[CW: Child Sex Abuse] Josh & Anna 33: Ohhh Honey It Is Already a Disaster.....

[HerNameIsBuffy]

Continued from here:

Thanks to @AussieKrissy for the thread title, she of the excellent posts and nightmare inducing avatar.

I had to go back to about half way through the thread to find a quote.

TLDR from the last thread:  Speculation if Anna can/will do the right thing, thread drift about comfort viewing clearly in response to the horror of his charges, and Josh is still an evil fucking monster - some things never change.  

Edited June 7, 2021 by HerNameIsBuffy

[fundiefriday]

Josh's trial is scheduled for next month.  I'm guessing his lawyer will try to get a continuance.  I do think Josh will probably plead guilty so that he can reduce his sentence unless he's completely in denial.  Does anyone know how long his lawyer could potentially continue the case and put off Josh either pleaing guilty or going to trial? 

[Satan'sFortress]

From @Bethy last thread:

Quote

  On 6/2/2021 at 7:40 PM, JordynDarby5 said:

They also apparently forgot that Jason and Cindy had another kid Charlie. I guess he died too? 

Somebody else already corrected that it was Ben and Cindy but yes - I watched the 80s reunion movie and was like "Oh no! This kid's gonna die too!" because obviously they were grieving Virginia and were childless in the '93 reunion, so this kid had to die too, right?

Come to find out there were a lot of plot holes between the 80s and 90s reunions. I did some research on it at the time. Apparently the original network canceled the show (in fairness, it had really jumped the shark when they brought in fake John-Boy and Olivia went to the TB sanitarium ad infinitum) but another network realized there was still money to be made and they made the 80s reunion movies. Many things happened - Virginia was a happy, thriving toddler and baby Charlie was born. Mary Ellen remarried (this was her marriage to Jonesy) but flipped their Jeep on their honeymoon and because of the extent of her internal injuries, she was told it would never be safe for her to have children - and because she was technically divorced, she'd been told she could never adopt, John Curtis got lost in the woods and was visited by Grandpa Zeb who helped guide him to safety. I can't remember if Erin's wedding to Paul Northridge happened on the show or on one of the 80s movies, but I do remember that he seemed to be a very ordinary working-class guy back then. Fast-forward to '93 and the original network picked the show back up. They played fast and loose with the things that had happened in the 80s with the other network. Where did Clay and Katie come from if Mary Ellen couldn't give birth or adopt? Why couldn't they at least MENTION John Curtis? Say he was away at school or something, or give him a quick cameo like they did with Amy Godsey? Erin started out the 90s divorced, but there are multiple mentions of how well-off she must be and how well her children are cared for because the Northridges have money. Virginia was dead, and Charlie never existed. It was kind of mind-numbing. It might be better to just skip from the original series to the '93 reunion.

  On 6/3/2021 at 10:53 AM, Four is Enough said:

And Erin divorced her husband, but when they got married, John boy's voice over talked about the love that was as strong as the day they married...

It's right up there with LHOTP - in the episode where Albert gets addicted to morphine and Pa has to detox him, at the end there's a voiceover from Laura saying that he went on to become a doctor and return to practice in Walnut Grove, but then in Look Back to Yesterday he dies of something unspecified (I always assumed leukemia) and then the whole town gets blown up at the end of the series.

From the standpoint of a writer I'm assuming they were just looking to take everybody's happily ever after and throw it over a cliff to create tension - Ben and Cindy having their fertility/grief issues, Jason and Toni's marriage on the rocks because of his career, Jim-Bob alone forever, Mary Ellen functioning as a single mom while Jonesy is in Vietnam, Erin being single and getting hit on by the guy from the school where she's subbing. Only John-Boy and Elizabeth are giddy in love in the '93 reunion. Happily ever after for everyone doesn't make for engaging TV.

I love this---let's have lunch and hate watch the reunion specials.

[viii]

I will be shocked if he pleads guilty.

[EmmieJ]

Quote

Me too.  I feel guilty for having been kind of relieved to have so much time with a built in excuse to avoid social obligations.  I'm having a few people over next month, and while I'm happy to do it another part of me misses my reclusive nature being acceptable for once.

There is definitely a subset of people like us who had not only an easier time of quarantine than others, but an easier time with quarantine than our regular lives.  

Not sure if this is true for anyone else here, but I can't be the only person in the world who is more likeable via text and email than in person.  If I could go through life and communicate only through written word I'd be much happier.  I used to think it was strange that some people who are warm, charming, and funny irl come off so stilted and terse in email and text.  I would wonder why they can't just type the way they talk and be themselves?  Then I realized I'm the same in reverse and I know some people who love me wish I were as easy to talk to in person as I am via type.  Humans are weird.

The above quote was from HerNameisBuffy on the last thread, but I wanted to say this was very much my experience too.  I am an outgoing and friendly person, but in limited doses.  I mean, that I am happy to spend a few hours with friends or playing bingo (still haven't done that since March 2020, but looking forward to when that can happen again), but then that's enough and I'm ready to go home, settle in on the couch by myself to watch something on youtube or Netflix, while scrolling through my favorite websites on my Kindle.  I need that quiet downtime.  I am very content with my own company and talking to my cats. 

Other than worrying about the rest of the population and small businesses struggling to survive, I was basically content during the "shelter in place," but that was also because I thankfully had enough in savings to tide me over while not earning a paycheck.  

Someone shared their idea about how to support local movie theaters while still staying at home, and I thought it was brilliant.  

[HerNameIsBuffy]

Just now, viii said:

I will be shocked if he pleads guilty.

I would agree if they were state charges.  But as they are federal I'm thinking after any technicalities they bring up have been dismissed his lawyer is going to explain to him reducing time with a guilty plea is his best option, he may.

But I honestly wouldn't be surprised if he forces it to trial to just avoid pleading guilty.  Which will mean a lot more public exposure on the specifics so the real question may be is what is JB going to tell him to do?  I don't think he gives a crap about his father's authority, but he can't go to trial with high powered counsel if daddy doesn't cut the checks.  Going to trial for this with a public defender isn't going to end well.

There are great public defenders who are very good at what they do, but often are overloaded with cases and aren't specialists in this particular heinous crime.  I wouldn't want a generalist representing me for this.  

 

[EmmieJ]

9 minutes ago, viii said:

I will be shocked if he pleads guilty.

I can't decide whether he will plead guilty and agree to a plea deal, or if he (or JimBob) will push forward with a trial.  

If he agrees to a plea deal, he can get a lesser sentence.  It also will reduce the amount of legal fees that JimBob will have to pay on his behalf, which must be quite a lot of money (especially if he continues with more than one law firm!).

If he and JB foolishly persist in going to trial, it seems the chances of a conviction are very high and he can kiss a reduced sentence bye bye.  Longer time in prison and (not that Josh cares), JimBob will have to pay quite a bit more in legal bills.

Ultimately I think it's whatever JimBob decides, not Josh.  What will matter more to JB when it comes right down to it:  his money, or the unlikely chance that Josh could be aquitted but the scandal follows the Duggars anyway?

[feministxtian]

This whole "shelter in place" thing has been wonderful! I'm an introvert anyway and love having the excuse to stay home. Most of my social interaction is online, here and on Facebook. I'm very happy alone with my critters, my streaming services, my books, teaching my class and just generally being at home. I even prefer using Instacart for groceries so I get to avoid going out. 

This fall is going to be interesting, going back to school with in person classes. 

[Four is Enough]

Unfortunately, I think Josh and JB are both tone deaf enough that neither would consider Josh pleading guilty. That would admit that he had actually done something wrong, no matter if it was less than the original charges. Coming out of this, Josh is going to say he was "persecuted", just like Jill Rodrigues does, either for his "fame" or his "faith"..

 

26 minutes ago, Satan'sFortress said:

From @Bethy last thread:

I love this---let's have lunch and hate watch the reunion specials.

I'll bring the Recipe...

[EmmieJ]

8 minutes ago, Four is Enough said:

Unfortunately, I think Josh and JB are both tone deaf enough that neither would consider Josh pleading guilty. That would admit that he had actually done something wrong, no matter if it was less than the original charges. Coming out of this, Josh is going to say he was "persecuted", just like Jill Rodrigues does, either for his "fame" or his "faith"..

I imagine even if Josh goes to trial, is convicted and sentenced to years in prison, JB will still claim he is innocent and being persecuted for his faith.  *blech!*

[Howl]

Hmmmm, I'm sure his lawyer has explained he'd be crazy to not take a plea deal on a Federal charge, but we don't know if one has been offered. 

[Don'tlikekoolaid]

@feministxtian this one’s for you and all us introverts, the struggle is going to be real.

Spoiler

 

[feministxtian]

@Don'tlikekoolaid how true!!! And...my big furry boy Luke is laying right next to me too. 

[onekidanddone]

35 minutes ago, feministxtian said:

This whole "shelter in place" thing has been wonderful! I'm an introvert anyway and love having the excuse to stay home. Most of my social interaction is online, here and on Facebook. I'm very happy alone with my critters, my streaming services, my books, teaching my class and just generally being at home. I even prefer using Instacart for groceries so I get to avoid going out. 

This fall is going to be interesting, going back to school with in person classes. 

You must be my twin. My life pretty much didn’t change when the Pandemic started. When the pandemic struck I had already been working full time from home for for five years. My husband does much of the grocery shopping and other errands. 
I’m happy to stay home and read or hang out here and on YouTube. 

[feministxtian]

When the pandemic struck, I was already a hermit, trying to deal with this "new" life I didn't want. I wasn't working but wasn't even in the right head space to work. Now, I work from home and 4 hours a day of teaching is about all the social interaction I can deal with. 

Going shopping is an exercise in major anxiety...first is the anxiety over how much money I can afford to spend and then the anxiety of leaving my "safe place". I'm turning into an agoraphobic mess...

[postscript]

I’m an extreme introvert and have no problem being on my own for days on end, but quarantine has been too much seclusion for me. The combination of not seeing actual people, health issues affecting my mobility, death of a parent, and no escape from my head has left me seriously depressed and worried that I’m never going to be able to leave the house again. I’ve come to like working from home, but i really need to get through the depression and mobility issues. 

[JenniferJuniper]

The Duggars are arrogant morons for sure, but I do not see Josh rolling the dice on this.  While we don't have all the facts, it's a safe bet that the Feds have him over a barrel and probably didn't make any mistakes putting him there.  If he forces a trial and loses, he's likely to face significantly more prison time.  Once JB realizes this, he should see there is no point in spending an extraordinary amount of money taking this through a trial.  Assuming he doesn't see that already. 

[HerNameIsBuffy]

1 minute ago, postscript said:

I’m an extreme introvert and have no problem being on my own for days on end, but quarantine has been too much seclusion for me. The combination of not seeing actual people, health issues affecting my mobility, death of a parent, and no escape from my head has left me seriously depressed and worried that I’m never going to be able to leave the house again. I’ve come to like working from home, but i really need to get through the depression and mobility issues. 

I'm so sorry.  I can't imagine dealing with loss of a parent while isolating, and with health issues that has to be just brutal.  Internet hugs from a stranger, if that will help.  

[JenniferJuniper]

3 minutes ago, postscript said:

I’m an extreme introvert and have no problem being on my own for days on end, but quarantine has been too much seclusion for me. The combination of not seeing actual people, health issues affecting my mobility, death of a parent, and no escape from my head has left me seriously depressed and worried that I’m never going to be able to leave the house again. I’ve come to like working from home, but i really need to get through the depression and mobility issues. 

I'm sorry for your loss.  And I feel some your pain.  I'm a moderate introvert, but the isolation has been extremely difficult.  Also, my mother died at the outset of the pandemic and my father died in November spending much of his last year stuck in my house, with no visitors, just watching TV with my ailing husband.  I have no doubt the isolation coupled with the death of my mother led to his rapid mental and physical decline.  He was used to a busy house, with his siblings and grandkids in and out. 

I think the depression is just hitting me full-force now as the world opens up. 

[postscript]

8 minutes ago, HerNameIsBuffy said:

I'm so sorry.  I can't imagine dealing with loss of a parent while isolating, and with health issues that has to be just brutal.  Internet hugs from a stranger, if that will help.  

 

2 minutes ago, JenniferJuniper said:

I'm sorry for your loss.  And I feel some your pain.  I'm a moderate introvert, but the isolation has been extremely difficult.  Also, my mother died at the outset of the pandemic and my father died in November spending much of his last year stuck in my house, with no visitors, just watching TV with my ailing husband.  I have no doubt the isolation coupled with the death of my mother led to his rapid mental and physical decline.  He was used to a busy house, with his siblings and grandkids in and out. 

I think the depression is just hitting me full-force now as the world opens up. 

Thanks to both of you, and @JenniferJuniper, I’m so sorry for your losses. I understand where you’re coming from. Covid has complicated the grieving process for so many people I know. My mother was deep in dementia, but the final decline came quickly and, as it happened, she died on my birthday (if she had realized, she would have hung on until the next day). We couldn’t have a memorial which meant no closure. Immediately afterwards, I was thrown into an extremely busy period at work, and by the time my workload lightened, it was winter and I slid deep into depression and anxiety. 

I’m only now starting to process the grief and depression, and it’s an uphill struggle, so I know exactly what you’re describing. It’s very frustrating when the world is finally beginning to reopen. Best wishes to you. 

[G33kywife]

Following up on the topic of going to the movies - I went to see a movie for the first time since Jan 2020 last month. Many of the local theaters offer an option to rent the whole space for $99 with a cap on the amount of people. Another family and ours rented it. It was fantastic. One of the kids in our group is autistic, and having the option to fully customize the volume for her was a game changer. And not having to constantly remind the other kids to stay in their seats was great too!! I hope even when most things are fully open, the option to rent the theater stays! 

[Idlewild]

JB is no doubt desperately trying to think of a good way to spin this. He has manipulated events and got away with it for so long he is arrogant. He has been a big fish in the Arkansas and fundie ponds.

I hope this case teaches him a lesson as much as Josh. The federal investigators are smarter than JB and they’ve met hundreds of pond life like Josh with wealthy families who think they can screw the system. They’ll look for technicalities but then cut a deal and plead redemption to whatever humpers will still listen. The full horrendous details of his crimes and his attempts to throw others under the bus will just reinforce what this family is. It will be all about damage limitation and trying to salvage the image of those who rely on the publicity for their living.

[JenniferJuniper]

10 minutes ago, Idlewild said:

I hope this case teaches him a lesson as much as Josh. The federal investigators are smarter than JB and they’ve met hundreds of pond life like Josh with wealthy families who think they can screw the system. .

Yes, JB can't pull any strings with the Feds.  Not a single one.  And I love thinking about how that must be killing him. 

[mango_fandango]

Oh no @postscript how awful that your mum died on your birthday. That sucks. Hugs to all those who’ve lost people during the pandemic and haven’t been able to mourn properly. 

I have social anxiety and lockdown hasn’t made my mental health worse luckily. I didn’t have much of a social life to start with. But the only way I’m going to improve is by going out and doing things, such as joining a hobby group, and of course the pandemic has fucked that all up. I have counselling sessions via Zoom but talking about it only goes so far in helping. 

[Bad Wolf]

@IdlewildPond life Josh. I like that. Didn't the kids read a book about life in the pond? Now their brother is living there.