Rumors Fly of Westboro Baptist Church Being Gassed, Blocked, and Chased

They DO NOT have the right to destroy the funeral of a lost soldier or a victim of a disaster.

DO NOT.

I don't care how you try to twist it, if these lunatics tried to protest someone I knew at their funeral there would be hell to pay....god forbid...it's hard enough to deal with the loss of a loved one....it's far too much to have crazy people happy with their death.

UNCONSTITUTIONAL OR NOT....i don't care.

It crosses the line...far beyond the line. They deserve every strike against them.

Originally posted by jude11
Freedoms and Rights belong to EVERYONE.

If it is denied to the less popular, it's neither a freedom nor a right but simply permission. "May I have my freedoms....Please?"

While I DO NOT agree with the agenda of these people, where is the line drawn for their rights that they are exercising?

If they have their freedoms of Speech, Non-Violent Protesting and the right to gather in a public place taken away, where does it end? With you? Me?

Again, I DO NOT agree with them but they are not breaking any laws. If new laws are created to stop them because people just don't agree with them and don't like their message, it will be another case of destroying the rights of the entire Country.

Difficult situation I agree, but if a law is passed for them it's enforced on everyone and if people cheer for the police denying them their rights, what happens when it comes back and those cheering people have their rights denied down the road?

It won't be entertaining anymore.

Personally, I would rather have citizens take care of this bunch....and hope they do it in a back alley. That's Justice!

edit on 29-5-2011 by jude11 because: (no reason given)

You said it before I could.
These people deserved what they got, but it shouldn't have been applied by cops. If cops turned a blind eye, and let ordinary citizens take care of 'em that would actually be better for the people. What would be best though, is if ordinary citizens actually took care of business under the radar. It's a slippery slope and I fear that it could end up another unconstitutional ruling in the supreme court.

They may have rights, but does that give them the right?

Think about this "Your right too swing your fist ends when it touches my nose"

in other words: Your rights end when they infringe upon my rights.

I have read somewhere that the US has some rarely used legislation against ''fighting words'', where freedom of speech is restricted if the intention of the speech is to incite hatred and violence from the people who are targeted by the words.

Surely goading and mocking people in a city where 200 people have just died in a natural disaster would be covered by these laws ? Why don't the police just arrest them on these grounds ?

Awwww man this sucks!!!

I thought they'd been blocked inside the church and gassed with the survivors chased.... boooo hoooo!!!

Lol it is funny though, friggin horrible flickers deserve it.

I do not care about their freedom of speech rights. That goes out the door for me when they picket military funerals and people died horribly in a devastating tornado by saying they deserved it. That is slander!

How would they feel if half their congregation was killed and people picketed their services saying they deserved it? I bet they WOULDN'T.

These people are scum and a total cult!

Originally posted by Sherlock Holmes
I have read somewhere that the US has some rarely used legislation against ''fighting words'', where freedom of speech is restricted if the intention of the speech is to incite hatred and violence from the people who are targeted by the words.

Surely goading and mocking people in a city where 200 people have just died in a natural disaster would be covered by these laws ? Why don't the police just arrest them on these grounds ?

Agreed! Yet I see a video posted here yesterday where people were dancing at a protest and they get arrested? What is wrong with this country....It's ok to say people deserve to die when they died in a horrible accident like a tornado or defending their country and those idiots rights yet its not ok to dance and you get arrested? Wow...just wow.

reply to post by Sherlock Holmes


I have no doubt that they resisted arrest. These people are crazy. What's worse is that they force their small children to go along with it all. Some one needs to think of THEIR right. Those kids need someone to look out for them, because their parents are just knowingly putting them in dangerous situations.

If you play with fire expect to get burned.

Originally posted by David9176
They DO NOT have the right to destroy the funeral of a lost soldier or a victim of a disaster.

DO NOT.

I don't care how you try to twist it, if these lunatics tried to protest someone I knew at their funeral there would be hell to pay....god forbid...it's hard enough to deal with the loss of a loved one....it's far too much to have crazy people happy with their death.

UNCONSTITUTIONAL OR NOT....i don't care.

It crosses the line...far beyond the line. They deserve every strike against them.

Unconstitutional or not -- that one phrase belittles the death of any american soldier.

reply to post by britt


It's clearly emotional abuse the way the extended Phelps family brainwash their young children in this way.

I'm all for letting parents raise their child in a religious household if they want to, but the Westboro Baptist Church takes religious extremist indoctrination to a new level. Children shouldn't have to grow up in an environment where this bile-ridden rhetoric is shoved down their throats, nor should they have to be exposed to the understandably hostile counter protests that occur wherever the WBC decide to picket.

Good riddens!!!!!!!!! I understand the freedom of speech argument some are making.....however the people of Joplin are still uncovering the dead and dealing with unimaginable amounts of grief, anguish, sadness, desperation, etc. When I went through a natural disaster, NO ONE was allowed into the neighborhood with their ID to prove they belonged there, this was mainly to keep looters and thieves away, but I promise if this or any other group of insensitive bastards wanted to come protest while we were picking up the pieces of what was left of our lives, they either would've gotten the crap kicked out of the them or shot.

reply to post by mblahnikluver


Yeah, it's certainly messed up.

Surely you have laws such as ''breaching the peace'' that could be applied whenever these clowns show up at a soldier's funeral or anywhere else that they're trying to get a reaction from grieving families and other emotionally distressed people ?

People may bang on about freedom of speech, but what kind of civilised society lets people legally disrupt and agitate at a funeral ? Common decency should prohibit people from legally doing this.

I can understand that some people are worried about a ''slippery slope'', but something's got to eventually give, and it's not going to be too pretty.

reply to post by mblahnikluver


Know your enemy. Most of the time, the WBC gets a permit to protest, which allows them to sue whoever physically, and in some cases verbally confronts them. This a cult of lawyers, very dangerous to those are not aware.

However, I don’t think in this case they got a permit. It does happen from time to time. They come, the law confronts and they go away. I want to see the tables turned somehow. I want to see them successfully sued to the nines and sent packing, totally bankrupt and homeless.

If this is report true, personally, I think they got what was coming to them.

I have no reason to feel that the members of Westboro Baptist Church DIDN'T break any laws. There is a huge difference between expressing one's opinion, and trying to stir up trouble just for the sake of doing so. That's what those SOBs thrive on.

I honestly applaud the members of Westboro Baptist Church for exercising their right to be tear gassed! In Fred Phelps' own words, "they were violent sinners". They only got what they deserved.

See ya, Milt

Freedom of speech was founded and guaranteed so long as the people had moral self-restraint, most people today do not. These people take that to an all new level. Everyone has their rights, no denying that, but innocent people and the dead also have the right to not be publicly tormented or mocked. That is not in the constitution but it should be in our moral code. God forbid these people did something like this some 200 years ago they just might have escaped from there alive... if they were lucky.

Tolerance has gone too far when we are just supposed to 'ignore' them and not let the hounds loose on their sorry butts.

Why haven't child services been involved ?

[atsimg]http://files.abovetopsecret.com/images/member/005b7680326e.jpg[/atsimg]

Surely nobody can support their ''right'' to poison children's minds like this ?

Let em speak, let them say what they will about victims of catastrophe, let them dance in joy for the death of soldiers, it is their right here in the US.
People will just see these badwordHOLES for what they are, idiot zealots.
Words do not hurt and someday one of them will pass, I then fully expect to see an army of folks outside of their church with signs and chanting terrible things too.
But let them have their rights, it is what is right.

These people use the law to pick pockets. They seek only to enrich themselves through the manipulation of our laws not their unbiased application. They are fancy talking thieves and should be treated as such.

reply to post by David9176


Agree with this man... I would gladly take the assualt charge for a chance to knock one of these d-bags out.