The Duggars Respond to Reports That Josh Duggar Was Accused of Child Molestation

[QuestLove]

Well, this duggars scandal should put an end to those modesty threads which claim that the way women are dressed is responsible for males, especially young adult males committing sexual sins. If anything it should show that women can be victims regardless of how they are dressed. In terms of modest dressing, you could not get more extreme than the Duggars.

 

[elsker]

Well, this duggars scandal should put an end to those modesty threads which claim that the way women are dressed is responsible for males, especially young adult males committing sexual sins. If anything it should show that women can be victims regardless of how they are dressed. In terms of modest dressing, you could not get more extreme than the Duggars.

Thank you! Sexual assault can happen to anyone in any state and manner of dress. It is an old trope about scanty clad women asking for assault. You can look like anything, be attractive, unattractive, old, young-it doesn’t matter. Faith doesn’t always insulate you from the harsher realities of life!

 

[Dawnia]

Well, this duggars scandal should put an end to those modesty threads which claim that the way women are dressed is responsible for males, especially young adult males committing sexual sins. If anything it should show that women can be victims regardless of how they are dressed. In terms of modest dressing, you could not get more extreme than the Duggars.

Good luck with that.

 

[QuestLove]

Good luck with that.

I can always hope.

 

[zaffiroborant]

As a homeschooler I am offended at your statements about education. As a Catholic I am shocked that you would decide that because of this incident the “Quiverfull culture” is to blame. Sounds a lot like the anti religious who rail against the Church for sex abuse cover ups. As for the rest I agree. However appalling and deviant Josh’s actions were at age 14. Jim Bobs are way worse. To take this and not only cover it up, hide it, but then to go ahead and knowing this was an event take to the network and cash the checks knowing full well that making a deal with the devil would probably come back to ultimately hurt and abuse the family more than Josh ever did. A dad should protect, not be reckless. Is that part of the patriarchal beliefs they have?!

Why should you be offended as a homeschooler??? So you gave you kid a high school equivalent education even an excellent one, that is not the point. Most people who have a only HS education do not wind up in the kind of jobs that Josh had, do you feel qualified to continue your child’s education to the college level? Are you going to issue him or her a bachelors degree, a masters or PHD?

 

[zaffiroborant]

You must clearly be in favor of a change in the age of consent to age 14. If “14 year olds know exactly what they are doing”, then there is no dispute. Yes?
The age of consent, ISTM, is in place based on the idea that 14 year old do** not** know exactly what they are doing. We’ve all heard many pedophiles use that claim regarding their 14 or 15 year old victim - “They knew exactly what they were doing.”

Jon

The parents knew exactly what he was doing.

 

[zaffiroborant]

This goes from bad to worse. First it was inappropriate touching, then it went to molesting and now incest. Good gosh, next it will be rape. Why don’t we wait till we know what REALLY happened before we add fuel to the fire!!! I think we should all keep in mind, we will be judged the same way we judge others. God Bless, Memaw

Uhm really, from the very beginning it has been a matter of Josh diddling his SISTERS, that is incest.

 

[zaffiroborant]

This is exactly what I said in Quote 94

I can hardly believe that Catholics are defending this program! You are speaking with a forked tongue. Can’t have it both ways. "Nudity can be representative of our Modesty??? Really??? And yes the sight of someone naked can and does lead some people to impure thoughts, and sometimes they take it out on an innocent victim, such as a child even. Why do you think pornography is such a horrendous problem in our society today. Comparing a Dr’s. visit to nudity in a TV program, now that’s quite a stretch, I’d say!! I have been to a Drs. office many times in my nearly 80 years and I have NEVER been asked to parade around nude!!. I have had 9 babies and not a one was born while I was nude. Good gosh !! They have always done everything possible to protect my modesty. Nothing wrong with my thoughts! God Bless, Memaw
Reply With Quote

God Bless, Memaw

Where did Josh see naked people that made him diddle his sisters?

 

[Gordon_Sims]

Well, this duggars scandal should put an end to those modesty threads which claim that the way women are dressed is responsible for males, especially young adult males committing sexual sins. If anything it should show that women can be victims regardless of how they are dressed. In terms of modest dressing, you could not get more extreme than the Duggars.

I think it’s extremely important to understand that child sexual abuse, particularly with younger and previously-abused offenders, often has nothing to do with sex. It’s about power and control. It’s about someone who has no control over their own life, or had no control over their own abuse, acting out in a way that gives them that control. If Josh had actually been molested himself, then every one of the kids in the house was at risk and could have been molested. It wouldn’t have been about him wanting sex or being tempted by immodest clothing, but instead would have been about him doing what had been done to him in an effort to try to get rid of some of those feelings of helplessness.

Child sexual abuse is a vile, horrible act. Victims and offenders alike need treatment and healing. Everyone else needs education and understanding. Don’t ever assume that it can’t or won’t happen to you or your children. Learn to identify the signs and be vigilant. And please don’t fool yourself into thinking that praying about it, asking for forgiveness or vowing to never do it again is, in any way, a substitute for competent, professional, certified counseling.

 

[elsker]

I think it’s extremely important to understand that child sexual abuse, particularly with younger and previously-abused offenders, often has nothing to do with sex. It’s about power and control. It’s about someone who has no control over their own life, or had no control over their own abuse, acting out in a way that gives them that control. If Josh had actually been molested himself, then every one of the kids in the house was at risk and could have been molested. It wouldn’t have been about him wanting sex or being tempted by immodest clothing, but instead would have been about him doing what had been done to him in an effort to try to get rid of some of those feelings of helplessness.

Child sexual abuse is a vile, horrible act. Victims and offenders alike need treatment and healing. Everyone else needs education and understanding. Don’t ever assume that it can’t or won’t happen to you or your children. Learn to identify the signs and be vigilant. And please don’t fool yourself into thinking that praying about it, asking for forgiveness or vowing to never do it again is, in any way, a substitute for competent, professional, certified counseling.

Thank you, I was wondering about the state trooper who wrote up the police report on JD and why he just happened to get busted for child porn. He was a friend of the family and I have to wonder if indeed JD was previously molested-could it have been this same state trooper who molested him and maybe possibly some of the other children? Weirder stuff has happened. Just me tossing theories around, not saying that this is how it all came about.

 

[KendraDZ1902]

I’m not a hater. I don’t hate the Duggars and I don’t hate Josh.

I do think that their lifestyle is odd. And I’ve always thought Jim Bob was really controlling, but I don’t hate them.

I hate what happened. I hate that those girls went through what they did and I hate that they weren’t protected afterwards. And I think it is perfectly fine to hate that.

 

[elsker]

I’m not a hater. I don’t hate the Duggars and I don’t hate Josh.

I do think that their lifestyle is odd. And I’ve always thought Jim Bob was really controlling, but I don’t hate them.

I hate what happened. I hate that those girls went through what they did and I hate that they weren’t protected afterwards. And I think it is perfectly fine to hate that.

The compulsion by some cultures to handle their domestic issues privately leads to the type of mishandling that occurred in this situation. The fear of shame and public disgrace probably drove the family to hide what had gone on with JD and now the mother of all ironies has come to roost in that what they hid is now public fodder exactly BECAUSE they hid it to begin with.

I can hear the Canadian twang of Alanis Morissette right about now!

 

[KendraDZ1902]

The compulsion by some cultures to handle their domestic issues privately leads to the type of mishandling that occurred in this situation. The fear of shame and public disgrace probably drove the family to hide what had gone on with JD and now the mother of all ironies has come to roost in that what they hid is now public fodder exactly BECAUSE they hid it to begin with.

I can hear the Canadian twang of Alanis Morissette right about now!

I just think the “cultural” excuse is hogwash. This isn’t some third world country. There is no excuse for what was done and how it was handled. Period.

And now I have that song stuck in my head! Lol

 

[Yeoman]

I’m not a hater. I don’t hate the Duggars and I don’t hate Josh.

I do think that their lifestyle is odd. And I’ve always thought Jim Bob was really controlling, but I don’t hate them.

I hate what happened. I hate that those girls went through what they did and I hate that they weren’t protected afterwards. And I think it is perfectly fine to hate that.

Wow, we’re now up to 62 pages on this topic.

Riffing off the odd comment, I’d agree, and I think what this story does is help bring to light that, demographically the Duggars are a subset of a subset. That is, they’re part of the Independent Baptists, and within that they’re part of a patriarchal movement. That explains a lot of the peculiarities of the show, such as the way the females always dress, the absence of schooling, the quasi arranged nature of the marriages, and the occasional rendezvous with other similar families.

All of this was soft sold on the show, and for good reason. They have been portrayed as “conservative Christians”, but they’re a type of Protestant that would be quite foreign to most conservative Protestants, let alone Catholics and Orthodox. But, as being any sort of Christian draws a lot of hatred these days, and as this group now will be the subject of attack, we’re all going to get tarred with the same brush. At least if we’re any sort of small “o” orthodox Christian, which ironically they really aren’t.

Which I guess gets back to my earlier comments on this “Catholic” Answers forum. The Duggars are really far from our set of beliefs, or the sets of beliefs of most Americans, but the basic fact that the show portrayed domestic basics has made it hugely popular. If there’s a lesson for Catholics it might be that the more basic aspects of our Faith probably are a lot more attractive than we would like to believe, and we don’t even have to seem sort of 19th Century-like. Another lesson will be that the confusion of the press on all matters religious is going to lump them in with us, even though they likely regard us Catholics as not even being real Christians.

I do wish that if TLC were going to follow some religious minority around they’d pick a really interesting one. Why not a show on an Old Believers family perhaps, or an Orthodox Jewish one? Oh well.

 

[AnastasiaRomano]

I think it’s extremely important to understand that child sexual abuse, particularly with younger and previously-abused offenders, often has nothing to do with sex. It’s about power and control. It’s about someone who has no control over their own life, or had no control over their own abuse, acting out in a way that gives them that control. If Josh had actually been molested himself, then every one of the kids in the house was at risk and could have been molested. It wouldn’t have been about him wanting sex or being tempted by immodest clothing, but instead would have been about him doing what had been done to him in an effort to try to get rid of some of those feelings of helplessness.

Child sexual abuse is a vile, horrible act. Victims and offenders alike need treatment and healing. Everyone else needs education and understanding. Don’t ever assume that it can’t or won’t happen to you or your children. Learn to identify the signs and be vigilant. And please don’t fool yourself into thinking that praying about it, asking for forgiveness or vowing to never do it again is, in any way, a substitute for competent, professional, certified counseling.

Yes to all this.

I have wondered when reading the stories whether Josh was in fact molested himself. So many times victims of abuse who do not receive treatment and don’t heal end up acting out their emotional wounds by abusing other children – sometimes years later. Competent, professional counseling and treatment is so very important.

 

[stinkcat_14]

I just think the “cultural” excuse is hogwash. This isn’t some third world country. There is no excuse for what was done and how it was handled. Period.

And now I have that song stuck in my head! Lol

If there are parts of their culture that are worthy of criticism, then there is nothing wrong with offering that criticism. Particularly since they put their culture out there for the rest of us to view and judge. Clearly there are some themes in their culture that are desirable, i.e. modesty, etc, but that does not mean that if I criticize what they do that I want pornography broadcasted on network tv.

 

[masondoggy]

I just think the “cultural” excuse is hogwash. This isn’t some third world country. There is no excuse for what was done and how it was handled. Period.

And now I have that song stuck in my head! Lol

I couldn’t agree more

 

[Hoosier_Daddy]

I understand your concerns about generalizing but check this out and tell me if the quiverfull movement doesn’t actually promote some cultural and religious concepts that facilitate problematic power relationships between men and women: gawker.com/quiverfull-of-****-a-guide-to-the-duggars-scary-brand-1706557073

I think attacking the (false) theology of the duggars and relating it to what happened is as disingenuous as anti Catholics using the abuse scandals to talk about our sexual theology as well.

Have we learned nothing by going through this ourselves?

 

[KendraDZ1902]

Riffing off the odd comment, .

Not an odd comment. Many people have been posting that people have it out for the Duggars and they must just hate them, yada yada yada. I don’t hate them, it isn’t a political thing (like some have brought up) I hate what was done and that’s pretty much it.

 

[Hoosier_Daddy]

Why should you be offended as a homeschooler??? So you gave you kid a high school equivalent education even an excellent one, that is not the point. Most people who have a only HS education do not wind up in the kind of jobs that Josh had, do you feel qualified to continue your child’s education to the college level? Are you going to issue him or her a bachelors degree, a masters or PHD?

I am not sure what you are talking about. Perhaps your view on homeschooling is skewed. What is your point? Just like any other thing that people wish to bring up about the Duggars counter cultural life, this has nothing to do with what happened.

It is ignorant to join the crowd saying “homeschoolers!, Modest dressing! Sexually repressed! patriarchal religion” because they have nothing to do with what happened. Or if they do have something to do with it, it is the same level of involvement that the Catholic Church has having their own schools, modesty (dress code at Vatican) (chastity defending) From an all male priesthood. All of those things are good and Holy and they do not contribute to the molestation scandals the Church had… But anti Catholics sure to like to pick on those things. Lets make sure we are not doing the same for the duggars.