Alright, I'm Just Gonna Say It...

[Leta]

... we need a homesteading reality show. As much as reality TV can be a need.

I came to this conclusion after watching this clip.

(Disclaimer: I am not judging the Duggars for having 20 children. I am a libertarian, pro-choice, liberal feminist. I believe every woman has the right to create whatever family works for her. I am judging the View hosts' assessment of what self sufficient means, and I am making the statement that the Duggars are NOT self sufficient. I guess in this way I am judging the Duggars for being too mainstream, haha!)

Sheri and Whoopi both describe the Duggars as being "very self sufficient" and Elisabeth was seemingly amazed that they make their own wipes and built their own house.

Come on. The Duggars have 20 acres, and they don't grow anything other than a few tomatoes. They are rolling in TLC money, they could be fully off the grid in a snap if they wanted to be. They don't even hang their clothes up to dry! They have 4 dryers instead. They eat tater tots and tinned veggies, buy milk at the store and have gone through enough disposable diapers to reach to the moon. Assembling the shell of a kit house and buying used shoes does not mean that they are self sufficient in any meaningful way. If the Duggars are the modern day media example of the pioneer spirit, we are in a sad state indeed.

I want PBS or the BBC to do this, in the way they that have done the historical reality shows, but modern day homesteading- with solar panels and biogas digesters.

And I want them to pick me!

 

[Beekissed]

Agreed! Now, set up your show...tell us about how you live SS and what you would like most to convey on such a show. Would you do things even deeper into SS to make a point or would you live pretty much how you like and let the audience critique it?

If I even watched TV, that would be a show I'd watch...and more than likely I'd be critiquing all the details as well.

These Duggars? How in the world did they win that show if they aren't truly SS? I'm sure there are many out there that are and why weren't they selected? How do they even select people for a show like that?

 

[Leta]

Excellent question, Beekissed.

If I had a reality TV salary, I would go nuts- entirely off the grid, only buying coffee and spices from the store, hell, I'd get some sheep and and a spinning wheel and find out where my friend S got her table loom!

If I had my current set of resources, I'd just keep plugging away, gradually getting deeper and deeper into it, just the way I am now.

The Duggars didn't get on TV for being SS, they got a show for having a huge family, back when they had 14 or 15 children. What made me roll my eyes was the assessment that they are "very self sufficient" because they make their own wipes.

 

[Beekissed]

Yep...that's like saying a New York socialite is SS because she made her own artisan bread for a dinner party.

 

[Leta]

Exactly!

 

[Neiklot]

Yep...that's like saying a New York socialite is SS because she made her own artisan bread for a dinner party.

 

[Gypsi]

Yep...that's like saying a New York socialite is SS because she made her own artisan bread for a dinner party.

 

[Beekissed]

Here's another for you:

What do you call a person from WV who keeps chickens in the house? An ignorant hillbilly.

What do you call a New Yorker who keeps a chicken in the house? A responsible pet owner.

 

[Quail_Antwerp]

Here's another for you:

What do you call a person from WV who keeps chickens in the house? An ignorant hillbilly.

What do you call a New Yorker who keeps a chicken in the house? A responsible pet owner.

I just want to say, as a mom of 6 (lol), I like Michelle Duggar and I respect her choice of having however many kids she wants, since they are essentially self reliant and haven't had goverment assistance to pay for their kids.

But, when I read their book and in the book they said the own 20 acres, AND that they own an old chicken hatchery, I was disappointed that they didn't utilize those to growing their own food and hatching their own chickens! 20 acres - they could raise a few head of beef - some to butcher and some to sell. They could have chickens for eggs, a huge garden, and raise a couple hogs for their pork. They have the space, and with all those kids, the labor! they could have one kick butt farm if they put their minds to it!

 

[Beekissed]

I agree. It's a far cry from being a good provider for your family with the money you earn~ to a more self-reliant lifestyle of providing those needs from an at-home source.

This country was built on large families and people tend to forget that...now they are considered passe and downright irresponsible. When it is all said and done, those without any children at all, or very few children, have less resources for care in their old age and flood an already engorged health care system. From my experience, larger families usually yield at least one or two children willing to care for their parents at home.

I was always taught that those families with good genetics, healthy intellects and good values should produce well and in kind so that those traits can be perpetuated and represented in the population.