it all.

Kind of similar to what pistolpete wrote, I've considered that maybe our world is just some lab experiment or maybe even something done just for entertainment by a higher being (or higher beings).

The way that math describes the universe is fascinating. Physics (especially modern physics) is fascinating. It's hard to believe that it all just came about on its own. But then, if there is a higher being, it would be hard to believe that he didn't have some kind of origin. The existence of a higher being could explain our origin, but, it wouldn't answer the ultimate origin questions of how and why anything (including a creator) exists.

When you've got some time, watch this video on math:

https://youtu.be/8mve0UoSxTo?list=PLRxEhF7If641_4Slm_A30DK8STmSnle01

72

How many TRUE BELIEVERS do you think are left in the Organization?

by pistolpete in

i have a few jw relatives who are true believers.

by this i mean, they believe with all their heart that 1914 was the beginning of the last days, that this is the last generation, that we are in the very last of the last hour of this system of things, and that you should obey the governing body even if it does not make sense.

all of them are in their 60s and up into their 90s there is nothing you can say or show them to convince them or even cause a small doubt that the wt is not god organization.

Magnum

Damn, FedUpJW, that's interesting! You might have commented on that before, but I don't remember it; glad you posted it. Enlightening. I know some old-timers who died in the 90's. I'd love to see what they would think if they could come back now and see the religion they loved - what it is now. I'd also love to see what they'd think about the fact that in a little while it'll be 2021 with no "new world".

11

Opportunities you had to give up as Jw?

by Overrated in

jw
friends

i could of gone to a two college program.

but gee-hovah didn't like it and my parents wanted me to sling watchtowers and awakes.

it's a good thing i'm in a profession that i can work and pay the bill's and finally left the "trooth "..

Magnum

I had a good childhood - JW mother / non-JW father. I was allowed to associate with non-JWs, and I was very rarely dragged into the ministry because my mother rarely went in service. The worst part was the meetings. I grew up in a fabulous rural setting and would be out playing in the woods, fields, etc. with my friends and would hear that yell to come home because it was meeting time (three times per week). Then, when I was in high school, my mother became almost inactive. I went to almost no meetings, played football and basketball, and dated "wordly" girls.

So, I didn't lose that much of my youth; it was the prime of my life that was lost. Because of my JW indoctrination, I had no aspirations for the future; the indoctrination was always lurking in the back of my mind. When in high school, I made no plans. I was a deep thinker and questioner, so I really started to do study and analysis of JWdom when I graduated from high school. I wasn't fully convinced of the Bible's authenticity and that JWdom was right, but I leaned in that direction. I started working part time and going to college just to buy time because I wasn't ready to give in to JWdom; I just wasn't sure yet. I was not going to college to prepare for the future; I was just sort of in limbo. In college, I didn't follow any particular course of study for a major; I just took random courses, trying to sort things out.

I don't remember why, but I ended up taking calculus and physics (the calculus-based version, not the algebra-based version), and my already existing love of math and science were stimulated. I ended up transferring to a major university, well-known for science and engineering. There, I continued to take more advanced math, advanced physics, engineering, organic chemistry, etc., still not really following a course of study for a major even though I had to declare one. While still in college, I finally decided to become a JW and completely lost interest, not in math and science, but in schooling. This was at a time when the end was thought to be extremely imminent.

I left school, started pioneering, and after that, my life was a blur. The next thirty-five years were filled with exhaustion, misery, frustration, sacrifice, suffering, and deprivation. I made almost no money and was at times without medical and dental care and transportation. I never went hungry, but there were times when I saw people ordering nice big Chik-fil-A sandwiches and tall drinks, and I had to eat a prepackaged 69cent muffin and drink water from a fountain. I can't specify out here in public all my loving conditions, but I can tell you that they were harsh.

I now have no retirement and no prospects for such. I have friends who retired in their mid-50's. One retired at 54 as a federal probation officer. He gets really good money for life and great lifetime benefits. Even his social security benefit will be higher than mine because I made so little money.

It just sickens me. At over 60, I just started a new job today. It's depressing to just be starting a new job at 60+, knowing you can never retire, that you have nothing to look forward to.

So, the opportunities I gave up? Just having a normal life, having weekends to look forward to, having time after work each day to look forward to, having vacations, making money, having a retirement, etc. The only thing I didn't really lose was a mostly normal childhood.

P.S.

I was recently talking with a JW I've known for decades and with whom I can be open. I mentioned a non-JW we both know who worked a normal job, retired mid-50's, and is set for life. This JW, who is stubborn and doesn't catch on to things well, said "Yeah, but he didn't like his job."

I responded by explaining that I didn't like what what I did as a JW, either. I was fulltime in the ministry, I often had two of the five service committee positions (often the two hardest and most time-consuming), etc. I said that, yeah, this guy might not have liked his job, BUT, HE WAS GETTING PAID FOR IT, whereas, not only was I not getting paid, I was donating to my "employer" the whole time. He got afternoons off, nights off, weekends off, health benefits, paid vacations, and retirement. I got nothing; I actually got worse than nothing, since I paid JWdom to work for it.

The JW couldn't get the point, or at least wouldn't acknowledge it.

72

How many TRUE BELIEVERS do you think are left in the Organization?

by pistolpete in

i have a few jw relatives who are true believers.

by this i mean, they believe with all their heart that 1914 was the beginning of the last days, that this is the last generation, that we are in the very last of the last hour of this system of things, and that you should obey the governing body even if it does not make sense.

all of them are in their 60s and up into their 90s there is nothing you can say or show them to convince them or even cause a small doubt that the wt is not god organization.

Magnum

Good question. I'd love to know the actual answer. It's going to be interesting to see what happens when the older group you mentioned dies off. They're the last ones from the old JWdom - when the material was deeper, the org was bolder and more scholarly, etc. They remember F Franz, the thicker prophecy books, the exciting conventions, the excitement of really believing the end was imminent, etc. JWdom is just so different now. I don't see how it could produce the kind of real true believers of decades past - those who lived and breathed for the religion and were willing to die for it.

I think a lot of those from the 60+ group, even though true believers, are confused because "this system" should have been long gone by now. Also, they've seen the org change so much in ways they don't necessarily like or understand. I'd love to know what they're really thinking.

I haven't really talked with any younger ones in the last decade or so, so I don't really know what the current mindset is. Would love to see more input on this topic. I hope I live long enough to see what happens. I'm really shocked that the org has survived this long. If you had asked me in 2014, I would have guessed that it might have crashed by now.

P.S. I think the org might want all of the older group to be gone because those older ones remember a lot of the failed predictions, embarrassing history, doctrinal shifts, etc.

9

Mt 10:18 / JWdom

by Magnum in

mt 10:18 (nwt):.

and you will be brought before governors and kings for my sake, for a witness to them and the nations.. how has this worked out for jwdom?

i always got the impression that jws would be brought before governments and would give some kind of grand, impressive witness.

Magnum

Mt 10:18 (NWT):

And you will be brought before governors and kings for my sake, for a witness to them and the nations.

How has this worked out for JWdom? I always got the impression that JWs would be brought before governments and would give some kind of grand, impressive witness. Maybe JWs can relate some positive incidents, but the main thing that comes to my mind now is negative, that is, the org's being brought before government agencies because of the child molesting crisis. Think about the ARC. I don't see JWdom giving some kind of noble witness, but just trying to defend itself, and not looking very good in the process - definitely not giving some kind of witness that would attract people to it or even make people respect it.

It seems to me that JWdom doesn't even want to be haled before the average person on the street anymore. It doesn't want scrutiny. That's why it's changed so much in the last few decades - becoming less analytical. JWs used to relish challenges and questions, but now, they run from such and/or direct people to their website (the material on which is no longer deep and analytical).

So, I think Mt 10:18 ain't quite workin' out the way it was supposed to.

10

Watchtower Convicts Itself - Quotes

by Sea Breeze in

this short video contains a few quotes from the wt that may help loved ones wake up a bit.

i thought it was pretty well done.

i wish the title wasn't so "in your face", but rather eased into it a bit more discreetly.

Magnum

Wow! Thank you.

62

-0:6 negative growth 2020 service year

by Fadeaway1962 in

phttps://www.jw.org/finder?wtlocale=e&pub=syr20&srcid=share .

plus another increase in memorial partakes number etc .

Magnum

Yes, the circumstances are unique, and I feel sure they will use that argument. However, it seems that they were headed to negative growth, anyway.