Bikers roll to counter Rev. Phelps anti-gay protests at soldier's funerals

[Bluebear]

FORT CAMPBELL, Ky. - Wearing vests covered in military patches, a band of motorcyclists rolls around the country from one soldier's funeral to another, cheering respectfully to overshadow jeers from church protesters.

They call themselves the Patriot Guard Riders, and they are more than 5,000 strong, forming to counter anti-gay protests held by the Rev. Fred Phelps at military funerals.

Phelps believes American deaths in Iraq are divine punishment for a country that he says harbors homosexuals. His protesters carry signs thanking God for so-called IEDs — explosives that are a major killer of soldiers in Iraq.

The bikers shield the families of dead soldiers from the protesters, and overshadow the jeers with patriotic chants and a sea of red, white and blue flags.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060221/ap_on_re_us/funeral_motorcyclists

[FreedomAngel82]

1. Sounds like a good counteraction to me

If Phelps and his crew can "protest" so should others to cheer.

[SeattleGirl]

2. Bless their hearts!

I'd put my money on the bikers any day of the week of the self-righteous Rev. Phelps. Bikers can look some pretty scary dudes/dudettes, but that doesn't mean they're not good folk, many of them. Phelps is another right wingnut asshat who should be locked away somewhere where he can't cause any harm. I'm glad the bikers are going toe-to-toe with him and his ilk.

[CC]

3. They do a great job

and even went to West Virginia to get between the families, town and Phelps group. Their website is here http://www.patriotguard.org/ though seems they have been hit with a lot of traffic. They used to have pictures. Their mission is-
Patriot Guard Riders Mission Statement
The Patriot Guard Riders is a diverse amalgamation of riders from across the nation. We have one thing in common besides motorcycles. We have an unwavering respect for those who risk their very lives for America’s freedom and security. If you share this respect, please join us. We don’t care what you ride, what your political views are, or whether you’re a "hawk" or a "dove".
It is not a requirement that you be a veteran.
It doesn't matter where you’re from or what your income is. You don’t even have to ride.
The only prerequisite is Respect. Our main mission is to attend the funeral services of fallen American heroes as invited guests of the family.
Each mission we undertake has two basic objectives.
1. Show our sincere respect for our fallen heroes, their families, and their communities.
2. Shield the mourning family and friends from interruptions created by any protester or group of protesters.
We accomplish the latter through strictly legal and non-violent means.

[Lindacooks]

4. Now THOSE are some true Americans.

Bless them.

[badgerpup]

5. These people are great!

I read the article on the AOL site...
seems Phelps and his clan are relying on freedom of speech laws that allow people to behave like assholes and total jerks. :eyes:

Goes both ways though...this implies you are also free to accept the consequences of practicing this freedom...

Far be it from me to ill-wish anybody, but one of these days, Phelps and Co is going to push someone just a leetle too far...
:nuke:

[EC]

7. Governor Doyle here in Wisconsin just signed a bill

outlawing protests at funerals...I think he did it really slick. You see, the Republicans around here had an orchestrated effort to write letters to the papers opinion pages, complaining about the protesters at funerals. They didn't say what they were protesting so people that weren't at the funerals assumed they meant anti-war...so Doyle had a bill introduced to the State House - first bill in a long time to pass bi-partisan I believe 100%. So now he says bring it on ...with a freedom of speech law suit because it will expose who it is doing the protests and why in a big way once it gets to court.....Republicans loose on this, so I'm thinking they'll try and stop Phelps themselves...

[AnnieBW]

6. Bikers ROCK!!!

We get them every year for Rolling Thunder here in DC. We love 'em! :yourock:

[Rocknrule]

8. So God is punishing the US for not putting gays in death camps?

Oh wait, that's a perfectly logical argument in the eyes of a RWer