19 Kids & Courting - Duggar Snark for Season 8

[donks]

PLEASE tell me you misheard

I wish I had misheard. I was carrying water bottles and life vests and just stopped like "wtf did she just say?"

It was on this afternoon, so I couldn't remember exactly word for word, but what I paraphrased was pretty damn close!

[DuggarsTheEndIsNear]

I did not say what kind of father/husband he will be but I'm pretty sure this whole site is to offer our snark/opinions. Which I will do. Perhaps your judgement is better placed on the comments that said JD is slow?

Sorry, when reading this on my phone, the bit where you said your 36 year old brother took up one line, which my eyes promptly skipped. That was my bad.

[ExLuther]

Sorry, when reading this on my phone, the bit where you said your 36 year old brother took up one line, which my eyes promptly skipped. That was my bad.

Understandable.

[ExLuther]

I wish I had misheard. I was carrying water bottles and life vests and just stopped like "wtf did she just say?"

It was on this afternoon, so I couldn't remember exactly word for word, but what I paraphrased was pretty damn close!

Puke. I could have had a husband but even though he had a great job I chose to leave him and go to school and raise my son. I have no problems with people who have their husband be the breadwinner but to believe that is the only choice?! The fuck?!

[ExLuther]

I wish I had misheard. I was carrying water bottles and life vests and just stopped like "wtf did she just say?"

It was on this afternoon, so I couldn't remember exactly word for word, but what I paraphrased was pretty damn close!

Puke. I could have had a husband but even though he had a great job I chose to leave him and go to school and raise my son. I have no problems with people who have their husband be the breadwinner but to believe that is the only choice?! The fuck?!

[DarkAnts]

I think part of the reason this episode was so awkward is because it was staged. They filmed it after they had started to court. This was staged for a story line.

I think it would have been wise to wait until they were engaged to have it on the show. That would have given both Jessa and Ben time to become more comfortable around each other.

[DuggarsTheEndIsNear]

I think part of the reason this episode was so awkward is because it was staged. They filmed it after they had started to court. This was staged for a story line.

I think it would have been wise to wait until they were engaged to have it on the show. That would have given both Jessa and Ben time to become more comfortable around each other.

I think that had been the plan, but the courtship was leaked and then they couldn't hide it. Especially if their season was going to be composed of things like "8 kids go to the dentist and JB makes fun of them" or "the family revisits the creation museum."

[thepinkleprechaun]

Yeah but they want to shove the whole courtship thing down our throats because of how much better they are than us "regular" Americans who are all getting tattoos and drinking and having sex out of wedlock.

Anyways I didn't mind the episode. I thought Jim Bob was acting really stupid, but my dad acted stupid too when I was in high school and started dating boys. I LOVE Jessa, she's a kindred spirit lol. I am the same way, not emotional, very blunt. Unfortunately that kind of personality doesn't fit very well with fundie culture...

What I think is going to happen is that Jessa and Jill get married. They tell the other girls how super awesome it is to have your own place, be able to do what you want and not have to cook for 30+ people every day and deal with screaming kids all the time. The other girls find husbands faster than you can say PRAISE JESUS! And JimBob all the sudden loses control and daughters left and right.

[Cassia]

I think TLC did a MAGICAL editing job on Ben. Lets not forget his "I survived Roe v. Wade" t shirts, his obnoxious, preachy FB posts... all the things that HE did HIMSELF that led us to believe he was a douche. TLC makes the Duggars palatable, they're doing the same thing for Ben. I hold onto my opinion that he's a self righteous ass.

The thing with young fundies and their unwavering stances on Roe v. Wade is that they have simply never been challenged on it by the 'right' circumstances. Say in two years, 20 year old Ben and 23 year old Jessa are faced in the first trimester with a pregnancy that will take Jessa's life if they decide to keep the baby. I think they would quickly start to question what they have been told to believe their whole lives ie. is it really worth it for Jessa to die to bring this (now)fetus into the world only to be raised motherless by a young, single father?

But you're right about the magic of TLC editing - they made me like the Bates, really like them! I gave up regularly watching the Duggars awhile ago and I can't decide if I'm mentally stable enough to handle watching this season of The Jim Bob Duggar Show :pull-hair:

I *do* want to see JillnDill though...

[Lillybee]

The Duggars got 2.2 million viewers and The Little Couple which aired follow them got 3.2 million.

[doggie]

they don't even understand life in general. when you are fee fundy pabulum and can't ever actually function in with normal people and talk to normal people and be responsible for your actions and idea's upi are just a parrot for your parents and worthless people like got hard. I pretty much dismiss anything the diggers have an opinion on and it is as simple as that.

[snarkykitty]

The girls are already losing the kool-aid jargon and saying typical (typical to me means giggly, blushing when saying how cute a boy is, etc.) things like Jessa: "he's tall, dark and handsome" or Jill: "I think I'm in love with someone I've never met before!"

[DuggarsTheEndIsNear]

they don't even understand life in general. when you are fee fundy pabulum and can't ever actually function in with normal people and talk to normal people and be responsible for your actions and idea's upi are just a parrot for your parents and worthless people like got hard. I pretty much dismiss anything the diggers have an opinion on and it is as simple as that.

I don't think parroting parents is a fundie only problem. People tend to have the same views as those whose judgment they feel is most valuable (parents, preachers, peers, etc).

[JenniferJuniper]

The girls are already losing the kool-aid jargon and saying typical (typical to me means giggly, blushing when saying how cute a boy is, etc.) things like Jessa: "he's tall, dark and handsome" or Jill: "I think I'm in love with someone I've never met before!"

Typical for 14 year olds. Not so much young women in their 20's.

[Tesseract]

Jimmy Fallon just did a number on them :lol:

[SpeakNow]

Jimmy Fallon just did a number on them :lol:

Can you post a link to that?

[Tesseract]

Can you post a link to that?

I wish I could. Sorry! I just happened to catch The Tonight Show live. A YouTube and Google search didn't give me anything. I didn't watch the 19 Kids show, but was reading Buzzard's recap (thank you!) and there are no words to describe how awkward that closet scene was :pink-shock:

[JellyHope]

I don't understand why Ben's prospects are bad.

He's 18 of course he's not rolling in it now. He is going to college and getting some experience at the insurance agency.

I do think that he will move to Tonitown and live in the Smuggar house until he finishes school. By age 25 or so, he should be able to have a decent job and that's fairly normal. With the income from the tv show, they should be fine until he finishes school. It just isn't that expensive to support two adults in a free house.

The only problem, is that in 7 years (when he's 25) they could have a handful of young kids already. If they were to wait a few years to procreate, get stable & on their feet, let their relationship with each other grow (& get to know one another) then I would share your opinion. But unfortunately, this couple looks headed for the alter, without truly getting to know each other, without having ever really lived in an adult world, and adding the stress that comes with babies. All allegedly, of course. And I'm sure some of you can give me an example of someone you know who basically had the same young/uneducated/early/arranged/baby-filled marriage, and they're the perfect couple, 50 years later. But that doesn't change my opinion that this whole shebang is all very ill-advised.

[JellyHope]

I agree with you, Kelsey. Ben's prospects aren't bad. He's got that windshield repair buisness (if he's still operating it, not sure) and he's working for a real estate business. He seems ready and willing to work hard instead of just mooching off people. What is he studying? Business and ministry, something like that? The area he lives in has relatively low cost of living and housing prices. They both have families who would help them out in a pinch, and then yeah, the money from TLC. I have a feeling they'll be fine. Even if they get married when he's 19 and start having kids right away, you don't have 20 kids at once. By the time he was 25 they'd only have 3-4 at most.

Can you imagine 3-4 kids under the age of 7? Not a picnic, even for more mature & established grown couples.

[JellyHope]

What I don't get is why that wouldn't cause desires with Michelle that cant be righteously fulfilled. She seems to like Ben, and then she's all pressed up against him.... *shudders*

What?! I'm shocked! The Duggars are hypocrites?

[JellyHope]

I think TLC did a MAGICAL editing job on Ben. Lets not forget his "I survived Roe v. Wade" t shirts, his obnoxious, preachy FB posts... all the things that HE did HIMSELF that led us to believe he was a douche. TLC makes the Duggars palatable, they're doing the same thing for Ben. I hold onto my opinion that he's a self righteous ass.

Yes! Thank you. His writings & actions (& wardrobe choices) show a lot more of his "character" than what TLC decides to show us. Baby Ben is still an ass IMHO

[JellyHope]

I feel so so so sorry for Joy--2 sisters will most certainly be gone by the end of the year and she will have to do double, nay, triple duty in the kitchen and in the "schoolroom."

Michelle loves to carry on about her babies are "growing up and leaving the nest"-- she fails to mention that she still has ELEVEN children (everyone below Josiah who apparently just "graduated") to "Educate." ELEVEN is still a whole F**king bunch.

I totally agree. I mean, 11 kids is still more than my daughter's MDO is allowed to have in 1 classroom!

And as for Joy(less) & Grandma, at least there will be 2 less people to do laundry for

[JellyHope]

dull·ard

ˈdələrd/Submit

noun

1.

a slow or stupid person.

synonyms: idiot, fool, stupid person, simpleton, ignoramus, oaf, dunce, dolt;

Oh. I always took it as someone who was really boring & lacked personality. Good to know!

[JellyHope]

Never mind the money, JB would not have considered Ben but for the TLC show itself. The only way he can keep the show alive is to start new 19 Kids storylines. They've already gone around the world, Josh and Anna are just a boring DC couple now, this year all but one of the Howlers will be in their teens, Jackson and Hannie's shtick is getting tired as they get older, and while the little girls are cute, none seem to have quite the spark and articulation skills Hannie did at their ages.

It seems very possible, if not likely, that Jim Bob okayed Ben because he can obviously control the kid. If Boob wants his daughter to live near (or on) the compound, she'll live near (or on) the compound. If Ben gets appendicitis and Boob wants the surgery filmed, it will be filmed. So if Jill's beau is not quite as malleable and doesn't want his personal life completely exposed or wants some say in where he and his wife live, Boob still has Ben n' Jessa 4 evah.

Aside from his age and over-the-top fetus fanaticism, one thing that would concern me very much about young Ben is the way in which he met Jessa. My understanding is that he was a fan of the show so he starting driving the 400 mile roundtrip to get to know the pretty girl on the reality TV show. Stalker? Fanboy? Someone who likes the idea of being on national TV? All hypothetical questions, but questions I'd nevertheless be thinking about if I were her parent.

I thought their families met at a conference or something. And then Ben started traveling.

[marmalade]

Benessa met at Boob's homechurch, apparently after Pa Seewald emailed for an invite. They mentioned some homeschool thing after that; a VF function last spring, maybe? The Seewalds were Dougie sycophants, not Gothard's. Maybe one of our resident Dougie experts can recall what (if any) Women and Children First! events VF held last spring? Seewalds were at the Duggars by Father's Day, so it had to be before that...

I wanted to make a small correction to a post made a while ago. Ben is more than likely NOT under contract by TLC any more than Derick is. That would mean he's getting paid. He won't get paid until he puts a ring on it, much like Smuggar didn't get his own acknowledgments until Mack's birth episode (he might have been paid for his wedding, but that was so early on that no one could have forseen it lasting for going on 6 years of filming (started Mother's Day '08).

The Bateses will be acknowledged and compensated for Erin's nuptials. I'm curious whether both Bateses and Paines will be named, or did Gil pocket the entire check (hopefully, Erin got something)?

At this point, Ben and his family are still just characters. They, in addition to his sisters (since they had THs), all signed NDAs. It was pretty obvious when Ben started filming because he locked down his facebook and now just posts inane pictures and moons over his sweetheart on twitter that the DuggarFamily twitter (I think Smugs runs it...no way Boob lets the girls venture out into the ebils of social networking) retweets on pretty much a daily basis. Today Ben was pining for his love like a 12 year old.