# Fred Phelps is dying. **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [March 16, 2014, 5:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fred-phelps-is-dying/683820 "2014-03-16T05:20:50Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2014, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fred-phelps-is-dying/683820/101 "2014-03-17T02:58:18Z")
If his family have half a collective brain, they will bury him in an unmarked grave. Wrapped in linen, lying on his side, facing east would be best. ---
**Author:** ![Kobal2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kobal2/32/20_2.png) [@Kobal2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kobal2)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2014, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fred-phelps-is-dying/683820/102 "2014-03-17T03:57:02Z")
Facing \*down \*would be best. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2014, 4:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fred-phelps-is-dying/683820/103 "2014-03-17T04:07:43Z")
Well, if the church’s history is any guide, Phelps will be buried in a marked grave, which will then be constantly monitored with cameras, the goal being to sue any would-be desecrater for trespassing and/or infliction of distress, etc. and thus Fred can continue to generate income. ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Negative](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/typo_negative/32/484_2.png) [@Typo\_Negative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Negative)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2014, 4:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fred-phelps-is-dying/683820/104 "2014-03-17T04:20:17Z")
I think we should strive to be not like him. Maybe our example would do more good than a display of contempt and schadenfreude at his passing. Let’s show some respect. I mean, I get it. He was a terrible person and his organization is filled with terrible people. Let’s not do what they have done. My opinion, anyway. I have no idea where it comes from. ---
**Author:** ![buddha\_david](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ee7513/32.png) [@buddha\_david](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/buddha_david)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2014, 4:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fred-phelps-is-dying/683820/105 "2014-03-17T04:27:45Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > Because understanding evil is the only way to prevent it. I’m with you there, as far as “understanding evil” goes. And the only thing that’s necessary to understand is that Fred’s lucky he lives in a country that values Free Speech above all other virtues, which allowed him to live this long as a free man being as much of an asshole as he wanted to be. Pity, that. > [@VinylTurnip](#): > > Too many bad apples abused the “repent and be forgiven” program. FWIW, I don’t believe for one second that Fred’s bothered to repent for shit. ---
**Author:** ![Lobohan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobohan/32/79_2.png) [@Lobohan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobohan)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2014, 4:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fred-phelps-is-dying/683820/106 "2014-03-17T04:38:39Z")
> [@Baker](#): > > I said _forgiven_, I didn’t say “not punished”. Civil authority is a different thing than divine authority. I doubt the ability of a secular court to accurately punish a man that raped and murdered a bunch of boys, for instance. The idea that he’s okey-dokey with God after he solemnly repents isn’t anything more than a recruiting tool used by the church. If becoming a true believer can erase any wrongdoing, that’s a major selling point. Personally, if an afterlife and a God existed, I’d think an appropriate punishment could be meted out by an omnipotent being. ---
**Author:** ![sisu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@sisu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sisu)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2014, 5:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fred-phelps-is-dying/683820/107 "2014-03-17T05:08:32Z")
> [@flatlined](#): > > I guess someone has to point out the good that has come from his life and actions. The [Patriot Guard](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patriot_Guard_Riders)formed in protest. > > At first, they just went to funerals for troops who were killed in duty and only when invited. But now they (I’d like to say “we” but I only go in missions when I have time, so I’m not a dedicated member) provide comfort and support to families of Veterans and LE no matter how they have fallen. I recently attended a funeral for a Korean Vet. He died of end stage Alzheimer’s. His family seemed comforted by our actions and presence. > > If not for Fred, I would have never heard about the funeral, much less been there holding a flag. This is the reason it was good he existed, we sometimes need lunatic fringes to push us comfy middle of the road people to action. But god damn I am glad to hear this piece of puss is going to die soon, I hope god is real and he gets a nice room in hell. But as I think he isn’t I hope people remember what hatred looks like and we strive to stop it whenever we can. GTH Fred. ---
**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2014, 5:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fred-phelps-is-dying/683820/108 "2014-03-17T05:16:14Z")
> [@Lobohan](#): > > Personally, if an afterlife and a God existed, I’d think an appropriate punishment could be meted out by an omnipotent being. In the Death Pool Thread, if God was indeed like that, I would expect this appropriate punishment: [http://www.weirdcrap.com/chick/judge/judge.html](http://www.weirdcrap.com/chick/judge/judge.html) (Chick track parody) “PULL MY FINGER!” Said the lord, but I think for the likes of Phelps, it will be like the poetic justice made to the TV-evangelist. ---
**Author:** ![Doctor\_Why\_Bother](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e19adc/32.png) [@Doctor\_Why\_Bother](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doctor_Why_Bother)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2014, 7:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fred-phelps-is-dying/683820/109 "2014-03-17T07:32:33Z")
I think I may have just figured out why they excommunicated the old bastard. According to [Wikipedia](http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Westboro_Baptist_Church), who in turn are citing Nate Phelps, these headcases believe they’re _immortal!_ Seriously! I reckon, when Fred started going downhill the rest of them realised the only way they could keep believing that lunacy would be to kick poor old Grampa to the kerb. Now that he’s no longer a church member he’s free to do all the dying he wants. ---
**Author:** ![outlierrn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/outlierrn/32/3005_2.png) [@outlierrn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/outlierrn)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2014, 8:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fred-phelps-is-dying/683820/110 "2014-03-17T08:05:20Z")
Yeah, I read that and thought, ‘makes as much sense as anything else they believe,’ they are a church of lawyers, after all. ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2014, 9:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fred-phelps-is-dying/683820/111 "2014-03-17T09:50:06Z")
> [@Doctor\_Why\_Bother](#): > > I think I may have just figured out why they excommunicated the old bastard. According to [Wikipedia](http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Westboro_Baptist_Church), who in turn are citing Nate Phelps, these headcases believe they’re _immortal!_ Seriously! I reckon, when Fred started going downhill the rest of them realised the only way they could keep believing that lunacy would be to kick poor old Grampa to the kerb. Now that he’s no longer a church member he’s free to do all the dying he wants. What??? You mean. . . They think that dying is a deadly sin? ---
**Author:** ![Grumman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/43a26b/32.png) [@Grumman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grumman)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2014, 10:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fred-phelps-is-dying/683820/112 "2014-03-17T10:57:45Z")
> [@Senegoid](#): > > What??? You mean. . . > They think that dying is a deadly sin? If true, I assume it’s a No True Scotsman argument: Dying isn’t a deadly sin, but it is proof that you committed some other sin. After all, if you hadn’t sinned you’d still be alive, duh. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Kobayashi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4af34b/32.png) [@Mr.Kobayashi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Kobayashi)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2014, 10:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fred-phelps-is-dying/683820/113 "2014-03-17T10:59:24Z")
So says [his son Nathan Phelps](http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/fred-phelps-founder-of-god-hates-fags-westboro-baptist-church-is-on-edge-of-death-9195777.html). The 84 year old patriarch of the “God hates fags” Westboro Baptist Church and know fondly as ‘gramps’ to most hated family in America is reportedly on his deathbed in a hospital in Topeka, Kansas. He was once a [civil rights lawyer](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fred_Phelps#Civil_rights_cases) (!), standing up for blacks in the bad old days of Jim Crow. Was he once a decent man who fell into extremist douchebaggery causing untold misery to grieving families? And the question on everyones lips - how many people will turn out to picket _his_ funeral? Is a case that ‘they sow the wind, and they shall reap the whirlwind’ or should right thinking people refuse to stoop to their level? ---
**Author:** ![FairyChatMom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fairychatmom/32/21825_2.png) [@FairyChatMom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FairyChatMom)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2014, 11:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fred-phelps-is-dying/683820/114 "2014-03-17T11:17:38Z")
Personally, I think his passing needs to be ignored by all means possible. He got far more attention in life than he deserved. He needs to just go away. ---
**Author:** ![tapu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/49beb7/32.png) [@tapu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tapu)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2014, 11:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fred-phelps-is-dying/683820/115 "2014-03-17T11:24:08Z")
Fred (Franco) Phelps is \*still \*dying?? [Fred Phelps is dying…](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=718448) ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Kobayashi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4af34b/32.png) [@Mr.Kobayashi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Kobayashi)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2014, 11:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fred-phelps-is-dying/683820/116 "2014-03-17T11:50:28Z")
Damn, I swear I searched and everything! Mods, can I request a merge? ---
**Author:** ![Rushgeekgirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rushgeekgirl/32/3715_2.png) [@Rushgeekgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rushgeekgirl)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2014, 1:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fred-phelps-is-dying/683820/117 "2014-03-17T13:54:03Z")
I think I was more sad when I thought Wayne Knight was dead. ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2014, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fred-phelps-is-dying/683820/118 "2014-03-17T14:18:05Z")
> [@Mr.Kobayashi](#): > > He was once a [civil rights lawyer](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fred_Phelps#Civil_rights_cases) (!), standing up for blacks in the bad old days of Jim Crow. Was he once a decent man who fell into extremist douchebaggery causing untold misery to grieving families? Per his son Nathan, it was a purely mercenary move - that was an unserved market just waiting for someone to come in. ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2014, 2:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fred-phelps-is-dying/683820/119 "2014-03-17T14:30:59Z")
May Jay-sus spooge on his soul. ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2014, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fred-phelps-is-dying/683820/120 "2014-03-17T14:47:27Z")
> [@Typo\_Negative](#): > > Let’s show some respect. Let’s not. Respect is something to be earned, not something to be shown to a monster. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fred-phelps-is-dying/683820.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fred-phelps-is-dying/683820.md?page=7)