"Dubnesia": Have you had it?

kurtbethel

This has happened several times before, and just happened, so I am curious if it is a common affliction among JWs.

There is two of them that told me of what a really great meeting they had, the CO came and gave a wonderful talk about the end of the system.

ME: "Oh really, what were some of the points he made about it?"

DUB1: "I can't tell you right off hand, but I know I came out of there feeling it was really a great talk."

ME: [to Dub2] "Certainly you can tell me some things about the talk. What are some of the details that are of interest?"

DUB2" "Well, I don't normally do this, but I was in the back as an attendant and did not get to hear much of it, but I know it was really good."

ME: [thinking to myself] "Arrrgghh! What pinheads!"

So even as this conversation went on, I coined a new term, dubnesia. It is having you mind so rotted away from a meeting that you know it was really good even though you have no clue what was actually said there. I am not picking on them, because I get that way every time I hear H. Ross Perot talk, except without the feeling that it was any good.

JeffT

I saw a good case of it, about 1988 as we were leaving.

My wife and I had been doing a lot of research about various things. I recalled a comment made to me by a sister at the International Convention in Vancouver BC in 1973. I remember that convention well because it was the first one I went to. There was a drama about the destruction of Jericho, followed by the release of a tract that was to be distributed that fall. We were told that this would be a fast distribution work, we wouldn't be taking at the doors (comparing this to the Isrealites being silent as they marched around Jericho), and there would be a new one released every three months or so. This sister remarked that if we did this seven times, the last one would be in the fall of 1975, obviously the new system was almost here!

Fast forward to 1988. This same sister and her husband visited us (we had since moved). We got to talking about a lot of things and I related this incident, without mentioning that she was the one that made the comment.

Her response "oh, nobody ever said anything like that!"

yknot

oh it is very common!

Even by those who take notes!

I look for points now but before JWD/JWN I was a chronic sufferer......

Afterall it isn't what was said that garners JW acceptance it is the praising of what was said.......

agonus

1975. 'Nuff said.

freeman

I never had it myself, but my wife suffers from it.

A while back I cashed in a 401k. I noted to my wife how much it had grown in a short time and how I now regretted that I did not start saving when my employer first offered it (with matching funds).

She said, “I guess we could not afford to have it taken out of your check back then” I replied NO, don’t you remember we decided not to save for retirement because THE SYSTEM WAS ENDING IN A FEW YEARS, don’t you remember??? The anointed were already way up in years and all these things must occur before yada yada yada??

She can’t remember any of that, she says I’m making it up. “Dubnesia” for sure.

Freeman

MissingLink

I always had it. I would zone out before the opening song was over, and wake up at the end. Ask me what the talk was about - I wouldn't have had a clue. But, I wouldn't go around telling people how great the meeting was either.

This seems pretty common. If we'd miss a meeting (not that we ever really MISSed them), then someone would often say "you missed a great talk today". Rather than just say "oh darn it, I'll have to be there next time", I'd say "Oh really, what was it about?". And 9 times out of 10 the faithful brother who was trying to upbuild me could not say what the talk was about.

I think this is pretty common in cult indoctrination though. Getting people to zone out because of sheer boredom, then repeating the same catch phrases over and over is how brainwashing is done. People don't remember the points, but they sure are convinced they have "the truth".

Dubnesia is a great new word. I love it.

Mad Sweeney

I have family members with it, too.

There's also an as-yet unnamed phenomenon where a dub can recall a specific event but remain unable to extrapolate it to the entire group. For instance, I have a relative who knows a family who sold a lucrative business, their home, everything, in preparation for 1975 but who can't accept that this was something that occurred all throughout the organization. To her, it was just that one family. This same relative knows about a covered-up pedophile case from the 1970s. Same deal. Can't accept that it happens throughout JWs; it was just one incident.

It's lunacy.

undercover

I suffered from 'dubnesia'. I think most dubs are afflicted because they're not really paying attention. They just let the buzzwords float into their brain and settle in with the rest of them roosting there taking up space.

I was cured from complimenting the talk afterwards when someone put me on the spot and asked me to cover the main points of the talk. I had an attack of dubnesia and was dubfounded... After that I never complimented the speaker or the talk. I let others kiss ass and brown their noses.

Farkel

Dubnesia: great word! This illness was first introduced by Fred Franz. People contracted it during the course of all of those talks he gave at Assemblies. Then it became pandemic.

Dub1: "Didn't you really enjoy all those wonderful new "points" Brother Franz brought out in that talk of his? It is so exciting, isn't it?"

Dub2: "Which points are you talking about?"

Dub1: "Well, they were all so DEEP, it's hard to explain them."

Farkel

"Dubnesia": Have you had it?

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