Albanyguy

I'm sure that Jim Bob will be a constant presence in the courtroom, but I wonder if he won't try to dissuade Michelle from attending. I have a feeling that Michelle has no idea of how horrifying the porn Josh was downloading really was. In Michelle's mind, "porn" could be anything as innocuous as a Playboy centerfold or even a Victoria's Secret catalogue and Jim Bob may be keeping her in that state of blissful ignorance. If she goes to court, she'll hear every filthy detail and I doubt if Jim Bob would want that. Plus, if she's currently in a state of denial and clinging to the notion that someone else downloaded the porn, hearing the prosecution's case could shatter her illusions. This is probably true of Anna as well. Having said that, I doubt if wild horses could keep Michelle away. She loves being the center of attention and not having the TLC cameras around anymore is making her feel bereft. While I'm sure that she's genuinely heartbroken over what's happened to Josh and terrified of what will become of him, there's probably a small part of her that will relish the attention she'll get playing her MOTY act in public again.

I'm worried about my cholesterol level, so I'm taking a break from scrambled eggs. I'll still be eating them fried, though.

"DADDY! Talk to him! Do something!""

Laurie is one of those names (like Leslie and Beverly) which began as a boy's name, reached a peak of popularity in the Victorian era and then, during the 20th century, gradually morphed into a girl's name.

In my experience, most jocks are pretty lousy in the sack and I doubt if Jeremy is an exception. Plus, Fundie males are raised with the mindset that only their wishes and desires matter, so there’s that. Jinger probably didn’t expect much anyway, since her mother told her “Don’t worry, it doesn’t take long.”

My husband and I go out to dinner with my parents all the time (as do my sister and brother-in-law), but we don't call it "double dating", we call it "going out to dinner with my parents". Oddly enough, we don't call going out to grab a bite to eat and run errands "date night" either.

Jim Bob is footing the bills and calling the shots, while the lawyers are advising him about all the angles they can pursue and taking their directions from him. Meanwhile, Josh, the one whose fate is on the line, is probably being ignored and treated like a wayward child.

She's cheap, lazy and doesn't give a crap about anyone but herself.

Interesting how not one of the random strangers she’s “saved” are ever seen or heard from again. None of them ever come to her church for services or visit her at the barndo or attend one of her family’s performances. And you know that if that ever happened, we’d never hear the end of it: “It was such a miracle to see my dear friend Egbert at our church today and hear him testify that if it wasn’t for ME, he never would have found Jesus! And then he treated David and me to breakfast afterwards at the good IHOP! I feel so SEVERELY blessed!”

They recently made a big production of announcing that they no longer want their kids' faces on social media. But instead of simply taking the kids OFF social media, they continue to post lots of pictures but "protect the kids' privacy" by hiding their faces. It's just another way to show off and get attention.

Austin seems stiff-necked and self-righteous, and I think he prides himself on being a hard-working man who lives up to his responsibilities. I suspect he's always had a great deal of contempt for Josh, not just for his sinfulness, but because Josh was a slug who sat around on his lazy ass all day.

It may be a "no shoes in the house on the hardwood floors" house.

Derrick looks happier and healthier than he has in a long time.

Not exactly a packed house for the Rods' performance, was it? And I doubt if that had anything to do with COVID.

We've seen this kind of thing with the Duggar boys, too. I would guess that the repressed, regimented lives these kids are forced to live leaves them with a lot of pent-up anger that finds its outlet in nasty, mean-spirited "jokes" directed towards each other.

Jill is nothing if not pragmatic in her grifting. But even before Smuggar's arrest and the explosion of the latest scandal, Jill was banging her head against the walls of the Duggar compound in vain. I think that when Nurie married ANNA DUGGAR'S BROTHER, she had visions of Nurie becoming BFFs with Anna, Jana, Jessa, etc. and using that to worm her own way into the TTH. What she never stopped to consider was that Anna does not seem to be particularly close to Nathan (they may not see each other more than once or twice a year) and had no desire to take his new bride under her wing. And the Duggars themselves have often seemed to barely tolerate Anna herself, much less her relatives. The one exception was Priscilla, whom they embraced because she was married to Bill Gothard's protégé. I think that the Duggars have always been very conscious of their status as Fundie royalty/TV stars and Anna eagerly embraced their snobbish values.

David and Priscilla Waller would have been the logical ones to invite them, since they are “family”. What’s the point of Nurie being married to PRISCILLA WALLER’S BROTHER if Jill can’t impose on them? So far, Nathan’s connections to Fundie Royalty don’t seem to be doing her one damn bit of good.

That makes a lot of sense. I was a first-born son and I was definitely NOT the Golden Boy. That was my kid brother who (consciously or otherwise) became the Crown Prince by following in our father’s footsteps.

Insufferable egomaniacs are usually made, not born. Isn’t Jeremy the first-born son? I know that Chuck and Diana aren’t Gothard, but did they raise Jeremy to be their Golden Boy/Crown Prince/Future Superstar like JB and Michelle did with Josh? That could explain a lot about Jeremy and also explain why his siblings seem much more normal and down-to-earth.

This article starts out with a believable premise; I can easily see Anna neglecting her kids to hang out with Josh at the Reber house. In Gothard World, kids always come second to the husband’s needs. And I’m sure that she really does believe that he’s completely innocent. But then it devolves into the usual “Anna feuding with Jim Bob and Michelle” gossip. Also, I’m not sure how David and Priscilla Waller could be providing any significant amount of child care for Anna’s kids when they live in Texas. I believe the bit about Anna being angry at Mrs. Reber for telling the court she was uncomfortable at having Josh in her house. How dare she! Doesn’t she realize what an honor it is to serve the Duggars in any capacity? Under the sweet-and-simple act, I’ve always thought that Anna is just as arrogant and entitled as her husband and in-laws (or is it “in-loves”?).

Jill is the Queen of "Do as I say, not as I do". Her admonitions are meant for us heathen sinners. We're the ones who need to give away our possessions because they stand in the way of us seeing the light and accepting Jesus into our lives. She doesn't have to worry about that because she is already one of the Lord's angels here on earth. Her grandfather's clock and closet full of teddy bears aren't mere possessions, they're "blessings" bestowed upon her as a reward for her faithfulness.

I've always thought that, if Jim Bob is a crook, he's a very small-time, penny-ante crook. I agree that there's probably very little there for Josh to rat him out on in exchange for a lesser sentence for a CSA charge. I also don't think he's nearly as rich as he's been rumored to be. I'll bet he's always been the kind of "penny wise, pound foolish" thinks-he's-much-smarter-than he-really-is businessman who loses more money than he makes on all his big deals. I think his vast wealth is as much a fiction as his powerful political connections. He may end up deciding to have Josh plead guilty because he can't pay the legal bills or, if he does bite the bullet and finance Josh's defense to the bitter end, he may end up bankrupting himself.

The only reason Josh would interested in sneaking over to see Jessa's baby would be the childish thrill of breaking the rules and proving that no judge can push him around.

She's probably already started implanting the idea in Felicity's head that her baby sister is her "best friend".

Actually, a taco station sounds fun. But if the Duggars were involved, I'm sure they did their usual lazy, half-assed job.