There are no words to explain this...

[mixtymotions]

I'm not a Christian, but I'd bet even Jesus weeps over this group's actions.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=1G470rfJQCI

I can't control the urge to want to punch this woman in the throat, and I am a peace-loving old hippie - but DAYAM, she makes me furious!

[lucille]

How do these people (and thank goodness there are only under 100 of them) live their day to day lives?

[Gigglepottomus]

I am with you mixty a Judo chop to the throat was my reaction as well and I too am a pacifist.

Lucille I think the answer to your question is (IN COMPLETE AND TOTAL IGNORANCE)

[Randy & Betty in Pa]

Noooooo thats way to nice for them....I don't support our administration but I do respect our fallen soldiers and feel this is not the right place to express their biggotry and homophobia.... More appropriate might be laying them down on broken glass and letting Redjack, IrishBeth, Eva and I do our dance while wearing ice skates on them... That sounds like fun:)

Best to all but those Phelpianfools.... Hows that for being a pacifist?

R. from Pa

[Green Monkey]

I'm not a Christian, but I'd bet even Jesus weeps over this group's actions.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=1G470rfJQCI

I can't control the urge to want to punch this woman in the throat, and I am a peace-loving old hippie - but DAYAM, she makes me furious!Hey Mixty, yeah I know how ya feel, but there's no helping some folks. This group is the reason that several states have had to pass laws banning protests at funerals, which is pretty bizarre that it would be needed. I'm all for free speech, but not for letting one groups speech interfere with the free exercise of another group's reasonable need to speak about their loss, which is what this group is all about. Sigh. Here's the good news, I'm pretty sure this nutty lady is not going to heaven (I'm an atheist, but even if God were to exist, she's still not gonna pass thru the pearly gates, methinks). :p

GM

[Agnes]

To quote Ted Christopher "There are some things even God can't understand". :s
Awful, just awful.

[gisli]

.......didn´t want to listen to all what that lady said but if she does believe in God......then she knows there is not just Heaven.........but also Hell.

The worst thing we can do to her is to enlight here about human kindness, forgiveness, simpathy and all them other good feelings religions teach us to embrace.....right?

[Dee]

My goodness, so much hate. God sure seems to be spending a lot of time hating and being angry. Sounds more like a god of hate than a God of Love, which is the one I know.

godhatesfags.com
priestsrapeboys.com
godhatesamerica.com
godhatescanada.com
godhatessweden.com

Canada
On one occasion, Phelps and his congregation had their signs confiscated by customs, and responded by going to the federal capital and burning and spitting on the Canadian flag, and threatening to urinate and defecate on it. Since that time, Canada has passed hate crime legislation, alternatingly referred to by the informal "Fred Phelps Law" and "Jack Chick Law." Phelps has also claimed that his congregation, along with him, have been arrested in Canada for hate speech. Should Phelps ever try to enter Canada again, he would be arrested and tried for violation of hate crime laws, a fact which prompted the founding of godhatescanada.com. [what a whiner]

Personal beliefs
During 1993–94 interviews with the Topeka Capital-Journal, four of Phelps' children asserted that their father's religious beliefs were either nonexistent to begin with or have dwindled down to nearly nothing. They claim that Westboro serves to enable a paraphilia of Phelps, wherein he is literally addicted to hatred (this statement would serve as the inspiration for the title of the book about Phelps' life). Two of his sons, Mark and Nate, claim that the church is actually a carefully planned cult that allows Phelps to see himself as a demigod, wielding absolute control over the lives of his family and congregants, essentially turning them into slaves that he can use for the sole purpose of gratifying his every whim and acting as the structure for his delusion that he is the only righteous man on Earth. In 1995, Mark Phelps wrote a letter to the people of Topeka to this effect; it was run in the Topeka Capital-Journal. The children's claim is partially backed up by B.H. McAllister, the Baptist minister who ordained Phelps. McAllister said in a 1993 interview that Phelps developed a delusion wherein he was one of the only people on Earth worthy of God's grace and that everyone else in the world was going to Hell, and that salvation or damnation could be directly obtained by either aligning with or opposing Phelps. Phelps maintains this belief to this day.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fred_Phelps

[Eva]

Very sad. These boys have families. It must have been very painfull for them to see all this.

In a way it is a good thing that these people are so outrageous in their way to show what they believe. This way nobody takes them seriously. I don't mean protesting like this during funerals and all. I mean the outrageousness of the texts they use. For instance "God hates..." doesn't sound like something that someone wants to associate him / herself with. Christian or not.

Do you know anything more about the sons of this Phelps-person? Have they left this "church"? And isn't there anything that can be done against people like this? I mean, Phelps is held responsible for the death of a woman, I guess there is proof that he abuses people. How come that he can keep doing what he wants?

Eva

[Des]

It's very easy to feel angered towards these kinds of people. But it's even easier to laugh at them.;)

Too fkn funny:D

[snakegrl]

I think it best to not play into the psycho-drama of these people and simply get the lessons, such as their fine example of what fanaticism is and does.
This is clearly a type of maddness. Who knows how or why they got that way. It doesn't matter. But, I think what does matter is not letting things get so blown out of proportion like they have. We all over-react sometimes.
And I think it is very important to NOT react to people like this, as hard as it may be, but instead, deal with them like the governor did by barring their presence at funerals.
Eventually, a mad dog will bite its own tail.
And if need be, can be directed to do so all the sooner.

[KarenSews2]

But I have been proud of the biker groups that show up to shield the families from this hate. For some of the Hoosier funerals, the haters were supposed to show up, but they didn't. Thank goodness. MY God is not a god of hate.

[Dee]

Do you know anything more about the sons of this Phelps-person? Have they left this "church"? And isn't there anything that can be done against people like this? I mean, Phelps is held responsible for the death of a woman, I guess there is proof that he abuses people. How come that he can keep doing what he wants?


What you want to know I think you can read in section 7 Spousal and child abuse (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fred_Phelps#Spousal_and_child_abuse), of the page I linked to, Eva.

How he can keep on ... how he can even live with himself, I have no idea.

[GodSistah]

KarenSews2: MY God is not a god of hate.


Amen to that Karen!

~Andrea~

[dragonlady]

My God is not a God of hate, intolerance and rage...! She kept saying that God was in a rage...I'm sorry, my God is peaceful, tolerant and loving period.

-di

[AceOn6]

Massachusetts is very close to passing legislation prohibiting demonstrations at funerals. Sad that is has to come to that.

[Bat]

I, for one, would like to see that whole clan strung up. Hate begets hate.

[Rkitko]

This group came to my undergrad college to protest the opening screening of the JIM IN BOLD (http://www.jiminbold.com/) film and again to protest the decision by the local Board of Ed to allow a gay-straight alliance to form in the high school... and they tried to petition Lebanon, Pennsylvania to allow them to put up a monument to Jim Wheeler's death (the subject of the film mentioned above) complete with a clock counting up the "Days in Hell." Sounds like their typical tacticts, really.

I don't understand these people or how they think, but certainly don't wish them any ill will. I do wish they would change their opinions, but if hate really begets hate and violence begets violence, I'd be doing nothing positive by reacting in any other way but expressing love for all humankind (including them, though I think their opinions are vile) and expressing that I think they have a 1st amendment right to say what they want to say.

Often, I wonder if the reaction and media attention they get is what fuels their hateful message. I've had this debate at my undergrad college, too, when we were deciding how to react to the local couple that acted as the Lebanon, Pennsylvania flavor of Fred Phelps (only slightly more chocked-full of hellfire, brimstone, and unrepentant holier-than-thou attitude). I was of the opinion that responding to them in kind with hate only kept them coming back, letting them know that they "still had work to do." It gives them purpose. Ignoring may have the same effect, but at least then they think they're battling indifference and not opinions that don't match their own. Overall, though, I think I was just tired of talking to a brick wall that parroted back scripture and over-used religious talking points.

[Rickster]

This woman should be tarred and feathered! What a loser!

[Des]

This woman is perfect fodder for canned hunting. Opps, wrong thread.;)

[Dee]

I don't understand these people or how they think, but certainly don't wish them any ill will. I do wish they would change their opinions, but if hate really begets hate and violence begets violence, I'd be doing nothing positive by reacting in any other way but expressing love for all humankind (including them, though I think their opinions are vile) ....

On that much, I have to agree with Rkitko on this. Returning hate with hate only gives it more power over a person. I refuse to allow that to happen to me, or to my life.

[hoops]

Goodness knows i Hate war and all that is involved in it. but this is just sick. I mean I at least give my deepest thanks to anyone who would choose to risk and often loose his or her life for MY freedom. this woman and this group get to do what they do because these people have died, and still...they choose to do it... i'll pray for them