What to Know
By now, there isn’t much that Josh Duggar can do to surprise anyone. But when a clip from 19 Kids and Counting resurfaced on Reddit, people couldn’t help but stop and consider just how creepy Josh was, even back then. In retrospect, of course, people know that he was found guilty of charges related to child sexual abuse material and sentences to more than 10 years in federal prison.
But with that in mind, old scenes from the former TLC show take on a different meaning in some ways. When Josh talks about wife Anna Duggar, it’s hard not to try and read between the lines. And in the clip, when he mentions his younger sisters and even taunts one of them for being above board where behavior is concerned, those are some icky moments involving the eldest Duggar son.
Josh Duggar’s behavior in ’19 Kids and Counting’ creeped people out.
@itsrowsdower Shut up Josh #duggarsnark #duggartiktok #duggartok #19kidsandcountingclips #joshduggar #joshduggarcringe ♬ original sound – Itsrowsdower
In the clip posted on Reddit, Josh talks to producers about his younger sister Jill Duggar being something of a tattletale to “tell Mother” when one of the kids stepped out of line. His snark is very clear and, given the fact that Jill is one of the sisters who came out to admit that she was one of his victims as a child, it’s chilling.
“When we would do things together and doing activities, I remember Jill being the one that would you know, kind of always make sure we were sharing and that we were being kind, and then she was quick to go and tell Mother if there was something that wasn’t quite lining up,” he says. “And so normally, that involved me then being talked to and making sure that I was, you know, doing what was right.”
Knowing what we know now about the Duggar family admitting to Josh inappropriately touching his sisters and an unnamed family friend who was also a child at the time, his comments about Jill and snarky way he talks about Jill telling on him to their mom Michelle Duggar is even more disgusting.
“This one still infuriates me,” a user commented on the Reddit thread. “This and the making jokes about siblings dating and being from Arkansas. So sinister and illustrative of his complete lack of conscience.”
Another proud Duggar snarker wrote, “Josh has always given me creepy vibes even before the scandals came out. Something just wasn’t right about him from the very beginning. Thank goodness he was exposed.”
Some think he got a sick “thrill” from speaking about his sisters on-camera.
Josh is considered by many to be Jim Bob Duggar and Michelle’s golden child. He is the oldest, and he got married and started a family before anyone else. Whether or not Jim Bob and Michelle still feel that way, or if they ever did, isn’t totally clear. But people are still reeling from seeing that old clip, given that we all know who this alleged golden child is now.
“I think Josh got a thrill from talking SO CLOSE on camera about the incidents with his sisters, knowing he got away with it,” a Redditor commented on the thread about the clip. “I’m glad he was eventually outed, though I well and truly hate his sisters bore the brunt of the backlash.”
Another user referenced specific parts of the clip to drive that point home. “The way he emphasized JILL and MOTHER and ‘doing what was right’ and him getting ‘a talking to.’ He was all over telling off on himself, with double speak. This is chilling.”
The clip even shows a shot of him around the time he is believed to have assaulted his sisters.
In a clip of Josh shown in the clip from 19 Kids and Counting, he is much younger and has a shaved head. This is believed to be when he went to Alert Academy for boys, or when he was sent away following his admission of molesting four of his sisters and a fifth unnamed victim. The shaved head gives this away as, per longtime followers of the Duggars, having his head shaved was one form of punishment.
That lends even more creepiness to the clip, because it serves as a reminder of what Josh admitted to as a teenager long before he made other terrible decisions that he either admitted to or was convicted of. Basically, if there is a 19 Kids and Counting clip that features Josh, it’s just impossible to stomach watching it now, in hindsight.
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