High Court Wades Into Funeral Protests, Vaccines

Anyone that would use a funeral to protes for their own agenda is on my list as the slime of the earth. The fact that the majority of the congregation are related to the Pastor speak volumes. Inbred cultists.

It's free speech. If they're on public property and not hurting anybody, leave em alone. They're the ones making fools out of themselves.

Would you feel the same if it was your Son's funeral???? I'd be pissed myself, free speach is one thing but protesting the funerals of soldiers becaus you don't agree with the war is a callous disregard for the families rights and feelings, have some empathy.
Protest the senate building or the pentagon, leave the families of those serving thier county (however misled you think they are) alone. It's a nothing more than a publicity stunt at the most inappropriate time.

Sure I'd be pissed. But there's a lot of things that piss me off that I can't do anything about, including the Phelps group and their agenda. That's what free speech protection is about - allowing people to say unpopular things.

I mean what, they're going to turn funerals into anti-free speech zones, like they do with Abortion clinics. I'm pro abortion (well, not for making it illegal) but the protesters should have the right to be there.

Sorry, I can't agree that they should have a right to be at a funeral to push their own agenda, like I said, they can protests the war all they want, just do it somewhere else.

Sorry, I can't agree that they should have a right to be at a funeral to push their own agenda, like I said, they can protests the war all they want, just do it somewhere else.

Would you feel better if you knew they're not protesting the war, but homosexuality and that the US is suffering for it's sins?

So what kind of bubble zone are you going to enforce around funerals?

I agree with Choban. A funeral is no place for this crap free speech or not. You would think human decency would prevent this behaviour at a funeral but that is expecting to much from the phelps gang. I also disagree with being allowed to protest in front of abortion clinic especially when it is designed to disrupt and intimidate the staff and patients.

If it's disrupting staff or clients, then remove them. Ie if they're blocking access. But just holding a sign should be allowed. I think free speech is precious, and we should only limit it when absolutely necessary. In this case, I don't think the harm of emotional pain outweighs the good of free speech. It's that line of reasoning that has given rise to our Human rights commissions, where somebody claims emotional distress by comments regarding ethniticity, religion etc, and are awarded compensatory damages. Living in a democracy isn't always comfortable. Just better than the alternative.

I hate the war but I would never disrupt a funeral like that. Freedom of speech doesn't mean you can yell fire in a crowded theater and it wasn't intended to let people be jackasses when a man is burying his son.

Freedom of speech is for the free expression of beliefs and ideas. This goes well beyond that core ideology.

Freedom of speech was specifically meant to allow people to be jackasses. The reason you can't yell fire in a crowded theater is because it will lead to physical harm to people stampeding out.

What's with you can Choban bringing up the war? The Phelps group are not anti-war protesters, they're religious nuts. They're protesting at these funerals because it gets them attention and people there are inclined to act decently. They used to protest pride parades, but my guess is they gave it up because the crowd would just have a laugh at them.

My point was to illustrate that just because I hate the war doesn't mean I wouldn't recognize when its appropriate to protest and when it isn't. I hate bush as well but I wouldn't be popping champagne outside his funeral procession.

There are certain modicums of decency and the sanctity of a funeral should be one. Physical harm is not the only factor. Would you say that a group of oh say teenage girls have the right of free speech as they belittle and verbally torment (without physical harm or obstruction) a class mate?

Again - the Phelps people don't care about the war. They hate gays and think the US is a sinful nation. They're not protesting the war.

Are you really going to use free speech laws to enforce modicums of decency? That will just lead to Grundy patrols.

The girls do have that right, just like we do to each other on this forum. The school has the right to set boundaries on it's premises, just as they do on this forum. But nobody is going to arrest those girls if they're ragging on their victim on public property.

I know that but you can also see why people would think other wise.



Nope but just like abortion clinics we can designate no protest areas. Out of site from all funeral patrons seems fair game to me.



Arrest perhaps? A lady in the US is currently on trial because the hurtful words she said caused the girl to commit suicide.

Thing is, as disgusting as Phels and his inbred brood are, they're protected under the 1st amendment. I can't see the court deciding any other way. But damn do they make people wish that it wasn't interpreted so broadly.

I've said it before, with all the guns in the US , I'm still surprised no one has fired a 21 gun salute in their direction.