The Debate Chat

While the Newtown shooting is still an emotionally charged topic, I think that enough time has passed that we can have a reasonable debate. However: If the topic of guns is a trigger (sorry for the pun, but it's really the only word for it) for you, please take care of yourself! Your emotional well-being is far more important than a debate on the internet. I encourage you to address any or all of the following issues: 1) Should guns be legal at all? (If you don't think so, then I can guess your answers to the rest of these questions.) 2) Should assault weapons (semi-automatic, automatic, whatever) be legal? Any specific guns that should not be legal? Limi…

I'm tired of seeing the argument that weed (yes, I do mean cannabis) only makes you mellow and never kills (not talking only here, I mean 'everywhere'). Like any other substance, it actually varies from person to person. 'Mellow' is only what is reported on average. But here are some facts for you: -Some people are actually allergic to it and have no idea until they try it -There are reports on people getting high on weed then going out and shooting others -Weed 'is' ranked one of the least harmful drugs, but that doesn't mean it 'isn't' harmful Thank you for suffering through my rant. I would love to see your thoughts. This topic has been edited by a me…

I know there are many technology geeks here. So let's the debate begins. The question of today is "What do you guys think about the future of tablets?" - Will tablets evolve to an innovative stage & replace laptops? - Will people get tired of tablets after several years (like ultrabook) - Will Ipad still be a leader after several years? - Will tablet's price be dropped down so cheap to $30 - $50? - "Create your own plot for tablets here"

I don't recall this topic being in a thread yet and if it has then I am sorry. This is a topic I am up to debate with. People always seem to get upset when they see pictures or pets that have been dyed or dressed up. Frankly, I don't give a but I think dressing a pet up in ridiculous clothing all the time isn't okay. People always say oh, that's not right or bla bla bla, you are hurting the dog. How do you know what the pet wants? How do you know whether the pet is satisfied or he/she is upset. You don't because you aren't the animal. Not only that, it's not your animal. Usually the people dyeing their animal is using dyes that won't hurt the cat or dog. What do you think…

We all know the famous 18 year old singer. He made a lot of fans, and a lot of haters too. They all have the reason why they love him or why they hate him. Even if I am not a big fan of him (I wouldn't call myself a fan) I don't love him or either hate him. Though I don't see a reason why you should hate on people. Everyone can be their self. I also kinda don't like the fact that some people just don't know what's real music. You can only find obsessed fan bases nowdays. Most of his fans like him because he's good looking. But I wouldn't hate on anyone for their opinion, just like I have mine. Anyway back to the point: Do you like his music? Do you think he's talented? I …

Our society has become obsessed with being thin. Me, being the heavy, plus size girl I am, has had to deal with "You'd be blah blah blah if you'd lose some weight." While I am normally happy with how I look, society and people have brought me down. I remember wearing my favorite dress to school and a staff member said "Nice job on wearing a dress today, I know that's a big step for you." When I was perfectly happy with how I looked before I wore the dress. A study said that plus size models shouldn't walk the runway because it shows young girls and women that "leading an unhealthy lifestyle is okay." What defines healthy? With the exception of my gluttony duri…

To be honest, I'm kind of confused on where I stand with this. I was watching a show on tv about polygamous relationships and the basis of these tend to share the belief that women are inferior. For example, this quote from wikipedia: Within polygynous societies, multiple wives often become a status symbol denoting wealth, power, and fame. I try to be open-minded on just about everything, but I really wish I could grasp where they were coming from. I mean - I just can't understand why a woman would agree to this. I don't understand how jealousy does not get in the way. I mean, if you are in love with someone then seeing them with someone else is supposed to tear your…

Its 2012 already and the 21st of December is drawing closer. Even as I type this, the seconds tick by, drawing us closer to the dreaded day. Have you seen any signs of calamities lately? There was the Japan earthquake, Indonesia earthquake, etc. But will that affect all our lives? So do you guys believe in the Mayans' prediction? Do you think we are really ALL gonna die? ~I don't. I don't think we're going to die. Maybe because I don't want to. But in a way, it would be nice if we could all just die and never come back. Hakuna Matata! There'll be no more worries.

Share your opinions, I do want to hear them. I had switched from a blackberry to an iPhone a few years ago, and I can not imagine myself with a different phone. I think the iPhone 5 is not much better than the 4s. But I still have my 4, and decided to skip the 4s so I could get the 5. Technically the 5 is much better than my 4. Now compared to other phones, such as the Samsung Galaxy S3. For me, either Samsung does not market itself as well as Apple, or their phone just seems like a more complicated phone to use.

So that topic about religion from a while back got me thinking... well not really, my mind just wanders. Maybe it had to do with varying opinions. Anyway, to get to the point, do you believe in (the theory of) evolution? All of it? Part of it? Or is it a bunch of preposterous lies? :P I'm not sure whether to assume you know about it or not, so I'm just gonna let it go from here and any questions you have you can ask me or someone else that knows. Or for the more wary/impatient, you can do a quick search to Google. I ask this because I have come to know many who oppose the idea, as it seems preposterous (and mostly conflicts with their religion), especially when i…

Who should win. For now I am neutral, but after hearing some discussion, that might change.

I think this issue should be brought to the table. Marijuana is currently illegal, and it is considered radical to favor legalization of such a substance. However, I am pro-legalization, because of what the government could do to make money off of it: they could allow people to grow it, and distribute it for both medical and recreational use. However, for the latter, a very high price floor could be imposed. This will curb the drug war by crippling the survival of drug cartels. A 25% (massive) tax could also be imposed, to give a little back to the government. A few subsidies could be in order, too, for growers. Eventually, none will be distributed, except for chemotherap…

This topic came to mind after reading the 'Suicide' debate board. This isn't meant to debate suicide, but the act of helping someone else end their life. http://www.tdnforums...__fromsearch__1 (This is the original suicide board) Euthanasia, for those who don't know is when you when you assist someone with ending their life. The broad concept is that it's a doctor helping a patient. I want to expand that and say in general. 1. Is it right for a doctor to help a patient that is suffering physically? 2. Is it right when the patient is going to die anyways? 3. Is it right for a friend to supply the means or to help their friend end their life in any way? Th…

So I figured we had a thread about your opinion on Rebecca Black, so why not Justin Beiber? To be honest, my thoughts on him are similar to my thoughts on Rebecca Black...although I like him better. First off all, I think he's really cute and he seems like he's an awesome boyfriend to Selena Gomez. In terms of his music, it's not something I would ever buy a CD of and I don't really like it that much. It's definitely music for a more preteen crowd but I do think he has a good voice. I think that auto tune has ruined some of his songs but if he was given the chance to do something acoustically he could be really good at it, but unfortunately that's not what his desired…

This is my intent for this particular thread: I am about to post something, and I want to know if you find it sexist. At any point, you may change the conversation to something ELSE and we can debate the sexism about that instead. So, here goes: Dr. Pepper Snubs Women Details: Dr. Pepper Ten (it's Dr. Pepper with only ten calories) has released an ad campaign saying that it is for men only, no ladies allowed. "Hey ladies. Enjoying the film? Of course not. Because this is our movie and this is our soda," a man says as he attempts to pour the soda into a glass during a bumpy ATV ride. "You can keep the romantic comedies and lady drinks. We're good." Its facebo…

Hello all. Ok, this isn't exactly to start a debate here, but I couldn't find any other forum in which this would fit. Anyways, a friend of mine is participating in a declamation/debate contest and it's only 2 days away and she still hasn't written a word (a huge laze, I know). And well, I thought I'd help her out, but my brain is kind of having trouble thinking of anything at the moment. So, I thought I would ask for your help. Well, the topic is : ''Tough Times Don't Last, Tough People Do'' And she will be speaking in favor of the topic. I'd be grateful if you guys can provide some help in the form of inspirational ideas. Thanks a lot!

I'm curious what other people's opinions are. I am pro-choice. Woman have overcame a lot of obstacles in our day and age. I do not feel it's right for the government or any politician to have the right to interfere in matters such as these. Your thoughts? This topic has been edited by a member of staff (Spritzie) because of a violation of the forum rules. There is already a topic for discussing Abortion. Please continue the discussion there. Please check your user inbox to see if you have been contacted regarding this incident, then review our rules. Per the reason above, this topic has been LOCKED. Please contact Spritzie if you have any questions regarding this a…

Hey all! I'm from NSW, Australia and I just took my first step into adulthood by exercising my apparent right to vote, today. It's apparently a right to vote, but it seemed more like a chore if anything else (I'd have to pay a fine if I didn't vote). Several months ago, I received a letter saying that I had been automatically put on the local electoral roll, because I was already 18 (I've since turned 19, but still). Two days ago, I found out I was to make a vote for the local elections. Today, I went and I voted. Who for? No idea. What anyone was campaigning? No clue. Do you think its right to have mandatory voting? In addition to that, what age is most a…

Have any Americans (or non-Americans too!) been watching either one of the National Conventions this past week? I've heard some pretty interesting things on both sides and just really want to be able to have a conversation about them with someone (the curse of having friends that don't care for politics)! If you did happen to catch either, which one do you prefer? What were some of your highlights from each one? And if you want to get really ambitious, you could even throw in a prediction for this fall as well ;) My highlight so far was probably the speech from Mayor Julian Castro. He is the mayor of my city and it was awesome to (for once) see Texas represented i…

What do you think about taxes? Income taxes? Capital gains taxes? Sales tax? Etc. etc. etc. What is a fair way to tax people? What is an effective way to tax people? Any other topics I'm missing that are tax related. Personally, I think that the most FAIR way to tax people would be through sales tax only. That way, someone who only spends money on food, rent, etc. (the small things) will not get over-taxed, while it would do no good for rich people to hoard money in offshore accounts. If you pay a lot in taxes, you only have yourself to blame. And the only way to cheat on taxes is to have a lemonade stand or something :-) Because you're selling …