Many JW's were keeping track of world events. Seeing changes in what each of the governments were doing and how an imminent confrontation could be at hand. As they analyzed the political and societal changes, they could see clearly what needed to be done. Conclusions were arrived at and adjustments in their daily lives began to take shape. It was all so clear ... change could not be stopped and only by paying constant attention to the political and military events around them could they actually come to understand how Bible prophesy was being fulfilled. This allowed them to predict exactly what would happen next. Some put more effort into tracking these world changing events than they did to the preaching work - after all, they had to be ready.
The year was 1975 - and we all know how that worked out!
Many were so wrapped up in analyzing world events that, when things didn't happen as they had predicted they left the Truth.
Bear in mind - many have read about this time and, in retrospect, can see the folly in what many read into the "sings" that seemed so obvious. How they over analyzed world events and came to the wrong conclusion. We need to be careful we don't lose our prospective with recent world events and we need to follow the FDS and their direction - now what we think is going to happen next because we analyzed world events. We don't want to have the same downfall as so many did at that time.
BTW - I am not speaking from what I have read about that time - I lived during that period and saw firsthand as many brothers and sisters I knew well and worked shoulder-to-shoulder in the ministry with get sidetracked, and allowed their own analysis of world events slow them down to the point they became burdened down and sidetracked with how they viewed world events. Many of them never did return to Jehovah.