Thinking about Smuggar

[Sola]

Yeah, I know, not the best thing to do on a Sunday morning.

 

We talked a lot on who we think will be the first J'Spawn to rebel and I was thinking about it last night and I wonder if it will be Smuggar.

 

Sure he is the first born golden child of the Duggars, but look at him now; he is a bloated shadow of his former self.

 

He has no maturity and no self control, that much is obvious. Now he has left home and got married he's overeating, he's being lazy and no doubt poor Anna has to put up with him bouncing up and down on top of her every night. He's doing all these things because he can, because he feels it's OK to do these things now he is married and there is nobody to stop him.

 

He eats crap because to him it tastes good and nobody is going to say he shouldn't. He no longer has JimBoob running at his heels keeping him active and because he has no self control and no self direction he's just being lazy and overeating. OK the bonking Anna every day is a guess, but I would imagine it's pretty close to the truth as he was never able to self regulate his libido with masturbation which is what your average teen does. Plus sex has always been taboo so now he's like a starving child at an all your can eat buffet - figuratively and literally.

 

Someone with no self control and no self direction, coupled with the immaturity he displays, is going to have a whole host of problems at some point in their live when the shite hits the fan. Crisis happens to everybody at some point, how we deal with it is another matter and someone like Smuggar is going to find that hard. He doesn't even have the educational attainment or any critical thinking skills to help him either. When that happens to someone like that; poor self control, poor self direction, immaturity, low educational attainment, an inability to critically think, they tend to go off the rails big time.

 

Right now the cameras are on him and that is probably the only thing keeping him in check. I don't believe even JimBoob is doing that right now because of the whole leave and cleave thing, plus if he was Jimboob would surely have said something about Smuggars weight. I think JimBoob and J'Chelle are oblivious to the Smuggar train wreck which is thundering down the line. Once the cameras have gone I think his life will implode. I only hope that Anna is smart enough to get out when it does.

 

Will Smuggar leave his faith behind? I don't know. Is he a train wreck waiting to happen? Absolutely. He doesn't have the life skills needed to prevent it.

[Deleted07]

At times in the last few episodes I saw, I actually sensed that he seemed unhappy, and definitely avoiding certain issues. (like when questions of how many kids came up, he seemed more reserved than Anna, than he ever was previously).

I definitely got the feeling of 'well I've got everything I've been raised to believe that makes a full life, but I'm not 100% happy, so what do I do now?".

And actually he still is under Jim-Bob's authority in many ways. The car lot is owned by him right? and also the entire home church is run by him. Thats got to all make it incredibly hard to break free in any way.

Certainly gives me pause for thought, too.

[crassy]

he's being lazy and no doubt poor Anna has to put up with him bouncing up and down on top of her every night.

I am eating dinner and after reading that I have totally lost my appetite.

I don't know if Smugger would leave...why would he? Despite gaining weight and not looking happy on camera, he is slotted to become the patriarch of his family. He already has a submissive wife and his eldest child is a girl. They will train her up to be a SAHD and Smugger won't ever have to lift a finger...unless it is to shovel chickenetti into his face.

I would think that it would be one of the younger boys who would leave. They are the ones with no prospects. There will be no car dealership for them, no patriarchal role outside of their own families. No, I think Smugger is very comfy in his weird role. I don't think he will abdicate. Mostly because then he would have to get off his fat arse and actually do something for himself.

[Sister Mary Savage]

I always think that if anyone will break free it will be Joy Anna. I think that Smuggar is trapped in his own patriarchal life since he's married and not sure that he would have it any other way. He has a submissive servant, kids, fame, and is not overly motivated at all. I think that the younger kids too may rebel later (especially Hannie). I hope that the indoctrination camps they get sent to will not hinder them so badly that they accept the kool aid.

[crassy]

I always think that if anyone will break free it will be Joy Anna. I think that Smuggar is trapped in his own patriarchal life since he's married and not sure that he would have it any other way. He has a submissive servant, kids, fame, and is not overly motivated at all. I think that the younger kids too may rebel later (especially Hannie). I hope that the indoctrination camps they get sent to will not hinder them so badly that they accept the kool aid.

Yeah, Joy and Hannie seem to be the ones who will rebel. Hannie is such a shit-stirrer and nobody really gives a fuck about her because she is just one of the oodles. She doesn't listen to anything anyone tells her and pretty much just gives a 'fuck you' look when they do try to break her spirit.

[Sister Mary Savage]

Yup, as cute as Hannnie might be, she does seem to do her own thing and not care much for being told "no". I think the cameras have been a buffer for a lot of would-be Gothard style discipline. If their show had never come along, Hannie may be in a frumper right now and not nearly as free to be a howler.

[Childless]

Smuggar might be unhappy, but he's also lazy and unmotivated, so I don't see him actually doing anything to change his situation. I would be surprised though if he had more than four or five children. He doesn't seem to want that many and Anna certainly won't after realizing she will be the one that has to take care of them all. Besides, she did not come from an overly populated family like Smuggar, so she really doesn't seem all that willing to out breed Michelle.

[Daenerys]

Smuggar might be unhappy, but he's also lazy and unmotivated, so I don't see him actually doing anything to change his situation. I would be surprised though if he had more than four or five children. He doesn't seem to want that many and Anna certainly won't after realizing she will be the one that has to take care of them all. Besides, she did not come from an overly populated family like Smuggar, so she really doesn't seem all that willing to out breed Michelle.

Well since fertility is inherited, she's fairly unlikely to. Michelle has had one miscarriage after 17 successful pregnancies (I don't believe Caleb ever really existed) and Anna had one after only one child, and is still not pregnant 7 months after #2's arrival. She's probably not in Michelle's league and lacks the twin factor, but she could still easily have ten kids.

[Sister Mary Savage]

I don't know how fertile Anna is but I wonder if Smuggar really is reconsidering their wedding vows right about now.They did vow to leave their family size up to God but maybe life pressures will make Smuggar think twice about that.

[Daenerys]

I don't know how fertile Anna is but I wonder if Smuggar really is reconsidering their wedding vows right about now.They did vow to leave their family size up to God but maybe life pressures will make Smuggar think twice about that.

It's unfortunate for him that there's no secret form of contraception that could be used - if a QF woman wanted she could perhaps secretly obtain the pill whilst there's no real way of hiding a condom!

[Sister Mary Savage]

Maybe Josh will get a secret vasectomy and say that God just closed Anna's womb early?

[Visionoyahweh]

It's unfortunate for him that there's no secret form of contraception that could be used - if a QF woman wanted she could perhaps secretly obtain the pill whilst there's no real way of hiding a condom!

She could go to the doctor for some BS reason....and get the depo shot. No one would be the wiser.

Josh could buy a hot tub, wear briefs, etc. Not too helpful, but every sperm killed helps!

[bananacat]

Smuggar will always have Daddy to support him. And while that's infantalizing, it's a lot better than most of the kids will get. I will bet anything that Jim Bob does not leave all the kids equal shares of wealth in his will. Based on some obscure biblical passages, girls will get less or none at all, and the oldest son will get at least twice as much as the other sons. Josh will never want for anything, and he's just the kind of lazy, spoiled princess to be perfectly happy living off Daddy's dime forever. He has never outgrown the teenage stage, and he doesn't care about independence as long as his parents buy him the cool stuff he wants, which Jim Bob will happily do so he can lie and say his first experiment's life turned out perfectly because of their lifestyle. They both feed off of each other.

As for birth control, Josh might want to put the breaks on things until Mack is at least 7 or 8 years old and can take over many of the chores. They'll probably use the rhythm method the reverse way that Michelle does, timing it to avoid pregnancy rather than to maximize it. Or maybe they just won't chart Anna's cycles at all and they truly will leave it up to God/chance/whatever and that alone will space the pregnancies out. But once Mack is old enough to be a second mom, they'll try to have one every 18 months just for the bragging rights.

[DarkAnts]

Josh could buy a hot tub, wear briefs, etc. Not too helpful, but every sperm killed helps!

But every sperm is sacred!

U0kJHQpvgB8

[CynicMom]

Patriarchy sucks for women, but it sucks for men too. Josh must be under TREMENDOUS pressure to provide for his family knowing that there will always be more kids to feed and that Anna will not be a significant financial help no matter what. The economy sucks, he'd need retraining to do anything else and there's nothing he can do about these problems.

[Kitty]

I've been thinking Josh would be the first to escape. Actually, since I heard ATI has a piss-poor 'retention' rate and leaving is considered a normal thing in ATI/Gothardism, I think he'll be *one* of the first, if Jinger, Joy, or John doesn't run for the hills first.

There's been subtle things making me wonder if Josh might already have a foot out the door. Watching Jurassic Park, letting Mack wear pants... also, he and Anna went to visit Anna's siblings, including the ones that broke away. From the pictures posted of that reunion, I didn't get a 'douche' vibe from him, like he might actually be a fun guy to hang out with when he's not hamming it up for the camera or spreading Santorum (probably just for the camera). Honestly I think a good bit of his douchebaggery is because he's been raised all his life to be a patriarch, and now he's going to do it. It's hard to be a patriarch on camera and not look like a sexist, smug douchenozzle. I think it's also because I'm sure Josh was the favorite growing up. Seriously, I think he was the only child Boob and Juterus actually wanted, and wasn't one of "God's blessings we'll accept" (Jana down to Jackson), or possibly conceived for the show (Johannah to Josie).

On the other hand, Josh had to grow up fast in some ways and didn't get to grow up in others. He's got no job skills and a shit education, was likely spoiled by his parents and was groomed to be The Patriarch. On the other hand, he's had to help the J'slaves and JD raise their younger siblings, plus he and JD were the ones doing all the physical shitwork from the first special on. While the J'slaves got to be sister-mothers, Josh and JD had the luxury of being manual laborers as well as brother-father "buddies." Josh has basically had to share *everything* with several other people, and then he gets married off to a girl he likes but has only known for a short time. It can't be fun or easy being the oldest in a family like that.

He's going to face a crisis. He's going to realize he'll be working for his dad and depending on his 'elders' for the rest of their lives. He's going to realize that he can't support 20 or so kids like his parents can, and it's going to hurt. It's possible he's already realizing this, having a quarter-life crisis. Who knows, the smugness might be him attempting to cover all of this up. We can't say it doesn't happen- we already say the same about the PP's dickery, any evangelist we've seen in the last few years be a dick on camera has gotten that sort of speculation, and rightly so. He's probably using food as a means to cope, and combined with piss-poor education at the SODRT, he probably doesn't know anything about nutrition.

Yeah, I don't think Josh will last very long, and if he does, it'll be pretty obvious he's hiding the fact that he wants to.

[Sky_Diamond]

Yup, as cute as Hannnie might be, she does seem to do her own thing and not care much for being told "no". I think the cameras have been a buffer for a lot of would-be Gothard style discipline. If their show had never come along, Hannie may be in a frumper right now and not nearly as free to be a howler.

This is why the show should keep going. There is danger of a huge backlash and ultra gothardism if the show ended and poor little hannie will be in the firing line.

[DarkAnts]

I think that he has rebelled in little ways. He has a huge tv in his living room. This is a large contrast to the little one his parents keep in a closet and only bring out on special occasions. He also had facial hair while on the "world tour." He is probably testing the waters right now. He could also be pushing the envelope to see how much he can get away with.

[darareaksmey]

Meh. He is lazy. I don't see him being motivated enough to walk away from the goose that laid the golden egg, no matter his personal life.

[Witsec7]

I think that he has rebelled in little ways. He has a huge tv in his living room. This is a large contrast to the little one his parents keep in a closet and only bring out on special occasions. He also had facial hair while on the "world tour." He is probably testing the waters right now. He could also be pushing the envelope to see how much he can get away with.

His rebellion has begun. I predict that he will be the first to lapse. His wife will return to her family, he'll learn to drink, watch pole dancers and spend some time in and out of drug rehab if he's not dead from a heart attack at 32.

Frankly, no matter how much wealth Jimboob has accumulated its going to be spread rather thin with all the heirs and supporting the SAHDs. There won't be much if any for smugger. He'll make a bit on his own being a fame whore like parents but in the end, he'll just pizz it all away.

[JenniferJuniper]

Smuggar looks like a beer drinker to me. Cheap generic beer.

I'm not suggesting that he's started drinking, only that he probably will.

Growing up he was never exposed to the temptations of the outside world. And so he's never learned how to deal with the notion of self control (the control is built into the lifestyle itself) or the importance of moderation in all things.

All of the boys will face this leaving home, but Josh is the most vulnerable to addictions - food, porn, alcohol, drugs - because he’s always felt so entitled. And, at least for now, he has the funds.

[CynicMom]

I have read several accounts of white landowners living in colonial America talking about how "lazy" slaves were. Even Abigail Adams (relatively progressive for her time) wrote about how it took ten slaves to do the work of one non-slave.

They attributed it at the time to slaves being inherently lazy but it's easy to see with modern eyes that slavery is a corrupt institution and appearing to work hard while not actually accomplishing much was probably a good way to retain some humanity and control over your own actions.

So in the very same way I doubt all slaves back then were actually lazy, I doubt people treated today as little more than slaves are actually lazy. I mean..... appearing to be lazy is probably the least-likely-to-get-you-caught form of rebellion there is.

So all that to say I don't know how lazy Josh actually is. If I had his upbringing I'd sleep in late too. Hell I slept in late at his age all the freakin time! Course I was a college student with no family/kids.

[thoughtful]

I don't know if Josh is secretly having doubts about the way he was raised, or just indulging himself now that he has some freedom.

Sadly, he may end up keeping the patriarchal right-wing douche part while rejecting the hard-working self-control part, for the rest of his life.

But maybe there's a decent human being in there.

I do, however, see one short-term source of money for him, once the TLC gravy train is gone.

I wonder if Josh will do some time as the spokesperson for one of the weight-loss programs that sends the food to the consumer.

He'd get it free, Anna will prep it for him, and it's back to the simplicity of an authority figure telling him what to eat, limiting portions, and setting it in front of him.

As long as he doesn't cheat, it seems custom-made for him.

So there's a potential year or two of income, and perhaps help for his health and public image, as well.

[Sister Mary Savage]

I agree that Smuggar has no self control. Having his sisters clean, cook, spoil, and scream "nike" for him has not helped. Anna is his submissive servant so she cannot control him. His future isn't looking to bright IMO.

[ADoyle90815]

At times in the last few episodes I saw, I actually sensed that he seemed unhappy, and definitely avoiding certain issues. (like when questions of how many kids came up, he seemed more reserved than Anna, than he ever was previously).

I definitely got the feeling of 'well I've got everything I've been raised to believe that makes a full life, but I'm not 100% happy, so what do I do now?".

And actually he still is under Jim-Bob's authority in many ways. The car lot is owned by him right? and also the entire home church is run by him. Thats got to all make it incredibly hard to break free in any way.

Certainly gives me pause for thought, too.

I think Jim-Bob also owns the house that Smuggar and his family live in, so that also makes it difficult to break free, since I can imagine that they would have to find a new place to live ASAP.