On May 21, it will be two years since the world learned that Josh Duggar molested five young girls, four of whom were his sisters.
The actual crimes took place several years earlier, of course, but Josh’s parents assisted him in avoiding prosecution and keeping his predatory ways under wraps.
At the time, it was widely believed that the Duggars’ stint as reality television stars had come to an end.
Surely, it was thought, no public figures could recover from such a revolting scandal, and for a time, it seemed that the public was right.
Advertisers began cutting ties with TLC en masse, and eventually the network read the writing on the wall and canceled 19 Kids and Counting, the show that made the Duggars famous.
Amazingly, however, the Duggar PR machine kept on churning, and between the family’s tireless efforts and the cultish devotion of their most die hard fans, Jim Bob Duggar – the Kris Jenner of the Bible Belt – was eventually able to finagle a second series out of the network.
Counting On premiered in March of 2016 on TLC, and this time around, the Duggars were bound by a new set of guidelines and restrictions:
The network reportedly demanded that the show focus solely on the lives of the eldest Duggar daughters with no appearances by Jim Bob and Michelle.
(That rule was violated almost immediately.)
Most importantly, of course, TLC execs demanded that Josh Duggar never appear on the series.
The family seemed to recognize the necessity of that rule, and they’ve gone to awkward lengths to keep Josh off camera.
But the 29-year-old sexual predator still makes appearances on the Duggar family’s official Facebook page, and one recent throwback photo has prompted some troubling reactions from Counting On fanatics:
The image is a “throwback” to 2003, around the time when Josh was subjecting his young sisters to his revolting advances.
Bizarrely, it seemed to make some fans of the family nostalgic:
“What a great picture!! What a great tree limb too!! It would be nice to see a new one!! Love you guys and hope to see the WHOLE family back on TV soon!!” commented one fan.
“Miss the WHOLE family!” wrote another.
The implication is quite clear, of course.
Obviously, there’s a contingent of fans who believe the punishment of not being a television star anymore is too harsh for the crime of serial child molestation.
Thankfully, however, there are those who recognize the severity of Josh’s misconduct and remain vocal in their belief that he and his parents got off much, much too easy:
“I was like ‘oh nice photo’ and then I realized what those poor girls were probably going through and it started making me sick,” wrote one follower.
“Back when they were getting touched over the clothes,” echoed another, referring to the Duggars’ argument that Josh’s crimes were less severe as he only groped his sisters “over the clothes.”
It’s astonishing that the family has been given another chance at stardom after one of the most repugnant scandals in television history went public.
What’s equally shocking as that there are many out there who believe Josh is the victim here.
