Although the purpose of this site is to use him as a comic foil, in actuality Fred Phelps is too disgusting and hateful to be funny at all. He's the minister of the Westboro Baptist Church in Topeka, Kansas, a known hate group and borderline cult.
While Phelps hates essentially every group ever persecuted (including Christians who aren't his precise brand of Christian), he seems to harbor a special grudge against homosexuals. While it's de riguer for Christians to believe that people will burn in Hell forever based on what gender they're attracted to, Phelps takes it to another level. He advocates the death penalty for homosexuality, calls AIDS "a gift from God," and celebrates the murders of homosexuals. His group holds frequent, offensive "protests" against gays, and is currently lobbying to erect a monument to commemorate the day Matthew Shepard "entered hell."
His website, www.godhatesfags.com, does a better job of both explaining and mocking his beliefs than I ever could.
More information on Phelps is available at: