Seewalds 24 - Bought the House from Grandma

[Daisy0322]

Did anyone else catch that Jessa quoted a Blake Shelton song... or is god gave me you a common phrase? 

[Bad Wolf]

Derrick said that Izzy would say. "I love you papi," then ask for something . He thought that was manipulative. I thought you answered something like, "I love you too, but you can't have ice cream before dinner." Would a tantrum to get his way have been better?

[LawsonBatesEgo]

I suspect a lot of it comes down to the simple fact that Bin and Jessa are a reasonably good looking/photogenic couple with adorable looking kids and their family looks good on magazine covers. 

They also do a better job of appearing 'harmless' than Jill and Dewreck do. While we know both have said some questionable things (like Jessa's abortion/holocaust comment) but none of it has gone viral the way Dewreck's awful tweets deliberately misgendering a transgender teenage girl have. Most people picking up People while in the supermarket queue aren't reading FJ. They're also weren't the ones in a dangerous central American Country with a Zika risk with a toddler in tow while pregnant. 

I don't like to talk smack about people's physical appearance because it feels like a cheap shot to do so, but Dewreck really doesn't look good these days. I know he had major surgery, he doesn't exactly have the kind of face that looks good on a magazine cover. I know that sounds harsh, but the entertainment industry is a harsh place, and at the end of the day, I suspect "good looking and harmless" Jessa and Bin move many more copies of people than "that pair of idiots that are going to get them selves killed in Central America.....and god, he really is unfortunate looking isn't he?' Jill and Dewreck do. 

[Timetraveler]

2 hours ago, LawsonBatesEgo said:

I suspect a lot of it comes down to the simple fact that Bin and Jessa are a reasonably good looking/photogenic couple with adorable looking kids and their family looks good on magazine covers. 

They also do a better job of appearing 'harmless' than Jill and Dewreck do. While we know both have said some questionable things (like Jessa's abortion/holocaust comment) but none of it has gone viral the way Dewreck's awful tweets deliberately misgendering a transgender teenage girl have. Most people picking up People while in the supermarket queue aren't reading FJ. They're also weren't the ones in a dangerous central American Country with a Zika risk with a toddler in tow while pregnant. 

I don't like to talk smack about people's physical appearance because it feels like a cheap shot to do so, but Dewreck really doesn't look good these days. I know he had major surgery, he doesn't exactly have the kind of face that looks good on a magazine cover. I know that sounds harsh, but the entertainment industry is a harsh place, and at the end of the day, I suspect "good looking and harmless" Jessa and Bin move many more copies of people than "that pair of idiots that are going to get them selves killed in Central America.....and god, he really is unfortunate looking isn't he?' Jill and Dewreck do. 

This. I am pretty sure Ben and Jessa totally agree with all that Derick has tweeted. They are just now smart enough to not post something similar on social media.

[SapphireSlytherin]

8 hours ago, Daisy0322 said:

god gave me you

Grew up Southern - heard this all my life.

[RosyDaisy]

Did anyone else catch that Jessa quoted a Blake Shelton song... or is god gave me you a common phrase? 

This is a southernism. Born and raised in Alabama and hear it all the time in reference to a spouse or kids.

[LawsonBatesEgo]

23 minutes ago, Timetraveler said:

This. I am pretty sure Ben and Jessa totally agree with all that Derick has tweeted. They are just now smart enough to not post something similar on social media.

And I think that is the other big difference between Bin/Jessa and Jill/Dewreck. I think Bin and Jessa learned from the backlash they got from the Holocaust/Abortion thing and are actually quite social medial savvy these days. I'm 99% sure they are homophobic and transpohobic just like Dewreck, but I think the difference is that they are savvy enough to realise that anything that can be interpreted as an attack on the LGBT community is something best kept offline "these days". 

 

 

 

[backyard sylph]

On 8/7/2017 at 1:12 PM, Carm_88 said:

In twenty-first century America, at a time when the family structure is crumbling, divorce rates are at an all-time high, and respect for parents is diminishing, The Godly Home serves as a balm for those seeking God's plan for the family

 

On 8/7/2017 at 1:12 PM, Carm_88 said:

Well that is the start of the synopsis, so it wouldn't be the book for me! I'll stick with Tolkien!  

Ugh, I tried to get that to copy sensibly, but I guess I don't know the trick. Anyway. Was this a quotation from a review for that book? Because whoever wrote it is super wrong, unless they wrote it 40 years ago. The divorce rate peaked in 1980, and has actually been going down pretty much ever since, while marriage is on the increase recently. There's some data here, in case anyone is actually interested. It went up in a few states from 2014 to 2015, but still dropped over all. Guess how well Arkansas does?

[Carm_88]

7 minutes ago, backyard sylph said:

Ugh, I tried to get that to copy sensibly, but I guess I don't know the trick. Anyway. Was this a quotation from a review for that book?

It's the little synopsis that Amazon gives for a book. So I would guess that it comes from the publisher? Maybe, not certain. Besides, the truth doesn't truly matter.  Does it? 

[backyard sylph]

Just now, Carm_88 said:

It's the little synopsis that Amazon gives for a book. So I would guess that it comes from the publisher? Maybe, not certain. Besides, the truth doesn't truly matter.  Does it? 

All that matters is fitting the narrative.

The cover piece for The Atlantic's September issue addresses that, actually, if you're interested. It's a very long excerpt from a very different sort of book on the history of how we got to where we are.

[Daisy0322]

2 hours ago, RosyDaisy said:

This is a southernism. Born and raised in Alabama and hear it all the time in reference to a spouse or kids.

Hmmm I must not be south enough... I live in a weird boarder 

[VineHeart137]

12 hours ago, Daisy0322 said:

Did anyone else catch that Jessa quoted a Blake Shelton song... or is god gave me you a common phrase? 

"God Gave Me You" was originally written and performed by Christian artist Dave Barnes. Blake Shelton covered it a year or two later. So it's possible Jessa has heard the version by Dave Barnes. I dont think I've ever really heard the phrase used in regular conversation either, but I didn't grow up in the south or in a particularly religious community.

[justoneoftwo]

I'm not in the industry, so maybe I'm wrong, but wouldn't a more "dramatic" and "exciting" birth story sell better?  There is something more to read about?  As horrible as that is for the people involved it seems to me that People would want that, as would TLC.  Am I missing something about their motivation?

[EmmieJ]

13 hours ago, tabitha2 said:

Honestly All the GrandDuggars are varying levels of cute and More importantly they are apparently healthy. I just think we need to be careful of perhaps unwittingly criticizing children because of how we feel about their parents. 

Mea culpa!  When I posted my remark, I was in the mindset of what People editors might be thinking if they were choosing between Jessa, Ben & their offspring for a cover, or Jill, Derick and their children.  Because to TLC, to People magazine, and the "entertainment" industry, the Duggars are product.  I imagine they are evaluated primarily on who (or what) they think will sell the most magazines, get the most clicks, etc. 

I didn't mean to evaluate the appearances of one set of children versus the other.  But those responsible for selecting stories or who to feature on the cover of a magazine will do so, and that could certainly cause tension among siblings, especially if money is involved.

[Carm_88]

@EmmieJ I took your comment to be more pointed toward Jill and Derick. I just don't think they are what the magainze would want right now. The birth story may be very dramatic but then it would have to be pointed out what Derick just tweeted. 

Whereas Ben and Jessa only had the cuteness of Spurgie and Henry...there really wasn't any recent controversy.

[SassyPants]

Well, remember what most here say about the Bates being more dangerous because they hide it better by better camouflaging themselves  into society...Ben and Jessa are more like the Bates.

You can only put so much lipstick on the fundie pig- underneath, it's still a fundie pig. At least with Derjerk and Jill, you know what you're getting right off the bat. They aren't the pretty package with the bow.

[Elvis Presby]

6 hours ago, Daisy0322 said:

Hmmm I must not be south enough... I live in a weird boarder 

Born and raised in metro Atlanta here.  I've never heard it either.

[tabitha2]

Been in Texas all my life. Only time I ever heard it was in that sappy song.

[NeverBeenKissed]

I'm pretty sure I've seen it painted on a wooden sign in fancy hand lettering. 

[calimojo]

4 hours ago, SassyPants said:

Well, remember what most here say about the Bates being more dangerous because they hide it better by better camouflaging themselves  into society...Ben and Jessa are more like the Bates.

You can only put so much lipstick on the fundie pig- underneath, it's still a fundie pig. At least with Derjerk and Jill, you know what you're getting right off the bat. They aren't the pretty package with the bow.

Sometimes Ben shows signs of slightly opening his mind to social justice issues.  So maybe as he continues to mature, he may actually change and grow on these topics. 

[tabitha2]

Jessa has the gravy train on track for many years and can remember a time before that. If she is really the backbone of the  Seewalds like some suspect she ain't wanting to  hear about no social justice and heavy theological/philosophy unless it brings on the checks. 

[SRC]

On 8/8/2017 at 3:30 PM, VineHeart137 said:

get that, but maybe she just enjoys spending time with her family and letting her sons play with their aunts, uncles, and cousins? They live close by and she doesn't have a job. I just think it's a bit of a jump to see pictures of Jessa and her kids at her family's house and conclude that must mean she farms her kids out to poor slavegirl Jana while Jessa kicks back and relaxes.

I admit that with Jessa having a husband that seems to change all the diapers when home, having family members who babysit & even throw her child's birthday party with no help from Jessa, & her stating she only cooks a couple of times a month, along with having a tiny house to maintain, Jessa now comes off as a little lazy at times.

But when I really think about it, this is almost like a semi-retirement for her. After helping to raise her siblings, take on a good part of the teaching & home management, doing laundry, organization, & packing for her large family, then getting married & having only 2 kids must feel like a much-needed break to a young woman who never really got to be a kid. She honestly seems much happier & less stressed than she ever did when she was being a teenage drill sargent to her younger brothers & sisters. I'm glad that Jessa is now content and fulfilled. 

[Wenny]

8 hours ago, tabitha2 said:

Been in Texas all my life. Only time I ever heard it was in that sappy song.

See I am from Texas and I've heard it my whole life.  That being said I am also from a small town >1000 people.  

[PainfullyAware]

7 minutes ago, Wenny said:

See I am from Texas and I've heard it my whole life.  That being said I am also from a small town >1000 people.  

 Maybe it's more of a rural or regional phrase in the south?

[Season of life...]

13 hours ago, SassyPants said:

They aren't the pretty package with the bow.

They tried...they really, really tried.