Week before last here in Dothan/Ashford area, they honored a young soldier killed in Afghanistan. When they brought his body home, we had people line the roads all the way from the airport to the funeral home. Pretty cool stuff. You don't think about it happening in your area but sure enough, the Westboro people showed up.
I can't tell you what the thinking was, but I assume it centered around the fact that his funeral would be in Ashford, basically a small farming town just outside of Dothan, with enough good ole boys who probably have no clue who these assholes are. They made a huge deal out of this kid's funeral and rightfully so...and you let these people show up and protest and I promise you, there would be a real good chance of somebody getting shot. Anyway, to diffuse the situation before it ever got to that, a local radio station granted them an hour of airtime in exchange for them not showing up at the funeral.
I was pissed as hell at first but then, the other side of me sees the logic.