Thousands have signed two separate petitions that would classify Topeka’s Westboro Baptist Church as a hate group and strip it of its tax exempt status. The petitions were started after members of Westboro announced plans to protest a Sunday vigil in Newtown, Conn.
After Westboro Baptist Church spokesperson Shirey Phelps-Roper tweeted plans to protest the vigil, “to sing praise to God for the glory of his work in executing his judgement,” the hacktivist group known as “Anonymous” threatened the church via video. In it, an automated voice says, “We will not allow you to corrupt the minds of America with your seeds of hatred. We will not allow you to inspire aggression to the social faction which you deem inferior. We will render you obsolete. We will destroy you. We are coming.”
In addition to the video, Anonymous hacked Westboro’s website and released personal information about church members including names, street addresses, phone numbers and email addresses according to CNET.
Anonymous didn’t stop there. Using its Twitter account, Anonymous asked its followers to sign a petition that would investigate the IRS tax-exempt status of the church. As stated on the White House website, the petition claims: “The Westboro Baptist Church is better-known for homophobic displays, suing people and picketing funerals than for providing Christian care to a community. Due to their harassment and politicking, their IRS tax-exempt status should be immediately investigated.”
Anonymous did not stop with the things listed above either, they did much more:
Today, Anonymous scored several more successes: godhatesfags.com, the website of WBC, went down, possibly as a result of DDoS attacks by anonymous members. Other high-profile hackers have joined in, such as @cosmothegod, who hijacked the personal Twitter account of WBC spokesperson Shirley Phelps-Roper and retweeted several posts about his victory. Anonymous’s official Twitter account also claims that its members managed to change Phelps-Roper’s desktop background to gay porn, uncovered alleged social security numbers of key WBC members through the doxing process, and successfully filed for a death certificate for Phelps-Roper. The group has since tweeted out the alleged hotel where WBC members were staying and offered an IRC channel specifically to talk about its #OpWBC movement.
Apparently, at least according to Anonymous, this was too much and the Westboro group high tailed it out of Dodge.
I dunno...a group that can shut down Karl Rove AND the Westboro asshats looks pretty good to me. ;-)
ReplyDeleteYep me too!!!
DeleteShut down two of the most obnoxious bitches on the planet and save us from Rove stealing the Election!
This year, I'm giving thanks to Anonymous!
Anon mail twitter acct. shut down in middle of a op! WTF is wrong with Twitter?
Deletehttp://betabeat.com/2012/12/twitter-suspends-anonymous-most-popular-account-youranonnews/
I LOVE the death certificate trick!
ReplyDeleteSometimes a bully needs to meet a bigger bully.
I think we owe them a thank you for undermining Rove's 2012 election fix. Long live Anonymous.
ReplyDeleteOne of the items you didn't mention is that in the video, the speaker alluded to an adulterous affair that Shirley Phelps-Roper engaged in which led to the birth of a son, also named. Such a Christian lady -- a true model for the whole world!
ReplyDeleteI think that was a warning shot to let the Phelps clan know just how much Anonymous already knows, about how serious they are and how it just might be in WBC's best interest to back off.
I LOVE this news!
ReplyDeleteTHIS is retribution!
Don't you mean, Karma's a bitch?
DeleteWestboro Baptist "Church" reminds of me Sarah Palin. Using religion and 'God' against those they (she) deem inferior. She promotes hate and violence. Remember her incendiary attacks against Barack Obama in 2008 and every year since?? Just ask Gabrielle Giffords about Palin's propensity for violent themes in her so-called 'speeches'. "Don't retreat, RELOAD" certainly comes to mind.
ReplyDeleteIn fact, I'd like to see Anonymous take down Palin's Facebook and twitter accounts and take down C4P'ers and any other website devoted to turning Palin into some kind of deity..
That, my friends, would be sweet..
I would far prefer that Anonymous publish information from Trig's birth certificate along with other delicacies about the Palins. That would stop that gravy train in its tracks.
Deleteorley taitz needs to be majorly fucked with. she's blaming the president for the tragedy...
Delete<< I would far prefer that Anonymous publish information from Trig's birth certificate>>
DeleteThere isn't one!
Sorry folks, I disagree. Palin is a pretty toothless tiger these days - old, haggard, out of the limelight, politically dead.
DeleteThat changes and she spews more lies - we can revisit.
Oily Titz is a clown car side show - but she's used legal means and only attacked big boys ike the Prez who can take it- up to the courts to shut her down. Meanwhile, I get it, let her have her say. then the birthers have one less conspiracy theory. POTUS is a 3-D chess master, folks.
Stopping election stealing - all good, all good. Preventative and important.
The things you've mentioned are borderline and vindictive and trivial. Anonymous goes there and their rep goes down.
I agree with your statements. Both Palin and Taitz will eventually disappear on their own. We should remember that Anonymous is a double-edged sword. I'm glad for their actions against Rove and the Westboro Baptist "Church" but this is vigilantism, a practice which is not good in the long run.
DeleteNo fuckin way people.
DeletePalin hoaxed a nation and was enabled in the scam. That deserves FULL EXPOSURE. If you think she is harmless, you are mistaken. She is a symbol of the bigger problems.
I would like for Anonymous to come up with the photo shop job Sarah did for her 'birth of Trig' drama.
DeleteAccording to Palin e-mails there are only Trig birth family photos of her crotch as Trig arrived. Her only other proof that she is the birth mother of Trig is the word of her father, he stated he was there when Trig "popped" out, he is her witness.
Another back up for her story is, of course, that interview about her "wild ride." You know, she skipped all the well equipped hospitals and declined Gov Perry's jet to endanger an unborn child? That was her story and she is stuck to it. She and Dr. Cathy.
Yea, 5:09. Where's the square baby? The time has passed when the Trig hoax had a chance of being brought to the attention of all Americans who hate being taken for suckers. It will never be proven as a faked pregnancy because nobody cares about Hollywood Plastic Toothpick Palin anymore. In another four years people will say, Palin? Who's that? And we will have to be satisfied just knowing that she doesn't matter anymore.
DeleteAnd gee, nobody died or got threatened with an assault rifle, or whatever the heck the NRA has made legal in this nation. Good for Anon. More power to them. They are a force for GOOD.
ReplyDeleteIt would be heaven to see them go after the likes of Sarah Palin, Todd Palin, John McCain, DeMint, Boehner, Romney and on and on. I, and many others, would love to see each of them come unravelled in front of the nation!
ReplyDeleteI would like to know where this cult does everyday business. Who do they bank with? Where do they do their shopping? Who makes their travel arrangements? Can any of those businesses be convinced to drop the Phelps' as customers?
ReplyDeleteThey had almost everything up about them the other day. Was Sweet! Fuck WBC!
DeleteViva, Anonymous!!!
Now if Anonymous can only shut down Fox while Sarah Palin is spewing her INCOHERENT DRIVEL and LIES. Or expose the MATSU DAIRY emails that were heavily redacted. Also any emails between Todd Palin and BP executives regarding Sex Trafficking.
ReplyDeleteI would LOVE to see them taker her FB, Twitter, and PAC site down. Come to think of it, she has done a few things in the spirit of a hate group (e.g., gun sights on a map, eh Sarah?)
DeleteDisrupting a sick and twisted hate group can only be a good thing. I feel relieved that there is such an organization that is committed to protecting the good and the decent in this country. I fully support Anonymous to do what is necessary to stop these assholes in their tracks. Phelps and his crew are so far out of order and only cause heartache, rage and pain...and for what?
ReplyDeleteMan oh man, these dudes are not fucking around.
ReplyDeleteI for one hope they don't hold back, just stay focused until they bury that bunch of inbreds.
DeleteI wish I knew how to do what they do.
Is that a future photo of Tri-pp Palin/Johnston? Those placards would fit the Palin Mantra. However, TAWD would be against the anti-gay signs.
ReplyDeleteTawdry might be against them but he can't publicly admit it. It's a career thing, don'tcha know.
DeleteBalzafiar 4:11 PM
DeleteToddy-boy and career in the same sentence? Oh, I get it...that was the punch line.
Todd ain't got no fuckin' career...
He's Sarah's BOY, and nuthin' more.
Balzafiar? Is Todd still the Carrier- in-Chief of Sarah's purse? Haven't seen much of him lately. FBI still snooping around up there in Alaska?
DeleteI've got no problem with this whatsoever.
ReplyDeleteAnonymous:
ReplyDelete“We will not allow you to corrupt the minds of America with your seeds of hatred. We will not allow you to inspire aggression to the social faction which you deem inferior. We will render you obsolete. We will destroy you. We are coming.”
some of the best hackers in the world, I don't see much of a on-line future for Mr.Phelps or his "church" ...WBC pissed off the wrong nerds..
maybe they will write a delete program on any site mention of WBC or their members on the "net"
with enough ones and zeros the WBC will no longer exist online hint hint :)
Too bad they are not good enough to go after Fox, Ailes, and Murdock.
DeleteI thought that kid in the top picture was Tripp Johnston.
ReplyDeleteHe is a poster child for having such bad parenting and being abandoned. His mouth is legendary. How many 4-5 year olds yell f----t to caretakers and are praised with snickering laughs?
Go Anon! That is good news. Next get McCain/Palin for trying to lie and connive the king of NRA recipients and the Palins into the WH. One of her roles for the GOP is to make guns cute and all that crap.
ReplyDeletehttp://albanykid.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/Christmas-story-bb-gun.jpg
How do we get a hold of the Anonymous people?
ReplyDeleteTry Facebook.
DeleteTruth is, if you have to ask, you shouldn't be playing in those waters..
DeleteRead up here if you want a taste.
http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2011/05/the-hackers-hacked-main-anonymous-irc-servers-seized/
I must warn anyone delving into IRC channels with Anon to be careful. You are dealing with technically talented hackers.
Preferably, use IRC only on a Mac or Linux machine behind good natted firewalls, turn off all sharing on your machines, and set really good passwords
Anon, you are so awesome I can hardly stand it! I want to jump up and down and cheer myself hoarse at the things you do. You are my hero(es?).
ReplyDeleteThis is so simple. We have definitions, often used in libel suits about who is and is not a public person - a celebrity or politician.
ReplyDeleteProtesting at the funeral of such a person, while not exactly civil and decorous, is somewhat understandable.
Protesting at the funerals of private, unconnected to your cause individuals, is harassment and should be illegal.
If that picture isn't one of child abuse, I don't know what is. What an awful thing to teach that little boy.
ReplyDeleteit is Lynn, unfortunately kids every day are taught to hate, people of different races, of different ethnic groups, of people of different sexual orientation.....pretty much how the average southern raises their kids.
DeleteYES! I hope this is just the beginning, so many hate groups out there. I can't wait for the death certificate to "leak", would make a fantastic tee shirt!
ReplyDeleteWouldn't it be sweet if the N.R.A. met a similar fate?
How sweet it is!
ReplyDeleteHere's to hoping Anonymous is instilling fear of similar retribution in other hate groups.
"We will render you obsolete. We will destroy you. We are coming." (Quivering with anticipation.)
I'm still hoping that they expose Karl Rove via Wikileaks.
ReplyDeleteM from MD
OK, just read that Oily is trying to use the Sandy Hook Massacre in her birther garbage - go get'er Anonymous, PLEASE.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/12/18/orly-taitz-sandy-hook-obama_n_2325671.html?utm_hp_ref=politics
Sign the anonymous petition at whitehouse.gov
ReplyDeletehttp://tinyurl.com/ccj2v9e
"we petition the obama administration to:
Legally recognize Westboro Baptist Church as a hate group.
This group has been recognized as a hate group by organizations, such as The Southern Poverty Law Center, and has repeatedly displayed the actions typical of hate groups.
Their actions have been directed at many groups, including homosexuals, military, Jewish people and even other Christians. They pose a threat to the welfare and treatment of others and will not improve without some form of imposed regulation."
There are two petitions. Do a search for Westboro, not for active. They both have more than 25,000 signatures but I say the more the merrier.
DeleteOne is to recognize them as a hate group. The other is to revoke their tax exempt status as a church.
The best part?
ReplyDeleteShirley Phelps-Roper has NO ONE TO SUE.
That's their specialty and how they use the courts to bully their way.
She can't do that now. She has no one to sue. As sweet as it all is, that is the best. She is must be peeing her pants, smoking coming out of her ears, maybe her head spinning 360s. She has no one to sue!
Not only that, but Anon. can do it again and again. The Westboro Tax Dodging Cult doesn't have the power to protect themselves from Anonymous.
I've said it before. It says something when we have to rely on a group like Anonymous to protect our elections from being stolen by Karl Rove or protect the funerals of our soldiers or babies from the Westboro Tax Dodging Cult. Under such circumstances, we have no right to question or disapprove how Anonymous achieves their goals. They did so without violence or threats of violence.
In the four days the Westboro hate group tax revoking petition has been up it is approaching 200,000 signatures. Well beyond the 25,000 needed. I think that will get the White House's attention. I also think ol' Shirley will find that Federal tax court is a little different than going before the Supremes. I think tax court might be a lot more successful in pulling the teeth of the Westboro cult. The law can be flexible to interpretation when necessary. And I don't think Shirley will be successful appealing a tax decision before the Supremes.
So let it be written. So let it be done.
Like I said previously, I love Anonymous.
ReplyDeleteI get a kick out of you, Gryph. ;-)
ReplyDelete(referring to your avatar pic on Twitter.)
The WBC website, (godhatesfags.com) is now under a DDoS Protection Service with BLACKLOTUS.NET after Anonymous DDoS'd their website and held it offline for a number of hours today.
ReplyDeletePut gay porn on her computer. That must have blown her mind! I for one am grateful this superhero Anonymous exists and has come to our aid in what's true and just. Thank you Anonymous!
ReplyDeleteHey, Anonymous is simply countering "free speech" with more free speech, right? WBC needs to be gone from this society.
ReplyDeleteI have NOOOOOO problems with their tactics. None. They are payback for Rove and his stolen elections and stolen election attempts. Only anonymous' people are smarter and better.
ReplyDeleteWish they'd expose babygate for us.
I am opposed to these "Anonymous" tactics. But I am also appalled by the Westboro gang and I think they must be stopped. Stripping them of their fake religious standing and exposing their funding would be the best way to take them down.
ReplyDeleteThe Westboro folks are seriously hateful and sick. But while this may be a satisfying short term victory, whatever the left does well and successfully, the right will copy with all its resources before long.
ReplyDelete