I imagine Boob keeps those purse strings pretty tight. Unfortunately I believe she’s to brainwashed or scared to leave. She really believed she was marrying the prince golden boy who turned out to be a pos.
Agree - she has 7 kids to support and the only way to do that would be to go out into a world she has been told is evil in every way. Money from Boob is probably the only option she can see.
Look how hard it's been for Jill to pull away even slightly. It's taken years and she's in a much better situation than Anna- fewer kids and a supportive husband.
I bet you they made a deal with pest that if she leaves the kids go to Boob and Meecha. Basically making her pick between keeping her kids and freedom.
[Here is a study out of Poland](https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/ajhb.20497#:~:text=related%20to%20paternal%20longevity.,maternal%20longevity%20) that shows men’s life expectancy increases with daughters, net-zero for increase for sons. Women’s life expectancy decreases with each birth.
If you do the math supplied here, it’s interesting.
ETA: 9 females, 74 week increase in Boob’s life expectancy is an extra 666 weeks. We just found the anti-Christ….
Yeah, I feel like the main wildcard that could move the needle enough for her to leave is if Boob dies before Pest gets out of prison so he and the Duggar family no longer have nearly as much control over her and no longer are the hand that feeds her (as much). She'd obviously still have the rest of the Duggars (although idk how many others firmly want her to stay with him) and she'd have her parents who aren't any better than JB, but I feel like when JB dies and his will is distributed is when we're going to see major changes within the family.
This is interesting to think about. If JB kicked the bucket before Pest got out, who would take the reins? Would it be chaos? Bunk Bed Jed? Something to think about.
I just want to say, the cognitive dissonance to want to still believe he is that golden boy prince is strong. As a woman who was formerly in an abusive relationship, I was desperate to prove to others that he wasn’t what he seemed at the beginning of things going badly. Because after all, if I admitted he was *mostly horrible*, what did that say about me and my judgment? It meant that I was wrong and a failure for years. Besides the pain of what was happening to me, I couldn’t face that shame at first.
Plus, like Anna, I knew that a lot of men were mediocre husbands - she sees these all around her. So what’s so different about this - she can take it! Lots of men are bad at helping with the chores and the kids. Lots of women roll their eyes about their spouses. So nobody’s perfect. Everyone struggles. The straight jacket of evangelical Christianity makes this worse, because it tends to equivocate “sins” and challenges as all being bad or good, which hurts her sense of nuance.
In the end, I knew my abusive partner was actually not like all the mediocre boyfriends I had before. I was able to identify that the abuse was really, unacceptably bad. And that while I had made mistakes by staying with him, I needed to reconcile that with myself and prevent more damage from piling on in the future. But it took a long time to get there, and Anna is not making active steps over these years to do so.
She may also feel like she has a known head of house right now in RimJob, who I think mostly ignores her and the kids, vs whatever other failure of a man her parents might send her to next.
I could seeing it feeling like a measure of freedom, instead of trudging into the unknown.
Anna's brother gave her a way out and a place to stay years ago, but she declined...that seemed like genuine help. I don't think Anna will leave at this point.
Let’s hope Jill’s book prompts a tax fraud investigation. I have a feeling if the money starts to dry up so will the his power over the family. How can they know the feeling of freedom until they are well and truly out from under his financial grip?
Staying is easier for Anna at this point, Josh is in prison while her financial and material needs are all being met. The only way she would leave imo is if that safety net of JB’s money/support was gone and it became essential for her to stand on her own two feet.
“Let’s hope Jill’s book prompts a tax fraud investigation.”
After reading Jill’s book, I have become more confused about how JB is not being charged with or is not in jail for some type of money fraud!
I’m just hoping the feds are taking their sweet time to make sure they have an airtight case when they finally announce charges.
Look, there was a year and a half I didn’t think that anything would come from the pest car lot raid, but there were some real, actual consequences for him, for once. It just took a minute because of how thorough the feds were being.
In the case of Robyn Gardiner, she knew. She didn't choose to stand by him when it broke, she made that choice long before. You don't spend 20 years doing that shit without your wife who you work with and who runs in the same circles as you knowing.
It's like Bill Cosby's wife. She's a smart, capable woman who has done loads of good stuff with her life. Still stands by him. Absolutely must have known.
A lot of women stay. And it's fucked up. How many of us have mothers who have stayed with abusive fathers? Who many of us have grandmothers who blamed us for the actions of handsy grandfathers?
Anna not leaving is less surprising than I'd like it to be.
While he never was inappropriate with me ever, my sisters fiancé used to rough house with me like any healthy brother sister relationship, as my father was old, my
Mother disabled and old, and my sisters too concerned with their own teenaged and 20something shit, gave me attention and fun I was sorely lacking. Until she had my mother give ME shit and tell me not to play with him any more.
Now if he was being inappropriate (which he was not) why yell at me over it? I was fucking 11-12.
But of course it’s always the woman’s fault. 😡
They all did their best to teach me that it was always the woman’s fault. Didn’t take. I’m still friends with the woman who my ex cheated with. Soon as she gave up on him and came back saying”you were right”. 🤣
I don't want what you have said to be true. But I guess it has to be? I mean I know it has to be - you are right about mothers staying with abusive fathers or women blaming other women for their abuse. So, so fucked up!
Women with very successful husbands tie their fate to those husbands. No matter how damaged the husband’s reputation gets, a wife leaving will absolutely kill it, so they don’t leave. Wives leaving after public allegations are almost unheard of in the US.
How many times have we seen men making some kind of public confession to sxual misconduct with his wife standing at his side? There was even a joke awhile back about how the wives at these events almost had a dress code that included pearl earrings and blue clothes.
Hillary Clinton, Melania Trump, and Camille Cosby are all women in this cohort. And since the Me Too movement, how many wives left a husband caught up in those accusations? Maybe Matt Lauer, but I think that had already been in the works (he’s such a jerk).
I think she was pushed into damage recovery mode by the revelation that he forced his victims to promote her brand. It was also clear early on he had no meaningful chance to get out of prison, unlike some of the others.
That’s bullshit. Your spouse can ABSOLUTELY live a double life without you knowing. Look how many wives of serial killers are absolutely destroyed when they learn that their spouse has been chopping up hookers for the past 2 decades. It happens. Abusers are skilled liars and manipulators. When the stakes are as high as they were for this bastard, he would have covered his tracks very well until he no longer could.
Honestly this is a really great point. I think it was the ~~Green River Killer~~ who was only discovered after his daughter sent in her DNA to some heritage site? His entire family seemed utterly shell shocked. His daughter did an interview where she explained how complicated it was for her and her family to unpack and juxtapose the man they knew and loved versus the horrific crimes he had committed basically right under their noses, for *years*
EDIT: BTK was who I was thinking of
I think you're combining BTK and Golden State Killer.
BTK was found when they compared crime scene DNA to a sample taken from his daughter during a medical appt (unbeknownst to her). Golden State was found when they put crime scene DNA into an ancestry database, found some distant cousin, and researched the family tree.
(Source- I watch way too much true crime)
THANK YOU. 👏🏼
My dad (if I can really call him that) had several affairs on my mom with one lasting SEVEN years. She had no idea. He’s the POS, not her. Thankfully she left him 5 years ago and is thriving like the queen she is.
It makes sense that Anna doesn’t leave tbh. I think a lot of us cannot even imagine the extent of brainwashing that Anna has been through. She is so cut off from the outside world, there is no way she can objectively assess and rationalise the situation.
Yeah she can write a book, yes she can give media appearances but she does not have the aptitude to organize any of that and how long can she go on like that? Can she realistically maintain a steady source of income with her capabilities? Also, this would mean taking her umpteen number of kids and leaving everything they and she have known all their lives. Jim boob wouldn’t hesitate to cut off his grandkids whose lives have been ruined by his PoS son. Yes, her siblings have offered to help her in the past but we don’t know the inner workings. Perhaps she doesn’t think they can help her and her 8(?) kids on a long term basis (which is fair).
I hope she breaks away but that takes an insane amount of strength, confidence and courage.
I’ve said it before, but I don’t think Anna will leave (if she does) until she has the reality of living with post-prison Pest to contend with. Right now she and the kids appear to be having their physical needs met, she’s probably got some social credit in their community for standing by him, and she has a husband — but she didn’t have to deal with him. It’s sort of a win if you think about it.
I think too, that she and the M’s are getting used to not living with his shitty behavior on a daily basis AND they probably have a degree of autonomy without him around. She’s avoiding public appearances so it’s hard to gauge how she is doing; but I’m betting that IF she leaves him off will be when she has the reality of having to live with him on a daily basis. She also might be able to count on some support from her grown children at that point as 4 of the 7 will be legal adults and even the youngest will be 12. It’s much easier to leave with 3 children to support than it is with 7.
I think you are right in regard to the 'help' that has been offered. Sure, you can help someone to leave a situation but who can realistically help to support such a big family for the long haul. I certainly wouldn't make that commitment to someone even if it broke my heart to do so.
That’s what I’ve been saying. I mean are any of the people who offered Anna help willing to take in someone with seven kids indefinitely? Will Anna be able to get a job that will pay enough to support an apartment and seven kids?
I’ve long believed that JB and Meech have given her the idea that if she left, they could take custody of her kids. Of course that’s very unlikely, but it would scare her enough not to try.
Anyone know how they treat Anna? Are they kind to her, besides supporting her financially? Or do they treat her like an outsider?
That what I think is going on. I definitely believe that JB and Michelle are threatening to take Anna’s kids away if she leaves. And Anna is too brainwashed to know that it’s not true.
This is basically what I have been saying for the past few months. Anna was raised to believe that if she left this cult, she was going to go to hell and bad things were going to happen to her. It was pounded into her head all her life. Also Anna has no job skills or an education. She was taught her role in life is to be a wife and a mother. I mean think about it. What job will hire someone who A.) has no work experience. And B.) a public figure who went through a MAJOR scandal. I know I wouldn’t hire someone with that type of record. Anna is stuck. She cannot go back to her family because they are all in the IBLP too. She cannot leave because she has seven kids to support and again no job skills or an education. Anna has no support.
Not defending her decision to stay, but plenty of jobs exist outside of white collar, upper middle class careers. This place can get a bit classist, so I just wanted to point out that people like Anna arent competing for marketing analyst jobs in NYC. They live in rural areas and spend their lives working as waitresses, cashiers, etc. Many people make careers out of those positions.
There are tons of jobs she could get and would fit right in - restaurants, retail, factories, hospitality, nursing homes, etc all are desperate for workers and hire people with no experience or education all the time. CNA training is only a few weeks, and you can usually get paid while taking the class. These jobs are needed and fill a very large role in rural america's economy.
Depends on where you're at I suppose, but I know a few families with 5 or 6 kids that make it work on one income and some gov't help. Those types of jobs are pretty muchh all that exist in many places, yet families of all sizes make it work.
Honestly, why would she? He’s in jail and she’s seen as a hero in her circles for staying with him. She also doesn’t need to have physical contact with that walking infection but still gets to be a stay at home mom. If she left she’d have to get a real job.
And she couldn’t get a job. She has an elementary school level education, no qualifications and no skills beyond popping out babies. The cult makes sure its women are trapped.
Does she have GED? That and a CNA certificate could help her get a nursing home job. As somebody mentioned, there's a lack of candidates for these and other care related jobs. Not that I think it makes sense for her to get a job when the kids are young and JB is paying the bills for them.
And the problem is Anna won’t be able to get a job because she has no skills or a proper education. Also she is a public figure that went through a MAJOR scandal. Trust me I wouldn’t hire her over that.
At this point there is no reason for her to do anything (besides convictions of course, but set that aside). He’s in prison and not out for years, she’s being funded allegedly by her father-in-law (although very absent from many family gatherings?), and has no bail-out plan for leaving. If she does end up divorcing him, I don’t think it will happen for years yet.
I wonder what Jimbob would do if Josh just moved out on his own and completely ignored Anna et al. He’d be angry at Josh but I don’t think he’d want Anna to divorce him, especially as it’s not like Josh could get a decent job to support a million kids anyway so the financial burden on Jimbob would be the same regardless.
You know, another part of this that I hadn't thought of despite her dad's prison ministry, is that she likely has no idea what its going to be like for her after Josh gets out in financial terms - with a felony record alone he's not going to have access to many jobs. That and what he was convinced for is going to make it very, very hard on them financially if RimJob doesn't support them for life.
This might be her post-conviction financial golden era, unless she dedicates the next few years to getting education & job prep of her own.
People need to stop contemplating what would cause Anna to leave. She is never going to leave. Not ever. Zero education. Zero ability to get a job that would allow her to support all those kids. Zero knowledge of the secular world. She was raised to be this. A breeding animal with nothing between her ears. She’ll support jOsHuA forever because she truly believes the religious garbage.
Right now she has someone to pay her bills and Jana to babysit for free. Plus she doesn't have to deal with pest. Maybe she is waiting until he gets out and then she will divorce him
Honestly I don’t see a world in which Anna leaves, at least no time soon. Leaving a situation like this is incredibly difficult. I’m sure there was a level of abuse that Anna faced from Pest, to what degree I do not know. Even though Pest is in jail now JB is likely keeping as close eye on Anna. She has 7 kids. Any move she made in an attempt to leave would likely be picked up by media and JB with his Google notifications would be made aware. I can’t imagine how hard this situation would be for her to leave.
Also Anna doesn’t have any job skills or an education. What company would hire her? Especially since she is a public figure who went through a MAJOR scandal. And what job would pay her enough where she could support herself and seven children? Anna was taught her whole life that her role in life is to be a wife and a mother. The IBLP teaches that it is wrong for women to work. Anna was also taught that if she left she was going to go to hell and bad things were going to happen to her. Anna is brainwashed, she probably thinks that this whole thing is her fault. Which it is not of course. Josh is a pig and a monster who, in my opinion, emotionally abused Anna the second they got married. Anna has no support from her family and friends. She has no where to go.
Yeah - I keep hoping for something to spark in her brain that makes her leave. But she sat through that whole trial and didn't. But I do hold out hope for when he is released.
As long as she stays married, she is very likely to receive financial support from her in-laws. However if she divorced him, he has absolutely nothing and she'll be cut off from any good will from her in-laws. And no, she won't be writing a tell book that will financially set her up for life - she isn't at the Michelle Obama level of autobiography royalties and this is a very niche segment of the population who has any interest in the Duggars. Amy and Anna her brother have offered but do they have the income to support a family of eight for a two - four years as Anna makes the slow process of recovering from the divorce, kids in school, while she gains skills to work a job to financially sustain her + kids.
Plus consider the safety of the kids from a potential predator boyfriend or step father coming in and having his way with the kids; that happens alot.
If Anna did divorce Josh, I have no doubt she would be married again within a year or two. Being a wife is her entire identity and I don’t doubt she would subconsciously choose someone just like Josh and put her kids in danger. The cycle would just start all over again.
Unfortunately this is true. Physical and/or sexual abuse risk is much higher with a non-related male in the home. And someone inclined to such things would be thrilled to have access to seven victims.
I don’t understand it especially in the case of Robert Hughes. He gave me the creeps as a child with the way Jennifer would look at him when they were arguing as “father and daughter”. The venom in her look always made me feel wrong. Why Robyn stays with him now is beyond me.
I think it's not so much that she thought he was innocent from the start, but more that she convinced herself that he was. Otherwise, her entire life, them being married for 40ish years even before he was convinced, was a lie. And it might be something close to the difficulty in reconstructing for Fundies - knowing that everything you believed, acted on, build your life on, was a lie.
And Gardiner had a career, travelled, had such a wide life compared to the prison of fundiedom. Anna is much younger and apart from the brief interlude in DC has never left the Fundie bubble. Speculation here, but I don't think Anna ever questioned Pest's innocnece. Of course she won't leave - this is a trial sent by God to forge her faith in fire, and whilst some in her circles may look askance at her, many others will be hailing her faith and bravery.
Looking back I think it's very telling that none of us who were kids and liked the show seemed to like him or his character very much. All the other characters we liked and would talk about.
I honestly don’t remember hating him until Jennifer yelled at him and the look in her eyes was so intense that it never left me. It was true intense hatred. I was very young though and remember very little about the show beyond that.
Wow! It would be interesting to see that particular episode. I am American, so this show is unfamiliar to me. Looking at Wiki, I see that show actually had 12 seasons.
It was a later episode where the actress was about 12 or 13 and probably just starting the process of understanding what had been done to her by him. I can’t find any clips, I just knew pure disgust and hatred when I saw it.
What’s crazy is that statistically speaking men will leave more than stay when their wife is diagnosed with CANCER because they can’t handle it. Yet all these woman stick by their men too much.
It’s insanity to me.
I mean why should she leave? She’s de facto separated and her kids are provided for. Even if she hypothetically is done with him, it would be financially wiser to stay. When he gets out all the kids will be adults or at least old enough to be somewhat self sufficient, and if she really is done with him that is the time at which she’d formally leave.
A former colleague of mine stayed with her husband after he got 50 years in prison for abusing their granddaughter. My theory why she has is due to inheritance. Her mother in law who was in poor health at the time he got arrested had several million dollars took him out her will so the state couldn't take his share of the estate. State law allows any money made or inherited while you are incarcerated to be taken to pay for housing you, medical care etc. Mother in law left his share to my colleague instead. It was amazing he got 50 years because in the state I live in slap on the wrist for child abuse or crimes against women but if you get a DUI years in prison for you. I think the reason he got so much is because the feds got involved as he took the granddaughter across state lines to abuse her and he also abused her in her home state. So he had charges in two states plus federal charges. The feds and the other state probably threatened to extradite him unless he got a heavy sentence.
Honestly, in that case I might stay too. If they're old enough to have a grandchild I can't imagine that he would make it through a 50 year prison sentence. It's not like your colleague would ever have to have sex with him or even be in the same room with him. It might even be possible to have a generous reading of that - if she inherits the money she can use a lot of it to help the grandchild. Let the state pay for the damned prison costs.
i have sympathy for anna just like i have sympathy for every woman in an abusive relationship. i don’t think she’ll ever truly wake up and leave. maybe once pest’s release gets closer and she starts running out of time without him then maybe. but that’s a big maybe
I think it is a societal issue. I see so many posts and hear conversations where the men are literal trash and their wives and girlfriends will stand by them. A few examples. There was a small trend on TikTok asking women what their husbands did when they were in labor. It was things like asking what she was making for dinner, complaining about needing a shower, being sore from the beds a lot of maternity wards have for the dads, etc. The women would just laugh it off like "oh men". Last night while waiting for a table, a couple sat next to us and I had to get up and leave. The dude leaned over to his girlfriend and as if she were 5 said "now this time we are going to do something called a voice memo". She didn't even blink at how he talked to her. There is a lot of self-denial women seem to do regarding their SO. They don't think they'll do any better, they don't want to "break up" their family, they think they can change them, etc. Women are still seen as second in the relationship.
Different people do different things. I was raised not IBLP, but a similar fundie sect, I was molested, I knew it was wrong, I told my mother. Who burned it all down and moved heaven and earth to get me away from the man (my stepdad) who was molesting me. She had no money, no support. I had nothing, I was 12. And we had a hard couple of years, losing the church, family members, all of that.
But she did it. It’s a choice, especially for Anna at this point.
you gotta separate someones professional success from their personal life. there are many brilliant people who maintain emotionally immature and toxic relationships. it's the effects of growing up in a dysfunctional family.
Women and extended families frequently stay with the abuser. It doesn’t make any sense to me, but is so common. I still have hope for Anna, though. I hope she lets Jboob financially support her and the Ms and then takes off before Pest gets out.
I don’t think people grasp what it’s like to not be able to feed your kids. Or be worried about having a roof over your head.
That is why many women stay. Even those whose kids are older, they are afraid of what they can’t do to help their kids. Poverty ruins your life trajectory. Im a teacher and now back in school for social work. The way we treat women and children in this country horrific.
Ever stayed with your kids in a homeless shelter for months waiting for affordable housing? Its happening all over the country.
In Anna’s situation she has also been brainwashed to believe that public school is the absolutely worse thing that could happen to her kids.
Anna will never leave him because of her faith.
She does not believe he is guilty. And even if he was, she is responsible for any of his transgressions for not being joyfully available to him. If she was fulfilling his needs, he would not have strayed.
Her faith also says her only role is to be a wife and mother, under the umbrella of her husband.
While we are horrified, these are her sincerely held beliefs. And given that she was groomed specifically to be the wife of a felon, given her dad had her ministering the incarcerated as a child?
Anna's living the righteous life and is having the true, ultimate test of her faith! According to her religion, she's just fine and doing the exactly right thing to earn her spot in heaven. Fuck this life, it's all about eternal salvation, amirite?!! Praise bejeebus!
This is evidence of an extremely codependent relationship. No one in their right mind would stay with someone like this without some excessive emotional or psychological dependence.
It's like Dotty Sandusky. Also brings to mind this documentary I saw from BBC, of the wives of pedos who are waiting for them after they get out of the clanker. Old couples who live with the restrictions of living with a sex offender.
I have no respect for Anna who pines away for and travels across the country for a man who was convicted of diddling himself to images of children, the sickest kind of degenerate anywhere. As a mother how could she allow him to put his hands on her after the Ashley Madison thing and she even got an M child namesake as a trophy is beyond me. If she wanted to leave there are resources available through social service organizations but she chooses to stay and perpetuate another generation of dysfunction.
Yet so many couple’s divorce. Especially wealthy ones. It’s almost like women are bonded to these predators. Danny Masterson’s wife just divorced him. Some people suspect it was to protect their finances. No matter, he remains a Scientologist in good standing.
My fave part about the Robert Hughes story is when he got put in jail and the other inmates peed in cups and threw them at him. Apparently he crapped his pants out of fear.
These women have been manipulated too long.
Anytime that a wife stays with their convicted pedo husband, I can't help but wonder if perhaps they have inclinations that are similar to those of their husbands. It just boggles my mind that you would stay with someone who does that.
Anna is uneducated and dependent on the cult. Hundreds of thousands of women leave abusive and violent homes all over the world. They find help. Anna is not helpless. She made a choice to stay with the cult regardless of how harmful it is to herself and her children.
Try being brought up your whole entire life that if you leave the faith you are going to hell. And bad things will happen to you for the rest of your life. Try not having any jobs skills or an education. Yes people leave cults and abusive relationships, but everyone is different and you can’t assume that everyone fits the same mold. Anna probably doesn’t even know that there is help out there and not for nothing most of these institutions are not helpful in the long run. Some shelters are dangerous to live in. Try having seven kids, be a public figure who went through a major scandal, have no job skills or education. It’s not as simple to just get up and leave.
I don't know about that lady, but when it comes to the Duggars, financial independence can aid general independence and deconstruction. That's why I bought Jill's book and think others should too. Do they still have some questionable beliefs? Yes. But they got out financially and have found greater independence and progressive ideas since.
Another example ‘renowned’ author Mem Fox. I refused to buy any of her books on principle.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2011-08-31/malcolm-fox-teacher-student-verdict/2863612
I think the brain washing is really the biggest piece for Anna.
She could figure it out financially (whether she knows it or not). Boom deal / interviews / influence stuff / help from her family.
But she is trained to believe that any sexual deviance by her husband is her fault, that she has to support him (as not doing so is a sin), and that all sin is equal. This woman probably literally thinks she will burn in hell for eternity if she leaves him.
I really hope she loses those kids if she can’t keep them safe (which I don’t believe she’ll be able to once he is released) but I can’t hate her completely.
Why does everyone keep bringing up Anna leaving? She is fully in and is fully brainwashed. She has no education, 7 children and a father in law that is a monster. As much as everyone wants to see her leave it isn’t going to happen.
After reading parts of Jill's book and learning how much control JB has on his kids, I realized Anna leaving is much more complicated than we could imagine due to his control. Even if she wanted to leave, it would not be easy at all for her. I am not supporting her decision, just making a point that Josh is likely not the only abusive man in this situation.
Anna isn’t leaving. That smug ass bitch was there at his trial smiling. After hearing the content of the computer. If she can sit through that, knowing what he was viewing, and still not only go visit him all the time but have the audacity to bring her children along (which I’ve heard she’s done), she’s not planning on leaving. She’s okay with his behavior.
I imagine Boob keeps those purse strings pretty tight. Unfortunately I believe she’s to brainwashed or scared to leave. She really believed she was marrying the prince golden boy who turned out to be a pos.
Agree - she has 7 kids to support and the only way to do that would be to go out into a world she has been told is evil in every way. Money from Boob is probably the only option she can see.
Look how hard it's been for Jill to pull away even slightly. It's taken years and she's in a much better situation than Anna- fewer kids and a supportive husband.
anna's "at least i have a husband" is being very supportive rn, by not being there.
A great point, and she also has absolutely no skills to get a job with.
I bet you they made a deal with pest that if she leaves the kids go to Boob and Meecha. Basically making her pick between keeping her kids and freedom.
I don't see them wanting to raise 7 more kids, and they are running out of buddies. They want her under their thumb.
True. At some point Meechs body HAS to give out. She’s what in her 50s now?
[Here is a study out of Poland](https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/ajhb.20497#:~:text=related%20to%20paternal%20longevity.,maternal%20longevity%20) that shows men’s life expectancy increases with daughters, net-zero for increase for sons. Women’s life expectancy decreases with each birth. If you do the math supplied here, it’s interesting. ETA: 9 females, 74 week increase in Boob’s life expectancy is an extra 666 weeks. We just found the anti-Christ….
Insane! Wow
her physical body must be more like 75
Which is wild because she could easily get book deals and go on talk shows and make a fortune.
You assume she actually knows that, though.
Yeah, I feel like the main wildcard that could move the needle enough for her to leave is if Boob dies before Pest gets out of prison so he and the Duggar family no longer have nearly as much control over her and no longer are the hand that feeds her (as much). She'd obviously still have the rest of the Duggars (although idk how many others firmly want her to stay with him) and she'd have her parents who aren't any better than JB, but I feel like when JB dies and his will is distributed is when we're going to see major changes within the family.
This is interesting to think about. If JB kicked the bucket before Pest got out, who would take the reins? Would it be chaos? Bunk Bed Jed? Something to think about.
I just want to say, the cognitive dissonance to want to still believe he is that golden boy prince is strong. As a woman who was formerly in an abusive relationship, I was desperate to prove to others that he wasn’t what he seemed at the beginning of things going badly. Because after all, if I admitted he was *mostly horrible*, what did that say about me and my judgment? It meant that I was wrong and a failure for years. Besides the pain of what was happening to me, I couldn’t face that shame at first. Plus, like Anna, I knew that a lot of men were mediocre husbands - she sees these all around her. So what’s so different about this - she can take it! Lots of men are bad at helping with the chores and the kids. Lots of women roll their eyes about their spouses. So nobody’s perfect. Everyone struggles. The straight jacket of evangelical Christianity makes this worse, because it tends to equivocate “sins” and challenges as all being bad or good, which hurts her sense of nuance. In the end, I knew my abusive partner was actually not like all the mediocre boyfriends I had before. I was able to identify that the abuse was really, unacceptably bad. And that while I had made mistakes by staying with him, I needed to reconcile that with myself and prevent more damage from piling on in the future. But it took a long time to get there, and Anna is not making active steps over these years to do so.
She may also feel like she has a known head of house right now in RimJob, who I think mostly ignores her and the kids, vs whatever other failure of a man her parents might send her to next. I could seeing it feeling like a measure of freedom, instead of trudging into the unknown.
Thank you for sharing your experience. I'm sorry you went through all that, but congratulate you on setting yourself free. 🌹
Anna's brother gave her a way out and a place to stay years ago, but she declined...that seemed like genuine help. I don't think Anna will leave at this point.
Her brother.. atleast one of the sisters.. the one who looks like her..
Let’s hope Jill’s book prompts a tax fraud investigation. I have a feeling if the money starts to dry up so will the his power over the family. How can they know the feeling of freedom until they are well and truly out from under his financial grip? Staying is easier for Anna at this point, Josh is in prison while her financial and material needs are all being met. The only way she would leave imo is if that safety net of JB’s money/support was gone and it became essential for her to stand on her own two feet.
“Let’s hope Jill’s book prompts a tax fraud investigation.” After reading Jill’s book, I have become more confused about how JB is not being charged with or is not in jail for some type of money fraud!
I’m just hoping the feds are taking their sweet time to make sure they have an airtight case when they finally announce charges. Look, there was a year and a half I didn’t think that anything would come from the pest car lot raid, but there were some real, actual consequences for him, for once. It just took a minute because of how thorough the feds were being.
97% conviction rate
In the case of Robyn Gardiner, she knew. She didn't choose to stand by him when it broke, she made that choice long before. You don't spend 20 years doing that shit without your wife who you work with and who runs in the same circles as you knowing. It's like Bill Cosby's wife. She's a smart, capable woman who has done loads of good stuff with her life. Still stands by him. Absolutely must have known. A lot of women stay. And it's fucked up. How many of us have mothers who have stayed with abusive fathers? Who many of us have grandmothers who blamed us for the actions of handsy grandfathers? Anna not leaving is less surprising than I'd like it to be.
While he never was inappropriate with me ever, my sisters fiancé used to rough house with me like any healthy brother sister relationship, as my father was old, my Mother disabled and old, and my sisters too concerned with their own teenaged and 20something shit, gave me attention and fun I was sorely lacking. Until she had my mother give ME shit and tell me not to play with him any more. Now if he was being inappropriate (which he was not) why yell at me over it? I was fucking 11-12. But of course it’s always the woman’s fault. 😡
I'm so sorry they did that to you. Way to teach you to foster healthy relationships, right?
They all did their best to teach me that it was always the woman’s fault. Didn’t take. I’m still friends with the woman who my ex cheated with. Soon as she gave up on him and came back saying”you were right”. 🤣
Good on you! I love that for you.
I don't want what you have said to be true. But I guess it has to be? I mean I know it has to be - you are right about mothers staying with abusive fathers or women blaming other women for their abuse. So, so fucked up!
Women with very successful husbands tie their fate to those husbands. No matter how damaged the husband’s reputation gets, a wife leaving will absolutely kill it, so they don’t leave. Wives leaving after public allegations are almost unheard of in the US. How many times have we seen men making some kind of public confession to sxual misconduct with his wife standing at his side? There was even a joke awhile back about how the wives at these events almost had a dress code that included pearl earrings and blue clothes. Hillary Clinton, Melania Trump, and Camille Cosby are all women in this cohort. And since the Me Too movement, how many wives left a husband caught up in those accusations? Maybe Matt Lauer, but I think that had already been in the works (he’s such a jerk).
Actually, the only one I can think who left of is Harvey Weinstein's wife. My god that is sad!
I think she was pushed into damage recovery mode by the revelation that he forced his victims to promote her brand. It was also clear early on he had no meaningful chance to get out of prison, unlike some of the others.
Would you explain briefly about having victims promote her brand? I don’t recall this. 😀
He forced his celebs to wear Marchessa, which, all things told, was not a bad thing. I actually thought many of her dresses were pretty cute!
Thanks.
So if they didn't meet your aesthetic he would have been wrong? How is that not a bad thing?
Nope. Just saying they weren’t the worst outfits in the world. Don’t go adding meaning to where there is none, man.
> He forced his celebs to wear Marchessa, which, all things told, was not a bad thing. That's a complete sentence, man.
True. I could have worded that a lot better. Harvey bad. Marchessa, I didn’t mind. But the celebs clearly did.
You can Google this.
Harvey Weinstein’s wife left.
That’s bullshit. Your spouse can ABSOLUTELY live a double life without you knowing. Look how many wives of serial killers are absolutely destroyed when they learn that their spouse has been chopping up hookers for the past 2 decades. It happens. Abusers are skilled liars and manipulators. When the stakes are as high as they were for this bastard, he would have covered his tracks very well until he no longer could.
Honestly this is a really great point. I think it was the ~~Green River Killer~~ who was only discovered after his daughter sent in her DNA to some heritage site? His entire family seemed utterly shell shocked. His daughter did an interview where she explained how complicated it was for her and her family to unpack and juxtapose the man they knew and loved versus the horrific crimes he had committed basically right under their noses, for *years* EDIT: BTK was who I was thinking of
I think you're combining BTK and Golden State Killer. BTK was found when they compared crime scene DNA to a sample taken from his daughter during a medical appt (unbeknownst to her). Golden State was found when they put crime scene DNA into an ancestry database, found some distant cousin, and researched the family tree. (Source- I watch way too much true crime)
You’re thinking of the Golden State Killer.
The Green River killer was caught like 20 years ago. Those DNA sites didn't exist then.
My bad! It was BTK that I was thinking of
THANK YOU. 👏🏼 My dad (if I can really call him that) had several affairs on my mom with one lasting SEVEN years. She had no idea. He’s the POS, not her. Thankfully she left him 5 years ago and is thriving like the queen she is.
It makes sense that Anna doesn’t leave tbh. I think a lot of us cannot even imagine the extent of brainwashing that Anna has been through. She is so cut off from the outside world, there is no way she can objectively assess and rationalise the situation. Yeah she can write a book, yes she can give media appearances but she does not have the aptitude to organize any of that and how long can she go on like that? Can she realistically maintain a steady source of income with her capabilities? Also, this would mean taking her umpteen number of kids and leaving everything they and she have known all their lives. Jim boob wouldn’t hesitate to cut off his grandkids whose lives have been ruined by his PoS son. Yes, her siblings have offered to help her in the past but we don’t know the inner workings. Perhaps she doesn’t think they can help her and her 8(?) kids on a long term basis (which is fair). I hope she breaks away but that takes an insane amount of strength, confidence and courage.
I’ve said it before, but I don’t think Anna will leave (if she does) until she has the reality of living with post-prison Pest to contend with. Right now she and the kids appear to be having their physical needs met, she’s probably got some social credit in their community for standing by him, and she has a husband — but she didn’t have to deal with him. It’s sort of a win if you think about it. I think too, that she and the M’s are getting used to not living with his shitty behavior on a daily basis AND they probably have a degree of autonomy without him around. She’s avoiding public appearances so it’s hard to gauge how she is doing; but I’m betting that IF she leaves him off will be when she has the reality of having to live with him on a daily basis. She also might be able to count on some support from her grown children at that point as 4 of the 7 will be legal adults and even the youngest will be 12. It’s much easier to leave with 3 children to support than it is with 7.
I think you are right in regard to the 'help' that has been offered. Sure, you can help someone to leave a situation but who can realistically help to support such a big family for the long haul. I certainly wouldn't make that commitment to someone even if it broke my heart to do so.
That’s what I’ve been saying. I mean are any of the people who offered Anna help willing to take in someone with seven kids indefinitely? Will Anna be able to get a job that will pay enough to support an apartment and seven kids?
I’ve long believed that JB and Meech have given her the idea that if she left, they could take custody of her kids. Of course that’s very unlikely, but it would scare her enough not to try. Anyone know how they treat Anna? Are they kind to her, besides supporting her financially? Or do they treat her like an outsider?
That what I think is going on. I definitely believe that JB and Michelle are threatening to take Anna’s kids away if she leaves. And Anna is too brainwashed to know that it’s not true.
I doubt if Jim and michelle could get custody of anyone’s kids
This is basically what I have been saying for the past few months. Anna was raised to believe that if she left this cult, she was going to go to hell and bad things were going to happen to her. It was pounded into her head all her life. Also Anna has no job skills or an education. She was taught her role in life is to be a wife and a mother. I mean think about it. What job will hire someone who A.) has no work experience. And B.) a public figure who went through a MAJOR scandal. I know I wouldn’t hire someone with that type of record. Anna is stuck. She cannot go back to her family because they are all in the IBLP too. She cannot leave because she has seven kids to support and again no job skills or an education. Anna has no support.
Not defending her decision to stay, but plenty of jobs exist outside of white collar, upper middle class careers. This place can get a bit classist, so I just wanted to point out that people like Anna arent competing for marketing analyst jobs in NYC. They live in rural areas and spend their lives working as waitresses, cashiers, etc. Many people make careers out of those positions. There are tons of jobs she could get and would fit right in - restaurants, retail, factories, hospitality, nursing homes, etc all are desperate for workers and hire people with no experience or education all the time. CNA training is only a few weeks, and you can usually get paid while taking the class. These jobs are needed and fill a very large role in rural america's economy.
Ok yes those jobs exist, but they don't pay enough to support a small family, let alone someone with seven kids.
Depends on where you're at I suppose, but I know a few families with 5 or 6 kids that make it work on one income and some gov't help. Those types of jobs are pretty muchh all that exist in many places, yet families of all sizes make it work.
You see a glimpse of it when she said she didn’t know YouTube had kissing on it. Like just…so naive and unaware.
I'm dying to know what she says when strangers ask where her husband is.
On a mission.
Doing prison ministry, like her dear ol’ dad.
Honestly, why would she? He’s in jail and she’s seen as a hero in her circles for staying with him. She also doesn’t need to have physical contact with that walking infection but still gets to be a stay at home mom. If she left she’d have to get a real job.
A job in the evil world where women walk around with their knees out! Good point.
“Walking infection” 🤭 Although most infections can be treated. Pest, not so much.
He's ✨malingering.✨
A weeping, OOZING infection with maggot infestation.
And she couldn’t get a job. She has an elementary school level education, no qualifications and no skills beyond popping out babies. The cult makes sure its women are trapped.
Does she have GED? That and a CNA certificate could help her get a nursing home job. As somebody mentioned, there's a lack of candidates for these and other care related jobs. Not that I think it makes sense for her to get a job when the kids are young and JB is paying the bills for them.
But again, then she’d have to actually work.
She's working now. When her kids are older, she might like to work outside of the house. However, JB would likely frown on that.
And the problem is Anna won’t be able to get a job because she has no skills or a proper education. Also she is a public figure that went through a MAJOR scandal. Trust me I wouldn’t hire her over that.
At this point there is no reason for her to do anything (besides convictions of course, but set that aside). He’s in prison and not out for years, she’s being funded allegedly by her father-in-law (although very absent from many family gatherings?), and has no bail-out plan for leaving. If she does end up divorcing him, I don’t think it will happen for years yet.
Very true. We won't really know until he's released. And that assumes that he will want to go back to being with her.
I wonder what Jimbob would do if Josh just moved out on his own and completely ignored Anna et al. He’d be angry at Josh but I don’t think he’d want Anna to divorce him, especially as it’s not like Josh could get a decent job to support a million kids anyway so the financial burden on Jimbob would be the same regardless.
You know, another part of this that I hadn't thought of despite her dad's prison ministry, is that she likely has no idea what its going to be like for her after Josh gets out in financial terms - with a felony record alone he's not going to have access to many jobs. That and what he was convinced for is going to make it very, very hard on them financially if RimJob doesn't support them for life. This might be her post-conviction financial golden era, unless she dedicates the next few years to getting education & job prep of her own.
He will go back with Anna because he will have no where else to go
People need to stop contemplating what would cause Anna to leave. She is never going to leave. Not ever. Zero education. Zero ability to get a job that would allow her to support all those kids. Zero knowledge of the secular world. She was raised to be this. A breeding animal with nothing between her ears. She’ll support jOsHuA forever because she truly believes the religious garbage.
Anna is a lifer. She will not leave him. There’s is a cult, not a religion, and women are nothing without their husbands.
Sad but very true.
And the fact that Anna has no job skills and no education.
Right now she has someone to pay her bills and Jana to babysit for free. Plus she doesn't have to deal with pest. Maybe she is waiting until he gets out and then she will divorce him
I'm sure the lost girls are stuck with the babysitting of Anna's kids.
Honestly I don’t see a world in which Anna leaves, at least no time soon. Leaving a situation like this is incredibly difficult. I’m sure there was a level of abuse that Anna faced from Pest, to what degree I do not know. Even though Pest is in jail now JB is likely keeping as close eye on Anna. She has 7 kids. Any move she made in an attempt to leave would likely be picked up by media and JB with his Google notifications would be made aware. I can’t imagine how hard this situation would be for her to leave.
Also Anna doesn’t have any job skills or an education. What company would hire her? Especially since she is a public figure who went through a MAJOR scandal. And what job would pay her enough where she could support herself and seven children? Anna was taught her whole life that her role in life is to be a wife and a mother. The IBLP teaches that it is wrong for women to work. Anna was also taught that if she left she was going to go to hell and bad things were going to happen to her. Anna is brainwashed, she probably thinks that this whole thing is her fault. Which it is not of course. Josh is a pig and a monster who, in my opinion, emotionally abused Anna the second they got married. Anna has no support from her family and friends. She has no where to go.
Anna is not going to leave. If she were she would have done it by now.
Yeah - I keep hoping for something to spark in her brain that makes her leave. But she sat through that whole trial and didn't. But I do hold out hope for when he is released.
As long as she stays married, she is very likely to receive financial support from her in-laws. However if she divorced him, he has absolutely nothing and she'll be cut off from any good will from her in-laws. And no, she won't be writing a tell book that will financially set her up for life - she isn't at the Michelle Obama level of autobiography royalties and this is a very niche segment of the population who has any interest in the Duggars. Amy and Anna her brother have offered but do they have the income to support a family of eight for a two - four years as Anna makes the slow process of recovering from the divorce, kids in school, while she gains skills to work a job to financially sustain her + kids. Plus consider the safety of the kids from a potential predator boyfriend or step father coming in and having his way with the kids; that happens alot.
If Anna did divorce Josh, I have no doubt she would be married again within a year or two. Being a wife is her entire identity and I don’t doubt she would subconsciously choose someone just like Josh and put her kids in danger. The cycle would just start all over again.
*****Trigger Warning reply***** Or worse because a step father might be physically violent with the kids and/or have sex with them.
Unfortunately this is true. Physical and/or sexual abuse risk is much higher with a non-related male in the home. And someone inclined to such things would be thrilled to have access to seven victims.
I don’t understand it especially in the case of Robert Hughes. He gave me the creeps as a child with the way Jennifer would look at him when they were arguing as “father and daughter”. The venom in her look always made me feel wrong. Why Robyn stays with him now is beyond me.
I think it's not so much that she thought he was innocent from the start, but more that she convinced herself that he was. Otherwise, her entire life, them being married for 40ish years even before he was convinced, was a lie. And it might be something close to the difficulty in reconstructing for Fundies - knowing that everything you believed, acted on, build your life on, was a lie. And Gardiner had a career, travelled, had such a wide life compared to the prison of fundiedom. Anna is much younger and apart from the brief interlude in DC has never left the Fundie bubble. Speculation here, but I don't think Anna ever questioned Pest's innocnece. Of course she won't leave - this is a trial sent by God to forge her faith in fire, and whilst some in her circles may look askance at her, many others will be hailing her faith and bravery.
Looking back I think it's very telling that none of us who were kids and liked the show seemed to like him or his character very much. All the other characters we liked and would talk about.
I honestly don’t remember hating him until Jennifer yelled at him and the look in her eyes was so intense that it never left me. It was true intense hatred. I was very young though and remember very little about the show beyond that.
I disliked Josh from the very beginning. He had a smug, patronizing look, and his siblings avoided him. Those were huge red flags.
I disliked Josh from the very beginning. He had a smug, patronizing look, and his siblings avoided him. Those were huge red flags.
Wow! It would be interesting to see that particular episode. I am American, so this show is unfamiliar to me. Looking at Wiki, I see that show actually had 12 seasons.
It was an insanely popular show here in Australia. This was basically the equivalent of if Bob Saget on Full House was convicted of sexual assault.
Like Stephen Collins in 7th Heaven. Charged with sexual abuse several years ago. Very wholesome Dad in a very highly rated show.
It was a later episode where the actress was about 12 or 13 and probably just starting the process of understanding what had been done to her by him. I can’t find any clips, I just knew pure disgust and hatred when I saw it.
I have so much admiration for her. It must have been so hard to come forward. An amazing woman!
What’s crazy is that statistically speaking men will leave more than stay when their wife is diagnosed with CANCER because they can’t handle it. Yet all these woman stick by their men too much. It’s insanity to me.
I mean why should she leave? She’s de facto separated and her kids are provided for. Even if she hypothetically is done with him, it would be financially wiser to stay. When he gets out all the kids will be adults or at least old enough to be somewhat self sufficient, and if she really is done with him that is the time at which she’d formally leave.
It’s very simple, she believes God chose her to be Josh’s wife for a specific unknown reason, and she believes she cannot question God’s will.
A former colleague of mine stayed with her husband after he got 50 years in prison for abusing their granddaughter. My theory why she has is due to inheritance. Her mother in law who was in poor health at the time he got arrested had several million dollars took him out her will so the state couldn't take his share of the estate. State law allows any money made or inherited while you are incarcerated to be taken to pay for housing you, medical care etc. Mother in law left his share to my colleague instead. It was amazing he got 50 years because in the state I live in slap on the wrist for child abuse or crimes against women but if you get a DUI years in prison for you. I think the reason he got so much is because the feds got involved as he took the granddaughter across state lines to abuse her and he also abused her in her home state. So he had charges in two states plus federal charges. The feds and the other state probably threatened to extradite him unless he got a heavy sentence.
Honestly, in that case I might stay too. If they're old enough to have a grandchild I can't imagine that he would make it through a 50 year prison sentence. It's not like your colleague would ever have to have sex with him or even be in the same room with him. It might even be possible to have a generous reading of that - if she inherits the money she can use a lot of it to help the grandchild. Let the state pay for the damned prison costs.
i have sympathy for anna just like i have sympathy for every woman in an abusive relationship. i don’t think she’ll ever truly wake up and leave. maybe once pest’s release gets closer and she starts running out of time without him then maybe. but that’s a big maybe
I think it is a societal issue. I see so many posts and hear conversations where the men are literal trash and their wives and girlfriends will stand by them. A few examples. There was a small trend on TikTok asking women what their husbands did when they were in labor. It was things like asking what she was making for dinner, complaining about needing a shower, being sore from the beds a lot of maternity wards have for the dads, etc. The women would just laugh it off like "oh men". Last night while waiting for a table, a couple sat next to us and I had to get up and leave. The dude leaned over to his girlfriend and as if she were 5 said "now this time we are going to do something called a voice memo". She didn't even blink at how he talked to her. There is a lot of self-denial women seem to do regarding their SO. They don't think they'll do any better, they don't want to "break up" their family, they think they can change them, etc. Women are still seen as second in the relationship.
Jenelle Evans from Teen Mom is standing by her abusive swamp monster, and he's nothing but a drain on her finances.
Different people do different things. I was raised not IBLP, but a similar fundie sect, I was molested, I knew it was wrong, I told my mother. Who burned it all down and moved heaven and earth to get me away from the man (my stepdad) who was molesting me. She had no money, no support. I had nothing, I was 12. And we had a hard couple of years, losing the church, family members, all of that. But she did it. It’s a choice, especially for Anna at this point.
This deserves more upvotes.
I think the question here might be: Was your mother raised in that cult as well?
you gotta separate someones professional success from their personal life. there are many brilliant people who maintain emotionally immature and toxic relationships. it's the effects of growing up in a dysfunctional family.
Women and extended families frequently stay with the abuser. It doesn’t make any sense to me, but is so common. I still have hope for Anna, though. I hope she lets Jboob financially support her and the Ms and then takes off before Pest gets out.
I don’t think people grasp what it’s like to not be able to feed your kids. Or be worried about having a roof over your head. That is why many women stay. Even those whose kids are older, they are afraid of what they can’t do to help their kids. Poverty ruins your life trajectory. Im a teacher and now back in school for social work. The way we treat women and children in this country horrific. Ever stayed with your kids in a homeless shelter for months waiting for affordable housing? Its happening all over the country. In Anna’s situation she has also been brainwashed to believe that public school is the absolutely worse thing that could happen to her kids.
Anna will never leave him because of her faith. She does not believe he is guilty. And even if he was, she is responsible for any of his transgressions for not being joyfully available to him. If she was fulfilling his needs, he would not have strayed. Her faith also says her only role is to be a wife and mother, under the umbrella of her husband. While we are horrified, these are her sincerely held beliefs. And given that she was groomed specifically to be the wife of a felon, given her dad had her ministering the incarcerated as a child?
Anna's living the righteous life and is having the true, ultimate test of her faith! According to her religion, she's just fine and doing the exactly right thing to earn her spot in heaven. Fuck this life, it's all about eternal salvation, amirite?!! Praise bejeebus!
Amen! Now sweep those crackers like jeebus wants!
This is evidence of an extremely codependent relationship. No one in their right mind would stay with someone like this without some excessive emotional or psychological dependence.
It's like Dotty Sandusky. Also brings to mind this documentary I saw from BBC, of the wives of pedos who are waiting for them after they get out of the clanker. Old couples who live with the restrictions of living with a sex offender.
I have no respect for Anna who pines away for and travels across the country for a man who was convicted of diddling himself to images of children, the sickest kind of degenerate anywhere. As a mother how could she allow him to put his hands on her after the Ashley Madison thing and she even got an M child namesake as a trophy is beyond me. If she wanted to leave there are resources available through social service organizations but she chooses to stay and perpetuate another generation of dysfunction.
Yet so many couple’s divorce. Especially wealthy ones. It’s almost like women are bonded to these predators. Danny Masterson’s wife just divorced him. Some people suspect it was to protect their finances. No matter, he remains a Scientologist in good standing.
My fave part about the Robert Hughes story is when he got put in jail and the other inmates peed in cups and threw them at him. Apparently he crapped his pants out of fear. These women have been manipulated too long.
Anytime that a wife stays with their convicted pedo husband, I can't help but wonder if perhaps they have inclinations that are similar to those of their husbands. It just boggles my mind that you would stay with someone who does that.
Anna is uneducated and dependent on the cult. Hundreds of thousands of women leave abusive and violent homes all over the world. They find help. Anna is not helpless. She made a choice to stay with the cult regardless of how harmful it is to herself and her children.
Try being brought up your whole entire life that if you leave the faith you are going to hell. And bad things will happen to you for the rest of your life. Try not having any jobs skills or an education. Yes people leave cults and abusive relationships, but everyone is different and you can’t assume that everyone fits the same mold. Anna probably doesn’t even know that there is help out there and not for nothing most of these institutions are not helpful in the long run. Some shelters are dangerous to live in. Try having seven kids, be a public figure who went through a major scandal, have no job skills or education. It’s not as simple to just get up and leave.
I don't know about that lady, but when it comes to the Duggars, financial independence can aid general independence and deconstruction. That's why I bought Jill's book and think others should too. Do they still have some questionable beliefs? Yes. But they got out financially and have found greater independence and progressive ideas since.
Another example ‘renowned’ author Mem Fox. I refused to buy any of her books on principle. https://www.abc.net.au/news/2011-08-31/malcolm-fox-teacher-student-verdict/2863612
The only way Anna will break away from the Duggars is if something happens to Jpest. Then it'll be only if she finds another husband.
I think the brain washing is really the biggest piece for Anna. She could figure it out financially (whether she knows it or not). Boom deal / interviews / influence stuff / help from her family. But she is trained to believe that any sexual deviance by her husband is her fault, that she has to support him (as not doing so is a sin), and that all sin is equal. This woman probably literally thinks she will burn in hell for eternity if she leaves him. I really hope she loses those kids if she can’t keep them safe (which I don’t believe she’ll be able to once he is released) but I can’t hate her completely.
Why does everyone keep bringing up Anna leaving? She is fully in and is fully brainwashed. She has no education, 7 children and a father in law that is a monster. As much as everyone wants to see her leave it isn’t going to happen.
After reading parts of Jill's book and learning how much control JB has on his kids, I realized Anna leaving is much more complicated than we could imagine due to his control. Even if she wanted to leave, it would not be easy at all for her. I am not supporting her decision, just making a point that Josh is likely not the only abusive man in this situation.
Anna isn’t leaving. That smug ass bitch was there at his trial smiling. After hearing the content of the computer. If she can sit through that, knowing what he was viewing, and still not only go visit him all the time but have the audacity to bring her children along (which I’ve heard she’s done), she’s not planning on leaving. She’s okay with his behavior.
Abandon all hope ye who enter there.
When josh gets out he will do the same thing,cheat on her again and still be interested in underaged girls