Hopefully there will be some justice served

Funeral Flap: Justices Weigh Religion, Speech Rights

The Supreme Court agreed Monday to delve into the sensitive question of whether the First Amendment protects anti-gay protesters carrying placards outside military funerals, bearing “America is Doomed,” “Thank God for 9/11″ and other volatile slogans, like “Thank God for dead soldiers.”

The messages and picketing are part of a Kansas church’s belief that the United States’ tolerance for homosexuality is cause for soldiers’ deaths in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The case the justices decided to review Monday tests the boundaries of free speech versus freedom of religion — doctrines both embodied in the First Amendment.

This practice is despicable, particularly because the soldiers involved aren't even remotely related to any issue of homosexuality. The protesters are causing undue stress and emotional harm to the families of men and women who died in service to our country. In my opinion, this crosses a line that goes beyond freedom of speech or religion, for that matter, but is simply impinging upon the rights of families to bury their loved ones in peace.

One court agreed with me, and awarded a $5 million judgment against Rev. Phelps' Kansas church in favour of the father of a slain soldier, but it was overturned on appeal. Now the case goes before the Supreme Court. I hope it reverses the appellate court decision--giving others the ability to also sue the church and win. I don't believe that hate speech is protected by our First Amendment rights, but even if it were, there's something to be said for fighting it with bankruptcy. Unfortunately, you can never stamp out hate speech, for it is virulent and spreads like a plague through people who are 1) lacking in knowledge and 2) lacking in human sympathy for others. Instead they try to foist their radical beliefs onto others in new and innovative ways, such as protesting at military funerals. Personally, I think they should not only be barred from doing so, but prosecuted criminally if they continue, rather than making it a civil case.

Please, Justices, give these families peace to bury their dead. Condemn the Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka's practice of crashing funerals and make sure no other family has to deal with such insensitivity during their time of pain.