It was thoroughly depressing to watch Fall from Grace. If you’re even moderately familiar with the Westboro Baptist Church, then you won’t be surprised that a lot of the documentary consists of hearing them say some really awful things with gleeful and hysterical laughter. When people confront them, it is an inelegant screaming match between both sides, and no one leaves smelling like a rose. The only gentle and reasonable dialogue comes from talking heads being interviewed in their familiar surroundings-either their home or church or anyway where those screamers aren’t. Objectively it was a good documentary because it is an accurate representation and there is no clever editing to make the Westboro Baptist Church look like buffoons. They do seem mean and somewhat insane, but if you get happy about soldiers being blown up by IEDs, then that probably isn’t unfair. Phelps is dead, but his legacy lives on in his children and grandchildren. The other side seems just as unappealing when (understandably) screaming. Sometimes talking to crazy people just makes you seem crazy. The best solution seems to be not to talk to them because you can’t change their minds. Most depressing aspect of all: the situation is a microcosm of our political world. A small minority of people hijack attention and feel justified to impose themselves on anyone, anywhere, anytime.