Interesting District Convention News.....

by Pyramid Scheme 42 Replies latest jw friends

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  Pyramid Scheme

  Greetings to All,

  I wanted to share some news from a family friend (he is my WT mole - still an elder, hates the shenanigans, but is still hanging on for all the reasons often discussed on this site) I know the various rumors have been discussed on here, and unfortunately the rumor about the conventions being eliminated weren't true! (what a burden on the JW community - financial hardship for a good portion of them, guilting people into actually QUITTING their job to attend, physically exhausting for many, etc...etc......)

  Anyway, he told me that the District Convention is being moved to 11 weekends at the JW-owned Circuit Assembly Hall, and they are no longer planning on renting stadiums/large facilities in our area (Northern Ohio/Southern Michigan). It sounds like this is the long-term plan to be implemented. I told him I hope it is the first step in eliminating those conventions -if anything for the poor souls who are guilted into going and hate them (like I did!) In the past 10 years, they went from massive football stadiums/to small arenas/to convention centers/now to the JW 2500 seat assembly hall.....LOL

  I told my friend and my wife that it all comes down to money, so the donations must not be coming in at the conventions to make them profitable anymore. Why rent a stadium and pay out all of that precious money? Why take funds desperately needed to defend more pedophiles in civil cases? (they both know about my stance on pedophiles (I resigned as an elder over the policies - Ill post my story soon), the Conti case, the other settlements, etc)

  I just wanted to share that news, thought it was very interesting! You know how the WT LOVES to gloat about conventions - 80,000 in attendance, 3,000 baptised, etc......this is quite a blow to the higher-ups in my estimation. I just feel like there is a lot of momentum for a major shakeup coming again for people along the lines of 1975, which I hope and pray helps many escape the "Spiritual Paradise".....
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  cognac

  Wow... Wonder if they are going to move more to the circuit assembly halls? Thanks for sharing.
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  sir82

  I told him I hope it is the first step in eliminating those conventions

  Not a chance - assemblies and conventions ae the "black Friday" for the Watchtower.

  There are $$$ millions and millions and MILLIONS raked in at assemblies and conventions.

  If anything, the move to assembly halls guarantees that the DCs will continue. The only real expense for the WTS regrding the DCs was the rental fee for the stadium / entertainment center where the event was held. By moving the events to WTS-owned facilities, expenses will drop drastically while income will likely remain steady.

  The profit margin for DCs will explode as more and more are moved to JW assembly halls.
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  Room 215

  Thanks, and welcome to the forum!
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  Phizzy

  I wonder if this will happen all over the world ? here in the U.K most people give the Friday a miss, I can see many more giving the whole thing a miss , what is the difference if you use the Assembly Hall, between a D.C and a C.A apart from the extra day ?

  The only redeeming feature for most of a D.C was seeing all your conditional friends from other circuits, now, with many Assembly Halls here in the U.K restricted to less than 2,000 attenders , the whole thing will seem pointless to many.

  I attended my last one in 2006, the whole thing seemed pointless to me then.

  I just remebered that joke : A guy is driving past and sees a sign "Assembly Hall of Jehovah's Witnesses" and he says to himself "So that is where they put the buggers together !"
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  happy@last

  A few years ago I was at the Surrey Assembly Hall (UK) and they had just installed a big screen, the rumour at the time was that it was for video link ups for district conventions, I'm not sure as it ever was used this way.
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  Marvin Shilmer

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  Pyramid Scheme,

  That’s interesting scuttlebutt I’ve not heard. If true it could be Watchtower's hedging its bets on fallout from the 100-year birthday of God Kingdom ("born" in 1914 according to the organization’s theology).

  I have firsthand knowledge of the worry inside Watchtowerdom about 2014. Maybe Watchtower’s trying to avoid being under contract to major venues only to find out when the time comes they can’t fill the halls with dupes ready to plunk down perfectly good money in support of perfectly good garbage.

  Think about 2014 from a perspective of contractual obligations for a year when hell could break loose in WatchtowerWorld. If not guarded against, financial losses would be enormous.

  Marvin Shilmer
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  NVR2L8

  This arrangement may be the perfect excuse for the WTS to build larger assembly halls and increase their wealth by owning more real estate all paid for by the brothers. It's a creative way to overcome the reduction in cash contribution.
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  blondie

  I can think of quite a few in Wisconsin that will prefer going to Janesville where the AH is than DeKalb, IL.
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  DesirousOfChange

  By moving the events to WTS-owned facilities, expenses will drop drastically while income will likely remain steady.

  Revenue could even go UP. They will simply "send a bill" based on the number of publishers for the use of the Assm Hall and the congs or circuits will have to cough up the money, even if the contributions don't come in at the assembly. This is the way CAs have worked for years. I have never heard of Dist Conv not being profitable. I actually thought they were a cash cow for WTS. But, if their Assm Halls are sitting empty all summer, why not "rent" them out for the Dist Conv and collect the rental fees yourself.

  Doc