The DEBATE CLUB




The debate club is being formed for those with a love of facts, ideas,

opinions and intellectual discussion. The objective: Choosing

researching and organising topics for debate in the Village Square.

The teams will be selected from volunteers. After the teams have

presented their views the community will be asked to vote for the

team that swayed them.

The World Starts Changing Here, with you!

Anyone interested in joining??

RULES OF DEBATE

Welcome to the Debate Club! Please read the following guidelines carefully – your participation means that you have read these guidelines and will adhere to them during debates.

This is a debate – which means this is a discussion presented as a formal argument. Your thoughts are great start but need to be supported by facts/studies/etc. Any argument not supported will be withdrawn from the debate and marked as invalid.

Topics are to be selected by the participants – you can decide which side you would prefer to debate and if you would like to debate a topic at all.

A true debate requires critical thinking and the ability to see past your own emotions – this is not the place for emotional outbursts. If you are concerned that a certain issue may be too much for you to handle on here, then be sure to let Oracle know that you are opting out of that topic.

All arguments are to be presented in a clear, concise manner – choose your words carefully. Try to avoid phrases like “I feel” or “I think” because they will weaken your statements.

Address your rebuttal to the appropriate argument – this will help things flow more smoothly. Think about the message you want to express and the best way to get it across so that everyone fully understands your argument.

An argument against something you believe deeply in/against is NOT a personal attack on you and should not be taken as such – we are here to learn from one another, not tear each other apart.

Each member will present their argument. After all arguments are presented, members may offer a rebuttal. There will be a limit of one opening argument and two rebuttals per person.
Basic breakdown is: Argument-Attack-Defense

After arguments and rebuttals, Oracle will post a poll offering site members to vote on the side that presented the best case and who was the overall best debater.

All of Amaranthia’s rules apply here – please read the Hall Of Rule if you are unfamiliar with the guidelines as set by Amaranth. Failure to consistently follow these guidelines may result in your being asked to leave the Debate Club.

Please see Oracle if you have any questions concerning the guidelines.



CLUB MEMBER LINK LIST

Addicted Emma

Basset

Chimera

iyaemma

ljspence♥

Lord Maeglin

Lrcy

Mae

MarianFrae

Miki

Mizzou

Nick

Oracle♥

PokeGal♥

Ryuzaki

serendipity♥

shade

s_tyong

tsamuria♥

Wybrich



♥=Wins



NAME

count me in, oracle...let me know if there is anything i can do to help...

s

Yes

i'm in.

i'm interested too!

I'm interested. I'm actually in the law club and mock trial at school.

I enjoy a good debate. Great idea Oracle!

I like to argue Sounds great, count me in...

yes oracle, ill join since you asked so nicely via PM.

Quote:

i think i can trump you, after this year i'll be a pre-law student double majoring in political science and philosophy. :]

I'm always in for a good debate.

I don't mind being trumped... I think that's the sort of things I'm planning on studying.

yeah im in, wanna see who can argue the best...me...basset...or nick...or...eh too many... ^^

What a great group! First order of business. Our main goal here is to organize debates in an attempt to defuse the offense/flaming problem that often occurs in open debates. We will first choose some topics that interest us all. Then form teams of pro and con. We will have one week to research and prepare. Then we will open the topic in the VS (with a poll), where each team will take turns presenting their prepared views. Followed by a round of arguments of the presented views. When we have finished, the community will be asked to vote for the most convincing arguments.

So we need to think up some interesting topics.
I have been thinking this week about the effects of dominant world governments and 3rd world countries. Is new progressive civilization all it's cracked up to be? Do we have any right to convert aborigines to civilization as we know it?
Who's to say which life style is the best.

Please sumit any topics you might like to discuss.

PS. I am not the leader here. It is all our work together. If you have any ideas for how to run or organise the club please speak up. I'm just trying to get the ball rolling

a few topics: should governments be responsible for providing its constituents/people with health care?...should parents be responsible for the actions of their children (lots of court issues with this)...should countries freely surrender artifacts that belong to another country (with war this topic comes up or when something is found in another country but "belongs" to a different country)...should there be an age limit for signing all persons to sports teams...does the media have a responsibility to release or keep information?...

just a couple things that randomly came to mind...

will there be a limited time frame to argue?...how will the teams work?...will the teams get re-shuffled for every debate?...will there be a "team" leader if the teams are re-shuffled so that the responsiblity changes?...

i know it's a lot!...but my brain is always going...

s

Lots of good ideas serendipity.

I would like to see teams of 2-4 (each side) people who volunteer/choose positions of pro or con. With different teams for each debate. It's more fun when you feel passionately about the topic. I wouldn't want to make it assigned.

I think a week should be more than enough time for the actual debate. I want to give enough time since many of the debaters are students who also have school work to do.

i typically enjoy arguing either side lol...sometimes it is more satisfying to argue for a side i do not believe because it forces certain things to drawn to the front of your brain...

s

Oh good, when a position needs filled can we call on you

I know what you mean. Sometimes it's fun to mix things up a bit. Maybe we can think up some gender issues and have the girls take the guys side and guys take the girls.

oh, i'll argue whichever side of virtually any topic if we run into a problem of not enough arguing for one side...

hmm...gender-based issues...if women are allowed maternity leave, should men be given a similar option when their wives have a child?..

is there a gender-specific basis for academic success?...

do sexual harassment policies bring equality to the workforce or does it enable women to have a certain degree of control over men...are men now the victims?

those were just a couple, i could think up more if you need me to...

s

Some hotter topics would be abortion, stem cell research, gay marriage, death penalty, genetic engineering... I've seen most of these debated in the forums before.
Should the government do as much, or as little as possible? Are public (government run) schools more efficient, or are private-runs? Should certain races be given more privilages than others (I'm not talking about like slavery used to be... I'm talking about things like Affirmative action).
For gender... Are boys better at math and science?

Hey everyone! Can I join the club? I never did debate before, but I sure can argue and defend my opinions on things!