Actually, God Loves Fags

The world is full of graphic examples of how religious extremism foments violence and unrest, but one of the most puzzling is the Westboro Baptist Church.

The Topeka, Kansas congregation, if you can call its 40 ragtag members that, announced most recently that it planned to stage a protest at comedian Robin Williams' funeral here in San Francisco. But what exactly is there to protest about the unexpected death of one of the most gentle, beloved and generous entertainers of the last thirty-five years?

The church, which is in no way affiliated with the actual Baptist Church, also doesn't bother to affiliate itself with reason. Since 1991, they've protested the funerals of author Randy Shilts, who documented the early days of the AIDS crisis in And the Band Played On, along with those of soldiers who were killed in Iraq and Afghanistan, and even celebrated the violent deaths of nearly 3,000 Americans on 9/11. They even threatened to protest at the funerals of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shootings and the victims of the Boston Marathon bombings.

Church members, most of whom are extended family members of its now -- thankfully -- dead leader Fred Phelps, post hate videos on Youtube and Vines on Twitter with the sort of smirking confidence exhibited only by people with unshakably misguided world views of superiority. The Washington Post pointed out that when they tweeted a threat to protest Steve Jobs' funeral in 2011, they did it using one of his iPhones. Who do they think isn't going to hell?

I can only think that they choose to interpret these tragic events as targeted harbingers of God's wrath, striking down sinners or smoting those who don't live to the now-irrelevant letter of the ancient biblical texts. But it's still hard to believe that anyone, for whatever wrong-headed reason, would deliberately add to the sadness and despair of families in mourning. Shouldn't you go to hell for that?