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The death of Heath Ledger yesterday hit me really hard. At a time when other girls my age were in love with Leonardo DiCaprio and N*SYNC, my main "celebrity crush" was Heath Ledger. I first saw him in "10 Things I Hate About You" and immediately fell for the smoldering bad boy. But as I grew older, I began to appreciate him for the fine actor he was and not just for his looks. I have never cried in a movie as hard as I did during his last scene in "Brokeback Mountain." I was really looking forward to seeing him play The Joker in the new "Batman" movie, since such a role would have shown a whole new side to his acting abilities. Plus even Jack Nicholas said that role can several mess with your head due to how dark it is. I was very excited to see how he would do in it.
So hearing this news today was like another punch in the gut (sorry for the Fox News link, but bear in mind Fred Phelps hates them too):
A radical Baptist church in Kansas known for picketing the funerals of soldiers who perished in Iraq said it intends to protest Heath Ledger's memorial service with signs claiming the actor died and is in Hell because he played a gay character in “Brokeback Mountain.”Shirley Phelps-Roper of the Westboro Baptist Church in Topeka said that she and other members will picket Ledger’s United States memorial services, not those held in his native Australia.
Between this and what they do at soldier's funerals, these assholes have really tested my belief in the First Amendment. I guess it shouldn't come as any surprise that they're doing it, seeing as how they're so out of touch with reality that they can't distinguish between the actor and the fictional character.
It's often asked what the response to these people ought to be. Should we counter-protest and drown them out, or ignore them knowing that they thrive on media attention? I honestly don't know.
I guess the only thing you can do is try to set the better example, and wait for the day (and it will come) when the compromising photos/e-mails/phone calls of someone in the Phelps family show up.