Oh, this is just dreadful

[pegkerr]

You all remember the terrible, vile Fred Phelps (Westboro Church), who pickets the funerals of dead soldiers, claiming that their deaths are God's punishment for America's allowing homosexuals to live ("Thank God for dead solders" and "You're going to hell"). From CNN:

The father of a Marine whose funeral was picketed by the Westboro Baptist Church says an order [by the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals) to pay the protesters' legal costs in a civil claim is nothing less than a "slap in the face."

"By the court making this decision, they're not only telling me that they're taking their side, but I have to pay them money to do this to more soldiers and their families," said Albert Snyder, whose son, Lance Cpl. Matthew Snyder, was killed in action in Iraq in 2006.

The Westboro Church has declared they'll take the money and use it to spew hate speech at other solders' funerals.

I believe in supporting freedom of speech, and I believe that Phelps, as vile as he is, is protected by the First Amendment. But I do believe there is such a thing as intentional infliction of emotional distress, and this certainly fits that definition. This ruling is awfully tough to swallow, and I can agree that it is almost unbearable for the father of that dead Marine to have to pay Fred Phelps, enabling him to do this to other families.

The case is going before the Supreme Court. What do you think?

What I did today to make the world a better place: Rounded up my dollar at the grocery store (Seward Co-op) for benefit of Minnesota Food Share.