I have to say, I am incredibly proud of my fellow nerds for
this story:
Comic-Con Fans Scare Away Westboro Baptist Church
About a week ago, we reporting that members of the Westboro Baptist Church were planning to protest Comic-Con on July 22nd for about an hour, claiming that people have turned comic book characters into idols.
For those who have never heard of the church... It is headed by Fred Phelps and is known for protesting funerals of American servicemen killed overseas.
As promised, several church members showed up to protest, but they quickly ran into about two hundred Comic-Con fans, who were dressed up as superheroes and carried signs that read everything from "Odin is God" to "God loves Gay Robin." As a result, the protesters gave up and left the San Diego event early.
Phelps & his family cult (the "church" is composed almost entirely of his own family), are a hate group who first rose to prominence by protesting the funerals of murdered homosexuals & AIDS patients with signs such as "God hates fags". (I'm not going to get into debating their logic or link to them, since they're idiots who are better ignored). Some friends & I were discussing the above story via email, and I think one of them summed it up best:
"The Westboro idiots made the mistake of stepping into someone
else's absurdity, so mocking was the completely appropriate
response".
I think he's exactly right. While there are groups such as the Patriot Guard Riders who dedicate themselves to peacefully opposing Westboro Baptist, it still creates the publicity & tension they want. The beauty of the counter-protest at Comic Con was that it was the perfect counter-point to these idiots and their absurd cause - by being even more absurd and more ridiculous (albeit in a fun way), it completely robbed them of any power they have to incite hatred.
Good job, guys.
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