God Hates Fags? (Photo Journalism)

One man protested the protesters. "You are what you protest!" he fumed.
- Sarcasm Alley

That's one of my favorite lines from my magical mystery novel. And if I had made a sign it would have said exactly that: You Are What You Protest. We are a funny, funny people! Blindly fumbling around seeking approval, desperate to keep our truths inside all the while desperate to free them. That, of course, is the source of all war on this planet.

And frankly, that's what I feared when I headed out to Westboro Baptist Church's protests here in Arlington today. For those who haven't heard of these clowns yet, here's a little Wiki blurb:

The Westboro Baptist Church (WBC) is an Independent Baptist church and hate group known for its anti-homosexuality and its protest activities, which include picketing funerals and desecrating the American flag. It is headed by Fred Phelps and consists mostly of members of his large family. Located in Topeka, Kansas, United States, its first public service was held on the afternoon of Sunday, November 27, 1955.

The group came into the national spotlight in 1998, when they were featured on CNN for picketing the funeral of Matthew Shepard, a young man from Wyoming who was beaten to death by two men because of his homosexuality. Westboro has protested at the funerals of people ranging from Fred Rogers to Coretta Scott King to Jerry Falwell.

They hate pretty much anything that breathes but really it's obvious they loathe themselves above all and these protests are a cry for help. But I don't mind free expression as long as it's nonviolent. Don't mind it all, and in fact I find it refreshing. I know a lot people have gotten riled up about them but I can't get really upset over flat earthers like this. They're not persuasive, just pathetic. And I see all sorts of patheticness every day, some just more socially acceptable than the rest.

Two protests were planned today in Arlington. You can see the Westboros entire protest schedule at their website: godhatesfags.com. (Earth 2010 AD, you just can't make this stuff up). The first protest was truly ungodly as it started at 9 AM and that was just too early for my lazy bones and I only caught the tail end of it.

I got there in time to see the Westboro clan escorted out by the police.

Later, another protest was held at a Catholic church. I made sure I was early for that one.

Approaching the church, spotting a couple of cops.

The Westboro picketers were just getting set up

But a much larger counter protest was waiting for them!

Like I said, I was expecting contention, ill will and bad vibes. I found just the opposite! It was hard not to walk around smiling. Felt more like church camp than anything else - maybe a hyper-inflated version, though. But it was great and a lot of fun and I wished it had lasted a lot longer than the usual 30 minutes these protests do.

It was tough taking pics without a 35mm camera. Mine was overwhelmed by glare and fuzziness anytime I tried to zoom. I ended up circling around, taking as many shots as possible hoping I could get a couple of good ones. But I made out OK, finally getting close enough for some clarity. First I wanted to check out the Westboro signs and see if I could decipher how their minds - or whatever - were wired.

As much as I love psychological puzzles, I gotta admit I'm stumped on being pro oil spill. It certainly wasn't an act of God. The other sign is pure Bill Maher.

These pretty much run the gamut. I wonder if they protested the [anti-Christ 43rd President] same way as they do Obama (though the "Coward" sign could certainly be a reference to our infamous Dallas resident). These signs certainly speak of those at war with themselves.

Poor dumb kids didn't know what they were doing, they just want mom and dad's approval like all kids do.

Here you can see the approximate distance between the two. The police wouldn't allow any interaction.

The other side was much more fun! Many of the signs had me chuckling out loud and despite feelings running very high it never ran over the top to the point of verbal violence. If so, the Westboros would have truly won. I really, really wanted to interact with all this passion but I had made a mental commitment to be Switzerland in all this. I'm too much the advocate.

When you got a cop talking to Wookie, you know it's a fun protest!

I got in behind them for a closer look.

Church members were inside, services still going on.

While outside was pure chaos! I was nervous about the impending reaction of the churchgoers. Dogma breeds more dogma and I would hate to see that circle begin here.

Passing motorists were targets as well.

This car gave the counter protesters the finger but there were many honks and thumbs up from passers by. A loud cheer would go up whenever that happened.

And then out came the church patrons!

They're having a WTF moment!

Now, I despise the Catholic church as much as anyone. Any organization rooted in witch burning is a bent one and by God if you come to my front door with a torch I'm going to gun you down. But I don't hold it against anyone for being Catholic or anything else, just so long as, you know, you don't expect me to think it's important or anything.

This little group of Catholics gathered behind the counter protesters and were very cool and supportive, staying the whole time. It was a beautiful thing to see.

Although interaction with the Westboros was forbidden, this camera crew somehow managed to snag an interview. I asked them later if they were going to put it online and they said yes, at http://www.liberalmediafilms.com/.

This woman took serious issue with the presence of the counter protesters, asking the cop if he could do something about them. He explained that the church knew the Westboro picketers were coming (who stayed on the public sidewalk the whole time) and gave permission to the counter protesters to be on their property. He also explained about that pesky First Amendment. She reluctantly understood but left with a loud declaration of, "This country's going to...heck!" I could tell she really wanted to say "hell".

So who won and who lost this day? Nobody and everybody. The Westboros made fools of themselves but got the attention they wanted (though one suspects they were itching for verbal violence). Certainly the church acquitted itself well, allowing events to unfold and not be bottled up. The cops were professional and restrained. But most of all the counter protesters won the day, not responding to hate with hate (though a few of the signs went too far). The tone was happy and cheery, with chants and singing. You should have been there!!!

I leave you with a few of my favorite signs. You can see all the pics at my Flickr site.

In the end, this says it all:



____________________________


Looking for a sign in the middle of the night

God Talks To A Christian About Drugs, Life And Socioeconomics

More like the right hand of fraud!

"Dear God, it's me, your faithful servant in the Word. I love you with all my heart and all my mind and all my soul - so you better listen to me!"

God hated prayers that started with a demand - but most did anyway. "Dude, chill!"

"Wickedness has come to the land and I've come to smote Your enemies!"

"You moron, I'm God. What do I need you for to smite My enemies? Only My enemy would do such a thing!"

"Ha! I take it You are jesting with me so I'll conveniently gloss over that statement and stick to my belief I do holy work. But verily I say unto You, godless devils have overrun the land and we must stop them!"

"You're certainly providing me with evidence of that."

Shit! thought the Christian. Was that sarcasm? Can my Maker can see right through me? No, can't be! Not even God can see through me. Whew! "They have come, my Lord. Come to spread poison throughout the land in wild decadence. We must protect the children! Would You not agree?"

God chuckled. As usual, this was a Magic Christian, one who wished to distract with one hand from the speaker's evil while pointing out the alleged faults of others'. Strangely, everyone who used that tactic always thought they were the first and most compelling of all the perpetrators. God knew how to disarm such tactics. "Well, what's stopping you from protecting them?"

"Oh, well, nothing's stopping us, of course. We're doing it, we just need Your help is all because we know You would want to be on our side." Jesus, He almost found out I'm full of shit! But I think talking like the Bible really scores points for me.

"But I'm already on your side."


"Oh...," uttered the Christian involuntarily, disappointed with the knowledge and now with nowhere to go. But God's work is never done.

"I'm on everyone's side. A piece of Me resides in each of you. To be against you would be to be against Myself. I'm trusting you with My life."

So that explains all the fucking guilt! Oops! Sorry God for saying "Fuck"!

Like I give a fuck about that!

Shit! God can't read my mind. I must have imagined that response. But at least I have a way out now! "That's the problem, Sir. Among us are dirty spirits, unclean with the desire to poison our children and legalize drug use. They'd put them in vending machines if they could! We cannot tolerate such sin!"

I don't really believe they'd put them in vending machines but it makes for a great scare tactic. Hee-hee! I'll win God over yet!

"I'm not a sir."

"Oh sorry. It's just that, you know...well, OK, whatever you say, ma'am."

"I'm not a ma'am either!"

"What?" Aw fuck, He's bitching about protocol and not listening to me at all! What a touchy bitch! "Well, what are You then?"

"I am what I am."

I'm not exactly sure where I went wrong. I got my propaganda out like I wanted, but this sure doesn't feel right. I'm sinking here! What do I say? Shit, God, bail me out! This is unbearable! What do You want me to do? Admit I'm full of shit and that my crusading efforts are false and destructive? Fuck man, I'll never get to heaven that way! I can't just come clean, that'd be suicide! Please save me and tell me all pot smokers go to hell!!


That's when the Magic Christian smelled a clue. "Dear God! What's that smell? Smells like - "

"Skunk weed, yes! Hate to sound selfish but I do know where all the best stuff is."

"But that's illegal!" The Christian hoped fear of arrest would get God to repent.

"I'm using this hilarious Bart Simpson bong. Cracks me up every time I use it!"

"Oh my God! God's a stoner!"

"And a Righteous One at that!"

"This must be a nightmare, a trick. The devil is tricking me!"

"Believe what you want. I've always let you do that."

"I don't want to! I want to believe what You want me to believe!"

"I believe I gave you this easily grown ragweed called hemp you could use for everything from clothing to rope to paper. And what do I see? Your sorry asses are cutting down Redwoods instead! I love those Redwoods and they are a special treat for you. There's just no pleasing you fuckers!"

"Oh wait, you don't understand! Legalizing hemp would ruin the timber industry and many other companies. It would collapse the economy and put everyone out of work. We can't have that! It's God's law!"

"Out of work? Are you out of your mind? You've got a whole planet to clean up! You're using an unsustainable energy source for your life support and if you start right now it would take an entire generation to fix what's wrong! Don't talk to Me about no work to do, the pile grows higher every day!"

The bong of God!

Fuck, I could say something here but He, err She, err It, is pissed at me. I have a feeling no matter what I say I'm going to get my ass chewed off. No way I'm defending this crapped out world anyway. I've got only one card left to play: feeling sorry for myself.

"Well, fine! I guess You know everything. So be it! So I'm not worthy of Your love and when I die You're going to open the trap door and send me right to Hell where all the liberals are!"

God let out a long slow hit and smiled in self satisfaction. "Oh, baby!" The words were spoken to no one. "That was a good one. If I were incarnate I'd be munching on some Cheetos right now. Oh thank heaven for 7-11!"

Lovely. That tactic didn't work. I hate this! It's like dealing with a grown-up. I can't win here so I'm gettin' out while the gettin's good. Damn, this sucked... I'm really going to have lie about this later at church to make this come out right.

God spoke yet again. "Oh, and one more thing."

I can't take any more. I know this is going to hurt. This is where God finally sticks the knife in me. Oh Jesus, save me! The Christian dropped to holy knees. "Just kill me! I can't take it anymore. Go ahead and get it over with!"

"You know that tumor you were worried about? I just wanted to say I healed it."

"Oh, You do love me! You do! You do! You do! Thank You, God! Thank You for everything!"

"No problem. Just spread the word about Me if you would."

"Oh, certainly! I'll tell everyone I meet how You loved me so much You healed me!"

"And also how I loves me some skunk weed!"

Pause. "Yes, that too." Someday. And with that reluctance a new tumor formed, growing until the truth was set free.

_____________________

God likes a little nose candy too!

Unemployment: Da FINAL Solution!

"Nay, indeed, if you had your eyes, you might fail of
the knowing me: it is a wise father that knows his
own child. Well, old man, I will tell you news of
your son: give me your blessing: truth will come
to light; murder cannot be hid long; a man's son
may, but at the length truth will out."
- The Merchant of Venice

Hi folks! It's me Robert the hardworking Republican! My enemas say I exploits the poor and shit like that but that's what da poors there for, ya moron! You see da sticker on me Hummer: "Republicans: We work hard so you don't have to". So I asks ya: is dere ANYTHING wurs than sum bum that don't do no work atall? They's got sum nerve breathin' up the sames air I does! But it look likes thay coming to there census!

In one of the darkest tallies of the nation's still-sputtering recession, experts say financial desperation has played a significant role in increased calls to suicide-prevention hot lines -- and likely has led to increased suicide rates.

While government statistics on suicides often lag by two or three years, experts say the easier-to-track calls to hot lines have grown significantly. The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, which operates 24-hour crisis help lines around the country, reported an increase of 18 percent from January to May this year. The rates have fluctuated wildly, from 13,424 in January 2007 to a peak of 59,500 two months ago.



Yessiree! Off yaselves ya lazy basterds! Good riddens! It's about the only ways you can make the world a better place! You gots another think cummin' if you thinks you can take away me goodies you sikk commie basterds! Leave my shit alone, goddamit! Thar's a reeson I needs all da guns I got! You peeples wants to take away everthin' I own! Dam you all to hell!

Now look you no-workin', criminal-lovin', space-wastin' useless subhumans, thar's a reeson ya gotta work to live: it's the ONLY way EVER to make life any good atall! You doan wanna werk that fine by me! Jess don't come back whinin' and bitchin' what you got no food or houses or crap like that! I don't wanna heer it! You done maid your bed, go lie in it! Iffen we don't force peeps to werkin' then nothin' ever would get done!

• An armed man facing foreclosure in Chattanooga, Tenn., who called police early July 1 threatening suicide. Authorities said that after officers arrived, the man talked with them from the porch of his house and then burst down the steps waving his gun while screaming, "Suicide by cop!" He died in a hail of bullets.

• A husband in Santa Ana, Calif., who called police later that same day to say he had shot his wife while she slept and then overdosed on Valium in a murder-suicide pact the morning they were to be evicted from their apartment. He survived and has been charged with murder.

• A husband and father in Anaheim, Calif., facing foreclosure and a mountain of credit card debt, last month shot and killed his wife, critically wounded their 3-year-old son, shot at but missed their 5-year-old son and then killed himself, police said.



I's a Bible man, a lover of the Lord and a holy perverter of the Word. We's all made in imagery of God and we all knows Gawd is a no-good-son-of-a-bitch cuz thats the way peeps is! It's just dam logical. So we just gots to keep a gun to ya head to keep ya doin' what yous supposed ta! Simple dat. You wants a nightmare hell no one can survive? Jess lets peeps do whatever they wants! Cant no trust atall the ways the Good Lord maid ya, no sirreeee!!!

And since we's doin' the Lord's werk that makes our systemical a sumpthin' no Gawd-feerin' man wood question no matter wot! So if the systemical sez ya can't have no werk thar's a good reason for that: we doan need you no more! By-bye! Sumtimes we's just gotta stop billding cars and houses and eelectronical stuff cuz we just stop needin' dem all the sudden. Simple dat! We gots to make ya werk and we gots to make ya not work if we wants to save the world. Dam I luvs Amerikkka!

For some, it's a function of self-perception, and a traditional sense of the man as a family's primary breadwinner. Financial crises are perceived as personal failure, and individual tragedy expands when families are involved.

"When men feel that they are financially responsible for the family, the family cannot or should not live without them, so they take them with them," said Coontz, co-author of a report earlier this year titled "The Long-Range Impact of the Recession on Families." "You'll see cases where people will lie about having job, or having money, then when the woman is about to find out he kills her and commits suicide rather than face the humiliation. It's an over-identification with the male protector/breadwinner role."



Dem peeps without jobs is like monkees at da zoo: dont feed them! Thar ain't no excuse in hole wide werld fer not havin' yaself a job and da money god. You knows yous got no cause to bitch 'bout nuttin'! Jess be quiet and die likes a man, we's tryin' to have a party hear and no one wants to here yer squallin' starvin' brat. Dat's why we inventeds monee: so we can sees who done deserves to live and who dont not at all!

So we's aint changin nuttin! Nuttin' needs changin' cuz we's already livin' best ways possibull sense beginnin' of thyme! I red me where's this good ol' boy talked 'bout how he livin' like a dog now on account he got no monee god no more. Good on ya, boy! You needs to leeve the good stuff to rest of us wot got da monee! Dis is jess the way things gots to be no matter wot if we wants ta live the good life. Even if it eat up the hole planet doin' it, dere aint no changin' nuttin lessen yous some kinda nut!

In fact, the underpinnings of the recession, which includes the continuing collapse of the manufacturing sector and the wage structures that helped build the nation's middle class, have added a sense of class failure.

"Some of these jobs are gone forever," Coontz said. "We've already been experiencing a transition away from a manufacturing economy and this hollowing-out of secure middle-wage jobs. That is something that is very foreign to the American, the notion that they're not going to do as well as their parents, and their kids are not going to do as well as them."

____________________

The Last Picture Show Revisited (Photo Essay)

"...and of course you're going to shoot it in black and white."
- Orson Welles to director Peter Bogdanovich

Who am I to dispute the great Orson Welles? So I fiddled with my camera's settings to shoot black and white and headed out to Archer City, site for filming of the famed "The Last Picture Show". Sure you've all seen "Fast Times At Ridgemont High" but life gets compressed pretty quickly in small west Texas towns too and I saw plenty of one year marriages in my hometown high school. What else you gonna do to make it look good after you knock her up?

Larry McMurtry's novel and screenplay sought to give vent to an unvarnished look at bored, restless teenagers and dying adults circa 1950 in the fictional town of Anarene, Texas. McMurtry spares nothing and no one as he points his spotlight in all directions, unmasking the mythology of their lives - all the while creating a mythology of rural lives long given up hope on life. It's a situation too bleak for colors - those were blown away long ago by the almighty Texas dust.

I arrived on a cloudy and sometimes rainy day. Just perfect.



Roads leading out of town take on a mythology of their own, like railroad tracks leading out to the wider world, the place where anything can happen. As a kid, you remember every spot, every crack - that's your way out, boy.



Royal Theater, the legendary last picture show.



Inside the ticket booth are stills from the movie



It was very much a cowboys' town. I felt very out of place and self-conscious taking pictures. I must have looked like a gawking tourist at a zoo.



Here is where all the good ol' boys went to meet and eat.



I found the football field. Perhaps the most sacred place in any rural town. Football is how God speaks to a community. Blessed are the winners for glory is thine.



I love this shot of the secondary stands. I see so many dreams won and lost in it, memories to linger for life. In the movie, the kids are ribbed mercilessly for losing on the field.



The lone flashing red light. You wouldn't know it from this pic, but it was a damn busy intersection. May not be a lot of people living in Archer City but it seems everyone passes through it.



A lonely city street stretching into infinity. I couldn't imagine being anchored there for life. But once you build a family, all the world revolves around that.



And here we see the Royal theater from the side, exposing its wrecked wall and (hopefully) repairs being made. It's indicative of what happens when you scratch the surface of a rural Texas town.



I also took some other pics on my way up to the panhandle. You can't miss seeing one of these. Not many still operate but this one did.



A brave tree toughing it out against the Texas wind and dry, barren landscape.



Here a farmer's field melts into the sky. It's easy to dream on a farm. Could you imagine the "Wizard of Oz" having a cloistered apartment as its starting point?



I also found this abandoned windmill, a photographer's dream. I could have made a postcard out of this, it speaks through the lens so well.





The school colors of my hometown were green and gold. I always liked that combination and it remains that way till this day. From this shot of a farmer’s field, you can see where those colors were derived.

Click here to look at the complete set.

_______________________

"He was sweeping you sons-of-bitches!"

Concentration Camps: Time For A Comeback?

"The democracy will cease to exist when you take away from those who are willing to work and give to those who would not."
-Thomas Jefferson

I'm asking you, do we really want to give away all our funds to the unemployed, those who produce nothing? The only possible end result of that is a growing dead weight that will engender our own destruction. There's no room in a capitalistic society for non-producers. Society dictates we weed these people out for the greater good. And certainly the science of Darwinism demands their destruction.

And who are you to argue with science?

The famous Auschwitz slogan of "Work will set you free" also applies to our unemployed brethren. And for those not working I've got this to say: the world does not owe you a living. Nor food. Nor shelter. Nor medical care. Or the welfare of your fucking family either. You kissed that off when you stopped working. Adios motherfucker!

So what are we to do with such folks? Easy. Send them to camp! Ramp up the cattle cars and start shipping them out! Who wants to look at those eyesores anyway? Ever see a TV series about the unemployed? Serial killers, the mafia, drug dealers - they all have their own series. But the unsightly jobless - never! At least drug dealers keep the economy going and, uh, you care to name something more important than that?



So for the jobless jokesters that infest us I suggest this: Cut them off, make them invisible, second class citizens whose lives don't count, declare them as useless and lazy, put them last in line, brand them traitors to the American way of life, send them to the streets to die, ripping away anything and all that may be dear to them. That's what I say!

Oh wait...we're doing that already.

------------------

Note: the Jefferson "quote" is a fake being passed around by conservatives. There was a word for conservatives back in revolutionary times: Royalists. They still resent America to this day.

From Amos:

Woe to you who are complacent in Zion,
and to you who feel secure on Mount Samaria,
you notable men of the foremost nation,
to whom the people of Israel come!

Go to Calneh and look at it;
go from there to great Hamath,
and then go down to Gath in Philistia.
Are they better off than your two kingdoms?
Is their land larger than yours?

You put off the evil day
and bring near a reign of terror.

You lie on beds inlaid with ivory
and lounge on your couches.
You dine on choice lambs
and fattened calves.

You strum away on your harps like David
and improvise on musical instruments.

You drink wine by the bowlful
and use the finest lotions,
but you do not grieve over the ruin of Joseph.

Therefore you will be among the first to go into exile;
your feasting and lounging will end.

Translation: When $300 a barrel oil hits - and that is as inevitable as winter snow - everyone will be crying and asking for relief from the blackmail.

------------------