# What, exactly, do the anti-war demonstrators want? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [November 21, 2003, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-do-the-anti-war-demonstrators-want/214408 "2003-11-21T00:57:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 4\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2003, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-do-the-anti-war-demonstrators-want/214408/61 "2003-11-21T15:57:27Z")
**LC** Because its not a _premise_, old rooster, its a _slogan_. It draws the like minded around a unifying concept, rather like an _ad hoc_ committee. There is nothing inherently wrong in an emotional appeal if the emotion is noble and worthy. And if they had stayed their hand until they could cobble together an agenda, with articles and subpoints that all could agree to? Then the demonstrations would have amounted to nothing more than a few dozen frisbee-tossing granola munchers, of the type who wish to advance state-mandated lesbianism in order to save the whales. And GeeDubya would have returned to America trumpeting the eager and fulsome approval of our British cousins. Can’t have that, now can we? (On a note of personal concern: Greenwhich Mean Time being what it is, aren’t you up a bit late for a man of…advancing years, shall we say? You really must ration your energy, you know, if you hope to be one of the Stately Curmudgeons of England, muttering about the streets and caning the occassional guttersnipe…) ---
**Author:** ![Dogface](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9d8465/32.png) [@Dogface](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dogface)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2003, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-do-the-anti-war-demonstrators-want/214408/62 "2003-11-21T16:36:49Z")
Lesse: The only “stop” that could be done fast enough for the kneejerks now would be to pull out 100%, lickity-split. Ah, I see, they’re happy for the US to just leave it’s messes behind. Unfortunately, a bunch of totalitarians pulled us into this, so now the USA is stuck with the problem of cleanup. Given my 'druthers, I’d rather see us eat some international crow and share the burden, but we all know that merely pulling out lickity-split, like the kneejerkers and signwavers want, will not put a stop to any violence. A stupid thing was done. Now, unpleasant things will have to be done to keep it from getting worse. Unfortunately, I foresee more stupid rather than actually fixing matters. This is what happens when the most powerful post in the world is fought over by political parties that out-do each other to try to resemble each other. ---
**Author:** ![Avenger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9de0a6/32.png) [@Avenger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Avenger)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2003, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-do-the-anti-war-demonstrators-want/214408/63 "2003-11-21T18:31:53Z")
> [@](#): > > Also, the logic of the US said there were WMD = \> it turns out Saddam was bluffing them and most of the world for a decade =\> the US was deliberately lying! sorta escapes me. Not to start on this one again, but the US said that they had incontrivertable proof that there were WMD. They knew where they were. Yes they were deliberately lying. I don’t think that anyone is saying (I’m certainly not) that turning over control to the UN suddenly makes Iraq secure, democratic and a better place to live. If it happened today, then tomorrow there would be _no practical difference_. I do however believe that it would be the first step towards allowing that transition to take place. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2003, 1:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-do-the-anti-war-demonstrators-want/214408/64 "2003-11-22T01:05:44Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by ExecutiveJesus \* > **Well, I suppose if he loses the country’s money… should a president keep the money he/she earns it?** Nice syntax. I think I’ll pass on trying to form a coherent response to it. > [@](#): > > **It simply doesn’t, and shouldn’t, work that way.** “Shouldn’t. . .” maybe a ripe topic for debate elsewhere; “Doesn’t. . .” _sigh_ Yah, I know. I never said I expected to see it happen, just that I’d LIKE to. > [@](#): > > \*\*BTW, the money being spent there is creating jobs here. \*\* Sounds like a lead-in for a discussion of ends and the means that they justify, and I don’t have a lot of appetite for that right now. But I will say that I firmly believe that means tainted by ethical insupportability necessarily result in ends tainted by ethical insupportability. And it is not clear to me that indirect side benefits are insulated from the taint. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-do-the-anti-war-demonstrators-want/214408.md?page=3)