Posts by lrkr

43

What do you think will happen to cause an exodus or at least push JWs into further obscurity?

by the_dude_abides in

i believe someday it will be as obscure and strange as say the russelites.

the meetings will only be attended by ppl over sixty or so and it will hardly be considered anywhere near as significant a religion as it is today.

i wonder what will begin this process.

lrkr

As far as a huge scandal- how about a GB pedophile is dismissed from Bethel, a different GB member and Gilead Instructor leave the organization and write books about how screwed up it is, the society predicts the end of all things on a specific calendar date and it doesnt come.

Oh yeah- all that stuff already happened- and here we are- with 5 million MORE witnesses than at that time....

Sorry- I dont see the end of this crazy group anytime soon- Just look at how long the Catholic Church has survived!!! Proof that crazy doesn't equal extinction.

36

Valley Farms Corp. What do they protect with it?

by MinisterAmos in

most already know that watchtower corp atty phil brumley uses a patterson, ny address as his residence.

using google maps, 131 brimstone road, patterson ny is starting to shape up into a veritable mansion.

maybe they are planning another rutherford (also an atty) style beth sharim but this time close to wallkill?.

lrkr

Valley Farms is a corporation maintained to pay taxes on residential parcels. When they say that they pay taxes on ___% of their property (which they often say to the neighbors to keep them off their backs) it is because they pay on these small residences. (There may also be a liability issue too- if I know the WT Society right.) They also use Valley Farms as a front to purchase property when a local doesnt want to sell to WT.

As far as I know, Brumley did go to law school while at Bethel- whether on a scholarship or paid by Bethel, I dont know. I used to really think that was cool, until I realized the slimey stuff the Legal Dept does. Those guys are worse than the GB in my book. They not only know the real scoop, they scheme to protect the power of the few.

16

My JW Mother Asked if I Could Get Her the Yearly Information on the TMS

by OnTheWayOut in

jw
friends

while i was active, i would find someone on the web that would post/share their complete reference information on the theocratic ministry school and i would print it for my mother.

it would include all the wt materials excerpted from their books for each week's school.

many people did it.

lrkr

Come on everybody- Im sure one of you can get a hold of that password and post all of the letters here.

I challenge you.

11

Blondie's Comments You Will Not Hear at the 10-18-09 WT Study (HOPE)

by blondie in

jw
friends

unpublished documents, evidently written by isaac newton, that indicate he believed the world could end in 2060 ad.. (newton also had many other possible dates e.g 2034) [11].

13:43) how did the true knowledge become.

actually, until 1927 or so the wts taught that 1799 was the beginning of the "time of the end" not the 1914 the.

lrkr

Wow- this little bit of cherry picking of historical quotes will no doubt be celebrated as a comprehensive history of the theology of life on paradise earth.

Shame that they don't mention that every proof scripture they have for living on earth is actually a mistranslation- "the meek shall inherit the land" is more accurate- and easier to understand coming from a culture in the Roman empire where land was the source of all wealth and family/tribal land inheritances were the whole enchilada.

Amazing work as usual Blondie.

21

Don't want to celebrate holidays even with my daughter...

by cognac in

jw
friends

i feel like its so much work, stressful, commercialized and since i never formed the habit of it i hate the idea of celebrating them.

i wouldn't mind buying presents for my daughter on christmas and maybe doing a treasure hunt for halloween (i don't want her taking candy from even my neighbors) and things like that so she doesn't feel left out or like she's missing something.

just something easy and informal...

lrkr

I tried to start slowly- mostly out of lingering guilt, being raised without them, etc. However, once I got my head completely out, we had a ball with holidays. There really is nothing like the grin on your kids face in a Halloween costume with his friends. Christmas morning is absolutely wonderful with him jumping around with his friends and their new toys. And birthdays have become annual milestones and great events too! I feel like we have so much to celebrate! I don't buy any of the religious reasons for any of the holidays- I just enjoy having an excuse to slow the world down for a few minutes and rejoice with my family.

23

Circuit Assembly, District Assembly, Special Assembly Day....what is the difference?

by insearchoftruth in

my wife just went to what she called a special assembly (or something like that), what are the assemblies or conventions and what is the intended audience and the length of each?.

lrkr

Circuit Assys and Spec Assy days are put together by Service (therefore they are drone on and on repeats year after year managed by the Service Department henchmen- CO's and DO's

District Conventions are put together by the Teaching Committee (with Writing, I think) and sometimes have interesting talks and angles- compared to Circuit and Spec. Assy days. They are managed by committees that may or may not include the Service Dept Henchmen (COs and DOs)

2

NYC - Gramercy Park/East Side - area around Beth Israel Medical Center

by Alana in

jw
friends

there is a slight chance that my husband may have the opportunity to go to nyc to complete a surgical residency at beth israel medical center (on 17th st., between 1st & 2nd ave.).

he is a podiatrist who orignally completed a shorter residency back after graduation, but now credentialing has changed and it would benefit him to be able to get into a surgical residency, hopefully as a 2nd yr resident.

and he is working with several programs now in the application process.. my question is for you nyc folks is: in what kind of area is that hospital located?

lrkr

I worked on a condo project right near there. This is a great area of town. Blocks away from Union Square. Great restaurants, young crowd, really great location. The park itself and the architecture around it has an old feel about it (I think it is a landmark area) and has been used in the filming of period movies. You wont find rent nearby for very cheap- but Peter Cooper village is nearby and is one of the last areas of middleclass rent levels. (The condos I worked on sold for $2-$5 M each.)

14

A Former Bethelite Said WTS Did Pay Social Security in the USA.

by OnTheWayOut in

a former bethelite who served in the 70's said that bethel usa did pay social security for all the bethelites.

she would not give any details like, whether it was a tiny amount based on their stipend or what.

i mean, earning your quarters is still a great thing.

lrkr

Yeah- with the phrase "volunteer" they were able to avoid being subject to minimum wage, OSHA, Equal opportunity laws, ADA, and just about every other employee protection law ever passed.

14

A Former Bethelite Said WTS Did Pay Social Security in the USA.

by OnTheWayOut in

a former bethelite who served in the 70's said that bethel usa did pay social security for all the bethelites.

she would not give any details like, whether it was a tiny amount based on their stipend or what.

i mean, earning your quarters is still a great thing.

lrkr

I was there from 90-98. The whole time I was there Legal was to prepare our taxes. The only income reported was cash I made G-jobbing (taking vacation time and working- usually on a construction site- for cash)

Now I realize why Legal prepared the taxes- so that no one reports the "reimbursement" as income- Sold to us as a "service" - actually a control mechanism and work around to make sure they avoided employment taxes!! The only up side was that I got a great college scholarship when I left- because it was income based!!!

52

Comments from an elder judt returning from Elders' School

by Room 215 in

jw
friends

a good friend and long-time elder just back from patterson, asked me what i thought is he most prevalent problem elders are facing today....told him i had no idea.... he said "pornography" by far the most vexing problem for them... hard to believe, no?.

lrkr

It is their biggest problem right now because a few years ago they really came down hard (no pun intended) on anyone looking at any type of porn. Elders who looked at sites with exposed boobs were confessing and ruining their marriages over it. Sounds like the lunacy continues. Nothing like a little Victorian values on Steriods in the Internet age to really screw people up.