# Great Debates **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/c/great-debates/13.md?page=136 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 137 --- ## [What exactly is "Tax Reform"?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-is-tax-reform/777482)
**Author:** [@markdash](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/markdash)\ **Replies:** 44\ **Last updated:** [January 22, 2017, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-is-tax-reform/777482 "2017-01-22T20:05:23Z")
One of the big items on the Republican to-do list is “tax reform.” Without resorting to hot takes or partisan talking points, what exactly does this mean? Are there aspects of the tax code that both parties agree could u… --- ## [Disgusting and Un-American, But Is A "Muslim Ban" Unconstitutional?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/disgusting-and-un-american-but-is-a-muslim-ban-unconstitutional/775372)
**Author:** [@Bricker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bricker)\ **Replies:** 97\ **Last updated:** [January 22, 2017, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/disgusting-and-un-american-but-is-a-muslim-ban-unconstitutional/775372 "2017-01-22T18:51:57Z")
I’m actually not so sure how un-American it is. The Chinese Exclusion Act ran from the 1880s to the 1940s. It was generally upheld by the courts as constitutional (and, interestingly enough, opposed by Republicans and su… --- ## [How will/must Trump and Congress interact?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-will-must-trump-and-congress-interact/777589)
**Author:** [@Leaper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaper)\ **Replies:** 9\ **Last updated:** [January 21, 2017, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-will-must-trump-and-congress-interact/777589 "2017-01-21T14:36:05Z")
One of the concerns I’ve seen from the start with Republicans controlling Congress is that they’ll rubber stamp anything Trump wants that they don’t mind, and in return, Trump will sign off on anything he doesn’t care ab… --- ## [Why haven’t we been contacted by extraterrestrials?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-haven-t-we-been-contacted-by-extraterrestrials/777410)
**Author:** [@Washoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Washoe)\ **Replies:** 126\ **Last updated:** [January 21, 2017, 6:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-haven-t-we-been-contacted-by-extraterrestrials/777410 "2017-01-21T06:42:27Z")
Every time this subject comes up in conversation, it almost always seems to result in heated debate, and some people get extremely emotional about the matter. The three most logical explanations I can think are the follo… --- ## [Can the North Dakota Legislature legalize murder?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-the-north-dakota-legislature-legalize-murder/777354)
**Author:** [@Happy\_Fun\_Ball](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Fun_Ball)\ **Replies:** 18\ **Last updated:** [January 20, 2017, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-the-north-dakota-legislature-legalize-murder/777354 "2017-01-20T20:00:10Z")
North Dakota bill would exempt liability in cases where motorists “accidentally” kill or injure protesters by running them down with their cars. The legislator who sponsored this bill, Keith Kempernich, is just worried … --- ## [What historical events could have happened differently to maximize current human development?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-historical-events-could-have-happened-differently-to-maximize-current-human-development/775649)
**Author:** [@FlikTheBlue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FlikTheBlue)\ **Replies:** 39\ **Last updated:** [January 20, 2017, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-historical-events-could-have-happened-differently-to-maximize-current-human-development/775649 "2017-01-20T17:58:25Z")
I think this is a fun alternate history question to ponder. What historical events, had they happened a little differently, would have led to the greatest amount of people living in first world conditions today? By firs… --- ## [Just give them the money (the argument for basic income)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-give-them-the-money-the-argument-for-basic-income/714704)
**Author:** [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Replies:** 308\ **Last updated:** [January 19, 2017, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-give-them-the-money-the-argument-for-basic-income/714704 "2017-01-19T19:57:09Z")
I know this has been discussed before on this board, but I was reading this CNN article in favor of a basic living income and thought it might make a good discussion. Here are some of the highlights from the article: … --- ## [Should the term "News" be licensed?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-term-news-be-licensed/772667)
**Author:** [@dataguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dataguy)\ **Replies:** 71\ **Last updated:** [January 19, 2017, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-term-news-be-licensed/772667 "2017-01-19T19:32:45Z")
Should the term “News” be licensed? There has been lots of discusssion recently about ‘fake news’. Should using the term “News” require a license of some sort (Federal, State, Local, I don’t know.) Using the term woul… --- ## [How would on-line anarchy affect society?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-would-on-line-anarchy-affect-society/777070)
**Author:** [@CoastalMaineiac](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CoastalMaineiac)\ **Replies:** 20\ **Last updated:** [January 19, 2017, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-would-on-line-anarchy-affect-society/777070 "2017-01-19T17:37:57Z")
Hypothetical: The governments of the world have decided that they will no longer devote any resources to policing the world wide web. They have decided to focus entirely on off-line crime, due to increasing costs in fund… --- ## [Americans do you think of Russia as "the enemy"?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-do-you-think-of-russia-as-the-enemy/777396)
**Author:** [@AK84](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AK84)\ **Replies:** 92\ **Last updated:** [January 19, 2017, 4:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-do-you-think-of-russia-as-the-enemy/777396 "2017-01-19T16:40:00Z")
…presently? If so, when did you start i) Lingering Cold War inertia? ii) The return of Russian hard power since 2014? iii) The election hacking controversy? Some other time? Inspired by a comment I recalled hear b… --- ## [What is the most arrogant political philosophy of all?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-arrogant-political-philosophy-of-all/776706)
**Author:** [@Salvor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Salvor)\ **Replies:** 124\ **Last updated:** [January 19, 2017, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-arrogant-political-philosophy-of-all/776706 "2017-01-19T14:47:59Z")
This could expand to many dimensions, some analytical analysis of the technical claims of different political world views like liberalism, conservatism, libertarianism, etc, or it could focus on the state of thought and … --- ## [My response to president-elect Donald Trump in reference to Summer Zervos’s lawsuit.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-response-to-president-elect-donald-trump-in-reference-to-summer-zervos-s-lawsuit/777513)
**Author:** [@christinadanderson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/christinadanderson)\ **Replies:** 12\ **Last updated:** [January 19, 2017, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-response-to-president-elect-donald-trump-in-reference-to-summer-zervos-s-lawsuit/777513 "2017-01-19T14:07:57Z")
Let me make one thing perfectly clear. President-elect Trump is going to be our 45th President and I haven’t seen anything in the media defending his honor in reference to the accusations that Summer Zervos’s claims to h… --- ## [Why are unusual kinks and sexual fetishes considered 'highly arousing'?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-unusual-kinks-and-sexual-fetishes-considered-highly-arousing/776714)
**Author:** [@femmejean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/femmejean)\ **Replies:** 22\ **Last updated:** [January 16, 2017, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-unusual-kinks-and-sexual-fetishes-considered-highly-arousing/776714 "2017-01-16T15:21:22Z")
To those who have an interest in them, not to the general population. Not sure if there’s a big distinction between a kink and a sexual fetish but anyway; Fetishes like latex, scat, feet urine, BDSM, spanking, ‘rape’, … --- ## [What happens when Trump can't get anything done?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-when-trump-cant-get-anything-done/777347)
**Author:** [@Donald\_Rump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Donald_Rump)\ **Replies:** 53\ **Last updated:** [January 18, 2017, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-when-trump-cant-get-anything-done/777347 "2017-01-18T17:14:34Z")
Everyone’s heard the story about Truman pitying the incoming President Eisenhower, saying, "He’ll sit here, and he’ll say, ‘Do this! Do that!’ And nothing will happen. Poor Ike—it won’t be a bit like the Army. He’ll find… --- ## [How close run was the Battle of Waterloo?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-close-run-was-the-battle-of-waterloo/777325)
**Author:** [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Replies:** 27\ **Last updated:** [January 18, 2017, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-close-run-was-the-battle-of-waterloo/777325 "2017-01-18T15:28:07Z")
Title kind of says it all. What I am interested in was whether Napoleon screwed up or got unlucky or some weird combination of things. My sense is it was pretty close and could have gone either way. Wellington said th… --- ## [Copenhagen Interpretation Refuted?? ????](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/copenhagen-interpretation-refuted/776867)
**Author:** [@septimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/septimus)\ **Replies:** 11\ **Last updated:** [January 18, 2017, 11:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/copenhagen-interpretation-refuted/776867 "2017-01-18T11:44:18Z")
While clicking hither and yon idly, I stumbled upon “A FAREWELL TO COPENHAGEN?” Yes, it’s from a Sci Fi magazine … and I had to dredge it up from the WayBack Machine (I started from Wikipedia’s page on the Afshar Experi… --- ## [Demography not destiny after all](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/demography-not-destiny-after-all/777369)
**Author:** [@ITR\_champion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ITR_champion)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [January 17, 2017, 8:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/demography-not-destiny-after-all/777369 "2017-01-17T08:34:27Z")
I’ve read quite a bit in many places about the demographic changes sweeping the USA. The percentage of Americans who are white is rapidly declining. The percentage of Americans who are racial minorities is rapidly risi… --- ## [Are there majority-black societies that are decent places to live?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-majority-black-societies-that-are-decent-places-to-live/777241)
**Author:** [@TGWATY](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TGWATY)\ **Replies:** 62\ **Last updated:** [January 17, 2017, 5:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-majority-black-societies-that-are-decent-places-to-live/777241 "2017-01-17T05:00:39Z")
In this post I will refer to descendants of sub-saharan Africans, i.e., black people, as African. By African I don’t mean Egyptians, Algerians or South Africans of European descent. But I do mean Jamaicans and most of … --- ## [Death Penalty: Justice or revenge?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/death-penalty-justice-or-revenge/776895)
**Author:** [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Replies:** 54\ **Last updated:** [January 16, 2017, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/death-penalty-justice-or-revenge/776895 "2017-01-16T18:32:10Z")
Dylann Roof was sentenced to death after about three hours of deliberation by the jury. Reports make note of the fact that he showed no remorse, and one might infer this was a factor in the sentence. In death-penalty cas… --- ## [\[Alternate History\] Would it have been better if Israel was carved out of Montana?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alternate-history-would-it-have-been-better-if-israel-was-carved-out-of-montana/776212)
**Author:** [@Salvor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Salvor)\ **Replies:** 103\ **Last updated:** [January 16, 2017, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alternate-history-would-it-have-been-better-if-israel-was-carved-out-of-montana/776212 "2017-01-16T01:29:16Z")
Or Wyoming, choose any empty state with not much going on. Perhaps Florida or Texas for some access to the ocean. Imagine a world where instead of the jews trying to found their new state surrounded by hostility they w… --- ## [Should there be online classes in high school?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-there-be-online-classes-in-high-school/776698)
**Author:** [@boffking](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/boffking)\ **Replies:** 18\ **Last updated:** [January 15, 2017, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-there-be-online-classes-in-high-school/776698 "2017-01-15T19:40:41Z")
In my town, there is currently a vicious debate about the hundreds of millions of dollars in maintenance the school buildings will need over the next few years. Because of a statewide program, every high schooler has a … --- ## [Worse than Identity Politics: Linkage Politics](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worse-than-identity-politics-linkage-politics/777143)
**Author:** [@igor\_frankensteen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/igor_frankensteen)\ **Replies:** 13\ **Last updated:** [January 15, 2017, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worse-than-identity-politics-linkage-politics/777143 "2017-01-15T19:08:19Z")
It seems to me that a lot of what is being called “identity politics,” might actually be something else, that I think of as “linkage politics,” or even more specifically, “FALSE linkage politics.” I believe I see th… --- ## [Are Hollywood celebrities really good spokespeople for other areas?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-hollywood-celebrities-really-good-spokespeople-for-other-areas/776771)
**Author:** [@Urbanredneck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Urbanredneck)\ **Replies:** 113\ **Last updated:** [January 15, 2017, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-hollywood-celebrities-really-good-spokespeople-for-other-areas/776771 "2017-01-15T15:31:19Z")
Much has been said about actress Meryl Streeps speech against Donald Trump at the Golden Globe awards. My question is though, do you think Hollywood stars make good spokespeople? I mean to me, the people in Hollywood l… --- ## [Best Buy Geek Squad geeks being paid FBI informants](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-buy-geek-squad-geeks-being-paid-fbi-informants/776835)
**Author:** [@Typo\_Negative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Negative)\ **Replies:** 91\ **Last updated:** [January 14, 2017, 5:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-buy-geek-squad-geeks-being-paid-fbi-informants/776835 "2017-01-14T05:40:04Z")
Best Buy Geek Squad geeks being paid informants I will admit up front that the entirety of my Legal training comes from watching Law and Order reruns. But my teacher has stated that the cops cannot do through a third … --- ## [The effects of poverty and poor neighborhoods on children](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-effects-of-poverty-and-poor-neighborhoods-on-children/776965)
**Author:** [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Replies:** 18\ **Last updated:** [January 14, 2017, 5:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-effects-of-poverty-and-poor-neighborhoods-on-children/776965 "2017-01-14T05:26:39Z")
Article from Vox here. The part I think is most interesting, because it’s backed by data, is a little more than halfway down the article – Montgomery County, MD, did an experiment in which 1 out of 8 houses in new subdi… --- ## [GMO pest control methods.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gmo-pest-control-methods/763384)
**Author:** [@davidm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davidm)\ **Replies:** 13\ **Last updated:** [January 14, 2017, 4:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gmo-pest-control-methods/763384 "2017-01-14T04:14:05Z")
I’m posting this in response to a suggestion by Mtgman in this thread: http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=801608 That thread is a pitting of people who are blindly opposed to any use of GMO technology… --- ## [Ferguson Effect](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ferguson-effect/767866)
**Author:** [@Fotheringay-Phipps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fotheringay-Phipps)\ **Replies:** 158\ **Last updated:** [January 14, 2017, 1:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ferguson-effect/767866 "2017-01-14T01:27:46Z")
‘Ferguson effect’? Savagely beaten cop didn’t draw gun for fear of media uproar, says Chicago police chief Personally I doubt if it’s just the negative media consequences. The article goes on to note that there’s a de… --- ## [Are Clemson football players committing a crime here?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-clemson-football-players-committing-a-crime-here/776535)
**Author:** [@nate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nate)\ **Replies:** 18\ **Last updated:** [January 13, 2017, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-clemson-football-players-committing-a-crime-here/776535 "2017-01-13T17:51:44Z")
Maybe this is better suited for GQ, but I don’t know if there is a factual answer to this. For those not familiar with the situation, Clemson college football players have been seen on TV grabbing/poking the opposing tea… --- ## [Catholics, is it time for a new Ecumenical Council](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/catholics-is-it-time-for-a-new-ecumenical-council/775637)
**Author:** [@chacoguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chacoguy)\ **Replies:** 27\ **Last updated:** [January 13, 2017, 3:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/catholics-is-it-time-for-a-new-ecumenical-council/775637 "2017-01-13T03:02:28Z")
This is what happened with the last one. Sorry, it’s a bit of a long read; a couple of the main points are that they got rid of the Latin Mass and had the Priest face the Congregation. If I remember right, women didn’t … --- ## [Why Doesn't This Guy Get Arrested?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-doesnt-this-guy-get-arrested/776485)
**Author:** [@OldOlds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OldOlds)\ **Replies:** 33\ **Last updated:** [January 12, 2017, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-doesnt-this-guy-get-arrested/776485 "2017-01-12T21:42:32Z")
I’m looking for factual answers, but I guessed that GD would allow some greater breadth of discussion. In the video below, one of those freemen on the land loons makes a scene in the courtroom, and walks out. We don’t k… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/great-debates/13.md?page=135) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/great-debates/13.md?page=137)