Can the Truth survive the Internet?

by Dogpatch 17 Replies latest jw friends

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  Dogpatch

  Virtual Experiment The Truth vs. the truth by Stephen Cox Can the Truth survive the Internet? This is a story about American values, Bulgaria's policy on human rights, the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society, and the strange and unforeseen persistence of truth in our allegedly postmodern age.

  Stephen Cox is professor of literature at the University of California in San Diego, and the author of "The Titanic Story."

  In this age (so it is said), there is room for data and opinion and diverse points of view, but none at all for simple "truth" — a term that must never be invoked unless it is surrounded by a guard of scare-quotes and qualifying phrases. Among the advanced thinkers of the late 20th century, fear of truth rose to the level of hysteria. The dean of postmodern theorists, Jean-François Lyotard, habitually associated "truth" with the threat of "terror." Similar language was adopted by practitioners of deconstruction, critical theory, and the militantly relativist species of religious studies, cultural studies, and identity politics. Today, the term of choice may not be "terror"; it may be "oppression," "domination," or the more stylish "hegemony." But whatever words are used, Truth is clearly on the defensive within the American intelligentsia. And there are good reasons for the suspicion of truth.

  the rest of this great story can be found at: http://libertyunbound.com/archive/2003_10/cox-truth.html

  Randy
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  Honesty

  Great story, Randy!!!

  Hopefully it will reach some eyes in LaLa Land.
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  Diogenes

  Thanks for that, great article...
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  Legolas

  Can the Truth survive the Internet?

  I hope not!
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  JAVA

  Thanks Randy -- I just printed all 16 pages! I don't usually do that, but this was too good not to have as a hard copy.
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  jwfacts

  Not in its current form, though i did like the idea that if the stay the same the JWs may become like the Amish, a group of people locked in some strange pre-internet world.
  The internet has already made huge inroads into watchtower membership. In 10 years it will be dramatically moreso, something that religion is experiencing in general. Either a religion catches up with the times and changes the way it presents its beliefs and controls its members, or it becomes obsolete to the majority of its members.
  I have had a number of JW friends talk to me recently about how they are getting down under all the guilt and pressure. Many tell me they dont think you have to be a JW to survive armageddon. If people are not getting joy from it, and do not see it as essential for salvation than a lot of the motivation for 10 hrs a month and 3 meetings a week disappears. This will lead to a gradual decline in JW statistics.
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  sass_my_frass

  Top article. WBTS survival tactics will probably work too, when all the old guys die (lets say starting next year).
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  ICBehindtheCurtain

  If there is a God, NO!

  IC (of the Oh God, let the whole world be connected to the Internet class)
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  stillajwexelder

  Yes the truth can survive the internet but NOT in its current form - changes will have to be made and are being made. The upcoming KM Schools being held over the Thanksgiving weekend will feature it prominently.
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  metatron

  I think you'll need to be more specific. Everything so far is simply more threats, more pointless meetings, more futile micromanagement.

  metatron