Well, fuck me sideways

[kierthos]

Bush signed what amounts to an "anti-Fred Phelps" law.

Bush bans protests at military funerals.

About damned time.

Comments

[kierthos.livejournal.com]

This was your father's baseball bat. It's not as clumsy or as random as a chainsaw. A more elegant weapon, from a more elegant time.

[morinon.livejournal.com]

While I'm all for Fred Phelps being banned, this does technically infringe on the 1st amendment.

But I fully support the baseball bat counterprotest.

[mithras.livejournal.com]

A bunch of Cammies / goths show up, all painted up like Sting, pull out bats and start whomping on Phelps and crew.


It would be glorious....

[egearman.livejournal.com]

Yeah, until they start to complain about the sunshine, fresh air and exercise. And how no one understands them. Heh...

Now, if they were to start reading their poetry to the Phelps crew... :)


When/if you see this twice, it because I was logged in under someone else's account.

[kierthos.livejournal.com]

I don't think the Founding Fathers intended the First Amendment to be a shield against hate-speech.

If Phelps was just bitching about the war, that would be one thing. What he's doing is wrong in so many ways, that if this law keeps his brand of pseudo-Christian hatred away from grieving families... Well, I think the First Amendment can survive this one.

[morinon.livejournal.com]

Here's how I view it. If it's talk, just watch it. The second it goes beyond talk, then you bring out the nails with bats.

[kierthos.livejournal.com]

The First Amendment is not all-inclusive. You can't claim First Amendment privileges for yelling "Fire" in a crowded theater when there is no fire, and you can't claim a right to free speech when your speech only serves (as an example) to incite a riot.

Likewise, hate speech isn't protected. And that's what Phelps and his pseudo-Christian zealots are doing. If they were merely protesting the war, I would have much less of an issue with it. I would still question the merits of protesting at a funeral for a soldier.

But they're not doing that. They are promoting an anti-homosexual agenda, and they're doing it at the expense of griefing families.

As far as I am concerned, free speech is a responsibility as well as a right. And they've shown they can't be responsible with it.