PUNS

[shortfuse]

Was just registering over the weekend more of the linger baggage I have from the way. The compulsion to make the stupidest jokes.

[waysider]

Was just registering over the weekend more of the linger baggage I have from the way. The compulsion to make the stupidest jokes.

Maybe the safest place for us is on the ball.

[johniam]

He's a common tater! (Walter Cummins pfal77)

[krys]

groan

[waysider]

Not just the jokes, themselves, but the compulsion to interject unwarranted humor into situations that most people would not consider humorous. It can make you appear to be callous and flippant though that's not your intention at all.

Is this a byproduct of time spent in The Way? I don't know. It does seem to be much more prevalent in ex-Waysters than in the general populace though. Just an observation.

Edited April 19, 2015 by waysider

[WordWolf]

Not just the jokes, themselves, but the compulsion to interject unwarranted humor into situations that most people would not consider humorous. It can make you appear to be callous and flippant though that's not your intention at all.

Is this a byproduct of time spent in The Way? I don't know. It does seem to be much more prevalent in ex-Waysters than in the general populace though. Just an observation.

In some people, it's a byproduct of time spent in twi.

vpw himself was fond of doing it and it served his purposes.

It made him sound clever and more interesting to many people,

and it's the lazy way to criticize something. vpw liked to

discredit those who disagreed with him, and a flippant comment

is a LOT less work than refuting them. vpw was all about not

doing any work he didn't have to, and cut corners everywhere.

That, and he didn't have any compassion, so those who disagreed

with him were just obstacles to knock down rather than people

to win over.

lcm himself was fond of doing it.

lcm treated vpw's methods as having descended from the heavens.

Furthermore, as an ex-jock, he was experienced in just

snappy comebacks and putdowns, but not skilled in any academic

or substantive method of refuting someone. So, it played to his

strengths, as well. So, lcm learned both to do that sort of

thing, and learned that other people don't count, so it's appropriate

to ridicule them and belittle them.

Naturally,

between the two of them,

that infected twi at a lot of levels. Lots of trainees and leaders

emulated one, the other, or both, and passed all that down the

"tree" to people all over the place.

Frankly, vpw WAS callous and flippant, and lcm learned to be that way

from vpw, and they passed it down the line.

[outandabout]

"Just empties floating by" - that's a compassionate way to look at people.

[waysider]

"Just empties floating by" - that's a compassionate way to look at people.

Yeah, we were the poster children of compassion.

[WordWolf]

That's one that came down from the top.

The consequences of things like that- often intentional at the top-

was that twi'ers DON'T CARE about other people.

There's no COMPASSION for other people.

This infected people, to a large or a small degree. And when they left

twi, some people were able to discard it within a few years, and some

never have. I thought about that when I saw a poster here talk about

fellow Christians with whom he disagreed (Trinitarians), who worship

the same God he does, who have the same Lord he does, but who view that

Lord and that God somewhat differently while they do. He said they

were "praying to an oil can." It's unlikely that he actually thought

his fellow Christians were bowing and serving an oil can, so the

comment was meant to belittle and demean those with whom he disagreed.

Amd that's over a decade after leaving twi, which illustrates that one

can leave twi without twi leaving them. One can stop attending SNS,

one can stop listening to the tapes and phone hookups, but without actually

thinking and growing past it, one is still doing most of the same harmful

practices that hobbled those unfortunates who learned them in twi in the

first place.

[Rocky]

That's one that came down from the top.

The consequences of things like that- often intentional at the top-

was that twi'ers DON'T CARE about other people.

There's no COMPASSION for other people.

This infected people, to a large or a small degree. And when they left

twi, some people were able to discard it within a few years, and some

never have. I thought about that when I saw a poster here talk about

fellow Christians with whom he disagreed (Trinitarians), who worship

the same God he does, who have the same Lord he does, but who view that

Lord and that God somewhat differently while they do. He said they

were "praying to an oil can." It's unlikely that he actually thought

his fellow Christians were bowing and serving an oil can, so the

comment was meant to belittle and demean those with whom he disagreed.

Amd that's over a decade after leaving twi, which illustrates that one

can leave twi without twi leaving them. One can stop attending SNS,

one can stop listening to the tapes and phone hookups, but without actually

thinking and growing past it, one is still doing most of the same harmful

practices that hobbled those unfortunates who learned them in twi in the

first place.

Wonderful insight.

This current column by Chris Hedges shows how similar things happen with people around the world.

[Allan]

Bit of a strrreettcchhh from cows being milked to nazi death camps doncha thunk ??

[MRAP]

Some very good words have been spoken.

Transition: while in TWI, everyone else was just wrong and devoid of respectfullness and then there was the season that all Christians are my brothers and sister so don't go dissing them (still going on that personal philosophy) and now, I have no hate for TWI though I also have no desire to entertain TWI in my life ever again - I will just sit and read the word and monitor this site for "in"sight. I really like monitoring the discussions on the doctrinal forum - excellent stuff.

[WordWolf]

Bit of a strrreettcchhh from cows being milked to nazi death camps doncha thunk ??

I do, but the writer apparently doesn't think so.

And there was a legitimate point about loss of compassion in there.

[Rocky]

I do, but the writer apparently doesn't think so.

And there was a legitimate point about loss of compassion in there.

Superficially, perhaps it seems like a stretch to connect.

Indeed, the loss of compassion is legitimate and connected.

For people who might be interested in exploring the sociological and psychological issues beneath the surface,

let me remind you of the Stanford Prison Experiment.

Of course, we know that the New Testament explicitly states that the love of money is the root of all evil.

But really, how robust is the human understanding of what the "love of money" entails?

Could it be that when the love of money (a significant Wierwille motivation, most likely) causes an individual or

social groups (churches, ministry organizations, corporations, etc. are certainly in there) to supplant compassion for

living beings with self-interest and personal gain, tremendous evil is expressed and manifested.

That's really why twi fell apart. Wierwille talked from time to time about his (and others') appetites. Well, appetite is just

another word for desire. When one can't put off self-gratification, and instead uses people all hell breaks out.

Anyway, that's the connection as I see it. And no, I don't think it's a stretch, in the least.

[Broken Arrow]

To say that TWI "fell apart" is to presuppose that TWI was at one time "together". IMO that's a far stretch. I'm just sayin'.

Edited April 22, 2015 by Broken Arrow

[MRAP]

Rocky, regarding the money thing, I think TWI just wanted you to give TWI your money and invest in God's minestry rather than investing in your own future. Thankfully, I left them early on in my age and invested my own cash in IRA's and 403's though I still donate significantly to religeous freedom organization. So, if your donation is tax deductible, is it still classified as "abundant sharing", is there a doctrinal sub forum on that matter?

[waysider]

So, if your donation is tax deductible, is it still classified as "abundant sharing"

Way back when I was involved with The Way (eons ago), it was encouraged and there were forms that twig leaders had to fill out so people could deduct their ABS. Unfortunately, most of us didn't make enough to file the long form so it was a moot point. I have no idea what that has to do with puns but it is rather humorous in retrospect.

[Tzaia]

If you can belittle and demean, then you don't have to listen or consider.

I used to say that TWI was evangelical instead of pastoral. Sort of as an excuse as to why it was so mean to its adherents. The reality is that its theology did not allow for compassion as anything bad that happened was due to one's failure to properly believe.