Bates 22: Courting, Marrying, and Trying to not Look Fundie

[HereticHick]

On 9/16/2017 at 9:42 AM, seraaa said:

Y i k e s is all I have to say to that.

And if he's referring to this at BJU, double yikes

http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2000/marchweb-only/53.0.html

Is Trace at Crown also?

Yes-- in that part of the country, BJU refers to Bob Jones University, which made national headlines back in the day for its anti-race mixing dating rules.

I'm guessing the clearly fake "Whitey Pauer" account alleging that Crown is endorsed by the Ku Klux Klan [for our non-American FJers, that is what the "Wizard" in the post refers to]  is meant to embarrass Crown. But why is Crown unable/unwilling to report the post and scrub it from their Facebook reviews?

[BeccaGrim]

Oh my god. This has got to be a joke, right? Takes FB a long time to take things down. 

[nickelodeon]

@BeccaGrim The poster is obviously being sarcastic (his name is literally Whitey Power) but the point he's trying to make about Crown's fucked up policies toward interracial dating is not. Until recently, Crown's student handbook included a rule that "interracial dating must be approved in writing and verbally by the parents of both students." The entire section on dating rules has now been removed from the student handbook (at least the version currently online), so the FB comment isn't quite correct, but it was there.

[BeccaGrim]

@nickelodeon Absolutely! I was in no way trying to take away from the important statement. I'm sorry if I gave that impression.  I was trying to answer the question about why FB hadn't taken it down.

[Audrey2]

On September 15, 2017 at 5:24 AM, VelociRapture said:

- The married couples all went in a boat together for white water rafting. Zach apparently jokingly told his mom that if they all died, Lawson and Nathan would have to raise all the remaining kids. Not gonna lie, I find this unreasonably amusing to picture and I feel strongly that there now needs to be an episode where Lawson and Nathan are in charge of all the kids for a week (full of barely concealed sexist comments.)

 

This might be interesting. I wonder how they'd handle it if they were in charge and a younger sister got her first period?

[VineHeart137]

They'd probably just ask one of the older girls to deal with that.

That raises an interesting question though. I wonder if Kelly and Gil have a specific legal plan in place for their minor children in the event of their death? Or do they just figure there'll probably always be at least one adult child living in the home who can take over?

[BeccaGrim]

They'd all go to Michaella.  She was practically raising them before she left home.  Anyone else remember the United Bates of America episode where she was packing them all until the wee hours of the night? 

[HereticHick]

15 hours ago, BeccaGrim said:

@nickelodeon Absolutely! I was in no way trying to take away from the important statement. I'm sorry if I gave that impression.  I was trying to answer the question about why FB hadn't taken it down.

The review seems to be gone now. Maybe an Fjer called it out. I was going to if it wasn't gone by today.

[Dutch_girl]

According to Lily and Elly the "Bates secret special" has been postponed for a week.. Any guesses about the reason? 

[BeccaGrim]

I saw that. What could make UP delay the special?  

[singsingsing]

I hope this isn't the case, but maybe it was a pregnancy announcement and the pregnancy recently ended in miscarriage? Something like that happened on their old show - an episode with a 'special surprise' was filmed and promoted, and it was supposed to be Kelly announcing #20, but she miscarried before it aired and they edited it out.

That, or a courtship/engagement proposal, and the relationship has suddenly ended?

I mean, it could be nothing like that, but those are the two possibilities that instantly came to mind.

[Coconut Flan]

Yep, editing either in or out.  It's usually out.

[HereticHick]

Well, I guess it isn't the totally-in-love Carlin and Evan, so my money would be on a miscarriage. But with this many couples with babies already, the only couple worthy of a "secret special" for a pregnancy would be Brandon and Michaela.

[grandmadugger]

3 hours ago, HereticHick said:

Well, I guess it isn't the totally-in-love Carlin and Evan, so my money would be on a miscarriage. But with this many couples with babies already, the only couple worthy of a "secret special" for a pregnancy would be Brandon and Michaela.

I hope for her sake that's not the case. I can't imagine the devastation.  

[RhythmicSkater]

10 hours ago, HereticHick said:

Well, I guess it isn't the totally-in-love Carlin and Evan, so my money would be on a miscarriage. But with this many couples with babies already, the only couple worthy of a "secret special" for a pregnancy would be Brandon and Michaela.

I'm seriously hoping they're editing a pregnancy announcement IN for Michaella and Brandon.... as much as I don't want any child born into this cult, Michaella so badly wants one and she would clearly treasure him or her.

Maybe an adoption or a recent proposal? The special could feature more than one event I suppose.

[BeccaGrim]

Worried about it being Michaella getting pregnant and then losing the baby.  But, it might be as simple as they want to promo that Big Mayor show. Apparently, they are going to preview the special during that show.  So, it might just be the team at UP deciding to market differently. 

[VBOY9977]

They definitely want to promote that new show ( see pic)

So they're announcing something Thursday and maybe showing the footage of the announcement next Thursday with the special?? I'm kinda confused

[anaandrade]

Possibilities for the big announcement:

1. Zach and Whitney pregnant with #3

2. Erin and Chad pregnant with #3

3. Alyssa and John pregnant with #3

4. Michaela and Brandon pregnant with #1

5. Tori an Bobby engaged

6. Carlin and Evan courting

7. Josie and Kelton courting

8. There's a new relationship/courtship.

I doubt it's a courtship. I agree that the only pregnancy worth making such a fuss about is the Keilens. My guess is that Tori and Bobby are finally engaged. Maybe he proposed between the finale and now and need extra time to put the special together. If there's a new relationship/courtship, it's probably either Lawson, Nathan, or Trace. Maybe they have multiple announcements. Who knows. We just have to wait and see.

[Kangaroo]

I think last week during the Facebook chat they mentioned that Gil was up in Chicago visiting Michael and Brandon, so if they do have some good news that could explain him going to visit without anyone else.

I'd say if that's the case it would either be Michael is pregnant, or they have adopted a child. I'm not sure how long the adoption process takes in the US, but depending on how long ago they learnt they couldn't have biological children I guess that could be a possibility.

I'd say the only other pregnancy announcement would be Erin. Whitney recently started working (Would she take a job knowing she was pregnant?) And the recent photos of Alyssa don't suggest she's pregnant either.

Other than Tori getting engaged, I don't think they'd announce anything else right now. No point in announcing a new special friend or courtship when they can wait for the show return.

 

[albireo]

My money is on two pregnancies at this point. Likely one just found out and they had to rush to get it into the special. I'm going to guess Erin and Whitney, though Michael and Alyssa are certainly possibilities. I don't see a courtship being worth a special, and I suspect there are two pieces of news, so I don't know how they would combine a Tori-Bobby engagement with a pregnancy announcement. What else could the special be for?

[JordynDarby5]

My guess is a pregnancy too. I'll guess Michael but won't be surprise if its Erin, Whitney or Alyssa.

[stardust]

4 hours ago, albireo said:

I suspect there are two pieces of news, so I don't know how they would combine a Tori-Bobby engagement with a pregnancy announcement. What else could the special be for?

I was also thinking that could be a possibility, but I feel as though UP would advertise it as a double announcement if that were the case. My guess is solidly for Tori and Bobby's engagement for right now. Maybe they want to make the announcement now so that they don't have to wait for the episode to air next season and can start planning the wedding without speculation? On a Bates FB live a few weeks ago we were told Michael wasn't currently pregnant so if she is now surely she'd be too early in the pregnancy for her to feel good about making an announcement so soon?

I think the second most likely scenario besides a Tobby engagement is definitely that one of the couples is pregnant with #3. Normally UP would just post an announcement like that on the website but obviously they saw the opportunity to boost the ratings of one of their other shows which is why they're pulling this stunt I suppose. I don't think that courtship announcements are 'special' enough, especially if it's one of the couples we've already been introduced to like Carlin/Evan or Josie/Kelton since they're already technically bf/gf. I'd be shocked if the announcement was simply a courtship confirmation. It'd be pretty anti-climatic. 

Edit: The BUB Facebook page just reposted a video of Tori and Bobby's courtship proposal a few hours ago...it's their first post since advertising the announcement. Maybe a hint about an engagement to come?

[Italiangirl]

Mmm i think it will be a double piece of news one alredy know  (Tobby engagement) and the other the new news that they are advertising Now a pregnancy. Who could be pregnant? Don't think Alyssa is a little bit early for her maybe Erin? Or Michael? With could be but she just get a job... well we will see 

[BeccaGrim]

I think Tori/Bobbi announcement would just be another episode.  I don't think it would be a break in-do a special about. Bobbi made a big fuss during the live fuss that they were not engaged and wouldn't be hiding it if they were.

This is either Michaella or something else entirely. 

[JesusCampSongs]

17 hours ago, Kangaroo said:

I think last week during the Facebook chat they mentioned that Gil was up in Chicago visiting Michael and Brandon, so if they do have some good news that could explain him going to visit without anyone else.

I'd say if that's the case it would either be Michael is pregnant, or they have adopted a child. I'm not sure how long the adoption process takes in the US, but depending on how long ago they learnt they couldn't have biological children I guess that could be a possibility.

Adopting in the US is really quite difficult, especially if you want a lighter-skinned infant, and can take a very long time. Laws vary by state, but most infant adoptions occur via private agencies, which match birthmothers and prospective families, or via the state government, which matches children who have been permanently removed from their parents with prospective families. The former is quite expensive, as it involves paying for legal advice, agency fees, birthmother expenses, home studies and background check fees (depending on the state you live in), etc. It can also take a long time, in that the process pretty much consists of building a profile with the agency (or agencies) you use and hoping that a set of birthparents will choose you. Adopting out of foster care is less expensive, but demand for infants is still really high, so there are waitlists in some areas. You also run the risk of a foster child being returned to his or her family of origin. Either way, you're looking at months to years before an adoption is finalized.

International adoption used to be relatively popular in the US, but over the past few decades, it has fallen out of favor. Part of that is due to increased costs, longer wait times, and fewer available children, all of which are the result of stricter enforcement of human trafficking laws. I also suspect that, as more people have become aware of the issues involved in adopting a child who spent their early years in institutions or on the streets (read: reactive attachment disorder and other behavioral issues), they are less willing to sign up for it. There is also likely a generational component; international adoption does not seem to be very popular in my age group (early thirties), which is probably due to the cost and increased awareness of the ethical issues surrounding it as a practice.

Fundies do have a nasty history of "rehoming" adopted children out to one another under the radar, but I'm not sure that the Bates would participate in such an arrangement given how (comparatively) high-profile they are in the fundie world. 

The only plausible adoption scenario I can think of is someone from the IBLP community seeking the Keilens out and offering them a wayward daughter's baby. I don't think the Keilens have the financial resources to adopt privately and we all know how much fundies love interacting with child protective services. IBLP views on adoption are really weird and inconsistent, though, so I don't even know if it's really on the table for them anyway.