Does anyone out there watch the Duggars, or 19 Kids and Counting?

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   JennyDelToroposted 9 years ago

   I'm just wondering what people thought about them....

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   psycheskinnerposted 9 years ago

   I have watched one or two episodes and just thought of it as an interesting window into a life very very different from my own.

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   Marcy Goodfleischposted 9 years ago

   I've seen a few of their episodes.  Interesting, but my main reaction is that they're monetizing their own children. Not sure how I feel about that.
   
   FYI - this might make a good question for the Q&A section - you'd probably get some good traffic!

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   JennyDelToroposted 9 years ago

   Thanks for the tip! I'm looking for some opinions...

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   lions44posted 9 years ago

   My wife never misses an episode. I don't get it. It seems really boring; like one giant daycare documentary.  I feel bad for the kids, they never do anything else except take care of other kids.  I respect their beliefs,  but they could be more well rounded if they did something before getting married and having children.

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      gmwilliamsposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      I too feel sorry for all the children, particularly the oldest/older daughters.  They had NO NORMATIVE CHILDHOODS nor ADOLESCENCE.  They spent their formative years raising younger siblings while Michelley just continuously pops them out, one after another.  This is not only the Duggars but large/very large families in general.  The Duggars are merely prototypes of every large/very large families where "mothers" just have children, doing nothing while the oldest/older children RAISE them.  It is the tantamount of child abuse really.  Large/very large families are abusive to children in one way or another.

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   ChristinSposted 9 years ago

   I have strong opinions about this show and people who exploit their children for profit in general on so-called "reality" shows.  I'm sure my opinion won't be popular, but here it is....
   
   There is so much wrong with that show and lifestyle I don't know where to start.  Mostly, the kids being used to generate money and the older ones as built in babysitters for all the other kids. On top of that they are taught to be nothing but breeders themselves. 
   
   I'm sorry, but in this day and age people should know better.  No one person can give that many children the amount of one on one attention and support they need to thrive and reach their fullest potential in life. Who suffers? Not the selfish, self-indulgent parents, but those kids.  They may have their basic survival needs met, but there is so much more to life.
   
   Sure, you can indoctrinate them to go forth and keep having more babies - but what good does that really do in the world?  Isn't it sad that these are people who are not taught to be free thinkers and to simply just follow these outdated rituals? These are human beings that could do great things, especially the women - but no, they are taught that their sole higher purpose is for sex and baby making.
   
   Anyone can breed like rabbits; it's not a special gift to humanity or mankind to do so just because you can. I think these people are delusional and I think they are spreading that delusion onwards to all of their offspring, who will probably do it to theirs. 
   
   The couple of episodes I watched out of sheer curiosity I found extremely sad and disturbing.  I have 2 amazing kids and I give my all to them each day to help them grow into productive members of society who will do something good in the world.  With 2, I feel it is a hard job and worry that I don't give enough of myself - with 19?  Selfish - just selfish I'm sorry.

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      JennyDelToroposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      I feel the exact same way. I always see them on the covers of magazines and it makes my skin crawl, they should not be praised for their lifestyle, not to mention the fact that they actively work to oppress LGBT people. They're sick.

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      gmwilliamsposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      +1,000,000,000l,000,000,000-ChristinS, you are so correct.  It is egregious, mortally wrong to have such a large number of children.  I watched the show for a second and got physically sick and TURNED IT OFF!   There is something aberrantly wrong in people wanting to have such a large number of children.  It is also an irresponsible and selfish act.  No parent can reasonably raise 19 children.  Such children are deprived in one way or another.  I had a classmate who was one of 20 children; she was totally feral because she did not receive the proper parental attention and training.  She was a wild child who basically raised herself.   One really has to feel sorrow, even pity for children in large/very large families.  They are woefully disadvantaged emotionally, psychologically, and economically.  1-2 children, perhaps 3 or 4 is adequate for a parent to raise, giving all children the attention and love they need; to give them myriad opportunities;  and to raise effectively without enlisting, enslaving oldest/older children to raise.

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   calculus-geometryposted 9 years ago

   The show is heavily edited. What you see on the screen is probably not a very accurate portrayal of their everyday lives, to say nothing of their inner lives which are as opaque as anyone else's.  I watched a few episodes and didn't feel like I learned anything about them that I couldn't have learned by skimming a People magazine article.  Who really knows what goes on in that family?

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   FatFreddysCatposted 9 years ago

   Mama Duggar always has this glazed, phony looking smile on her face that creeps me out. It reminds me of the Joker.
   
   
   "Greetings Earthlings. Resistance is futile. At our current rate of reproduction we predict complete and total Duggar takeover of your world within a generation. We shall enjoy devouring your yummy souls one by one."

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   SmartAndFunposted 9 years ago

   I agree with everything that Christin S said; yet at the same time I feel like there are "different strokes for different folks." But, no way in heck would I wish that life on anyone. The woman is nothing but a baby factory, and it's sad that those kids have to raise each other.
   
   As far as the TV show goes, I have only seen one episode, and that was a week or two ago. I found it really boring. They spent lots of camera time on a bird that flew inside the home of one of the married daughters, and the Duggar father cooking eggs. He didn't cook them just like the wife would have, and that was supposed to be cute and funny, or some sort of crazy shenanigans. Same thing with the bird in the house. It was no big deal, and not interesting in any way. The show was BO-RING.

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    Aime Fposted 9 years ago

    Totally agree with ChristinS as well. I have one child and am hesitant on having another any time soon because she requires so much of my attention. Like, I suppose I could push her aside and say "no, sorry, mom's busy with the other kids" but that's hardly fair on her. And I don't think she's an exceptionally needy kid, I think most kids crave and deserve a certain amount of attention from their parents. No amount of attention from older siblings or other family members/friends can replace that of a mother or father. I don't know what the right balance is - I can't say that X number of children is the maximum people should have before their kids start to suffer, but I can tell you that number sure as heck comes way before NINETEEN.
    
    It also totally pisses me off that all of their kids' names start with the same letter. I don't really have a rational argument for that one but I find it SO TACKY and annoying.
    
    If nothing else it's horribly irresponsible in a world that's already sucking its resources dry. And because they've decided to put themselves on TV they have enough money to keep themselves getting whatever resources they need to live comfortable lives and they won't be the ones to suffer.

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       gmwilliamsposted 9 years agoin reply to this

       Aime, totally agree.   However, in large/very large families, it is NEVER the parents who raise the children, it is ALWAYS THE OLDEST/OLDER children who RAISE the children oftentimes forfeiting their children.  It is quite normative for children in large/very large families to raise themselves and/or each other.   In large/very large families, the parental influence and input are noticeably absent.  Children in large/very large families do not have normal parent-child relationships like children in small families(1-2 children do).  Children in large/very large families are attention deprived which explains why many of them are needy and act out to get attention.  They may even seek attention from outside sources which sometimes can be......quite negative in scope.
       
       You see the large/very large family is so dysfunctional in so many ways.  Large/very large families are the province of the less educated and less aware.  People who are highly educated, intelligent, and aware know the benefits of small families to children emotionally, intellectually, mentally, psychologically, and socioeconomically.   Children in large/very large families do not get the individualized attention and care needed to thrive.  In large/very large families, child neglect is quite commonplace, even a normal way of life.  Oldest/older children are discarded or pressed into service while only the youngest receive the most care.

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    Lindsay Herringposted 9 years ago

    All of this is my opinion: I live vastly different from the Duggars. I only have two children and don't want anymore so I took the precaution of having permanent birth control, I come from a small family that honestly isn't very close, I don't consider myself religious but, I have an open mind and will ask questions about religion and talk about it among friends that I can trust. However, with all of that being said I don't hate them, I don't think they are wrong for having that many children. I do see positive within their story: every single one of those children will come out of that house knowing how to cook, clean, drive, balance a check book, and be self-sufficient. I have watched many upon many episodes and the Duggars have done a lot for their community of hosting yard sales to raise money for the hospital that Josie was cared for. They visit other countries and donate time and goods to foster care they might do that here in the U.S. as well. If people watch they will learn that the Duggars have more depth to them other than just having sex and babies. While I do not agree with everything they do I will not rip them apart either. Just my honest opinion. :-)

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