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Re: Fred Phelps is dead

Anonymous — Thu, 20 Mar 2014 23:00:50 GMT

Author: Anonymous

Posted: 03/21/2014 03:00

hey! it's the everyone has an opinion thread!

Here's mine:
While I agree with the being above his hatred and not doing what he did to others I don't begrudge others their anger and/or desire to do so (and I hope those with the same view don't feel holier than the ones who do want to picket his funeral since an eye for an eye is well biblicial). And I don't think most people are angry about whatever publicity he got - they're angry about the affect it would have had for the familys of loved ones to have their funerals picketed with hateful messages. Even if he isn't the whole westboro baptist church he was their figurehead and they lose a lot of their power by losing him. And yes at one point he was probably a normal human being whose actions were influenced by the indoctrination of his very own upbringing (those sort of hateful views don't come out of nowhere) but the way he chose to use those views were his own.

I think we can all agree at least that his own bigotry not being in the world anymore is a good thing.

Re: Fred Phelps is dead

benpaco — Thu, 20 Mar 2014 22:51:47 GMT

Author: benpaco

Posted: 03/21/2014 02:51

I think my favorite youtuber may've put it all best: "You know when you put shit in the ground and then flowers grow out of it? Well let's build a pro-gay monument on Fred Phelps' grave. Take all that bitterness and hatred and make something awesome. Like Judo, but with hugs etc. Only with positive messages. Don't play his game cause he wins. RT @walale12: @DanNerdCubed Why don't we just picket his funeral?"

Re: Fred Phelps is dead

SuedeSwede — Thu, 20 Mar 2014 21:33:11 GMT

Author: SuedeSwede

Posted: 03/21/2014 01:33

Happymeal wrote:

I think you forgot one additional detail when you made this particular statement; he's no longer a human, he's a corpse. After someone dies, there is literally nothing left but a body. Your brain is what makes the person which is no longer functional once your dead (one could argue that in Fred Phelps' case it was never functional). The simple fact is that what's left of him isn't human. The funeral itself, while being about him, won't affect him as he's no longer around. However, I'll admit my previous statement was misguided (I was wrong). While I don't like the guy, I'd rather not see a huge funeral crashing in result of it (for various reasons. Mainly because it'll frame any reasonable person as monstrous because a large amount of people take the morally high ground). I think it's more or less a time to celebrate rather than causing more grief. Actually, the joke previously made about the same gender couples walking into the funeral has far more elegance to it.

I understand that he is not functional during a funeral, but that makes no difference. It is a last mark on the world, the last thing that your body goes through before having to reside as a corpse/ashes, and though he will not see what will happen at his funeral, his family will, and as will any other people who respect him. This is his send-off, and I think it is important that everyone should have a fair send-off before they are buried or their ashes are scattered. It is a last goodbye. For people to trash this in any way would be unfair to anyone wanting to have this last goodbye with him, and nobody should have this taken away from them. I understand he is not there to experience what happens at his funeral, which is more reason to just leave it alone. Creating a scene would just make his family & followers more angry.

Re: Fred Phelps is dead

Anonymous — Thu, 20 Mar 2014 21:28:44 GMT

Author: Anonymous

Posted: 03/21/2014 01:28

SuedeSwede wrote:

A death is a death, and no matter how bad the person, they deserve a funeral. I agree with all the positive statements, it'd be a much greater gesture to just show respect to a funeral and divide the good from the bad than to picket a funeral, which granted is nothing in comparison to his awful bigotry, but it's not exactly in any sense a pleasant thing to do. Let him have his funeral, pity him all you like, protest against the WBC, but I hope nobody interferes with a send-off which every human has a right to. Despite how much of a cunt you were, you deserve to have that final constitutional (or not so) right.

Re: Fred Phelps is dead

junodog4 — Thu, 20 Mar 2014 21:25:45 GMT

Author: junodog4

Posted: 03/21/2014 01:25

alelsupreme wrote:

It'll probably shrink. Not that it's a big thing as it is anyhow.

His kids have been the driving force behind it for a couple of years now. Even if they did fizzle out, some other group would take up the cause. Sadly, this kind of bigotry will always simmer below the surface in society.

Re: Fred Phelps is dead

SuedeSwede — Thu, 20 Mar 2014 20:22:00 GMT

Author: SuedeSwede

Posted: 03/21/2014 00:22

A death is a death, and no matter how bad the person, they deserve a funeral. I agree with all the positive statements, it'd be a much greater gesture to just show respect to a funeral and divide the good from the bad than to picket a funeral, which granted is nothing in comparison to his awful bigotry, but it's not exactly in any sense a pleasant thing to do. Let him have his funeral, pity him all you like, protest against the WBC, but I hope nobody interferes with a send-off which every human has a right to. Despite how much of a cunt you were, you deserve to have that final constitutional (or not so) right.

Re: Fred Phelps is dead

Anonymous — Thu, 20 Mar 2014 18:47:33 GMT

Author: Anonymous

Posted: 03/20/2014 22:47

just came by to drop off the colorfully titled Fred Phelps Just Died - Fuck That Guy, which goes into how he became estranged from, well, I'll quote them at length to give you a taste for the article:

Quote:

Excommunicated from his church and emotionally exiled from 99.9 percent of the human race, Fred Phelps died as alone as it is possible for a man to be. Pity him for his grim, motiveless anger, but let’s at least remember him as he would have wanted us to: as a psychotic, sadistic life-wrecker and overall bad egg. He certainly didn’t want your pity, as the following catalogue of ugh will show.

There are some interesting biographical details outside of his church involvement and despite the sensationalist tone of the article, there are reservedly positive moments, as when they credit him with moving forward civil rights in courts of law (though they accuse him of being in it just for the money) and when they implore those who read the article not to "cheer his demise."

Re: Fred Phelps is dead

Jackwc — Thu, 20 Mar 2014 18:31:17 GMT

Author: Jackwc

Posted: 03/20/2014 22:31

Ahh, here we go, this doco is great. Fred Phelps' daughter is actually such a sweetheart despite being such a bigot. 🙁

Link

Re: Fred Phelps is dead

SquishypuffDave — Thu, 20 Mar 2014 18:26:43 GMT

Author: SquishypuffDave

Posted: 03/20/2014 22:26

A grieving family is a grieving family yo.

Re: Fred Phelps is dead

Jackwc — Thu, 20 Mar 2014 18:17:25 GMT

Author: Jackwc

Posted: 03/20/2014 22:17

There was a reported who lived with the WBC for a while and wrote an expose on them, and he said they were really lovely people for the most part.

Re: Fred Phelps is dead

HigherThanTheSun — Thu, 20 Mar 2014 18:13:09 GMT

Author: HigherThanTheSun

Posted: 03/20/2014 22:13

Imo you lose the right to condemn someone when you do the exact same thing you're condemning them for; better point would be made in drawing a contrast between his appalling behaviour towards others, with how people should be treated, by decent people. Give him the normal dignified type of funeral he denied to others and make it absolutely clear (I mean it is already, but you know) who the good guys and who the bad guys are.

Anyway, I don't necessarily think his impact on this world has been a bad one. He's an easily hateable caricature of socially conservative america who repulsed almost everybody and did much more damage for his cause than good.

Re: Fred Phelps is dead

ShaneSpear — Thu, 20 Mar 2014 18:03:15 GMT

Author: ShaneSpear

Posted: 03/20/2014 22:03

Saoirse wrote:

how about a gay and a lesbian couple just show up and hold hands, look on lovingly? Postive, not picketing, but sends a message

Psudo Return of the Jedi ending? I can get on board with this.

Re: Fred Phelps is dead

Anonymous — Thu, 20 Mar 2014 17:58:06 GMT

Author: Anonymous

Posted: 03/20/2014 21:58

Precedent wrote:

Hopefully no one pickets his funeral

He was a horrible man, don't stoop down to his level.

I agree, it's not like the members of WBC will go 'Gosh, now we see the error of our ways' - it'll just make them more hateful than they already are.

Stop giving them attention.

Re: Fred Phelps is dead

Hayden — Thu, 20 Mar 2014 17:48:48 GMT

Author: Hayden

Posted: 03/20/2014 21:48

I need more glitter for my picket sign.

Re: Fred Phelps is dead

Anonymous — Thu, 20 Mar 2014 17:40:38 GMT

Author: Anonymous

Posted: 03/20/2014 21:40

Happymeal wrote:

I'd be in agreement with picketing his funeral. If someone plays dirty, then you should take the same tactics and use them to the fullest extent. Make them feel horrid for pissing you off.

So I'm not going to begrudge people being a little spiteful and doing things like this, however, Swedenman's (and precedent) view, to me, is great, it is good to have strong morals. I respect the fuck out of swedenman (And precedent). Happymeal's sentences up there are just dripping with...idk, something. I don't like it. It is as if they're in this to get entertained. Seems kinda like a nasty way of looking at things.

Re: Fred Phelps is dead

Anonymous — Thu, 20 Mar 2014 17:39:30 GMT

Author: Anonymous

Posted: 03/20/2014 21:39

an_outlaw wrote:

Must say I've never heard of them. Well before this thread in any case.

you're lucky

also just to make it clear I keed about people actually protesting at his funeral. I think making a positive counter-point to all the awfulness of the Westboro days would be a much better gesture

Re: Fred Phelps is dead

Anonymous — Thu, 20 Mar 2014 17:38:43 GMT

Author: Anonymous

Posted: 03/20/2014 21:38

Happymeal wrote:

I'd be in agreement with picketing his funeral. If someone plays dirty, then you should take the same tactics and use them to the fullest extent. Make them feel horrid for pissing you off.

What a way to stoop, Happymeal.

Re: Fred Phelps is dead

Anonymous — Thu, 20 Mar 2014 17:37:05 GMT

Author: Anonymous

Posted: 03/20/2014 21:37

Must say I've never heard of them. Well before this thread in any case.

Re: Fred Phelps is dead

alelsupreme — Thu, 20 Mar 2014 17:34:53 GMT

Author: alelsupreme

Posted: 03/20/2014 21:34

Saoirse wrote:

how about a gay and a lesbian couple just show up and hold hands, look on lovingly? Postive, not picketing, but sends a message

Make them soldiers and I'll wholeheartedly support. Kill 'em with love.

Re: Fred Phelps is dead

Anonymous — Thu, 20 Mar 2014 17:33:48 GMT

Author: Anonymous

Posted: 03/20/2014 21:33

how about a gay and a lesbian couple just show up and hold hands, look on lovingly? Postive, not picketing, but sends a message