willyloman

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Posts by willyloman

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  82

  For those interested...

  by Valis in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  .

  a mouse whispered in my ear today that the may km was around... sincerely,.

  district overbeer of the "faithless and indiscrete slave" class

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  willyloman

  Worth repeating:

  What's funny, is there is more interest on JWD for the May KM, than you'll find in any KH in the world !
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  67

  How Sad

  by Ariell in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i have a distant cousin, 15 and in a wheel chair.

  she's always saying how she can't wait until the new system comes when finally she'll be set free from her handicap and can run around with joyful glee.

  it breaks my heart knowing this is never gonna happen and makes me even more angrier.

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  willyloman

  No, I'm delighted our tax dollars are going to help the disabled and disadvantaged because if we had to rely on the WTS and its teachings, none of them would get any practical aid. Here's what I said earlier:

  I am certainly not suggesting his life is perfect or without pain. But because of the institutions and organizations that exist to help and support disabled people (your tax dollars at work), he has more genuine hope and optimism than the wheel-chair bound person who may sit in the back of your local kingdom hall every week, you know, the one who makes everyone uncomfortable and is largely ignored by the congregants.

  My point was simply that the world, through taxes (and other charities) cares more for these people than the organization does, despite the lip service paid to "community service" and "helping others" and "love for our neighbors."
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  11

  JW Statistical Graph

  by Joker10 in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  for those who think mormons are more 'successful' than the witnesses.. .

  does the mormon church really have 11.7 million members?

  keep in mind that the church practice 'quick-baptisms'.

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  willyloman

  Running:

  I was under the impression Joker was using peak publisher figures and followed his pattern, but you are correct with respect to a given month. However, JW's use "peak publishers" when they're bragging, and "average" publishers the rest of the time, and either tally would include irregulars. My point was that all the people who "say" they are witnesses (by simply reporting time) are not, therefore the chart was based on a false premise.

  Joker also uses memorial attendance figures in an effort to make his point, but we all know those numbers are jacked up by dragging warm bodies to the annual event. Even the WTS doesn't suggest those 15 million are witnesses, although they play the "potential" card when it suits their purpose to post bigger numbers.

  But I respect your point and liked your post.
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  18

  You Have No Excuse For Needing An Excuse!

  by metatron in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  are you tired and fed up with meetings and field service but don't know how to.

  escape?.

  no problem!.

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  willyloman

  Met's observations are correct, claiming an illness is fairly foolproof. No one will ask for a note from your doctor. The more mysterious your ailment, the better. Something for which there is no known cure is ideal. Mental problems are best. The bipolar suggestion rocks; that way you get to be manic every once in a while and do stuff. And, yes, it does all seem to be b.s., but when you've been in for decades and have no friends who aren't JW's and no relationship with your non-JW family, just walking out the door is pretty scary. That's why we're all looking for the best way to fade, and why we're forced into this little game of charades.
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  11

  JW Statistical Graph

  by Joker10 in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  for those who think mormons are more 'successful' than the witnesses.. .

  does the mormon church really have 11.7 million members?

  keep in mind that the church practice 'quick-baptisms'.

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  willyloman

  Joker:

  One of the problems with your statistical analysis is that you accept as accurate the figures provided by the WTS. As a long time JW I can assure you there are NOT 6 million witnesses in the world. The rule of thumb in every congregation I've ever been used to be that 1 out of 3 were serious, the rest were walking wounded, hangers-on, people just passing through. Today, it's less than 1/3 because so many more are inactive, irregular, or just going through the motions. In any given congo, about 20% really have their heads in the game.

  So, the numbers don't reflect what they claim to reflect. In addition, the numbers are inaccurate. The count reflects the number of witnesses who are "active," which is to say, "not inactive." JW's are considered active if they have reported field service time within the past six months. If they've missed any of those months, they are "irregular," but still considered active and still counted among the membership. As many threads on this board have discussed at length, much of the reported time posted by the WTS is bogus. And much of the phantom time that is reported comes from the marginal publishers who turn in one hour or two, just so they won't be labeled "inactive" and thus come to the attention of the elders. Staying under the radar is the name of the game for many, who just want to be allowed to socialize with their families.

  Anyway, nice looking chart.
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  67

  How Sad

  by Ariell in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i have a distant cousin, 15 and in a wheel chair.

  she's always saying how she can't wait until the new system comes when finally she'll be set free from her handicap and can run around with joyful glee.

  it breaks my heart knowing this is never gonna happen and makes me even more angrier.

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  willyloman

  Understatement of the year (so far):

  If I sound out of touch with the societies teachings, maybe I am in for a rude awakening.
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  56

  What Made You Leave The "Truth"? Was It False Prophecy, People, Blood, etc.

  by minimus in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  jw's like to believe that people who leave the organization do it for selfish reasons or due to impatience and not "waiting on jehovah".

  there's a variety of reasons for persons making the decision and saying, "that's it!

  i'm not doing this anymore".

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  willyloman

  Tammy: You speak for many, and eloquently, too.
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  52

  Door-to-Door Work - Most Inneffective Work of the 21st Century

  by Black Man in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  knockin' on doors when nobody's home, processing ten of thousands of hours that u know are fake, refusing to embrace modern-technology to further the work just adds up to the most ineffective public relations campaign of the 21st century---yep, you guessed it the house-to-house work.........

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  willyloman

  This is one of the issues that caused me to start questioning. Why, after 120 years or so of public preaching, billions of hours a year, millions of tracts, magazines and brochures, does no one have a stinkin' clue what our message is?

  If you polled the entire world and asked, "What is the primary message of JW's," what do you suppose the answer would be?

  You would not find ONE person among the billions of non-JWs on the planet who would say, "Oh, that's easy, Jesus became King of God's Kingdom in Heaven in 1914 and has been ruling ever since and soon Armageddon will occur and all earth's woes will end and a theocratic government will be ushered in and the earth will be turned into a paradise."

  The answers would all have to do with blood, birthdays, holidays, and peddling magazines. Those are the messages that resonate with the masses. The kingdom stuff? Nobody gets it. The project has failed. If and when God has a message for mankind he'll use far more effective means, such as CNN.

  Field service is not about preaching. As Francois said, it's designed to demonstrate the WTS is in complete control of your life.
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  67

  How Sad

  by Ariell in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i have a distant cousin, 15 and in a wheel chair.

  she's always saying how she can't wait until the new system comes when finally she'll be set free from her handicap and can run around with joyful glee.

  it breaks my heart knowing this is never gonna happen and makes me even more angrier.

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  willyloman

  One hesitates to jump into this discussion in the middle of a cat fight but I do have a serious observation, if that's all right.

  Having worked with and befriended a handicapped person confined to a wheel chair a few years ago, my whole paradigm has shifted on this issue. Time was I would have witnessed to this fellow and shared the good news that his suffering was nearly at an end. But in this ongoing encounter, I'm the one who learned the lesson. This guy is the most positive individual I've ever met. He has one of those battery powered chairs which was supplied by a grant from a public institution which has also provided him with access to all sorts of high tech equipment, financial aid, emotional support, and an education. He is on his way to being self supporting, and is an inspiration to all who know him. When you ask him about life in a wheelchair, he is quick to tell you how much better off he is now that when he used to use crutches to walk (painfully) and frequently wear out his shoes (because he had to drag his feet).

  I am certainly not suggesting his life is perfect or without pain. But because of the institutions and organizations that exist to help and support disabled people (your tax dollars at work), he has more genuine hope and optimism than the wheel-chair bound person who may sit in the back of your local kingdom hall every week, you know, the one who makes everyone uncomfortable and is largely ignored by the congregants.

  I hope Northern Girl will learn this lesson as soon as possible (it will save your life, sweetie): Stop talking about it, and do something about it!
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  29

  Baptism Nullification- will it work for you?

  by joe_from_kokomo in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  dear friends: .

  however, it appears to have been effective, as i have not heard a peep from anyone at bethel or the local elders either.

  from our point of view, we are now free of the entrapments of the watchtower cult, and i feel that it is important to share this with those of you who may need an alternative to the two "official" methods of leaving: disfellowshipping or disassociation.

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  willyloman

  What Rocketman said.

  I know our body of elders would view this document as a letter of disassocation. However, because of the unusual format some elders would be concerned about liability and after some discussion this would be forwarded to Brooklyn for legal advice. Then we'd wait. After some months we'd probably receive a directive to announce a disassociation. Since our body has never received one of these, one can only speculate, but I cannot imagine the WTS acquiescing to this "end-around" play. I think they believe they've won the pertinent test cases on this and other forms of DF and that they are legally justified in tossing out members who don't adhere to the rules.

  But, hey, if it makes you feel better fill it out. Mailing it is optional.