Season 6 of 19 Kids and Counting. God help us all!

[Closed Womb]

According to their book they have real insurance, probably BCBS or something similar. Jordyn was hospitalized with a respiratory infection when she was a couple of weeks old, which is what I think motivated them to get it. Plus the fact that they actually have TLC money now makes it easier to get those "little extras" like insurance :roll: I think the insurance paid for most of Michelle's care leading up to Josie's birth, but I'm sure 6 months in the NICU would have maxed out the lifetime limits of any reasonable policy.

The hubs and I currently have BCBS (group policy) and it has no lifetime max. Past insurers did, including previous BCBS policies.

[Mela99]

Why doesn't he just buy them then? Or... if he wants a bigger house, to go get one? Ain't like he can't afford it

[mebeforee]

I really doubt he could afford another house. It seems like he hasn't been taught anything about saving or managing his money. When he was young, the family didn't have money, and by the time he was old enough to be thinking about money management, they were already on the show - at which point, talking about money and money management would probably be seen as braggy or unseemly if aired on TV.

I also don't think he's getting nearly as much from TLC as the rest of the family is. His little branch of the Duggar tree is less interesting, and not the focus of the show. I'm sure he's getting SOME money from TLC, but I'd bet he's using most of that to support his family, since the car lot doesn't seem to be having any kind of success at all.

[mebeforee]

If you mean Josh, that is, lol. If you're talking about JimBob, you're probably right, he's clearly a tightwad. But I assumed you meant Josh when talking about wanting a bigger house. The house the Duggars currently live in is obviously big enough for JB, and as far as he's concerned, his own comfort is all that matters.

[Markie]

Smugger may also resent the fact that he and JD were pulled from their "schooling" to build a house for his parents. He did not want to do it and voiced doubts each step along the way. Was he paid for his work? He wanted to be a lawyer at 14, but was given jobs like screwing in metal beams, putting in plumbing lines and installing drywall. He did get his GED, but his lack of education and preparation closed the doors on his being accepted at any post-secondary institution.

They have said he is taking courses from College Minus, but we have never been shown evidence of that on the show. One would think TLC would be highlighting Josh being a hard working man, loving husband and father and part-time student. Wonder if he tried one course, failed and felt dejected by that - resigned to his life as his father's pawn as a used car salesmen in his gran's old rental house.

[Closed Womb]

This sounds terrible, but in Michelle's twisted mind, I bet the loss of Jubilee is way more tragic than the loss of any of her living children would be. The only time she seems to fell a connection to her kids is when she is carrying them. She would probably be more upset if one of the older kids had an untimely death- she does seem to have relationships with them. But she hardly even knows the Howlers and the Lost Girls, with the exception of Josie. She'd probably spout some nonsense about being called home to Jesus, and move on.

I think you are right.

I do think that the connection to Jubilee was real. I have known women who had late miscarriages and it was devastating, especially the idea that this wasn't "really" a baby so they should just get over it (don't want to start a debate here -- just saying that for many women the idea that their fetus wasn't "real", so their loss wasn't "real", is extra devastating.) I don't know if it is editing, or the producers are milking it, or Michelle is, but this constant Jubilee talk seems to be a desperate attempt to convince the audience of her "life" despite the fact that the show is still called 19 Kids and Counting. But the older kids ARE real. She would not be discredited with those if she were to lose one.

Personally, I don't think Michelle is even aware of how much she likes her own fame. Sometimes corruption sneaks up on people. The Duggars probably really thought they were taking a God-given opportunity to show people their blessed lifestyle and make a few bucks at the same time, but they went down a rabbit hole of entitlement until they are breeding like fanatics in order to keep the notoriety and money train on its tracks.

[mebeforee]

The Duggars probably really thought they were taking a God-given opportunity to show people their blessed lifestyle and make a few bucks at the same time, but they went down a rabbit hole of entitlement until they are breeding like fanatics in order to keep the notoriety and money train on its tracks.

I agree completely. Looking at early Duggar shows isn't only surprising in the difference to what their lifestyle is like now. Just listening to Josh or Jessa talk about themselves is crazy. They're such wide-eyed idealists, they completely believe what they're saying and there's no sense at all that they have ANY doubts. But now that they've seen the world, it all has this feeling of deceit to it. And JB and Michelle are even worse with that. Every mention of 'more children if God should bless us' seems so ridiculously DESPERATE. It's sad.

It's like fame is an addiction. They've thought of themselves as impermeable for so long, they never saw it coming. But they'd do anything to keep the attention on themselves. Anything to keep the money and affirmation (and prayers from strangers) coming in.

[Sola]

Josh would have met a lot of fundy-lites on the Santorrum (sp?) campaign. They seemed to be doing well, were Republicans and Christians. These are all things that Josh and Anna value. Widening his circle of friends has allowed him to become somewhat less fundy and less influenced by Gothard. I cannot see Anna ever getting a job and she will probably homeschool the children, however, she may become involved in a homeschooling co-op for certain subjects. I hope Josh does find his niche. I actually feel sad for his family, because he is not ambitious enough to be a great provider. He will always be compared to JimBob, who was successful in a different time and economy. JimBob also had Michelle working beside him for the first four years of their marriage. Josh and Anna have been married for just four years and have two toddlers and perhaps another one in the oven. Gothard wants to keep his minions dumb and in poverty, so they will blindly follow him and his elite.

I disagree actually. I think Smuggar IS ambitious. What he isn't is hardworking or educated enough to have the success without it being handed on a plate by TLC. If anything Smuggar is overambitious and has an unrealistic opinion of his prospects. Without TLC he would just be another undereducated douche, TLC has given him the opinion that people actually give a shit about what he says. Just look at his bio on Twitter; "Christian. Husband. Father. Son. Brother. Leader. Businessman. Activist. Conservative. American. Blessed." Who is he kidding?

[Closed Womb]

Tons of FU internet moments! But I did love when Joy ran up to Amy with a huge smile on her face and hugged her. Say what you want about Amy, but she makes Joyless Anna happy, and I have a special place in my heart for Joy.

I thought the same thing. I think Joy's only tie to normalcy is Amy.

Random thoughts:

I am so sick of seeing the recap of telling the family about Jubilee because Grandma has this wonky hair thing going. Looks like a bald spot (prolly had been napping and didn't fix it, or something similar). Why do they show that over and over again? Poor Grandma, looking like a poor soul.

Don't make Grandma climb up a damn mountain. It's her property. If she wanted to see it, she would have climbed there before.

I've said it before...from the pictures on Amy's instagram, I think Grandma has a much, much better time when the two of them are together. I remember one episode when it was mentioned that Amy and Grandma go out together once a week. I think Grandma lives for that. The smile in Amy's pictures seem real.

Maybe Josh's shrug about kids was, "yeah, the LORD can't bless us if I'm not getting laid." Either way, I think they are diluting the Kool-Aid at their house and we won't be seeing 17 more toilet births.

If they are going fundie lite, I am thankful. I am sympathetic to them. I've known some pretty sheltered folks and they really do believe what they were taught; why would they question? They were taught that and everything/everyone around them reinforces the construct. So, when JD says Jefferson Davis was a great man, if that is what he was taught, he probably doesn't know much about the man other than the altered SOTDRT version. As Josh becomes more exposed to the world, and it is not as big, bad, or hellish as he expected, it's natural that he would forge his own path. More power to them as they broaden their horizons.

[J'ean Skirt]

The hubs and I currently have BCBS (group policy) and it has no lifetime max. Past insurers did, including previous BCBS policies.

Removal of lifetime limits is a function of the Affordable Care Act / Obamacare.

[Coconut Flan]

I was kind of surprised it was Anna claiming they'd take more kids and Josh was shrugging, but then I remembered that before the wedding he mentioned something about two or three kids being good. If he lost that perspective he seems to have regained it. I'd hoped that Anna was happy with the two children that they have and that her siblings escaping ATI had given her a more mainstream view of the world.

There have been some health insurance policies with no lifetime cap all along. I have no idea what percentage though.

[3 is enough]

Removal of lifetime limits is a function of the Affordable Care Act / Obamacare.

And so is coverage of adult children up to age 26 WITHOUT proof of enrollment in a college/university.

Both have benefited the Duggars, yet they rail against Obamacare.

Hypocrites.

[shesinsane]

And so is coverage of adult children up to age 26 WITHOUT proof of enrollment in a college/university.

Both have benefited the Duggars, yet they rail against Obamacare.

Hypocrites.

Don't forget about pre-existing conditions (also addressed by the ACA). For a 46 year old woman with several previous c-sections and multiple incidents of pre-eclampsia hoping to get pregnant again, I can't see insurance companies lining up to serve her.

[blisterine]

This, or he just doesn't have the energy because of the crap diet. He probably falls asleep on the couch watching Faux News.

he may have dunlap's disease, meaning his belly done lapped over his babymaker.

[MrsKay]

he may have dunlap's disease, meaning his belly done lapped over his babymaker.

[J'ean Skirt]

Don't forget about pre-existing conditions (also addressed by the ACA). For a 46 year old woman with several previous c-sections and multiple incidents of pre-eclampsia hoping to get pregnant again, I can't see insurance companies lining up to serve her.

Ayup.

It's all such manufactured outrage. Drives me nuts.

[socalrules]

Josh would have met a lot of fundy-lites on the Santorrum (sp?) campaign. They seemed to be doing well, were Republicans and Christians. These are all things that Josh and Anna value. Widening his circle of friends has allowed him to become somewhat less fundy and less influenced by Gothard. I cannot see Anna ever getting a job and she will probably homeschool the children, however, she may become involved in a homeschooling co-op for certain subjects. I hope Josh does find his niche. I actually feel sad for his family, because he is not ambitious enough to be a great provider. He will always be compared to JimBob, who was successful in a different time and economy. JimBob also had Michelle working beside him for the first four years of their marriage. Josh and Anna have been married for just four years and have two toddlers and perhaps another one in the oven. Gothard wants to keep his minions dumb and in poverty, so they will blindly follow him and his elite.

I agree that the Santorum bus tour may have been a turning point for Josh but I think for a slightly different reason. Josh has lived his life as top dog because he was the oldest. He parroted everything his father said and it probably made him feel like a big man. Notice how confident he was in the early episodes and look at him now. He just seems to be drifting.

Josh probably harbored dreams of becoming a politician like his father and Santorum's campaign likely quashed those dreams. I think coming in contact with the younger members of Santorum's staff probably drove home how behind Josh is in contrast to others his age. Regardless of their political views, I have no doubt that the majority of Santorum's staff were well-educated and extremely articulate. I highly doubt that Josh became friends with any of them and they most likely looked down on the Duggars as hicks from the backwoods. Why would they want to hang out with Josh and Anna outside of the campaign? Those two would bore most people to tears. They know nothing outside of what happens in Duggarland. Young, smart, enthusiastic campaigners would be very hard for Josh to keep up with intellectually. He probably spent a lot of time trying to not look and sound stupid.

Santorum may be a dick but he is well-educated and his daughter even lives away from home at a real college. He may be conservative but he really did not have much in common with the Duggars. Josh probably wondered why Santorum, who held a higher political position than Jim Bob, would allow his daughter to go away to an evil state school, and still allowed her to campaign with him. I bet the concept of conservative Christians/Catholics, willingly allowing their children, especially a daughter, to go away to state school was a foreign concept to him. Maybe he realized that he could have gone to college and become a lawyer and God would not strike him down. The fact that Santorum's daughter and the young campaign staffers seemed to live their own lives away from their families must have been shocking.

I think Josh has finally realized that his life is really fucked up. He did everything he was told would make his life perfect. Marry young, have children and work for daddy. Yet he appears to be very unhappy. I think he loves Anna and the kids but, if he had it to do over again, I think he would have figured out a way to escape from the compound. He is now stuck in a life built by Jim Bob and Gothard.

Anyone else think that Jim Bob does not want any of his kids to surpass him in anything, including education? If his kids get a real education they may become more successful, have a bigger house and not need to depend on him. This will lead to a loss of control.

[JenniferJuniper]

Anyone else think that Jim Bob does not want any of his kids to surpass him in anything, including education? If his kids get a real education they may become more successful, have a bigger house and not need to depend on him. This will lead to a loss of control.

He's certainly doing his damnedest to keep those kids dependent upon him by making sure they are undereducated, unskilled and, in the case of his older daughters, unwed.

Unfortunately for Jim Bob, he stacked the deck against himself by having so many kids. Maybe he could control 2 or 3 or even 5 or 6 kids, but 19? Not possible.* Josh is obviously not too bright, but a few of those kids are bound to be smarter than either of their parents and probably even be immune to brainwashing. Toss in a reality TV show, a mentally unstable mother pushing 50 and still desperately trying to get pregnant, and the sheer chaos of have so many adolescent males sharing one bedroom and one gets the feeling that a dam is bound to burst in the not too distant future. When it does, Jim Bob's controlled little world is going to spin out of control.

*It might have been possible if he’d married The Amazing Mommy Arndt. But Michelle doesn’t have a patch on that woman.

[Jessica]

he may have dunlap's disease, meaning his belly done lapped over his babymaker.

:clap: :lol:

[nokidsmom]

Unfortunately for Jim Bob, he stacked the deck against himself by having so many kids. Maybe he could control 2 or 3 or even 5 or 6 kids, but 19? Not possible.* Josh is obviously not too bright, but a few of those kids are bound to be smarter than either of their parents and probably even be immune to brainwashing. Toss in a reality TV show, a mentally unstable mother pushing 50 and still desperately trying to get pregnant, and the sheer chaos of have so many adolescent males sharing one bedroom and one gets the feeling that a dam is bound to burst in the not too distant future. When it does, Jim Bob's controlled little world is going to spin out of control.

I totally agree with this. Plus I think we are already seeing this happening with Josiah as evidenced by his behavior when the pregnancy with #20 was announced.

[nokidsmom]

I disagree actually. I think Smuggar IS ambitious. What he isn't is hardworking or educated enough to have the success without it being handed on a plate by TLC. If anything Smuggar is overambitious and has an unrealistic opinion of his prospects. Without TLC he would just be another undereducated douche, TLC has given him the opinion that people actually give a shit about what he says. Just look at his bio on Twitter; "Christian. Husband. Father. Son. Brother. Leader. Businessman. Activist. Conservative. American. Blessed." Who is he kidding?

I agree with this. He is very ambitious indeed but the lack of education and work ethic will not make up for that. And that same lack of education is contributing to the inflated view he has of himself. And he will never enter politics.

It's rather sad because this is coming as a result of his upbringing, something he had no choice in, but was subject to crazy choices made by his parents.

[Shasta ODonegal]

...one gets the feeling that a dam is bound to burst in the not too distant future.

Maybe this is what TLC is holding out for.

[nokidsmom]

Maybe this is what TLC is holding out for.

Could be a real possibility, since TLC seems to be throwing them under the bus. Would be quite the trainwreck to watch.

[mrs]

Could be a real possibility, since TLC seems to be throwing them under the bus. Would be quite the trainwreck to watch.

I agree that TLC seems to be less generous with their editing. I remember reading/hearing somewhere that Jim Bob has the final say over what is shown on the show? Does anyone else know if that is true?

[mebeforee]

I've heard that a couple of times, too. I think he probably does have the final say, but I also don't think it would bother him to have the 'nonflattering' stuff shown, because he isn't aware how other people will react to it.

Kind of like how, most people who watched Jesus Camp were completely horrified by the indoctrination and spiritual warfare of children. Yet many fundamentalist people who agreed with what the summer camp was doing felt that Jesus Camp was a good film that got their message out there, and it wasn't until they started realizing the rest of the world thought they were lunatics that they began reacting more negatively toward it.

JB might have final say about what is put on the show, but he doesn't have the self-awareness to know what to keep and what to cut.