JustThinking

Is there any laws about gravesites on private property? You'd think twi would give family members a "whenever" pass.

I would think you're right. This seems like an easy win in court. Unless the objective is to get publicity. I don't know Doug and have never met or seen him in my life so I can't comment on his motives.

JT

This got me thinking so here it goes,

For what it is worth here is my opinion. I agree with what Twinky wrote about the lack of enthusiasm for way-bots to actually want to witness.

<snip>

Therefore, you see the old witch has to drum up something new to keep the money rolling in.

Numbers are down, people leave, kids grow up and run like hell.

This is my take on things an I am sorry its so long.

Copenhagen

You just described over 15 years of my life. Thank goodness I found GSC and got out. If it weren't for everyone here, I might still be trapped there.

JT

All,

There are a couple of threads going about a new witnessing class. During most of my time in TWI, witnessing was pretty much required. But it seemed like the corpse were somehow exempt. Keeping the Adversary in check, I'm sure. I can't remember a corpse person bringing anyone new during my last 10 years in TWI. (80s and 90s)

In your area did the corpse witness with you and did they register people for a class? Feel free to say which decade(s) your answer covers. In TWI's view witnessing is ONLY effective if someone registers for a class and pays money. Their outlook, not mine.

JT

If your life is your witness, you wouldn't have to GO WITNESS!!!

OMG, THANK YOU Rejoice!!!!!!! Nicely said! Sadly, this will NEVER occur to them. Too bad they hide in their little controlled WayWeirdWorld, nobody can see their "greatness." What a bunch of freaks.

JT

I am not a camper, unless you consider Day's Inn camping. I'm more a bed & breakfast kinda person.

Ahh, Camp Day's Inn... Fresh coffee not manure. Birds tweeting... WG, I'm with you!!!

JT

do you think older Way Productions could compete with today's CCM groups mentioned in the first post of the topic?

In a word, NO! Not even close. I think a lot of Christian groups look to perform for their audience. WayProd was a tool for other purposes. I'm not a musician but I would think that there is usually SOME thought about the people listening when you perform? By the time ROA ended, it was pretty robotic. Kind of like the Soup video on GSC's home page. Just REALLY bad. Like the rest of TWI's garbage, it came across as lifeless. Like the poor stiffs probably felt about their future. In their 40's and up with no real prospects for the future.

Don't all dictators have women performing for their amusement?

JT

The theme was "Living Sanctified" and Martindale pitched the evening teachings as The Class on Living Sanctified. Attendance at the evening teaching was mandatory as was the morning series about Moses & Joshua (we were entering the "Promised Land of the Prevailing Mixed Metaphor" doncha know?)Attendance at late morning twigs was also mandatory. When they announced that there would be no more ROA's it was all I could do to keep from cheering out loud.

OMG, I completely forgot about that!!! Didn't they later sell the tapes? There was probably mandatory reviews like everything else. And the required "we love you, O MOGFODAT!" notes on a 3x5 card. Ugh, how I hated those. So phony! What an ego nut!!!

Do the TWIts still have to send cards to Rosie too?

JT

No, I don't think they're really thinking when they do this. That attachment is to twi is still lodged in their minds.

But I think many of the much more sane one's still feel that attachment.

"spiritual home" may be a correct description, whether the "spiritual" exists or not.

Good point. I guess if you're life has no anchor points and you're grasping for straws....

It makes one wonder how many showed up at TWI versus how many became that way? Sad, in either case.

JT

How bizarre!!! Going to TWI during a crisis, even when I was in, never crossed my mind. Don't these people have friends or family? Sheeshh!

JT

ah yes. Rock of ages..

perhaps the most interesting moment.. we watched an Ohio crayfish crawl out of a hole in the middle of a barren (except for *miraculously* cut grass).

the now ex gave the crayfish a blade of grass.. for what reason I have no idea.

The crayfish seized said piece of grass.. was satiated for whatever reason, and returned to the hole from whence it came..

Ham,

Now that you mention it, there were a lot of grass holes at ROA.

Scott

Ahhh.... is legality ever a consideration with TWI?

JT

Bow jr (12 years old at the time) and I were there too - we were rather thrilled to be in that

particular meeting, truth be told. Oh, the spiritually mature elite we thought we were!

How ironic. We had the same feeling. "Wow, in the same tent with all of the leadership!" What a doofus I was! OMG.

JT

Last I noticed Home Depot was already over the World-

Maybe that's what attracted him?! He is the teacher sent to establish what the home depot founder built? But he needs a mentor who is a world renowned communicator... Who to pick..? Hmm...

JT

George? Do us a favor, okay?

STAY THE HE11 AWAY FROM OUR STATE!

I've been to Snohomish, lived in Everett for three years. I hated living in Washington State, but you don't see me posting hateful things about it, now do you? If you like it, fine, stay there. But I've lived in Ohio off and on most of my life. My mother was from Ohio, and I don't appreciate your rude remarks.

WG

I always liked Ohio when we visited. People were nice to me, even in St. Mary's. And if there was a town with a right to be annoyed with TWIts, it was one. (Poor New Knoxville, what did they ever do to deserve the Wierwilles?)

JT

If I remember correctly...

VP was supposed to be an apostle. New light for THAT generous. Didn't actually mean it was new. Could have been lost. They left photocopied out of the definition but I suppose that's included. :)

How about VP the Sequel?

Evangelist - wins people for God? Uh, no. LCM drove the whole place away.

Pastor - Heals God's people? 0 for 2, so far.

Prophet - Man who speaks for God. Seems that one was not working either.

Teacher - It's the only one left. Must be it.

So I guess he was a teacher? Can the greek work for teacher also be translated "screaming and spitting incoherently?" Just curious.

Seriously, I think teacher was the one mentioned at some point. Teaching the new light brought by the apostle. He also liked the number 2. He was supposed to teach and establish what VP stole... uh... revealed. VP was Moses and Loy was Joshua.

JT

I second that.

Mmm... ditto. Even great lies work best when mixed with truth.

JT

Hadn't thought about ROA for a while. There were some enjoyable things. Mainly catching up with friends. Never stayed in a tent or pop-up though. Hotel, hot shower and a QUIET breakfast. :) Mmm... No believing bagels, prevailing pancakes or corpse coffee in sight. :) Maybe that's why I didn't mind it so much. Sleeping in a tent on hot summer nights doesn't sound like a good time to me. But I'm an old cranky man. ;)

JT

There's also the question of why so many ex-wayfers came by, both the sane and insane.

Linders says it's cause they are attracted to their "spiritual home".

"spiritual home", what the heck is that? Isn't that what heaven was supposed to be?

My daughter hangs out at the mall a lot. Is that her spiritual home?

JT

First there was the "President of Greasespot???" thread. Apparently, Craig Martindale was listed as President here at the ol' GSC. But he always said he could be a successful executive. So what if he was? On last report, he was climbing the corporate (aluminum) ladder at Home Depot. So what WOULD life be like at Home Depot under a Martinpail regime?

Stringing the paint cans in aisle 12?

Check out girls in mini-skirts?

All managers must wear smoking jackets?

JT

So…does she really deserve the free pass? Didn't her support help the TWI juggernaut get off the ground (before it crushed her too!)? She didn't speak up right in the beginning, when she knew and could nip it in the bud. Doesn't that silence, and her enjoyment of the "benefits" make her also a scammer?

Remember, she was also frequently used by LCM as a prop to prove he was the true MOGFODAT. Although, in her defense, she may not have had many options at that point in her life. Unless her kids would take her in. As I was around but only met her a few times, I don't feel qualified to comment too much.

JT

Not all of them---an interesting thing just now happened to me which I am still processing.

Y'all know that I live in a very small town in the exact middle of nowhere so I never see exwayfers--A benefactor who has given homes and substantial amounts of money to the homeless shelter where I volunteer wanted to come to my stained glass shop for apiece of glass this morning...I normally dont like people coming in while I am working but made an exception for her.

She didnt know me from Adam or I her, I was getting her the glass and thanking her for her donations to the community when she sort of broke down and told me the horror tale of why she donates so much to help others...

Seems her daughter was in The Way International for 9 years, a corps grad who was booted under mysterious circumstances, never recovered, descended into alcoholism and took her own life. ---Needless to say we had alot to talk about

We spoke for about 90 minutes--about a lot of things--I am sure we will be getting together again sometime soon.

Thats about the only exwayfer story I have run into in many years.....figures it would be tragic

Tragic in one way but probably heaven-sent from her perspective. I imagine meeting you might have felt like many of us finding a home here with the other misfit ex-wayfers. It's pretty cool that you reached out to her. You could have just let her go. Not everyone stops to help others.

JT

Sometimes I think they allowed themselves to be "set off" by trivial stuff just to have an excuse to scream their lungs out, give the false appearance of being "spiritual" (Yeah but what kind of spirit, bucko?") and intimidate everyone else.

WG

Good point. There were definitely some people who were corpse or leader.... wannabes who would otherwise have been living under a bridge. No social skills and pretty weird. I met one BC at the ROA who was pushing his folks to invest in a silver coin scheme he was selling. Looked like a slimy used car salesman. Bad jacket, bad haircut. Kind of like Billy Bob Thornton in Sling Blade but without the suave personality. :blink:

Come to think of it, there were a lot of people who were kind of on the fringes of society who found a home in twig. Kind of a-social and backwards. Give that person some power and bad advice, yikes!

JT

If the LC had gotten stung, EVERYONE would have been reamed out for allowing it to happen by "failing to believe"!

George

Absolutely true and lived to see it. (Never got my t-shirt though) When our branch coordinator quit, all of the advanced class grads in the state were called together and screamed at for half an hour for not seeing this coming. Uh, this was our LC, who lived 10 minutes from the guy and talked to him daily. But the people who never met him and lived an hour away should have gotten revelation? Only in TWI-land.

JT

After many years of faithful service and abundant sharing, TWI would not marry me to the woman I loved. That was the final straw and I never went to another TWI function or gave them another cent. We're still married and in love 25 years later.

Yeah!!!! Glad to hear it! The best revenge is living well. :) (Not sure who said that or something similar)

JT

Maybe not, but they made very clear who you were NOT supposed to marry.----Kinda limited the field.

Especially the corpse under LCM. Marry non-corpse and you're out. REALLY limits things....

(I was never corpse but can empathize)

JT