Turning the Frown Upside-Down

Oh, Fred Phelps... Your hatred knows no bounds. Well, maybe some bounds. Most of the bounds seem to be gays and Jews.

Yes, I've written about dear Fred before, he of the God Hates Fags movement. Well, recently, Fred and the Westboro Baptist Church (a.k.a. the Phelps Family Singers) have recently been saving some of their vitriol for the Jews as well.

Why the Jews are suddenly in the Phelps' cross-hairs, I don't really know. I suppose I could read about it on their website, but I can say with some confidence that any rationale wouldn't actually make sense. I'm sure it's hateful, stupid, and dangerous, like all of their other spewings.

So this past weekend, the Phelps' came to New York, where we have lots of Jews and lots of gays, sometimes in the same place. One of their protest locations was Congregation Beth Simchat Torah, a synagogue founded by a group of gay Jews in the 70s. I suppose you could call them the gay temple in town, although they're certainly more than just that.

Well, the gay Jews didn't take it lying down [insert offensive gay joke here!]. In fact, they asked for pledges: donate per minute of the Phelps' protest.

Fred and the Phelps Family Singers raised $10,000 for CBST over 50 minutes.

Thanks, Fred! Your protests really bring people together, buddy.