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| Home Front: Culture Wars |
| Bikers come, protesters go |
| 2006-04-20 |
| Sitting astride a chromed-out Honda Valkyrie on Wednesday, Steve Morgan said the way to silence a small Kansas-based church that protests military funerals was in the palm of his gripped right hand: a throttle that roars a 1520cc liquid cooled engine. Morgan is a member of the Patriot Guard Riders, a group of motorcycle enthusiasts who have begun appearing wherever those demonstrators do. The riders shield mourning military families and drown out the Kansas clan that protests the funerals nationwide and contends that America and its military are morally corrupt and "pro-gay." To say that this is one fringe group attacking another would not be accurate. The protesters, members of Topeka's Westboro Baptist Church, are known to hop from funeral to funeral, but they never number more than a handful. The Guard Riders movement, however, is one of the more successful grass-roots groups to emerge during the Iraq war. Organized on the Internet last November, the Patriot Guard Riders initially had about 175 members who pledged to support or attend events, said Kurt Mayer, their national spokesman. By Wednesday afternoon, Mayer said, 25,653 had joined the cause. Go Riders! Read more at link |
| Posted by:Spot |
| #3 On Wednesday there was no need to conceal the Kansas group behind a wall of burly bikers. The protesters picked up and left after being photographed by media--long before most mourners arrived to remember the popular high school athlete from Lansing. Run along, cowards. The media has helped you play your sick little game. "I'm the only patriot standing here," said Shirley Phelps-Roper of the Topeka-based church. She then headed 30 miles up the road and picketed a veterans hospital. Somebody should turn this bitch into a hood ornament. |
| Posted by: tu3031 2006-04-20 14:30 |
| #2 At the March 11 funeral of Sgt. Gordon Misner II in here in Colorado Springs, the riders used large American flags mounted on their bikes to shield the mourners from these A**holes. They placed the flags between Phelps' small band of rabble and the funeral home so the family would not have to see this scum. Don't remember hearing or reading about the bikers gunning their engines. Colorado (D)Rep. Mike Merrifield, has introduced a bill trying to balance the free-speech rights of protesters and the rights of families to mourn peacefully and privately. His bill would create a 300-foot buffer zone between the funeral and protesters. Violators could be charged with a misdemeanor that carries a $750 fine and six months in jail. Five states have already enacted similar laws, including Indiana, Missouri, Oklahoma, South Dakota and Wisconsin. Another 27 states, including Colorado, are considering it. |
| Posted by: GK 2006-04-20 14:24 |
| #1 Wonder if they would consider border patrol rides? |
| Posted by: Besoeker 2006-04-20 13:47 |