You know who *really* hates the troops?

[KeepItReal]

"NASHVILLE, April 11 — As dozens of mourners streamed solemnly into church to bury Cpl. David A. Bass, a fresh-faced 20-year-old marine who was killed in Iraq on April 2, a small clutch of protesters stood across the street on Tuesday, celebrating his violent death.

"Thank God for Dead Soldiers," read one of their placards. "Thank God for I.E.D.'s," read another, a reference to the bombs used to kill service members in the war. To drive home their point — that God is killing soldiers to punish America for condoning homosexuality — members of the Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka, Kan., a tiny fundamentalist splinter group, kicked around an American flag and shouted, if someone approached, that the dead soldiers were rotting in hell.

Since last summer, a Westboro contingent, numbering 6 to 20 people, has been showing up at the funerals of soldiers with their telltale placards, chants and tattered American flags. The protests, viewed by many as cruel and unpatriotic, have set off a wave of grass-roots outrage and a flurry of laws seeking to restrict demonstrations at funerals and burials."

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/04/17/us/17picket.html?pagewanted=1&ei=5088&en=fa00fcbce509da8b&ex=1302926400&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss

[yourout]

1. These asshats are really sick basterds.

[Initech]

2. Westboro should lose their tax exempt status already. Fuckers!!!

Why hasnt this been brought to the IRS's attention yet? :argh:

[philosophie_en_rose]

3. Fred Phelps is vile.

His group once came to my hometown. They had a trailer with disgusting "God Hates Fags" and "God Hates America" signs.

I don't care what they say, but I'm sorry that children looked at it. They were parked in a parking lot right across from a Christian Elementary School, too.

If Heaven is filled with self-righteous, hateful asshats --> send me to hell already.

[Skittles]

4. why hasn't someone beaten the crap out of these people yet?

normally I do not condone violence but......

[PublicWrath]

5. Did anyone see Fred Phelps on Msnbc a few nights back?

I was so glad, for once, to see a fundy on tv. The guy is an ambulatory psychotic. It's so obvious that he's a raving maniac, and he's so scary, that I feel certain that intelligent people who saw him will realize what a threat we're under with nutcases like that getting so much power.

I've worried for a long time that a lot of the public is unaware of just what kind of plans the fundys, the reconstructionists, the dominionists, have for America.

[MnFats]

8. i can't imagine why they give this raving lunatic air ttime...

you could find some conservative to articulate that point of view -- or at least, some kind of conservative view, not just Fred's rants -- who's not completely psychotic.
he will get his sometime....

[PublicWrath]

10. Maybe, just maybe, people at msnbc wanted to showcase Fred

for the specific purpose of scaring the shit out of the public about all this aggressive fundyism. I'm hoping that's the reason, anyway.

It certainly worked to that end. He's got a real scary brand of lunacy and it was very obvious on tv. The show host got on Fred's case pretty good and finally had to cut his mike off because Fred was chanting and raving, and ejecting spittle.

[mtnsnake]

6. George Bush brings out the best in all these sickos, doesn't he

[Lib Grrrrl]

7. Gotta Share This One With All DU'ers - Fred Phelps Exposee!!

here's your link...see for yourself what a vile asshat this guy is...and what a vile asshat he always has been.

http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/michael_haggerty/expose3.htm

[PublicWrath]

11. Just started reading. I think we'll put this son of a bitch in jail...n/t

[wtmusic]

9. Fred Phelps performs the vital service

of highlighting the absurdity and the cruelty of fundamentalist Christianity.

Not that it justifies disturbing funerals. Nothing does.

[tcfrogs]

12. Is there a debunking of this?

Fred Phelps is a Democrat, and a supporter of Al Gore.

Sorry y'all, I don't have links. I've seen others mention it here. Just asking for a little help.

[ContraBass Black]

13. I suggest putting some quotation marks around that

And finding an example.

[wtmusic]

14. Debunk the NY Times?

Did they rehire Jayson Blair or something? This isn't an op-ed piece, it's news. If you want it debunked, go ahead...knock yourself out.

[TahitiNut]

15. That's Fred Phelps, JUNIOR, who was associated with Gore

Junior is estranged from Whack-Job Daddy, to say the least.

Read http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rev._Fred_Phelps

[Lib Grrrrl]

18. Hmmm....

Which anyone who read my submission, above...would know.

...The pastor's first-born, Fred, Jr., and his wife, Betty, were guests at the Clinton inauguration. The former northeast Kansas campaign manager for Al Gore in 1988 has a stack of VIP photos, such as the one of him, Betty, Al and Tipper, and even soon-to- be Kansas governor Joan Finney smiling and yucking it up at the Phelps' place just a few years ago...

The weird part is...Fred Jr. is still a member of Westboro.

[B Calm]

16. They are being noticed and that's all they want.. I'm surprised

a pissed off vet hasn't shot them..

[Joe Fields]

17. I thought it was against the law to protest at funerals.

I live in K.C., and have to put up with news on Fred Phelps all the time. His "church" has only a handful of member. All of them are related to him in some form. He is one sick human being.

But anyway, I thought I read somewhere that it was against the law to picket outside of funerals. Maybe I'm wrong, but if not, where were the cops, and why wasn't he arrested?

[Lib Grrrrl]

19. Not Against The Law

but Phelps' antics have made several lawmakers, including many in congress, consider such a law...particularly covering military funerals. that's probably where you read it. Such legislation is under consideration, by at least some members of Congress, as I understand it.

Personally, I think the gay groups that have put up with Phelps have the best answer: A number of gay groups started fundraisers for when Phelps would be in their towns, raising money for causes Phelps would hate...and tying the amount of donation to how long Phelps and his asshats stuck around.

I think a similar tactic would work on Phelps here...just organize a fund-raiser for the family of the dead serviceman, whose funeral is being ruined by Phelps.
Have people donate, say, one dollar for every minute Phelps hangs out. Once all the money is collected, donate it to a trust fund for the family of the fallen soldier, in the name of those who hate Phelps. Hell, donate it in the name of "America Hates Phelps," if you can!!

[noonwitch]

20. Fred Phelps, the man who could unify DU and Free Republic!

I don't think there is anyone else that both sides hate with such a passion.

The freepers who are counter-protesting this freek should watch "The Laramie Project" for some ideas. Maybe, noting that these are military funerals, instead of using white sheets to block the protestors from the view of funeral attendees, they would want to use flags. Or posters with pictures drawn by little kids.

Fred gets ignored when he comes to the Detroit area, however, and probably in the long run, that's the best way to deal with him. I do understand the wish to protect grieving people from his cruelty, though.