Counting on- Part 7: Counting on Cancellation

[iweartanktops]

I'm really uncomfortable with some of what's being said or implied about Jana and JD. 

ETA - it really crosses a line for me. I'm not going to state it explicitly, because I think it's so fucked up that I refuse to. Use your brains, folks! They're siblings, they're twins. We don't have proof of anything else. 

[JenniferJuniper]

2 hours ago, Dandruff said:

Anna's job seemed to be steering the conversation to courtship and marriage - no matter how boring or noxious it was to the others.  Jessa looked like she wanted to spit nails when she asked Anna about Josh coming home, but she was the only married sister present.  Joy appeared to hate the whole thing...to her credit.

 

While I'm sure she was encouraged by Scott to do so, it was jarring to hear Anna speak again and again of the "happy" possibility of an 18 year rushing into engagement, marriage and baby-making.

Um, Anna?  I know you love your children, but in retrospect dontcha think you should have slowed down and done a little more vetting before you married the first horny fundie boy that came along?

I like Joy.  She's the only Duggar I can say that about.  Stay golden, Joy girl.

[shesinsane]

2 hours ago, RabbitKM said:

How is it weird that Anna talks about Josh in front of the girls?  According to her, she knew that Josh had "made mistakes" from before they were engaged, so she presumably always knew that Josh molested his sisters.  She also presumably always talked about Josh to her sisters-in-law.  The only difference now is that we know about the situation.  

Well said. If Anna has any discomfort mentioning Josh around his sisters, it would be because Josh cheated and everyone knows it. One thing worse than being betrayed by a spouse is a religion that teaches you it's your fault they cheated. 

[EyeQueue]

30 minutes ago, iweartanktops said:

I'm really uncomfortable with some of what's being said or implied about Jana and JD. 

ETA - it really crosses a line for me. I'm not going to state it explicitly, because I think it's so fucked up that I refuse to. Use your brains, folks! They're siblings, they're twins. We don't have proof of anything else. 

This!

I've seen nothing that would indicate anything close to what is being implied. I would expect a closer relationship between twins.

Siblings can run the gamut. I've known siblings who hate each other and can't stand to be in the same room with each other, and at the other end of the spectrum siblings (a brother and sister, non-twins) who were about 3 years apart and would curl up together on the couch or floor to watch TV when they were like 9 and 11 or 12. They were just close and the family culture was one where they were more demonstrative/affectionate and close-knit.

[EmCatlyn]

3 hours ago, LittleSpouseOnThePrairie said:

If Anna is this pushy with her sisters-in-law about being over 18 and getting married within 6 months of courtship, imagine how shel'll be with her own daughters. Yikes. And all the "practice makes babies" or whatever it was she kept saying during jill & jessa's wedding/honeymoon episodes, seems like she just finds season of life stuff to be a form of entertainment to her.  Almost like gossip. I think being Anna's daughters would suck.

These people don't have much of anything else to talk about. And they all probably had instructions from TLC or JB or both to keep bringing up the possibility of courtships.  So maybe she will not be that obnoxious with her own kids.

As for the "practice makes babies" or whatever, I have heard a lot of stuff like that at weddings. As you say, it is looking at "seasons of life" as entertainment, but that is what cultures where not much else goes on tend to do.  It may not so much be Anna but the way they are all brought to think of nothing but men's sexual urges and babies.

Not making excuses for Anna, just wondering how she comes to say these things. Certainly to keep talking about Josh she has to put on some kind of emotional blinders, compartmentalizing her anger and hurt out of the way so she can be sweet.  Unfortunately those emotional blinders might make her a little insensitive to others. Her need to deny and suppress her own pain could be all that drives her at this point.

And I must say that I feel the real problem with being Anna's daughter is going to be that she may not protect her kids from Josh.  I don't think Josh is a preferential child molestor, but I do think he may have problems with impulse control and boundaries.

[Lizzybet]

It seems to me, just looking at Michelle, that she's shrunk/contracted. I attribute it (completely uninformed, just an impression) to mega childbearing, combined now with menopause or peri menopause.

 

[BabyBottlePop]

I feel for Anna but at the same time she makes me so angry. Mainly because she is keeping her children in a situation where they could be abused by their father, and are raising them in a culture that would blame them for the abuse. 

It breaks my heart when I see Anna's innocent devotion to Josh in early episodes. A girl who ate up the fairy tale bit and thought that was what her life would be. I believe she loves her children. I know she does not have the education or money to leave easily. But I can't forgive her refusing to remove her children from this situation.

Members of the FLDS left because they didn't want their daughters to be married into the group and live a life of poverty, abuse, and constant pregnancy. They leave with no money, no education, and many children. 

I just wonder fifteen years from now where they will all be. How many more kids Anna will have. Maybe she will leave, but I don't know what would make her leave now after what she has already accepted.

[Lizzybet]

8 hours ago, Casserole said:

 

That chickenetti and velveeta "soup" and TTC are bound to be clogging up his arteries... 

And not a drop of red (or any) wine permitted!

[sj3339sta]

The thing that stuck me the most odd in this episode was the big reveal of the "tree house."  Jana called everyone out.  She stood up and took control.  And JB and M were just....there.  It's odd.  Had it been last season, it would have been their idea.  The whole thing just stunk.  It was kind of all sort of plausible when JB and M for a moment or two played the role of parent.  It is all obviously contrived now they are just basically children running around as well.

[TXGirlInAMaterialWorld]

I think it's very strange that Anna left her kids with JB & M while she went on a trip to be the 5th Duggar Sister since Jill was not available.  

[Chickenbutt]

We don't know she left them with JB and M. Are we sure she, the kids and Josh are still living with JB and M? Maybe they have their own house and she left them with Josh to give him some make up daddy time.

I may have missed it if any of these questions have been answered and confirmed. So take what I say with a grain of salt.

[EmCatlyn]

2 minutes ago, Chickenbutt said:

We don't know she left them with JB and M. Are we sure she, the kids and Josh are still living with JB and M? Maybe they have their own house and she left them with Josh to give him some make up daddy time.

I may have missed it if any of these questions have been answered and confirmed. So take what I say with a grain of salt.

At the time the special was filmed, Josh was still in rehab.  Anna and her kids were living in the TTH. 

You are right that we don't know if she left the kids in the care of M and JB.  But even if she did, it isn't a big deal.  Johanna can probably be a big sister to Makynzie, Michael and Marcus and Tabitha Paine is probably around also.  It's not like abandoning the kids in the middle of the Forest for a month with no food and only Michelle as caregiver.  

[nastyhobbitses]

2 hours ago, TXGirlInAMaterialWorld said:

I think it's very strange that Anna left her kids with JB & M while she went on a trip to be the 5th Duggar Sister since Jill was not available.  

Don't be silly, she's not leaving them with JB and M -- she's leaving them with Johannah! It's about time she took up her J Slave duties!

[nst]

According to my pvr we get a small space of Tuesday's episode of reminding us all about Ben and Jessa's courtship and wedding and passport pictures for Spud and then the reunion which I CALLED WEEKS AGO between the married sisters 

cue the music 

and then next week's episode is all about Jill's courtship and wedding 

see I told you - they have no more storylines for next year 

[foreign fundie]

Really? They are going to repeat all that crap again?? Well, at least that sounds like its the end of it. Unless we get a big dubble baby announcment in CA. After all, we are counting on...

(this show continuing till the last of the 1.3 million viewers has either died of boredom or married a Duggar. It won't be long. Holy cow.)

[Fundie Bunny]

2 hours ago, nst said:

According to my pvr we get a small space of Tuesday's episode of reminding us all about Ben and Jessa's courtship and wedding and passport pictures for Spud and then the reunion which I CALLED WEEKS AGO between the married sisters 

cue the music 

and then next week's episode is all about Jill's courtship and wedding 

see I told you - they have no more storylines for next year 

Again? Didn't we have enough with the jilly the golden girl season?

[Handmaiden of Dog]

I don't care if it was TLC's idea or it was unscripted, but it is so very bizarre that Anna, the Duggar with the worst marriage, had an entire scene where she played cheerleader for matrimony.  In any normal family one of the sisters would have rolled their eyes and said, "Oh right, tell us more about how marriage is so great, because it really worked out so well for you." Sure, they have to keep sweet but did none of those present think that a quickie marriage to an 18 year old stranger maybe isn't such a hot idea? I know, "Jesus will fix everything" but I have to hope that somebody in that family has two brain cells to rub together and can learn from other people's mistakes.

[VeryNikeSeamstress]

Ugh. More recaps. This show is already maybe 10 minutes of actual content every week, and that content is like watching paint dry.

I'd like to amend my post/thread count title idea: "Walking Through a new Season of Life in second hand flip flops."

[apandaaries]

3 hours ago, Handmaiden of Dog said:

I don't care if it was TLC's idea or it was unscripted, but it is so very bizarre that Anna, the Duggar with the worst marriage, had an entire scene where she played cheerleader for matrimony.  In any normal family one of the sisters would have rolled their eyes and said, "Oh right, tell us more about how marriage is so great, because it really worked out so well for you." Sure, they have to keep sweet but did none of those present think that a quickie marriage to an 18 year old stranger maybe isn't such a hot idea? I know, "Jesus will fix everything" but I have to hope that somebody in that family has two brain cells to rub together and can learn from other people's mistakes.

Anna's whole, "Anyone can be married within 6 months, if they're over 18!" schtick was so extremely odd.  Sure, that's pretty much what happened to her, but has she truly not looked back to think that things moved a bit too quickly?  Maybe that wasn't a perfect quick fix?  Or is she that determined to avoid critically analyzing her life and her choices (few that they were)?

One thing worth mentioning in this discussion is that Jana used to be rather fiery and spirited, according to Duggar lore.  There are hints that she's the first "strong-willed" child that MEchelle and JB had to beat into submission, later leading to her giving a beloved jewelry box to the similarly strong-willed Jessa, who seemed to have delighted in tormenting her big sister. Jana doesn't appear to appreciate the cameras, but she's doing her part for the Duggar party line.  Seeing her direct the kids doesn't seem as odd with that knowledge.  Personally, I'm inclined to think that she's delaying marriage to avoid having a giant brood of children, but managing to keep sweet and inoffensive while doing so.  

What really bothered me about their discussions of future potential husbands was how they all seemed to think that there would be this immediate, internal recognition of their life-partner.  Jessa's comment that Jana wouldn't know if he worked in an office spoke to me of initial (likely sexual!   ) attraction, not of someone who truly knew the person s/he was going to marry. Sexual attraction is all well and good, but if there's nothing else to keep the relationship going...well, that's how a marriage with incredibly scintillating conversation, like BJ's (please, can we nickname Ben & Jessa BJ??? Please???) begins.  

Also, is it possible to give Derrick fewer words on-camera?  He looks like a yeti (which I kind of like and actually find hysterical, given the attention to hair care favored by the Duggars) and seems to be losing his voice.  Or maybe it's that the editors and producers preferred to have Jill do all the speaking?  Ben has no knack for public speaking, but the college-educated SIL seems to have had almost all his words edited out.  WTF?   Why can't we hear him explain why the Catholics of Central America have it all wrong and need to convert to his Gothardesque/IFB-esque ways?

Apologies for the wall o' text, but also, if you haven't read I Fired God, by Jocelyn R Zichterman, you should.  I've just begun it, but it delves into IFB churches/cults and is fascinating, in all the worst ways.  

[Granwych]

On ‎4‎/‎21‎/‎2016 at 5:27 PM, Tim-Tom Biblethumper said:

This!  And Jana also said something to the effect that she wanted someone who "works hard", in the context of 'people who work in offices DON'T work hard'.  I wish I could remember the exact quote, but that was the takeaway.
I was offended.  I work in an office, and I work hard.  Maybe not physically, but the stress is killer.  My Dad supported our family doing an office job, that I still believe drove him to an early grave.
These girls, whether it was something that was taught by JB, or their observations of people like their brother, have come to the conclusion that if you work at a desk, it's not hard.  Very telling I thought, and many conclusions could be derived by that.  For instance:  Does JB disparage office-workers to his children to make himself look better and harder-working?

Shee-it, wychling's dh is an accountant, and that man works harder than nearly anyone I know.  I'd put him against a Duggar any day.

20 hours ago, Lizzybet said:

It seems to me, just looking at Michelle, that she's shrunk/contracted. I attribute it (completely uninformed, just an impression) to mega childbearing, combined now with menopause or peri menopause.

 

Michelle always looks like a female Hunchback of Notre Dame with crunchy hair and a green shirt.

[Granwych]

On ‎4‎/‎22‎/‎2016 at 10:55 AM, Artemesia said:

I would watch a show that showed some of the older girls leaving TTH and getting a place together and working and going to school. Perhaps TLC should lay this on JBs heart?

Hell, if they "laid it on JB's wallet" there'd be a show ASAP.

[EyeQueue]

26 minutes ago, Granwych said:

Shee-it, wychling's dh is an accountant, and that man works harder than nearly anyone I know.  I'd put him against a Duggar any day.

Michelle always looks like a female Hunchback of Notre Dame with crunchy hair and a green shirt.

Did someone say "green shirt"?

[CynicMom]

Did anyone else think that Jessa enthusiastically washing her siblings feet was a F U Internets moment?  See, she's not stuck up!  Look how much she's washing her unmarried sisters feet!  That was super degrading and symbolic in biblical times, which are the only times the Duggars know.

[patsymae]

2 hours ago, CynicMom said:

Did anyone else think that Jessa enthusiastically washing her siblings feet was a F U Internets moment?  See, she's not stuck up!  Look how much she's washing her unmarried sisters feet!  That was super degrading and symbolic in biblical times, which are the only times the Duggars know.

Well, one major ritual of the ebil Catholic Church is that the pope,(the anti-Christ)--washes people's feet as a symbol of --well, choose 1) humility, 2) recognition of the God in others, 3) compassion, 4) all of the above. I'm looking forward to Ben's sanctimonious post about foot washing. No first-hand knowledge, but my understanding is that foot washing is also ritualized in the Amish church.

Maybe Jill and Derrick have refined it into general foot care/toenail polishing?

[nst]

9 hours ago, Fundie Bunny said:

Again? Didn't we have enough with the jilly the golden girl season?

apparently not 

so far this season we have learned

Jinger can sell a car 

Jana can build a treehouse

the girls need more time together 

Iddy likes to stand on fans 

and ben can sing 

top that next season