Best ways to deal with Westboro? [Archive]

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RosieTR

9-15-13, 11:13pm

A friend posted that Westboro Baptist is planning to come tell Boulder they deserved the flood because they are all a bunch of dirty hippies. My first response is of course anger, but then I got to thinking that it was actually all pretty amusing. I mean, Boulder *prides* itself on being a "bunch of dirty hippies", having a pot culture and a gay culture and a beer culture and a vegan culture and a fitness culture and an outdoorsy culture and an uber-liberal culture. There aren't a ton of right-wing Christian folk around anyway, so it's not like they would get offended or even believe the whole thing. It almost feels like it could be a real life episode of Portlandia, in a way, which if the atmosphere were like that would diffuse tension. So I think it would be super fun to really just have something laughable-maybe a Tshirt or sign? I thought I'd post and see if anyone has any ideas on how to convey that in a quippy sign or something. Hopefully this was just a rumor but I wouldn't put it past them. If they come, I'll be there, LMAO most likely.

bae

9-15-13, 11:39pm

Westboro Baptist Church and Fred Phelps are swindlers, interested in farming civil liberties lawsuits. They want people to lash out at them.

The best way to deal with them is to ignore them, or to call up the Patriot Guard Riders if you like motorcylists...

Tussiemussies

9-15-13, 11:42pm

Yes, I agree with Bae . The best way to handle them is to ignore them....

bae

9-15-13, 11:47pm

Yes, I agree with Bae . The best way to handle them is to ignore them....

Well, the *very* best way involves heads, pikes, and walls, but alas our standards have slipped.

ToomuchStuff

9-16-13, 11:20am

I would generally agree with Bae, but I am pretty sure I had to deal with them, (at least some of them) before. (I dealt with them because they had just come from the funeral of a nephew in law of my bosses, who was killed on active duty)

The best way I would like to see them dealt with, is being helped by a bunch of blatantly gay soldiers.

flowerseverywhere

9-16-13, 11:50am

Well, the *very* best way involves heads, pikes, and walls, but alas our standards have slipped.
ah the good old days... your post made me laugh out loud - but the Westborough church is truly revolting. How dare they is all I can think of when I read what they do. I have seen the Patriot guard in action and they are great.

goldensmom

9-16-13, 11:58am

I agree that to ignore that Westboro group is the best route to take from afar but if they were in my backyard I don't know what I would do. Concerning the Boulder situation, please don't lump 'right-winged Christians' in with Westboro people as Westboro is far from anything Christian. If Westboro wants to go the 'reap what you sow' route then they also will reap what they sow, someday. I think I would just look over, past and through them if possible.

KayLR

9-16-13, 1:28pm

I was just telling DH yesterday that I was surprised I hadn't yet heard any knuckleheads claiming God's victory over potheads and gays in Colo. Yay, WTG, Westboro---at least you're predictable.

puglogic

9-16-13, 2:37pm

Check out this thread, Rosie: http://www.simplelivingforum.net/showthread.php?7883-whatever-happened-with-Westboro-Baptist-Church&highlight=Westboro

See especially these lovely links: http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/headlines/2012/07/westboro-church-protesters-confronted-by-zombies/
http://news.yahoo.com/10-nonviolent-ways-thwart-westboro-baptist-church-protest-063800626.html

I think the gene pool might be so much cleaner if that pestilence could be eradicated. But alas, we're forced to be creative.... :D

smellincoffee

9-18-13, 2:23pm

Westboro is a family cult that makes a lot of money by provoking people and them suing people who react. I don't know if Phelps is sincere, deranged, or evil. I think it likely he's shades of all three, but the best thing to do, unless the entire cult could be swallowed up by the earth at once, is to ignore them and let them die. That will never happen, because for all their faults people retain enough simple decency to be disgusted and outraged by the Phelps' antics. I thus suggest we ponder a way to have the Earth swallow the Phelps cult up all at once.

mtnlaurel

9-18-13, 2:51pm

Hypothetically, if they were at the edge of my backyard I would go outside & pray very loudly that they be shown the true, redemptive, grace filled love of Jesus Christ and I would also call a friend that's an attorney to be present to make sure no laws were broken

Edit to add: Honesty required- my first gut response involves kicking & nuts.

creaker

9-18-13, 5:28pm

iris lilies

9-18-13, 9:27pm

Westboro Baptist Church Set To Be Center Of Drag Show Parade Planned By Equality House

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/09/06/westboro-baptist-church-drag-show_n_3880758.html

The Westboro Baptist Church is in for a big surprise come October: Planting Peace is planning to make the group's Kansas headquarters the centerpiece of its drag show.

Planting Peace, an anti-hate nonprofit championing for equal rights, is planning to hold a drag show at its Equality House on Oct. 26 and march around the Westboro Baptist Church's Topeka headquarters, Queerty first reported. The Equality House sits across the street from the WBC compound and is painted in the rainbow colors of the pride flag. It is a symbol a symbol of peace, compassion and positive change.

See, that's what I was thinking. Rather than ignore, make it a fun event. Send a group of very sweet, friendly gay men dressed in, oh say pink hotpants or pink lame tuxedos to kill the Westboro crowd with kindness. They could hang out with the Westboros and offer them tea and crumpets. Make it street theater, they could perform dance routines and sing songs in tribute to the Westboro group.

Only thing is that they would have to be laced up in valium to make sure none would take the taunts of the Westboros seriously. All that crowd wants is one flying fist and bingo! They've got their riot, possibly their lawsuit.

RosieTR

9-18-13, 9:53pm

Great links Puglogic!

Boulder certainly doesn't lack hippies, gays, vegans etc so a succession of flash mobs of various varieties would work. Or Boulder PD just announcing it's legal to smoke out within 100 yds of the protest area :)

puglogic

9-18-13, 10:12pm

Edit to add: Honesty required- my first gut response involves kicking & nuts.

mtnlaurel, I know what a lovely human you are, and so this made me laugh out loud. (Because I do not think you are talking about pecans.)

I like to think Jesus would be pleased with people cultivating and using the creativity they were blessed with, finding ways to deal with those who have seriously lost their way.

Gregg

9-18-13, 11:20pm

It would be SO much fun to do a thousand outrageous things to get under the skin of this group, if only they were genuine. Unfortunately (kind of), they are not. They instigate and irritate until someone lashes out then they file a suit. They don't want to save anyone. They don't want to help anyone. They are a scam. The best thing to do is, as bae said, simply ignore them. Of course its no crime to be wearing a rainbow t-shirt and Elton John glasses while you do that...

goldensmom

9-19-13, 6:39am

It would be SO much fun to do a thousand outrageous things to get under the skin of this group, if only they were genuine.
I've been thinking about that and the brute in me says 'get even' but how? With a group such as Westboro, what would get under their skin? Treat them in kind? Sounds like that is what they want so how about just the opposite of what they do, treat them with kindness. Superficially agree with them to get them to shut up? I don't know, eventually they will self destruct.

RosieTR

9-19-13, 11:13pm

Yeah, I think the point is more to celebrate your own community and in this way probably actually gain from the whole deal in the end. This is why ultimately I feel sorry for them: trapped in their own cult, hating everyone else. Doesn't sound much different from prison, at least as I envision that.