'We all have skeletons in our closet': Commenters swamp Josh Duggar's Instagram account to DEFEND him after child molestation confession
Okay I never heard of Josh Duggar. Apparently he molested children when he was a teen and I'm certainly not trying to justify what this scumbag did. What bothers me is how they try to tie him to two Republicans who are running or about to run for president. I'm sure the Daily Mail thought publishing a photo of a child molester standing next to a possible Republican presidential nominee would just do wonders for his campaign image. Needn't bother reading the story. Just scroll down and find the pictures of him standing next to Cruz and Santorum. I guarantee you neither one knew anything about his past. I can also guarantee you they don't have any photos of Duggar standing next to Democrats because they were busy cutting the ribbon at the grand opening of abortion clinics throughout the country.
An example of what I mean:
Pelosi receiving the Margaret Sanger award.
Who is Margaret Sanger?
I for one could not believe she actually said this.
She did.
BTW… the Family Research Council was founded by James Dobson a Republican.
I had to ask myself...Is Pelosi any less of a scumbag then Duggar?
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Josh Duggar, his parents and his wife Anna confirmed on Thursday allegations that he molested five young girls when he was 14
After the admission, commenters started speaking out on the 19 Kids and Counting star's Instagram page
While many of the comments were critical of Josh, an almost equal amount defended the reality star and said they forgive him
Police report reveals that Jim Bob and Michelle knew Josh molested five females in their sleep, 'touching their breasts and genitals' in 2002-03
Investigation began in 2006 when Oprah producers, who were interviewing the family, notified authorities after receiving an email detailing allegations
Josh reportedly apologized to the minors and they forgave him
19 Kinds and Counting is TLC's longest running show
By Dailymail.com Reporter
Published: 23:05 EST, 21 May 2015 | Updated: 04:44 EST, 22 May 2015
Just hours after 19 Kids and Counting star Josh Duggar admitted to molesting children, the married father-of-four's Instagram account was swamped with comments both condemning and forgiving the 27 year old.
News of the sexual abuse broke this week when InTouch found a nearly decade-old police report detailing Josh's alleged misdeeds.
The Duggar family' squeaky-clean image came crashing down Thursday night when they confirmed the report's veracity in a statement.
'Twelve years ago, as a young teenager, I acted inexcusably for which I am extremely sorry and deeply regret. I hurt others, including my family and close friends,' Josh said in the statement issued to People.
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Josh Duggar's Instagram account was flooded with both negative and positive comments on Thursday, after he issued a statement admitting to molesting five girls when he was 14. Pictured in the left bottom corner in the most recent picture posted to the account - a selfie with his enormous family
'Twelve years ago, as a young teenager, I acted inexcusably for which I am extremely sorry and deeply regret. I hurt others, including my family and close friends,' Josh said in the statement. Pictured above with his wife Anna in February
Many of the commenters on Instagram defended Josh, on the Christian principle of forgiveness. Above, a exchange between two Instagram users with very different opinions on the scandal above
Immediately afterwards, the eldest Duggar child's Instagram account became the platform for haters and defenders to argue over the sex scandal.
The most recent picture was posted to Josh's account just two days ago and garnered will over 4,000 comments in the aftermath of the announcement. In the picture, Josh wears an orange polo shirt in a selfie with his parents and numerous siblings, who range in age from 5 to 25 years old.
While many of the comments condemned Josh's lurid acts, there was a near equal amount of people who spoke out to support Josh.
'Keep your head up Josh. I know you are a good man. We all have skeletons in our closet,' user wendigirl1 wrote.
After one user called Josh 'worthless' and expressed a hope he would 'lost everything,' another user responded with a Christian-laced post.
THE DEFENDERS:
'I pray you find God and accept his salvation before it's too late,' a user named maine4005 responded. 'We all stand before the judgement thrown one day. Using someone else's sins as justification for rejecting him will not be good enough. God bless you.'
In fact, most of the supporters references passages of the Bible, appearing to share the Duggar's Christian worldview.
Before the scandal, Josh had used his Instagram page to tout his conservative Christian principles - including a posts against abortion.
THE CONDEMNERS:
'You judge gays and women who get abortions and yet you're a sick incestuous pervert,' one woman responded to a post Josh posted to support an anti-abortion bill.
It was to post like these that several Christian users began repeating a popular Bible passage that lectures on judgement.
'I'm not going to spend all evening on here trying to make people who will never understand, understand. So I'll leave y'all with this: John 8:7 "Let he who is without sin cast the first stone,"' user tayloroldham524 wrote.
Despite the onslaught of comments, Josh's Instagram account remained active as of late Thursday night.
Earlier that afternoon, the family broke their silence on the scandal in a statement to People magazine, confirming that Josh had molested several young girls when he was a teen, and that both his parents and his wife Anna knew about it.
Josh also resigned from his position at the DC conservative lobbying group as Executive Director on Thursday, a job he took in the summer of 2013, uprooting his wife and three young children in the process.
'Twelve years ago, as a young teenager, I acted inexcusably for which I am extremely sorry and deeply regret. I hurt others, including my family and close friends,' Josh, 27, said in a statement.
Despite his resignation, Josh Duggar's biography was still on the Family Research Council website late Thursday afternoon. He left his job at the conservative lobbying group after breaking his silence about the decade old molestation case
In DC: Josh, seen here with son Marcus and daughter Mackynzie, was photographed at the airport in Washington earlier this week after a trip to Arkansas
The police report that revealed the claims was redacted and did not include names of his victims, but it also contradicts some of what Josh said on Thursday
I sought forgiveness from those I had wronged and asked Christ to forgive me and come into my life. In my life today, I am so very thankful for God's grace, mercy and redemption.
'I confessed this to my parents who took several steps to help me address the situation. We spoke with the authorities where I confessed my wrongdoing, and my parents arranged for me and those affected by my actions to receive counseling,' Josh said to People.
'I understood that if I continued down this wrong road that I would end up ruining my life.'
TLC, which airs the hit show 19 Kids and Counting, has not commented. The previously cancelled Here Comes Honey Boo Boo after a child molestation scandal.
It's no surprise the Duggar family chose People to break their silence, as the magazine has featured many Duggar stories on their covers, with Jessa and Jill syndicating photos of and giving interviews about their weddings and pregnancies to the weekly.
Josh's parents also issued a join statement to People, acknowledging the scandal but crediting it with making them more religious.
'Back 12 years ago our family went through one of the most difficult times of our lives,' Jim Bob, 49, and Michelle, 48, told People.
'When Josh was a young teenager, he made some very bad mistakes, and we were shocked. We had tried to teach him right from wrong. That dark and difficult time caused us to seek God like never before.'
Claims: An unsealed police report reveals that Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar (above) were aware of their son Josh's alleged molestation in 2002. According to the report they avoided reporting it to officials
The family shared this throwback photo from 2000 on their Facebook page recently. Josh, seen standing in the back row, molested young girls two and three years later
FULL STATEMENTS FROM THE DUGGAR FAMILY MEMBERS
From Jim Bob and Michelle:
Back 12 years ago our family went through one of the most difficult times of our lives. When Josh was a young teenager, he made some very bad mistakes and we were shocked. We had tried to teach him right from wrong. That dark and difficult time caused us to seek God like never before. Even though we would never choose to go through something so terrible, each one of our family members drew closer to God. We pray that as people watch our lives they see that we are not a perfect family. We have challenges and struggles everyday. It is one of the reasons we treasure our faith so much because God's kindness and goodness and forgiveness are extended to us — even though we are so undeserving. We hope somehow the story of our journey — the good times and the difficult times — cause you to see the kindness of God and learn that He can bring you through anything.
From Josh:
Twelve years ago, as a young teenager I acted inexcusably for which I am extremely sorry and deeply regret. I hurt others, including my family and close friends. I confessed this to my parents who took several steps to help me address the situation. We spoke with the authorities where I confessed my wrongdoing and my parents arranged for me and those affected by my actions to receive counseling. I understood that if I continued down this wrong road that I would end up ruining my life. I sought forgiveness from those I had wronged and asked Christ to forgive me and come into my life. I would do anything to go back to those teen years and take different actions. In my life today, I am so very thankful for God's grace, mercy and redemption.
From Anna:
I can imagine the shock many of you are going through reading this. I remember feeling that same shock. It was not at the point of engagement, or after we were married - it was two years before Josh asked me to marry him. When my family and I first visited the Duggar Home, Josh shared his past teenage mistakes. I was surprised at his openness and humility and at the same time didn't know why he was sharing it. For Josh he wanted not just me but my parents to know who he really was - even every difficult past mistakes. At that point and over the next two years, Josh shared how the counseling he received changed his life as he continued to do what he was taught. And when you, our sweet fans, first met me when Josh asked me to marry him... I was able to say, "Yes" knowing who Josh really is - someone who had gone down a wrong path and had humbled himself before God and those whom he had offended. Someone who had received the help needed to change the direction of his life and do what is right. I want to say thank you to those who took time over a decade ago to help Josh in a time of crisis. Your investment changed his life from going down the wrong path to doing what is right. If it weren't for your help I would not be here as his wife — celebrating 6 1/2 years of marriage to a man who knows how to be a gentleman and treat a girl right. Thank you to all of you who tirelessly work with children in crisis, you are changing lives and I am forever grateful for all of you.
Their statement continues, 'Even though we would never choose to go through something so terrible, each one of our family members drew closer to God. '
After a few more sentences thanking religion in their lives and admitting they are not perfect, they end 'We hope somehow the story of our journey – the good times and the difficult times – cause you to see the kindness of God and learn that He can bring you through anything.'
However, other than a few months at a camp, it is unclear what counseling or help the family got. They also did nothing official to prevent a 2003 incident, which came after the parents were
Most surprising of the statement released on Thursday was that from his pregnant wife Anna, currently expecting the couple's fourth child, who claimed she felt 'shock' when she first found out.
'When my family and I first visited the Duggar home, Josh shared his past teenage mistakes,' Anna, 26, told People.
'I was surprised at his openness and humility and at the same time didn't know why he was sharing it. For Josh, he wanted not just me but my parents to know who he really was – even every difficult past mistakes.'
She also credits religion, saying her husband 'had humbled himself before God and those whom he had offended.'
Anna revealed that Josh told her about the molestation when they began courting, two years before they got married. They have been married over six years. She forgave him and her family was told too
However, the police report of Josh Duggar's alleged molestation reveals that incidents happened multiple times between the then-teenager and five girls, almost always while the minors were sleeping.
It also happened once when he was reading to a child.
The Duggars have grown rich in recent years, traveling the country for paid speeches, publishing books about their family, and starring in never ending seasons of the TLC show.
The allegations are shocking, as is the lack of offical intervention on the part of Josh's parents.
Both of his parents were aware of the situation but waited over a year to notify anyone in law enforcement, going at that time to see a family friend who was a trooper and did not file a report.
They had previously addressed it with a family meeting.
They also revealed details of the incident to church elders who did not reach out to law enforcement. For years, nothing official was done, and the Duggars continued to have babies and Josh continued to live in the home, being homeschooled.
It was not until producers from The Oprah Winfrey Show, who were planning an interview with the family, received an email alerting them to the alleged molestation that an investigation began, this after the show reached out to the Department of Human Services.
That was in December of 2006, over four years after the first reported offense. That is the time period the police report, discovered by In Touch, game out
The police report and all other documents will now be destroyed after one of the victims successfully petitioned a judge on Thursday afternoon saying she was worried that an unredacted copy might be released.
TMZ reports the person was identified as 'Jane Doe.'
The document states; 'The Police Report contains information, which may directly or indirectly identify the Movant as a victim of a sex crime, and Movant is a minor child.'
The report, first uncovered by In Touch, named the Christian icon's eldest son in an underage sexual abuse probe. Josh met Anna at a home school conference
Lobbyist: Josh currently works for the Family Research Council, and frequently posts photos of himself with politicians (Rick Santorum on left, Ted Cruz on right)
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