Posts by talesin

16

Born to Be Conned - The New York Times

by paul from cleveland in

born to be conned - new york times.

when people want to believe what they want to believe, david sullivan, a professional cult infiltrator, told the commonwealth club of california, a public affairs forum, in july 2010, they are very hard to dissuade.

and the reason it happens (and often happens to the most intelligent people) is that human nature is wired toward creating meaning out of meaninglessness..

talesin

It must be my Vulcan side that's never been conned, but I'm not buyin' it.

tal

34

Why do people just give their money to the Watchtower?

by WireRider in

what do they contribute to humanity?

what do they contribute to any part of society?.

why are people paying for a scam?.

talesin

They do NOTHING.

Just for the hell of it, I looked up Billy Graham.org, to see what that extremely wealthy and powerful 'ministry' does to help the suffering. Guess what? Nothing. He has ministries, and chaplains.

So the JWS aren't the only ones!

Religion is a snare and a racket. Hmm, I wonder who said that? Oh yeah, that old drunken swine, Rutherford.

tal

34

Do most ex JW's go politically left?

by Lightgrowsbrighter in

i've found it interesting that- imho- most of the politically vocal ex-jw's at this website seem to lean left.

i'm personally pretty centered- right on some issues, left on others, but overall have a pretty cynical view of all political/religious leaders.

i find it somewhat ironic that people who leave such a dogmatic group like the witnesses become so politically dogmatic.

talesin

Looking back over the years, I'd say it's a sign of current USA politics. During the GWB administration, there were quite a few vocal right-wing posters. Remember, that was during 9/11 aftermath, and the subsequent invasion of Iraq, - emotions were running high, and the American people wanted vengeance.

The flame wars and heated debates recently, tend to be between deists and avowed atheists. Political wrangling has died down (except for racial and gun-control issues, which are always hot topics). It will be interesting to see if things heat up in 2016. For some entertaining reading, go back to the 2004 pre-election threads. Oh yeah, lots of right and left vehement discussions. : D

As for the JWS, to me, they are conservatives. They are pro-rules (laws), anti-choice, pro-capitalism and harsh punishments for crime, including the death penalty, anti-gay/lesbian, anti-marijuana, anti-peace movement, hate Rock and Roll, etc. Don't let their phoney 'pacifist' stance on war convince you they are liberal thinkers. That is just another form of controlling the 'sheeple'.

Ponder that for a while - I used to think all exJWs were like me, ie. a flaming, bleeding-heart liberal (as I've been called, here, years ago. lol!), but no. Many are very conservative, "Tories", we call 'em. In the USA they are called the GOP or Republicans ...... oh and also the Libertarians are right-wing as well. (Not that there's anything wrong with that! hehehe)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oj3VphK9AMk

That's my take on it.

t

16

A 'Paradise' for mice turned out not to be so

by Petraglyph in

in this experiment, mice were given a perfect environment in which to live.

for the mice you would think this was 'paradise'.

but due to their nature it did not take long for this to become a horrible place to live.. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0z760xny4vm.

talesin

I would love to live forever in paradise with no crime, hunger, illness, etc.
As long as there were only ~50 individuals of my choosing who mostly left me alone, unlimited books, music and diversions.

I could handle that, rebel8. :P

t

16

A 'Paradise' for mice turned out not to be so

by Petraglyph in

in this experiment, mice were given a perfect environment in which to live.

for the mice you would think this was 'paradise'.

but due to their nature it did not take long for this to become a horrible place to live.. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0z760xny4vm.

talesin

VI - funny that we are discussing this, as I read an article on population control in the last 2-3 weeks. I wipe my history often, but shall see if I can find it by looking around on google. I don't read 'scientific' or political blogs, so it would be .edu or .gov, or in a bona fide onine news outlet, etc. It discussed a case study of some country or population that was headed for overpopulation crisis, and certain factors naturally come into play, that levelled things out on their own. Also spoke of China, and how the attempt at population control has backfired, big time. Hmm. Very interesting stuff, and made a lot of sense.

My personal opinion is that we have already interfered with nature. If we could change, and use technology to help people lead better lives. Example: Food. If we returned to family farms (which take up very little acreage, planting methods can be used that naturally control pests, crop and grazing rotation, all good things for people and earth) and started to *mostly* eat local foods and fresh local produce, thousands of jobs would be created. Factory farms, with their disease-ridden populations and shit pools that endanger the water supply, would be gone. The waste of so much food that is thrown away because it does not meet supermarket standards? That waste alone, would feed all of our hungry and aid the working poor in Canada.

This would require a new monetary system. Deconstruction of multi-nationals would be required. Economic and political power-seeking would have to become a 'bad thing'. Different solutions for different regions, continents, countries, etc. World cooperation, a true global economy free from exploitation of those who need help and support the most.

In other words, we need a global paradigm shift. We need to see the Earth and all life on it, as one huge ecosystem of which we are a part. Instead of being bent on conquering, we should be focused on co-operation. We have the technology. We just need the will.

Thank you, and good nite! :P

"You may say I'm a dreamer; but I'm not the only one."

Even physicists speak of levels of planets, that evolve into higher forms of consciousness. It's a small part of science that Star Trek and 'first contact' is based on. I feel that this paradigm shift has begun. Things will get worse before they get better, and not in my lifetime. But I do feel that humanity, and our planet is in a state of flux, and the final outcome will be progress.

tal

Edit: Further, let's take a look at antibiotic resistance and superbugs. Salmonella is now developing deadly antibiotic-resistant strains. And it's everywhere in poultry. In North America, it is particularly rampant. Even backyard chickens can have salmonella. We don't know what the next superbug will be, but populations could be greatly reduced by a plague or virus that we just ... canNOT ... cure. Period. Perhaps 60% of the population will have a natural resistance (like shingles, for example), and they will survive. *shrugs*

26

Old, Faithful and Forgotten...

by rrb2016 in

had a conversation with my jw mother the other day.

she has been baptized for over 50 years.

i've been out for 30 years, but because both my mother and mother-in-law are jw's i keep up with all things jw.

talesin

possum

That's one way we know ... it's a cult!

13

Somebody forgot where they parked

by JeffT in

how does this happen?http://www.cnn.com/2015/12/08/aviation/malaysia-aviation-airport-abandoned-aircraft/

talesin

JWDaughter

My room mate and I had a discussion when I first viewed the story, and that's what she said! (me, that is, to him) .

13

Somebody forgot where they parked

by JeffT in

how does this happen?http://www.cnn.com/2015/12/08/aviation/malaysia-aviation-airport-abandoned-aircraft/

talesin

Plane fuselages would make for great housing. It made me think of Texas, and trailer parks in Tornado Alley (that's what I call it). I always figured a great shelter would be a shipping container, dug in about 3-4 feet, and then mounded over. Presto!

Have you ever seen pics of the airplane graveyard in the USA? I have the National Geographic. There are 100s, if not 1,000s of them. Great pre-fabs, instead of leaving them to decay.

: )

t

20

In the Shadow of Sin-Portuguese documentary

by the girl next door in

https://youtu.be/8ue3--fnsh8.

the portuguese channel tvi in portugal, broadcast this documentary in october 2015 about jehovah's witnesses.

child abuse, shunning, blood transfusions and many other topics were mentioned in this report.the documentary makers asked for a response from the leadership of jehovahs witnesses to the damaging statements made by survivors of child abuse and domestic violence.

talesin

Judicial committees, child sexual abuse, 'no blood' doctrine, domestic violence, shunning, pioneering in severe poverty.

This documentary exposed a lot of issues in 33 minutes. It's comprehensive, and cuts to the heart of the matter with vignettes of cult survivors, and their stories. Well done! Bravo! Looking forward to watching Part deux.

Thank you, TJ Curioso, for the translations.

talesin

16

A 'Paradise' for mice turned out not to be so

by Petraglyph in

in this experiment, mice were given a perfect environment in which to live.

for the mice you would think this was 'paradise'.

but due to their nature it did not take long for this to become a horrible place to live.. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0z760xny4vm.

talesin

The major limiting factor in the experiment was space. I think that must have played a big role.

Population control occurs naturally - that's what this experiment says to me. Perfect conditions ... hmmm... of course, that would have as many definitions as there are humans on the globe. : ))

Places where human populations are condensed ... refugee camps, inner cities ... what happens?

My thoughts, that's all.

tal