The hard-liners at Bethel absolutely support the position in the km Service Meeting cited. They have no younger children to be concerned about anyway. Others are totally insulated, and any feedback they get says, "This is just what we need."
Others are very pragmatic and understand the dilemma: a goal of all institutions of "higher education" is to develop the student's own abilities to think critically, and when that skill is exercised the young person has eyes wide open to flaws in doctrine and organizational philosophy. Sometimes the pendulum swings to a disillusioned atheism, with others there is a pursuit of other forms of spirituality. With some there is a relentless pursuit of what is really taught, say, in theological seminaries, who find out that the choice is not the false choice between a narrow fundamentalism or atheism but something far more satisfying.
The pragmatists clearly understand they must be less hierarchical for a number of reasons, if nothing more than legal protection.
I know at least one CO who left the road to have children, then when they got to the crucial age just dropped all pretense and sent all of them off to college. Paid a huge price, because the locals were very rigid. The congregational fall-out was severe, led to a witchhunt to get something on the guy. 'Must be doing something bad secretly to violate the Society's policy.' It was sick. The kids are not JWs today, but deeply spiritual. The family is very, very close.
I've talked to a lot of older COs who today are privately very bitter. One is having a real crisis with depression as the direct result, he feels, of not paying attention to the cognitive dissonance and just ignoring it. 'I stood up on that platform and said things I did not believe but did it because I was so very trapped.'
Alcohol abuse is a real problem both on the road and at Bethel. Guess why?
When you get a Service Meeting like this, hard-liners rejoice. But let me tell you the Society has a huge problem on its hands because of this attitude. MANY men on the road will take a look at stuff like this and say, "You told me things were going to get better. I deal with stuff like this every week, and you give me three weeks of unreal demonstrations and unreal approaches, yet tell me it's really up to the individual. And then you expect me to pick up the pieces when numbers fall off, bringing my butt into a refresher course and telling me it's all my fault!'
This battle has been going on internally for years. A few more liberal phrases or articles can be sprinkled on some publication, but all it takes is one hard-line piece to push the publisher guilt button. That's where the subtle control mechanism kicks in.
Hope springs eternal, for some. But that number dwindles.
Maximus