# Great Debates **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/c/great-debates/13.md?page=112 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 113 --- ## [Does Trump's pardon of Arpaio really stand out from past pardons?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-trumps-pardon-of-arpaio-really-stand-out-from-past-pardons/795026)
**Author:** [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Replies:** 213\ **Last updated:** [September 5, 2017, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-trumps-pardon-of-arpaio-really-stand-out-from-past-pardons/795026 "2017-09-05T17:14:45Z")
There are many valid reasons to criticize Trump’s pardon of Arpaio. But the media is treating it with a bit of hyperbole. You can make the argument that it flouts the rule of law, but then again, doesn’t every presidenti… --- ## [A new generation of research shows hallucinogens could treat addiction, depression, and PTSD](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-new-generation-of-research-shows-hallucinogens-could-treat-addiction-depression-and-ptsd/795284)
**Author:** [@sweat209](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sweat209)\ **Replies:** 9\ **Last updated:** [September 5, 2017, 1:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-new-generation-of-research-shows-hallucinogens-could-treat-addiction-depression-and-ptsd/795284 "2017-09-05T13:30:16Z")
What are people thought on this? Do you think it will work or is it to early to tell? Why so long that hallucinogens where really bad for you and now they are turning to hallucinogens? --- ## [Why not go beyond sanctions, and boycott North Korea like China did Taiwan (trade/relations)?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-not-go-beyond-sanctions-and-boycott-north-korea-like-china-did-taiwan-trade-relations/795430)
**Author:** [@Darth\_Ayebaw](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darth_Ayebaw)\ **Replies:** 29\ **Last updated:** [September 5, 2017, 11:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-not-go-beyond-sanctions-and-boycott-north-korea-like-china-did-taiwan-trade-relations/795430 "2017-09-05T11:24:26Z")
I.E., it is the freedom of your government to recognize either party as legitimate. Just as it is the freedom of ours to only trade with or have official relations with governments who agree with us. I can’t imagine eve… --- ## [Did the USA ever Apologize \[for its actions in the Philippines after taking them over in 1899\]?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-usa-ever-apologize-for-its-actions-in-the-philippines-after-taking-them-over-in-1899/766048)
**Author:** [@Simple\_Mind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simple_Mind)\ **Replies:** 62\ **Last updated:** [September 5, 2017, 4:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-usa-ever-apologize-for-its-actions-in-the-philippines-after-taking-them-over-in-1899/766048 "2017-09-05T04:27:12Z")
Hi all, as some of you might know, I reside in the Philippines for many years. Now we have a new President that is a bit more outspoken and apparently less US-American friendly than his predecessors. President Duterte ha… --- ## [What can be done to help Native Americans?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-can-be-done-to-help-native-americans/795290)
**Author:** [@Reddy\_Mercury](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reddy_Mercury)\ **Replies:** 48\ **Last updated:** [September 4, 2017, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-can-be-done-to-help-native-americans/795290 "2017-09-04T20:45:38Z")
Another board I’m a member of suggested that Native American culture is dying. A person who claimed to be a Native American (I forget of which tribe) basically agreed that this is the case; that as time goes by, the trad… --- ## [Forced bussing is good. We should bring it back.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/forced-bussing-is-good-we-should-bring-it-back/795104)
**Author:** [@Richard\_Parker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_Parker)\ **Replies:** 125\ **Last updated:** [September 4, 2017, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/forced-bussing-is-good-we-should-bring-it-back/795104 "2017-09-04T18:08:46Z")
The vastly oversimplified story of the desegregation of American schools goes roughly like this: School segregation, in many places required by law. The Supreme Court recognizes the harms that result from segregation a… --- ## [Will animals eventually be considered equal to humans?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-animals-eventually-be-considered-equal-to-humans/794552)
**Author:** [@protoboard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/protoboard)\ **Replies:** 29\ **Last updated:** [September 4, 2017, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-animals-eventually-be-considered-equal-to-humans/794552 "2017-09-04T15:04:42Z")
According to Gallup, 32% of Americans (and 42% of American women) consider animals equal to people. I interpret this as meaning “dogs” rather than “animals”, since the vast majority of Americans eat meat. But still, quit… --- ## [What's the conservative equivalent of the "regressive left?"](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-conservative-equivalent-of-the-regressive-left/795265)
**Author:** [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Replies:** 29\ **Last updated:** [September 4, 2017, 4:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-conservative-equivalent-of-the-regressive-left/795265 "2017-09-04T04:32:01Z")
(The “regressive left” denoting some liberals who hold ‘liberal’ views that actually run counter to liberalism - for instance, opposing “Islamophobia” or supporting cultural-tolerance to the point of ignoring Islam’s tre… --- ## [Why isn't Korean missiles over Japan considered a major crisis?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-isnt-korean-missiles-over-japan-considered-a-major-crisis/795187)
**Author:** [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Replies:** 49\ **Last updated:** [September 3, 2017, 7:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-isnt-korean-missiles-over-japan-considered-a-major-crisis/795187 "2017-09-03T07:30:45Z")
Korea fired missiles that flew over Japan’s airspace. Responses have been measured and muted. At minimum, North Korea violated Japan airspace. At maximum it was an act of war (not sure the legal definition of that term… --- ## [WWI: Why did the general keep throwing their troops into meatgrinders?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wwi-why-did-the-general-keep-throwing-their-troops-into-meatgrinders/793742)
**Author:** [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Replies:** 55\ **Last updated:** [September 2, 2017, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wwi-why-did-the-general-keep-throwing-their-troops-into-meatgrinders/793742 "2017-09-02T23:09:21Z")
I was recently listening to Dan Carlin’s series on World War I, Blueprint for Armageddon. World War I is a fascinating subject but one thing that really leaps out at you is just how violent and gruesome the war was. Ce… --- ## [How we build the wall and get Mexico to pay for it](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-we-build-the-wall-and-get-mexico-to-pay-for-it/794582)
**Author:** [@Alzarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alzarian)\ **Replies:** 221\ **Last updated:** [September 2, 2017, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-we-build-the-wall-and-get-mexico-to-pay-for-it/794582 "2017-09-02T20:52:32Z")
The solution to the ongoing struggle to not only build a wall along our Southern border, but to also get Mexico to pay for it seems to be very elusive… but a possible solution has come to me, and it seems elegant in that… --- ## [Florida executes first white for killing a black since reinstating death penalty](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/florida-executes-first-white-for-killing-a-black-since-reinstating-death-penalty/794559)
**Author:** [@aldiboronti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aldiboronti)\ **Replies:** 38\ **Last updated:** [September 2, 2017, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/florida-executes-first-white-for-killing-a-black-since-reinstating-death-penalty/794559 "2017-09-02T18:20:28Z")
Florida has scheduled the first execution for a white killing a black since the death penalty was reinstated in 1976. Leaving aside the rights and wrongs of the death penalty isn’t this at least a step in the right dire… --- ## [Are sex differences in personality rooted in nature or nurture?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-sex-differences-in-personality-rooted-in-nature-or-nurture/795277)
**Author:** [@protoboard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/protoboard)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [September 2, 2017, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-sex-differences-in-personality-rooted-in-nature-or-nurture/795277 "2017-09-02T01:11:09Z")
Personally, I think they are mostly natural because I read that in more gender-egalitarian countries, the behavior of men and women actually diverges more, not less. This matches up to my personal observations that in co… --- ## [Non-Experts and Science](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-experts-and-science/793866)
**Author:** [@BeepKillBeep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BeepKillBeep)\ **Replies:** 244\ **Last updated:** [September 1, 2017, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-experts-and-science/793866 "2017-09-01T22:11:34Z")
In the “Quantum Mechanics & Mind” thread, the question was pondered by Expanso Mapcase: I think the question can be even further generalized to why do non-experts in science think that they’ve come up with some amazing… --- ## [Suddenly these Statues offend people?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suddenly-these-statues-offend-people/794636)
**Author:** [@Silver\_lining](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Silver_lining)\ **Replies:** 328\ **Last updated:** [September 1, 2017, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suddenly-these-statues-offend-people/794636 "2017-09-01T20:11:47Z")
Should we take down Mount Rushmore because Jefferson was a slave owner? Maybe we should take down all FDR statues and re-name roads because he sent the Japanese Americans to camps. --- ## ["Gone With the Wind" - going to get the "Song of the South" treatment?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gone-with-the-wind-going-to-get-the-song-of-the-south-treatment/794769)
**Author:** [@Okrahoma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Okrahoma)\ **Replies:** 72\ **Last updated:** [September 1, 2017, 10:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gone-with-the-wind-going-to-get-the-song-of-the-south-treatment/794769 "2017-09-01T10:58:30Z")
"As posted on the Orpheum’s Facebook page event for the August screening, one user called the film “racist.” Another remarked over news of the canceled screening, “slowly but surely, we will rid this community of all t… --- ## [Who sells missiles to North Korea?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-sells-missiles-to-north-korea/795210)
**Author:** [@filmstar-en](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/filmstar-en)\ **Replies:** 1\ **Last updated:** [September 1, 2017, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-sells-missiles-to-north-korea/795210 "2017-09-01T01:08:03Z")
A recent report by the Institute of Strategic Studies suggests that North Korea is getting its latest missiles from either Ukraine or Russia. Russia has a land border with North Korea, so they probably arrived by road… --- ## [Building the "wall" and having Mexico pay for it.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/building-the-wall-and-having-mexico-pay-for-it/795051)
**Author:** [@bizerta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bizerta)\ **Replies:** 10\ **Last updated:** [September 1, 2017, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/building-the-wall-and-having-mexico-pay-for-it/795051 "2017-09-01T01:00:54Z")
Trump promised that Mexico would pay for the wall. How? Trump has no authority over Mexican politics. It’s like me demanding that my neighbor pay for my fence so that his dog can’t poop in my yard. If Trump’s plan is… --- ## [Principal accused of fat-shaming](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/principal-accused-of-fat-shaming/794692)
**Author:** [@aldiboronti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aldiboronti)\ **Replies:** 22\ **Last updated:** [August 31, 2017, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/principal-accused-of-fat-shaming/794692 "2017-08-31T21:21:34Z")
Here’s the story. . Students and others are up in arms about the speech at the usual places on the net. But isn’t this principal right in her intent, though I confess she might have phrased it more diplomatically. The… --- ## [What should the USA do in Iraq?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-the-usa-do-in-iraq/690971)
**Author:** [@John\_Stamos\_Left\_Ear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Stamos_Left_Ear)\ **Replies:** 176\ **Last updated:** [June 28, 2014, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-the-usa-do-in-iraq/690971 "2014-06-28T17:35:45Z")
Being an American, when I see what is happening in Iraq I instinctively - and I think logically - look to see what we have done there and what we can do there. I say logically because in theory I have a voice in my cou… --- ## [Gouging laws](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gouging-laws/795013)
**Author:** [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Replies:** 84\ **Last updated:** [August 30, 2017, 10:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gouging-laws/795013 "2017-08-30T22:33:54Z")
Stupid, or justified? Seems to me that this is an open and shut case that is all about moral outrage rather than anything rational. Consumers as a group generally don’t like it when supply and demand doesn’t work in thei… --- ## [How do we fix the wounds in America?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-we-fix-the-wounds-in-america/794006)
**Author:** [@Reddy\_Mercury](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reddy_Mercury)\ **Replies:** 307\ **Last updated:** [August 30, 2017, 12:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-we-fix-the-wounds-in-america/794006 "2017-08-30T12:04:20Z")
This is a conversation I think we need to have. It’s become increasingly clear in the last few years, and in the last few months especially, that America is a very unhappy place. There is a great deal of anger and divis… --- ## [Revolutionary \[War\] Statue Destroyed](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/revolutionary-war-statue-destroyed/794761)
**Author:** [@octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/octopus)\ **Replies:** 109\ **Last updated:** [August 30, 2017, 5:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/revolutionary-war-statue-destroyed/794761 "2017-08-30T05:23:46Z")
It’s funny that those who warn that placating a mob won’t satisfy the mob are vindicated when slippery slope worries once again manifest themselves. Some vandal took it upon himself, herself, \_\_\_\_self and destroyed a s… --- ## [Is Antifa real?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-antifa-real/793782)
**Author:** [@cromulent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cromulent)\ **Replies:** 104\ **Last updated:** [August 30, 2017, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-antifa-real/793782 "2017-08-30T02:22:29Z")
The title is pretty much my question. I know this nebulous organization has supplanted Black Lives Matter as the new right wing boogeyman. I am sure there are people on college campuses who call themselves Antifa. Bein… --- ## [Abe Lincoln's Tax Reurns](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/abe-lincolns-tax-reurns/794626)
**Author:** [@Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paul_in_Qatar)\ **Replies:** 27\ **Last updated:** [August 30, 2017, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/abe-lincolns-tax-reurns/794626 "2017-08-30T02:22:10Z")
The thing is Donald Trump (or any modern Great Man, I suppose) cannot hide from history. Every e-mail, Google search (I guess) tax return all of that is saved someplace forever. After all, the cost of storage is crashing… --- ## [Why is classism more acceptable than racism?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-classism-more-acceptable-than-racism/794624)
**Author:** [@protoboard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/protoboard)\ **Replies:** 50\ **Last updated:** [August 29, 2017, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-classism-more-acceptable-than-racism/794624 "2017-08-29T21:11:50Z")
Even most socialists seem much more disgusted and offended by racial prejudice than by class prejudice, even though the two are a lot more connected than you might think. Isn’t hating someone because they’re poor just a… --- ## [NK missiles seem to be headed our way](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nk-missiles-seem-to-be-headed-our-way/794975)
**Author:** [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Replies:** 16\ **Last updated:** [August 29, 2017, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nk-missiles-seem-to-be-headed-our-way/794975 "2017-08-29T19:29:55Z")
North Korea is launching missiles at the rate of one every few weeks, and some are ICBMs. The latest one was launched over Japan and fell into the sea. That means the launch direction is towards the North American cont… --- ## [Should U.S. police be given excess military weapons?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-u-s-police-be-given-excess-military-weapons/794938)
**Author:** [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Replies:** 101\ **Last updated:** [August 29, 2017, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-u-s-police-be-given-excess-military-weapons/794938 "2017-08-29T17:25:32Z")
Trump Orders Military To Give Cops Free Grenade Launchers, Bayonets, And Tanks. Apparently Trump is going to overturn Obama’s executive order from a couple years back baring the military from handing over some types of … --- ## [Are Religious Sect Changes within Families a Big Deal for Most Folks?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-religious-sect-changes-within-families-a-big-deal-for-most-folks/794193)
**Author:** [@Two\_Many\_Cats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Two_Many_Cats)\ **Replies:** 52\ **Last updated:** [August 29, 2017, 12:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-religious-sect-changes-within-families-a-big-deal-for-most-folks/794193 "2017-08-29T12:05:33Z")
My mom’s first husband, a Southern Baptist, divorced my mom because she became a Jehovah’s Witness. That’s one sort of Christian Fundy into another sort of Christian Fundy. But it broke up the marriage. Does this happ… --- ## [What if the Confederates had done guerilla warfare?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-if-the-confederates-had-done-guerilla-warfare/794366)
**Author:** [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Replies:** 21\ **Last updated:** [August 29, 2017, 9:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-if-the-confederates-had-done-guerilla-warfare/794366 "2017-08-29T09:17:32Z")
The South considered themselves too manly to do anything but challenge the North conventionally, but what if they’d ditched their pride, disbanded their armies, and had them melt into the countryside, while letting the L… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/great-debates/13.md?page=111) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/great-debates/13.md?page=113)