take your Thread Championship with you.

3/19/2008 3:05:15 PM

Quote :

"I rolly eyed you for this reason. Do you really think that protest did anything? What accomplishment was reached? Hell I didn't even know about the protest until I read this thread. I can tell you its making absolutely NO difference over here (and by that I mean in Iraq) except piss off some of the troops. Not one bullet was stopped today, and I'm sure that the mortars that have been hittin here every damn night this week will still fly again tonight, regardless of the protest movement. I think its damn silly and damn naive to think that a pullout at this time would be good for the area. This place will collapse without the presence of the US here. That is a fact. These cats have been fighting each other for centuries, and we're just barely doing a good job of keepign them at bay from blowing each other (and us with it) all to hell. If the US pulls out too soon, this place will see genocide like crazy, hella worse than what has already happened. And if you think that getting rid of Saddam was a bad idea, I suggest you talk to some Iraqis, especially those who were tortured during his regime. Go up North into the Kurdistan area, talk to the people who remember the gas Saddam laid down."

Thank you for your service and sacrifices.

3/19/2008 3:06:20 PM

raiden sure does post a lot on TWW to be over in Iraq

3/19/2008 3:11:14 PM

Quote :

"And if you think that getting rid of Saddam was a bad idea, I suggest you talk to some Iraqis, especially those who were tortured during his regime."

How 'bout you go talk to some now and see how they're loving life. Sadam was a bad dude, no doubt....but he gave the people something we haven't in 5 years (an many more to come), stability.

anyway, the whole he was a bad dictator and we needed to take him out argument holds no weight until we hold regimes such as the Saudis, or The Egyptians ect... who commit many of the same human rights violations to the same standards. Not to mention, nobody was making this argument when the war first started, and the bush admin had the wool over everyone's eyes....it was only when those claims were found to be utterly false that supporters fell back on that argument.

3/19/2008 3:12:08 PM

woops, my bad

[Edited on March 19, 2008 at 3:13 PM. Reason : ]

3/19/2008 3:12:30 PM

Cops coming

Cops leaving after realizing they're greatly outnumbered




in case you couldn't see the pics before

3/19/2008 3:13:24 PM

Park Police Don't Like Hippies

3/19/2008 3:14:23 PM

that a really nice picture of your finger

3/19/2008 3:14:56 PM

thanks loser

it was raining and i was taking a picture with my camera phone - I was kinda rushing, and will be lucky if my phone works after this

3/19/2008 3:16:05 PM

funny, i dont remember asking for an explanation on your finger picture

3/19/2008 3:22:33 PM

i think there should be more protests (in general, not just regarding the war). i agree with the people on page 1 who discussed apathy (dunno if that specific word was ever used). think about the majority age group on here. what was our age group during vietnam? college campuses and young adults were alive and mobilized. sometimes it seems like college is getting less and less intellectual and more and more technical---do x,y and z and you'll get a job, but watch out...don't use your brain whatever you do.

also this is just one of the dumbest things i've ever read

Quote :

"Do you really think that protest did anything? What accomplishment was reached?"

i don't know if you are an actual soldier or just a military wanna be but, whatever you are maybe you should familiarize with some of the principles the U.S. is allegedly fighting for.

3/19/2008 3:24:50 PM

i personally dont think most protests, at least modern protests in america, accomplish anything

however i dont have a problem with anybody peacefully protesting

however it looks from the 2nd picture like people are completely blocking that intersection...I'd be pissed if I was trying to drive through there

3/19/2008 3:29:01 PM

Not only is that intersection blocked, so is a 1-block radius of that intersection

Spectacular!

3/19/2008 3:34:33 PM

terpball, are you against the war?

3/19/2008 3:37:00 PM

Quote :

"Don't forget, many of the Democrat congressmen and women who went along with the war did so against their own personal opinions, but because they didn't have the political backbone to oppose it on principal. Sometimes, the voter has to give them their backbone."

BULL.....Complete Bull. Republicans, Democrats, and Independants all voted for the Iraq war. And the public was behind it as well. Most of you were in the 8th or 9th grade and getting your first acne breakout during this time and dont remember this.

And if what you say is true (it isnt by the way) then why on earth would you ever elect the same congress person again, knowing that they do not have the political backbone to back up their positions? Your arguement makes no sense.

3/19/2008 3:37:55 PM

^^Yeah, I don't think we have any business in Iraq - we definitely don't have any business murdering over 60 thousand (lowball number, it's probably closer to 100 thousand) of their innocent civillians

^ Yeah, it wasn't because they didn't believe in the war - it was because they were lied to by the people who are supposed to be the benevolent leaders of this country.

[Edited on March 19, 2008 at 3:40 PM. Reason : ]

3/19/2008 3:38:16 PM

cool. i would have gone to take a gander at that protest too.

3/19/2008 3:41:44 PM

If I recall correctly, the "Iraq" War ended about 3 weeks after it started.

Since then, its just been an occupation or peacekeeping operation.

We might be at war with someone over there, but it is not "Iraq". But CNN gets better shock value out of the IRAQ WAR, so they go with it.

[Edited on March 19, 2008 at 3:42 PM. Reason : .]

3/19/2008 3:42:06 PM

^ you're an idiot

3/19/2008 3:47:53 PM

Quote :

"i personally dont think most protests, at least modern protests in america, accomplish anything"

i think that anytime you exercise your right of free speech, you accomplish something. just because we don't immediately pull out of Iraq because of a protest doesn't mean that it doesn't accomplish anything. it is definitely reiterating negative attitudes towards the war. and anytime you voice your opinion in support or opposition of something you are doing a hell of a lot more than just sitting back and passively going a long with whatever.

3/19/2008 3:51:13 PM

i didn't know you were 0x000000 terpball

3/19/2008 3:54:10 PM

^^^I'm smart enough not to spend my lunch hour sitting in the middle of an intersection in the pouring rain with a lot of bad smelling "revolutionaries".

Brilliant jacket too Mr. Cool Runnings.

[Edited on March 19, 2008 at 3:54 PM. Reason : ^]

[Edited on March 19, 2008 at 3:55 PM. Reason : ^]

3/19/2008 3:54:23 PM

Quote :

"BULL.....Complete Bull. Republicans, Democrats, and Independants all voted for the Iraq war. And the public was behind it as well. Most of you were in the 8th or 9th grade and getting your first acne breakout during this time and dont remember this."

I'm not sure what was bull about it. Enlighten me. Yes Republicans, Democrats, and Independents voted for the war, and politically the Republicans could be expected to. I feel confident in saying, however, that a lot of Democrats did it out of political expediency. The press did not do their job investigating. A rather large number of retired senior officers opposed the war. GEN Shinseki said the war would take longer, require more service members, and cost more than Rumsfeld predicted. Yet the press did not dig deep into the administrations claims of links to al Quaida or to the Weapons of Mass Destruction argument.

Quote :

"And if what you say is true (it isnt by the way) then why on earth would you ever elect the same congress person again, knowing that they do not have the political backbone to back up their positions? Your arguement makes no sense."

see TreeTwista10's quotes. That should answer your question.

Had the American people been asked, collectively, to actually sacrifice for this war, I think you would have had a different outcome.

3/19/2008 4:01:50 PM

Quote :

"I'm smart enough not to spend my lunch hour sitting in the middle of an intersection in the pouring rain with a lot of bad smelling "revolutionaries"

ohhhhhh a smarty

3/19/2008 4:03:21 PM

great!

I'm going to protest tomorrow after my poetry class

3/19/2008 4:24:54 PM

Quote :

"I'm smart enough not to spend my lunch hour sitting in the middle of an intersection in the pouring rain with a lot of bad smelling "revolutionaries". Brilliant jacket too Mr. Cool Runnings. "

I think you just proved yourself to be an even bigger idiot

3/19/2008 4:32:02 PM

Was George Clinton there? You CAN'T have a FUNK the War without some P-Funk!

3/19/2008 4:32:38 PM

That would have made my fucking week


(not really, I'm going to Atlantic City this weekend, that'll probably end up making my week)

3/19/2008 4:34:44 PM

Ok, so here is my question for terpball; you went to this protest, what else have you done to protest the war? Have you volunteered for candidates who oppose the war? Have you written your congressmen (I'm assuming here you live in Maryland instead of DC, since in DC you'd have no real say) or senator?


I have a feeling that a lot of protesters say they're out there to make a difference, but they're more in it for the recreational / social value of being in a group of like minded people. They get some vague sense of self-satisfaction without having to actually do anything.


I'm all for standing up for what you believe in, I just have little room in my heart for those who talk the talk, but don't walk the walk.

3/19/2008 6:13:32 PM

^but he just walked the walk. lol

3/19/2008 6:16:46 PM

I'm giving him the benefit of the doubt.

3/19/2008 6:29:30 PM

thats quite magnanimous of you rob

3/19/2008 6:48:14 PM

i think its hilarious that this guy is implying that writing a letter to a senator thats never gonna be read is somehow doing more than joining forces with lots of people and actually being noticed

3/19/2008 7:02:21 PM

No, I'm just saying that you've got to do more than be an anoymous face in a crowd. If these people want to protest to get out there and show that there is a mass of people who oppose the war, great. But if thats all they do, if their activism stops when the dude in the dreads quits playing his bongo drum and goes home, then where have we gotten?


I don't for a minute believe that my one phone call or letter will make a difference. I do know that most politicians are slaves to the ballot box. Like I said before, it wasn't the hippies in the streets that ended Vietnam. It was politicians looking at the polling data in their home districts and seeing that Joe Stationwagon was turning against the war.

3/19/2008 7:12:50 PM

3/19/2008 7:14:37 PM

oh i didnt see any bongo drums

3/19/2008 7:17:23 PM

I think, if I'm delusional about anything, it is that people will care enough, for long enough, to tear themselves away from a boob tube and do something about it

3/19/2008 7:32:04 PM

Looks like fun.

I should go to more protests.

3/19/2008 7:37:50 PM

Quote :

"raiden sure does post a lot on TWW to be over in Iraq "

he's about two months from being back in the US. pretty soon he'll be waiting in Kuwait, so yea, he's got more time on his hands

3/19/2008 7:39:53 PM

Not as long as I'm wearing these Jamaican colors.

3/19/2008 7:50:11 PM

3/19/2008 7:56:15 PM

Quote :

"Ok, so here is my question for terpball; you went to this protest, what else have you done to protest the war? Have you volunteered for candidates who oppose the war? Have you written your congressmen (I'm assuming here you live in Maryland instead of DC, since in DC you'd have no real say) or senator?"

I work 2 blocks from where this protest was held, I didn't join until I heard that the protest took over Connecticut Avenue - one of the busiest streets in DC. I have a job, I wasn't willing to call in sick to go protest all day - but if McCain wins the election, yes, I'll take off so I can go in full force next year. Have I volunteered for candidates who oppose the war? Yes, I canvassed for Obama. I don't have a congressman, I live in DC - but I was registered for the DC Statehood party (i know, yeah right) before I switched to Democrat so I could vote for Obama during the primary.

And for the jackass who said something stupid about my Jamaica jacket - It's a cool fucking jacket, and that jacket is just one of many ways I wear my Jamaican heritage.
I don't think I need to explain why I was wearing the Jamaica Jacket - I can wear whatever fucking jacket I want.

[Edited on March 20, 2008 at 7:29 AM. Reason : ]

3/20/2008 7:28:02 AM

^ Thats exactly what I think more Americans need to do. I don't totally agree with you (not a fan of Obama) but gg for actually backing up what you believe with action.

3/20/2008 7:40:02 AM

you dirty hippies make me sick.

3/20/2008 7:42:42 AM

You don't have to care about the issues to join a protest. Protesting can be a fun and exciting hobby and it makes me wish we had better protests here in Raleigh. It's always fun to go get in a crowd and yell about stuff even if you have no idea what is going on.

3/20/2008 8:21:26 AM

http://dc.indymedia.org/newswire/display/142734/index.php



http://dc.indymedia.org/newswire/display/142733/index.php

Quote :

"Connecticut and K blockaded-been holding an hour As of 2:45Pm on March 19, a blockade at Connecticut Ave and K sts has been holding about an hour in pouring rains. A hard blockade in the center is reinforcing the entire "Funk the War" SDS march in this position. A unit of riot cops approached with batons out-but suddenly reversed course and withdrew. This is in the aftermath of paint bombs at Bechtel and a protest of hundreds at the 14th and L st military recruiter. At one point Capt harold threatened an SDS activist with "inciting to riot" charges if anyone in that march blocked the streets again. Earlier yet, Potomac Earth First! staged a secondary blockade on 13th st to relieve pressure on a blockade at 13th and l sts outside the AmeriKKKan Petroleum Institute. "

^ This is the one where I took pictures

The March of teh dead I think was the most powerful demonstration

http://journals.democraticunderground.com/Hissyspit/4183

3/20/2008 9:44:28 AM

people have been protesting the iraq war for what, 5 years? and its still going on...that would lead me to believe that these protests are pretty much meaningless

also why can't you do it out of main traffic thoroughfares? I'm sure some of the people who y'all delayed and got caught in traffic are also anti-war...but you don't see them standing in the middle of the street acting like they're so important

hopefully you tried to bag some slutty pothead chick and take her home to bwn cause if you didnt it was a complete waste of time just like all the other iraq war protests that have no direct effect on what the US does in Iraq

its not like this protest was needed to make the govt aware of the people's dislike of the war...therefore it was pointless

btw looks like the protest was mostly made up of "white America as a whole"

3/20/2008 9:54:02 AM

Treetwista - shut the fuck up.

3/20/2008 10:05:28 AM

yeah because protest never spurs social change
ever

all you've admitted to is the fact that the government ignores the wishes of its own constituency
I think in this circumstance the Founding Fathers would have endorsed revolution (again)

3/20/2008 10:06:07 AM

Quote :

"Ok, so here is my question for terpball; you went to this protest, what else have you done to protest the war? Have you volunteered for candidates who oppose the war? Have you written your congressmen (I'm assuming here you live in Maryland instead of DC, since in DC you'd have no real say) or senator? I have a feeling that a lot of protesters say they're out there to make a difference, but they're more in it for the recreational / social value of being in a group of like minded people. They get some vague sense of self-satisfaction without having to actually do anything. I'm all for standing up for what you believe in, I just have little room in my heart for those who talk the talk, but don't walk the walk."

I've worked for anti-war candidates campaigns... even when our opposition to the war was practically the ONLY ideal we held in common

I've written letters and signed petitions
I've marched in the streets
I've spoken out against the war in my daily life

what have you done, Mr. Righteous?

3/20/2008 10:08:18 AM