Posts by talesin

79

The really cool feeling of community within JWs

by Phaedra in

i remember going out with other jws after the memorial.. small gatherings.. picnics at some local landmark.. the feeling of closeness, camaraderie, friendship with like minded people you could trust.. haven't experienced it since i left.. really miss that..

talesin

Oh, my! I really should read the whole thread. smh

North Korea is a communist monarchy with a god-king. Google is your friend!

(Afterthought: "personality cult" or "cult of personality" ; think of the Moonies, it is a cult.)

Watch Lisa Ling's documentary for National Geographic, on youtube. Here's the link to part 1.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A_268_pBvPs

from Rational wiki, where it's rightly called 'bizarre':

North Korea, also known as the "Democratic People's Republic of Korea" (DPRK; Korean chosŏn'gŭl: 조선민주주의인민공화국; Korean hancha: 朝鮮民主主義人民共和國; Chosŏn Minjujuŭi Inmin Konghwaguk), is a small, autarkic remnant of the Cold War ruled by third generation "leader" Kim Jong Un. The former ruler and father of the current one, Kim Jong Il,[2] lorded over the country as a God-king, and had the world's largest personality cult. He inherited power from his daddy, Kim Il Sung,[3] who founded the nation with the assistance from theSoviet Union. However, since the present leader is the third-gen Kim, that would make North Korea the world's only Communist dynasty (This is especially bizarre since monarchism was one of the things Marx railed against).
North Korea is perhaps the most undemocratic and totalitarian state in existence, with possibly the world's worst human rights record, and one of the only countries in the world in which Internet access is hugely censored and generally only available in the capital city.[4]. The regime is so abhorrently totalitarian that even most communists despise it. Its only outside supporters are either brainwashed tankies, or are just insane.

79

The really cool feeling of community within JWs

by Phaedra in

i remember going out with other jws after the memorial.. small gatherings.. picnics at some local landmark.. the feeling of closeness, camaraderie, friendship with like minded people you could trust.. haven't experienced it since i left.. really miss that..

talesin

"Argument from intimidation", which, based on John T. Reed's Debating Strategies, is "its appeal to moral self-doubt and its reliance on the fear, guilt or ignorance of the victim. It is used in the form of an ultimatum demanding that the victim renounce a given idea without discussion, under threat of being considered morally unworthy."

DJS Great quote. I've seen this tactic used a lot in recent debates. Saved, and the book is not at my library, but I'll find online. Thanks.

79

The really cool feeling of community within JWs

by Phaedra in

i remember going out with other jws after the memorial.. small gatherings.. picnics at some local landmark.. the feeling of closeness, camaraderie, friendship with like minded people you could trust.. haven't experienced it since i left.. really miss that..

talesin

I remember that feeling, though it was long ago. We knew each other before we went to school, they are the only ones we were allowed to be friends with. And we shared that experience. I still miss going out to dinner with a group, and some of the funniest conversations. Oy, I was naive, and never did have much of a 'filter'.

I've had some great times in my life, and still do. But those are the only really fun memories of my youth (skating parties, the best). Sometimes, at this time of year, it would be good to have folks around that i grew up with, or went to uni with, known and trusted for many years. You know, like regular people. xx

Edit: After reading fmf's comment, I have to say, YES. I have not read the thread. Best thing I ever did was get involved in some activism, and organizing a festival. My atheist friends, LOL, dubbed me 'the antiChrist' , and had the best Xmases with them, and other times, drum parties on the beach, pot lucks ...... music and food and no judgment, and not heavy drinkers. Thinking atheists have poor values is ignorance, plain and simple. All hail Festivus! :P

12

Questions for Serena Williams

by Esse quam videri in

being as serena williams shows outstanding abilities and skills at that which she exerts herself in, such as tennis, it would seems reasonable that serena williams has the same high level of abilities in all of her worthwhile endeavors.

perhaps she has this level of abilities in her journey as one of jehovah's witnesses.

would it not be reasonable that those who need greater clarification and understanding of certain bible subjects, to make contact with serena and ask her such questions?.

talesin

Exactly sparky1, and then a few months later, she's lonely at Xmas? Baptized or not, she can still be declared 'shunned'. When the 'ship hit the sand' in our group, I walked away, and my best friend FLED 4000km away. She led a double life all this time. Serena reminds me of her. I think the cognitive dissonance is strong with this one!

41

The positive achievements of Science and Religion in 2015. How do they compare?

by nicolaou in

science.. landed a probe on a comet, found liquid water on mars and successfully completed a ten year mission to pluto.. developed the first successful vaccine against ebola, discovered another human species in homo naledi, developed cancer killing molecules and high intensity ultrasound therapies which avoid surgery and leave healthy cells alone.

successfully mapped the human epigenome and developed the gene editing tool crispr, it's potential for medical and agricultural advance is staggering!.

found a way to produce graphene for a 1000th of the previous cost, developed cheap and sustainable methods to supply clean drinking water where water borne infections have been killing thousands, scaled up production of clean, renewable energy.. there's loads more, please feel free to add to the list.. .

talesin

True story, October 2015. We're not quite "Back to the Future", but soon! : )

, video in link

http://www.cbc.ca/news/technology/hoverboard-duru-1.3270569

This past May, Montreal inventor Catalin Alexandru Duru broke the world record for the longest hoverboard flight.
Duru flew up to five metres above a lake for a distance of 275.9 metres aboard his homemade, propeller-powered hoverboard in a trip that lasted more than 1½ minutes.
Now, the 31-year-old Duru and his company, Omni Hoverboards, are working on a secret, next-generation version of the device. Watch as he takes CBC's Reg Sherren into the workshop where he is building it, and then to a Quebec lake where he puts the new prototype to the test for the first time.

63

Watchtower crackdown on anointed expansion - are they reaching for a solution to the expanding numbers problem?

by slimboyfat in

if this has been discussed i missed it.

i think the january study watchtower is a concerted attempt to reduce the numbers claiming to be anointed.

but i love the sneaky way they go about it this time.

talesin

prologos, understood. Any partaker who is genuine, would have to be certifiable. "Chosen by God"? That's where I was going, but realize I wasn't clear.

sbf, it sounds like the WT is saying no women. I wasn't seeing that as an interpretation, rather, a 'New Light'(TM).

59

Why don't you do anything?

by WireRider in

i'm not jw, so i see this all standing up and very clear from an outsider perspective (i am still seeking my path).

i joined the blog a few weeks ago.

i dated a divorced jw (jw from birth) for a couple of years recently.

talesin

*waves hello to CJ* :D

59

Why don't you do anything?

by WireRider in

i'm not jw, so i see this all standing up and very clear from an outsider perspective (i am still seeking my path).

i joined the blog a few weeks ago.

i dated a divorced jw (jw from birth) for a couple of years recently.

talesin

To the OP:

Ex-JWs are secretive. The real organizing goes on, but is only, at times, alluded to here. I don't visit other sites or groups. The people who talk a lot, aren't very good at organizing.

The larger the group gets, the less 'in touch' we are as a unit.

Most of us are escapees from a cult. As such, many of us treasure our autonomy, and have trust issues. Following instructions (ie, in cult-think 'orders') is anathema to many. Socialization is a big part of our healing, so coalescing into an organized group, with more clearly-defined goals, and a mission statement per se, can seem like pie in the sky.

We did have a very successful online letter-writing campaign when the WT released the "diseased apostates" article, and even made the front page of some famous atheist's site (was it Hitchens?).

I think that focused efforts like that can be very effective, and communication could spread wildly via PM. If we could trust one another enough. And that, to me, is a big 'if'.

That's not a criticism, just my observations after 13 or so years, and seeing changes and trends. xx

8

A Landlord Glimpse on Tenant’s Property

by Loi_241 in

when i look back, i wish that a landlord glimpse on my property and so she does not want more than me renting her home.

but, i still do not have a wish because she wants more money; she does not have to be satisfied to what she has.

and so a landlord commanded me to give the exact gifts, not let me to be a generous tenant to give whatever is from my heart.

talesin

Yes, and it's a 'lesson'. Never rent from people you know socially, or from work. It's strictly business. The government is not going to protect you, you have to be wary.

I hope your new housing is much better. :)

63

Watchtower crackdown on anointed expansion - are they reaching for a solution to the expanding numbers problem?

by slimboyfat in

if this has been discussed i missed it.

i think the january study watchtower is a concerted attempt to reduce the numbers claiming to be anointed.

but i love the sneaky way they go about it this time.

talesin

that means we still could have 72001 genuine partakers

The term 'genuine partakers' is an oxymoron and let's keep in mind that none of it's genuine in the true sense of the word.