Fred Phelps / Phelps Family / Westboro Baptist [mega-merged]

[TheLyingGame]

Re: Almost 250K people sign petition to have Westboro Baptist Church legally recognised as a hate group

I remember that time Shirley Phelps called a fox new presenter a "bimbo" and Miley Cyrus a "simple slut".

I can't help but laugh. Mostly at her. Not with her.

I'm glad they're doing this. It's clearly a hate group.

 

[SLOPPYSECONDS]

Re: Almost 250K people sign petition to have Westboro Baptist Church legally recognised as a hate group

clear is no a world cultures storngs point

westboro woteva is hole 50 states wen call in all da tickets of fun thangs
as is many lands still taday
be folk die by gun or many othda ways neva get da DRAAAAAAAMA or ooh a worlds apublic discova dat not nice is it

thankyou

 

[zoltanspawn]

Re: Almost 250K people sign petition to have Westboro Baptist Church legally recognised as a hate group

I don't like giving my email.
They always send annoy junk mails after that.

Is there any petition without giving your emails ?

The petition is located on a US government website for the White House. You shouldn't receive junk mail from them.

I would hope that only US citizens are eligible to sign the petition. Has anyone who isn't at least a resident tried?

 

[KaraBulut]

Re: Almost 250K people sign petition to have Westboro Baptist Church legally recognised as a hate group

A more productive and viable action would be to ask that the IRS audit them for political activity.

Well, for one thing, they could lose their status as a church and their tax exemption.

You got your wish:

https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/pe...xempt-status-and-make-it-retroactive/kmYR4DTL

 

[xbuzzerx]

Re: Almost 250K people sign petition to have Westboro Baptist Church legally recognised as a hate group

I agree with Pete ignore them and they will go away. People are too sensitive these days make fun of them laugh at them for making a fool out of themselves.

Would you appreciate people saying this to your family if Westboro showed up with cameras and a public crowd to the funeral of someone in your family? "Omg stop being oversensitive just ignore them."

 

[borg69unimatrix]

Re: Almost 250K people sign petition to have Westboro Baptist Church legally recognised as a hate group

You got your wish:

https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/pe...xempt-status-and-make-it-retroactive/kmYR4DTL

THAT is freakin' awesome!

 

[LeicsDom]

Re: Almost 250K people sign petition to have Westboro Baptist Church legally recognised as a hate group

make fun of them laugh at them for making a fool out of themselves.

I aagree. Chaplin got it right when he said the best form of attack was to belittle Hitler

 

[LeicsDom]

Re: Almost 250K people sign petition to have Westboro Baptist Church legally recognised as a hate group

I would hope that only US citizens are eligible to sign the petition. Has anyone who isn't at least a resident tried?

Why shouldn't non US citizens vote? WBC came over to the UK and tried to cause trouble before being thrown out

 

[gsdx]

Re: Almost 250K people sign petition to have Westboro Baptist Church legally recognised as a hate group

Why shouldn't non US citizens vote? WBC came over to the UK and tried to cause trouble before being thrown out

Indeed. The US isn't the only country in the world to suffer their hatred. Their cancer spreads far beyond the borders of their country.

By the way, Phelps himself knows he'll be arrested if he sets foot on Canadian soil and his cronies know they can't get away with their hate speech up here.

 

[star-warrior]

Re: Almost 250K people sign petition to have Westboro Baptist Church legally recognised as a hate group

https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/pe...xempt-status-and-make-it-retroactive/kmYR4DTL

51,783 votes

Around 248K signatures at time of this thread being created.
https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/pe...gov&utm_medium=shorturl&utm_campaign=shorturl

Now at
306,727 votes

 

[PreTTy PeTe]

Re: Almost 250K people sign petition to have Westboro Baptist Church legally recognised as a hate group

 

[LaughOutLoud]

Re: Almost 250K people sign petition to have Westboro Baptist Church legally recognised as a hate group

Now at
306,727 votes

Brilliant


What happens with these things anyway? I don't live in USA so don't really have much knowledge of this kind of "Official Petition".

 

[KaraBulut]

Re: Almost 250K people sign petition to have Westboro Baptist Church legally recognised as a hate group

What happens with these things anyway? I don't live in USA so don't really have much knowledge of this kind of "Official Petition".

It's been kind of lost in history, but the 1st Amendment to the US Constitution gives citizens the right to petition the government. At one time, people used to write petition Congress and the White House directly and there are stories well into the 19th century about citizens showing up at the White House to deliver their petition to the President in person.

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

These electronic petitions get "an official response" from the White House once they have 25,000 signatures. Some of the active petitions are nutty- there's a lot of fringe groups that are creating some pretty odd requests. But the tax-exempt status is a valid issue- the IRS has pulled tax exemption on some very well-known groups.

 

[gsdx]

Re: Almost 250K people sign petition to have Westboro Baptist Church legally recognised as a hate group

^ Thank you. I wondered about that as well.

 

[LaughOutLoud]

Re: Almost 250K people sign petition to have Westboro Baptist Church legally recognised as a hate group

It's been kind of lost in history, but the 1st Amendment to the US Constitution gives citizens the right to petition the government. At one time, people used to write petition Congress and the White House directly and there are stories well into the 19th century about citizens showing up at the White House to deliver their petition to the President in person.




These electronic petitions get "an official response" from the White House once they have 25,000 signatures. Some of the active petitions are nutty- there's a lot of fringe groups that are creating some pretty odd requests. But the tax-exempt status is a valid issue- the IRS has pulled tax exemption on some very well-known groups.

Thanks for the info.

So the official responses from government.... do they tend to be "very nice, but we don't care, bugger off", or do they actually give these petitions serious consideration?


What I mean is, are these petitions just a way for the government to "tick a box" that they are giving citizens the right to protest, but then do nothing about it?

 

[KaraBulut]

Re: Almost 250K people sign petition to have Westboro Baptist Church legally recognised as a hate group

So the official responses from government.... do they tend to be "very nice, but we don't care, bugger off", or do they actually give these petitions serious consideration?

When the required number of signatures is met, the government will respond.

In some cases, the response is posted on the whitehouse website.

Some of the petitions are pretty funny- for example, the White House posted their beer recipe in response to a petition:
https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/response/ale-chief-white-house-beer-recipe
which included a video:


Some responses are caged in political non-speak:
https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/response/repealing-discriminatory-defense-marriage-act

In some cases, the response is an announcement of an immediate change in policy:

Army No Longer Using Monkeys as Part of Training at Aberdeen Proving Ground

By Col. Thomas Collins

Thank you for your participation in the We the People platform on WhiteHouse.gov

On September 20th, 2011, the Army stated that it would no longer use monkeys as part of life-saving training at Aberdeen Proving Ground. This change was long planned, and was made possible by improved technology, the development of alternative training methods, shifting chemical threat environments, and changes in the medical competencies required of first responders during a chemical incident.

Col. Thomas Collins is Deputy Chief of Army Public Affairs

 

[bankside]

Re: Almost 250K people sign petition to have Westboro Baptist Church legally recognised as a hate group

I would actually want them at my funeral. I'd be annoyed if I couldn't book them. More entertaining than a New Orleans Jazz Funeral, and a half hour of their bile is a greater tribute than all the tears poured out for Princess Diana.

 

[KaraBulut]

Re: Almost 250K people sign petition to have Westboro Baptist Church legally recognised as a hate group

Because I'm lazy and genuinely curious, could you name a few of those groups?

A couple that come to mind:

The Moral Majority/Liberty Federation/Old Time Gospel Hour

Branch Ministries


In recent years, the US Government has not pursued the cases as aggressively. The George W Bush campaign's surrogates sent video disks promoting Bush to churches and the churches distributed them with several ministers even promoting Bush's candidacy from the pulpit. The Bush Administration also did frequent conference calls with religious leaders. It's probably a coincidence that the government's change in policy coincided with the support of the religious right for Bush's candidacy in 2000 and 2004.

There were some recent attempts by Sen Chuck Grassley to investigate the chicanery known as "Dollar Ministries". His investigation is ongoing but since the Republicans are the minority party, the investigations have not gained much traction.

 

[LaughOutLoud]

Re: Almost 250K people sign petition to have Westboro Baptist Church legally recognised as a hate group

When the required number of signatures is met, the government will respond.

In some cases, the response is posted on the whitehouse website.

Some of the petitions are pretty funny- for example, the White House posted their beer recipe in response to a petition:
https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/response/ale-chief-white-house-beer-recipe
which included a video:


Some responses are caged in political non-speak:
https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/response/repealing-discriminatory-defense-marriage-act

In some cases, the response is an announcement of an immediate change in policy:

So, with all that in mind, do you believe they'll actually take a stand on something that is such a political/religious hotbed of clusterfuck?

I mean, beer brewing (very nice) and not using monkeys to test shit (very ethical) is one thing, but this hot mess?

As you said, when it comes to something with any real substance, the government seem to be a bit more "stand off", what makes people think they won't do the same here?

 

[PreTTy PeTe]

Re: Almost 250K people sign petition to have Westboro Baptist Church legally recognised as a hate group

i think if we concentrate on people that love our society would be better.

matthews angels.