Posts by fodeja

7

MSN-Hotmail Anonymity

by book_friend in

jw
friends

it appears msn has completely taken over hotmail accounts.

in the past hotmail was said to provide the most thorough anonymity while msn email left more readily detectable tracks to originator.

so is the anonymity of the msn-hotmail accounts now greatly, or partly or even fully cut out?

Slayer is right, Hotmail has been part of the MS(N) empire for something like two years now. AFAIK, they have always added the sender's IP address to every message header. IP addresses aren't like SSNs, but they can at least give hints about the general area where you are living. In some cases, an IP addresse (or more precisely, the associated hostname) is enough to track down your workplace, company, department and so on.

If you want maximum anonymity, I would recommend Hushmail ( http://www.hushmail.com).

f.

42

Hey Women! Faithful Slave Sez You're Dumb!

by metatron in

jw
friends

oh, this is gonna be fun!.

the august 22, 1967 awake has an article entitled.

"i do not permit a woman to exercise authority.

fodeja

The August 22, 1967 Awake has an article entitled "I Do Not Permit a Woman to Exercise Authority over a Man -- Why?" (pg. 27).

Pleeaase! I need a scanned image of that one!!

Great stuff, meta. Reminds me of that "young persons ask" article on bovine mating habits.

f.

42

Studying

by tattoogrl333 in

jw
friends

i flat out asked the jw i'm studying with what she would do if someone was disfellowshipped and she was honest and said she wouldn't talk to them since they wouldn't be good examples of jehovah witness.

then we started talking about appearances and tattoos, and about my pink hair :) and she said it didn't matter.

i am enjoying reading and visiting this web site but i am just not seeing the same things you guys have.

fodeja

Lisa,

My favorite page is called "Become a JW and you can't.." I've pasted it here for you

I'd like to add for tattoogirl that some of those rules are not enforced strictly in every cong (for instance, celebrating New Year seems to be a completely normal thing in one cong I know, discussing politics is also OK, dating without supervision is accepted to some extent for those in very good standing). However, things like shunning and reporting wrongdoing to elders seem to be fundamental laws.

f.

42

Studying

by tattoogrl333 in

jw
friends

i flat out asked the jw i'm studying with what she would do if someone was disfellowshipped and she was honest and said she wouldn't talk to them since they wouldn't be good examples of jehovah witness.

then we started talking about appearances and tattoos, and about my pink hair :) and she said it didn't matter.

i am enjoying reading and visiting this web site but i am just not seeing the same things you guys have.

fodeja

If you were a part of a vegetarian club and you decided to eat meat, would you expect others to talk to you.

Would you shun your lifelong best friend for choosing an alternative way of nutrition?
Would you refuse to speak to your mother/father/best friend because one of them has chosen to change their religion?
Would you simply accept it if your best friend, or your relatives, shun from the very moment you become a JW? Simply for that reason alone?

Think about it. From your postings so far it seems to me you are attracted to the JWs mostly for social reasons: nice people, close community and that.

Judging from my personal experience, that's the reason why most people join. Doctrine is less important - but remember that you _must_ accept that doctrine from A to Z (and if you don't, you should at least be silent about such issues).

And still, many people leave and feel good about it. They come from the most diverse backgrounds, they live in different parts of the world, they have a very wide range of personalities and living habits. Some of them have been in more tolerant congregations, others in more orthodox ones. They leave for different reasons, but their stories _still_ have a lot in common.

Ask yourself, why? Please take your time - you may also want to take a break from JWs and ex-JWs alike, for a while. Just let the case rest for a while. There is no need to hurry, or is there?

f.

edited for clarity

11

First Meeting

by tattoogrl333 in

i went to my first jw meeting, there were actually two but i only stayed for the first one.

it was actually kind of fun.

there was role play and that was funny, everyone was laughing and people were soooooo nice in fact most new who i was already.

fodeja

Hi tattoogirl,

One thing is hard, the lady I study with is really nice and I would feel bad if I decided to just stop studying. Has anyone else experienced this? How do you handle it, I work with her and have met her family and they have all been so great.

Been there, done that.

First of all, I believe that the lady is a genuinely nice person. But, as others here have pointed out: you aren't just meeting new friends. You are in the process of being converted. As you should know by now, recruiting new members is pivotal for the faith of the JWs. It's what keeps them going, it's why they spend hours and hours of trotting along the streets and knocking doors. Success is very rare, and even if bible studies are started, many do not result in baptism. These people _want_ you to join their religion, very much so. They are supposed to "save you", but on the other hand they are also trying to save themselves, because every single converted person reaffirms their way of life. They need you - not as a person, but as a Witness.

In a sense, they're trying to "score", just like a guy who's trying to impress a girl, showing all his best sides, dressing nicely, wining and dining her...if you excuse the analogy, but it's basically the same thing. It may be flattering and very exciting at first. It may look like you've found Mr. Right.

However, if you read the experiences of many people here, you'll notice a certain pattern: when courtship, wedding night and honeymoon are over, Prince Watchtower Charming tends to turn into a fat, unshaved couch potato who's spending most of his days in dirty underwear, slouching in front the TV, yelling at you to drive to the supermarket for another crate of beer and a couple of family-size bags of those cheese-flavoured taco chips and, goddammit, while you're at it, make the darn kids shut up, and take out the trash - now! And don't you ever think of talking back, or even leaving!

If that doesn't sound like the kind of life you've been dreaming of: take it slow. Watch your step. Not all that glitters is gold. Don't let these people make you feel guilty, ever - because that is the god-given, exclusive privilege of your parents

f.

13

La la la la la America

by philo in

jw
friends

after all the deserved congratulations, lately heaped upon america and americans in tr's thread, i've been wondering about a few things, which i couldn't figure from the discussion.. 1.why do some feel the need to talk up the greatness of the us, when this fact seems so self-evident?

is it just the jingoism which comes along with a world empire?.

2. do any american's here feel embarrassed about their government's foreign policies regarding: the new international criminal court (presently trying miloshovic), the reneging on the kyoto carbon-reduction treaty, or the high hand taken on sdi?.

fodeja

Nationalism is merely the adult version of kindergarten kids fighting over the sandbox.

Absolutely.

Englishman: Marmite is probably the most evil thing known in our corner of the universe. If it wasn't for your excellent beer, Marmite would be reason enough to ban all Englishmen to a secluded island with mostly horrible weather, lots of counter-clockwise roundabouts and sewage pipes running on the outside of houses, so that your neighbours know exactly when you're getting pregnant or developing prostrate trouble, respectively.

f. :-)

p.s.: Those of you who don't know Marmite, just be happy. All others will understand why death penalty isn't needed in Britain:

Talk about cognitive dissonance, huh?

14

Memorial Attendance Figures 2001

by gsark in

jw
friends

at the dc this weekend, they released memorial attendance figures for the us.

funny thing.

2001 2, 163, 602 (announced at dc, if i wrote tham down correctly).

fodeja

Does anyone see a problem with these figures except me.

Not particularly. I've noticed that memorial attendance and publishers/baptisms are mostly uncorrelated, at least in Europe in the last 10-15 years. Memorial attendance went down a little and up a little, while publishers and baptims decreased steadily at the same time.

Some people have suggested that memorial attendance is defined as "the number of primates, dogs and larger cats within a radius of 100 meters around the KH that might possibly attend the memorial". If the KH is next to a graveyard, skeletons are counted, too. If it's adjacent to the shopping mall's parking lot, each car is counted as five persons.

f.

edited for grammar

41

Kierkegaard on Abraham and Isaac: Blood

by dunsscot in

jw
friends

to whom it may concern,.

the witnesses are often condemned for refusing blood transfusions and "permitting" their children to die.

such a religious position is untenable, opponents of jws will argue.

fodeja

To dear "gadfly" fodeja,

Oh, thank you - that was nice . But I don't deserve that title at all. I'm afraid I also don't think _you_ deserve that title, but hey, panta rhei.

DS: How do you know I did not recognize it? As I said earlier, flocci non facio.

Now c'mon, you wouldn't resist a chance to impress us with your wisdom, would you?

DS: Exactly how much education do I have?

Far less than you'd like us to believe, I think.

BTW, where are the corrections for your test paper, my friend? You never did tell me what kinda logic you mean, nor did you point to any invalid or unsound arguments in my posts.

Well, first of all, I've given my test paper to someone I really accept as a teacher. And, excuse me, where did you use "arguments" (save "arguments from authority" and "proof by intimidation")?

Well, whatever, nevermind. You actually remind me very much of a person on another ex-JW board some time ago. His initial appearance was very similar to yours. It took quite a while, but then he (or maybe, she? I think it never became clear) turned out to be a nice, intelligent, educated witty person with a great sense of humour. I guess somehow he or she lost a lot of overblown ego on the way (which is harder than losing weight, but definitely more rewarding!). I hope you're not the same person, but maybe things will work out in a similar way? We'll see.

f.

41

Kierkegaard on Abraham and Isaac: Blood

by dunsscot in

jw
friends

to whom it may concern,.

the witnesses are often condemned for refusing blood transfusions and "permitting" their children to die.

such a religious position is untenable, opponents of jws will argue.

fodeja

Dannytroll,

After all, does it not logically follow (in most formal logical systems) that if I am an "average door-knocking Dub," then my reason will not exceed a certain level, namely, that of your average door-knocking Dub?

which, of course, was my point. Well observed. However, you didn't quite get the Umgangssprache thing - even though that's simple dictionary stuff.

Nice German, by the way, hUIOS MOU.

Thank you. But, how can you tell?

You apparently don't recognize a well-known quote from _the_ classic work of literature by an author who had significant impact on German thinkers (including some you are fond of quoting ad nauseam, specifically Hegel) and even German everyday language to this very day. Many frequently-used idioms of the language cannot be understood without knowing this work. That's why anyone with even less than half the education you claim to have should recognize the first words of Mephistopheles in Faust I. Just like everyone with a little bit of education will recognize the lines "to be, or not to be / that is the question / whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer / ...".

Too bad your fat dictionary couldn't tell you that.

f.

p.s.: I think you claimed to be proficient in a number of languages. Which, specifically?

41

Kierkegaard on Abraham and Isaac: Blood

by dunsscot in

jw
friends

to whom it may concern,.

the witnesses are often condemned for refusing blood transfusions and "permitting" their children to die.

such a religious position is untenable, opponents of jws will argue.

fodeja

Ich salutiere dem gelehrten Herrn,

but your lack of simple thinking abilities and the basics of logic is showing more and more. But then, what's a troll to do? In spite of all the puffery, your "reasoning" so far did not exceed the level of your average door-knocking Dub. Since many people here had been average door-knocking Dubs before, they see that. If you really have any formal philosophy education (I doubt it), why is your mumbo-jumbo exactly the same canned stuff Brother Windowcleaner tells uninterested householders when he's out in the field?

When I talked about dangers associated with blood transfusions, my point was--what do you think about a parent who allows his or her child to contract a disease from contaminated blood. We both know that there are certain risks connected with taking blood products. Admittedly, I'm no doctor or biologist. But the health factor alone makes me want to abstain from blood. But would you be upset with a parent who allowed their child to contract AIDS from contaminated blood, as some parents have done?

Doctor (medical expert): Dear parents, your child is in grave danger. Little Bobby has lost massive amounts of blood, we must replace it. We have tried all the alternatives. He's about to die if we don't transfuse very soon.

Parent: But, Doctor, aren't there risks? I mean, we've been told he could contract AIDS and Hepatitis and all that stuff. We should avoid it.

Doctor: That is correct. As with any therapy, there are risks. However, without the transfusion, your child _will_ die. That is a risk of 1, or at least 0.95. The risk of an AIDS or Hepatitis infection is real, but it is only a very tiny fraction of 1. So, the benefit of a transfusion far outweighs the risks in this situation. This is the kind of decision that I, as a doctor, have to make all the time, not just with blood transfusions.

So, Dunstmann, here's your homework assignment: do a little research and find out what the infection risks are today (if you don't mind my Umgangssprache - didja look that up by now, oh grand exalted master of tongues?).

f., still waiting for that good question or good answer of yours