The Duggars endure a lot of criticism, and most of it is well-deserved.
After all, Josh Duggar is a serial child molester, and his parents created the culture of abuse and silence that allowed him to get away with so much for so long.
So when people slam the Duggars it’s usually with good reason.
Buy there are also occasions on which social media commenters go off on the less well-known members of the Duggar clan simply because they enjoy feasting on low-hanging fruit.
This criticism often takes the form of concern-trolling, the practice in which commenters hurl insults under the guise of advice, pretending that they’re worried about the recipient’s health or safety, when really, they just like talking trash.
A common recipient of this sort of unsolicited insight is Joy-Anna Duggar.
Joy is a victim of her father and eldest brother, but she was also one of Josh’s biggest supporters during his child pornography trial.
The public is thus unsure of what to make of her, which might explain why she endures so much criticism for her parenting.
This week, in a slight change of pace, it’s Joy’s husband, Austin Forsyth, who’s taking the majority of the flak.
Joy posted the photo above over Labor Day weekend.
As you can see, it appears that Austin decided to bring a handgun along when he and Joy went for a hike with their 4-year-old son Gideon.
And it seems that many commenters felt the weaponry was not only unnecessary but dangerous.
“Austin’s gun just…right there,” one person wrote, according to UK tabloid The Sun.
“He’s gotta make sure any men passing by know he will hurt them if they look at her,” another added.
“Why did he take [a] gun hiking? What was he expecting to see on this hike?” a third asked.
“Remind me why one needs a pistol on a f–king camping trip!?” a fourth chimed in.
We’ll briefly play devil’s advocate and point out that a hike in the woods is one of the few times when it would actually make sense for Austin to carry a gun for his family’s protection.
Of course, Austin is also strapped when the family goes to get ice cream together, so bears probably weren’t at the forefront of his mind when he started stockpiling his arsenal.
“He looks like a hitchhiker about to take someone hostage,” one commenter wrote of Forsyth.
“Damn, Austin is looking rough these days!” another added.
“He’s starting to look like David from Teen Mom ew!!!” another observed, seemingly referring to Jenelle Evans’ husband, David Eason.
Obviously, gun rights and safety are hot-button issues in this country.
But hopefully, Joy and Austin realize that their right to carry a small handgun into the woods is not actually at risk.
People would just like to see them exercise a bit more caution when carrying such a weapon in the presence of a small child.
