# Great Debates **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/c/great-debates/13.md?page=239 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 240 --- ## [Depo P Adegbile is rejected by senate.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/depo-p-adegbile-is-rejected-by-senate/683187)
**Author:** [@not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/not_what_you_d_expect)\ **Replies:** 114\ **Last updated:** [March 14, 2014, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/depo-p-adegbile-is-rejected-by-senate/683187 "2014-03-14T20:22:38Z")
So, I’ve been hearing a lot about this story and I would like to talk about it. I am surprised and saddened by this defeat. I think it’s pretty disgusting actually, but perhaps there are things I’m not taking into co… --- ## [Economic externality == need for regulation?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/economic-externality-need-for-regulation/683643)
**Author:** [@sweeteviljesus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sweeteviljesus)\ **Replies:** 6\ **Last updated:** [March 14, 2014, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/economic-externality-need-for-regulation/683643 "2014-03-14T16:45:34Z")
I was just watching a video on cybersecurity for electrical utility companies (In case you are interested) and in it, they pointed out that utilities operate on razor-thin margins and that it would be difficult to justif… --- ## [Social conservatism v. economic conservatism](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/social-conservatism-v-economic-conservatism/682541)
**Author:** [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Replies:** 90\ **Last updated:** [March 14, 2014, 4:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/social-conservatism-v-economic-conservatism/682541 "2014-03-14T04:41:56Z")
The difference is that economic conservatives are not always wrong and social conservatives are not always evil. IMO and IME, economic conservatives sometimes have arguments worth listening to. But their actual, unstat… --- ## [Alternatives to Minimum Wage hikes or Government Subsidies?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alternatives-to-minimum-wage-hikes-or-government-subsidies/682335)
**Author:** [@CoastalMaineiac](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CoastalMaineiac)\ **Replies:** 55\ **Last updated:** [March 14, 2014, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alternatives-to-minimum-wage-hikes-or-government-subsidies/682335 "2014-03-14T03:50:28Z")
It seems like the most common solutions I hear to help out the working poor are either increasing the minimum wage or giving them some sort of government subsidy. I am leaning toward favoring a minimum wage set at a poin… --- ## [The purpose of public education](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-purpose-of-public-education/682530)
**Author:** [@CoastalMaineiac](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CoastalMaineiac)\ **Replies:** 15\ **Last updated:** [March 13, 2014, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-purpose-of-public-education/682530 "2014-03-13T20:11:06Z")
For what reason do we fork over thousands of dollars in real estate taxes to fund these educational institutions for miniature humans? It’s a rhetorical question, maybe. I was always under the impression that public edu… --- ## [Is courage just a concept or is it real?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-courage-just-a-concept-or-is-it-real/681638)
**Author:** [@jmliny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jmliny)\ **Replies:** 16\ **Last updated:** [March 13, 2014, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-courage-just-a-concept-or-is-it-real/681638 "2014-03-13T18:01:50Z")
I was thinking about non religious people, people who don’t buy in to an afterlife, or God, or whatnot, because they can’t wrap their reasoning around this or that. I had written something about indestructibility in my … --- ## [Are the police a separate caste system then the general population and is that acceptable?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-the-police-a-separate-caste-system-then-the-general-population-and-is-that-acceptable/683306)
**Author:** [@kanicbird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kanicbird)\ **Replies:** 64\ **Last updated:** [March 13, 2014, 12:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-the-police-a-separate-caste-system-then-the-general-population-and-is-that-acceptable/683306 "2014-03-13T00:43:34Z")
Looking at this: http://news.cnet.com/8301-17852\_3-57620082-71/man-arrested-for-wiretapping-after-filming-police-officer/ It appears that the police may have resorted to privileged status and there are many such other p… --- ## [Faith, religion, and the afterlife: A form of denial](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/faith-religion-and-the-afterlife-a-form-of-denial/677713)
**Author:** [@cmyk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmyk)\ **Replies:** 855\ **Last updated:** [March 12, 2014, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/faith-religion-and-the-afterlife-a-form-of-denial/677713 "2014-03-12T22:13:26Z")
I’m not talking about denial with reality, per se. What I mean is, it’s a coping method plenty of people fall back on, if they have faith, to deal with life issues big and small. We’ve all seen cloyingly glurgy sentimen… --- ## [Ukrainian Info war. Maidan, The truth behind the February 20 massacre](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ukrainian-info-war-maidan-the-truth-behind-the-february-20-massacre/683527)
**Author:** [@Artemi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Artemi)\ **Replies:** 13\ **Last updated:** [March 12, 2014, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ukrainian-info-war-maidan-the-truth-behind-the-february-20-massacre/683527 "2014-03-12T19:39:48Z")
Hey guys I’ve got some video information you may wanna look. This one will clarify some things about the 20th february Ukraine massacre. Most of the mass media tells us that this was the fault of the government, but it’… --- ## [California falls into the ocean. What happens to US politics?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/california-falls-into-the-ocean-what-happens-to-us-politics/683231)
**Author:** [@dofe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dofe)\ **Replies:** 28\ **Last updated:** [March 11, 2014, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/california-falls-into-the-ocean-what-happens-to-us-politics/683231 "2014-03-11T20:05:45Z")
The most obvious is that Presidential elections are suddenly very different, with the 55 electoral college votes from California no longer (almost) guaranteed to the the Democratic nominee. I’d imagine that you’d see mu… --- ## [The Romeikes - German Christian homeschooling family](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-romeikes-german-christian-homeschooling-family/682968)
**Author:** [@Rucksinator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rucksinator)\ **Replies:** 66\ **Last updated:** [March 11, 2014, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-romeikes-german-christian-homeschooling-family/682968 "2014-03-11T16:59:45Z")
I got into a FB debate about this. A friend linked to this story that claims that Obama is trying to help persecute this family just because they are Christian. I pointed out that this was a SCOTUS decision and Obama … --- ## [Western media/Obama hypocrisy on Ukraine](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/western-media-obama-hypocrisy-on-ukraine/683134)
**Author:** [@LinusK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LinusK)\ **Replies:** 173\ **Last updated:** [March 11, 2014, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/western-media-obama-hypocrisy-on-ukraine/683134 "2014-03-11T13:12:16Z")
Isn’t it a bit hypocrital of the West to embrace the Maidan revolution on the one hand, while condemning the Crimean referendum on the other? Obama said it (the referendum) illegal and unconstitutional, but what is lega… --- ## [Satoshi Nakamoto: inventor of Bitcoin](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/satoshi-nakamoto-inventor-of-bitcoin/683031)
**Author:** [@Lantern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lantern)\ **Replies:** 19\ **Last updated:** [March 11, 2014, 11:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/satoshi-nakamoto-inventor-of-bitcoin/683031 "2014-03-11T11:56:42Z")
Interesting article in Newsweek which claims to have uncovered Satoshi Nakamoto, inventor of Bitcoin. The article says he really is a Japanese guy called Satoshi Nakamoto and he is pretty much the brilliant eccentric t… --- ## [Has the world actually been cooling since 2002?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-the-world-actually-been-cooling-since-2002/681728)
**Author:** [@FXMastermind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FXMastermind)\ **Replies:** 710\ **Last updated:** [March 11, 2014, 10:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-the-world-actually-been-cooling-since-2002/681728 "2014-03-11T10:47:40Z")
Nature published a peer reviewed paper showing that since 2001 the planet has not warmed. I checked all the data, and even GISS shows slight cooling since 2002. It is clear from looking at the GISS data that the cooli… --- ## [What's The Straight Dope on Corporate Income Taxes](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-straight-dope-on-corporate-income-taxes/683396)
**Author:** [@OldOlds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OldOlds)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [March 11, 2014, 8:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-straight-dope-on-corporate-income-taxes/683396 "2014-03-11T08:35:03Z")
I debated whether to put this in GQ or GD, but I love a good debate, and figure GD will be less constraining to the conversation. Over the years, I have heard many on the right claim that our (US) corporate income taxes… --- ## [Exempting mandatory testing from students receiving vouchers](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/exempting-mandatory-testing-from-students-receiving-vouchers/683268)
**Author:** [@monstro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/monstro)\ **Replies:** 25\ **Last updated:** [March 11, 2014, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/exempting-mandatory-testing-from-students-receiving-vouchers/683268 "2014-03-11T03:41:44Z")
Third graders using vouchers need not pass reading test Synopsis: OH public and charter school third-graders are required to take a state reading test. Failure on the test means they can’t graduate to the fourth grade. … --- ## [Anyone still believe the Tea Party is not a social conservative/RR organization?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-still-believe-the-tea-party-is-not-a-social-conservative-rr-organization/682495)
**Author:** [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Replies:** 61\ **Last updated:** [March 10, 2014, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-still-believe-the-tea-party-is-not-a-social-conservative-rr-organization/682495 "2014-03-10T19:20:04Z")
There has been a long-running controversy, in the Dope and more broadly, as to whether the Tea Party is mainly an economic-libertarian, small government organization, or a social conservative/religious-right organization… --- ## [Responses to a straight, white male complaining on these message boards.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/responses-to-a-straight-white-male-complaining-on-these-message-boards/682754)
**Author:** [@MyFootsZZZ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MyFootsZZZ)\ **Replies:** 211\ **Last updated:** [March 10, 2014, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/responses-to-a-straight-white-male-complaining-on-these-message-boards/682754 "2014-03-10T16:55:17Z")
First, I would just like to say that I am a straight, white male. I will never understand what it would be like to be in the shoes of someone who isn’t. I’m for equality all around. I’m pro-gay marriage, very much aga… --- ## [Let's explore the wisdom of publicly funded elections](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-explore-the-wisdom-of-publicly-funded-elections/678825)
**Author:** [@sweeteviljesus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sweeteviljesus)\ **Replies:** 294\ **Last updated:** [March 10, 2014, 1:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-explore-the-wisdom-of-publicly-funded-elections/678825 "2014-03-10T13:37:02Z")
I have heard that one way to limit the negative effects of lobbying in the U.S. would be to publicly fund elections. What are the downsides to this plan? Would it be legal under the First Amendment? Thanks, Rob --- ## [Keurig goes DRM.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keurig-goes-drm/682820)
**Author:** [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Replies:** 86\ **Last updated:** [March 10, 2014, 8:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keurig-goes-drm/682820 "2014-03-10T08:53:42Z")
Keurig’s newest coffee makers will be designed to only work with Keurig kcups. Keurig (and their parent company Green Mountain Roasters) appear to be conspiring to block the competition. The patent Keurig had on kcups r… --- ## [Rethinking the school experience](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rethinking-the-school-experience/683287)
**Author:** [@Lantern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lantern)\ **Replies:** 3\ **Last updated:** [March 10, 2014, 4:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rethinking-the-school-experience/683287 "2014-03-10T04:58:25Z")
I thought I would put down my thoughts on how I think school should be organized. They are a version of the “flip classroom” model which has been much talked about recently. I am thinking mainly of high-school though I t… --- ## [Gulf States withdraw Qatar ambassadors thread 2](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gulf-states-withdraw-qatar-ambassadors-thread-2/683018)
**Author:** [@Marmite\_Lover](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marmite_Lover)\ **Replies:** 16\ **Last updated:** [March 10, 2014, 1:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gulf-states-withdraw-qatar-ambassadors-thread-2/683018 "2014-03-10T01:15:13Z")
Moderator Jonathon Chance closed my thread on this issue. In the opening post I put the source ‘Egyptian Streets’ In his first post he did not ask for any link because presumably he looked up Egyptian Streets and saw … --- ## [Is Peer-Review Valid?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-peer-review-valid/682928)
**Author:** [@Budget\_Player\_Cadet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Budget_Player_Cadet)\ **Replies:** 80\ **Last updated:** [March 10, 2014, 12:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-peer-review-valid/682928 "2014-03-10T00:42:58Z")
So this story came to my attention a while back: http://www.sciencemag.org/content/342/6154/60.full One of my more “intellectually challenged” hippie friends posited that because of this, peer review was worthless and… --- ## [Would the world really be that different now if the US had lost the Revolutionary War?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-the-world-really-be-that-different-now-if-the-us-had-lost-the-revolutionary-war/683181)
**Author:** [@aldiboronti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aldiboronti)\ **Replies:** 21\ **Last updated:** [March 10, 2014, 12:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-the-world-really-be-that-different-now-if-the-us-had-lost-the-revolutionary-war/683181 "2014-03-10T00:24:22Z")
This is prompted by a trailer for a new movie, America. The film imagines Washington being killed by musket fire and the rebellion being put down by the British. In the trailer we see first some of America’s achievements… --- ## [Ukraine: Why the current US spin?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ukraine-why-the-current-us-spin/683157)
**Author:** [@even\_sven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/even_sven)\ **Replies:** 81\ **Last updated:** [March 9, 2014, 4:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ukraine-why-the-current-us-spin/683157 "2014-03-09T16:09:14Z")
I am seriously baffled by the popular reaction to the events in Ukraine. As far as I can tell, Americans across the political spectrum are saying " Oh yeah, makes total sense. The ultra-corrupt President-for-life we just… --- ## [It's Russian troops in Crimea, right?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-russian-troops-in-crimea-right/683169)
**Author:** [@Reyemile](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reyemile)\ **Replies:** 10\ **Last updated:** [March 9, 2014, 3:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-russian-troops-in-crimea-right/683169 "2014-03-09T03:43:24Z")
As of my posting this, Russia is still claiming that the thousands of troops on the ground in Crimea are not Russian. But I haven’t heard a single person anywhere–even on the pro-Russian side–that believes them. Is there… --- ## [Ukraine Prediction Thread](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ukraine-prediction-thread/683106)
**Author:** [@VarlosZ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VarlosZ)\ **Replies:** 3\ **Last updated:** [March 9, 2014, 3:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ukraine-prediction-thread/683106 "2014-03-09T03:10:27Z")
This thread is for posting predictions about how the situation in Ukraine will eventually wind up. Arguably this is better suited for IMHO, but I wanted to allow for the likelihood that a debate will break out. Mods ma… --- ## [Were US wars in Korea and Vietnam almost genocidal?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-us-wars-in-korea-and-vietnam-almost-genocidal/682643)
**Author:** [@CCitizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CCitizen)\ **Replies:** 55\ **Last updated:** [March 9, 2014, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-us-wars-in-korea-and-vietnam-almost-genocidal/682643 "2014-03-09T00:03:37Z")
In North Korea about a million civilians were killed mostly by US Air Force. In Vietnam, USA tried to avoid similar civilian casualties, but about a million civilians were killed in Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia – mostly by U… --- ## [Why not true tribal sovereignty in the U.S.A.?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-not-true-tribal-sovereignty-in-the-u-s-a/683173)
**Author:** [@drastic\_quench](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drastic_quench)\ **Replies:** 18\ **Last updated:** [March 8, 2014, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-not-true-tribal-sovereignty-in-the-u-s-a/683173 "2014-03-08T21:56:03Z")
What’s the downside? From the eastern-most reservation to the overthrown islands of Hawaii, the U.S. owes the very earth of its existence to the indigenous peoples. Life is demonstrably Not Great on the res, so what’s … --- ## [Should GM (Genetically Modified) Foods be Abolished?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-gm-genetically-modified-foods-be-abolished/638639)
**Author:** [@R3d\_Anonymous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/R3d_Anonymous)\ **Replies:** 117\ **Last updated:** [March 8, 2014, 12:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-gm-genetically-modified-foods-be-abolished/638639 "2014-03-08T12:45:10Z")
In my opinion, yes because it’s not natural. We do not eat GM foods (we actually don’t, we go to whole foods), and we’re healthy. Shouldn’t we let the food stay the way it is. It can have negative impacts on the envir… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/great-debates/13.md?page=238) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/great-debates/13.md?page=240)