The Real Housewives of New Jersey

Joe got himself into this - absolutely, no doubt about it.  But there are time that sentencing is excessive for a crime that is committed, and I think that what the family is feeling here is that the punishment is excessive for the crime.  I won't make this thread political by citing real world examples of this right now that most people are sympathetic of. I will use a hypothetical instead -- if a loved one is caught speeding 18 mph over the speed limit and is a result spending 18 months in prison, would we accept it?  Would we say "hey, broke the law - the cop's radar showed it. No one but his own fault"?  Or would we step back and question why on earth it's necessary to take someone away from life for 18 months simply for driving too fast.
What I hear Joe's family saying over and over again is that he served his time in prison and should be home now. I can totally understand why they are feeling that way. And crime or no crime, my heart breaks for the daughters who at their ages are having to go through life without their dad because of his selfish and illegal behavior.

Am I the only one who thinks Teresa is only getting a pool because she has visions two seasons from now of flashing back to those scenes when she’s marrying him?

The one thing that people around Teresa who are close to her and see all her flaws say about her is that she is an incredibly devoted and great mom. I've heard Joe and Melissa say it. I've heard Andy Cohen say it. I've heard Delores say it. A person can be screwed up and make mistakes in A LOT of areas without sucking at everything she does.
I also noticed that in the scene this week when Joe called and was complaining about his situation, when Teresa's dad said it was his own fault - that he'd told him over and over again to go through the process of becoming a citizen - Teresa processed and accepted the statement. She didn't fight it.

Well there's post after post in this thread ripping Teresa and Joe apart for not owning what they've done, not admitting fault, etc. If they've been denying and fighting the truth all along, she could have defended him. She didn't.

Teresa shared this article on twitter.


Daughters visiting for Christmas

It's damned amusing to hear Teresa and Delores say , Jackie can't let things go. Teresa holds onto things for months, and Delores is just unhappy about her new boyfriend. If Teresa doesn't like Jackie, then Dolores can't either. It's that simple.  Jackie isn't cut from the same cloth? Well her ex isn't living with her, and Evan isn't a felon.

I loved hearing the guys, poor Dr Bill once a month, if that. Joe is full of it.

The sign Teresa happened to find, yeah, TPTB wanted it stirred up ,Marge handled that well.

I'm glad someone ordered jerk chicken, I think we had it every other day in Jamaica. Jamaicans are lovely people, very laid back.

Also, it's nice seeing Teresa and Melissa getting along...let's see how long it lasts!

It also doesn't make any sense to me....like who cares, right? Every person is different..it's what makes the world go round'!

I could sort of kind of maybe understand where Delores was coming from initially with the comment about being raised different - it was about having different values and priorities. But she went too far trying to show they were different and she became just insulting and mean. She didn’t need to keep pushing Jackie away.

I want a spin off real husbands of New Jersey show!

It struck me as funny when Delores was complaining in the "morning after" scenes before they went to the dolphins that Jackie just cannot let something go. Wasn't she the one perpetuating the argument at dinner long after Jackie wanted to move on? That said to defend Delores ... after all the outrage at her saying that Jackie was just raised differently, it was not lost on me that when Jackie and Melissa were talking about everything, Melissa went right to explaining that Delores was raised to not show any emotions, and Jackie was so surprised by that. Jackie then went on to talk about how she was raised to stand up for herself and show what she was feeling. So overall, everyone came to the conclusion that the key in all of it was that Delores and Jackie respond very differently to situations because they were raised differently ... hmm, think I heard that somewhere in a previous episode!
The scenes where Joe Gorga came over to talk with Teresa about Joe's deportation situation were highly produced, but so compelling. I like how honest they are being about all of that, and really do love that side of Joe who will step up to look out for his sister no matter what. I think that Teresa is no doubt putting all that in the show to elicit sympathy. But I can put that aside and appreciate that it really does show the impact crime on a family. In saying that, don't worry I'm not saying they should not be going through it. But I think the criminal justice system is better when we recognize impact. I said when it happened that I admired the judge who was caring enough to not make Teresa and Joe serve their sentences at the same time. That comes from understanding impact. The same is true here. I can recognize that it's right that Joe is being punished for what he did and still feel sorry for their youngest daughter growing up with no memories of an intact family.
I was impressed with Teresa in the scene where she got the girls together to look at vacation pictures. It was a good way to get them to talk and it was great that when one of the girls was hesitant to talk, she encouraged her to be comfortable saying what she felt. People close to her say all the time that Teresa is genuinely a good and devoted mom, and scenes like that affirm that.

I think that Delores has set things up quite nicely for herself. Hasn't she said in the past that she and Frank split because he cheated? I'm not certain if she's said that or if I assumed it, but it would be a logical explanation for their split. So she knows he can't be the kind of man she wants to be married to, but is still a great friend to her, supporter, confidante, and co-parent. He's many of the things she wants in a husband ... so she gets the sex and fidelity part from David. Between the two of them, she's set. I give her a lot of credit for being independent enough to not move in with David without a commitment. Not worth it to give up that much in life.
I think the big difference between Jennifer last season and this season is that she's stopped putting up a front. Last year it seemed she thought the only way to win people over was to impress them with her wealth. She's self aware enough to have adjusted from that and knows it doesn't win people over. So this year, she's winning people over by being funny and entertaining. It works A LOT better for her.

The eldest Giudice daughter is the only adult in the room; if she can hang on, she has a wonderful life ahead of her - she’s caring and bright. I do feel sorry for the other children, losing a father to prison and deportation is hard.

But yes, tired of Teresa and Joe whining about prison and deportation. They are felons. He was not in jail, some county hoosegow lockup.... he was in a Federal penitentiary at Ft. Dix because he’s a felon. I believe his sentence was light after fleecing banks, the Federal government, vendors, suppliers, partners, and causing taxpaying American citizens to pay higher taxes. Deportation is far too good for him. Just MHO.

I didn't see that one coming  


Teresa and Joe separate after 20 years of marriage

What a shocker..