ah religion. self inflicted mild insanity. gotta love how some folks can look at the bible and pick out individual bits and use them for their own agenda. i'm willing to bet these same crackpots who hate gays, conveniently ignore the verse about stoning a lazy/disobedient child to death. or anyone who works on Saturday for that matter.

"hmm. that looks nice, i think we'll support this idea, but those idea's are just plain nuts! to crazy for us no thanks. we don't want those idea's no sir. but we'll keep them in the bible for sentimental reasons."

upvote for sanchez' handling of Phelp's despite his obvious disgust with the man.

"you've been brainwashed!"

potkettleblack?

Fucking assholes.

SHUT THE FUCK UP SHUT THE FUCK UP SHUT THE FUCK UP

Nothing gets my dander up quite like someone who just won't shut the fuck up and let the other person talk.

arsenault185: Um ... Who is it you are referring to? CNN, the sifters, or Fred Phelps / Westboro Baptist Church?

the message is clear: god will murder you as punishment for the actions of other people.

nincumpoop? wow...kindergarten language from a preschooler's mind.

...oh but he does believe god will punish Bill O'Reilly...even a blind squirrel is bound to find a nut every now and then.

*waronterror

Adding video to channels (Waronterror) - requested by raven.

Scum.

Phelps' mob was in town a few days after the Station Nightclub fire in Rhode Island, protesting the burned husk of a building and the makeshift memorial to mark where 100 died. Cops were also in attendance to allow them to protest. From what I could see as we drove by (they caused a traffic jam), it was ok for them to hold up their signs declaring 'America is doomed' and full of 'fags', and to shout down anyone within 20 feet or even passing by the display on the road, but the cops were pretty testy about anyone getting close to or responding to them. That was a sad day, especially as they were allowed to exercise their full rights while others were discouraged from response for fear of inciting violence.

What a worthless waste of flesh. I look forward to seeing this man destroyed in the courts.

They're trying to out-Fox Fox by treating a guest like that. This reporter went to the Bill O'Reilly school of interviewing. Even when you're interviewing a total nutjob, don't act like O'Reilly!

The verdict may violate the first amendment, regardless of how ignorant and insane the Phelps family is.

"[Shirley Phelps-Roper" was arrested on June 5th, 2007 on suspicion of contributing to the delinquency of a minor. Police alleged that she allowed her son to trample an American flag while protesting the funeral of a soldier in Bellevue, Nebraska, which is a misdemeanor in the state.[5] Phelps-Roper has announced her intent to challenge the constitutionality of the Nebraska statute, which may violate the First Amendment to the United States Constitution as interpreted by the Supreme Court in Texas v. Johnson and United States v. Eichman.[6] The American Civil Liberties Union of Nebraska is assisting Phelps-Roper in her legal defense."

Doesn't the very existence of Phelps and his church disprove the existence of God?

*yawn

is it OK to be bored with the Phelps family and with media outlets who insist on giving them air?

All I can say is that I have absolutely no respect for any member of the Phelps family who believes any of that. That's just ridiculous.

"arsenault185: Um ... Who is it you are referring to? CNN, the sifters, or Fred Phelps / Westboro Baptist Church?"

He meant the Phelps Cult.

as much as i despise the phelps and the fact that they are getting this airtime, in all reality i think its a good thing. the more people that see how whacked out, bigoted, biased, and borderline psycho these people are, the more people see what religion can really do to a person. what about their kids even? who's to say their kids wouldn't me morally upstanding well mannered (or more likely just plain kid-like) children if they hadn't had the misfortune of being born to these whacko's? these people are the poster pin ups of how religion can be child abuse in the worst way. basically the more tv time the phelps get, the more they hurt their own case.

terrible interviewer. actually made me agree with some of phelps's points. gah.

Sadly, this moron does have the right to his freedom of speech. It doesn't mean I have to agree with what he says and it doesn't mean that he has the right to add insult to injury by protesting at a funeral. But he does have the right to say it.

With that said, I can't wait until his crotchety, old ass comes down with cancer and eats him from the inside out, slowly and painfully.

Ahhhh, you have to love freedom of speech.

Did Louis Theroux do a piece of this Phelps guy?

Wonderful. It's morons like Phelps that give respectable Christians a bad name...just like the Jihadists giving Muslims a bad name...and Christian/Muslim/etc bashers giving respectable atheists and agnostics a bad name (I have plenty of atheist/agnostic friends, I respect their opinion, they respect mine, and the subject just doesn't come up).

So will he be forced to pay...Is this just for show? Does he even have $11e6?

Does anyone know?

MH

*I read a news story apparently the sum exceeds the net worth of Phelps and the Church. Maybe they will be bankrupted by litigation fees?

Angels (winged flying people), talking snakes, un-consumable apples, wine magically made from water, and magical men capable of walking on water. ITS ALL REAL! LOL

something ive come across many, many, many times (its a fairly common theme). why, just why does religion get special dispensation as an "idea" or w/e you want to call it. how come muslim/christian/jew "bashers" give athiests a bad name?
suppose i pointed out how much i disagreed with say, communism. that i think its so totally open to corruption that it could never reasonably work to its true intent in any country. most likely id find some who agree with me, some who don't and thats that. im not despised or called a horrible person for disliking it.
BUT should someone say, point out the fact that its physically impossible beyond all reason, belief or otherwise that 1 man, 1 woman and 3 sons could build a boat of massive proportions. stock it with untold numbers of animals (who all behaved very nicely together, thank you very much.) FEED and water all said animals for over a month and that the entirety of the globe was covered in water for such a time is so preposterous as to be absurd. should someone point this out they are called out as being "hateful" and biased and who knows what else. someone explain to me just why these 3 groups are untouchable by comment, critique or questioning.

As much as I disagree with him, I still defend his right to freedom of speech.

Phelps is an ass, BUT being an ass is still his constitutionally protected right.

If his church has 501c3 status it should be revoked based in political activity, that's legit. If they trespass or touch anybody they should be charged, convicted and put in jail, that's legit. Being batshit crazy is not and should not be a crime.

His being terribly offensively rude to people who he has no reasonable cause to bother is still freedom of speech, and while I can't think of a single thing he says which is not absurd, stupid or offensive I/we still have no right to fine him for being an ass.

There's nutjob atheists (a higher percentage of atheists than Christians believe in ghosts) and there's nutjob Christians. He's a nutjob Christian. Desecrating a sacred ritual (as most religious funeral service is) is blasphemous, and not something most Christians would do, even if we disagreed with the beliefs of the person in question.

The first amendment, by the by, doesn't guarantee you the right to disrupt a private ceremony.

That "private ceremony" was outdoors on public property. The Phelps protest did not commit trespass.

Why would you protest a funeral? The man is dead give him peace. We can all agree that life is hard enough why inflict misery on others. If you want respect and freedom you must give respect and freedom.

The louis theroux bit on the phelps family is a very interesting documentary. There is this very strange sexual tension between him and phelps' poor poor misguided granddaughter.

ShakaUVM: "a higher percentage of atheists than Christians believe in ghosts"

This rather disregards the general meaning of Atheist. While there are many non-Christians who believe in all manner of supernatural entities it would be incorrect to label these people Atheists.

While Atheism is denoted as the absence of belief in an god or gods its connotation and general use is absence of belief in the supernatural, people who believe in ghosts may not be Christians, but they are not properly Atheists either.

That said there are nutjob Atheists, Randian "Objectivists" come to mind, but they pale in comparison to the nutjobs that exist, not simple along side, but because of religion. When people point to Mao and Stalin and say "evil atheists" it's just as relivant as "evil guys who wore hats" correlation is not causation. On the other hand people who go on crusades, or crash planes into buildings to kill infidels, or protest at funerals are being evil BECAUSE of there religious beliefs, that's a big difference.

*cult

Adding video to channels (Cult) - requested by therealblankman.

*controversy *money

Adding video to channels (Controversy, Money) - requested by MrFisk.

http://www.supremecourt.gov/oral_arguments/argument_transcripts/09-751.pdf

*dead

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