Posts by Magnum

91

one reason for the dumbing down of the org

by Magnum in

a lot of us have said that theres been a dumbing down in jw land.

its just not like it used to be especially a few decades ago.

it seems to me that if jw are right and the end of the world is near, the spiritual food should get tastier and more nourishing as time goes on, but it's getting more and more bland and less nourishing.

Magnum

done4good: I believe this dumbing down is what will contribute to the organization's, (eventual), demise. What WT does not understand, is the dynamic that is playing out. It used to be, (at least through the 80's - early '90's), that JWs were encouraged to engage householders in discussion, and were able to do so quite well on many topics, however shortsighted they may have been in reality. There was passion, and a true belief that we were helping others understand things their religions were supposedly not teaching them. Not any more. JWs are no longer interested in the work. No passion, no desire...nothing to desire.

Secondly, the dumbing down will eventually cause those, like my friend above, to wake up. Intelligent people are generally successful. Successful people do not like being manipulated or controlled. The organization is replacing "richer", albeit false material, with control and manipulation. This is a recipe for long term disaster. It is a positive feedback loop that will not reverse itself. At some point, life happens. With no desire, no passion, and enough intelligence to know better, a big enough emotional tug in the other direction is all it takes to drive someone out. It happend to me, and a good number of us here the same way. The best and the brightest figure it out eventually.

I agree.

This part,

It used to be, (at least through the 80's - early '90's), that JWs were encouraged to engage householders in discussion, and were able to do so quite well on many topics, however shortsighted they may have been in reality. There was passion, and a true belief that we were helping others understand things their religions were supposedly not teaching them. Not any more. JWs are no longer interested in the work. No passion, no desire...nothing to desire.

I especially agree with. It's so different now. I remember when I had a passion in the ministry engaging householders, but no more. Damn, JWdom is different now. What if I did find an intelligent interested person? Am I going to enthusiastically encourage him to attend our meetings where he's going to be stimulated and educated and encouraged? I'd be embarassed to take him to a meeting.

23

2029 - the year NOBODY from 1914 will still be alive.

by EndofMysteries in

going by the oldest verified by birth cert living person is 115 years old, in 15 years not only will not "millions now living will never die(1914)" be untrue, but even 1 single person now living will never die will be out.

i wonder what the spin will be then w/ the wt.

it's just around the corner, don't go to school, give us all your money and assets, it's happening real soon now.

Magnum

wanderlust: Can someone please explain why the change from an undefined period of time to the "overlapping generation" b.s.?

I had actually typed an answer but lost it; then I noticed that Apognphos said basically what I was going to say.

I'll say it anyway. I think the org realized that without a deadline, that is, with the undefined period, JWs would just go to living as normal humans do. The org realized it needed to keep the excitement up - to keep the carrot dangling - so it had to have a deadline. Therefore, the new generation teaching which has a limit (although it could be decades away).

Now the org can claim the end is nigh, yet still have plenty of wiggle room - plenty of time to gradually come up with plan B when the time limit on this teaching runs out like it did the one that was used for many years before '95.

32

You don't seem to be as happy anymore!?

by stuckinarut2 in

i have been told by some in the cong that i don't seem to be as happy anymore..."what's wrong?

" they ask..... i feel like screaming out "i'm not happy because i'm going insane living a sham fake life stuck in the org pretending to be a good ms and witness!".

i really do feel it is taking a toll on me...and even the damn bros and sis are now seeing it!.

Magnum

I agree with Blondie: “They might be observing that you are pulling back and assume that you must be unhappy.”

When we learn TTATT, we are no long bobbing heads. We don’t smile and nod and gush over Watchtower articles, etc. Our comments (if we comment at all) don’t seem the same. We are deprogramming, breaking the borg’s assimilation of us. To JWs, it seems that we are unhappy, but it’s just that we realize that it’s all BS.

Do you remember that show “Logan’s Run”? If I remember correctly, to keep population down citizens were killed at age 30, but were told they were being renewed in some carousel device. Most happily and blissfully entered the device when their time came. However, a few figured out, so their countenances did not convey bliss and happiness.

So we’ve figured out. We don’t look blissful and happy at meetings anymore. I think that’s what they’re actually noticing about you – you just don’t have that blissful JW look anymore; I know that’s what they’re noticing about me.

I like what DATA-DOG said. You could use this situation to plant some seeds of doubt without sounding like an apostate; you might even elicit some sympathy. You could say something like “Yeah, it’s just so sad seeing a lot of friends and family grow old and die when we thought the new world would have long been here by now. I’m just sad that it seems like this world is going to keep on going. I wish we had been right about the generation teaching as we taught for a long time – that the time limit should have been up by about 1994. I just don’t understand this new generation teaching; it just doesn’t make sense. Does it make sense to you? According to it, the end could be decades away. What about all the JWs who didn’t plan for retirement – who gave up everything to pioneer, etc.? I just get sad thinking about it.”

You could really use the opportunity.

I also like what NAVYTOWN said

2

Duck Shot Through Neck with Arrow/Dart Still On the Loose 3 Months Later

by Wild_Thing in

jw
friends

this poor little guy was spotted in kansas city about 3 months ago.

he was first spotted in someone's backyard pool, and has mostly been hanging out in a pond in a kansas city park.

they keep trying to catch him, but evidently he's clever.. they said on the news tonight that the missouri conservation department is at the park tonight making a more concentrated effort to capture the duck.

Magnum

I sure hope they can catch it and help it. A few years ago I saw a story about the same kind of thing – a duck (or maybe another type of bird) with an arrow through its neck.

In my area a few years ago, somebody shot and killed a deer with a rifle and found that it had an arrow broken off in its body. I’ve seen stories of bears limping along with gunshot wounds. That’s one of the main reasons the JW paradise concept appealed to me – because I thought it would mean an end to animal suffering, too.

91

one reason for the dumbing down of the org

by Magnum in

a lot of us have said that theres been a dumbing down in jw land.

its just not like it used to be especially a few decades ago.

it seems to me that if jw are right and the end of the world is near, the spiritual food should get tastier and more nourishing as time goes on, but it's getting more and more bland and less nourishing.

Magnum

steve2 - don't be embarassed. The quality was better then; it was crisp and clear. The org has gone downhill.

91

one reason for the dumbing down of the org

by Magnum in

a lot of us have said that theres been a dumbing down in jw land.

its just not like it used to be especially a few decades ago.

it seems to me that if jw are right and the end of the world is near, the spiritual food should get tastier and more nourishing as time goes on, but it's getting more and more bland and less nourishing.

Magnum

Alphaman-

I agree with what you say about Freddy. However, at the time, he was accepted as the JW guru, so he was unchallenged. It reminds me of an episode of the Beverly Hillbillies I once saw. Ellie-Mae and Jethro got sucked into a commune of hippies, and eventually Granny joined. In this commune was some skinny, shaggy-looking little hippie punk that basically just slept on a cot all day. Every once in a while he would wake up, raise his head up, and say something mundane like "I need to go to the bathroom". All the hippies would then excitedly try to figure out the "deep" meaning of his words, as if they were profound. He was their guru, and whatever he said was unchallenged, accepted, revered even though he was just a skinny little punk who basically slept all day.

That, to me, is the way it was with Freddy. He was nothing special, but he was the JW guru, and whatever he said must have been profound and deep. JWs waited eagerly for the next words to come from his mouth of his pen. However, he was just a social misfit with decent intelligence and education, and he was perhaps delusional.

35

Public Speaker Cries During His Talk

by James Jackson in

his talk was about reaching out for the real life.. he is in his mid seventies, then begins to rant on about staying loyal to the organization because many of us have lost loved ones in death and if we want to see them again we must remain in the organization.

he says he wants to see his father again, then the tears begin to flow right there on the stage.... then an elderly sister during the watchtower study admits to regetting leaving her daughter behind to seek a better life in the u.s, and she is crying.... these 2 meetings was just plain weird..

Magnum

Sir82 & WingCommander - to your entire posts.

WingCommander, I'm crying, too.

Sir82, I, too, think we're going to see some interesting stuff in the next five years

62

How We Come Across On The Board

by minimus in

jw
friends

most people here have never met you.

we converse, discuss, argue, laugh, agree, question, share our lives..... quite often, you kind of get to know what a person is like.

some people, we tend to gravitate to and others, we shy away from.. how do you think you come across to other people?

Magnum

In real life, I'm reasonable, caring, very easy to get along with, easy-going, etc. Sometimes on here, I might seem more serious and stern, but it's because I'm here for material and info that are really important to me. I'm still searching for answers. So you might "see" a more serious version of me here.

As I look back, I regret at times playing the JW role and going along with things that didn't feel right, so on here you will see the real me - though maybe the more serous version of the real me.

91

one reason for the dumbing down of the org

by Magnum in

a lot of us have said that theres been a dumbing down in jw land.

its just not like it used to be especially a few decades ago.

it seems to me that if jw are right and the end of the world is near, the spiritual food should get tastier and more nourishing as time goes on, but it's getting more and more bland and less nourishing.

Magnum

Vidiot - when I read what Crazyguy wrote, I thought he was saying that the org now veers away from deeper Bible teachings and analysis because they know if they do, there's less chance they can be found to be wrong. It's safer. It's kind of like the less you say, the less you can be wrong.

All of their old, deeper, more analytical publications are now an embarassment and thorn in their sides. That's why they're trying to make them all disappear.

91

one reason for the dumbing down of the org

by Magnum in

a lot of us have said that theres been a dumbing down in jw land.

its just not like it used to be especially a few decades ago.

it seems to me that if jw are right and the end of the world is near, the spiritual food should get tastier and more nourishing as time goes on, but it's getting more and more bland and less nourishing.

Magnum

donuthole - I agree with everything you said. For example,

The Daniel book and the two-volume Isaiah's Prophecy books seemed to close out the era of studying the "deeper things". We studied those books as I was waking up and on the way out. I recall the publishers grumbling about how hard it was to understand.

The turning point came when they released the book on the minor-prophets. It was a different take that moved away from psuedo-intellectual examination of history, types, and antitypes. Instead, it focused on applying the writings of the minor prophets to things like meeting attendence, dress, personal study, education, entertainment, materialism ... basically the hot topics the organization always harps on.

So true. I noticed the same thing about the minor prophets book. That's also true about the new Jeremiah book and the Acts book. No more commentary type pseudo-intellectual analysis. They, too, both focused on the topics you mentioned - topics having to do more with JW conduct - topics like materialism, meeting attendance, etc. They were both major bores and wastes of time.