Another case of the more outrageous the rants, the more media attention you get --
-- the Westboro Baptist Church loonies in Topeka, Kansas, who have made a creepy name for themselves by picketing funerals across the country of AIDS victims and soldiers killed in Iraq. They carry signs with slogans like "Thank God for AIDS", "Thank God for Dead Soldiers", "God Hates fags", "God Hates America", etc. They won a case in the Supreme Court yesterday that gives them permission, protected by their free speech rights, to keep doing this. I say, who cares what they to? The important thing is for everyone to stop giving them attention.
Back in the mid-90s sometime, I joined a counter-protest at a church one Sunday morning in south Minneapolis that was quickly organized because the Topeka weirdos (all or most of whom are family members of Rev. Fred Phelps [the hateful pastor of the church]) were going to be picketing the church for being gay-friendly. Hundreds of people, including the mayor and other high-profile people, descended on the church, inside and outside, to show support for the church. Local news people were all over the place covering the story. And there turned out to be maybe six or seven of the Westboro people carrying their pathetic signs. So what were we there for? Calling attention to them, which is just what they wanted. Of course.
The way to make these Phelps people go away is to totally IGNORE them. Every time they get media coverage, there are other hateful people watching ready to write checks to their so-called Christian church.
If, because of this Supreme Court thing, they show up on the cover of Time magazine next week, I'm going to cancel my subscription.
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