# Jerry Falwell is dead. **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [May 15, 2007, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jerry-falwell-is-dead/404208 "2007-05-15T17:49:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Cowboy8467](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b5e925/32.png) [@Cowboy8467](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cowboy8467)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2007, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jerry-falwell-is-dead/404208/1 "2007-05-15T17:49:54Z")
I just saw this on CNN a couple of minutes ago. I’m sure that quite a few people will be pleased about this…and a smaller amount will be distraught. Kinda weird because I was just in Lynchburg this weekend to visit my alma mater. [Link](http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/05/15/jerry.falwell.ap/index.html) ---
**Author:** ![Sock\_of\_Doom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/71c47a/32.png) [@Sock\_of\_Doom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sock_of_Doom)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2007, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jerry-falwell-is-dead/404208/2 "2007-05-15T17:53:46Z")
Anyone picketing his funeral? Think the family would be pissed if anyone did? ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2007, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jerry-falwell-is-dead/404208/3 "2007-05-15T17:57:44Z")
[QUOTE=Synthetically Organic] Anyone picketing his funeral? Think the family would be pissed if anyone did? [/QUOTE] As far as I know, he’s not a picketer. I think you’re thinking of Fred Phelps. Not that there’s any love lost between me and Falwell, mind you. ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2007, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jerry-falwell-is-dead/404208/4 "2007-05-15T18:04:52Z")
You can absolutely count on Clan Phelps picketing this one. He hated Falwell almost as long as he hated gays (and Falwell referred to him as a “first order nut” several times). I won’t pretend that I’m a fan of Falwell, but I’m glad he died in something like ease (very quick heart attack) and I feel sympathy for his family as sudden losses like that can be the hardest to deal with. PS- I was surprised to learn a couple of years ago that he and Larry Flynt had something like a friendship for the last few years of their lives (they of course met during the famous libel suit). When Flynt’s brother was asked what the basis of this friendship he said something to the effect of “Why wouldn’t they be? They’re both hillbillies, they’re both the sons of moonshiners, they’re both self-made and filthy rich, and they’re both obsessed with money and what people do when they have sex.” (Probably a cite available, but that’s the essence of the brother’s comment.) ---
**Author:** ![VunderBob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/839c29/32.png) [@VunderBob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VunderBob)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2007, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jerry-falwell-is-dead/404208/5 "2007-05-15T18:15:02Z")
[QUOTE=Sampiro] You can absolutely count on Clan Phelps picketing this one. He hated Falwell almost as long as he hated gays (and Falwell referred to him as a “first order nut” several times). [/QUOTE] The pot calls the kettle black… ---
**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2007, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jerry-falwell-is-dead/404208/6 "2007-05-15T18:19:28Z")
Anybody else get a sudden craving for champagne? ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2007, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jerry-falwell-is-dead/404208/7 "2007-05-15T18:22:11Z")
[QUOTE=Cowboy8467] **Jerry Falwell is dead.** [/QUOTE] And there was much rejoicing. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Sock\_of\_Doom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/71c47a/32.png) [@Sock\_of\_Doom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sock_of_Doom)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2007, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jerry-falwell-is-dead/404208/8 "2007-05-15T18:41:26Z")
[QUOTE=Kalhoun] As far as I know, he’s not a picketer. I think you’re thinking of Fred Phelps. Not that there’s any love lost between me and Falwell, mind you. [/QUOTE] :smack: Of course. Sorry all. One religious nut-job is as “good” as the next in my mind. ---
**Author:** ![Sunrazor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sunrazor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunrazor)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2007, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jerry-falwell-is-dead/404208/9 "2007-05-15T18:42:43Z")
Meh. At least he appeared in life to have adhered to the same morality he demanded of other people. He was an arrogant, pompous, self-righteous, judgemental ass who contributed absolutely nothing to the betterment of humankind, but he died without (or perhaps before) engaging in the very practices he so loudly condemned. I had a thought: Perhaps one could say that, in spite of everything else, Jerry Falwell could not be called a hypocrite because he did, in fact, adhere to the moral code he espoused. I think he even forgave and prayed for people who publicly attacked him. How ironic that the man who was the worst of the right-wing religious reactionaries was also the most pure in ideology and practice. I could be completely wrong about that, of course. There are no doubt Falwell scholars out there who know more than I do about the man, but I got the idea that he at least adhered to his own rigid, warped moral code. ---
**Author:** ![fishbicycle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/aeb1de/32.png) [@fishbicycle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fishbicycle)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2007, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jerry-falwell-is-dead/404208/10 "2007-05-15T18:44:19Z")
It couldn’t happen to a more deserving guy. ---
**Author:** ![A.R.Cane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ee7513/32.png) [@A.R.Cane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/A.R.Cane)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2007, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jerry-falwell-is-dead/404208/11 "2007-05-15T19:02:48Z")
Well, now he does _not_ know for sure, that he was wrong all these years. ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2007, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jerry-falwell-is-dead/404208/12 "2007-05-15T19:32:08Z")
[QUOTE=Sunrazor] Meh. At least he appeared in life to have adhered to the same morality he demanded of other people. He was an arrogant, pompous, self-righteous, judgemental ass who contributed absolutely nothing to the betterment of humankind, but he died without (or perhaps before) engaging in the very practices he so loudly condemned. [/QUOTE] That’s pretty much how I see him. Basically he was the best of a very bad lot (that lot not being Fundamentalist Christians but specifically _politically organized policy affecting_ Fundamentalist Christians). He had a sense of humor and people I knew who met him in person said he was a genuinely nice human being. Basically the distinction in Hermann Göring (fat, jovial, nice guy- just with some fucked up views and responsible for very bad things) and Pat Robertson’s _Heinrich Himmler_ (the really really really evil one who you would never hear me say “I’m glad he had a peaceful death” or express sympathies to his family upon his demise). I take no joy in Falwell’s death at all. Though I will admit that I have a morbid fantasy that currently he’s pissing on himself as Anubis approaches him with one of Ma’at’s feathers, or better yet: he sees the [face of God](http://www.livetourartists.com/variety/soup-nazi/images/soup_nazi.jpg) who looks him in the eyes and says _NO 72 VIRGINS FOR YOU!_. ---
**Author:** ![rayman5321](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/85f322/32.png) [@rayman5321](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rayman5321)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2007, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jerry-falwell-is-dead/404208/13 "2007-05-15T19:34:19Z")
This calls for a party! ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2007, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jerry-falwell-is-dead/404208/14 "2007-05-15T19:52:26Z")
I’ll also say by way of an obit, I thought Flynt’s Hustler ad parody was one of the crudest and most unnecessarily offensive things he ever published (and yes, I’ll admit I chuckled at it, but then I was a teenager). Attack his theology, his actions, his views, his character, his message- but leave his family alone. I also understand why the SCotUS ruled the way it did- there was no way anybody took it seriously or that it could hurt Falwell financially or reputationally. And I also understand why Falwell sued, I probably would have as well. However, regardless of your views, who would you rather have as a neighbor (assume you’re bloody rich of course): Falwell or Flynt? ---
**Author:** ![Plynck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Plynck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Plynck)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2007, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jerry-falwell-is-dead/404208/15 "2007-05-15T19:57:02Z")
[QUOTE=Sampiro] However, regardless of your views, who would you rather have as a neighbor (assume you’re bloody rich of course): Falwell or Flynt? [/QUOTE] It depends upon whether I could see through our shared fence, I guess. ---
**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:** [May 15, 2007, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jerry-falwell-is-dead/404208/16 "2007-05-15T20:02:12Z")
[QUOTE=Synthetically Organic] Anyone picketing his funeral? Think the family would be pissed if anyone did? [/QUOTE] I would bet on Fred Phelps. No, really. Never mind that Falwell was anti gay. Heck, even if the Army dislikes gays, Phelps still found a reason to think that the Army was helping gays and so he picketed Army funerals. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2007, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jerry-falwell-is-dead/404208/17 "2007-05-15T20:02:46Z")
[QUOTE=Sampiro] However, regardless of your views, who would you rather have as a neighbor (assume you’re bloody rich of course): Falwell or Flynt? [/QUOTE] Flynt, definitly. I actually use the stuff he peddles, so maybe I could get a good neighbor discount. ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2007, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jerry-falwell-is-dead/404208/18 "2007-05-15T20:11:03Z")
I just heard two headlined juxtaposed on the radio. One was Falwell’s death, and the other was another upcoming presidential candidate debate. I wonder how many of the candidates will strain to kiss the great gasbag’s dead ass. ---
**Author:** ![Auntbeast](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Auntbeast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Auntbeast)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2007, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jerry-falwell-is-dead/404208/19 "2007-05-15T20:51:17Z")
I’m guessing the $15 hooker was an oversight? He did not practice what he preached. He was a hypocrite of the first order. With All Due Respect to Diane Wakoski: > [@](#): > > I’m going to dance on your grave > because you are > dead > dead > dead > under the earth with the rest of the shit, > I’m going to plant deadly nightshade > on your grassy mound > and make sure a hemlock tree starts growing there. > Henbane is too good for you, > but I’ll let a bit grow there for good measure > because we want to dance, > we want to sing, > we want to throw this old man > to the wolves, > but they are too beautiful for him, singing in harmony > with each other. > So some white wolves and I > will sing on your grave, old man > and dance for the joy of your death. > “Is this an angry statement?” > “No, it is a statement of joy.” > “Will the sun shine again?” > "Yes, > yes, > yes,” > because I’m going to dance dance dance > Duncan’s measure, and Pindar’s tune, > Lorca’s cadence, and Creeley’s hum, > Stevens’ sirens and Williams’ little Morris dance, > oh, the poets will call the tune, > and I will dance, dance, dance > on your grave, grave, grave, > because you’re a sonofabitch, a sonofabitch, > and you tried to do me in, > but you cant cant cant. ---
**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:** [May 15, 2007, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jerry-falwell-is-dead/404208/20 "2007-05-15T21:26:59Z")
[QUOTE=GIGObuster] I would bet on Fred Phelps. No, really. Never mind that Falwell was anti gay. Heck, even if the Army dislikes gays, Phelps still found a reason to think that the Army was helping gays and so he picketed Army funerals. [/QUOTE] That was the fastest I ever won a bet: > [@](#): > > **Originally posted at [godhatesamerica.com](http://godhatesamerica.com)’s Phelps site** (and no, I will not link to that) > > _WBC will Preach at Jerry Falwell’s Funeral!!_ [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jerry-falwell-is-dead/404208.md?page=2)