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Why Do We Celebrate the Duggars?

"Mrs. Duggar needs to understand that it's a vagina and not a waterslide." Bill Maher

Bravo, Bill! It may be a comedian's slightly gross comment on the fact that "Ma" Duggar is pregnant with her and "Pa" Duggar's twentieth child, but I applaud him for making it. I'm willingly going out on a limb here and stating that the Duggars make me want to vomit. I'm not sorry if this offends anyone; I am not going to be a Pollyanna and say, "Oh how wonderful! What a blessing to have twenty kids; a nice neat number! Your uterus must be so happy! Kudos to you!" No, I want to say, please stop trying to convince the rest of the world that this is normal and healthy. Please stop bringing another child into your cult. You are irresponsible and dangerous people.

The truth is that this addition to the family is simply unbelievable cunning on their part and fodder for their show, 19 Kids and Counting. What's even more unbelievable is that their children are not allowed to watch television because it might "expose them to bad things."

Excuse me, Jim Bob & Michelle, but you have just made every one of your children secular entertainment on the very medium you denounce as bad! You may refuse to have a TV set in your home, but it is more than obvious that neither one of you minds promoting yourselves and your children on TLC while reaping the monetary benefits.

Shame on TLC for even having this show on their roster!

I find the Duggars' lifestyle to be very disturbing. This statement by "Ma" Michelle says it all. "After a "new one" is weaned, (she breast-feeds every one of them, God bless her heart), the baby is handed off to a buddy-sibling."

Hmmmm. This buddy, possibly as young as nine years-old, has the responsibility for the baby's hygiene, feeding, and entire childhood. I'm sorry but isn't that the responsibility of the parents? Aren't they simply passing the proverbial buck?

The Duggars are more of a cult than a family. Their children are not allowed to socialize with other children in the "outside world." I can guess why. Other children are dangerous influences; they may actually let the Duggar kids know that there's more to life than constantly pregnant moms, overbearing dads who get rich off their off-spring, and taking over your parents' responsibilities. Keeping them isolated from the "wicked outside world" sounds very much like Warren Jeffs and the FLDS, Jim Jones and Jonestown, and the many other whack-job cults who control their "families".

The media must also take responsibility for putting this cult on television and making it all seem cute and cozy. Why does the Today Show, a newscast that has some very fine, serious moments, insist on glorifying this family? They are not news, they are just plain scary. Please stop pandering to them.

The truth about the Duggars may be more insidious and dangerous than we know. Their cult-like smiles and blank stares say a lot about them. It isn't drugs but it is mind-control.

Newsweek magazine has alleged the family is following the QuiverFull belief system. Though they deny any affiliation with the group, Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar do seem allied with it. Their book and DVDs are sold on the QuiverFull Web site.

Exactly what is the QuiverFull movement? It is a male-dominated, fundamentalist, pro-natalist theology. Shunning all forms of birth control, QuiverFull women accept as many children as, they say, "God gives us." The doctrines advocate a very submissive role for women, who, as submissive wives, are relegated to baby-making and housekeeping.

It is a demonstration of their radical faith and obedience to their husbands as well as a means to advance their idea of the kingdom of heaven which is obviously run by a misogynist higher power. They are, you see, winning the country for the "good side" by having more children than their adversaries. I see no reason to advance the doctrine practiced by the Duggars or to celebrate a lifestyle many find dangerous and sick.

I'm all for celebrating people whose deeds and heroism contribute to the humanity in us all. Captain Sullenberger who landed a damaged plane and saved all passengers on board, Bethany Hamilton whose courage to surf competitively after a life-threatening shark attack touched us all; firefighters, police officers, soldiers, teachers, and the many others who deserve our admiration, yes. They should be celebrated.

But the Duggars? No, absolutely not.

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© 2011 Copyright Kristen Houghton

Kristen Houghton is a Lifestyle writer and the author of the book ranked in the top-selling 100 books of 2011,  And Then I'll Be Happy! Stop Sabotaging Your Happiness and Put Your Own Life First

Her new ebook, © 2011 No Woman Diets Alone - There's Always a Man Behind Her Eating a Doughnut  launches on Kindle December 1, 2011.

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Comments

  • erikdolnack

    Wed, 16.11.11 at 04:57PM

    In a world of some 6 Billion living human beings, do we really need to procreate in such large numbers today?

    But then, the Duggar family are white Protestants [read: upstanding, hard working, honest, patriotic Americans], and the world could always use more of those. However, what the GOP does not want, is more minority-raced births.

    No true American conservative would ever accept the prevention of healthy food from the mouths of white Anglo-Saxon Protestant children, but you’ll have to search far and wide to find an American conservative that will support the same benefits for hungry children of the African-American Community today.

    Even some affluent African-American members of the GOP are against government assistance for children of their own race (such as Herman Cain). When Dr Martin Luther King Jr. had a “Dream”, I’m sure it wasn’t to see a Black president that proclaims if you aren’t rich to blame yourself. Herman Cain is a traitor to his race.

  • .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)

    Thu, 17.11.11 at 08:18PM

    I didn’t know anything about these people until I read this. Now I feel as though I know about a new strain of herpes.

    That quiverfull group is off their collective rockers. The name also implies a veiled militant threat - like all these offspring are an army of the lord to fight off the heathens.

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