http://imgur.com/UrDKS5F http://imgur.com/ksN0EDg [url=http://godhatesfags.com]link[/url] [spoiler][quote]The Westboro Baptist Church originated as a branch of the East Side Baptist Church in Topeka,[12] established in 1931 on the east side of Topeka.[13] In 1954, East Side hired Phelps as an associate pastor, and then promoted him to be the pastor of their new church plant, Westboro Baptist, which opened in 1955 on the west side of Topeka.[12] Soon after Westboro was established, Phelps broke all ties with East Side Baptist. Protest activities begin Westboro Baptist began picketing Gage Park, Topeka in 1991, alleging it was a den of anonymous homosexual activity. Soon their protests had spread throughout the city, and within three years the church was traveling across the country.[14] Phelps explained in 1994 that he considered the negative reaction to the picketing to be proof of his righteousness.[15] Fred Phelps's death Fred Phelps died of natural causes shortly before midnight on March 19, 2014.[16][17][18] Phelps' daughter Shirley said that a funeral for her father would not be held because Westboro does not "worship the dead".[18] Protest activities WBC pickets approximately six locations every day, including many in Topeka and some events farther afield. On Sundays, up to 15 churches may receive pickets.[19][20] By their own count, WBC has picketed in all 50 U.S. states.[21] The group carries out daily picketing in Topeka and travels nationally to picket the funerals of gay victims of murder, gay-bashing or people who have died from complications related to AIDS; other events related or peripherally related to homosexuality; Kansas City Chiefs football games; and live pop concerts. As of March 2009 the church claims to have participated in over 41,000 protests in over 650 cities since 1991.[22] One of Westboro's followers estimated that the church spends $250,000 a year on picketing.[23] The pickets have resulted in several lawsuits. In 1995, Phelps Sr.'s eldest grandson, Benjamin Phelps, was convicted of assault and disorderly conduct after spitting upon the face of a passerby during a picket.[24] In the 1990s the church won a series of lawsuits against the City of Topeka and Shawnee County for efforts taken to prevent or hinder WBC picketing, and was awarded approximately $200,000 in attorney's fees and costs associated with the litigation. In 2004, Phelps Sr.'s daughter Margie Phelps and Margie's son Jacob were arrested for trespassing, disorderly conduct and failure to obey after disregarding a police officer's order during an attempted protest.[25] In response to pickets at funerals, Kansas passed a law prohibiting picketing at such events. In the autumn of 2007, the father of a Marine whose funeral was picketed by the WBC was awarded $5 million in damages.[26][27] The award was later overturned on appeal by the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals in a decision upheld by the Supreme Court in Snyder v. Phelps. In June 2007 Shirley Phelps-Roper was arrested in Nebraska and charged with contributing to the delinquency of a minor. The arrest resulted from her allowing her eight-year-old son to step on the American flag during the demonstration, which is illegal under Nebraska law. The defense contends that the child's actions were protected speech, and that the state law is unconstitutional. The prosecution claimed the demonstration was not intended as political speech, but as an incitement to violence, and that Phelps-Roper's conduct might also constitute child abuse. Prosecutors later dropped charges against Phelps-Roper.[28] On two occasions, the church accepted offers for radio air time in exchange for canceling an announced protest.[29][30] Anti-gay picketing While being filmed by documentary maker Louis Theroux, they picketed a local appliance store because it sold Swedish vacuum cleaners, which the church viewed as being supportive of gay people because of Swedish prosecution of Åke Green, a pastor critical of homosexuality.[31] Picketing in Topeka, with the group's signature rainbow-colored picket signs. The church has picketed, or threatened to picket, productions of The Laramie Project, a play based on the murder of Matthew Shepard, whose funeral they also picketed.[32][33] On January 25, 2004, Phelps picketed five churches (three Catholic and two Episcopalian) and the Federal Courthouse for what he said was their part in legitimizing same-sex marriages in Iowa. A community response was to hold counter-protests and a multifaith service in the municipal auditorium.[34] On January 15, 2006, Westboro members protested a memorial for 2006 Sago Mine disaster victims, claiming that the mining accident was God's revenge against America for its tolerance of homosexuality.[35] Funeral pickets The group came into the national spotlight in 1998, when it was featured on CNN for picketing the funeral of Matthew Shepard, a young man from Laramie, Wyoming who was beaten to death by two men allegedly because of his homosexuality.[36] Since then, the church has attracted attention for many more actual and planned funeral pickets.[37][38][39][40][41][42] In July 2005, the Westboro Baptist Church declared its intention to picket the memorial service of Carrie French in Boise, Idaho. French, 19, was killed on June 5 in Kirkuk, Iraq, where she served as an ammunition specialist with the 116th Brigade Combat Team's 145th Support Battalion. Phelps Sr. said, "Our attitude toward what's happening with the war is the Lord is punishing this evil nation for abandoning all moral imperatives that are worth a dime."[43] In 2006, Westboro picketed with banners saying "God hates fags" and "Thank God for dead soldiers" at the Westminster, Maryland, funeral of Matthew Snyder, a U.S. Marine who was also killed in Iraq.[44] Ruling on a subsequent lawsuit filed by Snyder's father, Albert Snyder, the U.S. Supreme Court decided, 8–1 in Snyder v. Phelps, that Westboro's actions constituted protected free speech.[45] On February 2, 2008, the group picketed during the funeral of former LDS Church president Gordon B. Hinckley in Salt Lake City, Utah, displaying picket signs accusing him of being a "lying false prophet" and "leading millions of people astray".[46] The organization also criticized Hinckley for being too accepting of gay people, accusing him of having an ambiguous voice about homosexuality rather than taking a firm stand against it.[47] Police had difficulty determining whether the demonstration met the guidelines of protected free speech.[46][/quote][/spoiler] What do you think about this? I would straight punch someone in the mouth if they where shoving a sign hoping for dead soldiers and 9/11. Discus.