JOHN BUTLER

Because of peoples' reactions, I even had to stop digging holes in the back yard, at night by flashlight, in the rain.

Unfortunately, lawyers cooled off much of that. When trespassers began suffering injuries on private property & owners were sued for it, many responded by making their property off-limits.

Now you've hurt my feelings ...
I WOULD hesitate.

At least most of those cars finally got cleared off the lot. "Urban Explorers" must still be a problem, though. I read somewhere that they keep breaking locks and cutting fences just to take a selfie at a place like this. Right?
Looks like quite a project. Perhaps someday it could become a "Wyndham" hotel.
Seriously, however, especially if permission to add the two 70 foot towers and botanical gardens works out, it would be a great place for corporate events, weddings, etc. In the US, we often made use of these out of the way locations for corporate events. Attendance was always low when events were held in Las Vegas, Atlanta, etc., and much higher at captive locations. With those planned hiking trails it would remind me of the last three I went to:
Mohonk House in New Paltz, New York and another one in Amish/Mennonite country in rural Ohio, and another one in Asheville, North Carolina, The [Vander]Biltmore). I don't know how popular this idea is in the UK, but a French company I worked for would send us to a Bordeaux winery (that they owned) and then a "Club Med" in Normandy that was not a typical water-sports oriented Club Med. It was designed with a lot of garden-like pools and little bridges based on Monet/Manet paintings.

Wow, it's fantastic! Looks like a lot of work on the pillars, will they be able to be restored to their original beauty?

One thing that upset me when I moved to the USA was the realisation that one cannot just walk anywhere. In Europe, for the most part, everyone has "the right to roam" which means you can pretty much go anywhere, even on privately owned land. In America, most land is owned by someone, and that someone does not tolerate anyone walking through their property. I'm sure @James Thomas Rook Jr. wouldn't hesitate to put a bullet through your head. There are "parks" but those parks are rarely within walking distance. You might have perfect hiking acreage right behind your house, but if it doesn't belong to you,  you can't go there. In England, most privately owned fields and meadows can be accessed by pedestrians and hikers (including their free running dogs, in America you can only let your dog run in a dog park) through a style or "kissing gate". Trails are made naturally by people frequently walking there, not by someone preparing them specially for that purpose. Farmers who drive tractors through a field leave a path, and people walk on those too. As long as you do not infringe on someones garden (yard) around the house (which is usually fenced anyway) you are not trespassing. Of course there is the odd grumpy farmer who puts up "do not trespass" signs in a field, but there are not many....
So in view of that, hiking trails are not really a planned thing in England in the same sense as in America. Of course there are nature reserves, where there are sign posted trails, but generally, in the rural countryside, (where John Buttler's house is) there is no need for them. The same goes for Scotland. In fact I think now you can also put a tent up anywhere, and you can fish and canoe on all the rivers, even if it cuts through someones land.
In Switzerland, you can hike anywhere as well, and you don't have to stick to trails. The whole alpine region is completely and freely accessible to everyone. As for other European states, it's pretty much the same. Oh, and all the nature reserves are "free". They are paid for by the state.
So apparently America is the land of the free. Not in my mind   The book "trespassing across America" sounds interesting.....

 

This almost looks identical to the field behind my mum's house. One year it was growing rapeseed and it was amazing walking through a field of pure yellow...
 
 
 

I'll just say this to you Billy.... At least Anna believes some of what I say and agrees with me on somethings. Whereas you just put your head in the sand, call all victims liars (by your comments) and think the Org is squeaky clean. 
I really don't care what you 'have not been made aware of', you are not important to me, whereas the Victims of Child Abuse are important to me.  
I'll tell you the same as i told Anna. if the elders want to disfellowship someone they will create a 'reason' to do it. 
And one false reason they use is that a person is 'Causing a division in the congregation' which could mean anything..

Life itself. all 69 years of it  

I have heard that too, but it seems it wasn't many, but a few. Some elders were acting on a wrong interpretation of "one should not take another brother to court". Of course that was never talking about crime such as murder or sexual abuse. And some elders took it upon themselves to say that it should not to be taken outside the congregation so as not to sully Jehovah's name. Which was wrong, and was never an instruction from Bethel. Also, taking the matter to the police was NEVER a reason for disfellowshipping. If someone was disfellowshipped it was because of unrepentant gossip and slander.

Yes, I believe so too. I believe the PARENT should go to the police first thing, and then to the elders second. However, if the parent goes to the elders first, the elders are not always mandated reporters. Regardless, some parents do not wish to involve the police at all! (that goes for non JW parents too). It very much depends on who the perpetrator is and what the circumstances are. Not every parent wants to rush to the police or if their 9 year old daughter tells them senile grandpa was a little too touchy feely the other day. Some parents opt for keeping granddaughter out of reach of grandpa. I feel a parent who is well connected to their child, knows their child, communicates with their child and watches their child will instinctively know when to report someone. Unfortunately, not all parents are like that.
 

Um, strange topic, strange people on here  
If a man looks at a woman so as to have a desire for her he has committed adultery / fornicaton in his heart.  And if a man looks at pornography it is also wrong. But robots, does that include full size 'dolls' ? Oh dear the plot thickens. 

In the story line, on her planet of origin, she was raped when she was 5, and gang-raped until 12, when she escaped, and she was the Starship Enterprise's Chief Security Officer.
Started life as a JW then ? 

@The Librarian you mentioned computer games i believe or PS4 and such like. Many of such games are for one person only, one player, and sometimes people shut themselves off in a room all alone to play these games. Mo son who is now 24 does this. It may be a 'wind down' after work for him but he does spend many hours through the night playing such games. 
As for Chess I used to love it at school, but it seemed to fade out of my life as i became more active as a teenager.  Mods didn't play chess, they danced, rode scooters and spent their money on clothes and records. 
Agree with @Srecko Sostar that Jesus wasn't concerned about such trivial things. 
But there are many things one could disagree with if one was as piccy as the GB. For instance Bridesmaids at weddings. Yes JW's have Bridesmaids even if they call them by a different name. But of course Bridesmaids are based on superstition and traditions of men. 
There was once I was at a Witness gathering / party and the youngsters were playing music. I had to say no no to one song which they started to play, but no one else seemed to object to it. The song 'I'm just a teenage dirtbag baby'. It's horrible.
Yet many years ago when I lived in Bristol a popular Elder of the Avonmouth Congregation would go around whistling 'Bohemian Rhapsody'. When i objected to it and told him why, he didn't care and continued to whistle it.  The song by Queen was sung by a homosexual and was about murder.  'Put a gun against his head, pulled the trigger now he's dead', Yes, lovely.
So you see we could object to so much in life. GB stop trying to turn people into puppets. You already have your Elder puppets,
'Hey GB leave the Congregants alone'  (sorry it's a take off of Another Brick in the Wall ) 'Hey teacher leave those kids alone' 

@The Librarian you mentioned computer games i believe or PS4 and such like. Many of such games are for one person only, one player, and sometimes people shut themselves off in a room all alone to play these games. Mo son who is now 24 does this. It may be a 'wind down' after work for him but he does spend many hours through the night playing such games. 
As for Chess I used to love it at school, but it seemed to fade out of my life as i became more active as a teenager.  Mods didn't play chess, they danced, rode scooters and spent their money on clothes and records. 
Agree with @Srecko Sostar that Jesus wasn't concerned about such trivial things. 
But there are many things one could disagree with if one was as piccy as the GB. For instance Bridesmaids at weddings. Yes JW's have Bridesmaids even if they call them by a different name. But of course Bridesmaids are based on superstition and traditions of men. 
There was once I was at a Witness gathering / party and the youngsters were playing music. I had to say no no to one song which they started to play, but no one else seemed to object to it. The song 'I'm just a teenage dirtbag baby'. It's horrible.
Yet many years ago when I lived in Bristol a popular Elder of the Avonmouth Congregation would go around whistling 'Bohemian Rhapsody'. When i objected to it and told him why, he didn't care and continued to whistle it.  The song by Queen was sung by a homosexual and was about murder.  'Put a gun against his head, pulled the trigger now he's dead', Yes, lovely.
So you see we could object to so much in life. GB stop trying to turn people into puppets. You already have your Elder puppets,
'Hey GB leave the Congregants alone'  (sorry it's a take off of Another Brick in the Wall ) 'Hey teacher leave those kids alone' 

Um, seems we are back to square one. All part and parcel as to why I left. Not just the actual abuse but how it isn't dealt with. 
In my opinion ALL Child Abuse accusations should be handed over to the Police immediately, and Social Services / Children's Welfare should be involved if a child is in danger.
Congregations should be told that if a child or adult makes an accusation then the Police and authorities will be informed directly. That would give those making accusations advanced warning and it would leave it in their hands to make accusation or not, removing the problem of a case mentioned earlier on another topic where by Elders were moaned at for reporting it. And if it's a child making the accusation that would mean that it is happening right now (not in the past) so immediate attention is needed. 
So, now it is Spain that is reporting Child Abuse in the JW Org. I hadn't heard of this before. We are getting closer to what I've said before IT'S EARTHWIDE.  I'm hoping that by the end of this year all countries will be reporting any abuse of any kind within the JW org.  But there are some countries that will have more of a problem of course, where women and children are treated poorly generally. 
We now have :-
Spain, Netherlands, Australia, America, Canada and UK.
If anyone has any news of other countries involved I would like to have information please.  I've started to write details in a book for my own information as I find it difficult to retain it all in my head. 
Are the GB still saying it's a 'few apostates telling lies' ? 
( Special message for S. M.  I am only interested in what is happening within the JW Org earthwide )

Jesus was only 3 1/2 years on Earth in a role of Teacher and Master. He had not enough time for "stupid" subjects .....
.... for example;
( would his  true disciple reject false, pagan customs, as playing chess, toasting,  exchange gifts and feast, Pinata... etc)
(or what sort of intimacy  are allowed and what are forbidden  between male and female couple ......)   :))).

In what world?
I have yet to see a chess game where the contestants (players) were anything but completely civil with each other, true gentlemen, and friendly ... and I have played perhaps 400 games myself with people all over the world, with great congeniality and friendliness.
Now, if you are playing "Battle Chess", where one of the contestants has severe acne, and an eye patch covering up a sword slash scar,  and the other has a tattoo that says "Born to Kill", and before the game begins both players put their guns and knives  on the table, and the timer is a nearsighted accountant chained to a chair, and they are wagering over several bars of gold,  and the virginity of a woman tied to railroad tracks,  and there is a gallows in the parking lot ... I might want to avoid that competition.
... or play to win!
 

.....and to make warning to membership of congregation and local "worldly" community about such ones? 

Dear @admin you can close this topic down now. I think it's served its purpose. Thankyou 

Dear @admin you can close this topic down now. I think it's served its purpose. Thankyou 

Nevermind.. it is all false:
 

That's shed some light onto it then  .   Nice to be a bit light hearted   

Yes what else would we do with our time  But I must admit my mixed feelings are getting even more mixed as I read every comment. 
If only life was simple .... 

I've just watched a video link of Bro Jackson being 'sworn in' at the Australian Royal Commision and he swore on the Bible.
I've always thought that JW's should not swear on God's word the Bible. I thought there was a scripture that says not to swear on anything, but to let our own Yes or No mean Yes or  No..........  Matthew 5 33 - 37 
And I'm sure somewhere in his statements he says that the GB might not be the 'only' channel God is using. 
So, I'm wondering how much his words or opinions can be trusted. 
  33  “Again you heard that it was said to those of ancient times: ‘You must not swear without performing, but you must pay your vows to Jehovah.’34  However, I say to you: Do not swear at all,c neither by heaven, for it is God’s throne; 35  nor by earth, for it is the footstool of his feet;d nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King.e 36  Do not swear by your head, since you cannot turn one hair white or black. 37  Just let your word ‘Yes’ mean yes, your ‘No,’ no, for what goes beyond these is from the wicked 

Well at least it's popular