Posts by Odrade

80

Even active witnesses think this is way over the top.....

by yourmomma in

jw
friends

there were gasps after watching this.

i heard the anti college talks at the dc this year, and while many people i know didnt agree with them, this following video stunned many of them.

there are many people on this forum, many have gotten to where they are many different ways.

Odrade

Kasee, I've been out for more than 5 years, and still can't make sense of the lies, misdirections, coercion and control. It has helped to read about other organizations who use the same methods. ("Under the Banner of Heaven" about the fundamentalist LDS, and "Seductive Poison" about Jonestown.) Reading about them makes me realize that the JWs are NOT unique in any way, they are just another high-control group that believes in its own exclusivity and godly privilege.

I am also "uneducated." At 32 I went to a trade school. Although academically disadvantaged, I have access to nearly unlimited information that helps me to see the JWs with a more realistic view, both here, at the library, online... there are many resources. Knowledge is power.

This video was particularly tragic to me because my dad believes now that he did the wrong thing by preventing me from getting additional education. He believes that he took a "too strict" interpretation of the Society's comments regarding college, and that the mistake was his only, not the WTS. The really sad thing is that he knows Loesch personally, yet would probably still not be convinced that the WTS is really the one that made the decision and he was just "obeying orders."

34

Obama, "We Are No Longer A Christian Nation,"

by SixofNine in

jw
friends

.

we are also a jewish nation, a muslim nation, a buddhist nation, and a hindu nation and a nation of non-believers.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iwjr-n0qz14.

Odrade

Yep, Hilary could make me vote republican. Good video.

62

Need some advice

by KICKED OUT in

jw
friends

i have not been on here in a long time but i have always valued the advice of everyone, so here goes.....i am dfd and my wife has never been a part of the org.

we are getting ready to have our first child in may.

my mother who is now living in patterson(at one of the motherships) speaks to me every 1 to 2 years.

Odrade

I'm with the "keep her out" camp. Here's why: Your mom has shunned you. She may have some ideas of "saving" her grandchild. When it is clear to her that you will not allow her to preach to your kid, she will be like all the other stories on here of JW grandparents who are in and out of kids' lives, hurting them in the process.

If she is a Patterson die-hard, she will be unable to restrain herself from making comments like "If daddy doesn't love Jehovah he will die at Armageddon." They hear those rotten experiences of tiny children saying "I don't want daddy to die!" then the inactive one comes back. You know how hard they believe that can happen. Even if you set a no-preaching rule, she's not going to do it in front of you.

Also, how will it be for you and your child when he is old enough to see that grandma won't talk to dad? Think of how distressing that would be for a child.

Exposing a child to a JW relative who is actively shunning a member of the family is damaging. You are the parent, and as such you need to protect your child from that kind of behavior.

Even though you don't blame your mother, because she is indoctrinated with WT rules, SHE does choose to follow them to the strictest extent. She has to bear some responsibility for that.

42

Would You Trust A JW To Be Honest More Than The Average Person?

by minimus in

jw
friends

i know many very honest jws.

if i had someone do work for me, clean my home, etc.----i'd generally be more at ease with a faithful jw over most others.

in the matter of housekeeping, i'd think that they might be nosier but i doubt they'd outrightly steal from me.. what's your thought on this subject?.

Odrade

No. IME JWs are more dishonest than the average person.

80

Even active witnesses think this is way over the top.....

by yourmomma in

jw
friends

there were gasps after watching this.

i heard the anti college talks at the dc this year, and while many people i know didnt agree with them, this following video stunned many of them.

there are many people on this forum, many have gotten to where they are many different ways.

Odrade

That made me really angry. I hate that guy, he's an ass. Looks like the lunatics are still running the asylum. I can't believe that the JWs (including my parents) try to claim that the WTS has "softened" its position on education. Did you see at the end where he told that bogus "experience" of the kid who tried to commit suicide by rifle in the mouth, the bullet didn't kill him, just took out part of his brain... and THAT is what he's comparing college with? Also, he stated how proud everyone would be of the people who DROPPED OUT of university.

11

Now this cracked me up...and then it gets better

by RisingEagle in

jw
friends

so i'm tickled at this story from another site i visit:.

a story i heard.... one day my mother was out and my dad was in charge of me.

i was maybe 2 1/2 years old and had just recovered from an accident.

Odrade

HAHAHA! that's the best! gotta love kids...

13

Business v. friendship

by sweetface2233 in

i have touched on this subject in public a few times and have discussed in detail w/ a few posters exactly what happened between my former best friend and i. to make a long story short, he borrowed money from me (several thousand $) and, in my opinion, carelessly went on a spending spree w/in the next several months.

i confronted him about it, and essentially was given the boot due to it.

at first, i was practically devestated (just like any break-up from a ltr), but now i am over it and have been able to give more focus to my other friends, as well as make new ones.. he and i had minimal contact since the beginning of august to the beginning of january.

Odrade

What ways are they able to take you for granted and walk all over you? Time? Interests? You always do what the other person wants?

For myself, until/unless I'm able to pin down HOW I'm being taken advantage of, it's not likely I'll figure out how to stop it. I'll just keep going through the same scenario but with different people. Kinda sucks.

13

Business v. friendship

by sweetface2233 in

i have touched on this subject in public a few times and have discussed in detail w/ a few posters exactly what happened between my former best friend and i. to make a long story short, he borrowed money from me (several thousand $) and, in my opinion, carelessly went on a spending spree w/in the next several months.

i confronted him about it, and essentially was given the boot due to it.

at first, i was practically devestated (just like any break-up from a ltr), but now i am over it and have been able to give more focus to my other friends, as well as make new ones.. he and i had minimal contact since the beginning of august to the beginning of january.

Odrade

So here's a question: When you make friends with someone (guys or gals,) do you routinely feel compelled to give them things that have tangible value? (Lending money, gifts that cost money, your business skills at no charge, etc?) Can you have a friendship where you don't give anything except friendship?

I ask because it seems to be a common thing where people seem to think that they have to prove their friendship by giving something of monetary value. Maybe you've kind of slid into that feeling, and now you have people coming around who take advantage of your generosity instead of being just interested in your friendship?

Could you make a rule for yourself that you will not give gifts worth more than $5 (or whatever) until you are sure you have a clear idea of where your personal boundaries are, and how to get them to work? (just brainstorming... I have a lot of trouble with this one too.)

13

Business v. friendship

by sweetface2233 in

i have touched on this subject in public a few times and have discussed in detail w/ a few posters exactly what happened between my former best friend and i. to make a long story short, he borrowed money from me (several thousand $) and, in my opinion, carelessly went on a spending spree w/in the next several months.

i confronted him about it, and essentially was given the boot due to it.

at first, i was practically devestated (just like any break-up from a ltr), but now i am over it and have been able to give more focus to my other friends, as well as make new ones.. he and i had minimal contact since the beginning of august to the beginning of january.

Odrade

Can you tell him that you can only re-visit the idea of friendship if the lines regarding the loan can be kept completely clear and separate? He may be under the impression that you are ONLY upset with him over the money, and since he's repaying the money responsibly, things should be a-okay with the two of you socially too.

7

Top Gear Goes to America

by 5go in

it's a sad comentary on america to say the least.

but damn funny!.

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=8133720312520034070&q=top+gear+america&total=266&start=0&num=10&so=0&type=search&plindex=0.

Odrade

I hadn't seen that ep. It was unbelievable! I'm from the NW, and it was like watching a different world. I figured they'd have people yelling, but the rocks, pitbulls, and being chased out? They were actually scared...

"Don't go to America."

Most interesting part to me is where they were showing the regular street devastation from Katrina, a year after the event. They commented that the "richest nation in the world," hasn't taken care of it yet. Sad, but true. But then you hear what they say about the woman who was going to sue for allegedly misrepresenting the free car as a 1991 when it was an '89, unless they handed her $20K, and then it's easy to see why it stays the way it is.