Bringing Up Bates stars Gil and Kelly Jo Bates raised their kids through a certain homeschool curriculum. They follow an almost identical program with their family friend, the Duggars. However, some Redditors were curious as to why both families never got involved in military activities. Keep reading to see the discussion.
Bringing Up Bates: Gil & Kelly Jo Bates Celebrate Another Homeschool Graduate
Kelly Jo recently took to Instagram to celebrate the homeschool graduation of her daughter, Addallee. According to the Bringing Up Bates star, she’s so proud of her daughter and had her bawling when she gave her first testimony following her graduation. Many members of the Bates family also congratulated Addallee online. It also shows that Gil and Kelly Jo are still homeschooling most of their kids today, despite all the criticism they received.
Why The Bates & Duggars Avoid Military Involvement?
Some Redditors discussed why the Duggars and Bates avoid military involvement. According to the poster, nobody has left their religious lifestyle and entered the military. Due to this, the Reddit user was curious if their church was the reason why they’d been stuck in the same program for years. Meanwhile, several Bringing Up Bates fans believe that they were taught to avoid being in the military because it gives them a view of the real world.
- “My knowledge is very limited about this fundie thing. With that said, Why a family with so many boys would not have at least one that would be involved with the military? They support the military but if one them wants to join it then is from hell? Is that too much freedom? Stable job? “Free real college” opportunities that scares them?”
- “The army objectively exposes them to a version of the ‘outside’, people from different upbringings and belief systems, along with an opportunity to experience the world, to a degree. It’s not appealing to fundie families as it’s hard to keep them indoctrinated, it’s the same reason they only go to bible college.”
- “I believe Jackson actually wanted to end up in the Marines, but was discouraged by Gil & KJ – they forced him into ALERT instead.”
- “This is a pick and choose family, have you not noticed? The closest to the military they got was when Guitar Boy and his brother wore scarves over their faces on 1.6.21 in DC.”
- “Could any of them pass the proficiency test to enlist? Not sure how many of them have actual GEDs.”
Bringing Up Bates: How Are The Bates & Duggar Kids Today?
Many of the Duggar and Bates children today make money as social media influencers. Both families had their own shows cancelled. TLC decided to part ways with Jim Bob and Michelle following the CSAM arrest of their son, Josh, in 2021. UpTV cut ties with the Bates family and discontinued Bringing Up Bates after 10 seasons, as they wanted to focus more on movies and scripted shows.
Several children of Gil and Kelly Jo chose to run businesses, such as Carlin, Whitney, and Erin. The three launched the Bates Sister Boutique in 2019. Many of them have also pursued a YouTube career, such as Lawson, Katie, and Michaela. But only a few Duggars remained in touch with the fans online. Many of them began to step away from their beliefs as well, such as Jill and Jinger.
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