Amazingly, it's getting on three months again since my last post. I'm working on getting started on the next one, but first I should update my readers on what I wrote about in this post.
When the news first broke in a big way about Josh Duggar's criminal past (it had been known to Duggar followers for years, just not in the detail that has now emerged), I took Josh's word for it that he was rehabilitated. But no--thanks to the Ashley Madison hackers--we now know that the pornography addiction that Josh picked up through his political activity as a teenager has kept a grip on him ever since, and he has gone so far as to act out his fantasies with a number of prostitutes. He may have gotten his start with his own sisters, but he has gone on to less accessible prey, never having gained control over his sexual appetites.
Several questions arise. One, can a sexual predator EVER be cured? Josh Duggar stands as evidence that a professed cure can be anything but. He's been in private rehab since August, but will it take this time? One thing is for sure, no Christian advocacy agency has any business hiring him as an executive.
Another question: does severely limiting one's children's access to the Internet prepare then for the onslaught of temptation that they will face the minute they leave the house?
And, finally: can any family survive the glow of celebrity with their values intact? Many hoped that the Duggars would turn out to be an exception, but alas, we still wait. Perhaps the Bates were wiser to quit before fame took too strong a hold.
This story will not be going away, as the Duggars are either going to have to fork over a substantial settlement payment, or submit to discovery motions that will force them to bare their souls on the record.
