This is sick and really just makes me sad:

Westboro Baptist Church says it will picket Elizabeth Edwards' funeral - CNN.com

Lisa

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"It's not having what you want,
It's wanting what you've got"

That's really horrible.

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Kim

It's amazing how hate can consume some people. This same church group picketed a play, The Laramie Project, put on by local high school students here. The townspeople responded to the threat of the picket by ensuring all the shows were sold out.

In addition, the local Unitarian church responded:
Westboro Protestors Face Wall of Love in Framingham at Rally

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If this is going to be a Christian nation that doesn't help the poor, either we have to pretend that Jesus was just as selfish as we are, or we've got to acknowledge that He commanded us to love the poor and serve the needy without condition, and then admit that we just don't want to do it.

- Stephen Colbert.

That really is no church. I don't care what they say they are. They are a bunch of hate mongers.

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Mom to Jake, Zach & Meghan
SJCC STREAKS FOOTBALL!!
CLEVELAND BROWNS FOOTBALL!

I'll go one step further--they are terrorists. No different than the Taliban or any other terrorist group.

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Mental that one, I'm telling you. ---Ron Weasley, "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets"

I disagree with you here in that I am not aware that they are guilty of murder and don't have that as their agenda.

But they are deplorable, and I'm glad that the general consensus among Christianity at large is that their methods are nothing short of un-Christlike.

They use threats, and intimidation in an effort to coerce or influence others--terrorism does not have to include murder.

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Mental that one, I'm telling you. ---Ron Weasley, "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets"

Except that you said they are ''no different" than the Taliban.

They *are* different in that they aren't seeking people out in the privacy of their own homes to murder them because of their political or religious beliefs. We don't have cause to fear the Westborough BC folks because I don't believe they are out to physically injure or kill anyone. They do their deeds in public, and while they are certainly ugly...

Well, now that I analyze it, I don't even think I'd call them terrorists.

They are deplorable, and yes, they try to intimidate.... but I don't like the idea of calling them terrorists 'just like' the Taliban.

They are wrong, they are evil, they are hateful, they are mis-guided, and when they showed up in my town to picket the funeral of a young soldier from our church a few years ago, I was more than grateful for the group on the motorcycles (why can't I come up with their name??) who rode into town to keep them away from the family.

Make no mistake - I deplore them for a million reasons, not the least of which is their misrepresentation of how Christians are to behave.

But terrorists they're not, IMHO. I feel like saying they are 'just the same' really takes down the *actions* of groups like the Taliban by a notch or two. The Westborough folks are annoying and hurtful and they make people uncomfortable.

But as far as I know, they don't carry guns, take hostages, or murder men in front of their children after raping their wives.

ETA: Here is the legal definition of terrorism....and it seems to include violence or threats of violence as a key factor in what defines terrorism. As far as I know WBC doesn't threaten violence.



Main Entry: ter·ror·ism
Pronunciation: 'ter-&r-"i-z&m
Function: noun
1 : the unlawful use or threat of violence esp. against the state or the public as a politically motivated means of attack or coercion
2 : violent and intimidating gang activity

I thoroughly agree, and they have to definitely have to have some severe mental issues to do what they do.

I will say without a dought the Patriot Riders will be there in vast numbers to shield the funeral goers from these idiots. Even though bikers have had a bad name in the past, they sure bann together to provide a very protective service to the morners in times such as this. They have my utmost admiration in what they do.

My community recently laid to rest a local fallen soldier and the Patriots far out numbered the Westboro idiots who showed up here. They could not leave the corner where they were gathered, which, incidently, wasn't even on the funeral procession route as they had thought they would be. They could not get within more than a mile from the funeral home.

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Barb


My GOD Bless our Country and our Troops, and rid the World of terroists.

Thanks, Barb - the Patriot Riders!

They were a real blessing at the funeral here. They circled the entire building where the funeral was being held, and took the visible spots along the route to the cemetery so the WBC folks couldn't be seen by the family.

They picketed the funerals of those Boy Scouts who died during the tornado a couple of years ago. I really think they should stick to expressing their beliefs on their website.

Thank you that's how I feel also.

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The political system is broke and it's a joke.

I guess we have to agree to disagree...

I think by downplaying WBC's actions they are allowed the freedom to do what they want. I think they are terrorists who would like nothing more than to annihilate those who disagree with them and their beliefs.

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Mental that one, I'm telling you. ---Ron Weasley, "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets"

But see... I think they are free to do that. I think it's horrible and morally reprehensible and I'm certainly not opposed to legislation that would regulate the distance they can be from the mourners.

But my understanding of their agenda is not that they want to annihilate, but rather that they want to get their point across that they believe that God is punishing America because we permit gays in the military. They are crude and rude in making their case, that's for sure, but I don't think they are violent.

My two high school kids just made speeches about them for different classes at school. Like nightowl, we're not too horribly far from their center of operations (we're within 2-3 hours) and they've picketed two funerals with which we have had direct connections. People found them troubling and hurtful, but I don't think anybody feared them.

I think what they do is horrible. But, I also think this is a failing of other religious groups who do not respond. It should not have to be just the Patriot Riders doing duty at the funerals. Local church leaders should get together and made a decision to band together and do the same as the riders. I am not religious, but if there is a place for churches, this is it. Get out of the edifices and into the streets with your flocks and show what you are made of. This is a time for them to shine and they are just wringing their hands and doing nothing, that I have heard of. If all the churches called out their flocks they could so overwhelmingly squelch the message that is being sent that perhaps the Westboro people would find something else to do. You have to confront them and their beliefs. Unless, of course, you agree with how they make your religion look.

I also wonder how they afford to be at all these places. Who is funding this? Is anything they are doing, make them ineligible for public funding via tax breaks for religion?

I think you are making assumptions here.

First... I don't think anything you suggest would deter the Westborough folks. I think it would add fuel to their fire. They are fanatics and whether we like it or not, so far what they do is considered a freedom of speech.

Second... in our case locally, we pretty much learned that they were coming at the same time we learned the Patriot Riders were also coming. With all the details involved in being ready for a military funeral in our smallish town, preparing to receive his widow and young child back to town for the funeral, planning a meal to serve several hundred people who would be showing up in town to attend... we had our hands full as a church, and were grateful the Riders were coming to assist. We weren't just sitting around with our hands over our mouths saying, "OH NO! What do we DO!? Somebody HELP us!"

I think most mainstream Christians readily denounce their tactics. They also have to defend against them. When the Boy Scouts from Iowa and Nebraska were killed and suddenly came into the WBC's line of fire, the families of the boys, as well as the ministers and youth ministers of those children were under attack. They received emails and literature in the mail and some terribly hurtful and inappropriate things regarding the death of the boys. The churches banded together to support them. They still support them to this day.

I suppose there is not an organized plot to derail them simply because so far, their freedom of speech has been upheld and there is a group in place that keeps them at bay as much as possible. I can tell you from the research my kids did that the WBC folks have been the 'victims' of tire slashing and other actions intended to immobilize them, and generally the police don't work very hard to get them assistance quickly.

Well, that's what the Unitarians did in my area. I'm not religious either, but I was raised Unitarian. Unitarians tend to go for the here and now, rather than an "afterlife." I'll give them that!

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If this is going to be a Christian nation that doesn't help the poor, either we have to pretend that Jesus was just as selfish as we are, or we've got to acknowledge that He commanded us to love the poor and serve the needy without condition, and then admit that we just don't want to do it.

- Stephen Colbert.

I did not mean to suggest that your church, at that time and place, be involved with a counter protest. I'm saying that churches, in general, should band together to create a barrier when these events occur. There are surely churches in the area that were not directly involved with the funeral who, could have participated, along with anyone else who was interested, in a counter protest. Now if you live in a remote area with no other towns nearby, then the Patriot Riders are your best bet. But here in St. Louis and many other larger areas, there is no reason for these affronts to go unanswered. "All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing." I can't think of a more appropriate time for people to do something. Everyone should have the ability to bury their dead without harassing bullies taking center stage.

Someone mentioned above that the Westboro "Church" protests because they are against gays in the military. Actually, they are against gays in general.

YouTube - Westboro Baptist Church family disowns daughter

The things that they teach their children is scary to say the least.

Moving on to the Patriot Guard Riders and whether or not they should be at Mrs. Edwards' funeral. It is NOT part of their charter to protect non-Military or Veterans. As of right now, there is nothing on their mission list that they will be there. That is not to say that some of them will not appear on their own. Also, normally, they are REQUESTED at the service by the family or the liaison working with the family.

Home

"Our main mission is to attend the funeral services of fallen American heroes as invited guests of the family. Each mission we undertake has two basic objectives:


Show our sincere respect for our fallen heroes, their families, and their communities.
Shield the mourning family and their friends from interruptions created by any protestor or group of protestors."

Someone mentioned about Freedom of Speech and that the Westboro "church" is only exercising that right. NO group should be allowed to protest at a funeral or a memorial service. IF this was a totally different type of group(such as the Neo-Nazis or Skinheads) doing the protests, most people would not be chanting that it is their Freedom of Speech right to do so. Also, the very people that they normally protest against are the very ones that ensure their Freedom of Speech.

Actually, my understanding has been that they believe the death of anyone who represents the US is God punishing the US for its stance on gays in the military.

http://members.shaw.ca/alyzza/Phelps...heybelieve.pdf


No matter what their "reasons" may be for the things that they do, they are still filled with hatred & ugliness!!


[Westboro Baptist Church] Anti-Gay Kansas Church Cancels Protests at Funerals for Slain Amish Girls

"Westboro’s latest rhetoric is in line with the other beliefs of it’s 70 church members, who hold that the deaths of U.S. troops are God’s punishment for America’s tolerance of homosexuality."

The following story touches on one of the many "fears" that I have had as far they are concerned:

Former Soldier Arrested for Stalking Westboro Church Members

Someone is going to have ENOUGH of them & end up doing the wrong thing.

I read elsewhere that their tires were slashed in one town where they protested. All of the repair shops refused to repair them. I not saying that slashing their tires is the right thing to do, but I'm glad none of the shops would help them.

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If this is going to be a Christian nation that doesn't help the poor, either we have to pretend that Jesus was just as selfish as we are, or we've got to acknowledge that He commanded us to love the poor and serve the needy without condition, and then admit that we just don't want to do it.

- Stephen Colbert.

Agree with you,jujubee2!! Karma is a WONDERFUL thing!!

Probably most Muslims feel similarly about the extremists among them, yet people don't give them the same consideration.

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If this is going to be a Christian nation that doesn't help the poor, either we have to pretend that Jesus was just as selfish as we are, or we've got to acknowledge that He commanded us to love the poor and serve the needy without condition, and then admit that we just don't want to do it.

- Stephen Colbert.

Exactly!....

jujuebee I agree with you, karma is a lovely thing, what this Baptist church as done and with their beliefs, they are mean evil people. Catherine

How stupid. To what then do they attribute the millions of deaths around the daily? People die. God is not punishing anyone for anything. God gave us free will. If God went around punishing people then all the child molesters, gang killers, scammers who prey on the elderly, etc would all just drop dead.

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The political system is broke and it's a joke.

I *think* that WBC's rationale is that a righteous and holy nation/country would not suffer the losses of good men and women. God is punishing the nation/country by allowing the good men and women to die.

I, in no way, agree with them. But, you do have to understand the "enemy" to fight them!

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Mental that one, I'm telling you. ---Ron Weasley, "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets"

Then why do the "good" people die?

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The political system is broke and it's a joke.

An Update:

'Line of Love' overwhelms tiny turnout of protesters - Wake County - NewsObserver.com


The Westboro people did show up BUT they left about 12:30 or so. I have a friend that is a member of the Patriot Guard Riders that told me that some of the PGR showed up BUT in an "unofficial" capacity. They could not wear anything that showed they were a member of the Patriot Guard Riders. Those that were there with the Line of Love are the type of people that need to arrive each & every time the whackadoos from Westboro want to protest at a funeral.

I grew up in Topeka and that cult is very embarrassing to Topekans. They live in this weird compound with a tall fence around it and the American flag flying upside down, lovely....
Once Fred kicks the bucket I think the whole operation will fade away.
They haunt the city, protesting anything and everything. They are all attorneys and know just what they can and can't get away with. Topekans just ignore them as your sitting in your car at a red light and they are on the corner or as you walk your excited 3 year old up to see "Elmo Live" and have to explain their nasty signs...yeah, I'd call them terrorists and whack jobs.
If something "happened" to Fred I think the entire city would look the other way....

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Love, J.

I passionately agree with this statement.

The tv show, "What Would You Do"? drives me crazy because so many people will just stand by and not get involved when someone needs help.