Churchhoney

It's all part of the "wonderful values" she and Jizm Bob are imparting to the next generation: When you have kids, don't bother to figure out the slightest detail that might distinguish one from the other. .... To their crappy parents, the Duggar kids are like the terracotta soldiers buried in that Chinese emperors' tomb -- inanimate trophies touting JB's and M's grandeur to this world and the next, valuable only in that there are so many of them. Only difference -- the terracotta statues are better differentiated.

Yeah, I agree. It does sound like astroturf. Interesting thought. Astroturf tends to be a bit expensive, but, as you say, TLC has $24 million reasons to spend a few bucks. I'm torn between thinking you're right that these comments are plants and thinking that a lot of people are way dumber and more gullible than you're supposing here!

Interesting, though not surprising, that for all the talk about "don't conform to the world; shape the world to your principles" and so on that the Duggars are in fact complete fad followers, after every Pinterest wind that blows and so on. .... Such clear evidence that being taught to have no thoughts other than a list of pre-approved ones leaves people without any capacity for or interest in thinking for themselves. They're utter followers in every way and completely irrational. In the name of protecting them from the bad world, their idiotic parents left them completely at the mercy of it, in the long run. This worries me, though. What in the world did anyone expect to find interesting in Spurge's emergence from his incredibly boring mother with his incredibly boring father by her side?

Well, they're not alone in being high. Here's a sample comment from the Dugg-Fam-fan-blog post about contacting TLC to get them back: "I sent an email via the link provided to keep the show on. Although I am not religious, I do love how you instill many wonderful values in all your children, and you deserve to have a series. It does not matter what's happened in the past, it's there for a reason." http://www.duggarfamilyblog.com/2015/12/send-your-feedback-to-tlc.html#comment-form I can't even imagine what level of damage there must in this person's brain, to glean this from watching the Duggs. But it proves to me that they're damned dangerous. WTF are these "wonderful values" their various smug, ignorant, unemployed, grifting, arrogant, bitchy, sexually deviant, misognynist, depressed and deflated, utterly-failed-to-launch children exhibit? And where do we see these incredibly neglectful and oblivious fame-whore parents impart anything to those kids other than a lust to be on teevee because FAME and MONEY? Yet people out there clearly are watching the Duggars and seeing them as something to emulate. And this supposedly isn't even a fellow churchie.

Exactly. I lived in that jail, minus the Europe trips, and I'd be astonished if quite a good handful of those kids aren't really really really angry deep down inside. Hope they can realize that and learn somehow to manage it before they take that anger out on others or on themselves for the rest of their lives. Not psychologically healthy at all to treat children and teenagers (and now even young adults) as if they're dancing marionettes.

'“[Jim Bob] doesn’t want this case becoming a criminal matter. He knows Josh would never be the same if he went inside,” says the source close to the family. But Jim Bob is also concerned about how Josh’s actions will affect the family. “They’re afraid Josh going to jail would leave an indelible stain on the family name,” adds the source, “and that they, too, would be punished for years because of what he did.”' When in fact, Jim Bob Duggar, you ought to be punished for years because of what you did -- to Josh and all the rest of your kids. But what's really happening is they're all being punished for a lifetime because of you you you. Scapegoating piece of disgusting scum. He's the indelible stain on the Duggars, And it's the kind of stain that goes right through to the bone. This kind of crap from somebody who industriously swept an obviously very messed-up boy's multiple, escalating, long-term intra-family child molestation under the rug to help him claw after, first, power and then fame and money absolutely disgusts me. If Jim Bob had found out about Josh's Ashley Madison adventures but it had never become public knowledge, he would have happily swept it under a rug as well.

And being a highly seductive sexpot who knows every move in the book doesn't help any more than beauty does. Some guy cheated on Dita von Teese, for example, as I recall. It's not you, Anna. It's him.

And then we have the comment that tells us Jason goes around accosting strangers to ask if they're saved. Shut up, Jason. I suppose he aspires to be a preacher/fake-plumber or something. Of course, by accounts the very recent encounter described has had a big impact on some kid's life. Yeah. Right.

She should hang onto that. Sounds like it would make a great Easter card.

I wonder whether it isn't something like Jessa's allowing filming of her home birth, which I think was a bit out of character. At this point, all of the fame-whory, jobless-and-clamoring-for-cash Duggars and Duggarlings may be emphatically for whatever might provide enough drama and potential plot lines to goose an entire new teevee series. No matter how distasteful they might find those things otherwise (or how unlikely they are to actually do some of them once the series actually gets going).

I hope you're right! But I'm afraid that the most liable-to-be-influenced people in the audience look on the Josh thing (and Jill's and Jessa's birth idiocies, etc.) as "sad uncontrollable things that happened to this wonderful Christian family just as they happen to all of us -- and isn't it wonderful how they continue walking with the Lord through these fires?!" .... Seems to me that's the way the leghumper portion of the audience -- which I'm guessing to be frighteningly huge -- has viewed all the stuff that's happened to them so far. Like the Josie and Jubilee birth traumas, for example. (which were, in my opinion, JB's and M's fault for proceeding with pregnancies when there were excellent medical reasons not to do so) ....I'm a Duggar pessimist! So ... hope you're right. ELTA: Here are a few of the Amazon reviews of the new Counting On videos -- just to show why I'm scared! Just a beautiful family and I love that they are showing people that Christians aren't perfect. I pray that the family is able to pull through all the controversy and TLC will put them all back on the air again! We all miss them!! For years the Duggars have portrayed a perfect family image. While this image sets an excellent example, it isn't real. Christians sin, fear, doubt, and struggle, just like everyone else. We aren't Christians because we are perfect, rather we need Christ because we aren't perfect. Christianity is a fight. A fight for all that is good, true and beautiful, but it is hard. Sometimes we fall. When we do, we remember how much more we need Christ. Thank you Jana, Jill, Jessa, Jinger, Joy and the rest of the Duggars for speaking openly and honestly. very much love the values this family teaches. Although they could be handling their situation with Josh differently, his actions do not speak for the entire family. There is much to learn here. Love it! They are such a genuine family and Christian example. I love this family. I don't love everything. But I don't love everything about my own family. They go through things in life that all of us go through. I don't know why that ever surprised anyone. They are humans. I love watching this special. I hate to see it come to a end. I wish those that didn't like to watch it simply wouldn't watch it, and let us that love them, and get comfort from them watch them . The harassment these girls have taken on social media is so unreal. I do hate how much this special focused on Josh's scandals. They had more happy things going on to focus on. But understand they are weighing on the scale whether to try to address the issues or to appear they are just attempting to shove them under the rug. I am so pleased to see the girls' and their family back on TLC again. This family has taken some hits this year and it is obvious by their words they are struggling to find a new normal. Life doesn't have a steering wheel that we can drive to all the easy places. There will be dirt roads and unforseen challenges; love finds a way to meet those challenges and grow from it. I respect that they are able to openly discuss these issues with those of us who love their family. We can all learn alot from their experience, namely not to kick someone when they are down.....as Jana said "beauty rises from the ashes". http://www.amazon.com/Jill-Jessa-Counting-On-Season/product-reviews/B019EE2U32/ref=cm_cr_pr_btm_link_2?ie=UTF8&showViewpoints=1&sortBy=bySubmissionDateDescending&pageNumber=2

Well, in my opinion they've already got the worst, the true perps, back on air -- Jim Bob and Michelle. Honestly, it isn't Josh that I'm most eager to see off tv at all. Josh is out there as a human being and a person who is royally screwed up and has royally screwed up. Nobody is lionizing Josh or making his standards of behavior into some kind of model of Christian virtue and nobody is going to, whether he's on tv or not. .... So seeing Josh is seeing something that's kind of like the truth. Seeing JB and M perpetually Tefloned by TLC and the leghumpers, however, is seeing the hideous falsehood and evil that's ultimately behind Josh's troubles and the sad state of all the other kids being held up as "godly" and loving parenthood. Having them on tv -- where to many people they do look like role models and where most of their horrible behavior and lethal beliefs are whitewashed by the network to look like something harmless or even benign-- is the true evil that should be stopped for the good of the world, not to mention the good of their children. If TLC doesn't put Josh on tv, they'll just be scapegoating him (as JB and M have led the way in doing) as a way of sneaking the return of the true perpetrators, if you ask me.

The brains of pudding are probably sufficient.

I think it applied to pretty many women in the 30s through the 50s or thereabouts. Although I also think that there were also a lot of women who wore both kinds of aprons. I know that at my house there were drawers full of aprons -- some utilitarian and some really fancy. And I have vague recollections of people wearing the utilitarian ones in the preparation stages of a meal and then shifting to the fancy, translucent embroidered and ruffled aprons once the actual feed was taking place and they were serving.

Well, I guess Mr. and Mrs. Keller's parenting practices worked just as planned then.

To provide more drama so that more people will watch your new TeeVee show.

Wow. You learn something new every day. I think some people who spend a lot of time in Gothard land don't have any idea what support actually is. This is why it's so good for them to be on reality tv. Not.

I didn't see it either, actually, but I gather there's an episode where she waterskied -- in some sort of near-1890s bathing costume, perhaps? -- but whatever she wore didn't cover her knees (because imagine water skiing in some sort of skirt that hung below your knees!), so they put a (I think) black bar over them on the video...... I'm sure somebody who watches can point you toward the episode. it's pretty internet-famous. For obvious reasons!

Tv training? Making sure everybody in the shot is facing the camera?

I don't know why they didn't black that one out, like Michelle's waterskiing knees.

But doesn't a big umbrella come down from the sky and smite you, if you do something like that too close to a Gothard compound?

I actually can't see it being displayed with the cards at anybody's house. ... It looks pretty much one of a kind to me. I'll give her that. It's original. Stupid, ridiculous and completely inappropriate, while also being boring. But original.

I wonder whether Jill will even try to practice outside her family. She's looking to be quite a timid sort in her new life. I can't really see her competing for clients. I kind of expert her to just give up her midwife and missionary ambitions to be entirely a stay-at-home mom except for attending her sisters' births and chatting about the bible with people Derick brings by the house. ETA: Oops, sorry. Forgot this was the Jessa thread when I wrote this. .... FWIW, I don't think Jessa will seek to pursue her professional goals outside the home either. lol .... which makes me remember that, hey, at least Jill has/had some professional goals. Which as far as we know sets her apart from everybody else in her family except John David (who doesn't get to pursue his outside the home either). These poor kids.

Here in the oh-so-holy United States, including at the oh-so-holy Duggar house, Americans are so misinformed that we mostly go with the store-decoration calendar for Christmas. Stores decorate pre-Christmas -- so they can entice us to buy stuff -- so Americans decorate their homes on the same schedule. And since the stores obviously take their decoration-ads down the day after Christmas, so they can start advertising to sell us something else, so do more and more Americans, including, as we see, the oh-so-holy Duggars. It's the result of American ignorance and complete domination by commercial interests. Nobody has a clue about the traditional church season (or its ancient pagan counterparts) and what the decorations are supposed to mean for the human spirit in those contexts. All we understand is -- Stores ripped down their decorations, so Christmas is over! And, of course, the oh-so-holy Duggs. ... Well, you know. Meanwhile, secular-and-thus-evil Europe keeps to the religious traditions. American exceptionalism indeed.

This is why they should move the Duggs from reality tv into the horror genre.