Not particularly important, but the toddler was just 16 months old, according to the article.

My son is 18 months and can say quite a few words (“amen” not being one of them), but there are many kids who don’t speak until after they’re two.

Also, I’d say it was the lack of food and water that killed him.

…And some sort of mental illness in several of the parties is not the least of it.

The extreme manipulative nature of these groups seems to transcend any religion bashing in my opinion. If you removed all religion from the knowledge of man, these groups would either reinvent it for themselves, or just find some other means with which to control people. Because in the end, having complete control over people is the only thing people like “Queen Antoinette” want, and religion is merely a convenient means to gain this control.
Disparaging faith by picking the absolute worst twisted examples of its misguided application might be fun, but it doesn’t represent the whole picture by any means.

There’s not an ounce of goodness in this “Queen Antoinette” person from what I can see.

From the article:

(Frees your soul from what, I wonder?)

This was simply a mean manipulative person who was able to create her own sick enabling environment in which to perform her sadistic controlling acts. Ignorance is not the main culprit in cases like these, though it does complete the equation as far as who will be preyed on for any cult’s development.

Blodless surgery is cheaper, safer and healthier. Patients recover quicker.
Check this American News report about bloodless hospitals
http://video.google.com.au/videosearch?q=bloodless+hospital&hl=en&emb=0&aq=f#

Cheers
Gray
Graham Mewburn
Australia

There are many who attack Jehovah’s Witnesses. Some are ministers of churches who have seen members of their flocks leave to become Witnesses and some are ex-Witnesses who were disfellowshipped for grossly dishonest or immoral conduct. Stubbornly refusing to accept correction their only defense is to retaliate with apostate lies and slander.
Disgruntled former Jehovah’s Witnesses never divulge to those whom their hate mongering is intended to influence just why it was that they were excommunicated. Telling the truth on just this point alone might prove helpful to those who read their comments but being helpful is no part of their motives. Instead of accepting correction they give in to the injured pride and jealousy that can result from being unmasked and not getting to have it their way. They allow their personal chagrin to fester until vexation leads them into open declarations of animosity, spewing forth all consuming tirades with such vehemence that they no longer have any capacity left for telling the truth.
As a result, readers who relish hate filled criticism eagerly believe apostate lies and become their latest victims, while those interested in knowing the truth look for factual evidence and are not taken in by falsely contrived stories. If you are one who prefers to know the facts contact the nearest Kingdom Hall or ask the next Witness who calls at your door and it will be supplied to you.

Google jehovah’s witnesses and civil liberties

Knocking-PBS documentary

KNOCKING opens the door on Jehovah’s Witnesses. They are moral conservatives who stay out of politics and the Culture War, but they won a record number of court cases expanding freedom for everyone. They refuse blood transfusions on religious grounds, but they embrace the science behind bloodless surgery. In Nazi Germany, they could fight for Hitler or go to the concentration camps. They chose the camps. Following two families who stand firm for their controversial and misunderstood Christian faith, KNOCKING reveals how one unlikely religion helped to shape history beyond the doorstep.

Anderson Cooper, CNN —
“Riveting and illuminating. KNOCKING takes us inside the world of Jehovah’s Witnesses in a way that is utterly surprising and moving.

Anthony D. Romero, Executive Director, American Civil Liberties Union —
“A compelling documentary. KNOCKING affirms the principle that in a free society, the protection of religious liberty and the advancement of personal freedoms need not be competing values.”

Jon Meacham, Editor, Newsweek —
“A thoughtful telling of an important, often-overlooked story about essential American issues.”

Arthur Caplan, Chair, Department of Medical Ethics, University of Pennsylvania —
“KNOCKING contains a wonderful surprise: It shows how science and religion, with worldviews that rarely overlap, can reach a common goal – the use of less blood in medicine – even if for very different reasons.”

Stewart M. Hoover, Director, Center for Media, Religion and Culture, University of Colorado —
“An absorbing account of a misunderstood religious movement and its relationship to contemporary culture. KNOCKING raises important questions about how we know and how we consider the religious ‘other,’ and through its own presentation, causes us to re-think the way media represent them.”

Rabbi Michael Berenbaum, former director, United States Holocaust Research Institute -
“KNOCKING masterfully portrays the principled, non-violent dissent of Jehovah’s Witnesses and the contribution that they have made - directly and indirectly — to the character of American national life. It is a study in religious integrity. Moving, powerful, poignant."

Stephen Dunning, Chair, Dept. of Religious Studies, University of Pennsylvania —
“Very moving. Not at all a lecture packaged in celluloid. KNOICKING is deep human drama about a faith that remains unknown to most Americans. Gives students a feel for what it is like to live as a Jehovah’s Witness.”

Eileen Barker, Professor Emeritus, Sociology and Religion, London School of Economics —
“KNOCKING is a poignant portrayal of Jehovah’s Witnesses who are prepared to die for a faith that forbids them to kill others. It provides a powerful corrective to our image of fundamentalists as dangerous fanatics and/or terrorists.”

Christine King, Vice-Chancellor, Staffordshire University, UK —
“KNOCKING is a fascinating documentary which takes us to the heart of a group of believers – Jehovah’s Witnesses. It challenges us to consider issues of conscience and of religious liberty.”

Linda Seger, script consultant/author, Making a Good Script Great and Jesus Rode a Donkey —
“A very focused and revelatory film about the consequences of religious positions of the Jehovah’s Witnesses. The filmmakers got to the heart of the matter, with compassion and insight and clarity. A fascinating look at a somewhat unknown Christian group.”

Lynn Schofield Clark, Director, Estlow International Center for Journalism and New Media, University of Denver —
“Throughout the film, viewers are challenged to think about the relationship of religion, government, discrimination, family life, and civil liberties in unconventional and surprisingly human ways. This film will be useful for classes on freedom of expression, civic engagement and religion. Students will be surprised that Jehovah’s Witnesses have played such a key role in establishing and guarding many of the civil liberties we enjoy in the U.S. today.”

http://www.knocking.org/

Rabbi Michael Berenbaum, former director, United States Holocaust Research Institute —

“KNOCKING masterfully portrays the principled, non-violent dissent of Jehovah’s Witnesses and the contribution that they have made — directly and indirectly — to the character of American national life. It is a study in religious integrity. Moving, powerful, poignant.”

How could they?!Its so sad that the baby that could have become someone is now 6/4 under.I hope those heartless beasts will be given a just sentence so that they can learn to have a human heart. Can an 18mnth say amen,surely?What kind of ‘faith is that’?