Banning a bully

Religion | States move to keep protester Fred Phelps away from soldiers’ funerals | John Dawson

Army Sgt. Daniel L. Sesker would have celebrated his 23rd birthday on April 15 had not insurgents in Iraq detonated an improvised explosive device near his convoy on April 6 near the Iraqi city of Tikrit. Sesker, a gunner in the convoy, was killed in the blast. Instead of celebrating his birthday from a distance, his family buried his body on April 18 in his hometown, Ogden, Iowa. Locally, schools flew their flags at half-staff.

Self-styled Baptist preacher Fred Phelps had a different message. The leader of "Westboro Baptist Church" in Topeka, Kan., wanted to send a group to protest Sesker's funeral. Mr. Phelps' message is as clear as it is biblically unprincipled—he rejoices in the deaths of American soldiers who fight to protect a nation that he says promotes homosexuality.

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April 29, 2006, Vol. 21, No. 17

Meltdown Apr. 22, 2006	Illegal passage Apr. 15, 2006	Who's laughing now? Apr. 8, 2006
History speaks Apr. 1, 2006	Broken promises Mar. 25, 2006	WORLD's 20th Anniversary Mar. 18, 2006