Stop taking the Westboro Baptist Church so seriously

[doggie]

I am going to just post the link as there are a bunch of videos and such. it is an interesting look at them though.

http://www.ramblingbeachcat.com/2011/11 ... ch-so.html

[2xx1xy1JD]

I don't doubt that they are publicity whores - but they are still hateful publicity whores. I don't think that you can dismiss picketing of military funerals as mere performance art.

Plenty of hateful people can still have moments of civility (hence the infamous line "some of my best friends are [insert name of group]". That doesn't mean that they aren't haters.

[Minerva]

I once read an opinion piece that claimed they just do it for the lawsuit money. According to the author, if you watch their behaviour from a legal standpoint, they carefully avoid doing anything that could get them charged or sued. Meanwhile, creative counter-protests aren't the only thing they are taken on with. People have, among other things, smashed the window of their van. The author thinks they sue people who do that kind of thing and profit. If only I could find the article...

ETA: I wouldn't be very surprised if the WBC's whole purpose was to make fundamentalist Christianity look bad.

[lilwriter85]

I once read an opinion piece that claimed they just do it for the lawsuit money. According to the author, if you watch their behaviour from a legal standpoint, they carefully avoid doing anything that could get them charged or sued. Meanwhile, creative counter-protests aren't the only thing they are taken on with. People have, among other things, smashed the window of their van. The author thinks they sue people who do that kind of thing and profit. If only I could find the article...

ETA: I wouldn't be very surprised if the WBC's whole purpose was to make fundamentalist Christianity look bad.

They probably do like getting lawsuit money, but I doubt their whole mission is get to lawsuit money. There have had protests in which people don't do anything at all to them. After the Virginia Tech shootings, I was apart of Facebook memorial group. The WBC had to picket the funerals of the victims and there was on the FB group who said that he knew people with the WBC before and he talked about lawsuits Shirley filed against people who hit them at previous events and he advised VT students not to physically harm any of the WBC members. The WBC ended up backing out of picketing the funerals. There have been a few times in which the counter protests have chased away the WBC. They protested at Comic Con back in 2010 and IIRC they ended up leaving because the counter protestors were being applauded by the people going into the convention.

[BelieveinScience]

They probably do like getting lawsuit money, but I doubt their whole mission is get to lawsuit money. There have had protests in which people don't do anything at all to them. After the Virginia Tech shootings, I was apart of Facebook memorial group. The WBC had to picket the funerals of the victims and there was on the FB group who said that he knew people with the WBC before and he talked about lawsuits Shirley filed against people who hit them at previous events and he advised VT students not to physically harm any of the WBC members. The WBC ended up backing out of picketing the funerals. There have been a few times in which the counter protests have chased away the WBC. They protested at Comic Con back in 2010 and IIRC they ended up leaving because the counter protestors were being applauded by the people going into the convention.

The WBC says they are going to show up at Virginia Tech A LOT. After Derrick Crouse was shot to death back in Dec they said they were going to show up at his funeral. His funeral took place on campus and I don't think legally can they protest on a school campusso they said they were going to protest on one of the streets just off campus but still near where his funeral was being held. They never showed up but it wouldn't have mattered anyways because another school in Virginia, VMI (Virginia Military Institute) found out about it and sent a ton of their cadets and they were going to block WBC so the family didn't have to see them.

They did show up at Virginia Tech around the time of that Morgan harrington (I think thats her name?) was murdered by at the concert over at UVA. Because she was murdered because Virginia Tech likes gays and crap like that. Virginia Tech is a pretty conservative school where you can see prolife stuff around campus from time to time, have students come up to you who and ask you about Jesus and if you want to go to church, Pastors etc.. are always there trying to pass out bibles etc... There are a lot more liberal schools to protest but Virginia Tech easily puts them in the news because its Virginia Tech and nothing can be Virginia Techs business anymore since the shootings happened.

They protested at a funeral of a fallen soldier at a church about 5 miles from my house last year. I really think when you do protest at things like that you are the scum of the earth. You can protest all you want but give a family a chance to grieve.

I saw a documentary one time about the WBC and if i remember correctly if one of the kids leaves the WBC they are disowned?

[sriracha]

Minerva, here ya go:

http://kanewj.com/wbc/

[lilwriter85]

The WBC says they are going to show up at Virginia Tech A LOT. After Derrick Crouse was shot to death back in Dec they said they were going to show up at his funeral. His funeral took place on campus and I don't think legally can they protest on a school campusso they said they were going to protest on one of the streets just off campus but still near where his funeral was being held. They never showed up but it wouldn't have mattered anyways because another school in Virginia, VMI (Virginia Military Institute) found out about it and sent a ton of their cadets and they were going to block WBC so the family didn't have to see them.

They did show up at Virginia Tech around the time of that Morgan harrington (I think thats her name?) was murdered by at the concert over at UVA. Because she was murdered because Virginia Tech likes gays and crap like that. Virginia Tech is a pretty conservative school where you can see prolife stuff around campus from time to time, have students come up to you who and ask you about Jesus and if you want to go to church, Pastors etc.. are always there trying to pass out bibles etc... There are a lot more liberal schools to protest but Virginia Tech easily puts them in the news because its Virginia Tech and nothing can be Virginia Techs business anymore since the shootings happened.

They protested at a funeral of a fallen soldier at a church about 5 miles from my house last year. I really think when you do protest at things like that you are the scum of the earth. You can protest all you want but give a family a chance to grieve.

I saw a documentary one time about the WBC and if i remember correctly if one of the kids leaves the WBC they are disowned?

Fred's son left and I think Shirley's son also left.

[Kitty]

If you've heard/read Nate Phelps' account of his time at WBC, it's very difficult to not take WBC seriously.

He fled at midnight on his 18th birthday.

[Minerva]

Minerva, here ya go:

http://kanewj.com/wbc/

Yes! That's the one.