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The Toronto Star is reporting that Fred Phelps, the founder of the “church” everyone loves to hate, is on his deathbed. Phelps, who began the infamous Westboro Baptist Church in 1955, is reportedly living in a care facility in Shawnee County, Kansas, and is experiencing some major health problems from which he is not expected to recover.
For those living in a cave for the last 10 years or so, Fred Phelps is known as the head of the group of violently hateful protestors that show up at events all over the country to hold up signs saying things like “God hates fags.” They received the most notoriety, however, for picketing soldier funerals, yelling things like “Thank God for IEDs,” and even “Your soldier is burning in Hell” at the families. His church members, almost all of them members of his extended family, would use the American flag as a doormat while they protested, and screamed insults and epithets at anyone curious enough or angry enough to attempt conversation.
Love them or hate them (and quite frankly, to know them is to nearly hate them), Fred Phelps and his tribe of freaks tested our belief in the First Amendment. Do we truly believe it? Or do we have lines in the sand that deep down, we think should be enforced? Where is the space between indecency and freedom? Is there one? The belief that any of us are free to speak our opinion anywhere seemed absolute, until we had to see their group standing outside the funeral of an American Marine, airman, sailor or soldier. Suddenly the desire—no, the need—to make them just shut up meant that we were willing to set aside the freedoms that we claimed to believe in. We wanted the families not to have to suffer those hateful fools. We wanted to demand that those troll-faced jackasses standing on our flag show some respect. We wanted to force them to respect what they disrespected. We had the best of intentions…and we were wrong.
We were wrong, not because the things Fred Phelps stands for are anything resembling humane, but because the liberty to speak cannot be treated as a privilege to be granted to one group and taken from another—even if that group’s only real purpose is to dishonor all that we hold sacred. It is because we hold liberty sacred that we allow them to speak. The second we decide we much silence even such cretins as this, we have become what we fight against. We become despots ourselves.
As someone who despises every last thing that Phelps and his tribe stand for, I admit that I feel some satisfaction that veterans, Gold Star families, and other people worthy of respect will no longer have to deal with this particular piece of trash. I find no real joy in the news of his impending death, however; he will answer to God the same way we all do.
I have a feeling that he will get a sendoff with signs and picketing. Personally, however…I don’t think he’s worth a second of thought past his death.
Nina says: “because the liberty to speak cannot be treated as a privilege to be granted to one group and taken from another—even if that group’s only real purpose is to dishonor all that we hold sacred. It is because we hold liberty sacred that we allow them to speak. The second we decide we much silence even such cretins as this, we have become what we fight against. We become despots ourselves.”
^^That is the key. It is at times a fine line. . . a very very fine line between what we feel is free speech and indecency/disrespect/dishonor/spoken or physical actions of hate toward all we hold dear that is America.
It used to be (back before I was even born) that actions by those of the WBC folk would be cause of the community saying by word/deed “Shame on You”. And then it used to be that the sense of shame was so great that those such as the WBC folks would either change their ways OR leave the community. But therein is the question: Is putting a sense of shame on someone for their hateful actions/speech hindering their 1st Amendment rights or is it a response of common decency/respect by those who understand that with free speech comes a grave responsibility?
On another note: I say that the people at the hospice deserve our utmost respect and thanks for caring for someone who is and has been so determinedly hateful and evil toward so many. I’m sure they have had no easy time of it. They are to be commended for putting a major tenant of the Hippocratic Oath to work: “. . .never do harm to anyone”
BOILING MAD CPO says: Actually no one really forced this set of nuts to be silent. Those of us who cared merely attempted to exclude them by keeping them as far away as possible from the funeral services. 1st amendment rights were not violated and it was with extreme caution that our 2nd amendments rights were not utilized. By this I mean some gun nut taking the whole church (read family) out of the picture. BZ
First off, let me clarify my statements. I am not saying that we ever violated their First Amendment. I’ve been to those funerals, and I know how they went. WBC was always allowed to be there, we just provided a barrier for the families. What I was referring to were statements made by many to the effect that “they shouldn’t be allowed to be there.” We see this mentality often; most recently in the case of the professor who called veterans rapists. I would not shed a tear if she got hit by a train, but I would fight for her right to speak her idiocy.
Secondly, please understand that I find them hateful, horrible, and despicable people. Unfortunately, they enjoy the same rights we do, and that means they have the right to say what they wish, stand on the flag, etc. We just also have the right to speak out against it.
GWB says: First, I am an advocate of doing things the “old-fshioned” way. No violation of their 1st Amendment rights involved. A little battery, maybe. But no censorship.
Second, I don’t feel any real joy in his impending death, either. But I will admit to a good deal of schadenfreud when he comes face-to-face with the Almighty and is pitched down into the abyss with the words, “Away from me; I never knew you” ringing in his ears. Hubris is the primal sin – from it all else goes forth. He thought himself the voice of God, and for that presumption…….
Now I must spend a little time sawing logs – the eye-piercing kind. Ciao.
Xavier says: Phelps’s extortion racket attempted to antagonize already emotional grievers into assault; the subsequent litigation funded his ‘church’. He is even more evil than people think because he hurt people not for his beliefs, but for money.
Overall, I think the American people showed great restraint and tolerance in dealing with this parasite. The motorcycle barricade was a fantastic idea.
May Phelps and his followers rot in hell. I’m not even going to put him on my “poopy grave visit” list.
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