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IDemo

(16,926 posts)
Mon Apr 8, 2013, 09:25 AM Apr 2013

Anti-LGBT Westboro Church to picket funeral of ‘f*g enabler Roger Ebert’

Source: Raw Story

The anti-LGBT Westboro Baptist Church says that it will picket the funeral of movie critic Roger Ebert.

The Hollywood Reporter reported on Sunday that leaders of the Kansas church were angry because Ebert had insulted them on Twitter before he died.

In a March 25 Twitter post, Ebert had written, “Just another day at Westboro,” with a link to a Salon column about Jeff Chu’s experience attending services at Westboro.

“GOD HATES FAG ENABLER ROGER EBERT!” the church said in a press release. “LORD WILLING, WBC TO PICKET IN LAWFUL PROXIMITY TO THE FUNERAL OF FAG ENABLER ROGER EBERT AT “PREISTS RAPE BOYS” HOLY NAME CATHEDRAL.”

Read more: http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2013/04/08/anti-lgbt-westboro-church-to-picket-funeral-of-fg-enabler-roger-ebert/

45 replies = new reply since forum marked as read
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Anti-LGBT Westboro Church to picket funeral of ‘f*g enabler Roger Ebert’ (Original Post) IDemo Apr 2013 OP
thanks for giving them the attention they want. nt naaman fletcher Apr 2013 #1
+ 1 Bertha Venation Apr 2013 #8
Right. To their target audience. caseymoz Apr 2013 #16
actually I was going to say thanks for the heads up magical thyme Apr 2013 #23
+1 nt LaydeeBug Apr 2013 #25
good luck doing this in chicago..... madrchsod Apr 2013 #2
Must be looking for Judgement Day! lunasun Apr 2013 #12
that was my first thought. mopinko Apr 2013 #30
I think he would have been proud of the "honor." CBGLuthier Apr 2013 #3
My thoughts exactly. n/t backscatter712 Apr 2013 #5
They must have plenty of money to go traipsing all over the country to "Picket.) nt patricia92243 Apr 2013 #4
Picketing is how they make money jmowreader Apr 2013 #34
they enjoy tax exempt status... awoke_in_2003 Apr 2013 #42
Jesus, rawstory. STOP giving these morons your attention. Bertha Venation Apr 2013 #6
+1 In_The_Wind Apr 2013 #10
Fred Phelps should be beaten to a pulp and tied to a fencepost somewhere in Wyoming. backscatter712 Apr 2013 #7
Only fitting, since he used to beat his family with an axe handle. HughBeaumont Apr 2013 #28
The day he dies, I'm changing my signature... backscatter712 Apr 2013 #29
They're about as relevant as a VCR these days. marmar Apr 2013 #9
Less so Bibliovore Apr 2013 #13
VHS or Beta? n/t DissidentVoice Apr 2013 #20
wonder what percentage of US population support these Whackos? srican69 Apr 2013 #11
It has to be far less than 1%... octothorpe Apr 2013 #22
I hate Illinois funeral trolls. Hassin Bin Sober Apr 2013 #14
Somebody should do this to WBC... backscatter712 Apr 2013 #19
What's ironic is ... frazzled Apr 2013 #15
Actually, given what he's blogged . . . caseymoz Apr 2013 #17
He considered himself a Catholic without faith shrike Apr 2013 #37
The catholic church of 40-50 years ago... awoke_in_2003 Apr 2013 #43
Meh. It's a nice churh. Been to a bunch of weddings there. Hassin Bin Sober Apr 2013 #18
just sort of the official, big enough, fancy enough celebrity send off space. mopinko Apr 2013 #31
Attention, attention, attention DissidentVoice Apr 2013 #21
Fred also needs to be interviewed by a competent psychiatrist. He needs some serious help. That is RKP5637 Apr 2013 #26
They need to interviewed by the IRS! xtraxritical Apr 2013 #39
+++ 1,000,000 +++ n/t RKP5637 Apr 2013 #40
I'm sure he would be honored Fearless Apr 2013 #24
Agreed. Something tells me he would have liked that. catbyte Apr 2013 #27
This cult is the epitome of EVIL. SoapBox Apr 2013 #32
The house near his church maryland native Apr 2013 #33
"Ebert's in the news! Let's try to get some attention!" struggle4progress Apr 2013 #35
"PREISTS"? DollarBillHines Apr 2013 #36
IDemo, I'm opposed to giving these goons any air time. The same saidsimplesimon Apr 2013 #38
Phelps and his cult are a waste of oxygen. Nika Apr 2013 #41
Ebert would probably take it as an honor - dflprincess Apr 2013 #44
Roger would be honored Skittles Apr 2013 #45

caseymoz

(5,763 posts)
16. Right. To their target audience.
Mon Apr 8, 2013, 10:23 AM
Apr 2013

So far, it looks like Westboro is just thriving on all the attention everyone gives it.
 

magical thyme

(14,881 posts)
23. actually I was going to say thanks for the heads up
Mon Apr 8, 2013, 11:30 AM
Apr 2013

By publishing where and whom they next intend to harass and spew hatred, local people who find their behavior offensive can plan to show up and either scare them off of at least provide a physical barrier to keep them at a distance.

I hope hundreds, if not thousands, show up to allow Chaz and the rest of their family and friends, some deserved privacy during what should be a private and intimate experience.

lunasun

(21,646 posts)
12. Must be looking for Judgement Day!
Mon Apr 8, 2013, 10:12 AM
Apr 2013

Will meet a real group of folks like the crowd that met Illinois Nazis in the Blues Bros. movie
Too much traffic off Michigan Ave to pull the sedan trick but if only Ebert could blog from the afterlife he would have some great comments on this group's threat I bet.


mopinko

(69,806 posts)
30. that was my first thought.
Mon Apr 8, 2013, 12:41 PM
Apr 2013

got a funny feeling that press release is so conditional because they have no intention of even trying.

jmowreader

(50,453 posts)
34. Picketing is how they make money
Mon Apr 8, 2013, 02:00 PM
Apr 2013

They intentionally try to piss people off, to the point someone takes a swing at them or pass an injunction against them and then they sue. Fred sent all his kids to law school for a reason.

Bertha Venation

(21,484 posts)
6. Jesus, rawstory. STOP giving these morons your attention.
Mon Apr 8, 2013, 09:49 AM
Apr 2013

They only keep going because people pay attention to them. They are irrelevant. Just quit paying attention, rawstory. Jeez.

backscatter712

(26,355 posts)
7. Fred Phelps should be beaten to a pulp and tied to a fencepost somewhere in Wyoming.
Mon Apr 8, 2013, 09:49 AM
Apr 2013

Hey, I believe in poetic justice!

HughBeaumont

(24,461 posts)
28. Only fitting, since he used to beat his family with an axe handle.
Mon Apr 8, 2013, 12:15 PM
Apr 2013

An axe handle is no joke. You could seriously cause internal injuries or death with that thing, and that bastard stain used it like a paddle on the various body parts of his kids.

octothorpe

(962 posts)
22. It has to be far less than 1%...
Mon Apr 8, 2013, 11:25 AM
Apr 2013

Their family and maybe a few equally vile nuts here and there. Although, I don't think I've ever seen a non-member support them.

frazzled

(18,402 posts)
15. What's ironic is ...
Mon Apr 8, 2013, 10:23 AM
Apr 2013

that the funeral will take place at Holy Name Cathedral, home base of Cardinal Francis George (Archbishop of Chicago), who has said some really nasty things about gay people. Notably, he compared the annual Gay Pride parade to a Ku Klux Klan rally (because he felt the parade route would interfere with church services). To be fair, he apologized and it was accepted by the community.

I'm a little surprised that Ebert's funeral is being held there, but only in a way. It's a lovely place; I just didn't know he was a devout Catholic.

caseymoz

(5,763 posts)
17. Actually, given what he's blogged . . .
Mon Apr 8, 2013, 10:25 AM
Apr 2013

. . . I don't think he was.

What I expect to happen is that my body will fail, my mind will cease to function and that will be that. My genes will not live on, because I have had no children. I am comforted by Richard Dawkins’ theory of memes. Those are mental units: thoughts, ideas, gestures, notions, songs, beliefs, rhymes, ideals, teachings, sayings, phrases, clichés that move from mind to mind as genes move from body to body. After a lifetime of writing, teaching, broadcasting and telling too many jokes, I will leave behind more memes than many. They will all also eventually die, but so it goes.


http://www.democraticunderground.com/10022615719

That's not Catholic.

shrike

(3,817 posts)
37. He considered himself a Catholic without faith
Mon Apr 8, 2013, 03:36 PM
Apr 2013

He didn't sound all that different from other Catholics I know, who had good experiences with the church but lost their faith. Ebert felt that he owed his progressive values to his Catholic education (really.)

I'm sure he and his wife talked about it, and he probably felt the send-off would be a comfort for his family. Funerals are for the living.

 

awoke_in_2003

(34,582 posts)
43. The catholic church of 40-50 years ago...
Mon Apr 8, 2013, 09:35 PM
Apr 2013

supported many progressive ideas, like labor and Civil Rights movement.

mopinko

(69,806 posts)
31. just sort of the official, big enough, fancy enough celebrity send off space.
Mon Apr 8, 2013, 12:43 PM
Apr 2013

weddings are usually catholics, but lots of celebrities have their funerals there.

DissidentVoice

(813 posts)
21. Attention, attention, attention
Mon Apr 8, 2013, 11:17 AM
Apr 2013

That's what they want.

I took an Anthropology class from a professor who actually interviewed Fred Phelps.

Phelps told him that Westboro "Baptist" (no other Baptists claim ties with them) "Church" (like Hell they're a "church&quot is all about getting visibility for their "cause."

Theologically, they are bankrupt. They claim to be Calvinist. John Calvin believed in double predestination - that a person is already predestined to Heaven or Hell, and there's sweet FA that can be done about it.

Phelps says he's trying to save people in "doomed america" (his term) from going to Hell by endorsing "fag sin."

So...if he walked his talk about predestination, which he does not, he'd say "why bother, since it's already decided?"

RKP5637

(67,032 posts)
26. Fred also needs to be interviewed by a competent psychiatrist. He needs some serious help. That is
Mon Apr 8, 2013, 12:13 PM
Apr 2013

one F'ed up dude.

maryland native

(47 posts)
33. The house near his church
Mon Apr 8, 2013, 01:47 PM
Apr 2013

I saw a news item that a group had purchased a house near his "church" and painted it in a rainbow pattern.

May these lunatics stay home and admire their neighbors' artwork!!

saidsimplesimon

(7,888 posts)
38. IDemo, I'm opposed to giving these goons any air time. The same
Mon Apr 8, 2013, 03:44 PM
Apr 2013

is true for the nutty gang at Faux News, the pundits talking out of their rear ends, and those who prefer fantasy talking points to facts.

dflprincess

(28,057 posts)
44. Ebert would probably take it as an honor -
Mon Apr 8, 2013, 09:59 PM
Apr 2013

like the meme that has gone around Facebook "Live you life in a way that will make the Westboro Baptist Church picket your funeral".

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