And as ones age, there isn't the need or the desire for a crowd so much any more.
Ain't that the truth. The less the better.
WHY have District Conventions??
by RagingBull 24 Replies latest jw friends
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satinka
Got to keep the $$$ flowing to the Society TM
satinka
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Glander
Gayle said it well. These are pep rallys
The large gatherings have a huge impact on people. The sacrifices made to be there just magnifies the experience. It has worked like a charm as a shot in the arm, (hey, that rhymes!) since my first convention in Cedar Point Ohio when I was still in diapers. I have some clandestine E-contact with a JW relative and every year she goes quiet with me after the DC. This usually blows over shortly after getting back to the cold stark reality of waiting for the big A.
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Scully
It also helps some of the single people scope out other congregations' gene pools for suitable mates.
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VampireDCLXV
It also helps some of the single people scope out other congregations' gene pools for suitable mates.
Conventions are an epic fail when it comes to that, especially when it come to singles past their early twenties. Get a bunch of socially awkward individuals to mave their move in a distorted social setting? I don't think so!
V665
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Scully
Vamp
the operative words are "scope out" - I agree that awkward intros at conventions don't usually turn into anything of substance right away - but sometimes it does develop into something more later on.
Mr Scully and I are living proof of that.
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godrulz
There is wisdom for WT to Conventions. People feel part of something bigger. It boosts morale, tests loyalty, increases giving/motivation, etc. It is too bad they are so boring and dead (actually good since few from the public go or get sucked in to the cult). Does the average JW invite lots of people (apart from dropping a flyer off and running)? It seems that there should be many more people other than JWs with name tags if this is such a great thing. I suspect it is more about uniformity for the flock then a recruiting platform (but they are missing a big opportunity; cf. Billy Graham crusades).
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WTWizard
It is a nice way to waste people's time. People get hyped up about these wastefests in January, and go on the mad dash to secure a room that first night. Those who don't get a room and didn't exhaust every resource are hounded about it--never mind that rooms are much easier to get in April than January. Then you go to the boasting sessions and get your expectations built up--to give the illusion that you are actually getting something worthwhile. Usually, you are required to waste more time traveling out of town--which gets tiring after your first one.
Once you are there, it is all about following instructions and wasting more money (or toilet paper, depending on when hyperinflation hits your country). Go into debt putting funds into the Worldwide Pedophile Defense Fund--instead of sitting on the line of credit for real needs. Stuff your toilet papers into the box--instead of using them to buy stuff that has substantial value. And, all those signs and rules to obey--and the never-ending houndings to participate in the cleanups and other things needed to run the damn things.
Beyond that, there is the annual crackdown. Children are urged to pio-sneer during summer and throw away their music. They get real strict on things that might lead to fornication--or they think might lead there. They get real strict on materialism--instead, they are supposed to prepare to regular pio-sneer this coming fall. After all, if someone in central Africa can pio-sneer despite a 20 mile walk in crocodile waters and beatings upon going home, you should be able to do it in a reasonably civilized country.
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the-illuminator81
Very simple: Mass Hysteria Works
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5vtgCE7rgaA&feature=related
They even use the same music.
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sir82
Why? They are THE primary money maker for the WTS.
I worked in auditing one year, and in the "collection depot" for several years, where the money from the couple dozen contribution boxes was brought and collected before porting it down to auditing.
The Society raked in 10's of thousands of dollars per day at these things - and that was 15 years ago. An assembly in a wealthy area could easily pull in 5 figures over the 3 days.
Multiply that by the dozens of assemblies in the US, and hundreds world wide, and you get 10's of $millions of dollars per year, or more.
Plus the DCs are where "new releases" are given out. Pass out a DVD that cost 2 or 3 cents apiece to produce, and a cheaply bound paperback or brochure that costs 10 or 15 cents to produce, and the JWs will throw $40 or $50 in the pot for their "treasures".
