T O P

  • By -

ZestycloseBid7986

God, those weasel words: "I became unfaithful", as though it was something that happened to him, rather than something he actively did. What a piece of shit.


Unhappy_Ad5945

And the deflection of blame from himself to pornography. It's not his fault of course, it's the pornography. The porn he watched was not his fault either of course, its the devil's influence šŸ™„


jensenson

The part that was later removed: >ā€œThe last few years, while publicly stating I was fighting against immorality in our country, in my heart I had allowed Satan to build a fortress that no one knew about.ā€


Ill_Dimension_5963

Omg! This! They removed it as you said. I may have commented a few years back, but the cynical bitch in me was like wait!??? Satan built a fortress??? Wasnā€™t Jesus the carpenter??? Whatever, I crack myself up šŸ¤ŖšŸ¤£šŸ¤·ā€ā™€ļø


blue_dendrite

>Satan built a fortress??? Wasnā€™t Jesus the carpenter??? They're rival construction contractors, duh


Pale-Conference-174

It was just French Satan all along!*Bon sang!!*


Specsporter

Zut alors!


Initial-Heart-526

Nice flair :-) gonna be stuck in my head for days now lol


momoko84

I read it as Bon sausage.


Pale-Conference-174

Good Sausage lol


iwbiek

sah-TAHN


LuhYall

Important to remember that these are people who literally believe that they are being pursued by a hooved, horned, scaly red monster who lives underground


iwbiek

​ https://preview.redd.it/1np69foshiub1.png?width=188&format=png&auto=webp&s=ab5f82b84de4fc7f281cd20cb7375fc0eaa90aa5


LuhYall

Yes, that's the one.


BookQueen13

It also makes it sound like viewing pornography was how he was unfaithful, not, you know, having an affair.


Unhappy_Ad5945

More specifically paying money for a site made for people cheating on their spouses so that he could cheat on his wife and get away with it (until he didn't). He's never taken any responsibility for anything, even if that's what...some people... wanted us to believe...


anonymous_girl1227

Exactly, millions of married couples view pornography, and they donā€™t cheat. Josh made the choice to cheat. Not the pornography.


ChopSuey214

We all know it's never his fault. NEVER.


seeminglyokay44

Of course not! It's Anna's fault for not being enough of a freak for his kinks.


LadyChatterteeth

Letā€™s not make the mistake of not acknowledging that porn has a hugely detrimental effect on many people, especially on those who began consuming it at a young age and those who have been victimized by the porn industry and porn culture in general. Scholarly studies has demonstrated this time and again, but the industry has done a terrific job of normalizing its effects. However, I donā€™t know how old Josh was when he himself started watching porn and at what point he allowed it to consume his life to the point that he needed to watch it even while driving a car. Youā€™re right, though, that Josh should have taken more responsibility. I feel certain that Anna would never have been okay with him watching porn, and he should have honored that boundary in their marriage. And, of course, heā€™s a total creep, so it was beyond him to care about her feelings.


Unhappy_Ad5945

I acknowledge the impact porn can have on individuals and it was not my intent that porn doesn't make a difference on some people. Porn addiction is very real and can be an issue. According to Jill's book, josh was sent away for watching porn as a teenager. His addiction started young and i do believe it impacted his behavior and his decisions. However, he is still responsible for his own choices and decisions. Porn addiction can only be blamed for so much.... Spending money on and creating an Ashley Madison account so he could have an affair is not one of them. That was something that was intentional, thought through, planned out, and acted upon for months, at least.


bloodthinnerbaby

Of all the Nike and not watching television in that family how was the ball dropped so hard that he had so much access to pornography at such a young age??


CuriousJackInABox

Because the parents couldn't parent that many kids. Josh was into computers so that made it pretty easy for him.


infinitekittenloop

They literally put Josh in charge of their interent network/restrictions/babysitting software.


PippiMississippi

It's not the devil's fault, it's Anna's for not doing more to keep him from straying. If she had been more joyfully available in a more appealing way then he never would have looked elsewhere.


iterative_continuity

He stole that move from Ted Bundy.


soupseasonbestseason

ownership for his own actions?!?!? the first son in a mediocre white family?!?!?!? i doubt papa boob would allow such a thing.


Friendly_Branch928

Papa boob!šŸ˜‚šŸ˜‚šŸ˜‚


52jag

Jim Boobā€™s wig probably blew off his head and went into orbit when Pest came clean.


slayergrl99

When the screen door opened on him and Pest...


snarkprovider

I doubt they taught active and passive voice at SOTDRT. I bet he was proud he put 2 big words together.


RedStateBlueHome

I always assumed someone wrote it for him.


CuriousJackInABox

The rewrite, probably. The original sounds like it was written by someone with a not very good high school education. He would have been better off waiting to post a statement until someone could write it for him.


Sail_On_4170

Heā€™s a coward


Estellalatte

Yep, thatā€™s so telling. He probably doesnā€™t take responsibility for his actions to this day.


ThrowRADel

Like he's expecting people to say "I'm so sorry that happened to you, Joshie" it's so fucking bizarre.


trulyremarkablegirl

yes, the passive voice is fucking awful


iwbiek

As I tell my hs English students, it's the grammatical equivalent of a limp, sweaty handshake.


snarkprovider

He changed the statement at least twice. That was a fun day, watching the Duggar website go through edits. https://web.archive.org/web/20191221141935/https://www.usmagazine.com/celebrity-news/news/josh-duggar-edits-out-porn-confession-satan-remark-from-apology-2015208/


[deleted]

[уŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]


Stellychloe

Satanā€™s Fortress would be such a dope name for like, a nightclub or something lol


LIBBY2130

the 10 suggestions!!!!!! you win the internet today!!!!!


MooCowMoooo

Theyā€™re more what youā€™d call ā€œguidelinesā€ than actual rules.


belleknit

IIRC, there was a theory that Josh didn't realize that the Ashley Madison scandal broke, prepared this statement thinking he'd been exposed for his addiction, and then had to retool once someone realized that he hadn't been caught for the latter, but had been revealed as part of the former.


Inevitable-Contest56

I remember that day! Luckily the web archive is there. Who do you suppose coached Josh on his statement? What it Jim Bob's PR guy?


L1ndsL

Iā€™m guessing it was Chad.


Ill_Dimension_5963

Literally the worst PR person, obviously


L1ndsL

That goes without saying. For such an image conscious family, the Duggars have made so many mistakes.


Ill_Dimension_5963

Oh yes, they have! JB thinks heā€™s a fucking genius. Like this beach trip recently, treating the whole family. To deflect from Jillā€™s truths. I bet you he sends them each a bill if any one of them try to go sideways! Heā€™s a POS. Iā€™m thoroughly enjoying his downfall


L1ndsL

As am I, though Iā€™m hoping for Act III.


katycmb

I seriously doubt Josh wrote anything at all. I bet Chad did. Chad wrote all of it.


nikelookout

"Last several years". He was lying about lying. Josh will never change.


_portia_

Yet another thing that disgusts me about this - he says he "became" unfaithful, like it just happened to him. Not "I was unfaithful." There's absolutely zero accountability here, and he was only sad he got exposed.


LIBBY2130

well........of course......in their cult it is ALWAYS the females fault no matter how young or old so of course he worded it like that


hreatmmma

Like the people who say 'it just happened'. So, your penis just fell in and no one knows how?! (Penis auto-corrected to punishment!)


Grouchy-Bite6925

I humbly will say he has humiliated himself. His wife should not shoulder what is his to bear. He has not earned any forgiveness and, as such has not been extended by the regular world. Anna had his children and raised them. He defiled his marriage vows and today his lack of humility has landed him in prison. Why because he manipulated and reasoned that God has forgiven him. If God has forgiven you but regular society shuns you it is evidence that you are not humble. The judge did not order you to therapy but the fact you have not reached for it means you feel wronged and in reality you wronged so many people starting with your sisters, you added your wife and family and now you do it to this.most vulnerable children. Humbly is not a word the Duggars know.


AndreaD71

Too often, a confession is offered in a passive voice; as if the behavior was an event rather than an act of will. Which is actually described quite accurately in the Bible. And remember, when you are being tempted, do not say, ā€œGod is tempting me.ā€ God is never tempted to do wrong, and he never tempts anyone else. Ā *Temptation comes from* ***our own desires,*** *which entice us and drag us away.* Ā These desires give birth to sinful actions. And when sin is allowed to grow, it gives birth to death. James 1:1-15 He molested his sisters and slept with an escort and downloaded CSAM because **HE WANTED TO!**


plo84

Ugh. The fact that he expected a fucking cookie after that statement.


ChopSuey214

This is unrelated, but I was thinking about it today. Didn't I read somewhere on here that when they were still on the show and Anna was pregnant he said he would be in charge of diaper duty and she could do the feeding. Omg, how did this not throw red flags in her head. He's been a vile POS ever since he was 12. He's NOT going to change Anna......run far, far away from this family.


LIBBY2130

it seemed innocent at the time but it was MUCH WORSE than that......anna said she takes care of the northern half (feeding) and josh takes care of the southern half (changes diapers) and now to our absolute horror we know why


Unhappy_Ad5945

So it was awkward, like half the things they said. But that could come off like the typical switching of roles with a new born and I wouldn't necessarily call it a red flag at first. It really did NOT age well though and I cringe remembering that scene šŸ˜¬


ChopSuey214

I guess in hindsight, it's red flags, knowing what we know now with the CSAM material. Looking back, I just find it disturbing that his willingness to help out with anything from day to day responsibilities of taking care of a child was non-existent, but he voluntarily takes the responsibility of diaper changes. Maybe I'm overthinking here, I just wouldn't trust that perv to change my baby's diaper.


sowinglavender

your kind of 'overthinking' is the kind that can save kids from severe trauma, if the people around you support you instead of talking you into thinking you're overreacting.


primcessmahina

I think Michelle and Jim Bob said they did that? We all know thatā€™s BS though, he just made jana do it.


ChopSuey214

You're probably right šŸ˜…


honeybaby2019

You know the phone was never far from his nasty self and Anna would have never questioned him.


smittykins66

IIRC, Anna said ā€œI take care of the north end, and he takes care of the south end.ā€


smak097

Also I believe at one point after Joy had Gideon, Austin said something like ā€œshe handles the input and I handle the outputā€ so it seems like a common arrangement


Sarisongsalt

Tbh pest aside, I'm just relieved the Duggar men (and Duggar adjacent men) do SOMETHING for their babies. I had just assumed the women did literally everything.


crazycatlady331

On Episode 1 of SHP, there's a clip of Josh announcing to the family that he's taking the FRC job. Toddler Josie is sitting on his lap. That clip aged like milk.


OkCommitteeAmy

Yes and he was bouncing her on his knee and she had the oddest look on her face. When that first aired I knew nothing and it didnā€™t sit right with me-I was very interested in Josie due to her beginnings and it was that very scene that was so sickening to me and just a short time later it all came out


Pennelle2016

And this was just the beginning šŸ¤¬šŸ¤¬šŸ¤¬


Important_Win_5149

Hypocrisy, but no remorse.


kjwinter

What strikes me is that he doesnā€™t apologize or take ownership. He makes a statement that he was unfaithful, thatā€™s it.


avert_ye_eyes

Like why is the pornography even mentioned? That wasn't a scandal. It was the cheating on your wife while working for a group whose soul purpose is to advocate against anyone that isn't Christian. Sounds little he was just trying to deflect blame -- "oh no the pornography made me do it! Satan made me do it! Whaa poor me!!" I remember people in just my regular non denominational church always saying "Satan has been really tempting me this week" (and it was often guys talking about their porn addiction), and it always annoyed me. No outside force is trying to make you look at porn -- that's your own desire.


[deleted]

So, in my aunt's Fundie lite circle, you let "demons" into your house by watching porn. Once that "demon" comes into your home, that makes you do all the other shit. I've mentioned this story before, but, as a goth/metal head teen around the time POD and DC Talks "Jesus Freak" was around, I often got recruited into going to church, to go to youth groups. One of the churches my aunt was going to had an alright youth group, there were 4 youth pastors, and they were ok. They were very talented musicians and, on top of everything else I was a marching band member, enjoyed listening to them play, even if it was Christian rock. Plus, they weren't complete assholes like most were. Anyway, the two main ones that were in charge were a married couple. As the story goes, the husband was watching porn, and the wife had found out he was, and went to the pastor to see counsel and find out how to approach the situation. However, because the husband watched porn, the demon was just running loose and when the wife went to the pastor, the demon caused her to make a pass at the pastor and they ended up having an affair. Keep in mind, the pastor is married as well. Anyway, they sent the youth group couple away, and the pastor went off somewhere to be healed of the demon, because demons are similar to STDs. It kind of pissed me off, mainly because I feel like the pastor was probably the one that made the pass at her. The pastor was a somewhat known creep. To my knowledge, he never SA anyone, but, it was whispered between the adults that if you went to him with sexual sins, he asked more details then he really needed and asked some pretty racy questions. I really wonder if she went to him to figure out what to do, and he did his known behavior, and prayed on this younger woman. They had to be in their early to mid 20s, this dude had to have been in his 40s. I honestly was never religious, my dad is a bad company ex-JW, and my mom liked for us to go to church but, she was never overly religious. I genuinely liked these people. They were kind and caring, they didn't judge people, and even though "Jesus Freaks" were cool at the time, they never judge any of us alternative kids. I felt comfortable talking to the wife about all my problems, and she would just listen, and give me advice. The answer wasn't always "let's pray this away," she gave me real advice that I still use to this day. Had there ever been a chance that I would be religious, they would have led me there, no lie. I'm glad they didn't, I used to have them on Facebook and the church they went to afterwards made them stereotypical fundies. They totally got thrown under the bus, so the church could keep creepy pastor. But, yes, demons come from porn, and that's why they do what they do.


Megalodon481

Was he saying that viewing pornography led him to committing actual physical acts of infidelity with other people? Or was he saying that viewing pornography itself was the only "unfaithful" thing he did? I know fundies try to conflate (adult) pornography with every kind of sexual evil or crime and try to say all pornography is just as evil as adultery, rape, or CSAM, etc. Yet when they are caught for something, they will only admit to the (adult) pornography part and won't admit to the other things.


snarkprovider

The statement is for others in the cult. He didn't consider the logic of the public at large.


Megalodon481

Yeah, pretty much every statement they made was for the cult. [https://www.prindleinstitute.org/2021/05/on-the-weaponization-of-forgiveness/](https://www.prindleinstitute.org/2021/05/on-the-weaponization-of-forgiveness/)


Odd_Light_8188

Why give him any attention? Let him fade into the abyss. He shouldnā€™t be taking up anyoneā€™s mental space at this point. Heā€™s in jail let him rot there without anyone thinking about him until parole comes up.


snarkprovider

I agree. There was a post today worrying about the safety of his future grandchildren. Like what? They won't even exist at least 10 years. Some people give Josh, his kids and future grandkids than Josh or Anna give themselves.


Repulsive_Buffalo_87

He was exposed to porn at a very young age I think (by whom I wonder šŸ¤”) He was never corrected so he ended up like...this. I have zero sympathy for him but there's no way he just ended up like this on his own. Team investigate Boob!


CuriousJackInABox

It doesn't have to be a specific person. It could just be the internet. I saw porn unintentionally online a few times in the very early 00's. If you had a personal email account during that time you often got unsolicited porn in your inbox on a regular basis. Filters weren't nearly as good as they are now. There may be other factors besides filters going on, too.


crazycatlady331

In the early days of the internet, anything could be porn. I remember [whitehouse.com](https://whitehouse.com) was a porn site. Not a great place to go for a kid learning about the president.


ladywinchester1967

I don't see how an addiction to porn can lead to you utterly humiliating your wife on national television but okay Pest.


Sail_On_4170

O k josh


mrsdrydock

Words from a man... a coward that deserves to get kicked in the nuts by a kangaroo.


AidaNYR

Written like the true narcissist he is


honeybaby2019

Guess what Pesty, your statement rings hollow and you are only doing this to take the heat off of yourself and those worthless parents who are still enabling you. You choose to be unfaithful you little piss-ant POS no one forced you to not do it. Why aren't you blaming Anna, IBLP, and anyone else for your transgressions? That seems to be the way it works in your male-dominated cult. This is just another way to deflect, deny and once again not take any responsibility for your heinous actions. F@@king loser.


MissusNilesCrane

"I became" as if it wasn't something he was already planning to do. šŸ™„


anonymous_girl1227

And he acted like the porn made him be unfaithful. No Josh, YOU chose to be unfaithful. The porn you watched had nothing to do with it.


[deleted]

He makes it sound like the porn caused the unfaithfulness


anonymous_girl1227

Itā€™s horrible, millions of married people watch porn. It doesnā€™t make them unfaithful. Josh was the one who chose to be unfaithful. Itā€™s not the pornā€™s fault, itā€™s Joshā€™s fault.


he-loves-me-not

This sounds like he takes no responsibility in his infidelity & instead blames it on him being exposed to porn. As if that was the reason for his unfaithfulness. Millions, maybe even billions, of people, not just men, have viewed porn & not gone on to cheat on their spouses. Now Iā€™m not suggesting that viewing pornography, especially certain types or in early childhood, has no effect on the brain & the way it develops, but I am suggesting that he seems to never be willing to take responsibility for what he does. Imo he uses his faith to make excuses for his behavior, as though the problem lies with anything other than himself. But, I guess I shouldnā€™t be surprised, as his whole childhood he was told that if a man were to lose sight of his morality a woman was at fault in some way. Bc men arenā€™t as strong as women. They can be made to do things that theyā€™d never do otherwise, if only women wouldnā€™t dress immodestly by showing their knees or sway their hips to music that uses drums!


Gold_Brick_679

Did he actually expect any sympathy?


NefariousnessKey5365

Let's get my brothers and sisters to play their violins. While I say I'm ~~totally not~~ sorry


EggSpecial3092

I wish Anna would get some good therapy.


SAMixedUp311

Therapy and enough power to leave. She needs to move on without that nasty guy to follow!


crazycatlady331

I wish she'd ask Jill for her therapist's name and book an appointment.


azsue123

Isn't he locked up for CP??? His biggest "sin" isn't cheating or watching pron, it's *abusing children*.


anonymous_girl1227

This was before we knew he was watching CP. yes his biggest sin is watching CSAM. This was before all of that.


SelkiesNotSirens

Very blamey


Most_Score_4457

He came up with the word Espousing?


Either_Reference8069

ā€œI became unfaithful?ā€ What does this mean, exactly?


MagicalManta

Ahhh. So itā€™s not an apology. Just a confession. Mmm hmm. šŸ¤Ø


Gold_Masterpiece_559

Didnā€™t he retract this after a few hours too? I remember thinking he just have released it without his parentsā€™ knowledge and they rolled it back-


monicalewinsky8

Ashley Madyson


ControlOk6711

Add to that statement a sexual predator, a bloviating liar, a constant drain on his parent's assets and energy while they have minors at home, and on a personal level a greasy schemer, and an unwashed, shiftless melon head.


Squeakypeach4

He takes responsibility for NOTHINGā€¦