Posted on 06/15/2005 6:30:56 AM PDT by Hatman
BOISE, Idaho -- A Kansas preacher and gay rights foe whose congregation is protesting military funerals around the country said he's coming to Idaho tomorrow to picket the memorial for an Idaho National Guard soldier killed in Iraq.
A flier on the Web site of Pastor Fred Phelps' Westboro Baptist Church claims God killed Cpl. Carrie French with an improvised explosive device in retaliation against the United States for a bombing at Phelps' church six years ago.
"We're coming," Phelps said yesterday.
Westboro Baptist either has protested or is planning protests of other public funerals of soldiers from Michigan, Alabama, Minnesota, Virginia and Colorado. A protest is planned for July 11 at Dover Air Force Base, the military base where war dead are transported before being sent on to their home states.
Phelps gained national notoriety in 1998 when he picketed the funeral of Matthew Shepard, the gay college student beaten to death in Wyoming.
Since then, Phelps said his church has been the target of hateful words and actions, including a bomb attack six years ago.
Phelps' church has picketed the funerals of AIDS victims for more than a decade.
French, 19, was a Caldwell High School graduate and varsity cheerleader. She was killed June 5 in the northern city of Kirkuk. French served as an ammunition specialist with the 116th Brigade Combat Team's 145th Support Battalion.
Phelps said the fact that French led an all-American life gives him all the more reason to picket her final public tribute.
"An all-American girl from a society of all-American heretics," he said.
"Our attitude toward what's happening with the war is the Lord is punishing this evil nation for abandoning all moral imperatives that are worth a dime," Phelps said.
Caldwell Police Chief Bob Sobba said he cannot bar Phelps from going to the public funeral, which is scheduled for 1 p.m. at the Albertson College of Idaho in that city.
"While we respect Mr. Phelps' right to protest, we would hope that he would respect the family and friends of this young person by not disrupting the memorial," Sobba said.
Idaho Air National Guard Lt. Tony Vincelli, acting as spokesman for French's family, said there were no plans to change the funeral arrangements.
The Rev. Brian Fischer, pastor of Boise's Community Church of the Valley, and himself a past target of protest by the Westboro Baptist Church, decried Phelps' plan.
"What Phelps is doing is a reprehensible thing, to take a funeral and turn it into a photo op for his hate cause," Fischer said.
"We hope everyone will ignore Phelps' group."
In 2003, Phelps demanded that he be allowed to erect an anti-gay monument in a Boise public park. To avoid a lawsuit from his group, city officials voted in 2004 that a Ten Commandments monument be moved out of the park.
Phelps may be suprised where his soul ends up.
If some pro-gay-agenda activists want to get the ball rolling, they arrange for a group of students to perform that play about Phelps. I guess he comes withn the scripts and media kit, for you can count on him and his band of hateful loonies to show up and make a lot of noise. Then the local professors, teachers, and media-cracy can lecture us all about how Christians need to stop hating gays and embrace all aspects of the gay lifestyle.
If Phelps isn't an agent provacateur, he should be. He could get paid well by leftist kingmakers for the work he is doing.
The City Council voted to remove the ten commandments to avoid the resulting legal fight. Many people here were and are mad at the city council because we all felt that they should have fought this bozo and left the ten commandments where they were. In essence, many felt that the city council wimped out and was manipulated by this person to get rid of the ten commandments.
As to this guy disrupting this good girl's funeral...it will not fly here very well at all. People at the funeral will be respectful and hold their peace out of respect for Carrie...but there is no love lost for the likes of this hatemonger.
People here look dimly on homsexuality in general, but they do not like being portrayed by someone so obviously unChristian as this individual and his group. We prefer to handle it our own way and do not need or seek his help. What he plans for Carrie's funeral is just the latest sick example of why. I hope the guy steps over the line in some small way so the Caldwell police can do their duty and arrest him for whatever infraction he commits.
I personaly believe he is a leftist agent provocateur.
Phelps and his ilk so thoroughly betray the ethic of Jesus of Nazareth that I am at a loss --- I can't quite wrap my head around such hatred and perversion.
I can't muster hatred for Phelps, only a genuine pity at someone so consumed by darkness and hate that they have feel compelled to act out their psychosis and evil on others.
Mercy triumphs over judgment. St. James
This ahole would be in real trouble if he picketed my kids funeral. I hope her dad lays a can of whoop a-- on him.
Thanks for that VERY disturbing link, Dane.
I think the first part of your statement is on target. While the last portion is probably correct, my guess is it is far more encompassing than that!
From day one, the demonRATS and their worshipers have been blaming and condemning the "evangelical" Christians for re-electing President Bush and suggesting that he is trying to turn this country into a theocracy. Over the memorial day week-end I heard veterans claiming they were the ones responsible. This guy is the poster child the demonRATS are holding up as representative of all Christians, while supporting their anti-military agenda as well.
This man needs a nice "white coat" and a bed at the nearest asylum...ASAP.
The more we see the extremes on the left, the more we will see such counter-extremes created. I am interested in seeing this 'movie' about this guy, just to understand the way he thinks but I do think that he is an extremist that gives a terribly wrong message of Christianity.
http://www.hatemongers.com/home.html
I know what you mean. A while back they showed up on Sunday morning at a Catholic Church my co-workder attends to protest, and they had those signs with the "stick figures" on them - they also had signs with Pope John Paul II picture on them that said "The pope is in hell". My co-worker said explaining to his small children "why those people have those signs" was not fun.
Rockchalk,
We used to live in Lawrence during the time frame that he is saying his church got "bombed". I don't remember hearing a thing about it.
Everyone needs to remember that Fred is a demoRat and a AlGore supporter.
But, this is new ground for someone as insane as Fred. What a freak.
Semper Fi
I don't think her Dad is the appropriate person for the job. He's got her mother and siblings, if any, to console. Her brothers, if she has them, and her comrades of the National Guard would be more appropriate. The guy and his clan shouldn't get within a mile of the funeral.
I just can't bring myself to ping the GRPLs.
I am all for the first ammendment. But you nailed it. A memorial is not the time or place for any protest.
Westboro Baptist either has protested or is planning protests of other public funerals of soldiers from Michigan, Alabama, Minnesota, Virginia and Colorado. A protest is planned for July 11 at Dover Air Force Base, the military base where war dead are transported before being sent on to their home states.Phelps gained national notoriety in 1998 when he picketed the funeral of Matthew Shepard, the gay college student beaten to death in Wyoming.
Since then, Phelps said his church has been the target of hateful words and actions, including a bomb attack six years ago.
What a sick man.
As the Bible says, there is a time for everything under heaven. Even if he feels that God is punishing American by allowing our soldiers die in Iraq, he has no business picketing a funeral.
Soros has been around for over 35 years in politics . He could very well have donated to this guy who was a GORE supporter in the past.
Hardly. I've been watching Phred Phelps' antics for over 10 years now. Nobody will touch him, not even Soros.
Back in the 60's 'Phred' was a reasonably respected civil rights attorney. Then he cracked mentally, and got himself disbarred. Not sure what exactly led to the disbarment, but I'm sure it's public record in Lexis/Nexis if someone wanted to research it. He's been a real crank since the late 60's.
Maybe if he settled down with the right guy and got laid, he'd calm down.
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