http://slog.thestranger.com/slog/archives/2009/06/14/westboro-baptists-video-part-i Comments On: Westboro Baptists: Video, Part I by Kelly O en-us Copyright 2009 The Stranger. All rights reserved. This RSS file is offered to individuals, The Stranger readers, and non-commercial organizations only. Any commercial websites wishing to use this RSS file, please contact The Stranger. webmaster@thestranger.com (The Stranger Webmaster) Mon, 23 Nov 2009 00:00:01 -0800 Mon, 23 Nov 2009 11:00:00 -0800 Foundation http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss Posted by Henk]]> Wed, 17 Jun 2009 16:55:49 -0700 The Stranger http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jKHf8bDQj…
Posted by Strath]]> Mon, 15 Jun 2009 10:17:29 -0700 The Stranger

Posted by JF]]> Mon, 15 Jun 2009 08:23:59 -0700 The Stranger Posted by Greenwood]]> Mon, 15 Jun 2009 08:23:35 -0700 The Stranger Posted by Steven Bradford]]> Mon, 15 Jun 2009 07:54:18 -0700 The Stranger Posted by Jocelyn]]> Mon, 15 Jun 2009 07:24:57 -0700 The Stranger Posted by 6]]> Mon, 15 Jun 2009 07:09:49 -0700 The Stranger Posted by rhymeswithlibrarian]]> Mon, 15 Jun 2009 05:59:58 -0700 The Stranger
"Want to hear the world's worst a Westboro Baptist Joke?"

The other guy says "Sure, but before you tell it, let me tell you something. See those two bikers over there by the door, those tow real mean-looking dudes? They're a Westboro Baptists. And those two bouncers by the bar? They're a Westboro Baptists too! The Bartender is also a Westboro Baptist! And one more thing pal, I'm a Westboro Baptist too... Now, do you still want to tell that joke of yours?"

"Hell no!", replies the first guy, "I don't want to have to explain it six times!"

Posted by Stanislaw Lebowski]]> Mon, 15 Jun 2009 01:58:26 -0700 The Stranger down dazed and stunned. The Pastor began to kick him, and kept kicking him, but Mark couldn't get up. His father screamed at him to go out in the yard, but the boy's legs felt like jello and "the room was rolling in vertigo". Finally, his father left him there, sprawled and dazed like a defeated boxer. When Mark could stand up, he joined his older brother already at work."
Posted by stevema14420]]> Mon, 15 Jun 2009 01:47:01 -0700 The Stranger Posted by Tingleyfeeln]]> Mon, 15 Jun 2009 01:44:39 -0700 The Stranger www.addicted to hate.com

Posted by stevema14420]]> Mon, 15 Jun 2009 01:05:07 -0700 The Stranger This is apparently the answer
to the question -- why?

"Last year, Nate Phelps, sixth of Pastor Phelps' 13 children, accused his father of child abuse in the national media. The information was presented as a footnote to the larger story of Fred Phelps' anti-gay campaign. But the deep currents that lie beneath the apparent applecheeks of the Phelps' clan were stirring. A series of interviews with
Nate resulted in an eyewitness account of life growing up in the Phelps camp. These reports contained allegations of persistent and poisonous
child abuse, wife-beating, drug addiction, kidnapping, terrorism, wholesale tax fraud, and business fraud. In addition, Nate described the cult-like disassembly of young adult identities into shadow-souls, using physical and emotional coercion -- coercion that may have been a leading factor in the suicide of an emotionally troubled teenaged girl."
Posted by stevema14420]]> Mon, 15 Jun 2009 01:03:45 -0700 The Stranger (This is just quoted from the Wikipedia entry on Fred Phelps)

Phelps has run in various Kansas Democratic Party primaries five times, but has never won. These included races for governor in 1990, 1994, and 1998, receiving about 15 percent of the vote in 1998. In the 1992 Democratic Party primary for U.S. Senate, Phelps received 31 percent of the vote. Phelps ran for mayor of Topeka in 1993 and 1997.
Posted by jw36]]> Mon, 15 Jun 2009 00:43:32 -0700 The Stranger
If we can't make fun of adults who choose to devote their lives to evil, who can we make fun of? And if you can't enjoy making fun of people, well,.. I can't even imagine living that way.
Posted by Luke Baggins]]> Mon, 15 Jun 2009 00:30:45 -0700 The Stranger Posted by tabletop_joe]]> Mon, 15 Jun 2009 00:26:21 -0700 The Stranger
It's fascinating how healthy and good looking they are compared to the KKK types you usually see on TV.

I believe the reason they're so happy when they're picketing is that it's the only interaction they get with the outside world, and even getting the bird from everyone is more fun than the routine of being them on a daily basis. If you go to their site and read Fred Phelps sermon for his daughter Shirly's wedding, you'll get a sense of how amazingly shitty their lives must be off camera. If your life is a pool of runny shit, the smell of a solid healthy turd floating on the top would probably be a welcome relief such that it would probably bring a big smile to your face.

Oh and the documentary includes a lot of footage of the graphic artist who makes their signs who informs us that Jews hate god and worship the rectum in my #1 favorite scene.
Posted by Luke Baggins]]> Mon, 15 Jun 2009 00:21:27 -0700 The Stranger http://www.atheistnation.net/video/?vide…

and it's pretty interesting. I'm still watching it, but here's an (semi-)interesting point:

In the earlier post we read that Even Jael admitted that the protest wasn't all that great. "This is kind of medium," she said.

Now watch the video in the link above at 8 minutes in where they all rank every single one of their protests as 10 out of 10. Is Jael starting to slip away from the party line?
Posted by jw36]]> Sun, 14 Jun 2009 23:08:58 -0700 The Stranger Fall from Grace that's about the church supposedly has some footage of escapees.
Posted by datajunkie]]> Sun, 14 Jun 2009 23:02:44 -0700 The Stranger Posted by Montdidier]]> Sun, 14 Jun 2009 22:46:52 -0700 The Stranger I just checked the Wikipedia page on them and read, The group carries out daily picketing in Topeka (purportedly six per day with fifteen on Sunday).. So, I guess they must just be doing this boring shit on autopilot at this point.
Posted by jw36]]> Sun, 14 Jun 2009 22:36:56 -0700 The Stranger
@28, the church is basically all one big family, ...and some of the family has escaped their church.

Tell me more about the escapees. I'd kind of like to see a documentary on them.
Posted by jw36]]> Sun, 14 Jun 2009 22:07:29 -0700 The Stranger
Whoever wrote the book of Jonah knew these people well since they existed back then too. Skip the part about the big fish and look at the rest of the story: Jonah tells the people of Nineveh "You're going to Hell!!" The Ninevites repent and God spares them. Jonah is so disappointed that he goes off to sit under a tree and pout. I don't think the Bible is so much about God but rather a commentary on human nature.
Posted by RainMan]]> Sun, 14 Jun 2009 21:53:44 -0700 The Stranger
I can now confidently say that I take back what I said earlier about Jael looking kind of hot. She did in that one photo, but in the video she somehow keeps kind of making me picture her as a bald, middle-aged midwestern man. I mean, without all the repugnant bullshit she's spouting off on, I think she could have a minor makeover and still be pretty hot, but...

Um, more importantly, I'm just really confused by these guys more than ever after seeing the video. They don't come across as I'd imagined them.

Why are they doing all their songs so lightheartedly and kind of half-assed like they don't really believe it themselves?

Seriously, Charles, if you're reading this, could you please write at least a short post on how you interpret these guys?

There isn't any question, obviously, about how repugnant, stupid, hateful, ridiculous, illogical, etc., etc. all their words & ideas are, but what are we to make of them coming all the way to Seattle to sing all this crap, knowing that they're not going to convert anyone, and to do it in such a half-assed fashion? I can't quite resolve it myself..


Posted by jw36]]> Sun, 14 Jun 2009 21:50:43 -0700 The Stranger Posted by datajunkie]]> Sun, 14 Jun 2009 21:45:43 -0700 The Stranger