Matthew on 15/5/2007 at 17:39

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MSNBC is reporting that (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18679412/) Jerry Falwell died today in his university office.

Can't say that I know an awful lot about him; I've heard his name mentioned many times (usually not in a good way, I must admit) but it seems to be big news over the pond.

Aerothorn on 15/5/2007 at 18:04

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Gee, I didn't see that coming from SD:rolleyes:

Swiss Mercenary on 15/5/2007 at 18:35

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When a fundie dies, nobody cries.

Jeshibu on 15/5/2007 at 20:38

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What did he do, then? I could look it up somewhere, but I'd rather hear from you lot what you personally feel were his worst transgressions.

demagogue on 15/5/2007 at 21:17

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He was a televangalist (according to an obit, apparently the first, successful anyway, starting in the 1950s) that went on to found a political movement called the Moral Majority that was influential in the 1980s, and then associated with the Christian Coalition which was influential in the 1990s ... both movements eventually falling apart after scandals and just losing steam, but not before helping get Reagan and two Bushes elected, along with a smattering of ultra-conservative jurors in the Supreme Court, and maintaining the last decade of Republican rule of Congress, 1994-2006.

He was dogmatic to the point of lunacy -- he once insisted that the purple teletubby was a negative role-model for kids by promoting a gay lifestyle, prompting a widespread boycott of the show (Disney got the boycott, too, but for the life of me I can't remember what they did; something similarly tame, though) -- which dogmatism by itself might have just made him no worse than the grumpy uncle you want to keep in the back room during Christmas gatherings before he starts scaring the kids. But add to that all the political influence he controlled -- the idiotic things he said influenced policy because he could get his 6 million or so membership to blindly throw support behind him, and led to all sorts of stupid policies getting serious consideration ... his movement contributed to keeping gays getting recognition in the military, kept stem-cell research from happening, conditioned US funding for overseas AIDS relief projects on the promotion of a laughable abstinence-first approach (degrading the "condom" option) while Africa suffers, stuff like that.

He was also is particularly harsh and uncompromising with his rhetoric, never missing a chance to damn all gays, feminists, abortion-supporters, single mothers, Jews, Catholics, etc, etc, in the most incendiary way, e.g., he blamed the 9/11 attacks partially on gays and feminists making America immoral and a target for God's rebuke (I'm sure he had similar things to say about Hurricane Katrina). Even a lot of other Christian leaders were uncomfortable with his politicization of religion and apparent inability to open his mouth without offending somebody.