Why I hate Jon and Kate plus 8 aka. Pathetic Priorities

(I usually try to stay away from rhyming and alliteration, but it summed up what I wanted to express.)

In my short lifetime, I've seen loads of bad parenting. (Not from my parents. I mean I'm not stupid. I know they made mistakes, but they're not bad parents.) But not even seeing bad parenting around me could have prepared me for watching "Jon and Kate."

I do not watch "Jon and Kate plus 8" on a regular basis. In fact, I have seen only 5 episodes.

The first episode I saw was by accident. I was flipping through the tvguide channel thing, and the title intrigued me. What was the 8? Goldfish? Dogs? Jobs? I clicked on it. It was just beginning.

The next hour and a half (there were 3 episodes) was spent in horror. There were lots of little kids. There were crazy parents. There were stupid plot points. And the parents kept complaining. These kids kept hearing their parents complain about them.

Now, while I have doubts about any parenting skills I might have, I do know one thing for sure. Kids should not be made to feel as if they are useless, unwanted, or unneeded. I am apparently ahead of Jon and Kate.

I have a friend who never misses an episode. After I saw my first three episodes, I talked to her about it. She told me why she watched it, "I just can't help myself." An interesting explanation.

She then explained something (I found) more interesting. Neither Jon nor Kate work. Kate is a stay-at-home mom, and Jon is a stay-at-home dad. They also have a full-time housekeeper.

My mother had eight children. Now, I admit we didn't all come at once. And I admit we were not the subjects of a reality tv show (no one would watch), but I never heard my mother complain about having to raise eight children. We weren't easy to live with. But I always knew we were wanted.

I figured Jon and Kate could be better parents. They could be smart enough to figure out how to keep their world running smoothly. They're both there--all day long. They could split up the day, so each could have alone time. They could split up the kids, so each dealt with smaller amounts. They could institute schedules, so the kids would actually learn to deal with life. They could look into preschools, morning schools, or childrens programs. They could be better.

I pushed "Jon and Kate" to the back of my mind. I was content knowing if anyone ever wanted to discuss the show, I had three episodes and a slight amount of research knowledge.

That was a year ago. Everyone knows the latest Jon and Kate development. Right before Jon and Kate's fifth season premiere, Jon was photographed exiting a bar with another woman. The tabloids went crazy. The allegations, denials, lies, cover-ups, and exclusives all came out in the next few weeks. (Both Jon and Kate earned individual, exclusive "People" interviews and covers 2 weeks apart.)
The season premiere had talks of divorce, and separation.

I am not a tabloid reader. I have not followed all the individual Jon and Kate stories closely. But I have read quotes from both of them saying they know the paparazzi, and the show is what is destroying their marriage.

This amazes me. Absolutely amazes me. They both know the show is destroying their marriage, but they're unwilling to give the show up.

I know they're getting paid insane amounts of money for the show. I know they both were able to quit their jobs. I know they get to travel with the kids. I know they were just able to move into a large new house. But is it worth it?

Children can survive with parents going to work. Children can survive with minimal traveling. Children can survive with small houses. Children can mange if they know their parents love them.

Jon and Kate are fine with destroying their marriage and with destroying their children's home because they can't give their new lives up. They can't and won't go back.

I realized my parenting skills may be minimal to non-existent. But I know something Jon and Kate don't. A good parent always puts the child before themself--never vice versa.