THANK THE LORD! The Evil One hath been smote!

[Broke_as_****]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070515/.../jerry_falwell

"The funeral is set for 2 p.m. Monday at Thomas Road Baptist Church."

If anyone wants to show up and "protest" this piece of ****'s funeral Westboro style I'll bring the booze.

[taranaki]

Originally Posted by Broke_as_****

If anyone wants to show up and "protest" this piece of ****'s funeral Westboro style I'll bring the booze.

I'd rather celebrate at yours, actually.


Have you ever watched a complete sermon by Falwell or attended any of his meetings? If not, what is the basis for your judgement? What exactly did Falwell ever do that justifies "protest"[sic] in your tiny little mind?

[mellowboy]

He supported on the separation of church and state, and he was instrumental in the religious right getting W elected as president, and therefore, going into Iraq, which he supported.

Eitherway I however do not believe anyone should be ridiculed like that during the funeral. No matter who you are or what you've done.

[fredjacksonsan]

He's dead, and it would be hypocritical to go and protest at his funeral.

[Broke_as_****]

Originally Posted by taranaki

I'd rather celebrate at yours, actually.

Sorry, my HMO say's I'm not due on the slab for a while but thanks for your concern sweetie. However if you would like to accelerate the time table you could buy me a shiny new crotch rocket, I'm sure I'd find some wicked trouble to get in with one of those.

Have you ever watched a complete sermon by Falwell or attended any of his meetings? If not, what is the basis for your judgement? What exactly did Falwell ever do that justifies "protest"[sic] in your tiny little mind?

Yes I have seen about a dozen of his sermons, most notably the now infamous post 9/11 hate speech he delivered. His other sermons I've seen were mostly the usual "thou art not pious enough and you anger the lord" dog and pony show and of no particular significance that I know of.

I also know about:

- how much of a driving force he was behind the religious rhetoric that permeates the government around here
- the laughable attempt at film making known as the Clinton Chronicles, a mud slinging embarrassment at best
- his persistent love for all those "leading an alternative life style" like the ACLU
- his fondness for phrases like [they'll] "one day be utterly annihilated and there will be a celebration in heaven"
- his unwaivering stance that the bible is utterly correct in all matters "in areas such as geography, science, history, etc." despite the fact that OMG! The earth isn't the center of the universe!
- his habit of referring to himself as "Doctor" even though all of his degrees were honorary from unaccredited institutions
- his devotion to separation of church and state going about as far as not wanting to pay taxes but hey, dogmatic religion in schools, he was all about that
- his overwhelming devotion to his religion, except you know, when you get a Korean cult to pay the $3.5 million debt your "university" has racked up in exchange for showing up with their leader, who claims to be filling in for Jesus, who he claims loused it all up the first time around

The fact that he is dead doesn't erase the fact he was a total douche and embarrassment to humanity.

[taranaki]

Cliffs' notes - Jerry Falwell had opinions, and stayed true to his beliefs. He didn't steal anything, he didn't start any wars, he believed in God.


Broke_as_**** is so insecure about such ideas that he is inciting people to imitate Fred Phelps and picket the man's funeral.

Falwell was a straight up fundamentalist believer, Phelps is a joke.If Broke_as_**** wants to align himself with pond slime that masquerades as a Christian, I'd much rather have a good man like Falwell in my corner than a buffoon like
Broke_as_**** .

[lv_sinnerz]

I'll say only this much about Jerry Falwell. He did what he thought was right to do. Now that being said, this is where my argument over "organized religion" takes a turn for the worst. There are those who will preach in "the name of God", and truly believe in that. Whether that is right or wrong is for each person to be their own judge of that. Me, personally, I think he was just an old wind bag blowing hot air out of his ass... err.. mouth. I mean, this guy has been persuant about changes, such as bringing women "back to the kitchen" and out of the workforce, been strongly against gays, and wanted prayer and "god" back in schools, and all for causes he believed were of Jesus' making.

Though I think he'll be missed by many, he won't be missed by those like me who are for change in the world, not reverting back to old ways, or rather the dark ages.

[03cavPA]

I was going to stay out of this one, but I agree with 'naki.

Falwell was not liked by some people, he had faults, and he did some things that might not stand the test of time. So be it.

There's no way I would even begin to compare him to Phelps, or others like him. IMO (and that's all it is), there is no justification that I can see to "protest" at his funeral. Go ahead and dislike him, vilify him if you wish, that is your right.

But, as 'naki said, he hasn't done anything that merits that kind of reaction in my mind. He preached what he believed, as it was his right to do so. They hated Jesus, they'll hate the messenger, too. Before you start foaming at the mouth at that statement, bear in mind that an evangelist is designed to be a messenger. He's not designed to be a deity/messiah/etc. Just a preacher. No one has to like it, no one has to agree with it.

Everyone is entitled to opinions. That's OK with me.

[Broke_as_****]

Cliffs' notes - Jerry Falwell had opinions, and stayed true to his beliefs. He didn't steal anything, he didn't start any wars, he believed in God.

False.

Well not entirely, there were a few truths in there. Like that Falwell had opinions. He certainly did, opinions like "the feminists helped cause 9/11" and "the gays will be wiped off the earth, burn in hell and all of heaven will celebrate". He stole naught but what his skewed religion connived from those looking for the word of Jesus and started no wars then the ones he egged on with his hate filled rhetoric. And he most certainly believed in his god.

Broke_as_**** is so insecure about such ideas that he is inciting people to imitate Fred Phelps and picket the man's funeral.

Tsk tsk. But thanks for your opinion on my mental condition, it will be marked as read and filed in the appropriate place. Do I believe that Falwell has done enough to warrant someone standing at his funeral with a sign that says "God does not love those who hate"? Absolutely and I pity that I am not available for the task.

Falwell was a straight up fundamentalist believer, Phelps is a joke.If Broke_as_**** wants to align himself with pond slime that masquerades as a Christian, I'd much rather have a good man like Falwell in my corner than a buffoon like Broke_as_**** .

You can have him and all his kind in your corner but don't be too surprised when he casts you out as a sinner.

[Jimster]

You got my hopes up that it was Fred Phelps who died

[whttrshpunk]

Although the late Mr. Falwell had many opinions that I don't share, he certainly wasn't deserving of the kind of hatred being shown in this thread and countless other outlets on the internet.

I also find it interesting how many "quotes" are being put into this thread. Guess what? Anyone can fabricate a quote to make themselves seem right, or make someone else seem wrong. Watch and learn:
Broke_as_**** once said "I hate babies! They should all die a fiery death!"

See how easy it is? Seriously though, Falwell was a scapegoat for many bandwagoneers, but he certainly doesn't qualify as "evil".


As a side note, since when did the Bible ever declare the earth the center of the universe? Reference please.

[taranaki]

Tinky Winky says bye-bye to Jerry Falwell
The former TV star recalls the trauma of being called gay by the conservative preacher.
May 16, 2007 | Eight years ago the Rev. Jerry Falwell warned parents that BBC children's television star Tinky Winky was a hidden symbol of homosexuality. Falwell died Tuesday at 73, and the world wanted to talk to Tinky Winky.

"They're calling again, again, again," he said by phone from his home in Islington, in London. A spokesman said the former "Teletubbies" costar got more than 100 calls from reporters in the hour following news of Falwell's death.

"Oh dear, it's easy to say the wrong thing here," he said. "Tinky Winky sad whenever someone dies, but ..." He left it hanging there.

In a 1999 article in his National Liberty Journal headlined "Tinky Winky Comes Out of the Closet," Falwell pointed out that Winky could be taken as representing gays.

"He is purple -- the gay pride color, and his antenna is shaped like a triangle -- the gay pride symbol," Falwell wrote. "The character, whose voice is that of a boy, has been found carrying a red purse in many episodes and has become a favorite character among gay groups worldwide."

In the resulting media firestorm, gay-rights activists called for Winky to come out while Christian groups demanded the BBC fire him so that he couldn't, in Falwell's words, "role-model the gay lifestyle."

"It was traumatizing, really," says Winky, who now owns a holistic healing center and makes occasional appearances on British TV. "I'm a very private Teletubby. I just wanted to get away, go over the hills and far away. But when you're 7 feet tall and purple with an antenna on your head and a TV screen in your belly, where are you going to go?"

Winky says he tried to contact Falwell after the article came out, but the evangelist wouldn't take his calls.

"I wanted to know why he didn't talk to me first," Winky says. "It's not like I'm hard to reach. Have the pinwheel call me. But really I just wanted to clap him on the head with Tinky Winky bag."

The star never has clarified his sexual orientation, insisting on his privacy and denying rumors over the years that he had affairs with two of his costars on the 1997-2001 show, the male Dipsy and the female Po.

"We love each other very much," he says. "Big hug. But it's not like that. It was a kids show, know what I mean? And this Falwell guy and his followers wanted to turn us into something else. We weren't modeling a gay lifestyle and we weren't trying to corrupt anyone's kids. We were just kids ourselves, really. Give us a little Tubby toast or custard and a film of some kids washing clothes or something, that's all we needed. We didn't give a shit about modeling a lifestyle."

Tinky Winky sounds angry. The wounds are still raw.

"I'm just practicing my craft, working for the kids, and all at once the tabloids are everywhere on me," he says. "I couldn't even go out. Was it a gay club? Was I talking to a woman? It was bollocks."

Winky chuckles. "I must say, though," he says, "without getting into too many details, we had a girl in the group who ran around this kids show yelling, 'Cooter! Cooter!' And I'm the gay one? Do me a favor."

Through a spokeswoman, Po declined to comment for this article.

Winky says the Teletubbies stay in touch, and he remains friends with both Dipsy, who owns a nightclub in West London where Winky is often seen, and Po. Winky says he and Laa-Laa never really got along during the show's run, but, "We're fine now. We've come to appreciate each other."

Asked about Falwell's death, Winky turns serious and chooses his words carefully.

"I'm not going to pretend I'm sadder than I am," he says. "There were late nights during the dark times when I wished to hear news like this. I'd be lying if I denied that. I don't feel that way anymore. I like to think I've grown over the years, gotten past all that pain.

"But at the end of the day, I'm not terribly sad, and I think a lot of people feel the same way. Jerry Falwell was a divisive person, a hateful person, and what I've tried to be all about, in the Teletubbies days and since then, has been love. I've got to keep it that way. I don't want anybody feeling good about it when it's my time for Tubby bye-bye."




http://www.salon.com/opinion/feature...ky/?source=rss