Sailfish City - Stuart Florida Community Site

Stuart, Fl - This coming weekend the Memorial Day tribute opens up at Memorial Park on East Ocean near the courthouse in Stuart.  We’ve all heard about the controversy surrounding Victory Forge and DCF but that didn’t put a stop to the program or the markers they are building to remember our fallen heroes.  My own uncle was one of those men who lived on the Treasure Coast and died in service to the country back in ‘86.

Now there is a new twist to the Memorial Day tribute and it’s ugly.  I’ve read a story over at TC-Palm from Geoff Oldfather about Westboro Baptist Church.  It seems this is a small congregation with a twisted view on the world who plans on picketing the Stuart Memorial Day event.  The Westboro group first started about 50 years ago by Fred Phelps and his congregation is mostly members of his immediate family.  Back in 1991 Phelps started protesting a park in Topeka, KS that was known for homosexual activity.  More recently he and his followers began protesting at funerals of U.S. soldiers killed in the war in Iraq.  These twisted people view the death and dismemberment of our troops as a punishment from God and cheer and praise it.  They beleive God is responsible for killing American’s because America tolerates homosexuality.

They particularly like the damage done to our troops by IED’s and think it’s revenge from God because a pipe bomb exploded near the home of one of Phelp’s daughters years back.  They beleive this is God’s retribution, using the same type of bomb to kill and maim our soldiers.  Now they plan on picketing the Memorial Day tribute in Stuart.  Here’s a small excert from their website about the Stuart Memorial Day picket schedule:

“God hates the military! You are natural brutes, each and every one of you, who are line up in troops at the harlot’s house. You are in BIG trouble for fighting for this nation of rebels without a cause. God will require this of you when you stand before the Great White Throne, instead of simply OBEYING the PLAIN, SIMPLE, EASY-TO-BE-UNDERSTOOD WORDS of Westboro Baptist Church”.

Geoff Oldfather mentions several groups of bikers are planning on attending the event to make sure the memories of our slain heroes are not trampled on by these loones.  There is also a group forming to start up a ring of protection around the park, more info can be found at TC-Voices.com.