Could This Have Been the Duggars?

[roddma]

At Recovering Grace a poster left this comment under "Failed Protectors"

 

Quote

Friends at church had gone to Knoxville for the annual ATI seminar, and we did not attend that year. The friends came home excited and talking of many new acquaintances. One of these acquaintances would very shortly thereafter that summer show up at their home in a motor home. They were the 'model' ATI family with zillions of kids. Perfect little robots that every parent would desire for their children to look and act like. They were presented as having all the answers. Surely if we do whatever they are doing we thought, we will have this perfect little family too (thing was....we already had a perfect, beautiful family). My husband and I thought perhaps there was new information to be had in our quest for a 'Godly' family that ATI had revealed that we had not had the advantage of because of missing Knoxville that year. So our church friends so excited about their godly friends, decided to set it up for this couple to use the hall at our church to speak to many of us ATI and homeschool families. Attending that night is one of the biggest regrets of my life. This couple talked about spanking and presented a book......I think the author's name was Michael Pearl???....not sure....and in addition they had this wonderful 'rod' that one could send away in the mail to recieve. The lady talked of the 'wonders' of spanking and on and on and on and how their children were so wonderful because of what the spanking had done. She relayed spanking their children and stories etc. etc. etc. She backed her claims with scripture too (twisted scripture). They gave information to get this person who wrote the book's newsletter too

It sure sounds like them.

[Witsec7]

Nah the duggars never had perfect kids, nor well behaved ones.

[xDreamerx]

It's too well written (not that it is well written but it is above Duggar level). It lacks the 'and so' and other random folksy things Michelle says.

[Elle]

Maybe the Bateses?

My husband and I thought perhaps there was new information to be had in our quest for a 'Godly' family that ATI had revealed that we had not had the advantage of because of missing Knoxville that year.

Sad that ATI families feel they missed some "new" info that thousands of years of parents did just fine without, because they didn't spend the money to attend for one year.

[roddma]

It's too well written (not that it is well written but it is above Duggar level). It lacks the 'and so' and other random folksy things Michelle says.

I wondered if the poster could be talking about the Duggars. Toward the end it says they can't recall the name of the couple.

[Visionoyahweh]

I can see Michelle hocking some special holy mail-order-only beating staff that instantly makes kids docile.

[Witsec7]

I can see Michelle hocking some special holy mail-order-only beating staff that instantly makes kids docile.

Yea its called a taser.

[FloraDoraDolly]

Do the Duggars ever go to the ATI conference in Knoxville? I thought they always went to the one in Big Sandy. At any rate, I don't see enough information to determine whether it's the Duggar family or not. Those conferences are overrun with model Christian parents in motor homes who have a zillion perfect Pearl-trained children.

[xReems]

I don't think the Duggars spoke at the ATI conference in Knoxville. They always have banners up on their website of them attending the one in Big Sandy every year. I think I read somewhere that Gil and Kelly attend the Big Sandy conference but they do sometimes speak at the Knoxville one as gust speakers, so perhaps the poster is referring their family and not the Duggars.

[Inky]

The Duggars are pretty media savvy - I really don't think they'd go and speak out publicly about corporal punishment of the children like that. It wouldn't look good on them and their tv show.

To me, that comment looks like someone wrote it to make it look like it "could" have been the Duggars, but of course, there's no proof and the commenter couldn't remember the couples name.

[lilwriter85]

The Duggars are pretty media savvy - I really don't think they'd go and speak out publicly about corporal punishment of the children like that. It wouldn't look good on them and their tv show.

To me, that comment looks like someone wrote it to make it look like it "could" have been the Duggars, but of course, there's no proof and the commenter couldn't remember the couples name.

I agree, I don't think the Duggars would speak publicly about corporal punishment. But they goofed up in the past, when they had a link to Michael Pearl's site and a mention about To Train Up A Child on their site a few years back.

[roddma]

I would guess they haven't spoken publicly about corporal punishment since being in the public if they ever did. I consulted the "20 and Counting" book and it says they attended a regional ATI conference in Knoxville when Josh was four. Then it mentions at a 9189 1989 they heard a speaker talk about 'training up' children. The poster gives no time frame so it is hard to tell.

[uber frau]

Shrug. It could have been any one of dozens of ATI families. QF and Pearl's particular flavour of child abuse dovetails nicely with the rest of the crap ATI pedals and ATI families who didn'thave a zillion robotically behaved children would be the exception, rather than the rule.

[Daenerys]

That's very very near where the Bates live - could it have been them?

[FlorenceHamilton]

I do not care who this family is, they make me sick.

When I decided to have children, the idea of having a bunch of docile, perfectly behaved children never crossed my mind. Who wants a child like this? Certainly, this is not the desire of anyone who actually likes children. Our job as parents is to prepare our offspring for the world when we can no longer protect them. It is a loving, stepwise, messy, funny, scary, exhausting process.

Look at Smuggar. What a nasty human being he has turned out to be. He is smug, but clueless. He has a superiority complex, but is a total simpleton who cannot survive without Ma and Pa. And he has reproduced. Imagine how dangerous he would be if he were somewhat intelligent?

[Mela99]

So do the Duggars use physical discipline? I never got that vibe from them, but then, I never met them... I never viewed them as wanting to be that active with each child since they pass them off

[FloraDoraDolly]

So do the Duggars use physical discipline? I never got that vibe from them, but then, I never met them... I never viewed them as wanting to be that active with each child since they pass them off

If I had to guess, I'd say the older cohort were physically disciplined regularly but from the howlers on down, not so much.