Lie Down With Dogs

Get up with fleas as the old saying goes. The ACLU is suing the state of Missouri on behalf of the Westboro cult. They contend that a ban on picketing at funerals passed by Missouri lawmakers is unconstitutional on freedom of religion and freedom of speech grounds.

The church and the Rev. Fred Phelps say God is allowing troops, coal miners and others to be killed because the United States tolerates gay men and lesbians.

Missouri lawmakers were spurred to action after members of the church protested in St. Joseph, Mo., last August at the funeral of Army Spec. Edward L. Myers.

The law bans picketing and protests "in front of or about" any location where a funeral is held, from an hour before it begins until an hour after it ends. Offenders can face fines and jail time.

A number of other state laws and a federal law, signed in May by President Bush, bar such protests within a certain distance of a cemetery or funeral.

In the lawsuit, the ACLU says the Missouri law tries to limit protesters' free speech based on the content of their message. It is asking the court to declare the ban unconstitutional and to issue an injunction to keep it from being enforced, which would allow the group to resume picketing.

"I told the nation, as each state went after these laws, that if the day came that they got in our way, that we would sue them," said Phelps's daughter Shirley L. Phelps-Roper, a spokeswoman for the church in Topeka, Kan. "At this hour, the wrath of God is pouring out on this country."

Scott Holste, a spokesman for Missouri Attorney General Jay Nixon, said, "We're not going to acquiesce to anything that they're asking for in this lawsuit."

Although I've never been sure such laws could pass constitutional muster, I also understand that the sickeningly indecent behavior of the cultists provoked the passing of these laws in the first place. (By the way, the continued insistence of the media on calling this group a "fundamentalist sect" or even "Baptists" is sleazy. They have no problem calling other cults "cults" but they are using this as a way to take a swipe at Christians. Nor are these whackjobs part of the "Christian right" as the lefties like to charge. No responsible person would claim cults like this).

UPDATE: Ouch, that will leave a mark.

Defenders of the ACLU will proclaim this as proof of their dedication to free speech, but that's nonsense. The ACLU does not take every case that has free-speech implications, let alone Constitutional issues. Fred Phelps could get a lawyer on his own; the ACLU and its donors have no obligation to assist him in mocking the loss of family members at funerals. The ACLU has put itself on par with these soulless freaks, and their donors should take note that their money now supports the Phelps traveling hate show.

Other Links to this Post

1. News Fit to Post - making social justice visible » It’s Painful, But the ACLU Should Defend Fred Phelps — Sunday, 23 July , 2006 @ 11:40 am

2. Old War Dogs — Sunday, 23 July , 2006 @ 12:20 pm

3. Stop The ACLU — Sunday, 23 July , 2006 @ 9:05 pm