Posts by Saintbertholdt

24

If they go bankrupt, so what?

by maksutov in

it seems likely that the watchtower is worried about its finances, given the downsizing, property schemes, and money-grabs we have been seeing over the last few years.

perhaps they suffered badly from the financial crisis.

for sure, there will be more expenses to come from child abuse payouts.

Saintbertholdt

My own worst projection for the Watchtower looks as follows:

For example: On 5 November 2017 the Watchtower declares chapter 11.
Who knows why? Perhaps bad investments, and they run out of funds during their building project upheaval and end up making lots of debt that the faithful can't cover. Who knows? Cats and dogs living together, mass hysteria. Then the scandals keep on coming (sexual abuse, lawsuits etc.) and they do something really dumb like they try another date prediction, which backfires.

The Average publisher level in 2050 is 1.38 million. Very bad but the organization still survives. Come to think of it, its actually not that bad for the Governing Body. The Risk of Ruin of the organization is virtually zero.

17

A note on the Watchtowers property investments

by Saintbertholdt in

about a year ago there was a thread regarding the 2008 watchtower bible and tract society of new yorks tax return.. http://www.jehovahs-witness.com/topic/287098/2008-watchtower-income-tax-return?page=1.

a reference was made to the provictor property fund iv which was listed as their primary alternate business activity.. turns out that at that time 75% of the chrysler building was owned by the provictor property fund iv until it was sold during that year.. http://money.cnn.com/2008/07/09/news/international/chrysler_building/?postversion=2008070913.

just thought you should know :).

Saintbertholdt

Hello there,

About a year ago there was a thread regarding the 2008 Watchtower Bible and tract Society of New Yorks tax return.

http://www.jehovahs-witness.com/topic/287098/2008-watchtower-income-tax-return?page=1

A reference was made to the Provictor Property Fund IV which was listed as their primary alternate business activity.

Turns out that at that time 75% of the Chrysler Building was owned by the Provictor Property fund IV until it was sold during that year.

http://money.cnn.com/2008/07/09/news/international/chrysler_building/?postversion=2008070913

Just thought you should know :)

79

Death is not something to be feared!

by iconoclastic in

science can explain how of things, but it cannot explain why of certain things (for example, why did life arise from non-life and evolved from simpler creatures to more complex life forms only to die and disappear?

) so are the conflicted religions whose chief concern is in safeguarding each ones separate identity..

next option is to look for pearls among the stonesusing power of our own reason.

Saintbertholdt

(although Neil deGrasse Tyson comes close, IMO).

Yeah he has inherited the title of chief science communicator :)

Why is only Carl Sagan singled out? Why does no one touch Abraham Linclon, Shakespeare, Will Durant?

I'll touch Will Durant. You didn't half quote him but generally I disagree with his prediction of secularism causing society's downfall. He looks to Greece and Rome but he ignores the fact that those cultures did not replace religion with secularism, but mainly replaced religion with hedonism. On the other hand Durants fear is actually a good cautionary phobia which modern society should still take note of.

79

Death is not something to be feared!

by iconoclastic in

science can explain how of things, but it cannot explain why of certain things (for example, why did life arise from non-life and evolved from simpler creatures to more complex life forms only to die and disappear?

) so are the conflicted religions whose chief concern is in safeguarding each ones separate identity..

next option is to look for pearls among the stonesusing power of our own reason.

Saintbertholdt

Carl Sagan was also a marijuana user, who felt it enhanced his creative process and had other benefits.

How I loved that man.

79

Death is not something to be feared!

by iconoclastic in

science can explain how of things, but it cannot explain why of certain things (for example, why did life arise from non-life and evolved from simpler creatures to more complex life forms only to die and disappear?

) so are the conflicted religions whose chief concern is in safeguarding each ones separate identity..

next option is to look for pearls among the stonesusing power of our own reason.

Saintbertholdt

Carl Sagan WAS strictly scientific.

He was also poetic. From cosmos (1980): "The Cosmos is all that is or ever was or ever will be. Our feeblest contemplations of the Cosmos stir us — there is a tingling in the spine, a catch in the voice, a faint sensation as if a distant memory, of falling from a height. We know we are approaching the greatest of mysteries."

and

"We are like butterflies who flutter for a day and think it's forever."

3

Who has the latest stats?

by Dogpatch in

jw
friends

who has the latest stats on watchtower growth?.

the most complete?.

(i've lost the link somewhere).

Saintbertholdt

Anyone?
(It's been 13 years since Randy asked this question.)

I'm still looking into it. My modem login to AOL only went through three years ago and my pc is a bit slow.

In the meantime Marley Cole's Jehovah's Witnesses New World Society has reasonably up to date stats.

26

How does God view atheist and devotees?

by iconoclastic in

1) he views devotees with disgust; because they use god as a means to fulfillment of their materialistic ends, and they constantly pester him with request to violate his own laws (principle of action and consequence).

hence devotees are materialistic in its true sense.

they even interpolate things into scriptures to suit their convenienceas confirmed by prophet jeremiah himself (jeremiah 7:22; 8:8).

Saintbertholdt

Which 'God' are you speaking of?

Google.

42

Royal Commission National Redress Scheme. Average of $65,000 per victim, not including psychological fees and admin costs.

by Lemonp in

the royal commission published it's redress report today.

it is a 668 page document, but it is very interesting.

all the recommendations they make are in harmony with what all other institutions will accept.

Saintbertholdt

Hi _Morpheus,

You know what the victims could do? Start a class action lawsuit using the $65 000 per victim as a legitimate guideline.

Yeehaaa.

42

Royal Commission National Redress Scheme. Average of $65,000 per victim, not including psychological fees and admin costs.

by Lemonp in

the royal commission published it's redress report today.

it is a 668 page document, but it is very interesting.

all the recommendations they make are in harmony with what all other institutions will accept.

Saintbertholdt

$65 000 X 1006 = $ 65 390 000

Mother of God!

79

Death is not something to be feared!

by iconoclastic in

science can explain how of things, but it cannot explain why of certain things (for example, why did life arise from non-life and evolved from simpler creatures to more complex life forms only to die and disappear?

) so are the conflicted religions whose chief concern is in safeguarding each ones separate identity..

next option is to look for pearls among the stonesusing power of our own reason.

Saintbertholdt

rebel830 minutes agoSo nobody's going to call out the OP for the misleading quote of Sagan? Ok, I will.

Yeah but OP quotes Durant in the very next sentence after Sagan. Sagan would not disagree with the sentiment:

"In the end, nothing is lost. Every event, for good or evil, has effects forever.” (Will Durant)."

So even if the quote has omissions, OP does not use the Sagan quote to prove he believed in an afterlife, rather the Durant quote completes Sagans thought in that he is actually still living on today. His words, thoughts and actions still echo forever,

At least that's what I took from the closing paragraph.