BALAAMSASS- Thanks for sharing those experiences. I agree with you- I think there is NO end to this cesspool of child abuse happening within the JW organization. Why does it not surprise me that these two elders are still serving as elders after the child abuse charges were ordered to be dropped? If we counted worldwide how many elders are STILL serving as elders who committed child abuse at one time- I bet the figure would be in the hundreds or thousands . It needs to stop for sure
flipper
JoinedPosts by flipper
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381
Were you or someone you know sexually molested by a Jehovah's Witness ?
by flipper indue to the fact there are about 27,000 members of this religion that are known pedophiles, and the information about it is kept in a secret database file, i wonder how many lurking jw's as well as others are aware of the severity of this problem?
remember, it's 27,000 pedophiles that they know about.
what about the thousands that don't get caught?
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My Assembly Experience
by Clambake injw literally take forever to say nothing.
after a whole day of listening how to obtain peace , i am not sure if i obtain peace from obeying mosaic law, having a relationship to jehovah though jesus or be baptized and have a direct line to jehovah.
every speaker tries to out bore and contract the other one.
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flipper
" This is unclean " . LOL. Classic ! I love it. Peace out, Mr. Flipper
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New abuse case against WT
by Viva la Vida ini think this case it is not in very good shape for plaintiff, it is a person currently in prison suing wt.
does anyone have more information?.
http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/granule/uscourts-caed-1_14-cv-01740/uscourts-caed-1_14-cv-01740-0/content-detail.html.
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flipper
Wow. This happened in California in So-Cal area where I knew some people. Don't recognize the names but yeah if this guy didn't have a good attorney or counsel it's no wonder it got thrown out. Still it shows how pervasive and rampantly common JW child abuse happens. Disgusting. When I checked Megan's law out in the area I was raised in- I recognized 12 JW's or former JW's on that list that I had known and met in my younger years out of 1,000 registered sex offenders . Pretty sobering thought -
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"What will I do if I leave Jehovah's Witnesses ?"
by Balaamsass2 inwhenever we visit the board we see a lot of angst among jehovah's witnesses who are just learning the tatt (the truth about the truth).
hey, don't feel bad, we had it at one time ourselves.
"angst means fear or anxiety (anguish is its latinate equivalent, and anxious, anxiety are of similar origin).
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flipper
BALAAMSASS- Congrats buddy on what I think is one of the BEST threads I've read in months ! Awesome subject and a very important one. There are so many great comments from folks on this thread- I don't know where to start !
BALAAMSASS- My wife and I really enjoyed lunch with you and your wife as well ! Great food, great friends. Look forward to Tahoe ! Your comment that , " The truth will set you free " the REAL truth TTATT...... Enjoy life. " Is SO true. I have experienced so much goodness in my life since exiting the Witnesses it's not even funny. I can give more time to my business in order to earn more $$$ if I want to ( no meetings or service clogging up my schedule ) , my wife and I with help from my son have planted an absolutely awesome organic garden full of vegetables, fruit including blueberries, raspberries, and strawberries - and check it out - we HAVE THE TIME to take care of it and manage it ! Amazing. I've also enjoyed playing music and writing songs with the guitar - never thought that would happen- but we have the TIME now. No mind control cult telling us what we can or cannot do.
IGNORANCEISBLISS- I truly DO empathize with what you are saying coming from a difficult place in your life . I have experienced every single thing you mentioned that you have experienced . I lost my first marriage after 19 years. I had to have visitation with my teenage kids back in the late 1990's to 2003 . I was ill spoken of by my fanatic JW ex-wife to all of our friends - I was called a " villain ", " apostate " , " Satan " , a " demon " a " bad influence " , and probably a few words I cannot use here on Simon's board or he'd kick me off. LOL.
The thing is is this IGNORANCE - yes you ARE going through horrific bad times RIGHT NOW - but it's NOT the rest of your life and I think that's what Balaamsass is trying to help people to realize here. I went through hell too being cut off from ALL my JW family and was DFed for 4 years. But in time my son who turned 18 then in his early 20's left the JW cult and we are best of friends now. Any JW friends that abandoned me I now consider just " chump change " compared to the REAL authentic ex-JW and non-JW friends I have gained over the years. I've been out of the Witnesses 11 years now for good- and I promise it WILL get better. It's like an old psychologist Frederick Perls once said, " To suffer one's death , and to be reborn is not easy ". It hurts to die to our JW past because there IS loss - but in time with the pain gradually subsiding a person CAN rebuild their life and it CAN become better than the life we had before. Hang in there friend. If you ever want to chat on the phone- I offer my friendship to you.
JAMES THOMAS- your comment, " You cannot imagine the weight that leaves you when you let go of all the massive mental collection of what " life is all about " , and silently just be with life instead " . Exactly, I totally agree. To be present in the " here and now " and enjoy the experience of living AS it HAPPENS. I think the old song " Stop and Smell the Roses " is applicable to this point. It felt like a ton of bricks had been lifted off of my shoulders when I finally decided in 2003 to walk away from the WT organization. Since then I feel like I'm walking on air. Of course there are problems along the way- but I don't freak out over them like I used to as a JW.
DAGNEY- So great to hear you are coming to Tahoe ! Fantastic ! It will be lots of fun with a lot of the gang there. I like the point you made that, " it gets better and better as you get stronger and stronger in your own self worth ". That is SO true. I was raised with an elder dad , very strict who never felt that I lived up to his " spiritual " expectations good enough for his approval. Thus I grew up with a lower self esteem than I should have had. Thank gawd I had a mom who built up my self worth or I'd have been a basket case getting out of the JW cult. Like yourself I enjoy keeping in touch with the ex-JW community as they truly are very caring, understanding people for the most part.
SIMON- You also made an extremely valid, good point in your statement, " At some point you may make a choice whether to obsess about the lost years and become bitter and determined to seek revenge ...... or you'll decide that was just a phase in your life and you grew and moved on. " So extremely true. Especially if we moved on in our 40's or 50's we have to ask ourselves the all important question- " Is the glass half full or half empty " ? Of course it's a cliché but it's still a good idea to ask ourselves that question. Because it very well MAY determine how we go on living the rest of our life . Will we move on and pursue interests we have in life or dwell totally in the past and let ourselves rot in that vegetative state ? These are all questions I asked myself when I first exited the JW cult and although it hasn't always been easy - the good in my life has come to far outweigh any negative the WT Society tried to steal my soul with
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Kendrick " Letter of Introduction " from Elders regarding Candace Conti Case
by flipper inas many of us saw in the pbs news hour program and the abc news nightline program the elders from one congregation failed to communicate properly to the elders in another congregation concerning the child molester jonathan kendrick when he moved to a new congregation.
i have parts of this " introduction letter " from the fremont congregation to the oakley congregation elders so you can read it for yourself and decide how irresponsible these wt appointed elders were.
dated 1/16/98 it opens : .
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flipper
Thanks for more responses on this ! I appreciate it.
EDEN ONE- It IS amazing isn't it that as you mentioned if Kendrick had been guilty of say- apostasy - then SO much information would have been forwarded to the next congregation's elders where he was moving to ! But the fact Kendrick was a child molester ? Not a peep from the elders. In fact they even RECOMMENDED HIM for doing well with children ! As you say- it's criminal negligence for sure.
FINKELSTEIN- I don't think ANYTHING is beyond speculating about regarding how far the WT Society will go in criminal behavior. If you don't believe me- just check out you tubes of behind the scenes criminal behavior WT engaged in regarding the Menlo Park property takeover. WT is like a hidden modern day Mafia . You are right WT leaders ARE concerned about " image " - one reason they did NOT follow the San Diego courts directions to reveal the Database pedophile list. With 23,000 names on that list it was a HIGH probability if not a fact that GB members or high ranking WT representatives were on that list- and were STILL appointed as elders in power positions in the WT organization. Which would be VERY damning evidence against the WT Society. Also another reason they refused to allow GB member Losch testify. The cat would be out of the bag and the cows would break the barn doors down causing a Pandora's box or avalanche of information to come streaming into the courts- and WT leaders couldn't have that happen. So they're willing to keep paying out millions $$$ in child abuse lawsuits just to keep their dirty skeletons locked up in the closet.
But one of these days those dirty little skeletons are going to be riding the backs of those cows breaking down the WT Society barn doors- then LOOK OUT ! All hell will break lose. I can hardly wait.
PROBLEMADDICT 2- This letter was part of the court released documentation of communication between elders of Kendrick's old congregation when he moved to the new congregation. WT Society as you say- truly IS disconnected from reality. At the very minimum the elders in Kendrick's old congregation had a responsibility to disclose his previous child abuse to the elders in his NEW congregation- and not recommend him to be with children as a " good influence ". I mean- that's insane. WT Society DID have a lot of liability here
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“We are not done yet!” – Candace Conti reacts to appeal court decision
by Watchtower-Free inhttp://jwsurvey.org/cedars-blog/we-are-not-done-yet-candace-reacts-to-appeal-court-decision.
candace conti (pictured in her interview with abc) has spoken out for the first time about the appeal court decision.
as current and former jehovahs witnesses digest the news that watchtowers appeal against the candace conti verdict has faltered, albeit with the punitive element of the judgment reversed, candace has reacted for the first time by telling me: we are not done yet.. news spread on monday that the state appeals court in san francisco had upheld the $2.8 million compensatory damages in the original june 2012 verdict, but overturned the $8.6 million punitive award against watchtower.. the court decided that, though watchtower had neglected its responsibility to supervise known pedophile jonathan kendrick in field ministry, a church-sponsored activity, the organization had no duty to warn parents in the congregation that a pedophile was in their midst or report him to authorities.. an insightful report by investigative reporter trey bundy has suggested that the court reached its decision because the precedent set by the conti verdict might be too burdensome to enforce.. the burden would be considerable because the precedent could require a church to intervene whenever it has reason to believe that a congregation member is capable of doing harm, and the scope of that duty could not be limited with any precision, the judges wrote.. candaces attorney rick simons responded by pointedly telling bundy: they think in public policy terms that theres too much risk in broadening the churchs responsibility and liability so that it burdens what churches do.
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flipper
Candace Conti is to be admired for her bravery, tenacity, and willingness to take the WT Society to task for it's abhorrent child abuse policies.
Let's not forget this fact folks- the WT Society WAS found liable and irresponsible in regards to Kendrick being allowed to even work in field service with Candace Conti as the elders were irresponsible as well. I don't see that irresponsibility changing much in the future. Think about it. How many cases have we heard about right here on JWN with people's experiences of pedophiles and child molesters MOVING to other congregations and one body of elders fails to inform another body of elders about it ? Or just the nature of child molesters to hide in the shadows so as NOT to be exposed- makes it almost guaranteed that the WT Society will be unable to keep up with the whereabouts of most of these JW pedophiles in their midst. Which is a bad thing for children or potential victims - but a good thing for certain that more and more child abuse lawsuits will come down the pike against the WT Society.
Here's the deal. Candace Conti's victory WAS a victory. Although she didn't win as much - she still got the WT child abuse issue media coverage all over the world , made it public that WT Society IS irresponsible in many ways still - in spite of the appellate court judges ruling. What Candace HAS accomplished is being seen by thousands of people across the planet on you tube videos and that will not stop. Most people on the planet are going to see and hear THAT information- not dwell on an appellate court judge who made a ruling out of fear of reprisal due to the big religious cow sitting on him in society. And most people will judge WT Society as guilty for allowing these child abuse issues to escalate to this criminal level. Kind of how I see it in the bigger picture
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Kendrick " Letter of Introduction " from Elders regarding Candace Conti Case
by flipper inas many of us saw in the pbs news hour program and the abc news nightline program the elders from one congregation failed to communicate properly to the elders in another congregation concerning the child molester jonathan kendrick when he moved to a new congregation.
i have parts of this " introduction letter " from the fremont congregation to the oakley congregation elders so you can read it for yourself and decide how irresponsible these wt appointed elders were.
dated 1/16/98 it opens : .
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flipper
Been working out of town a few days thought I'd bump this up. Thanks for your replies.
VIDIOT- I agree with you. I think the WT leaders don't believe that the child abuse problem is that big of a deal. Their responses in court and out of court prove that. Whether it's in the media or just ignoring courts demands for information ( for which they lost a court case Lopez in San Diego ) they have shown their arrogance and pompous attitude.
SIR 82- I hope that a lot more child abuse lawsuits GET the WT leaders attention.
FINKELSTEIN- I agree with you that the only way WT Society leaders are going to change their policies - is if they are forced by the laws of the land to do so. I think WT Society is hiding something even bigger going on with child abuse. Could be child slavery, selling children for prostitution, pedophile rings, something. There has to be bigger reasons WT Society refused to disclose all of their files concerning child abuse - even to the point of paying out 13.5 million to Lopez in order to keep that information secret. Think about it. WHAT information is worth 13.5 million $$$ to keep secret ? Criminal information indicting the WT Society - THAT'S what kind of information I'm talking about. They are hiding something they don't want authorities to know about
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How to be happy flopping whoppers part time while pioneering!
by life is to short ini was just thinking the other day why is there not service meeting part like my title says.
i mean that would really be helpful to those who totally believe the no collage thing.
since they do not want anyone to have any education why don't they at the very least try to help them to be happy living a life of poverty with service meetings parts, since everyone would be in poverty if they really listened to the fds.. like a part on how not to be upset when anther brother buys a new car parks it two blocks from the hall so as not to get door dings in it and rides all day in your car and does not give you a dime for gas.
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flipper
Interesting thread Life Is Too Short. I too worked part time in the early 1980's to late 1980's in my own self employed business in order to pioneer for 3 years in the early 1980's. As a young man in his 20's I bought into the GB 's BS line - hook, line, and sinker. ( So don't feel bad Xanthippe - you weren't the only one that bought into the false promises of the WT Society ) .
However by 1989 when I turned 30 years old I started questioning the " generation " theory in my own private thoughts without sharing it out loud to my then JW wife as I feared she would rat me out to elders and I'd lose all my family at that time. My children were still very young at that time. I felt 75 years had passed since 1914 and nothing had happened. No " Armageddon," no " Great tribulation ", no nothing. I had been told I'd never have children in " this system " but here I was a 30 year old dad with 3 young children in " this system " working my ass off to pay bills while my then JW wife still pioneered and spent $ 25,000 racking up credit card debt ( for which in 1998 I had to file bankruptcy on when we divorced that year ) .
By 1989 I had stopped " reaching out " for any " positions " and was just in spiritual " cruise control " waiting to see what, if anything, would happen. And that's how I basically played it until I finally exited the Witnesses in 2003. Was briefly DFed in 1998 to 2002 but only came back to the organization due to being SCARED back by the 2001 9-11 attacks. Kicked in my cult mindset thinking " Armageddon " was happening.
Been out since 2003 and I've never been happier. Freedom of mind is a precious thing to possess ! Peace out, Mr. Flipper
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Have anyone here ever told a elder he is full of poop.
by James Mixon ini wonder what the report to the branch would say.. he said " me, you and the wt organization is full of poop".. do we df him?
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flipper
Years ago I told the elders to " get off my doorstep and leave you assholes " when they came to my house from an hour and a half away to tell me I was getting DFed with no evidence against me for not attending their JC meeting against me. I appealed and threatened a lawsuit- and my DFing was overturned. It might be the only time in WT history that a person who called the elders " assholes " had his DFing overturned. Pretty strange- and kind of hilarious actually -
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“We are not done yet!” – Candace Conti reacts to appeal court decision
by Watchtower-Free inhttp://jwsurvey.org/cedars-blog/we-are-not-done-yet-candace-reacts-to-appeal-court-decision.
candace conti (pictured in her interview with abc) has spoken out for the first time about the appeal court decision.
as current and former jehovahs witnesses digest the news that watchtowers appeal against the candace conti verdict has faltered, albeit with the punitive element of the judgment reversed, candace has reacted for the first time by telling me: we are not done yet.. news spread on monday that the state appeals court in san francisco had upheld the $2.8 million compensatory damages in the original june 2012 verdict, but overturned the $8.6 million punitive award against watchtower.. the court decided that, though watchtower had neglected its responsibility to supervise known pedophile jonathan kendrick in field ministry, a church-sponsored activity, the organization had no duty to warn parents in the congregation that a pedophile was in their midst or report him to authorities.. an insightful report by investigative reporter trey bundy has suggested that the court reached its decision because the precedent set by the conti verdict might be too burdensome to enforce.. the burden would be considerable because the precedent could require a church to intervene whenever it has reason to believe that a congregation member is capable of doing harm, and the scope of that duty could not be limited with any precision, the judges wrote.. candaces attorney rick simons responded by pointedly telling bundy: they think in public policy terms that theres too much risk in broadening the churchs responsibility and liability so that it burdens what churches do.
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flipper
What the hell could be worse "adverse social consequences" than children being molested? Agh....
Mrs. Flip