seattleniceguy

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Posts by seattleniceguy

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  46

  I'm new here

  by Apostanator in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  this is the first time i feel comfortable posting something.

  i've been a lurker for over a year and i must say there are a lot of courageous people here who left the watchtower.

  thank god for the internet and sites like this.

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  seattleniceguy

  Apostanator,

  Welcome to the board. Awesome name. :-) Looking forward to seeing you around!

  SNG
• 
  12

  Documentary on JW

  by InquiryMan in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  seems like a big project... http://www.knocking.org/

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  seattleniceguy

  FYI: Apparently in response to letters written by several posters (and commented on in this thread http://www.jehovahs-witness.com/6/91954/1.ashx) the knocking.org web site has been updated. The Relevancy page now mentions the fact that women cannot hold leadership positions and that former members are shunned.

  SNG
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  49

  Biased PBS Special Soon to be Aired

  by bavman in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  co producer/director of new pbs special slotted to be aired in 2006 has mother who is jw.

  check out this link:.

  http://www.knocking.org/indexcont.html.

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  seattleniceguy

  This is impressive. Kudos to the producers. Hopefully they incorporate some changes into the actual documentary as well.

  SNG
• 
  90

  ATTENTION District Convention Attendees!

  by RichieRich in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  at some convention sites, there will be protests by apostates.

  at other conventions, apostates will covertly slip in and leave messages on cars.

  however, not everyone has the fortitude to protest nor the time.

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  seattleniceguy

  LOL...Looking forward to tales of high adventure and intrigue.

  Just be careful as you put them in...I'm sure after the first session that they are discovered, they will have eagle-eyed scouts out looking for them. I wonder if they would make a scene and actually ask you about them if they thought they spotted you with one.

  SNG
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  30

  Incredible conversation with JW from WT headquarters

  by tagurit in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  hey has anyone seen this website that has a recording of a jw researcher from watchtower headquarters that calls this baptist pastor?

  the baptist pastor records the conversation.

  it's really good.

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  seattleniceguy

  Once you make this assumption, you can argue four hours about stuff like: "Would you refer to a car battery as 'he'?".

  A friend of mine likens this kind of conversation to debates about who is tougher, Superman or Batman.

  SNG
• 
  3

  Canadian and US Scientists Create Vaccines for Ebola and Marburg

  by seattleniceguy in

  1. social
  2. current

  .

  so far, no human trials have yet been conducted, but the vaccines have proven 100% effective in protecting monkeys from infection against the two diseases, which are among the deadliest in the world.. http://www.physorg.com/news4399.html.

  sng

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  seattleniceguy

  So far, no human trials have yet been conducted, but the vaccines have proven 100% effective in protecting monkeys from infection against the two diseases, which are among the deadliest in the world.

  http://www.physorg.com/news4399.html

  SNG
• 
  30

  Incredible conversation with JW from WT headquarters

  by tagurit in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  hey has anyone seen this website that has a recording of a jw researcher from watchtower headquarters that calls this baptist pastor?

  the baptist pastor records the conversation.

  it's really good.

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  seattleniceguy

  Ay yai yai.

  Thank Ford I no longer spend my days arguing about this stuff! :-)

  SNG
• 
  49

  Biased PBS Special Soon to be Aired

  by bavman in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  co producer/director of new pbs special slotted to be aired in 2006 has mother who is jw.

  check out this link:.

  http://www.knocking.org/indexcont.html.

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  seattleniceguy

  Fleaman,

  I'm all for balanced reporting. But balanced reporting doesn't mean being flattering. It means representing the reality accurately. The problem with the information on their web site is not that it is kind to the Witnesses, but that it is not, in fact, accurate. It misrepresents the reality of what JWs believe and do. In that case, they are not documenting JWs at all, but are merely repeating information from the PR desk.

  SNG
• 
  49

  Biased PBS Special Soon to be Aired

  by bavman in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  co producer/director of new pbs special slotted to be aired in 2006 has mother who is jw.

  check out this link:.

  http://www.knocking.org/indexcont.html.

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  seattleniceguy

  Just sent the following email: Hello, I just found your site and read it with some interest. I was raised as one of Jehovah's Witnesses and recently left the religion for conscientious reasons. I think it is great that you are doing a documentary on the JWs, but judging by what I read on your web site, you seem to have a very rosy-colored set of glasses on. For example, your Relevancy page (http://www.knocking.org/relevancy.html) contains the following paragraph: -- How though, some critics may ask, can a morally conservative religion have any role in defending liberal freedom of choice? Wouldn’t Jehovah’s Witnesses be considered an enemy to a woman who seeks full reproductive rights over her body or a gay man who seeks the right to marry? Jehovah’s Witnesses indeed consider abortion and homosexuality sinful. People who do not choose to follow the Bible-based moral code of Jehovah’s Witnesses cannot become members, and those who stray from the code are asked to leave. Unlike other religions, however, Jehovah's Witnesses do not try to influence the political process by legislating their beliefs, imposing them on their non-Witness neighbors. Jehovah's Witnesses are staunchly apolitical and have no connection to what is commonly known as the "religious right." Jehovah's Witnesses live by the long-held ideal of "Separation of Church and State" in the United States. Jehovah’s Witnesses would never protest an abortion clinic or lobby against the legalization of gay marriage, as other religions do. Jehovah’s Witnesses do not begrudge the fact that their fight for equal protection under the law and medical control over their own bodies has helped other movements. Jehovah’s Witnesses are not interested in limiting the freedoms of groups with which they disagree. They are an example of how Americans with differing views can peacefully coexist.
  -- It is true that JWs do not overtly try to influence the political process in most cases. But it would be a mistake to say that this is because they subscribe to the ideal of "Separation of Church and State." In fact, individual Witnesses are not to have any political opinions. They consider political organizations to be a part of Satan's organization on earth. Their political neutrality is borne from a desire to be separate from Satan's organization, not from support of the ideal you mention or anything like it. The outcome may be similar, but the underlying reasons are very different. Your paragraph above talks about the peaceful co-existence of differing views. This is one area in which there is a double-standard of Biblical proportions in the JW world. First, JWs do not respect views that differ from their own. They believe that their current set of doctrine at any given time comprises "the Truth" and that any conflicting views are deceptions from the Devil. As I mentioned above, the fact that they do not try to introduce legislative support for their views does not stem from respect for others' points of view, but from a doctrinal prohibition from political involvement. In actual fact, JWs have pity at best and scorn at worst for what they see as the sadly misinformed views of "worldy people" - all non-JWs. A second aspect to this is the requirement to think alike within the JW organization. You mention that people who "stray from the code" are asked to leave. This is neither technically correct nor complete. Those who sin unrepentantly in the eyes of the local elders are not "asked to leave" - they are expelled with a formal announcement. After the announcement has been made, no one is allowed to speak to them any longer, even family. If a friend or family member were to continue communication on anything other than very brief business matters, that person would be in line for their own expulsion. But here's what you may not know. In the JW organization, having opinions that differ from accepted dogma is considered "straying from the code." Say, for example, that you have doubts about a literal reading of parts of Genesis. According to the JWs, it is wrong even to entertain such thoughts. Speaking to others about them is considered apostasy, one of the worst sins possible for humans. A person who has differing opinions about any point of doctrine risks being expelled and shunned. Because of the dreadful consequences of expulsion - total loss of family being a not inconsequential aspect - JWs are trained never to question doctrine. The resulting culture is extremely intolerant of any opinion other than the one that is presently officially sanctioned. Therefore, within the JW community, differing views do not peacefully co-exist. Between the JW community and the rest of the world, they peacefully co-exist only because JWs are powerless to do anything about it. Their literature unabashedly speaks of the time when, soon, all who disagree with them will be destroyed. Respect for differing opinions? Judge for yourself. I would like to see any documentary of the Witnesses be as unbiased as possible, and this means making sure you accurately represent the reality. The copy on your web site reads like something from the Witnesses' PR department. It is my desire that you be more complete in your coverage. I can assist in helping you to obtain quotes from JW literature that substantiate what I have stated in this email. There are also good research web sites that would help you to do the same, such as: http://quotes.watchtower.ca (historical quotes from JW publications organized by subject) http://www.jehovahs-witness.com (a discussion board regarding JW beliefs and practices) I wish you the best in your work on the documentary, and I look forward to a balanced, complete presentation. Yours sincerely, [name]
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  54

  I'm telling lies from the stage

  by DannyBloem in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  i recently gave a public talk, and i really felt bad about it.. it was the public talk about the great flood of noahs days.

  the is so much evidence that this great deluge never happened, but that is something you can't tell the audience from the stage.

  (i will tell about that evidence if people are interested, but it is a bit off-topic now).

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  seattleniceguy

  Danny,

  Forgive me for only reading the first few posts on this thread before replying. You sound like a conscientious person caught in a tough place. All I can say is, get yourself free. Bide your time and come up with the right plan for you, but stick around here, educate yourself, and get yourself free. Get yourself out of there for your own health and well-being. Life is so incredibly much better on the outside.

  Good luck, and best wishes. Hope to see you around.

  SNG