# IMF protests **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [April 17, 2000, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/imf-protests/16056 "2000-04-17T19:41:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 2\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![sailor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a587f6/32.png) [@sailor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sailor)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2000, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/imf-protests/16056/1 "2000-04-17T19:41:00Z")
I am watching this on TV and seeing some protesters being interviewed and my impression is these people just don’t have a clue. They just go into a rant about all things evil (capitalism, etc) but they do not seem to be able to be coherent. And these are the ones who get interviewed on TV which, I would assume, would be the most articulate. I get the impression this is a group of kids who just use this as an excuse to party and some (very few) 60s hippies who have not matured yet. Am I missing something? Personally I know little about the IMF and the World bank and I am sure they have their share of inefficiency and corruption but what’s so bad about them? I mean they lend money to poor countries… What’s wrong with that? The poor countries apply for the loans so I guess they want them. Nobody forces them to take them. Another word they seem to be against is “globalization”. I cannot see how being against globalization helps third world countries. The protesters themselves discredit themselves the minute they open their mouths but can anyone explain their position or is there a web site where one can find some coherent information on this? ---
**Author:** ![J\_String](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ce73a5/32.png) [@J\_String](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/J_String)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2000, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/imf-protests/16056/2 "2000-04-17T23:51:00Z")
This sounds like a Great Debate (although the IMF is quite pointless).