Albanyguy

I wonder how often these couples actually kiss when they're alone with no camera to record the moment and no audience to show off for? Seldom to never would be my guess.

These three are absolutely her favorites, the only ones she seems to care about at all. But, as is usually the case, it's all about Michelle and her narcissism. Josh is her Crown Prince, proof that she fulfilled her womanly duty by providing her husband with a firstborn son and heir. Jessa is a reflection of herself as a teenager. Jessa is the "hot" one, the one who would be a cheerleader and mow the lawn in a bikini if Gothard allowed such things. And Precious Miracle Baby Josie is her prize trophy, her ticket onto the podium at right-to-life rallies where she can brag about her dangerous pregnancy and bask in the crowd's admiration.

They're only allowing it now because they're desperate to keep their TV show afloat. It's all about the Benjamins (the dollars, not the son-in-law.

Which Duggar do you think we'll see on Dancing With The Stars?

Awww, it's like "Michelle: The Wonder Years"!

I still can't get over how nice all the mods are here. Quite a change from TWoP.

Well, Ben is a "TV star" which would make him a local celebrity of sorts and he's just so gosh-darn hip and cool and hunky compared to all the other Fundie boys. Maybe she just couldn't resist bragging about landing him. Or maybe she's hoping that if words gets out that he's cheating, Jessa will kick him to the curb and she'll have him all to herself.

That reminds me, what happened to the Spanish lessons that they made such a big deal about and that apparently took up such a big chunk of their time? We haven't heard anything about that lately. I'm guessing that learning Spanish proved too difficult and was quietly dropped ("Derick, I can't understand what happened! I watched a real Hispanic person speak Spanish for two whole hours and I still can't speak a word! I should be an expert by now!")

I think that when the cameras aren't rolling, there is a lot teasing going on and that it's all extremely mean; cruel barbs and taunts overlaid with a sugary veneer of Jesus-y "keeping sweet". As for cutting up and being silly, we've seen examples of their ugly practical jokes: trashing wedding cars, scaring Amy with a clown, trying to run down a cat. These are people who lack any real empathy and who don't really like or trust each other. There's a lot of repressed hostility that they're forbidden to express in any honest or constructive way, so it comes out veiled as "humor".

The Duggars sure do love their "FU Internet" moments, don't they? It makes them feel extra smug and clever, as if they're really pulling one over on us. And the way the leghumpers swallow them hook, line and sinker only reinforces their belief that they're smarter that all of us "haters". Right now, they're focusing on "proving" that Jana isn't really the indentured household drudge we think she is. But I have a prediction for their next FU Internet campaign. Right now, Jill and Jessa are catching online flack for their messy, dirty houses. It point out the girls' essential laziness and Michelle's failure to train them for a Fundie woman's only role in life. So, I'll bet that next season, we'll see the Seewalds and Dillards with spotless, shining homes (courtesy of unseen TLC-supplied cleaning crews). We'll also be treated to a few carefully-staged scenes of Jill scrubbing her kitchen and Jessa sweeping under her bed.

Thanks for the explanation; learned something new today!

Re: poor, skinny Timothy and his "fasting", I have a question that one of the posters who was raised Fundie may be able to answer. Is fasting really a part of Fundie culture? Having been raised Catholic, I know that fasting is a big part of Catholic ritual, but except for very high-Church Episcopalians, I've never known Protestants to be into it. And considering how anti-Catholic many hard-core Fundies are ("Catholics aren't really Christians"), wouldn't they regard fasting as suspiciously and dangerously "Papist"? It makes me wonder if Jill would normally be opposed to the concept of fasting, but latched onto it as a way to explain why her kid is so malnourished looking (and to save on the food bills). Maybe I'm being unfair to her, but the thought of those two fat slobs leaving their underfed kids behind in the stink bus while they gorge themselves at restaurants makes my blood boil.

What's really making her unhappy is having to do her own laundry instead of having an unmarried sister or a grandmother there to do it for her.

I think it's another of their FU Internet gestures, designed to answer critics who call out the men in the family for being selfish and entitled: "Look at us! We're such modern, involved daddies! We even change those disgusting poopy diapers!" Awwww! It's enough to almost make you forget Josh taking a nap while his wife gave birth on the toilet or JD asserting that the wimmenfolk LIKE to do laundry.And I'd be really surprised if Josh, Derick or Ben ever changed a diaper if someone wasn't right there with a camera to take a picture of them doing it.

Exactly. And she has been surrounded all her life by people who look, talk, think and act exactly like her. She was isolated and protected from anybody who was even a tiny bit "different" and was taught that those "different" people were to be feared and avoided. And now she's been removed completely from her comfort zone. She was a needy, clingy bride back in Arkansas and now she's alone with nobody but her husband to hang onto. It's no wonder Derick looks like hell, he must be suffocating under the constant, crushing burden of keeping Jill happy.

I'm going to file Jim Bob's "learning disability" away as just another one of Michelle's self-serving lies, like her "missing back muscle" and her "bulimia".

The Duggar kids are all very lazy, dislike any kind of work and are used to living in a dirty, chaotic environment. Jill probably didn't see anything wrong with the way the apartment looked and may have even felt that the mess would help foster the impression that she and Derick are so busy saving souls that they don't have any time for housework.

"The big problem with the world is that all the intelligent people are full of doubts and all the stupid people are full of confidence" - Charles Bukowski

And Episcopalians!

In that sense, she truly is a Duggar.

I agree that it's all probably bullshit, but I wish it were true. Anna was well-conditioned to be a selfless Gothardite wife. It would be child's play for Jim Bob and Michelle to convince her that Josh's adultery was all her fault and that she needed to be completely submissive and forgiving. I'd love to hear them try that routine on Jessa Blessa. Her Christianity is all based on believing that she's better than everybody: "My shit doesn't stink and the sun doesn't rise till I get out of bed in the morning, because Jesus!". She wouldn't be having any of that "I wasn't joyfully available enough" crap; she'd be wreaking blood-soaked vengeance on Bin and the sister in question.

I could be wrong, but I thought that the statistics showed a fairly large drop-off in the current generation of Quiverful/Fundie raised children. Which would explain why they're so desperate to bring in new converts and why their rhetoric is so strident. ("We're the wave of the future! No, really! Because I said so, that's why!!!")

I think David will (barely) hold it together as long as the Gothard empire keeps providing him with a position that makes him feel secure and powerful. But when the organization inevitably crumbles (through dwindling membership, public scandals, lawsuits, competing factions and Bill Gothard's eventual death) and he is left adrift with his whole purpose in life gone, then he will experience a massive implosion. God help poor, dim Priscilla and the kids when that day arrives.

I would guess that the kids were all trained to be night owls so that their habits wouldn't conflict with Jim Bob and Michelle's convenience. The J'Slaves were probably charged with keeping the little kids/babies absolutely quiet in the morning until their parents were ready to get up.

When does Jackson reach the age when he's segregated from hanging out with the girls? That's going to significantly cut down on his opportunities to mug for the camera.