Jack Ryan

“...’the angel of Jehovah camps all around those fearing Him,’ — so by means of His powerful angels, Jehovah can shield His faithful worshipers from harm, IF IT BE HIS WILL...” — from opening remarks in Watchtower’s Attendant Training Video

It appears that it wasn’t/isn’t Jehovah’s will to protect children from being sexually abused within His own congregations. It appears that these powerful angels are shielding no one, if He isn’t protecting these most vulnerable amongst us.

Frankly, it appears that it isn’t Jehovah’s will to protect His people in general.

China is not alone in having Security cameras in its cities, but what is special about the Chinese system is that it is linked to a facial recognition system that can identify people in a few seconds. China, again like some other nations, has Personal Identity Cards with a photographic image on it . (Australia has not, but drivers licences do have an image and such licences are used as de facto identity cards). That makes it possible to make that fast identification. At a test a couple of months ago at busy Rail station, police picked up 50 wanted suspects in one morning.

But there's an interesting story about the camera that powers China's security network. Invented at Duke University, the inventors failed to interest the US government in the camera, so the inventor moved to China ....

This Wall Street Journal Video tells the story: 

ttps://www.wsj.com/articles/how-a-powerful-spy-camera-invented-at-duke-ended-up-in-chinas-hands-1528714895?aid=190131336&sc_src=email_2264229&sc_llid=4565&sc_lid=152369935&sc_uid=jLHz3FHtZ8&utm_source=emarsys&utm_medium=email

Ok folks. Just so you know. You'll see less JW's on YouTube, Facebook, Twitter etc... and maybe even forums like these due to the new edict from the Governing Body directing all JW's to stay off of the Internet again.

I say again because they only recently lifted their Internet ban when they launched jw.org....

Well folks... it's back on!

Which websites other than jw.org do you think JW's will still use?  I suspect Netflix will still be used.

Video Transcript

Ron: New tonight, a WGAL News 8 exclusive. A York County man has turned himself in for charges related to sexual assault of a 4-year-old, dating back 13 years.

Janelle: And there are questions tonight about whether clergy at the Jehovah’s Witness church in Red Lion knew about the abuse, and failed to report it. WGAL News 8's Beccah Hendrickson has been investigating this story for weeks.

Beccah: Abby Haugh’s mom and dad tell me they wish they’d gone to police when they learned their daughter was sexually assaulted in church, but instead, they say they went to the people they trusted most, the clergy of their Jehovah’s Witness congregation. I have to warn you, the story you’re about to hear is disturbing.

>> "So I followed him into the back and he sat on the chair and pulled me onto his lap and he touched me in places that were inappropriate."

Beccah: This was 2005. Abby was just 4-years-old. Her father says he walked in on his nephew molesting Abby in their Jehovah’s Witness Kingdom Hall in Red Lion. Police arrested John Logan Haugh Wednesday in connection with that alleged assault, 13 years after Abby’s parents claim they told the spiritual leaders of the church, known as elders. Pennsylvania law requires clergy to report suspected child abuse to police. The elders, the Haugh's say knew of the abuse, are listed on the affidavit that led to Haugh’s arrest. After weeks of me trying to contact them both visiting the Red Lion Kingdom Hall and calling them I finally got a response just hours after John Logan Haugh turned himself in to police. They refused an on camera interview instead sending me this letter which was posted on the International Jehovah’s Witness website 3 weeks ago. It says in part they abhor child abuses and view it as a crime, and the elders do not shield any perpetrator of child abuse from the authorities. The Haugh’s say they believed at the time telling secular authorities was going against their church.

>> "We still believed Armageddon was right around the corner, that all 7 billion people would be killed, only the 8 million Jehovah’s Witnesses would live on the earth. So, if we left the organization, we would die in Armageddon. So we were scared. I was scared to go against the organization."

Beccah: The Jehovah’s Witness letter goes on to say, victims and their parents have the right to report an accusation of child abuse to the authorities and elders do not criticize anyone who chooses to make such a report. The Haughs say they broke with their congregation and went to police in 2017.

>> "I wrote a letter to everybody saying why I was leaving, why I was done, and I emailed it to everyone. So of course, nobody contacted me. My dad has been an elder for decades."

Beccah: The Haugh’s say since they’ve gone to police and left the congregation, they’ve also lost the only family they’ve ever known.

>> "My brother told me they acted like we were dead."

Beccah: The church’s position on child abuse posted online this month says elders strive to treat victims of child abuse with compassion, understanding, and kindness and that the alleged abuser will be kicked out of the church if he is not repentant. The Dagsboro, Delaware Congregation of Jehovah’s Witnesses told me that John Logan Haugh is a member there. Haugh is being held in York County Prison on $20,000

UPDATE: John Logan Haugh has posted bail since Beccah's initial report.

http://www.wgal.com/article/jehovah-s-witnesses/20897421?src=app

For context, this congregation is one over from the Red Lion Congregation. Both Congregations were mentioned in the Philadelphia Inquirer article. People go back and forth between the two like the wind. It's absurd that police weren't called on these levels of abuse going on. And that's just (2) incidents that are being covered in the local news.

A full-page Editorial comment from the Norwegian newspaper Stavanger Aftenblad featured on page 4. With a daily circulation of around 40,000 copies - Stavanger Aftenblad is Norway's fifth most circulated newspaper.

This must be stopped, Jehovah's Witnesses

Stavanger Aftenblad (Norway), Tuesday, June 12, 2018 - page 4 (via Google Translate)

EDITORIAL: The right to believe what you want is no right to do what you want against others. And simply not to deprive people of fundamental legal certainty.

This is not about freedom of belief. It is abuse of power.

In Jehovah's Witnesses, the main rule is that brothers and sisters in the religious community should not use the police or the Norwegian judiciary against each other. Instead, they hold their own judicial committees. The so-called "Elders Book", which is not to be read by anyone other than men with the position of Elder, discusses how the judicial committee will work.

The committee may give members public reprove or make a decision on exclusion. The latter has very big consequences for the excluded, everyone in the congregation, close family members are asked to cut all contact with them.

The committee must base its decision on facts, not just "a decision that the worldly authorities may have taken," it says.

Only men can be the elders in the congregation, and in the judicial committee. They have no formal qualifications to be judges.

All members of the congregation are required to proceed with matters that are characterized as sin if they hear about them. Members who have to meet the committee must do it alone.

We must assume that the judgment committee in a congregation knows the people involved in one thing. And in the way the church is built up, it is clear that women's voice counts less than men's.

This is not about freedom of belief. This is about depriving other people of fundamental legal certainty, such as the right to get their case tried for an unharmed court and the right to a defender. It is abuse of power.

Internationally, Jehovah's Witnesses in many countries are accused of keeping back information in cases of abuse they have known.

In Norway everyone must be equal to the law. There is no reason to believe that it applies when the judiciary of Jehovah's Witnesses come together.

Most seriously, violence or other serious assaults may continue for a long time without the police being notified. It can also be punishable in itself, we have a detention order in Norway. You can be punished for up to one year's imprisonment to fail to proceed with such information.

Jehovah's Witnesses must realize the limits of their own power and competence, and ensure that all members have the same legal certainty as all other people in Norway. At the same time, Norwegian authorities must defeat such parallel legal systems with all available means.

READ ORIGINAL LANGUAGE ONLINE ARTICLE:
https://www.aftenbladet.no/meninger/leder/i/VRM0J6/Dette-ma-stoppes_-Jehovas-Vitner

An article in Le Soleil, a French-language daily newspaper based in Quebec, Canada - around 70,000 copies are distributed each day.

Agnès Maltais calls for commission

Le Soleil (Quebec, Canada), Tuesday, June 12, 2018 - page 8 (via Google Translate)

PICTURE: MP Agnes Maltese tabled a petition of 2,570 signatures on Monday calling for a commission to examine the practices of sectarian groups.

In the last week of a 20-year career in the National Assembly, Taschereau MP, Agnès Maltais, filed a petition gathering signatures of 2,570 people demanding that a commission look into the practices of groups drifting sectarian.

Ms. Maltais said she was touched by the case of Eloise Dupuis, a 27-year-old Jehovah's Witness who died in October 2016 at the Hôtel-Dieu de Lévis a few days after giving birth to her first child. She had, as her religion would, refused a blood transfusion that could have saved her life.

"I believe that under the guise of freedom of religion, we accept things that would otherwise be considered illegal," Maltais said in a press briefing. "For me, this petition is a legacy. I would like to tell Quebec society to be concerned about these people who are also experiencing financial abuse and sometimes sexual assault in these groups."

She recalled that in addition to the 2,570 signatures, several people refused to put their name on the petition even if they supported it because they feared that a family member would see their name and that their support would be at the origin of family conflicts.

ILLEGAL PRACTICES

"I say to all parties: this mandate must be fulfilled. A commission must look into this idea that there are illegal practices under the guise of freedom of religion. Let's not forget that we have a whole history in Quebec with regard to sects," said Ms. Maltais, listing the Jewish sect Lev Tahor, the Church of Scientology, the Order of the Solar Temple and the sect of the late Guru Roch Thériault, says Moses. "If you knew everything I heard... there were people crying!"

Jonathan Lavoie, whose brother Jean-Claude died in 2006 after refusing a transfusion following an operation for an intestinal tumor, and Manon Boyer, aunt of Éloïse Dupuis, were present alongside Ms. Maltais as well as other family members of deceased persons in similar circumstances.

"There are 900 Jehovah's Witnesses in the world every year who die for this reason. Eloise would still be here if the doctors had done what they were trained for. How can we accept that in 2018, doctors and politicians submit to a medieval doctrine such as the doctrine of blood among Jehovah's Witnesses?" Asked Ms. Boyer, adding that she did not believe that the Quebec Liberal Party wants to do anything to change the situation.

"I hope that the upcoming elections bring the Parti Québécois or Coalition avenir Québec to power, which would be a ray of hope for us," concluded Ms. Boyer.

READ ORIGINAL LANGUAGE ONLINE ARTICLE:
https://www.lesoleil.com/actualite/politique/sectes-agnes-maltais-reclame-encore-une-commission-3b935cbf1337593e14e53e4b09ef2d5b

Monday = Moon's Day = Moon (Lunes (Luna) in Spanish))

Tuesday = Tyr's Day = Mars (Martes in Spanish)

Wednesday = Wotan's Day = Mercury (Miercoles in Spanish)

Thursday = Thor's Day = Jupiter (Jueves in Spanish)

Friday = Freya's Day = Venus (Viernes in Spanish)

Saturday = Saturn's Day  = Saturn (Sabado in Spanish)

Sunday = Sun's Day = Sun (Domingo in Spanish)

The English names for the days of the week are obviously of pagan origin.

They were actually named after the 7 planets of the ancient solar system.

Even some of the months are named for Roman emperors.

This was a year in which they were predicting the end of the world in 1975 still. Look at their magazine from 1971 and the graph on the bottom:

For those who don't know that this exists, here's an email from the new system school where JWs can homeschool their children using their own publications.

An article from the Norwegian newspaper Stavanger Aftenblad, with a front page 'top teaser' headline, a double page photo and an approximately 4,800-word article spread over a further four pages.

With a daily circulation of around 40,000 copies - Stavanger Aftenblad is Norway's fifth most circulated newspaper.

 

Jehovah's Witnesses: Handling gross violence themselves, keeping the Norwegian judicial system outside

Stavanger Aftenblad (Norway), Friday, June 8, 2018 - front page (top teaser headline) plus pages 14 to 19

This is how the Jehovah's Witnesses deal with matters outside the Norwegian judicial system

Jehovah's Witnesses: Coarse family violence. Abortion and sex outside of marriage. Divorce after assault prosecutors.

Four women. Four stories. The Jehovah's Witnesses' Judicial Committees that handle serious matters internally, outside of the Norwegian judicial system.

• History # 1 - Family violence

• History # 2 - Abortion

• History # 3 - Sex outside of marriage

• History # 4 - Divorce after assault charges

Judicial Committees in Jehovah's Witnesses (box)

• As a rule, brothers and sisters in Jehovah's Witnesses should not go to justice with each other in the "worldly legal system."

• When deemed necessary, the elders in a congregation create internal judgments. The members of the committee are men, chosen among the elders.

• They determine a wide range of things from money to sexuality, and also consider issues that affect violence.

• The ban on using the courts is not absolutely absolute. Jehovah's Witnesses open up for the police in cases of sexual abuse against children.

• Members may also use the courts to obtain divorce, to be granted parental responsibility, to claim insurance payments or to settle among creditors in bankruptcy cases. There is also no prohibition of opposition if another brother or sister has first brought an action against you.

• Jehovah's Witnesses Committee of Judges has established its own appeal opportunity. One case can be dealt with by a new judicial committee.

Pursuant to Section 139 of the Criminal Code (box)

Criminal Code Section 139 implies that it is punishable to refrain from waiving or reporting to the police a number of specified crimes, including violence in close relationships, incest and negligent intercourse with minors. Where abuse and abuse happens repeatedly, one can also expect abuse in the future. Knowledge of such ongoing circumstances may therefore be included in this notice.

It is hoped that an official full English translation of the article will be provided shortly.

READ ORIGINAL LANGUAGE:
https://www.aftenbladet.no/innenriks/i/XwLVnb/Medlemmers-grove-lovbrudd-og-sexliv-handteres-i-egne-domsutvalg

The whole world comes to the new market hall in Ulm

Ulm's city center has a new gastronomic attraction: the "Ulmer Markthalle" opened on Friday. In the former Kingdom Hall of the Jehovah's Witnesses' Religious Community, eleven stands currently offer food daily from nine to nine p.m. under the motto "homemade, sustainable, regional, seasonal". Dzenis Drinjak, a gastronome known in Ulm - for example, an operator of the Sucasa Bar or founder of Damn Burger - is the initiator of the whole thing.

The idea behind it: To open an uncomplicated realization possibility to the fresh ideas of restaurateurs. "We need more trial and error mentality," says Drinjak. If everything is always thought through down to the last detail, creativity falls by the wayside. For this reason, he only enters into lease agreements with the stand operators that can be terminated on a monthly basis. If a concept is not running, then a new one should be tried out. The project is scheduled to run for two and a half to three years: Because it was clear that the building would be demolished in 2021.

More applicants than places

This pop-up approach did not harm the rush in the run-up: there were more applicants than stands. And yet one is empty. He had been deliberately released to ensure constant variety. Producers or restaurateurs can also rent in here on a daily basis. A lot of work is involved in transforming a prayer house into a market hall. From morning to evening, the store manager has been working on the stands and building services over the past few weeks.

Drinjak itself developed a concept for the market which - as a franchise, so to speak - is managed by an acquaintance: The "NY Cab Food Bar" offers a specialty from the cosmopolitan city with a regional touch in the design of the famous New York taxis: Pastrami-sandwiches with meat of Allgäuer outdoor cattle.

The culinary arch, which is stretched in the market hall, reaches almost around the whole world. With a picture of her Peruvian granny (Abuelitas's) in her portrait, Diana Rapp offers Empanadas. The stuffed dumplings are available in two ways: baked as they are preferred in Peru. Or fried the Colombian way. Rapp serves with it, for example, causa, a potato and tuna casserole. Espresso then extracts diagonally opposite its partner in the "Kaffenio" from an original Faema machine, which is considered to be the Rolls-Royce among the strainer carriers. But yesterday's opening day revealed some pitfalls, as could be seen from the heavy screwing of the good old piece.

Not only North and South America are represented culinarily, but also Africa and Asia. Thuy Duong, who also runs the Asia Van restaurant in Ulm's Hoheschulgasse, serves fresh Vietnamese summer rolls. The Vietnamese woman wants to concentrate on street food in the market hall, as is eaten in the home of her family in northern Vietnam.

Offers also from Africa

The offer at "Eri Soul" is particularly unusual. Here the Eritrean-born Harnet Brunner-Tesfazghi wants to introduce the Swabians to East African cuisine. She has already gained gastronomic experience with her partner Teben Eyob at Café Omar in Ulm. And in the preparation of monthly Eritrean buffets. "The cuisine in Eritrea is very spicy," says Brunner-Tesfazghi. The center of the meal is always Injera, a flatbread made of sourdough. "Homemade, of course." You can also try timtimo, a lentil dish with tomatoes, fava beans or cigni, a beef specialty in a spicy sauce.

European cuisine is represented by Italian Mario Brizzo. His specialty: fresh pasta. The wraps at Fresh-Sub, a small chain with branches in Ulm, Stuttgart, and Karlsruhe, are also fresh.

Annabelle Glaser also serves salads and homemade smoothies. Gerhard Illenberger is responsible for cheese at the Markthalle. The Heidenheim-based cheese sommelier also organizes cheese seminars at its parent company Käse & Mohr. In Ulm, the gourmet offers artisan cheese and other selected dairy products.

Source in German:

 

 English

Die Ulmer Innenstadt hat einen neuen gastronomischen Anziehungspunkt: Am Freitag eröffnete die „Ulmer Markthalle“. Im ehemaligen Königreichsaal der Glaubensgemeinschaft der Zeugen Jehovas bieten derzeit elf Stände unter dem Motto „hausgemacht, nachhaltig, regional, saisonal“ täglich von neun bis 21 Uhr Essen an. Initiator des Ganzen und sozusagen Marktleiter ist Dzenis Drinjak, ein in Ulm bekannter Gastronom – etwa als Betreiber der Sucasa-Bar oder Gründer von Damn Burger.

Die Idee dahinter: Den frischen Ideen von Gastronomen eine unkomplizierte Realisierungsmöglichkeit zu eröffnen. „Wir brauchen mehr Ausprobier-Mentalität“, sagt Drinjak. Wenn alles immer bis auf das letzte Detail durchdacht werde, bleibe die Kreativität auf der Strecke. Deswegen gehe er mit den Standbetreibern auch nur Mietverhältnisse ein, die monatlich kündbar seien. Wenn ein Konzept nicht laufe, dann solle halt ein Neues ausprobiert werden. Auf zweieinhalb bis drei Jahre ist das Projekt angelegt: Denn es sei klar, dass das Gebäude 2021 abgerissen wird.

Mehr Bewerber als Plätze

Dem Andrang im Vorfeld habe dieser Pop-up-Ansatz nicht geschadet: Mehr Bewerber als Stände habe es gegeben. Und trotzdem steht einer leer. Der sei bewusst freigelassen worden, um für ständige Abwechslung zu sorgen. Auch tageweise können sich hier Produzenten oder Gastronomen einmieten. Viel Eigenarbeit steckt in der Umwandlung eines Gebetshauses in eine Markthalle. Von morgens bis abends schuftete der Marktleiter in den vergangenen Wochen an den Ständen und der Haustechnik.

Drinjak selbst entwickelte für den Markt ein Konzept, das – sozusagen als Franchisenehmer – ein Bekannter führt: Die „NY Cab Food Bar“ bietet im Design der berühmten New Yorker Taxen ein Spezialität aus der Weltstadt mit regionalem Einschlag an: Pastrami-Sandwiches mit Fleisch von Allgäuer Freiland-Rindern.

Der kulinarische Bogen, der in der Markthalle gespannt wird, reicht fast um die ganze Welt. Mit einem Bild ihrer peruanischen Oma (Abuelitas’s) im Konterfei bietet Diana Rapp Empanadas an. Die gefüllten Teigtaschen gibt es auf zwei Arten: Gebacken, wie sie in Peru bevorzugt werden. Oder frittiert auf kolumbianische Art. Dazu serviert Rapp etwa Causa, einen Kartoffel-Thunfisch-Auflauf. Denn Espresso danach extrahiert schräg gegenüber ihr Partner im „Kaffenio“ aus einer original Faema-Maschine, die als der Rolls-Royce unter den Siebträgern gilt. Aber am gestrigen Eröffnungstag doch einige Tücken offenbarte, wie am heftigen Schrauben an dem guten, alten Stück zu erkennen war.

Nicht nur Nord- und Südamerika sind kulinarisch vertreten, sondern auch Afrika und Asien. Frische vietnamesische Sommerrollen serviert Thuy Duong, die zudem das Restaurant Asia Van in der Ulmer Hoheschulgasse betreibt. Die Vietnamesin will sich in der Markthalle auf „Streetfood“ konzentrieren, wie es in der Heimat ihrer Familie im Norden Vietnams gegessen werde.

Angebote auch aus Afrika

Außergewöhnlich ist insbesondere das Angebot bei „Eri Soul“. Hier will die eritreisch-stämmige Harnet Brunner-Tesfazghi den Schwaben die Küche Ostafrikas näher bringen. Gastronomische Erfahrungen sammelte sie bereits mit ihrer Partnerin Teben Eyob im Ulmer Café Omar. Und zwar in der Zubereitung von monatlichen eritreischen Buffets. „Die Küche in Eritrea ist sehr würzig“, sagt Brunner-Tesfazghi. Im Zentrum des Essens steht immer Injera, ein Fladenbrot aus Sauerteig. „Natürlich hausgemacht.“ Dazu gibt es etwa Timtimo, ein Linsengericht mit Tomaten, Favabohnen oder Zigni, eine Rindfleisch-Spezialität in einer scharfen Soße.

Die europäische Küche vertritt der Italiener Mario Brizzo. Seine Spezialität: Frische Pasta. Frisch sind auch die Wraps bei Fresh-Sub, einer Klein-Kette mit je einer Filiale in Ulm, Stuttgart sowie Karlsruhe.

Zudem serviert Annabelle Glaser hier Salate sowie hausgemachte Smoothies. Für das Thema Käse ist in der Markthalle Gerhard Illenberger zuständig. Der Heidenheimer ist ausgebildeter Käse-Sommelier und veranstaltet in seinem Stammbetrieb Käse & Mohr auch Käseseminare. In Ulm bietet der Feinschmecker Käse aus handwerklicher Herstellung sowie andere ausgesuchte Milchprodukte an.

Mehr entdecken: Aus dem Ex-Königreich-Saal soll eine Markthalle werden

Hinter der Sedelhof-Baustelle am Bahnhof bekommt man ab jetzt in der neuen Markthalle viele Leckereien. Von Asiatisch über Spanisch, Italienisch und Afrikanisch: Von 9 bis 21 Uhr hat die Halle täglich geöffnet. Seine eigene kleine Küche kann man dort auch mieten.

https://www.schwaebische.de/landkreis/alb-donau-kreis/ulm_artikel,-die-ganze-welt-kommt-in-die-neue-ulmer-markthalle-_arid,10882506.html

I’ve got hold on the Norwegian annual report for the JW economy, it is in Norwegian but most of it is easy translated,

There are some interesting points: (1$ = 8 NOK, all numbers that follow is NOK)

• Total support from the Norwegian government 2017 was 13 643 065 in 2017

• Gifts and contributions went down from 102 553 652 in 2016 to 59 795 802, that’s 41,6% down in ONE year!YAY!

• Of the total revenue of 74 620 874 in 2017, 57 076 787 NOK was sent abroad to support “other countries” and written in the annual report as expenses. That’s 76,4% of the revenue in Norway, sent out! And notice how they put it in the annual report as expenses, meaning that every year there is a deficit, just like we have learned from the conventions, they transfer money out and put it as expenses, so there is always a deficit. On page 10 they admit that this is just cash transferred abroad, without any documentation on what it is used for. They write in the report on page 5 that this is used for “emergency aid, KH building and other support of the JW organization”

• Expenses to KH buildings went down from 10 074 043 in 2016 to 5 257 807 in 2017, almost 50% down. They have stopped building stuff.

• Page 12 is the report of “The Order”, the expenses to members are cut from 6 602 745 to 5 308 486, that’s down 20% in one year.

• Page 13 shows how the expenses are used, 73,9% is just sent abroad.

• Page 14 shows the cash they have transferred. In 2016 they transferred 90 000 000 NOK in cash abroad, without any demands. Just cash out. In 2017 this is down to 57 000 000 NOK, they also transferred asset valued to 5 000 000 in 2017, 10 000 000 in 2016.

Will God kill billions of children?

The NEW downsized UK branch of Jehovah's Witnesses. (Orignally approved for a printery and 14 residential blocks, but downsized to just 5 residence blocks and...no printery.

Women are allowed. ?