A Response to Matt Walsh and his Ode to the Duggars
Mr. Walsh,
I know that you make a career out of being as inflammatory as possible. I get it, I do; the far Christian right loves you, and you love attention. Normally, I just bypass your propaganda and hate filled rants with an eyeroll and a shake of the head.
Not today.
Today, you went from being a right-wing, hot-button pushing blogger, to someone who minimizes sexual assault and how that assault affects victims. I feel that someone should speak up and dissect your love-fest to the Duggars and all that they ‘stand’ for.
Might as well be me.
First, Josh Duggar’s parents sent him away for a short time to a family friend who works in drywall. Not to a rehabilitation center. Not to a Psychiatrist. Not to a mental health facility. There is no record of any formal counseling done with he or his victims. Please point me to the source from which you acquired the proof that counseling took place.
Josh,nor his parents, have been upfront about anything in regards to the abuse. They purposely hid and buried the information for years. As for a conceivable reason as to why it should have been disclosed: this family began filming their TV show well after the abuse took place. You know, that TV show that was on national television. During which, there was a leaked rumor of the abuse. At that time, the Duggars took great measures to further suppress information. Money talks, no?
The ‘backlash’ that you speak of is severe because of the nature of the offense. Five young girls were assaulted. Regardless of what you think you know, this is something that will be with those girls always. It will possibly affect their future relationships. It will likely affect their self-esteem. In the grand scheme of life, your posts are for entertainment purposes, at best. Quite insignificant. If you worked with abuse victims in any capacity, your opinion might be relevant. But, you don’t and it’s not. I have read posts from people of all religions and all political affiliations that are appalled by the situation and how it has been handled. I’m sorry you are unable to see that through the biased fog in which you muddle around.
All of this aside, it is most concerning that your blog post focuses on Josh, his parents, Christianity, and political bashing. The attention should be on the girls that were abused. It is glaringly obvious from your rant that you know nothing about sexual assault, especially when the victim is a child. Especially when the abuser is a person the victim trusts. Imagine you have been sexually assaulted as a child. The truth finally comes out, only to be buried. AND you are required to live in the house with your attacker every day for years. Your parents, your protectors, tell you that you can never tell. What went on in their little minds? How are they really affected presently? Will the public ever know how they struggled to deal with everything? Probably not. I’m sure the brainwashing was extreme; their brother/family friend made a “mistake”, and they must forgive. Their trauma is not as important as forgiveness. What would Jesus want them to do?
As for your hypocrisy comments directed toward those that you call “progressives”: let me be as ‘frank’ as you claim to be. You are the hypocrite. You have displayed that you do not care so much about what Josh Duggar has done. What you care about, Mr. Walsh, are blog hits. Your blogs, in the majority, press upon of-the-moment, hot-button issues. You regularly take a defensive stance. You call names, you accuse, you stereotype, and you talk down to people who do not think exactly as you do.
You should know all about hypocrisy. Personal experience is the best teacher, after all.
It is clear that the only thing that your new blog post proves is how shamelessly you work to get attention. You referred to political affiliation at least eight times in your piece. You mentioned the victims of the abuse once in the opening paragraph. This alone speaks volumes about your true motivation, which is anything but honorable. You are regarded as a ‘truthful and decent person’ by your following. You are neither of these. You are an opportunist. Nothing more, nothing less.
