Crazy Kansas Church people are at it again.

http://www.myfox8.com/news/wghp-story-westboro-edwards-101209,0,7618398.story

For whatever reason they are protesting the funeral of Elizabeth Edwards.

Dan

The reason is that they crave attention.

As far as I can tell they serve no other purpose than to remind me not all speech or assembly is popular but it's the unpopular stuff that needs to be protected - even if perpetrated by a bunch of disrespectful ass hats hiding behind it... because if they can't hide behind it - neither can we.

It's crazy churches like this that makes the "true" church look bad. Very disrespectful. They need to learn the grace of God, I say this as a Christian.

In reply to Fletch1:

They will learn the grace of God, eventually.....

Until then, let them make azzes of themselves while we protect the 1st Amendment.

The only reason they continue to do what they do is because we give them our attention.

I can think of quite a few people willing to give them the attention they deserve...with an aluminum baseball bat.

I'm sorry protesting at a funeral is the same thing as pissing on the casket at the wake.

I'd love to see how they are treated when they pass.

:steps up on soapbox:

These idiots should be treated just like the nutty religious fundamentalist terrorists that we are fighting over in the Middle East, amendments be damned. I don't care what version of God they worship, they are all the same idiots on the inside. The world would be better off without them.

:steps down from soapbox:

In reply to SilverFleet:

Slippery slope, that. There are places in this world where you are not allowed to say or do things like that. They are NOT better.

Giant Purple Snorklewacker wrote: In reply to SilverFleet: Slippery slope, that. There are places in this world where you are not allowed to say or do things like that. They are NOT better.

Yeah, I know. It is the slipperiest of slopes, and this is the best place to live, trust me. It's just that I hate these guys like the Jake and Elwood Blues hate Illinois Nazis.

SilverFleet wrote:

Giant Purple Snorklewacker wrote: In reply to SilverFleet: Slippery slope, that. There are places in this world where you are not allowed to say or do things like that. They are NOT better.

Yeah, I know. It is the slipperiest of slopes, and this is the best place to live, trust me. It's just that I hate these guys like the Jake and Elwood Blues hate Illinois Nazis.

"Illinois Nazi's? I hate Illinois Nazi's"

"VVVRRRRROOOOOOOMMMMM"

The church making a good name for themselves once again. Just another justification for Atheism...

I really need to post the pic I took last weekend of the Bluesmobile. Apparently, they've been hiding from The Man near Manchester NH.

Maybe I can get them to take care of the Westboro Psychos.

Question:

Is protesting a funeral the same as the right to petition the government for a redress of grievances?

It's obviously disrespectful in general, and a black eye to people of faith, but I'm debating whether it is a protected form of speech.

I suppose as a political leader, it could be argued... it's a little clearer if I assume a political leader with an unpopular stand.

If it soley functions as an attention grab, doesn't it get closer to unprotected commercial speech?

I'm not flaming, I'm seriously interested.

Whatever happened to Billy3esq?

Cone_Junky wrote: The church making a good name for themselves once again. Just another justification for Atheism...

A church, they aren't all the same...

Maybe we can get the whole town to show up and keep them at bay. Why can't they issue a permit to protest at a different location? Let them protest downtown, away from the family and the services. Grrr.

Every church isn't the same. Each and every one is more superior then the next, according to themselves...

i cant wait to see them go to the Vatican and protest against the Pope. Dont mess with Italians and their religion...

Where does the right to say what you want to end and the right to peaceably mourn your loved one begin? I say since you only get to bury your loved one once, than during those few hours in that particular place I'm fine with limiting certain types of hateful speech.

You have the right to say whatever you want, and I'll defend that right along beside you. You also have the right to gather peaceably, and that I will defend as well. But it would not be unreasonable to make someone get a permit to protest a funeral. Nor would it be unreasonable to set a time frame on when it would be allowed for said protesting to happen. Nor would it be unreasonable to make sure said time did not actually coincide with said funeral.

We need a button for this...

I'm with you, OOG.

On a personal level, I will NEVER make disparaging remarks about someone after they have died. +a billion at their funeral.

EastCoastMojo wrote: Maybe we can get the whole town to show up and keep them at bay. Why can't they issue a permit to protest at a different location? Let them protest downtown, away from the family and the services. Grrr.

That's what I say. They have no "right " to protest across the street from the funeral or anywhere near it.

If you are going to protest; just make it something worth while.

Macy's bought Marshall Field's (Dayton Hudson previously bought it from the Field's family) and changed the name to Macy's. Every year people protest to bring the old name back.

http://www.fieldsfanschicago.org/

My wife and I were talking about this earlier. My response was that I'm kinda glad they picked her funeral to do it at. The reason being that this is the highest profile person they have ever done this to, a very prominent Democrat at that. There should also be some pretty high profile guests in attendance.

Hopefully this will get some sort of response among the elite to get these whack jobs stopped. When it happens to common citizens it rarely gets past being a blurb in the news. When it happens to one of their own things may be different.