Phelps Injunction maintained.

I hope all these laws get repealed soon. It's such utter crap.

The dumbasses on Fox talking about it was just idiotic.



If you allow anybody to sell icecream 50 meters away from the funeral. You must allow them to be there. Basically if it is public property they get to protest whatever they want. BS stay away laws are absolute crap and they remind me of Bush-era Free Speech Zones.

They protest because God tells them to inform others of our impending doom of God's wrath as we are all doomed because we skirted God's law. They don't protest the funerals because of Don't Ask Don't Tell, they protest the funerals because dead soldiers, like 9/11, and any and all disasters that kill American lives are signs of God's wrath. What ignorant tools Fox has...

Silly judgment against Phelps going forward

A while back the father of a soldier, who died in Iraq, sued and won a judgment against the Phelps family for picketing their funeral. Now a judge has issued a lien on their church and law offices.

This should not only be reversed the Snyders should probably be hit with a lot of lawyer fees (which the Phelps all being lawyers are going to make a lot on). You can't sue somebody for doing something perfectly legal on public property. Not only legal but protected by the first amendment as the most protected form of free speech.

Sure, the Phelps are horrible little trolls but that doesn't make them wrong. They are perfectly within their rights and their actions are absolutely legal. Suing them because you later saw some picket signs on the news is beyond silly.

(via Pandagon)

My Phelps prediction.

I predict that Fred Phelps will appeal the civil judgment against him. I have it at $2.9 million, other people have $10.9 million. In either case Phelps is going to appeal and have it struck down in a heartbeat. He's going to counter sue for costs and win. This marine father who sued the church for protesting his son's funeral is going to be forced to go bankrupt for pushing this idiotic lawsuit.

Mark my words.

$2.9 million in against Phelps. What crap!

I find Phelps entertaining, and I understand the theology pretty well. I think they are one of the most biblical Christian groups around, and obviously one of the most hated. Protesting funerals of dead soldiers with signs saying "Thank God for IEDs" or any number of rather disturbing signs. They believe that the War in Iraq is a punishment from God for homosexuality. Which frankly doesn't differ that much from those religious people who claimed that Katrina was punishment from God for homosexuality (though it missed the French Quarter), or Jerry Falwell claiming that 9/11 was because of homosexuality (the California wildfires have been attributed a couple times to gays). Really the only thing the Phelps have which these other groups lack is consistent faith that they are right. Other religious groups back-down at the first sign of hate... the Phelps double-down.

Well, one of the father's of a soldier killed in Iraq sued and won $2.9 million dollars from the Phelps family. This is bullshit. The Phelps broke no law in their protests, the father didn't see them at the event only later on the news, you shouldn't get money for sullied memories. Hopefully the Phelps (who are mostly lawyers) will get this overturned as the nonsense "I hate Phelps so much lets punish him for like three million dollars" crap it is.

Ofcourse nobody likes them they are immoral swine who follow the immoral actions suggested in the Bible. Anybody who does that needs to be shunned by a civilized society.

Shirley Phelps-Roper / WBC and the defense of atheists...

More and more, I've run into atheists who support the Phelps family, not financially, politically, ethically, but to the extent we tend to support every religious view. And then some, truth be told, something refreshing about the Phelps family. Namely, honesty. There isn't an ounce of duplicity in anything they say, they say they believe the Bible and they do, they've read it cover to cover and believe everything therein. Their interpretations are, by and large, quite well grounded. I use to believe that perhaps they went a little too far and were going extra-biblical with their "God hate America" and "Thank God for IEDs" comments. However, after listening to the arguments behind them, I must admit that Noah's Ark and the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah do at lend them a bit of leeway to make those arguments.



I'm not even sure that they are a hate group. Specifically they don't ever reference themselves. They only announce that "God hates Fags" and "God hates America" -- They never suggest anything of the sort themselves. They are non-violent and stay well within the confines of the law. Which is less than one can say about such great Christian establishments such as the KKK.

Other than cherrypicking there's nothing to attack the Phelps position with. That and the falseness of the Bible. The above video makes some guesses as to why some people might hate the Phelps so much, and I haven't anything better.

It also strikes a number of Christians as odd, that they believe America is doomed, and yet are wasting their time thanking God for bringing about this doom. Personally, I'm impressed by their resolve. They don't do it to convert people, they don't do it to save people, they don't even do it to warn people... they do it to thank and praise God for his judgment and primarily because the Bible tells them to do it.

God Hates Lee Polikov!

Lee Polikov the County Attorney for Sarpy County filed several charges against Shirley Phelps-Roper, daughter of Fred Phelps. While protesting the funeral of Nebraska Army National Guard Spc. William "Bill" Bailey she allowed (probably told him to) her son Jonah to stand on a US flag. She was charged with negligent child abuse, contributing to the delinquency of a minor, flag mutilation and disturbing the peace.

She is innocent of those charges. The government is completely out of line here. The Phelps aren't a hate group, they always pitch their message as God's message rather than their own, it is always "God Hates X" and never "I Hate X" (this is actually a pretty important line, as is the fact that they are non-violent). The law passed a year or so back banning protesting at a funeral is extremely unconstitutional (it bars one type of activity whereas other activities are fine). I don't think that the theological arguments they make are that flawed. One can, and they do, make a pretty good case Biblically speaking. If the Bible wasn't completely stupid and idiotic, unsubstantiated, and morally bankrupt... they might actually have a point.

If you really think that the Phelps children should be taken away, you must also conclude that we should steal Amish children as well. While we're at it, why don't we take away those poor home-schooled kids? We might also want to get our paws on Suri Cruise (although unlike the other two this might rally some support).

Really, they only thing I think they are doing wrong is believing the Bible is the word of God. They could be far more moral if they, rather than believing the entire book, would just cherry-pick the sane parts. One can, with a bit of work, make a religion out of parts of the Bible that one could show to their neighbors without too much embarrassment. Though, that does require a substantial amount of gutting. And personally, I don't think that there is much reason to keep the bathwater, if you already threw out the baby.

I tend to have more respect for the Phelps than I have for your average religious person.

Westboro Baptist Church - God hates the World

http://view.break.com/278059 - Watch more free videos

Why do people dislike the Phelps? I think it takes a lot of courage to stand up for what you believe in, when what you believe in is so insane as to warrant near disbelief. They believe that the US is like a modern day Sodom and Gomorrah and that all the bad things which happen are the result of God's hatred for America because we are all "fag enablers" -- Apparently not doing what it says to do to homosexuals in the Bible (kill them/their blood will be on them/Lev. 20:13). They feel inclined to warn people that God hates them, and thanking God for the instruments of his wrath (AIDS, IED, Iraq).

Biblically I don't think their argument is that bad. Really, if you read the Bible it's a reasonable conclusion to come to if you are inclined to accept that the Bible is not horrific fiction worthy of scorn.

It seems pretty clear that they are using their first amendment rights to free speech to spread their first amendment right to religion via their first amendment right to protest. Their Biblical interpretations aren't bad... the only thing really that bad in this whole debate is the Bible. Anybody who believes that is going to be this batshit insane. But, they are within their rights and non-violent.

And if you notice from their theology and certain interviews they gives that they never interject their own opinion on the issue, it's always God. God hates fags. God hates America. They are careful not to express such beliefs directly. This is a very real line that they do not cross. It is, I feel, much the same as the line which many atheists are careful not to cross by insulting people. Focusing instead on the beliefs people have rather than the people themselves. Apparently people recognize this distinction just as often in their case. They are very careful to present the Biblical view on reality rather than their own. It is akin to God hates the sin, God hates the sinner.

If the Bible were not cruel bronze-age immoral fiction, they would have a pretty good point. Sadly however, this actual reductio ad absurdum isn't more widely understood. Rather we are left with the vague hatred which says gays shouldn't be allowed to marry their lovers or care for children. Really this is just a purified form of the Biblical hate bantered around to deny people rights. They aren't shallowly using the Bible to justify their own hate, they are presented the hate the Bible expresses as truth. I prefer the Phelps' God's bigotry to the kind which is effective in creating constitutional amendments to get introduced on the floor of congress.