Leaderboard

In semi-private, vpw was very vocal about the military, and how he envied it- and he only EVER talked about ONE THING about the military. It wasn't how you can learn a trade, or upward mobility for under-educated and broke families, or patriotism and representing one's country, or defense of liberty, or any other reason to join. He was vocally envious of the military's ability to have someone give orders and to have them obeyed WITHOUT QUESTION. Of course, the REAL military doesn't QUITE work that way. Unlawful orders lead to court-martials and consequences like a stay at Fort Leavenworth for the one issuing bad orders. The IMAGINARY military vpw envied exists in movies and the media, not in real life.

Thanks, Lifted Up and Penworks! These posts got me to reflect again on how much of my way corps training was like being in a family with overbearing parents… wierwille calling us “his kids” probably did a real psychological number on my mind – generating some kind of weird endearment - inspiring love or affection for wierwille, in a childlike way. Yuk! I think of the isolation of the way corps training program – being physically isolated from friends and our REAL family who might otherwise provide a reality check – besides being cut off from outside information, newspapers, books, TV (when I was in there was no internet…no forums like waydale, transchat or Grease Spot ) – all this ensured that the ONLY reality I got to experience was the one presented by the way corps training program… The isolation process made me dependent and obedient… If leadership didn’t sense adequate zeal and loyalty on my part – I could be at risk of verbal attacks, public face-melting, face a strenuous private interrogation – or even the threat of expulsion! Unless you’ve been through the way corps program – you have no idea of what utter despair, hopelessness and fear of expulsion can do to your psyche…something was slowly whittled away…I became more pliable…even willing to compromise on certain convictions and give up any freedoms in order to stay in good graces with leadership and enjoy the comfort of the elite social system of the way corps - my make-believe family...and "father knows best" Yikes!!!!! yeah – overbearing parents is a nice way to describe TWI-leadership in the way corps training program… in general, the leadership or management style of TWI is authoritarian - enforcing strict obedience to authority at the expense of personal freedom…somehow mulling this stuff over while Googling – and in a sublime fit of synchronicity I stumbled upon a website that got into authoritarian parenting…I thought perfect! Check out these excerpts below – I think they might apply to wierwille and company - the similarities are mind-blowing: Authoritarian parenting is a parenting style characterized by high demands and low responsiveness. It was one of the parenting styles described by developmental psychologist Diana Baumrind. Parents with an authoritarian style have very high expectations of their children, yet provide very little in the way of feedback and nurturing. Mistakes tend to be punished harshly. When feedback is given, it is often negative. Yelling and corporal punishment are also common with the authoritarian style. People with this parenting style often use punishment rather than discipline. They are commonly not willing or able to explain the reasoning behind their rules. Baumrind believed that one of the major roles that parents play in a child's life is to socialize them to the values and expectations of their culture. How parents accomplish this, however, can vary dramatically based upon the amount of control they attempt to exert over their children. The authoritarian approach represents the most controlling style. Rather than valuing self-control and teaching children to manage their own behaviors, the authoritarian parent focuses on adherence to authority. Instead of rewarding positive behavior, the authoritarian parent only provides feedback in the form of punishments for misbehavior. Demanding, But Not Responsive Authoritarian parents have lots of rules and may even micromanage nearly all aspects of their children's lives and behaviors, at home and in public. Additionally, they also have many unwritten rules that kids are expected to follow—even though children receive little to no explicit instruction about these "rules." Instead, children are simply expected to know that these rules exist and follow them. Little Warmth or Nurturing Parents with this style often seem cold, aloof, and harsh. They are more likely to nag or yell at their children than offer encouragement and praise. They value discipline over fun and expect that children should be seen and not heard. Little Explanation for Punishments Parents with this style usually have no problem resorting to corporal punishment, which often involves spanking. Rather than relying on positive reinforcement, they react swiftly and harshly when the rules are broken. Few Choices for Children Authoritarian parents don't give children choices or options. Parents set the rules and have a "my way or the highway" approach to discipline. There is little room for negotiation, and they rarely allow their children to make their own choices. Impatient With Misbehavior Authoritarian parents expect their children to simply know better than to engage in undesirable behaviors. They lack the patience for explaining why their children should avoid certain behaviors and expend little energy talking about feelings. Mistrusting Authoritarian parents don't trust their children to make good choices. Parents with this style don't give their children much freedom to demonstrate that they can display good behavior on their own. Rather than letting kids make decisions on their own and face natural consequences for those choices, authoritarian parents hover over their kids in order to ensure that they don't make mistakes. Unwilling to Negotiate Authoritarian parents don't believe in gray areas. Situations are viewed as black and white and there is little to no room for compromise. Kids don't get a say or a vote when it comes to setting rules or making decisions. Shaming Authoritarian parents can be highly critical and may use shame as a tactic to force children into following the rules, using phrases such as "Why do you always do that?," "How many times do I have to tell you the same thing?," or "Why can't you do anything right?" Rather than looking for ways to build their children's self-esteem, these parents often believe that shaming will motivate children to do better. from: What is Authoritarian Parenting? End of excerpts ~ ~ ~ ~ The other synchronificant hit (I think I just made up a new word ) in my Googling was a Psychology Today article on why authoritarians love religion…which made me think of the “perfect storm” – the way corps training program and pseudo-Christian harmful and controlling cult-leaders…a great pairing where each perfectly complements the other! Yikes!...anyway check out these excerpts: Why Authoritarians Love Religion The authoritarian personality finds in religion a match made in Heaven Authoritarians naturally love authoritarian institutions like religion and the military. They love the idea of someone giving orders and others obliged to take orders, they love the idea of strict punishments like courts-martial and hell fires, they love the hierarchal nature of such institutions and forced gestures like saluting and kneeling, and they love the permission such institutions give you to hate others, all those millions of enemies and infidels. Of course, authoritarians may also avoid the military like the plague and not believe in gods in the least—remember that cynicism and hypocrisy are also hallmark qualities of authoritarians. But they love the authoritarian flavor of such institutions and intuitively understand that they ought to align with them, at least publicly. That’s why authoritarian non-believers who seek public office will profess a belief in gods in which they don’t believe and a love of religion which they never demonstrate. For both authoritarian leaders and authoritarian followers, religion is a wonderful convenience. It allows them to lord it over other people, since they alone know the truth. It allows them to punish people guilt-free, since that punishment is on a god’s orders. It allows them to deny reason by dubbing the irrational “faith.” It gives them extra ways to bully people, especially women, who are regularly regarded as second class. It is just about everything an authoritarian could wish for. End of excerpts From: Psychology Today – Why Authoritarians love religion ~ ~ ~ ~ I feel there is something so promising and hopeful about books like Undertow and all the stuff that Grease Spotters have shared over the years…for those still in TWI - it’s sort of like hearing from siblings who have already left the home of overbearing parents – and they hear of the great big worlds of discovery that awaits them…but first they must decide to leave the comfortable nest of overbearing parents.

Y'all know that VPW forgot this (and y'all know he said he forgot a lot of Bible, more'n that preacher ever knew, or was it a British theologian? who cares?) - anyway, VPW forgot this: Romans 2:5 For on whatever grounds you judge the other, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things. And we know that God’s judgment against those who do such things is based on truth. So when you, O man, [O any leadership in TWI] pass judgment on others, yet do the same things [or worse], do you think you will escape God’s judgment? Or do you disregard the riches of His kindness, tolerance, and patience, not realizing that God’s kindness leads you to repentance? I am not sure that the "long suit" of any of TWI's leadership was "kindness, tolerance, and patience." What their "long suit" was, led to fear and intimidation.