How did we get grammatically incorrect with the protests?

[Queasy]

You see headlines, posts, articles, everything refering to things like, "Anti-War Protests" or "Anti-War Protestors. So, does that mean they are protesting Anti-War? Shouldn't it correctly be called a "War Protest"?

Same thing goes for "Pro-War Protests". Are they protesting Pro-War?

I mean, c'mon. We have thousands of educated journalists, pundits, etc and they keep using poor grammar.

 

[Howard]

You see headlines, posts, articles, everything refering to things like, "Anti-War Protests" or "Anti-War Protestors. So, does that mean they are protesting Anti-War? Shouldn't it correctly be called a "War Protest"?

Same thing goes for "Pro-War Protests". Are they protesting Pro-War?

I mean, c'mon. We have thousands of educated journalists, pundits, etc and they keep using poor grammar.

Being an "x" protester doesn't necessarily mean that you're protesting "x". It could be any adjective, even a boat.

 

[werepossum]

You see headlines, posts, articles, everything refering to things like, "Anti-War Protests" or "Anti-War Protestors. So, does that mean they are protesting Anti-War? Shouldn't it correctly be called a "War Protest"?

Same thing goes for "Pro-War Protests". Are they protesting Pro-War?

I mean, c'mon. We have thousands of educated journalists, pundits, etc and they keep using poor grammar.

Good point.

 

[kranky]

They need to attach the "Anti-" to the flu shot. That's where it belongs.

 

[AyashiKaibutsu]

Anti has a negative connotation. It's been shown (I might be bullshitting here being lazy) more people will support something that's "pro" than "anti" out of reflex. So if you want to demean something you call it the "anti"-whatever movement and if you want to support it you call it the "pro"-opposite whatever.

 

[Perknose]

Being an "x" protestor doesn't necessarily mean that you're protesting "x". It could be any adjective, even a boat.

This. Anti-War is a compound, hyphenated adjective. HUGE OP fail not to understand this basic grammatical point.

Also, OP, if you're going to attempt to make a language point, it would help if you didn't misspell the common English word "protester" in your rant.

You've even been a bad influence on poor Howard.

 

[Howard]

This. Anti-War is a compound, hyphenated adjective. HUGE OP fail not to understand this basic grammatical point.

Also, OP, if you're going to attempt to make a language point, it would help if you didn't misspell the common English word "protester" in your rant.

You've even been a bad influence on poor Howard.

oops.

 

[CitizenKain]

 

[CaptnKirk]

The 'T's' couldn't spell either.
Or compose a coherent thought.
Leaving a dangling participle.
Vanna, I'd like to buy a gerund.

Let's try Anti-Waring

 

[MagnusTheBrewer]

The intarwebs are winning! Man the grammar rafts!

 

[Moonbeam]

You see headlines, posts, articles, everything refering to things like, "Anti-War Protests" or "Anti-War Protestors. So, does that mean they are protesting Anti-War? Shouldn't it correctly be called a "War Protest"?

Same thing goes for "Pro-War Protests". Are they protesting Pro-War?

I mean, c'mon. We have thousands of educated journalists, pundits, etc and they keep using poor grammar.

Nice Anti-Grammar protest there.

 

[shira]

This. Anti-War is a compound, hyphenated adjective. HUGE OP fail not to understand this basic grammatical point.

Also, OP, if you're going to attempt to make a language point, it would help if you didn't misspell the common English word "protester" in your rant.

You've even been a bad influence on poor Howard.

The fact that anti-war is hyphenated doesn't address OP's point, which is valid. The essence of the problem is that it's not exactly clear what "anti-war" modifies and it's not exactly clear what "protest" means. To see this, consider the phrases "war protest" and "anti-war protest." Most of us would interpret both phrases to mean the same thing.

Or consider "gay protest:" does that mean a protest AGAINST gays or a protest BY gays (for gay rights)? The answer is that the context tells us what it means. Ain't English grand?

And speaking of gay protests, I happened to come across the following video, which is hilarious:

http://www.buzzfeed.com/eduardoleon/gay-protest-signs-ga9 )

 

[Howard]

The fact that anti-war is hyphenated doesn't address OP's point, which is valid. The essence of the problem is that it's not exactly clear what "anti-war" modifies and it's not exactly clear what "protest" means. To see this, consider the phrases "war protest" and "anti-war protest." Most of us would interpret both phrases to mean the same thing.

Or consider "gay protest:" does that mean a protest AGAINST gays or a protest BY gays (for gay rights)? The answer is that the context tells us what it means. Ain't English grand?

And speaking of gay protests, I happened to come across the following video, which is hilarious:

http://www.buzzfeed.com/eduardoleon/gay-protest-signs-ga9 )

Gay protest is ambiguous.

 

[shira]

Gay protest is ambiguous.

Um, yeah. I think that was my point.

 

[Perknose]

The fact that anti-war is hyphenated doesn't address OP's point, which is valid.

Sorry, his point is not valid in the least, and the fact that "anti-war" is hyphenated does DIRECTLY speak to WHY it's invalid!

One could make a case that 'anti war protest", without the hypen, is ambiguous, even though most readers would understand what was meant and almost no one would misunderstand, but, grammatically, "anti-war protest" with the hyphen, can ONLY mean a protest against war, where "protest" is the noun, and "ant-war" is the compound adjective telling you exactly what kind of protest it is!

The essence of the problem is that it's not exactly clear what "anti-war" modifies

Yes, it is! It is exactly and abundantly and specifically clear!! It modifies the noun "protest." What else could you possibly posit it modifies?

and it's not exactly clear what "protest" means.

Uh, FFS, yes, it is. Not to be tautological, but it means "protest."

To see this, consider the phrases "war protest" and "anti-war protest." Most of us would interpret both phrases to mean the same thing.

So what? They DO mean the same thing. "Anti-war protest" does mean the same thing as "war protest."

In NO context does either mean anything else, or anything different from each other, but this little nugget of yours has no bearing on the fact that "anti-war protest" can ONLY mean a protest against the war, specifically because of its hyphen, which is what I first said!

Or consider "gay protest:" does that mean a protest AGAINST gays or a protest BY gays (for gay rights)? The answer is that the context tells us what it means.

Different grammatical case. No hyphen involved. It does not, however, have any bearing on the case the OP tried to make.

Please try to follow along while I explain:

"Anti-gay protest," with the hypen, can only mean a protest against gays.

Your confusion surrounding the case you think you're making with the ambiguity surrounding the meaning of "gay protest" comes from the fact that the gays, in this grammatical case, can be either the perpetrators of the protest (protesting for their rights, or the object of the protest (being the group some others are protesting against.)

But "war" can not be the perpetrators, or protesters. Thus, while there can be a "gay protest" consisting of gays protesting for gay rights, there can't be a war protest consisting of wars protesting for war rights.


See? Finally, do you see? A war protest, like an anti-war protest, can only be a protest against war.

Ain't English grand?

Indeed it is. Perhaps you should try harder to learn and maybe even master some of its maddeningly inconsistent nuances.

In this case, though, you whiffed badly.

 

[Howard]

Maybe what he's trying to say is that a war protest could be happening amongst the warmonger crowd because there isn't enough.

 

[KingGheedora]

It is grammatically correct, albeit ambiguous.

 

[piasabird]

It is the Grammer Police run for your life!

In the world of texting, what is the big deal with a few spelling errors?

Get a grip on life dude!

 

[waggy]

I'm protesting t he Grammar police!

 

[Moonbeam]

People who can spell amaze me. I have no idea how they can. My guess is that they can see the word as it's written in their heads. I don't see anything. Every time I write dilemma I only use one m and every time I write develop I put an e on the end. I like potatoe much better than potato too. Words like concierge or Chattanooga I don't have the faintest idea and won't again five minutes from now. But I know how to pronounce words better than most if I hear it spoken properly before. For me I don't see any letters but I hear the sound. I remember laughing my ass off hearing a US Senator saying something was 'hyperbowl' in an interview.

 

[a777pilot]

You see headlines, posts, articles, everything refering to things like, "Anti-War Protests" or "Anti-War Protestors. So, does that mean they are protesting Anti-War? Shouldn't it correctly be called a "War Protest"?

Same thing goes for "Pro-War Protests". Are they protesting Pro-War?

I mean, c'mon. We have thousands of educated journalists, pundits, etc and they keep using poor grammar.

Oh, give it a rest. This is America. Words have no meaning and forget grammar. The only tihngs that matters are feeling and emotions.