Wow... this is... I just... no.

[mousme]

Thanks to forthright for pointing out this abomination.

Text follows:

Phelps To Erect Matthew Shepard Monument

(Casper, Wyoming)  Anti-gay preacher Fred Phelps has announced intentions to erect a monument to Matthew Shepard the gay college student brutally murdered five years ago near Laramie.

But, the monument will be no memorial. Phelps says the monument would be 5 to 6 feet tall and made of marble or granite.  It would bear a bronze plaque bearing the image of Shepard and have  an inscription reading "MATTHEW SHEPARD, Entered Hell October 12, 1998, in Defiance of God's Warning: 'Thou shalt not lie with mankind as with womankind; it is abomination.' Leviticus 18:22."

The monument would be erected in downtown Casper, Shepard's home town. 

Phelps has sent details of the monument  to the city of Casper city council and there may be nothing the city can do to prevent it.

Phelps said he intends to put up the monument in City Park, already the location of a controversial statue of the Ten Commandments. 

The Ten Commandments statue was donated to the city by the Fraternal Order of the Eagles in 1965. 

After a court battle over a similar monument in the city of Ogden, the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that any city that displays a Ten Commandments monument on public property must also allow monuments espousing the views of other religions or political groups on that same property.

Phelps told Casper council in his letter that if it attempts to prevent him from erecting the homophobic monument he's prepared to go to court.

"That is exactly what I said would happen," said Councilwoman Barb Watters.  She said she warned the city when it accepted the Ten Commandments statue that the city risked other monuments advocating anti-Semitism and hatred of other minorities.

''I think the hate language will find a very cold reception in this community,'' councilor Paul Bertoglio said. ''I think this community's backbone is going to come up and say 'We are not going to accept it.'''

The city council is looking at several options, one is fighting Phelps in court, another is moving the Ten Commandments out of the park, and yet another proposal would be to sell the land the park is on.

Phelps says he doesn't care what the city decides. If he is unable to put the statue in City Park he said he will find another location in the city.

During Shepard's funeral members of Phelps' Westoboro Baptist Church demonstrated in front of the chapel.

Comments

[palmir.livejournal.com]

Something ironic about Phelps erecting anything for a gay man.

Maybe I'm just easily amused.

[mousme.livejournal.com]

No, I had the same thought. *g*

[palmir.livejournal.com]

Oh good. I'm not the only weirdo.

But yeah, I'm very anti-fundy. Gah.

[twilightelysium.livejournal.com]

The hatred of some people astounds me!

[slipjig.livejournal.com]

*holds head in agony* If this bullfertilizer goes through, I'm taking up a collection to have a memorial statue to Phelps erected right next to it, with similar phrasing on the inscription. If Wyoming can't touch his, he can't touch ours.

[miseri.livejournal.com]

This is so incredibly wrong I'm not sure where to begin. Whatever happened to "Love thy neighbour"? What about "Judge not lest ye be judged"?

(Actually ... I'd let him put up his statue. It'll stand for about half an hour before a municipal truck "accidentally" loses control of its brakes and mows the thing down.)

[djs-specs.livejournal.com]

(Actually ... I'd let him put up his statue. It'll stand for about half an hour before a municipal truck "accidentally" loses control of its brakes and mows the thing down.)

That or there's a freak accident with a military tank that just happened to be 'passing by the park'.

Well, that's what I'd organise - but then, I've always wanted to drive a tank ;)

[prolixfootle.livejournal.com]

I looked that up too, thinking it might make a difference. Buth the whole quote actually goes like this:

Do not judge, lest you be judged yourself, for in the way that you judge, you will be judged, and by your standard of measurement it shall be measured to you.

So it doesn’t really condemn judging, it just warns that you will be judged by the same standards. So as long as he’s not a homosexual, the Bible supports the psycho preacher. Unless I’m reading it wrong, which I hope is the case.

[miseri.livejournal.com]

I've generally taken that quote to refer to severity rather than to the actual points of judgement -- ie, the less mercy you show unto others, the less mercy will be shown unto you.

In any case, I think homosexuality is only a marking on Mr Phelps's larger standard of morality, rather than a standard in and of itself.

[prolixfootle.livejournal.com]

That's a rather interpretive viewpoint. Zealots seem to prefer literalism, suitably twisted to support their own stance.

Ideally...

[fearsclave.livejournal.com]

...the statue could be tampered with in some clever way, causing it to topple on him and crush him to death when he unveils it.

Hopefully, he'd invite Jack Chick to the dedication ceremony.

Re: Ideally...

[sorceror.livejournal.com]

Oh, c'mon.

At least Jack Chick has humour value. Dark Dungeons, baby!

[angelovernh.livejournal.com]

that is HORRIFIC!!!!!

[angelovernh.livejournal.com]

that is totally infuriating. What an asshole!

[prolixfootle.livejournal.com]

You know, people bitch-slap me when I leave the comments off. Everything OK? Kind of a disturbing quote...

[mousme.livejournal.com]

Oh, sorry. :)

It's a habit of mine to leave comments off when I post quotes, 'cause they're there mostly for my benefit, and it bugs me when I get ten people who say "Oh wow, that's so true!" or else give their learned opinion as to why the quote is wrong. ;)

No need to worry. :D

The quote itself was my reaction to someone else's post about how everyone around them seems to be experiencing death even though they didn't deserve to have their loved ones taken away.