Duggars on Megyn Kelly, Friday Night Edition

[orchidee]

Kind of a silly first post but I'm currently very pregnant and I woke up this morning looking like I had lip injections. The pregnancy bloat is real, I have a feeling that's probably the case with jessa but who knows.

Also the person who mentioned cards against humanity clearly didn't find the hidden card in the bigger blacker box. ;) it does feel kind of inappropriate to make jokes like that in light of what happened to the girls. I want to believe they've truly moved on and didn't let it define them but I agree they did seem coached.

[calimojo]

you lost me on the second part of your post. Not your fault it is just hard to stay on top of topics. What are cards against humanity?

and what is the bigger blacker box?

[NotALoserLikeYou]

She was just making a reference to a game. It sounds really bad if you're not familiar with it.

[Mellanya]

I watched the whole thing just yesterday.

Man, my heart broke for Jill and Jessa. When Jilll was crying.... I don't know. I do believe it was actual crying and felt like she was on the verge of tears more than once (mind the nervous giggle/laughter thing). That woman does not understand what's going on. She doesn't understand she's been wronged by her brother. I'm pretty sure the incidents left her shamed and feeling impure. I mean, if you think about cups full of spit - that's what she was taught happens when you are subject to sexual actions before marriage. It must have been awful for her all these years to live with the idea of being a cup someone has spit into. And now, she's dragged in front of a camera (yes, dragged), where this 'shame' is exposed for everyone to see. I'm surprised she managed so much of the interview without crying. Jessa, on the other hand, and her detached style... I think she's feeling the same things Jill feels but deals differently.

Apart from all the obvious minimizing and covering up of facts in both interviews: These two did not deserve to be exposed this way. Their idiot ass brother should have been sitting in their place, interviewed by someone who asks serious questions.

And no, I'm not leghumping. I simply feel that victims of abuse have the RIGHT to stay anonymous. What happened with the interview was very, very wrong and when Jill says it's a thousand times worse than what happened with Josh 12 years ago, I not only understand that sentiment but agree with it. Not trying to sound patronizing. I can relate to Jill because there's some things in my past that I would never want to be exposed in this way. This interview is nothing but a public revictimization.

[ILoveJellybeans]

A few thoughts - how did the "precautions" come into play when they were sleeping in the bus?

How does the molestation play into Jim bob's story about a boy sneaking in a riding a girl's shiny new bicycle "hard" till it was dented and battered? If you can pray back your purity then why is it so important to lock yourself away?

The girls were painfully scripted. The duggars attempted to sell us more shit and say it's chocolate. I can still smell it

Worse. It wasn't a girl's shiny new bike that the boy stole and rode hard and ruined. The girl in this metaphor is the bike. :ew:

[FloraKitty35]

I watched the whole thing just yesterday.

Man, my heart broke for Jill and Jessa. When Jilll was crying.... I don't know. I do believe it was actual crying and felt like she was on the verge of tears more than once (mind the nervous giggle/laughter thing). That woman does not understand what's going on. She doesn't understand she's been wronged by her brother. I'm pretty sure the incidents left her shamed and feeling impure. I mean, if you think about cups full of spit - that's what she was taught happens when you are subject to sexual actions before marriage. It must have been awful for her all these years to live with the idea of being a cup someone has spit into. And now, she's dragged in front of a camera (yes, dragged), where this 'shame' is exposed for everyone to see. I'm surprised she managed so much of the interview without crying. Jessa, on the other hand, and her detached style... I think she's feeling the same things Jill feels but deals differently.

Apart from all the obvious minimizing and covering up of facts in both interviews: These two did not deserve to be exposed this way. Their idiot ass brother should have been sitting in their place, interviewed by someone who asks serious questions.

And no, I'm not leghumping. I simply feel that victims of abuse have the RIGHT to stay anonymous. What happened with the interview was very, very wrong and when Jill says it's a thousand times worse than what happened with Josh 12 years ago, I not only understand that sentiment but agree with it. Not trying to sound patronizing. I can relate to Jill because there's some things in my past that I would never want to be exposed in this way. This interview is nothing but a public revictimization.

I do agree the Josh's ass should have been the one in the hot seat, not Jill & Jessa's. I think that they are extremely brainwashed and coached and that therapy from a properly license and certified counselor would help them enormously. If any of them wanted to do an interview (and weren't coerced into it) than should they should be allowed to do it on their own terms, not their parents terms.

[nokidsmom]

I do agree the Josh's ass should have been the one in the hot seat, not Jill & Jessa's. I think that they are extremely brainwashed and coached and that therapy from a properly license and certified counselor would help them enormously. If any of them wanted to do an interview (and weren't coerced into it) than should they should be allowed to do it on their own terms, not their parents terms.

I totally understand that Jill and Jessa feel that they have been victimized with this disclosure. I certainly hope they did the interview because they really wanted to, not because their parents wanted them to, but I highly doubt it. And frankly, seeing how defensive they were of their abuser and the fucked up attitudes that both they and their parents were displaying, I'm not sure that they could even know what they really wanted. The interview should have never happened and it should have been Josh in the hot seat instead. The family is still defending him, while he hides out somewhere.

This situation is all kinds of fucked up on so many levels. I never bought into the "wholesome Christian family" facade, always felt there was fucked up things going on behind the scenes but I didn't envision this.

[eh02]

I do agree the Josh's ass should have been the one in the hot seat, not Jill & Jessa's. I think that they are extremely brainwashed and coached and that therapy from a properly license and certified counselor would help them enormously. If any of them wanted to do an interview (and weren't coerced into it) than should they should be allowed to do it on their own terms, not their parents terms.

I agree that Jill and Jessa should not have been encouraged to do an interview before they clearly (especially Jill) had much time to emotionally process how they wanted to deal with this.

I would have liked to see Josh do more, especially after the one awful statement he DID release. It was really, really bad. But with everything he's done (which is very little) since this leaked aside - I personally think Jim Bob and Michelle are the more relevant ones to put in the "hot seat." Yes, Josh might have been old enough to know what he did was wrong. I personally think he 100% knew what he was doing. BUT he was still a minor, one who probably was left almost entirely unsupervised, who was royally f*cked by his parents and then did not receive proper help when he needed it (and supposedly asked for it). Teaching your boys that they can't be trusted to be left alone around little girls does not help them in any way.

All of this has made me wonder how Jana fits in. It seems clear she wasn't a victim, and I can't even imagine the kind of added responsibility JB+M must have shoved onto her while they kept popping out babies while they had a predator child in their house that they were too busy to keep proper supervision of. Jana was probably the one responsible for making sure the girls were "safe" because Michelle was always busy with a baby.

So personally, I believe JB+M are really, 100% the ones who deserve most of the heat. They did everything wrong.

[Sscape]

The majority of Americans are unconsciously racist. I know I can be. It's just something that I address over and over with myself. "Why did I think that? Am I misjudging something? Am I being patronizing? Do I have unreasonably low expectations of and individual?" It's just something you have to deal with.

Are there any other survivors out there having anxiety or sleeping issues with this stuff? I am and I just don't want to go scratching in the dirt about this but I just cant stop reading and watching videos about this stuff. It's really not good.

[HereticHick]

I know that most folks on this board are Caucasian, but why is using phrases like "big black dick" to get a laugh remotely OK?? Some of us aren't lily white, and really don't appreciate African-American men being reduced to the level of animals.

You know who else likes to reduce men to hypersexualized unrestrained animals? The Duggar family.

We can be better than that.

[Criscat]

So...now that it's been a few days since the interviews....I have this gut feeling that TLC will try to salvage the show. They certainly are not known for their ethics--so many of their shows focus on capitalizing on things that are taboo to discuss. My guess is they will air a few shows to gauge viewer acceptance. I do think it will bite them in the rear in the long term. While people might tune in a couple of times to watch the train wreck, the fact that I doubt they will mention this again, and that Josh and m&j are basically unpalatable, will sink the show in the long term. They can't just carry on like this didn't happen, and Jill and jessa cannot carry a show. I think that they are scrambling to keep their sponsors.The gravy train is over. I do hope against all odds that Jana will get out, but I just don't see her leaving the little girls while they are young. J and M certainly are not doing any parenting!

Not trying to speculate, but I get the sense that there is more that they are hoping doesn't come out.

[calimojo]

In a weird way I want to see the spin off on tv. It is doomed to fail, other than initial morbid curiosity. But once the indisputable fact of just how uneducated and uninteresting those kids are, the viewership will drop off.

Then they can't blame the evil liberal agenda for their show failing. They will try, I suppose, but it won't be very consistent. Lets face it, the show was headed towards the spin off idea anyway. The episodes featuring the girls courtships/engagements/weddings and pregnancies were really the ones that got ratings. The story lines for those living at home have been dull dull dull. I think this is why they were ok with exploiting Josie's health 'crisis'. They had nothing else of interest to show. The show featuring JD with his parents was boring, the middle boys have pretty much been ignored as usual, and the little girls are all starting to get older and less 'adorable'.

The right thing to do is to take them off the air, but we know TLC is not known for making the right and ethical decision.

[calimojo]

I know that most folks on this board are Caucasian, but why is using phrases like "big black dick" to get a laugh remotely OK?? Some of us aren't lily white, and really don't appreciate African-American men being reduced to the level of animals.

You know who else likes to reduce men to hypersexualized unrestrained animals? The Duggar family.

We can be better than that.

Pretty much everyone agrees it was a dumb thing to put on here. I don't think anyone was laughing at the comment. Many called out the OP on the inappropriate comment. T

[Sscape]

s

[2manyKidzzz]

I have been musing over how this family could use a professional counselor. Their twisted thinking in every way possible would be a huge hurdle to get over for a counselor. Their sexual attitudes, God forgives, men are headships......where is their room in that cult-thought for professional emotional help?

And sadly Gothardites will go on and on for the forseeable future. Sad.

[wild little fox]

I guess they're involved in porn

thewrap.com/touch-tabloid-publisher-mired-tom-cruise-lawsuit-trades-nazis-porn-and-sometimes-both-exclus/

Um... does anyone else think this may not be true because Germany would shut it down due to the Nazi porn? This sounds too crazy to be true lol

[Season of life...]

So...now that it's been a few days since the interviews....I have this gut feeling that TLC will try to salvage the show. They certainly are not known for their ethics--so many of their shows focus on capitalizing on things that are taboo to discuss. My guess is they will air a few shows to gauge viewer acceptance. I do think it will bite them in the rear in the long term. While people might tune in a couple of times to watch the train wreck, the fact that I doubt they will mention this again, and that Josh and m&j are basically unpalatable, will sink the show in the long term. They can't just carry on like this didn't happen, and Jill and jessa cannot carry a show. I think that they are scrambling to keep their sponsors.The gravy train is over. I do hope against all odds that Jana will get out, but I just don't see her leaving the little girls while they are young. J and M certainly are not doing any parenting!

Not trying to speculate, but I get the sense that there is more that they are hoping doesn't come out.

I think you're right that TLC will do a test run for reaction. Several articles are talking about what the viewers will miss should the show permanently cease production. Much footage for the new season has already been shot, and I'm assuming the Duggars have been paid. It would be foolish of TLC, from a business standpoint, to not run a litmus test of sorts since they may actually make their money back if most of their viewers have a short attention span. There will, sadly, always be advertisers who support the show.

I'm afraid, though, that TLC will get away with keeping the show. Right now people are enraged. I believe that will fade in time with casual viewers, and we already know the fans will be ecstatic that the Duggars persevered over their enemies, because we were just haters and gosh the child said he was sorry and he almost ruined his life. Gag.

It's easy for many people to feel they don't agree with how the Duggars handled the molestation, but they really like how the family appears on TV as loving and close. They don't see that Jessa having to say in the interview that they love each other and (paraphrasing) "thank goodness there are no feuds" as anything but the truth. People can't believe that Gothard is this bad--some of the comments on articles are sickening in support of this man and lifestyle. I'm worried this scandal will actually make the Duggars seem more accessible: Wow! They are still a sweet family who struggles, just like us!

I think the show will go on, at least for now. The cast will be pared down, although they may eventually try to sneak the parents back in. I hope it crashes and burns if they do try to continue on.

[Honeysuckle]

I totally understand that Jill and Jessa feel that they have been victimized with this disclosure. I certainly hope they did the interview because they really wanted to, not because their parents wanted them to, but I highly doubt it. And frankly, seeing how defensive they were of their abuser and the fucked up attitudes that both they and their parents were displaying, I'm not sure that they could even know what they really wanted. The interview should have never happened and it should have been Josh in the hot seat instead. The family is still defending him, while he hides out somewhere.

This situation is all kinds of fucked up on so many levels. I never bought into the "wholesome Christian family" facade, always felt there was fucked up things going on behind the scenes but I didn't envision this.

I think the interview was an awful idea and I didn't watch it because this whole situation has been really triggering for me. But I absolutely have sympathy for them with the way their stories were publicly released in a way they weren't okay with. Even here, where posters are supportive of the victims and saving all or most of their outrage for Josh, Michelle, and Jim Bob, you also see posts that start to speculate on various past actions through the lens of abuse. Oh, maybe that's why Jana's not married. Maybe that's why Jinger cried at her sister's wedding. Maybe that's why Jessa is unemotional. You see people speculating about which actions happened to which girl, and speculating about whether there were more incidents and whether they were shamed for being fondled. And having people view all of your actions based on one detail of your life is awful and feels very intrusive. The shift from the pure virginal narrative to the story of being poor girls molested by their brother cannot be an easy one.

That said, minimizing Josh's actions could send a very sad message to other survivors of this type of sexual assault. I really hope that if anyone was triggered by this situation and found themselves reading more about the Duggars while remembering things in their own childhood, that they would find a site like this one where people are saying it's not okay that this happened, it's not your fault, and it's normal to have far-reaching effects from being molested. There's no shame in reaching out and seeking therapy, even if it's years later. You don't have to be silent, you don't have to forgive the abuser, and you don't have to minimize the pain you feel.

[Dandruff]

If TLC wants to try airing the show won't they have to change the intro (to what?), edit out Josh, and edit out or minimize footage with the parents? I'm not saying it can't be done, I'm sure it can. What I guess would happen next would be the Duggars claiming victory over the haters, thanking the viewers, claiming that prayers have been answered, America believes in forgiveness, and it's good to be back. :whistle:

I guess it boils down to advertisers and no additional skeletons coming out of the prayer closet.

[DuggarWatch]

The transcript of the Friday night interview is here:

foxnews.com/transcript/2015/06/05/exclusive-duggar-sisters-want-to-set-record-straight/?intcmp=ob_article_footer_text&intcmp=obinsite

[skulduggery]

And no, I'm not leghumping. I simply feel that victims of abuse have the RIGHT to stay anonymous. What happened with the interview was very, very wrong and when Jill says it's a thousand times worse than what happened with Josh 12 years ago, I not only understand that sentiment but agree with it. Not trying to sound patronizing. I can relate to Jill because there's some things in my past that I would never want to be exposed in this way. This interview is nothing but a public revictimization.

Please. These are grown women who had a choice whether or not to be interviewed. If they are legally capable of signing legal contracts with TLC and reaping the benefits adulthood has to offer, then they are adult enough say no to an interview. I think the interview skewers the notion that these girls are delicate little porcelain dolls that are so fragile they must be protected from themselves.

If the media victimized them that bad, why were they posting smiling selfies of themselves just a day or so afterward? Right after doing the interview, Jill publicly celebrated her infant's two month "Birthday" with her squealing fanbabies.

All of this adds up to them being more pissed about losing their show than they are about what happened to them being publicly known. No, you cannot say on one hand that what happened to you is "no big deal" but on the other, that you feel victimized for people knowing about it. Bullshit. That's them wanting their cake and eating it too. Hope they both got a second helping during that birthday celebration.

[laundry]

I tried search the thread, but wasn't able to find any posts about it, so I just have to ask.

Megyn asked how old they were when Josh inappropriately touched them. Without thinking, Jill answered "I was 12." How can that be? If I got her birthday right she became 12 years on May 17 2003? So her answer is obviously wrong because Josh was in Little Rock at that time. In fact Jill was still 10 years old when it first happened in march 2002. It's a little unclear to me when Josh stopped the "over the clothes when they were sleeping"-molesting, but I thought it was no longer than July 2002 and then Jill would be no more than 11 years and 2 months old.

Megyn asked very clearly: "So this happened a long time ago. How old were you -- and let me start with you, Jill. How old were you when Josh inappropriately touched you?"

Jill, loud and clear: "I was 12."

What am I missing here?

[calimojo]

I tried search the thread, but wasn't able to find any posts about it, so I just have to ask.

Megyn asked how old they were when Josh inappropriately touched them. Without thinking, Jill answered "I was 12." How can that be? If I got her birthday right she became 12 years on May 17 2003? So her answer is obviously wrong because Josh was in Little Rock at that time. In fact Jill was still 10 years old when it first happened in march 2002. It's a little unclear to me when Josh stopped the "over the clothes when they were sleeping"-molesting, but I thought it was no longer than July 2002 and then Jill would be no more than 11 years and 2 months old.

Megyn asked very clearly: "So this happened a long time ago. How old were you -- and let me start with you, Jill. How old were you when Josh inappropriately touched you?"

Jill, loud and clear: "I was 12."

What am I missing here?

what you are missing is either fuzzy memory on her part, or worse, coaching to make her seem older at the time, in a misguided attempt to make it seem less creepy

[notahomeschooler]

I guess I am just not understanding why Josh has not come forward. From a PR perspective, it would have been much more effective. He is comfortable in front of a camera, he has experience with giving rehearsed speeches. It seems to me that if he had appeared on camera, and stated the facts: "When I was a child, I was curious about the opposite sex and made some very bad decisions. I inappropriately touched some other children. I confessed to my parents. They got me help with ______, and put safeguards in place to protect the girls in our home. I have asked for forgiveness from both my victims and G-D. It has never happened again. We have all tried to put this dark time in our past, and move forward. For the sake of my sisters, our family would like to not discuss this again."

No we would not have left it alone, but I think a lot of other people would have. I do not know who thought it was a good idea to bring the sisters on camera about it, but it was not a good idea.

[laundry]

what you are missing is either fuzzy memory on her part, or worse, coaching to make her seem older at the time, in a misguided attempt to make it seem less creepy

I see, I guess it might be both.Sshe almost didn't remember her age at the beginning of the interview. I also was just thinking it could be a "I was asleep, remember? And it was just a stupid mistake and all is forgiven and forgotten, so no wonder I don't remember how old I was, it doesn't matter"-answer/statement.