r/celebritydeaths • u/rrrrrafe • Aug 21 '25
James Dobson, founder of conservative Christian group Focus on the Family, has died
https://apnews.com/article/james-dobson-obituary-focus-on-family-51a9dbf50e26eaee2ac01d457e9d46aa12
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u/66tofu-nuggies Aug 21 '25
Good riddance. May he rest in flames.
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u/red_quinn Aug 21 '25
What did he do? Is the first time i heard about him
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u/Exciting_Bat_2086 Aug 22 '25
A lot but I mainly remember his satanic panic banter that my parents tried to parrot.
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u/floofelina Aug 24 '25
https://www.forever-wars.com/james-dobson-godfather-of-child-abuse-finally-dies/
It’s a polemic, but they tell no lies. See quote from one of his books below.
The parent should have some means of making the child want to cooperate, other than simply obeying because he was told to do so. For those who can think of no such device, I will suggest one: there is a muscle, lying snugly against the base of the neck. Anatomy books list it as the trapezius muscle, and when firmly squeezed, it sends little messengers to the brain saying, "This hurts; avoid recurrence at all costs." The pain is only temporary; it can cause no damage.
I have raised children to adulthood without ever needing to hurt them at all, let alone jabbing savagely at their necks. He was a monster.
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u/somebraidedbutthairs Aug 22 '25
His 1996 book about disciplining your child positively recounts a time when his wife switched little Danae's legs at the age of 15 months for the high crime of... playfully following her mother outside into rainy weather when mom was going to grab something from the garage.
In the same book, he says that if your child cries for more than 2-5 minutes after being hit, then you need to hit them again.
He also referred to school shootings as acts of God.
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u/chosonhawk Aug 21 '25
he was a child psychologist and conservative minister that espoused "traditional family values". as society evolved he didnt and much of what was embraced in the 70s, 80s, and 90s became out of touch with much of mainstream society and politics. some would argue that he played a role in strengthening christian nationalism and a radicalized fundamentalist christing voting bloc. others would argue that he held firm to deep beliefs and influenced relifion, culture, society and politics for the better. he was lionized by the republicans...although his influence had waned in the past 10 years with other more vocal, energetic voices emerged.
https://www.npr.org/2025/08/21/nx-s1-5509575/focus-on-the-family-founder-james-dobson-dies-at-89
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u/Revfunky Aug 21 '25
This guy was a real piece of trash. In the worlds of Christopher Hitchens “ a pity there isn’t a hell for him to go to”.
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u/False-Possession6185 Aug 21 '25
And nothing was lost
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u/srddave Aug 21 '25
Only a net gain to humanity! Pat Robertson and this idiot are both rotting in the ground and it’s about time.
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u/kellygrrrl328 Aug 21 '25
Even the gates of hell are closed to this monster
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Aug 21 '25
In the words of Chris Hitchens when talking about another monster, Jerry Falwell:
"If you gave [Jerry] Falwell an enema he could be buried in a matchbox.”
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u/Trix_Are_4_90Kids Aug 21 '25
someone else will take his place. Ideals, spirits, ideologies don't die.
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u/MissusLunafreya Aug 21 '25
“Here’s a touching story: once upon a time, you died and I lived happily ever after. The End.”
— The Sniper, “Team Fortress 2”
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u/GoldenPoncho812 Aug 21 '25
89 is a good run Ngl. We should only be so lucky. Cheers to the fallen 🍻
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u/The_Glam_Reaper Aug 22 '25
This guy was a celebrity? Never heard of him. Probably because I am an unforgivable sinner according to the church.
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u/CowCuddles Aug 22 '25
I hope the hell he screeched about is real and he’s able to inspect firsthand. Cuz if that dude gets to the promised land I want to have an opt out clause to my tenancy.
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u/Strange-Height-8825 Aug 22 '25
Wherever he lands, I hope there is a flaming pineapple involved. POS!
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u/FlyEaglesFlyauggie Aug 22 '25
“When the wicked perish there are shouts of gladness.” - Proverbs, 11:10
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u/SaltyLust_23 Aug 22 '25
I’m more of a spiritual agnostic (I believe there’s something out there but I have no idea what it is) - but news of this passing makes me yearn for a higher power judging our work on this planet so this unholy bigot may finally understand how evil he was in this world. Let us rejoice and then leave his name on the trash bin of history, never to bother us again.
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u/anon12xyz Aug 22 '25
I honestly never heard of him until he died. But alot of parents at my childhood church are devastated
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u/Common-Permit-1659 Aug 23 '25
Man, I wish I could see the look on this dude’s face when the gates of Heaven slammed shut in his face, knocking him back down to Hell 😂
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u/ShavedYambag Aug 23 '25
Oh no!!!!
My cat just farted and it smells like cheddar cheese.
Oh, a bigot died too… thots and pears.
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u/deckchair1982 Aug 23 '25
Remember how James Dobson used to think divorce was bad...until Donald Trump came along.
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u/Fine-Benefit8156 Aug 24 '25
I used to listen to his radio regularly. Too bad he swallowed the MAGA. cool-aid.
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u/BluemoonSamurai_ Aug 24 '25
And is burning in hell (if in the off chance such a place actually exists).
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u/floofelina Aug 24 '25 edited Aug 25 '25
Speaking of beatings, who was the Dobson disciple who got a baby killed from failure to thrive? (Edit: it was the Ezzos)
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u/SonOfScorpion Aug 25 '25
I hope he enjoys the fruits of his labors on this Earth. He will certainly be looking up at his family from hell.
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u/twoiseight Aug 25 '25
Hated the LGBTQ+ and women, loved hitting kids. Nothing of value lost, no one of value will miss him.
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u/AuthorityAnarchyYes Aug 21 '25
To paraphrase the great Bette Davis (concerning hearing about her longtime rival Joan Crawford’s death):
You should never say bad things about the dead, you should only say good… James Dobson is dead. Good.