An Open Letter to the American Media Regarding the Duggar Family

Dear Media,

I'm writing today to issue a plea on behalf of the sane, reasonably well-adjusted people all across this country of ours. It's, admittedly, a move borne out of desperation and spawned from the mind of someone who's been pushed to the brink of madness, but I would only hope that this fact underscores the anguish being felt by the American people and therefore the seriousness of what I'm about to say.

Please, in the name of all that's decent, stop, stop, stop treating the Duggars like they're celebrities.

Yesterday morning, like clockwork, the Duggar family -- Jim Bob, Michelle, her clown car vagina, and the 18 kids whose names all inexplicably begin with the letter "J" -- made their traditional appearance on NBC's Today to show off the latest addition to their constantly expanding litter. As always, they basked in the glow of the national media spotlight, were treated to oodles of warm encomia, and took the opportunity to joyfully drop the name of the Lord every few seconds like there was some kind of Skinner Box treat in it for them.

The Today show has become something akin to the official press secretariat of the Duggars -- excitedly fawning over each birth and the fresh pregnancy announcement that invariably, immediately follows it as if this information were something that actually mattered to anyone. But, obviously, Today isn't alone in its cultural elevation of the Duggars from crazy homemade cult to all-American heroes.

And make no mistake -- these people are indeed crazy.

Completely out of their fucking minds.

You know something, though? That's okay. They're entitled to live their lives however the hell they want, as long as none of their kids -- born an average of one a year since 1988 -- ends up on welfare and we the taxpayers have to foot the bill for little Jolene or Jonah. I honestly couldn't care less that there's an insane family living in Arkansas cranking out children because God says so. The problem is that you, the media -- NBC, ABC, TLC, etc. -- keep giving these people face time, thereby convincing them that everyone in this country not crazier than they are actually loves hearing the latest news about Michelle Duggar's overworked reproductive system. I'm not suggesting that you're encouraging them -- since you couldn't, as they take their cues from a supposedly higher authority -- but you are giving them the chance to hawk their books, TV show and the assorted other crap that allows them to afford to continue spitting out kids like chocolates coming down a conveyor belt. These people shouldn't be cast in a positive light. They shouldn't be cast in any light at all. If they want to keep trying to single-handedly overpopulate the Earth for Jesus, they should have to pay for it without the help of your unwarranted free publicity, media.

Let's see how long they'd last once the gravy train you guys happily play conductor of dries up.

Like Paris Hilton, whose career you're also guilty of perpetuating and foisting on an exhausted public, the Duggars are famous only for their unusual sexual habits.

And like Paris Hilton, they've never deserved the wealth of attention you've lavished on them. They're religious zealots who won't stop having babies. That's it. Nothing more.

So once again, knock it the hell off. Stop shoving this family down our collective throat.

If the Duggars one day make the announcement that they've decided to start using contraception, or if one of their kids comes out with horns or something, feel free to give them a couple minutes of airtime. Until then, remember that you're the mainstream media -- not Procreation Quarterly and not a carnival barker.

Cool?

Thanks and Happy Holidays,

Chez

Follow Chez Pazienza on Twitter: www.twitter.com/chezpazienza

Comments

[Motherunit]

I had never heard of the Duggars before this article. I guess I don't watch enough reality tv. I can't imagine having such a large family, and their life seems kind of institutional. Is it irresponsible of them? Probably is. however, this is the other side of the coin for reproductive freedom of choice. Most of us have taken advantage of the ability to limit our family size, something women didn't have just a few generations ago. I suppose they have the right to decide on their family size, too, even if the rest of us think they're extreme enough to warrant their own cable show. It's better than enforced population control, like in China. I really don't think the Duggars are going to inspire a lot of families to follow their example. Seems like a weird claim to fame - being able to breed like rabbits. Whatever.

[scottsbigmouth]

Chez: Truth sometime is stranger than fiction. In this case, made-for-TV truth. Thanks for making your perspective available for us here. Only in Arkansas, right?

[Solja]

(cont'd.)

They even had a family come stay with them for a while and were just like them, down to the enormous family size. I think they had 16 kids or so. But the Duggers have zero debt, home schooled, never bought new clothes or a new vehicle (they have at least 4), no credit cards, no mortgages, make their own soap, detergent, and "make ends meet by renting out several commercial properties that they own plus rent space for a cell tower on one of their properties".

Their grocery bill is $2k+ a month (with 11 carts), they do 180 loads of laundry a month, each kid has a "partner" who they are sort of responsible for and everyone has a chore in the maintenance of the family, they built their current home and don't ask anyone for anything. They live on the belief that they "buy cheap and save the rest". We could all learn some good economic lessons from them in these hard times. They are just different from most of us, which makes them interesting to a lot of people. Me being one of them.

[Solja]

(cont'd.)

My mother says they are just "stupid", and "crazy" people but I am just amazed at how they are. If anyone hasn't watched their show, watch an hour of them and see how odd it is, then you'll understand why they have a tv show. The Today Show keeps up with them as they grow, just like another show that keeps up with the couple that had 5 or 6 kids in one birth. They have a show too! There's another big family with a show too, so there is at least 3 shows on tv. I don't see anything wrong with it as there is no violence, no cussing, no fights, none of that stuff; just every day life in a large family. They talk about God alot, true, but at the beginning of the show the father says "We have very Conservative values." That lets you know that, if they even vote, they are right-wingers. They remind me of Amish people or maybe some Quakers moreso than anything else. They don't even allow music in the house and they "closely monitor" all internet surfing and any "people who would introduce bad things or things that go against our values" for their kids. I just figured that meant anybody who wasn't just like them.

[Solja]

Wow. I'm amazed to see this article as I just watched their "marathon" shows on the Lifetime channel, I think it was, just 2 nights ago. It was on at least 6 hours and it was interesting to me to see how this family lived, how they think, what they do, and how they take care of all of those damn kids. They do a good job, no matter what anyone says.

Now I think this article is just mean. Who are you to dictate to the media what they should air on their channels? They are in it for the money, and if this abnormally large family is interesting enough for someone like me to watch (a black woman, liberal democrat, Christian mother of 4), then they can show it. I wouldn't have that many kids but if that's how many kids they want, it's not my business to tell them they shouldn't.

[NewtonSylmar]

My fiancee can't understand the reasons why I curse a blue streak every time I see them on my television. It doesn't matter if it's a Today Show appearance, a commercial for their reality show, or a brief mention as I'm flipping past The Word network. You brought up many of the reasons why I personally have a problem with them, but I think I can add one more. I worry greatly about the aftermath of this overblown genetics masters thesis--specifically, what happens to the children when they grow up and enter the world that most of us live in--a world that focuses on individuality and privacy and social responsibility. The older kids had the benefit of bonding with Mom and Dad on a much deeper and more interactive level than the younger ones will ever have. Can you imagine what kind of parental interaction J15 through J19 will experience as Mom and Dad are in their 60's after spending close to 40 years raising children?!?! As I told my daughter not too long ago: I don't have a problem with a couple wanting to birth their own baseball team, but do they have to birth their opponents as well?
By the way, Chaz, you had me at "clown car vagina."

[BillinDetroit]

"a world that focuses on individuality and privacy and social responsibility."

Whatever are you talking about? What individuality? What privacy? What social responsibility? You live in a very different world than I do ... I see very little of any of these things.

In order to express our individuality we conform by buying something hideous to wear.
Your IP was recorded when you posted your comment and the IP is traceable back through your internet service provider.
America, with 5% of the worlds population has 25% of its prison inmates ... a whopping 23.5 million.

Individuality? Privacy? Social responsibility? I don't think so.

As long as these people don't hit me up for the money to buy milk, I've got no complaint and neither does Chez.

It looks to me like this family actually has a pretty good handle on individuality and social responsibility ... they are living life the way they wish and picking up their own bills. As for privacy, I rather suspect that, with it at something of a premium in the house, it is zealously guarded and stringently enforced.

[NewtonSylmar]

Bill, I'm sorry you feel that you don't have access to those principles, and, if we choose to narrow our outlook, you may be correct. I don't have to buy hideous clothes in order to be an individual. As much as I transact over the Internet, I feel comfortable that I can choose to come out of my cocoon whenever I wish and not be forced out. As far as social responsibility goes, I pay my taxes when they are due, I vote when the time comes, and I've never even visited a prison. I am a father and I play an active role in my children's development. My problem with the Duggars is that I understand the difficulty in raising children to be their own people when they become adults. It is not enough to simply birth them and raise them...you must nurture them and give them the tools to cope in a world that is constantly changing and evolving. Most importantly, you must allow them to develop their own identity and learn to think for themselves. This family has just too many bodies, in my opinion, to ensure that all of the children receive the social development they will need as adults.

[sean6886]

"clown-car v a g i n a". HA! I almost p i s s e d my pants!

[yeswecancan]

ROFL .... thanks for writing what I've been thinking since I heard this crap.

[runjohnrun]

Thank you, thank you, thank you.

[jmoore79]

amen

[jmoore79]

A-M-E-N

[jmoore79]

A M E N!!

[GiannaX]

Masterpiece post, Chez! Spot on.

[MoeJava]

IF the Duggars instead turned out to be sterile and incapable of reproducing, would they have been gracious and accepting it was "god's will" that prevented the pregnancy, or would they have then turned to "science" to help them clone a bunch of kids? They might have been excluded because they werent "rich"....... but would they accept that "no" answer as the will of god?

[pakaal]

"Litter".

Noted without comment.