Vaysh

Yes, being taught that any sexual thoughts before marriage is of the devil and that women are stumbling blocks on your way to salvation will rather naturally lead to the idea that women are evil harlots that needs to be controlled and subjugated. Pretty much the history of the Christian religion right there. Then of course you add a Gothardite first son superiority complex the size of Arkansas with accompanying entitlement issues, a mother who abandoned him at an early age to have a bazillion more children, and a massive madonna/whore complex, and you get... Josh. I have no problem believing he treated this woman as trash. Because he was taught that this woman was trash.

Wow. I didn't realise prostitution was a crime worthy of actual imprisonment. And up to five years? Weird. However much of a creep I think Josh is I don't think he deserves jail time for buying sexual services. The molestations on the other hand...

What is the punishment for buying/selling sex in the US? I'm assuming jail time is out of the question but what would it be if Josh was prosecuted and found guilty? A fine? Community service?

They care because these made up statistics (seriously, a life expectancy of 40? Critical thinking should kick in here one would hope, but clearly not) confirm that their way of life is so much better than the lives of those godless rock stars and those who listen to them. Rock musicians are like boogey men to these people. Talented and passionate men and women who do what they love, living (in fundie minds at least) hedonistic lifestyles, getting fame and admiration for playing devil music with a beat. Of course they have to die young, otherwise it would mean that God approves of their sins. And if they don't actually die young or for rock music reasons, well maybe some improved statistics will keep the fundie baby sheep in their fold. I just read through a "Christian" page that gloatingly listed all the prematurely dead rock stars of the past half century. And the gist of it was that they all died because of rock music (nevermind the cancer, the heart attacks and the car and plane crashes; those were clearly God's punishment), all proven with a bunch of random bible quotes. Also, I think their idea of rock stars is a few decades behind, probably thanks to Gothard and his ilk. Wasn't the whole ATI movement successful at the start because parents were afraid that their kids would go all rebellious and rock'n'roll? To be fair, the 60's and 70's were full of dead musicians but things have calmed down since then haven't they? I can only think of four big rock stars who have died of the above mentioned causes in the past 25 years: Freddie Mercury, Kurt Cobain, Michael Hutchence and Amy Winehouse. Add a few lesser known ones and you still won't get anywhere near a 40 year life expectancy.

1) See thread topic. 2) Has anyone tried to stop them?

I'm confused now. I've just now heard crazydaysandnights both being called fake AND being lauded as a pretty solid source for blind items. Am I getting two sites mixed up or what?

On a somewhat more shallow note, Sierra does not only have truly impressive post-partum boobage, she's got some fantastic bra mechanics going on as well; those girls are 90's Pamela Anderson-worthy. The Duggar women should take note (Jill, I'm looking at you, supportive bras are your friends).

It looks like something that could have looked fantastic but... didn't. Too crowded and smushed together and the shape of it doesn't make sense; why a big blocky, square wall? I've seen centerpieces like this on Pinterest, but they are usually better arranged (like bouquets, christmas trees or individually wrapped cake pops) and less sticky looking.

30 days sounds long enough to "dry out" but not really enough to actually start working on the underlying issues of the addiction. At least Josh's Jesus Jail got the length of time spent right; it's a pity he won't be working on anything but bible thumping and house maintenance. Which sounds like a carbon copy of his childhood now that I think about it and we all know how well that turned out.

American food is interesting because you think you know all about it due to the prevalence of American food chains all over the world plus all the things you see on tv and in movies, but then someone posts a picture of what people actually eat and it's all bzuh wut?! I'm mostly amazed that anyone would order something like that plate for breakfast, it looks more like dinner. But, I guess we now know where those extra pounds on Amy came from. Not that I mind, she looks quite good in them imo.

Wut? Is that on the show? Did Jill bring them one crayon each? What's the point of one crayon, what can you possibly draw with that?

He's got the same different-sized, slightly squinty eyes as Jana and Deanna, only more so. Duggar genes strike again!

Sweden. And Christmas lasts until Knut's Day (local medieval saint), twenty days after Christmas Eve, when there are usually parties for the kids with dancing and games around the Christmas tree and lots of candy and gingerbread to eat. And then after a long dance around the house, the tree is thrown out (after the decorations are removed obviously) amid much noisy singing. Probably a bit too pagan and/or Catholic for the Duggars. ;)

I'll see your 6th and raise you the 13th of January. On the other hand we do most of the decorating on the 23rd (and celebrate on the 24th) so. If I'd had to look at Christmas decorations for a month, like the Duggars, I'd probably want it gone as soon as possible as well. Jenni is looking pretty, unkempt and forcing a smile as per usual. The Duggar home is looking bare, dreary and sad, also per usual, despite garish Christmas decorations. Those black-out sheet things over the windows really give the whole place a charmingly claustrophobic touch. Curtains people, they are a thing!

I don't understand this recipe. One mixes cold canned tomatoes with cold canned soup and cold processed cheese and then stir in cooked spaghetti and onions. Then let it sit for 10 minutes. Won't the whole dish be stone cold or at most lukewarm by the time you eat it?

He was 14 and 15 and he didn't confess, he got caught according to the police report. And IMO it doesn't really matter if he "knew right from wrong" because clearly that knowledge didn't stop him from acting on his compulsions. He kept molesting the girls for over a year, even after he got caught and it appears from the police report that his behaviour escalated during that time. He only stopped because he realised that his actions would have a negative impact on his own life (per his own FRC resignation note), not because he had any true understanding that what he did was wrong because he was hurting other people. Yes. Do let's blame it on the wife. A movie created by notoriously misogynist Hollywood is perhaps not the first place I would go for explanations for cheating husbands. I agree with you that Josh was warped by his upbringing and that he should've gotten proper counselling. I actually also agree that he's not a threat as such to children because I think his main issues lies with people of the female sex and his utter lack of respect for them. I honestly don't think he sees women as fully human. We are some kind of appendages, only there to satisfy the needs and whims of men, especially Josh.

To be fair to Jill, this whole thing was staged by TLC in order to have something to show. We don't really know if this is how all her Spanish lessons go. I'm not sure why I'm defending Jill here because in general I find her pretty annoying, but as far as learning goes she is the ONLY Duggar child (possibly bar Joseph) that has even attempted to properly learn anything. She did study Spanish with Marjorie's mom and she did finish her lay midwife training however subpar it was. I can't snark on her for wanting to learn things but lacking the understanding and capability to do it, because that is the fault of her parents and her upbringing. If Jill had been brought up in a normal home I could see her being that kid who isn't naturally supersmart but does her homework and extra credits religiously just to get B's.

Well, he does work for Jim Boob in some kind of handyman/janitor capacity. I have no doubt that Boob demands as much work as he can squeeze out of Bin while paying a pittance because hey, they got the mould house!

That's a lovely explanation, even from my atheist point of view. It seems to me like the Duggars are doing things just a little bit differently in this as well, because their legalism and obsession with sinning (especially other people's sinning) looks like the complete opposite of what you wrote. They seem to constantly worry about messing up and have imbibed their children with a fear of hell unless they follow all the rules. They may say they believe salvation lies in faith, not works, but everything they do point in a different direction. And I can't say I've seen much evidence of gratitude and joy in them nor any manifestations thereof.

This was my exact thought. The poor girl has been and is so neglected that she will do anything for just a morsel of attention. She doesn't belong to anyone now that Jessa is gone. And I don't think she had much of a sense of belonging even when Jessa lived in the house since Blessa, unlike Jill, never seemed to make much of an effort to mother her buddies (not that I can blame her for that). If Jordyn being a good little helper means people noticing her and giving her positive reinforcement and praise, then a good little helper is what she will be.

Same here. I've never been able to understand the mindset that good works have no meaning when it comes to your faith or whether you'll go to heaven or not. Especially since the Bible is actually pretty clear that faith without accompanying works is a dead faith. (James 2:14-26 if I understand the passage correctly). And it doesn't even make sense in their own context. Because it clearly matters what Josh did. His actions, or "works" or whatever you want to call it is why he was disgraced and sent to Jesus Jail for prayer and repentance and finding Jesus. But if you've been saved once and accepted Jesus as your saviour (which in Josh's case appears to have happened at least twice), isn't that enough? And if works are not important, why all the legalism? Why are the Duggars and their ilk so anxiously following all these petty, arbitrary rules if, in the end, they have no impact on their salvation? Or is faith not enough to be saved if you do bad things but is enough to be saved when you just fail to do good things? It all sounds like a peculiar mix of control and cop out and it's very confusing to me.

She definitely looks pregnant in that picture. I could buy post-pregnancy weight if it wasn't for the fact that the rest of her is skinny. How old is Izzy now?

I think that was one of the US House seasons! Quite entertaining, especially when one of the families refused to play by the rules and the others got all huffy about it. I can see the Duggars being that family, since in their minds rules don't apply to them, only to other people.

They did actually! The House-series. I watched a couple of seasons of the British original on Youtube, which was quite good. And there was an American version too though not as well made; more "reality" dramarama than historical re-enactment. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_1900_House I would find it genuinely hilarious to see the Duggars on a show like that.

I'm impressed actually; there is no way I could pull something like that off. And since I doubt that she's ever had any real training or art lessons it's not a bad show at all. The only other painting or drawing we've ever seen a Duggar do is the compulsory banner-making for any and every life-event ever. They don't come across as very creative family on the whole, Jinger's photography hobby aside, but Jana must've practiced quite a bit to be able to draw on that level. Makes you wish that she'd had the chance to attend some proper art classes.