Show Some Restraint

I listen to NPR every morning for the first five or ten minutes of my commute. This morning, on “Morning Edition,” I heard a very disturbing story. A Baptist Minister, Rev. Fred Phelps, from Topeka, Kansas and six members of his church picketed the funeral of soldier, Lance Cpl. Matthew Snyder, who was killed in Iraq. This incident happened in 2006, but they are reporting on it now because the father has a law suit against the minister that will be heard before the Supreme Court.

What was Rev. Phelps and his flock protesting? Homosexuals in the military. They held up signs that read “God Hates Fags” and “You're Going to Hell.” There is no evidence to suggest that Lance Cpl. Snyder was gay. In fact, Rev. Phelps protests many military funerals all over the country. You can read all about the story here. I am not going to spend time rehashing it here.

The point of this blog entry is to try and understand what Phelps and his people were thinking. Let us strip the story of some facts. I do not care what denomination Phelps was. For my purposes, it does not matter that it was a military funeral. Here is what matters: A man lost his son, a man was trying to pay final respects to his son, seven people held up signs that had nothing to do with how this man's son died, and seven people protested at a man's funeral.

I am a defender of the Constitution of this great country. The First Amendment allows these protesters to do what they did. BUT, there comes a time when you have to use a little common sense and show a little human decency. If you disagree with something, fine. There is a time and a place to express your feelings. That time or place is not at someone's funeral.

Time to bring some facts back into this piece. We all know why Phelps chooses the time and place that he does. He knows there will be press. The man sends out flyers telling people about the planned events. He is exploiting the fact that a solider has died serving his country.

I wish people would use some restraint. Just because you have a right to do something, does NOT mean that you should do it. There are times when you should consider ALL of the consequences of your actions, and then, reconsider your course of action.