Jon and Kate Plus 8: The ones we love to hate
Posted
September 29, 2008 at
6:00 pm by
Jessica
Well, it’s been almost a year since I wrote my first critical post on Jon and Kate Gosselin. Of course I had no idea what I was getting into. Never could I have imagined that a reality TV show would be met with such ardent opinions, with Kate Gosselin turning out to be quite a polarizing figure. The very mention of Kate Gosselin to those who have caught the show conjures up resentment on one side and admiration, and even sympathy (dare I say “pity”), on the other.
I have mentally divided the “pro” Kate crowd and the “anti” Kate crowd and even though I don’t watch the show on a regular basis (I lost a lot of interest after the first few seasons), I do happen to catch it once in a while. I was never a super-fan, but found some redeeming values in Jon and Kate and can now admit after catching a few reruns that I really can’t stand Kate Gosselin. There, I said it. Now, lest I be associated with the obsessive-stalking-loathing-Kate camp, I wouldn’t waste anymore bandwidth on the subject matter than this post is taking up. Subscribing to the KIA philosophy (Kate is an a-hole), is priority number 16,232, after plucking a stray eyelash out of my eyelid. And even though I have come to terms with the disgust for this woman, I’m not as prepared to run with the KIA crowd. In no way do I want it to be part of my identity. First of all, I have many internet friends who happen to like her, and I have been known to reach across party lines to embrace those with differing opinions [Ed. note: You're such a maverick]. Second of all, I kinda like having my very own villain. Even if it doesn’t make a lot of sense, I kept on watching the reruns while cursing at the television. In fact, the more angry I got, the more I stayed glued.
So, either Kate Gosselin is an a-hole and doesn’t care, or she’s an a-hole who knows how to keep viewers entranced or enraged. After all, Howard Stern gained his popularity by listeners that hated him more so than from listeners that loved him. Something tells me that she isn’t that smart though.
Or is she?
Here are some questions that arose while I sorted laundry and watched with my stink eyes squarely transfixed on two people who have really worked the system. While I’m all for capitalism and getting as much out of your 15 minutes as possible, it’s just human nature to be resentful towards those who seem to be successfully working the system and I have to wonder, in all of Kate’s “organic glory”, why did she rush the IVF IUI and why did her doctor allow it after only a few months of trying and did her insurance pay for it before the standard waiting protocol was met? In all their “riches”, what have the Gosselins ever given back to society? Have they ever had any episodes focus on charitable giving or community outreach?
Now, I don’t have time to make a career out of my unfavorable opinion of Jon and Kate Gosselin, nor do I have time to create entire blogs dedicated to the schadenfreude I might enjoy if Jon and Kate suddenly… get foreclosed upon or find out their kid’s muffin mix was really being imported from China. Unlike some of KIA peeps, I’ll make no pretense about watching for the sake of the children. See, I’m not that easily amused or smitten by children just because they’re children, and the Gosselin rug-(b)rats are no exception. Half the time, I think they’re annoying, but they’re kids, and kids are annoying, so I can’t necessarily hold that against them as unique. Problem is, they’re destined to be even more annoying because their parents are annoying. That’s how it works. Mom’s selfish and indulging, so are their offspring. And I can’t escape the feeling, once the camera’s are turned off that there isn’t a special belt or wooden spoon that gets up close and personal with those kids. It’s hard to imagine that the kids take away from Kate without some ramifications.
The kids may be (sorta) cute now, but just wait until they get older. It wouldn’t surprise me if they went the way of Danny Bonaduce or Dana Plato after all the glitter fades. I will be the first one in line to buy that People magazine too because I’m not above it, but I won’t hold my breath waiting for their downfall. One day, it will just happen and so long as it’s not a totally tragic ending, like someone getting plastered on the front of a school bus, I will chuckle and I won’t feel bad for it because quite frankly, annoying people deserve as much. Why should Kate be above my pshaw anyway? After all, only interesting people make it onto my list. Kate should be honored.
Tags: discovery, gosselins, jon and kate plus eight, Jon-and-Kate-plus-8, multiples, reality-tv, septuplets, TLC |
340 Responses to “Jon and Kate Plus 8: The ones we love to hate”
Pages: « 1 … 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 [12] Show All
Pages: « 1 … 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 [12] Show All
RSS feed for comments on this post.
Leave a comment
Comments are moderated and may not appear immediately in an effort to remove commercial messages, irrelevancies, excessive foul language, racist/sexist/hateful comments, spoofed/cloaked IPs and/or personal attacks and will be edited/deleted at our discretion. Thank you for your patience.
331. ambull said:
November 20, 2008 @ 4:40 pm
well, what have i been missing over here??? D-R-A-M-A… my my
why didn’t anyone invite me over?
j/k
i don’t ever come here, i can’t hardly keep up with one blog!
332. luvs2sun said:
November 20, 2008 @ 5:26 pm
Ambull - This blog about multiples has a way of attracting “multiples” of a different sort. GWIM???
333. April Douglas said:
December 2, 2008 @ 3:56 pm
I bet if any of the hate mongers of Jon & Kate were in their shoes, they would be waiting with their hands out too for help! These people did not plan this reality show when she was pregnant. It is rare to have double multiples, but common with fertitlity assistance. So, leave them alone, if you hate them so much, stop paying attention to them, after all, no one if forcing you to watch!I love this show and they are honest decent people. Way better than shows we see like Snoop Dog, The Girls Next Door, and shows that provide viewpoints that only confuse our kids and get them into trouble! We need more educational, and real shows like “intervention.” Now that show shows just how real getting into drugs and the wrong path can do to you and your family. This society is too greedy.
334. Valerie said:
December 2, 2008 @ 4:37 pm
April, You state that this society is too greedy. How do you rate Jon and Kate in the “greedy” department?
335. Valerie said:
December 2, 2008 @ 4:50 pm
First of all, I am not a hate monger. Secondly, I have had many hardships in my life. What exactly is your point? I would like to know exactly which shoes you are referring to. Is it their extravagant vacation shoes, beach shoes, ski shoes, spa shoes, golf shoes, gym shoes. I realize that having and raising two sets of multiples is extremely difficult. However, this POOR ME scenario has just gone too far.
April,
Have you watched Jon and Kate from the very beginning till now?
Have you been following this blog for some time or only the last few posts?
I’m just curious, because most of us make very valid points as to why we feel the way we do. We all started out as fans of Jon and Kate, however, our opinions greatly changed as the show progressed.
336. mully said:
December 2, 2008 @ 5:31 pm
For the record April….there is some question as to whether or not Kate had an idea all along, possibly even before she actually GOT pregnant with the tups, that she might be able to parlay a multiple birth into exactly what she has, a reality show.
There has been talk that she was obsessed with the McCaughey story and read book after book about them and spent alot of time researching them even before she was actually pregnant with sextuplets.
I will admit here that what I am saying is all speculation. To my knowledge, there is no concrete proof that these comments are true.
Somehow knowing Kate as we have all come to know and love her by her behavior ON HER SHOW, I dont have a hard time believing these rumors.
337. Valerie said:
December 2, 2008 @ 6:28 pm
I don’t have a hard time believing the rumors either, Mully.
Kate is not as simple-minded as she sometimes appears. She is very shrewd. She is absolutely sending out a message to her audience as well as her estranged family when she is on that couch. “Look at ME, I’m successful.”
338. Valerie said:
December 2, 2008 @ 6:32 pm
I forgot to add “and Jon hasn’t left me yet”.
339. mully said:
December 2, 2008 @ 8:18 pm
LOL! I think THAT staement might have more creedence than anything else Val.
I have long wondered if part of the rift b/w Kate and her parents might have had something to do with her marrying Jon.
Younger, no purpose, no degree, no job, drifiting along. Just a cute (and dont forget Non-Caucasian) boy she happened upon, who may not have been exactly what her preacher daddy wanted for Kate.
Kate has made ALOT of comments about how she wishes she were Asian and how she loves the looks of her children because they look Asian and how much she has embraced the Asian cultures. I have often thought that she may have been saying those things for someone else’s benefit than just her viewing audience and to make a definite point that she was right in choosing Jon all those years ago.
For all we know, the renewal of their vows, could have been in part, a grand vacation for all of them, as well as a chance to rub it in mommy and daddy’s faces that “hey look at us, 9 years strong and still going strong!”
All of this is simple conjecture on my part, but again, it does somewhat fit.
340. luvs2sun said:
December 3, 2008 @ 10:18 am
You hit the nail on the head!!! Jon and Kate Gosselin are way too greedy!! This show used to be about the difficulties of raising a large family on one income. Now it’s all about the greed. I couldn’t agree more.