# Great Debates **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/c/great-debates/13.md?page=21 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 22 --- ## [About those other methods of decreasing mass shootings-enforcement and mental health](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/about-those-other-methods-of-decreasing-mass-shootings-enforcement-and-mental-health/981743)
**Author:** [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Replies:** 49\ **Last updated:** [April 4, 2023, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/about-those-other-methods-of-decreasing-mass-shootings-enforcement-and-mental-health/981743 "2023-04-04T14:12:33Z")
Leaving aside the topic of further gun restrictions for the purpose of this discussion (please), two methods brought up often are enforcement of already existing legislation, and mental health. What I don’t see from th… --- ## [WV black lawmaker gets email with KKK graphic and anti-abortion message...also sues. Is this right?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wv-black-lawmaker-gets-email-with-kkk-graphic-and-anti-abortion-message-also-sues-is-this-right/959845)
**Author:** [@UltraVires](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UltraVires)\ **Replies:** 151\ **Last updated:** [March 30, 2023, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wv-black-lawmaker-gets-email-with-kkk-graphic-and-anti-abortion-message-also-sues-is-this-right/959845 "2023-03-30T19:05:20Z")
So short version is that the member of the WV House of Delegates, the only black member and that body, she and three other members (each white) introduced a bill to protect abortion rights in WV. It has zero chance of… --- ## [Don't worry, Roe v. Wade is never getting overturned](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-worry-roe-v-wade-is-never-getting-overturned/913683)
**Author:** [@Ashtura](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ashtura)\ **Replies:** 177\ **Last updated:** [March 30, 2023, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-worry-roe-v-wade-is-never-getting-overturned/913683 "2023-03-30T18:45:48Z")
I am convinced that the conservative powers that be have no interest in overturning Roe v. Wade. Overturning it would give a great deal of single issue voters no reason to vote Republican anymore. Republicans could pac… --- ## [The most insane health insurance system in the world is in the US](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-insane-health-insurance-system-in-the-world-is-in-the-us/979641)
**Author:** [@survinga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/survinga)\ **Replies:** 45\ **Last updated:** [March 30, 2023, 3:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-insane-health-insurance-system-in-the-world-is-in-the-us/979641 "2023-03-30T03:32:54Z")
Charles Gaba has a blog that tracks the ACA and other coverage-related things. Just take a look at all the different types of coverage that people have in this link. It’s insanity on the scale of over 330 million peopl… --- ## [Post scarcity](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/post-scarcity/972517)
**Author:** [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Replies:** 103\ **Last updated:** [March 28, 2023, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/post-scarcity/972517 "2023-03-28T21:04:30Z")
Searching and it looks like it has been well over a decade since this subject had a discussion and the subject has come up in the Cafe Society thread about the Star Wars show Andor, with one post arguing that the Star Wa… --- ## [The Metaverse: How far away is it from being realised?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-metaverse-how-far-away-is-it-from-being-realised/979414)
**Author:** [@Ryan\_Liam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ryan_Liam)\ **Replies:** 13\ **Last updated:** [March 25, 2023, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-metaverse-how-far-away-is-it-from-being-realised/979414 "2023-03-25T01:55:25Z")
Just to preface that the Metaverse is a single, shared, immersive, persistent, 3D virtual space where humans experience life in ways they could not in the physical world. Now, I am going against the grain here and will … --- ## [Defining "woke"](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/defining-woke/981220)
**Author:** [@slicedalone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slicedalone)\ **Replies:** 400\ **Last updated:** [March 22, 2023, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/defining-woke/981220 "2023-03-22T01:37:07Z")
This particular imbecile has great trouble getting her tongue to operate properly in coordination with her brain, but I can’t really tell why “woke” is any trouble to define. “Woke” is, I believe, originally a slang wor… --- ## [Should transwomen be allowed in women's prisons?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-transwomen-be-allowed-in-womens-prisons/979830)
**Author:** [@Dead\_Cat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dead_Cat)\ **Replies:** 167\ **Last updated:** [March 18, 2023, 1:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-transwomen-be-allowed-in-womens-prisons/979830 "2023-03-18T13:27:05Z")
So in the UK recently there was a bit of a furore (whipped up by a political dispute between the Scottish and UK parliaments) about a convicted rapist (with male genitalia) identifying as a woman and therefore being sent… --- ## [How should we "save" Social Security?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-should-we-save-social-security/973567)
**Author:** [@glowacks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/glowacks)\ **Replies:** 183\ **Last updated:** [March 18, 2023, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-should-we-save-social-security/973567 "2023-03-18T01:13:19Z")
Discourse isn’t showing me a thread on this unless you go back to 2005, so I think a new topic might be worthwhile compared to resurrecting such an old thread. Social Security is now doing better than it was before the … --- ## [Is the NAACP actually being contradictory?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-naacp-actually-being-contradictory/981137)
**Author:** [@fedman1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fedman1)\ **Replies:** 3\ **Last updated:** [March 14, 2023, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-naacp-actually-being-contradictory/981137 "2023-03-14T03:44:14Z")
the name includes the words “colored people”, so it should include all people of color–Asian, Hispanic, Pacific Islanders? But does it actually involve itself with other “races” --- ## [Do the Three Laws of Robotics make sense based on our understanding of computers?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-the-three-laws-of-robotics-make-sense-based-on-our-understanding-of-computers/979104)
**Author:** [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Replies:** 89\ **Last updated:** [March 4, 2023, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-the-three-laws-of-robotics-make-sense-based-on-our-understanding-of-computers/979104 "2023-03-04T23:52:34Z")
Spun off from another thread, at @BeepKillBeep’s request. My contention is that while Asimov’s work was certainly very well thought out and highly influential, the man was writing at a time when modern computing did not… --- ## [Assuming no metaphysical reality, and everything is just spacetime and matter, where do the moral concerns regarding suffering and pain come from?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/assuming-no-metaphysical-reality-and-everything-is-just-spacetime-and-matter-where-do-the-moral-concerns-regarding-suffering-and-pain-come-from/962783)
**Author:** [@Polerius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Polerius)\ **Replies:** 83\ **Last updated:** [March 2, 2023, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/assuming-no-metaphysical-reality-and-everything-is-just-spacetime-and-matter-where-do-the-moral-concerns-regarding-suffering-and-pain-come-from/962783 "2023-03-02T18:27:39Z")
If someone suffered enormous physical pain 100 years ago, it just means some quarks and electrons were in a particular configuration 100 years ago. In the absence of a metaphysical reality or existence, what’s the philos… --- ## [How should a 'physical' crime in virtual reality be considered?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-should-a-physical-crime-in-virtual-reality-be-considered/977705)
**Author:** [@Celtic\_Kitsune](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Celtic_Kitsune)\ **Replies:** 119\ **Last updated:** [March 2, 2023, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-should-a-physical-crime-in-virtual-reality-be-considered/977705 "2023-03-02T18:00:44Z")
I do a little writing and one setting has a character who is paralysed and interacts with others in a VR environment, the story is set in the near future so its very realistic VR and people using it have direct sensory f… --- ## [Accidentally destroyed lottery ticket](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/accidentally-destroyed-lottery-ticket/978203)
**Author:** [@Happytree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happytree)\ **Replies:** 13\ **Last updated:** [March 2, 2023, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/accidentally-destroyed-lottery-ticket/978203 "2023-03-02T17:56:48Z")
It’s a moot point now; the mega millions was just drawn, and we didn’t win. But what if Mrs Tree’s DID pick the winning ticket and I spilled coffee on the ticket, voiding it? Surely, I am at fault for destroying the ti… --- ## [Resolved: The Obama rail safety regulations that Trump repealed would not have applied to the East Palestine derailment](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/resolved-the-obama-rail-safety-regulations-that-trump-repealed-would-not-have-applied-to-the-east-palestine-derailment/980037)
**Author:** [@steronz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/steronz)\ **Replies:** 9\ **Last updated:** [March 2, 2023, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/resolved-the-obama-rail-safety-regulations-that-trump-repealed-would-not-have-applied-to-the-east-palestine-derailment/980037 "2023-03-02T17:27:44Z")
I did some factual digging on this question and considered posting this in FQ, but I felt it would devolve quickly regardless. I do not mean this thread to be a defense of Trump, but rather an indictment of our governme… --- ## [Isn't it time for England to give the Elgin Marbles back to Greece?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/isnt-it-time-for-england-to-give-the-elgin-marbles-back-to-greece/169420)
**Author:** [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Replies:** 135\ **Last updated:** [March 1, 2023, 12:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/isnt-it-time-for-england-to-give-the-elgin-marbles-back-to-greece/169420 "2023-03-01T12:29:49Z")
The Elgin Marbles The Parthenon and the Elgin Marbles Come on now… you know it’s the right thing to do. --- ## [Wait.... Jesus was white?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wait-jesus-was-white/979199)
**Author:** [@MyFootsZZZ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MyFootsZZZ)\ **Replies:** 110\ **Last updated:** [February 26, 2023, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wait-jesus-was-white/979199 "2023-02-26T21:18:23Z")
I don’t know if this is up for debate or not. But does the Bible mention Jesus being a white guy? I was always under the impression that he had been ‘whitewashed’. I would mention it every time I got into a debate with s… --- ## [US Military Personnel should not be allowed to work for tyrants](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/us-military-personnel-should-not-be-allowed-to-work-for-tyrants/973457)
**Author:** [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Replies:** 86\ **Last updated:** [February 26, 2023, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/us-military-personnel-should-not-be-allowed-to-work-for-tyrants/973457 "2023-02-26T20:51:55Z")
Gift link to WaPo article This is appalling. And there’s a lot more to the article–check it out. Simply put, my tax dollars are being used to train military personnel who are then profiting off the training by using t… --- ## [A question about nuclear deterrence - what is the difference in these two scenarios?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-about-nuclear-deterrence-what-is-the-difference-in-these-two-scenarios/977110)
**Author:** [@Celtic\_Kitsune](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Celtic_Kitsune)\ **Replies:** 30\ **Last updated:** [February 26, 2023, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-about-nuclear-deterrence-what-is-the-difference-in-these-two-scenarios/977110 "2023-02-26T17:15:24Z")
Because it is apparently once again the 1980’s I’ve been reading a little about nuclear deterrence. If a military officer received a phone call from higher up the chain of command stating that the enemy had just massacr… --- ## [Do Some Folks Just Not Accept the Concept of “giving up on people”?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-some-folks-just-not-accept-the-concept-of-giving-up-on-people/980035)
**Author:** [@slicedalone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slicedalone)\ **Replies:** 73\ **Last updated:** [February 26, 2023, 1:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-some-folks-just-not-accept-the-concept-of-giving-up-on-people/980035 "2023-02-26T13:26:30Z")
Reading through various threads touching on the subject of “interacting with right-wingers, Trumpers, election-deniers, etc.” I realize that many people don’t see things the way I do, which is to give them a number of ch… --- ## [Euthanasia of dementia patients](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/euthanasia-of-dementia-patients/978819)
**Author:** [@FloatyGimpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FloatyGimpy)\ **Replies:** 118\ **Last updated:** [February 25, 2023, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/euthanasia-of-dementia-patients/978819 "2023-02-25T15:25:16Z")
I work at a long-term care facility as a nurse aide. The experience has changed my views on certain topics including the extremely controversial idea of euthanasia. I see the very elderly, bed-ridden, in non-stop pain, … --- ## [Crypto is NOT a Ponzi scheme](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/crypto-is-not-a-ponzi-scheme/975417)
**Author:** [@scarbrow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scarbrow)\ **Replies:** 172\ **Last updated:** [February 25, 2023, 10:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/crypto-is-not-a-ponzi-scheme/975417 "2023-02-25T10:52:28Z")
I’m here to argue for keeping the meaning of Ponzi scheme to its original definition. It’s supposed to be a scheme where the money coming in is used to deliver fake returns to the earlier investors. One of the signs of a… --- ## [How is anti-wokeism different from sexism and/or racism?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-anti-wokeism-different-from-sexism-and-or-racism/979604)
**Author:** [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Replies:** 371\ **Last updated:** [February 22, 2023, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-anti-wokeism-different-from-sexism-and-or-racism/979604 "2023-02-22T19:38:22Z")
I hear the same rationalizations coming from those that say they are “anti-woke” as I do from those that are racist and sexist, but if I am wrong please tell me how. Frankly, I see no reason to not to refer to someone w… --- ## [How is "wokeness" responsible for the loss of abortion rights?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-wokeness-responsible-for-the-loss-of-abortion-rights/980084)
**Author:** [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Replies:** 91\ **Last updated:** [February 21, 2023, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-wokeness-responsible-for-the-loss-of-abortion-rights/980084 "2023-02-21T03:48:44Z")
I don’t understand why you are asking this question. Is it because of true ignorance or is this rhetoric? I ask because this question is only helping to convince me that progressives have taken their eye off the ball so… --- ## [Holocaust Denial?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holocaust-denial/843762)
**Author:** [@Jim\_B](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_B)\ **Replies:** 151\ **Last updated:** [February 19, 2023, 2:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holocaust-denial/843762 "2023-02-19T02:59:07Z")
I put it in Great Debates, because I assume it will spark one. But why do white supremacists almost always deny the Holocaust? I don’t need a cite. And I say “almost always”. But in reality, I never saw one who didn’t. … --- ## [The United States constitution as a suicide pact](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-united-states-constitution-as-a-suicide-pact/979129)
**Author:** [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Replies:** 111\ **Last updated:** [February 15, 2023, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-united-states-constitution-as-a-suicide-pact/979129 "2023-02-15T15:39:48Z")
Over in the Presidential Pardons Improved thread in Politics & Elections, @BobLibDem said: to which I responded: I see this comment from time to time; however, I do not think I have ever seen something that really su… --- ## [Jens Stoltenberg NATO Secretary General, good or not?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jens-stoltenberg-nato-secretary-general-good-or-not/975158)
**Author:** [@Loggins](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loggins)\ **Replies:** 12\ **Last updated:** [February 9, 2023, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jens-stoltenberg-nato-secretary-general-good-or-not/975158 "2023-02-09T23:41:53Z")
Jens Stoltenberg was urged to prolong his NATO leadership last year (While at the same time having basically accepted the position of Central Bank chief of Norway), and he accepted another term. The pressure to continue … --- ## [What are the evidence that Russia is responsible for the destruction of MH17 flight in Ukraine?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-evidence-that-russia-is-responsible-for-the-destruction-of-mh17-flight-in-ukraine/738541)
**Author:** [@clairobscur](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/clairobscur)\ **Replies:** 11\ **Last updated:** [February 8, 2023, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-evidence-that-russia-is-responsible-for-the-destruction-of-mh17-flight-in-ukraine/738541 "2023-02-08T19:44:16Z")
Just had a conversation with a coworker who stated that there’s no actual evidences that Russia was responsible for the downing of flight MH17 (neither directly or by having provided the weapon used to the Ukrainian rebe… --- ## [Was the 2nd Snap (Avengers Endgame) the Right Thing to do?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-the-2nd-snap-avengers-endgame-the-right-thing-to-do/978289)
**Author:** [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Replies:** 88\ **Last updated:** [February 7, 2023, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-the-2nd-snap-avengers-endgame-the-right-thing-to-do/978289 "2023-02-07T15:34:54Z")
Okay, Thanos snapped his fingers and half of all (animal?) life on Earth went poof. But that wasn’t all. When pilots or drivers go poof, the passengers in it- or what the plane or car hits- often dies. Bedridden people… --- ## [Latinx (Your thoughts on the term)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latinx-your-thoughts-on-the-term/962358)
**Author:** [@GreysonCarlisle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreysonCarlisle)\ **Replies:** 163\ **Last updated:** [February 5, 2023, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latinx-your-thoughts-on-the-term/962358 "2023-02-05T23:38:55Z")
(Continuing the discussion from Why was this useage of "queer" offensive?) What are your thoughts on the term Latinx? For those who aren’t aware, it is the removal of the gender indicators in Latino and Latina in order… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/great-debates/13.md?page=20) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/great-debates/13.md?page=22)