Vaysh

@FakeJoshDuggar What was Jana like? I have this image in my head of her as someone slightly less fanatical and judgmental than the rest of them. This is entirely and probably erroneously based on her admitting in that Creationist Museum episode that evolution might actually make just a little bit of sense though it's obviously wrong because the Bible says so. And, you know, her not talking much.

Eh. I don't see the big fuss, I do it all the time. Not when we have guests but as we don't own a dishwasher why add extra work for no good reason? If I've got a greasy-looking frying pan, I'll transfer the food onto something cleaner, but some veg in a stainless steel pot? Nah. If the pot isn't offensive to the eye on the stove, why would it be so three meters away from it?

LOOK AT US WE ARE EATING VEGETABLES. #BROCCOLI I've never felt the need to tag my greens though. But snark aside, @riverblue22 is probably right in that Jill is eating way healthier now with Derrick than she ever did as a child so maybe it's the novelty of it that makes it tagworthy.

Is the photo from their trip to England? I remember them going to a hatshop in one episode, trying on some truly peculiar headgear that not even the royals could've pulled off.

I agree. And the saddest thing is that they won't have a chance to talk about any of those things before they get married because they are always surrounded by snooping family members. How can you have any kind of honest discussion about your future life together if you've got a parent or sibling hanging over your shoulder, constantly monitoring you to make sure you say the right things. Their courtship model is so fucked up.

If anything like Jill and Jessa's pre-marriage convos with their intendeds: favourite bible verses and sermon recommendations.

That birthday video though... Are they not allowed to say anything that isn't related to religion? Every single thing she mentioned about Jeremy was about how godly he was and how thankful she was to God and how she has prayed for years to God for a godly man like Jeremy who loves God and fears God (is fear a good thing?) and how super attracted she is to him because he knows God's godly words and wow, this marriage will be fun. I thought nothing could be worse than her parents generic birthday greetings to their children but this one takes the cake. Does Jinger actually know Jeremy at all aside from the religious stuff?

Does anyone know what Boob actually did during those 2-3 years as a politician? I'm assuming he tried to ban abortion, contraceptives and gay people but is there a record somewhere of any proposals he put forward or how he voted on other issues? I have a vague memeory of reading on TWoP that he was pretty much considered a one-trick pony obsessed with abortion and that's why he lost so badly, but I don't think I've ever seen any real evidence of what his political platform actually was and what his views on other issues were.

That's some messed up logic. I could see why parents wouldn't want their kids hanging around her, but why should her kids be pariahs, they didn't do anything.

OMG the Flowers in the Attic comment was not wrong. At all. Seriously they could be twins.

You're approaching this as a sane person. Don't. It's not about what you want, it's about what Jesus wants and Jesus, according to fundies, wants you to stay married no matter how miserable it makes you. Nevermind the historical context of the issue because it's the word of the law that matters, not the spirit of... no wait.

Reading the article above, I hate the way they always have to describe potential husbands (or first borns sons, or anyone with a penis) as "true leaders". First of all, there are very few "true leaders" in this world and the Duggars haven't managed to produce or catch a single one so far. And second wtf marriage is a partnership why the hell would you need a leader in the first place? Fuck patriarchy, I'm getting stabby just thinking about it.

It's probably his only chance for some private time. Remember, the Duggars don't believe in letting people be alone. Ever. Because of accountability, since we know people start sinning the second they don't have someone looking over their shoulder. Thing is, I don't think Bin's parents followed that philosophy, so he might be feeling smothered what with being surrounded by Duggars 24/7. Going to a fundy coffee shop, owned by friends of the Duggars, for Bible study could be the perfect compromise. He can't stray because he's got spies watching him, but he gets some time alone with his thoughts and doesn't have to interact with people. ETA: Great minds, Churchhoney. ;)

How does wearing these kinds of rings even work in daily life? I'm from a country where the traditional engagement rings (both get them and pick them out together) tend to be plain gold bands, maybe with an inset stone for the woman though that's a fairly recent developement, and the US tradition of big bling rings with protruding, sharply cut diamonds just seem so impractical. I own a couple of rings with that kind of setting and I literally never use them because they always snag on things and the stones keeps getting turned around and they're just annoying.

Yes, do lets blame the victim here. How on earth is it Jessa's fault that her pic was hijacked by some pervs? And I honestly don't see how a fully covered pregnancy belly is in any way immodest. We're not living in the 19th century anymore when women had to hide their pregnancies because it alluded to them having had sex at some point. Unless we buy into the Gothard/fundie idea that the very shape of the female body is immodest in and of itself, how is that picture of Jessa in any way so? She's fully clothed, just doing the usual hand behind your back pregnant pose that most women do; it's not like she's posing naked on the cover of Vanity Fair.

"Antiques." You keep using that word. I don't think it means what you think it means.

Except Jill front-hugged the hell out of Derick when meeting him at the airport; I think she's just trying to be cute but comes off as patronizing because she hasn't got any social skills.

Yes. Would've been smarter to be less dramatic about the whole thing. I mean, I can see how having a known child molester using your image all over social media and then the whole thing blowing up in a huge media shit storm could have a negative impact on one's social and professional life, but claiming what is basically PTSD and total destruction of one's life because of it is a bit over the top.

I know that Jehovah's Witnesses make a big deal out of Jesus having short hair (and for a while that he was beardless) and therefore all men must follow his example forevermore. Perhaps Gothardites believe the same? The JW fashion choices seem to have been born out of a hatred of the hippie youth culture of the 60's and 70's and connecting long hair to rebelliousness, which would fit in nicely with Gothard's beliefs. Isn't his whole schtick based on a promise that no kids raised in ATI will ever rebel?

The homebirth obsession is a bit of a mystery. Michelle did have a few of them before her body stopped cooperating and seemed to prefer them to her hospital ones so maybe she yapped on about how woooonderful homebirth is where you won't have to interact with those evil, sinful doctors with their science and their university educations. Add Jill's "midwife"-training under rabid homebirth advocates with no common sense, Anna's multiple successful ones and you've got the perfect storm. I suppose in their minds a homebirth is always the best option and hospitals are the absolute last resort (see Jill's mulish refusal to go until she had no choice). Jessa's lack of proper pre-natal care fits in with this mindset too, I think. They don't need no stinkin' science, they're the Duggars and God is on their side. Overall there seem to be a lot of strange and fearbased notions about hospital births among the fundie homebirthers and a lot of the misconceptions are spread by the "midwives".

Yup. At least one episode had Boob taking care of his own children while the wimmenfolk were away and by 'taking care' I mean uselessly bumbling around. IIRC he didn't know how to brush his daughter's hair or put it up in a simple ponytail and he didn't know how to cook anything except some disgusting BBQ tuna concotion consisting of canned tuna and BBQ-sauce (that's it, that was the whole dish). I don't know how much of it was producer-driven or played up for the cameras, but considering how clumsy and uncomfortable Boob looked I don't think he's used to handling the daily care of his own kids. I doubt any of the younger kids look to Mechelle or Boob as their caretakers tbh, that's all on the sister moms.

Does the Howler on the right know he's flipping us off, Brit style? And there does appear to be some... tenting. But obviously not because Jeremy just told them that sort of thing would send them straight to hell right?

If I believed in a god I'd thank it for universal health care every single day of my life...

I admit that my knowledge of US medical insurance is extremely sketchy and I find it somewhat confusing but I thought that Obamacare would sort of mean that everyone would have affordable insurance for medical needs. Like it would be impossible to refuse having coverage? Wouldn't Anna have had access to decent medical care through Obamacare even if the FRC cut off their work-related insurance plan?

I was going to ask the same question because she looks like she could be Jinger's sister. Jinge really looks nothing like the other Duggar kids.