Ed Brayton is a freelance writer and speaker. He is the co-founder and president of 
The Worldnutdaily reports on a protest at a McDonald's in California. The AFA is calling for a boycott of the fast food giant because they have an executive on the board of the Gay Lesbian Chamber of Commerce. Here's a picture of the protest:
One of the protesters was quoted as saying, "If we don't nip this in the bud, the next thing you know McDonald's will be selling our kids two all beef hotties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles, onions in between two tempting buns." Okay, not really; I made that quote up. But if you're gonna protest, at least be clever.
Politics
Comments
No need to make stuff up Ed. All you need to do is read this pronto.
Posted by: FishyFred | July 24, 2008 9:44 AM
The nuts at AFTAH have been in a tizzy over McDonalds for the last several days. The apocalyptic frenzy is kind of amusing, in a pathetic, contemptible sort of way.
If McDonalds takes its cue from Disney, all they'll do is ignore the nuts, because history has shown that the Christian rightists can't pull together an impactful boycott if their lifestyle depended on it.
Which, I suppose, it does. Heh.
Posted by: gary l. day | July 24, 2008 10:04 AM
Wow...5 people outside 1 Mcdonalds. I am quaking in my pretty pink Prada's I can tell you.
I should point out however that marriage never was solely 1 man and 1 woman. That having someone on the board is not promotion and that the absolute moral values of christianity are pretty terrible.
Posted by: Richard Eis | July 24, 2008 10:09 AM
It's usually safe to ignore any protest at which there are more placards than people.
Posted by: Philbert | July 24, 2008 10:22 AM
Those signs are photoshopped.
Posted by: Joe | July 24, 2008 10:22 AM
Haha, wow, FishyFred is right. You guys have to read the post he linked to. My favorite quote is this:
Gays are an "Abolition"? Okie dokie.
Morons.
Posted by: Chris Berez | July 24, 2008 10:28 AM
Photoshopped indeed, and not very well.
Posted by: b.pilgrim | July 24, 2008 10:30 AM
From the comments at FishyFred's link: a hilarious dirty take on it: Two All Beef Daddies Special Sauce Let Us Please.
Posted by: marnk | July 24, 2008 10:30 AM
I went to wonkette.com, and read the comments from the 'Christians'. Why is it that most of them tend to write in a manner that suggests they never made it past the 4th grade?
I realize that command of the English language appears to be dropping, but really...
Posted by: Blaidd Drwg | July 24, 2008 10:40 AM
I agree with the b.pilgrim and Joe:
That's a photoshoped image.
If you crank up the gamma you can see the black levels for two of the signs are much too dark.
wnd may have altered it to correct reflections that made the signs hard to read. Still, having obviously edited images doesn't help their credibility.
Posted by: Namowal | July 24, 2008 11:13 AM
You are right, i thought it looked odd. I just assumed it was the black edging on the signs and my monitor resolution.
Posted by: Richard Eis | July 24, 2008 11:17 AM
There's a video here http://www.goodasyou.org/good_as_you/2008/07/photoshop-revis.html which shows a couple of the signs looking very similar.
But yeah, it looks shopped, I can tell from some of the pixels and from seeing quite a few shops in my time.
Posted by: V Profane | July 24, 2008 11:35 AM
Damn. Now I have to decide whether to continue not eating at McDonald's for taste and health reasons, or start eating there to support The Gay Agenda (which being a damned librul I would, if only I could find out what it is).
Posted by: Eamon Knight | July 24, 2008 11:37 AM
I think they are photoshopped as well, and there are actually 6 people. One is on his knees in front of the man in the center of the picture... naughty boycotters...
Posted by: mr_p | July 24, 2008 11:40 AM
See also http://blogforbooks.com/archives/2008/07/24/mcdonalds-boycott-signs-are-real/
Looks like they've shopped a few signs around, but not really altered them in any meaningful way. Which is odd.
Posted by: V Profane | July 24, 2008 11:40 AM
Dark times are these when hamburger clowns try to make all our children gay. If only Strom Thurmond had been elected, all these problems would have been avoided.
Posted by: Lottsa Love | July 24, 2008 12:25 PM
I don't think that McDonald's is too worried about it. According to Yahoo, their stock has been on a pretty steady climb (3 days in the past month MCD has closed lower than the previous day).
Posted by: Donna | July 24, 2008 12:29 PM
And the signs are in the video I just posted from yesterdays boycott....that must be some great photo shop work in that video! :)
Posted by: Stacy Harp | July 24, 2008 12:31 PM
Wouldn't it be nice if these folks always carried signs? It would certainly save me some time.
Posted by: Abby Normal | July 24, 2008 12:34 PM
For anyone who wants to do a bit of anti-boycotting, but doesn't want to eat McC&P's "food": One can always stop in for something to drink,
Posted by: Rick Pikul | July 24, 2008 12:55 PM
Only if I can then piss it out, or more likely, vomit it up, on the protestors.
Posted by: blf | July 24, 2008 1:13 PM
Several males wearing "Love Jesus" shirts protesting against homosexuality? Jesus is a man's name, isn't it?
Posted by: Herod the Freemason | July 24, 2008 2:07 PM
Eamon Knight, maybe you didn't get the memo, so here's the Gay Agenda. Don't forget the 4:10 p.m. agenda point:
But only after making sure your 12:00pm back-waxing (in prep for a Saturday party where you know you will end up shirtless) hasn't missed any stray hairs that would mar your fierceness [yes, I was delighted Christian won season 4!]
Posted by: marnk | July 24, 2008 2:44 PM
That is "Hay-Seuss" - as in their Mexican pool-boy. They just can't keep their minds off him.
Posted by: Badger3k | July 24, 2008 3:00 PM
Are you not posting comments from the Truth side? (I am the Beth Braun from the WND article.)
As in my comment as to the veracity of the photograph's imagery? I've helped make protest signs. Again, the photo is not doctored in any way.
You're posting the false assertions by the liberals as to the signs being photoshopped, so...
Why not post the Truth: the photograph is authentic and not faked in any way. Check out the news video by Fox40 (on YouTube) for live footage of a protest last night.
So then there's no egg on your face for furthering an unfounded assertion.
Posted by: BethBraun | July 24, 2008 5:13 PM
There's a link in the WND article to the McD's corporate website, where you can leave a message. I would recommend all 'Braytonists' and 'Pharyngulites' to go there, and post a message of support for McD's policies of equality and inclusion.
Posted by: Blaidd Drwg | July 24, 2008 5:19 PM
So the real question is "Do the Golden Arches look like two breasts or two buttocks?"
Depends on your point of view.
Posted by: anonymous | July 24, 2008 5:22 PM
Dear Beth Braun who uses question marks strangely,
No doubt the signs depicted in the photo were actually used at the protest. What I find odd is the same as what V Profane noted above-- they appear to have been switched around in the photo. If you look here, you'll see that where most of the same signs are used, they're in different places. Why? Did the sign wavers get bored and decide to swap signs, and then arrange themselves into the exact same positions as in the other photo? It really doesn't make sense.
Also, I notice that in your comments in the WND, the only argument you appear to have against homosexuality is "yuck." That's a pretty bad reason to try and prevent people from having the right to marry. Chuck Norris grosses me out more than I can say, but I'm not running around protesting his marriage.
Posted by: Gretchen | July 24, 2008 5:27 PM
Beth, I notice there's no easy way for people to comment on your articles on your site - why is that?
As far as the photoshopped images, yes, they appear to be authentic, first impressions are quite often wrong, as it appears so in this case. However, if you look at the pictures with an open mind, you will notice the deep black borders, something protest signs generally do NOT have, which makes them look shopped. Pretty professionally produced signs for a protest, don't you think? (Who pays?)
Posted by: Blaidd Drwg | July 24, 2008 5:32 PM
Gretchen - It appears the signs are two-sided, with different things on each side. So the photos are different depending on which side the person was holding towards the camera. It even makes sense that after one picture was taken they would turn the signs around for another picture.
Posted by: Taz | July 24, 2008 5:37 PM
Instructions and helpful advice to Fundies:
If you don't like gay marriage: Don't marry someone of your gender
If you don't like abortion: Don't have one
If you don't like porn on your computer: Don't visit porn sites
If you don't like 'bad things' on TV: turn the channel
If you don't like people living free lives: Too bad.
Posted by: Blaidd Drwg | July 24, 2008 5:41 PM
Quite possibly the best comment ever.
Posted by: Sadie Morrison | July 24, 2008 5:46 PM
LMAO @ BethBraun.
"HaHa! Those signs were real! Take that libruls!"
Indeed. No black marker on cardboard to be seen, only the best for those fundies.
Posted by: tincture | July 24, 2008 10:32 PM
I'm kinda new to this blogging thing, as you can see from my new blog which focuses on gay issues. But as I read through these silly comments, I just have to ask - is it really so hard for you guys to admit you were wrong about the photos? I think the evidence is fairly clear.
Posted by: Deb Lum | July 24, 2008 10:36 PM
Dear Deb Lum,
Actually, we can't see anything from your blog since you didn't link to it, or provide any other way to find it. As for admitting to being wrong-- did you by any chance follow this discussion, in which it was pointed out and acknowledged that the photos are in fact real?
Posted by: Gretchen | July 24, 2008 11:02 PM
Deb Lum writes:
"is it really so hard for you guys to admit you were wrong about the photos? I think the evidence is fairly clear."
I have no opinion on the veracity one way or the other, but I have to admit, a half a dozen people waving signs is just plain irrelevant. A demonstration has to be a certain size to make people take heed; when it's as tiny as this one apparently was, it's more likely to invite ridicule.
As for me, I haven't eaten or drunk anything from the Evil McD in over a decade, but that's a matter of choosing actual good food instead. (For the same reason, I haven't eaten a Domino's Pizza in over TWO decades, not because the founder of the chain is a reactionary jerk.)
Posted by: Josh Hayes | July 25, 2008 2:41 AM
Apparently the drinks are worse for you than the food. Some have more salt in them than the fries.
I had assumed the pics had been doctored for clarity. Nothing more.
Posted by: Richard Eis | July 25, 2008 4:32 AM
Deb Lum: I went to your little homosexual-obsessed blog. It seems that logical consistency is not your forte. You support the boycott against McDonald's, but a boycott against California hotels (the owner supports a constitutional amendment that would ban gay marriage) is "mean-spirited." Gee, Deb; some folks would think that trying to keep gay people in love from marrying was mean-spirited. Don't gays have the same right to boycott as you or I? In another entry, you decry the fact that Dr. Holsinger's appointment as Surgeon General is being held up as "intolerant." Gee, Deb, some folks would see Dr. Holsinger's view of homosexuality as intolerant.
You aren't a deep thinker, Deb, but you sure are obsessed with gay people. Is there some reason you are so consumed with this issue, Deb?
Posted by: Rob Ryan | July 25, 2008 9:22 AM
Gretchen: I had a long phone interview with Bob at WND regarding the issue. He printed what he printed, but "Yuck" not the basis of my argument. The websites www.savebiblicalmarriage.org and www.YouTube/boycottmcdonalds carry additional talking points supporting what I believe both regarding McDonald's catering to the "homosexual minority" and the usefulness of protests. For a 'family-friendly' establishment to join the NGLCC, agreeing to their gay-promoting terms of membership, and contribute money to it, isn't simply an oxymoron; they have made a corporate decision to support and condone perversion in their workplace and in the public eye. Hence, any Christian or citizen concerned about morality should not eat at McDonald's and thus financially support wickedness personally.
BTW, all, some of the signs are double-sided so they can be flipped around to display a different message to viewers. So if the protesters seem in the same position, that's because for a different shot they flipped their signs around! I help make the signs, so...
Posted by: Beth Braun | July 25, 2008 10:58 AM
Impact is important. A professional sign attracts far more attention than a hastily written message on posterboard.
We want our message to be taken seriously, so yes, we produce attention-getting signs.
The black borders simply are a technique to accentuate the sign and work quite effectively, as you noticed, BUT that has nothing to do with Photoshop.
Posted by: Beth Braun | July 25, 2008 11:11 AM
Ooops, last post about the borders was addressed to Blaidd Drwg.
Posted by: Beth Braun | July 25, 2008 11:23 AM
I love this notion that McDonald's is "family friendly." On what basis? Because they advertise to your kids to get them addicted to shitty food? Because they have playgrounds in some of their restaurants to attract kids in to eat that shitty food that is astonishingly bad for them? That makes them family friendly? In what alternate universe?
Posted by: Ed Brayton | July 25, 2008 12:36 PM
For the reader above wondering about the homosexual agenda this is the best my research has been able to turn up.
· 6 a.m. -- Gym
· 8 a.m. -- Breakfast (oatmeal, egg whites and mimosas)
· 9 a.m. -- Hair appointment
· 10 a.m. -- Shopping (preferably at Nordstrom's or Saks)
· 12 p.m. -- Brunch
· 2 p.m. --
1) Assume complete control of the U.S. federal, state and local governments
2) Destroy all healthy marriages
3) Replace all school counselors in grades K-12 with agents of Colombian and Jamaican drug cartels
4) Bulldoze all houses of worship
5) Secure total control of the Internet and all mass media
6) Be fabulous
· 2:30 p.m. -- Mud mask and 40 winks of beauty rest to prevent facial wrinkles from the stress of world conquest
· 4 p.m. -- Cocktails
· 6 p.m. -- Light dinner (soup, salad with romaine, radicchio, arugula and balsamic vinaigrette dressing, and Pouilly Fuisse)
· 8 p.m. -- Theater
· 10:30 p.m. -- "Do a little dance, make a little love, get down tonight."
I hope that helps you clear things up.
Posted by: donquijoterocket | July 25, 2008 2:50 PM
Hey, josh,
You must not have tried one of their new Homosexual Agenda mcMuffins.
Posted by: Rev. Bob | July 26, 2008 1:31 PM
The signs are made by Dick Otterstad of Garden Valley, Ca. If you are interested in purchasing a sign call him at 530-333-2223. The signs are also made in children's sizes for those of us into child abuse.
Posted by: George Hamilton | August 24, 2008 1:51 PM
I hope that isn't the same Richard N. Otterstad who was arrested in the state of Washington on a charge of domestic violence several years ago. If it is, he sure has a lot of nerve telling people who they can and cannot marry.
Posted by: SUZIEQ | August 25, 2008 2:04 PM