# Great Debates **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/c/great-debates/13.md?page=26 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 27 --- ## [Do these common criticisms of an eternal afterlife have merit?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-these-common-criticisms-of-an-eternal-afterlife-have-merit/966806)
**Author:** [@Cmyers1980](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cmyers1980)\ **Replies:** 117\ **Last updated:** [July 9, 2022, 1:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-these-common-criticisms-of-an-eternal-afterlife-have-merit/966806 "2022-07-09T01:53:01Z")
Besides the matter of evidence for its existence and who goes there the two most common criticisms of the idea of an eternal afterlife that’s amazing and perfect in every conceivable way (Heaven) are the issues of eventu… --- ## [Is the universe old or young?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-universe-old-or-young/963334)
**Author:** [@Mijin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mijin)\ **Replies:** 317\ **Last updated:** [July 5, 2022, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-universe-old-or-young/963334 "2022-07-05T16:41:48Z")
Obviously the answer to this question is “We don’t know”. But where’s the fun in that?! We may as well speculate. The universe is old The formation of new galaxies peaked billions of years ago. And star formation seem… --- ## [Let's negotiate peace in Ukraine](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-negotiate-peace-in-ukraine/961973)
**Author:** [@Akaj](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Akaj)\ **Replies:** 20\ **Last updated:** [July 3, 2022, 1:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-negotiate-peace-in-ukraine/961973 "2022-07-03T01:19:21Z")
In other threads, we’ve thrown around ideas about what kind of agreement would end the war in Ukraine. I thought it deserved its own thread, but if mods decide this belongs somewhere else that’s cool. So, let’s figure o… --- ## [Statehood for Puerto Rico?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/statehood-for-puerto-rico/921465)
**Author:** [@razordance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/razordance)\ **Replies:** 148\ **Last updated:** [July 2, 2022, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/statehood-for-puerto-rico/921465 "2022-07-02T15:53:41Z")
This move is not on the Dems’ platform but they’re clearly favorable to considering it, and PR is having yet another statehood referendum in November. This is not like DC statehood. There are two special problems: P… --- ## [So, what to do about the grotesque animal cruelty in China ?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-to-do-about-the-grotesque-animal-cruelty-in-china/722907)
**Author:** [@Scandic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scandic)\ **Replies:** 79\ **Last updated:** [July 1, 2022, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-to-do-about-the-grotesque-animal-cruelty-in-china/722907 "2022-07-01T23:20:55Z")
I’m especially thinking about Yulin, the grotesque Dog-Eating Festival that’s going to occur on June 21. Dogs and cats are often tortured to death by the chinese, believing that this makes the meat taste better What can… --- ## [What rights should people have, and why? (and what the hey, how to balance them)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-rights-should-people-have-and-why-and-what-the-hey-how-to-balance-them/966405)
**Author:** [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Replies:** 93\ **Last updated:** [July 1, 2022, 7:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-rights-should-people-have-and-why-and-what-the-hey-how-to-balance-them/966405 "2022-07-01T07:38:23Z")
I’ve been reading a bunch of gun threads, and the gun advocates are very enamored of the right to carry a gun, and I keep thinking… Why? You have no right to fly a drone (there are a ton of legal restrictions, and they a… --- ## [How does religion give you hope when tragedy strikes?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-religion-give-you-hope-when-tragedy-strikes/946902)
**Author:** [@mjmartin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mjmartin)\ **Replies:** 75\ **Last updated:** [June 29, 2022, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-religion-give-you-hope-when-tragedy-strikes/946902 "2022-06-29T21:02:17Z")
Just for background: I was raised in an evangelical family and went to a Christian liberal arts college. About half way through college, I completely lost my faith, and became an atheist. One of the few things I miss ab… --- ## [Anti-abortion laws and Jury Nullification](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anti-abortion-laws-and-jury-nullification/967001)
**Author:** [@Buck\_Godot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Buck_Godot)\ **Replies:** 19\ **Last updated:** [June 29, 2022, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anti-abortion-laws-and-jury-nullification/967001 "2022-06-29T20:13:09Z")
Here is an article I found to get things started. The author claims that although jury nullification is generally very rare, abortion may be an exception. I agree, for several reasons. Anti abortion laws are widely… --- ## [Did Russia really default on their debt payment?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-russia-really-default-on-their-debt-payment/966981)
**Author:** [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Replies:** 16\ **Last updated:** [June 29, 2022, 3:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-russia-really-default-on-their-debt-payment/966981 "2022-06-29T03:51:04Z")
In the news today was Russia defaulted on a debt payment. My question is, did they really default? I am having a difficult time getting all the details but, it seems to me, they didn’t. Certainly the bond payments did… --- ## [Statehood for D.C.?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/statehood-for-d-c/921442)
**Author:** [@razordance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/razordance)\ **Replies:** 426\ **Last updated:** [June 28, 2022, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/statehood-for-d-c/921442 "2022-06-28T16:01:11Z")
It’s in the Dems’ platform this year, which mean, if they take the WH and Senate, it will come up for a vote. Apart from the general silliness of making a State of the Union out of a single city – and we already have st… --- ## [Why are liberals often not more passionate about fighting for Cause XYZ despite having more to lose than conservatives?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-liberals-often-not-more-passionate-about-fighting-for-cause-xyz-despite-having-more-to-lose-than-conservatives/966972)
**Author:** [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Replies:** 23\ **Last updated:** [June 27, 2022, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-liberals-often-not-more-passionate-about-fighting-for-cause-xyz-despite-having-more-to-lose-than-conservatives/966972 "2022-06-27T22:27:42Z")
On most issues that you can name, the liberal side has more to lose than the conservative side, yet there is not a noticeable enthusiasm gap. Abortion is the most obvious, and recent, one - but one could also name guns,… --- ## [Effective, massive, unprecedented civil disobedience in protest of SC re Roe?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/effective-massive-unprecedented-civil-disobedience-in-protest-of-sc-re-roe/966888)
**Author:** [@Roger\_That](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roger_That)\ **Replies:** 17\ **Last updated:** [June 26, 2022, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/effective-massive-unprecedented-civil-disobedience-in-protest-of-sc-re-roe/966888 "2022-06-26T15:31:55Z")
While I share the frustration of all the people turning out to demonstrate against SCOTUS, the only effect that has on the white-supremacist minority is to please them and amuse them. What would be the most effective for… --- ## [Suppose Napoleon won Waterloo?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suppose-napoleon-won-waterloo/966685)
**Author:** [@xtenkfarpl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xtenkfarpl)\ **Replies:** 13\ **Last updated:** [June 25, 2022, 12:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suppose-napoleon-won-waterloo/966685 "2022-06-25T12:25:06Z")
Wellington said it was a ‘damned near fought thing’. What if it had gone the other way? --- ## [Was the Emancipation Proclamation Unconstitutional?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-the-emancipation-proclamation-unconstitutional/966269)
**Author:** [@Ynnad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ynnad)\ **Replies:** 143\ **Last updated:** [June 24, 2022, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-the-emancipation-proclamation-unconstitutional/966269 "2022-06-24T00:25:16Z")
Was the Emancipation Proclamation unconstitutional? Please note that this question is being posted only as a topic for a debate. No matter what conclusions one derives, the answer is moot. The subsequent 13th Amendmen… --- ## [Do red flag laws violate the 5th and 6th Amendments? (US)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-red-flag-laws-violate-the-5th-and-6th-amendments-us/966260)
**Author:** [@Max\_S](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_S)\ **Replies:** 50\ **Last updated:** [June 23, 2022, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-red-flag-laws-violate-the-5th-and-6th-amendments-us/966260 "2022-06-23T14:58:18Z")
This a spin-off thread from here. Debate Prompt Do red flag laws violate the 5th and/or 6th amendments to the U.S. Constitution? Background What is a red flag law? The Washington Post has a helpful introduction to red … --- ## [What we believe or why we believe it](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-we-believe-or-why-we-believe-it/962622)
**Author:** [@HoneyBadgerDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HoneyBadgerDC)\ **Replies:** 78\ **Last updated:** [June 23, 2022, 12:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-we-believe-or-why-we-believe-it/962622 "2022-06-23T12:49:27Z")
What is more important, what we believe or why we believe it? I tend to think why is more important over a longer period of time while what is more important in the shorter term. --- ## [How groundbreaking was Marx as a historian?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-groundbreaking-was-marx-as-a-historian/965934)
**Author:** [@griffin1977](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/griffin1977)\ **Replies:** 11\ **Last updated:** [June 21, 2022, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-groundbreaking-was-marx-as-a-historian/965934 "2022-06-21T17:38:53Z")
So ignoring his political conclusions and predictions, how does Karl Max stack up purely as a historian? Was his approach to history actually ground breaking and innovative by 19th century standards? Were there other h… --- ## [Charges of sex assault w/ voluntarily intoxicated victims](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/charges-of-sex-assault-w-voluntarily-intoxicated-victims/966387)
**Author:** [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Replies:** 40\ **Last updated:** [June 19, 2022, 6:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/charges-of-sex-assault-w-voluntarily-intoxicated-victims/966387 "2022-06-19T06:23:05Z")
I read an article about a new IL law in which the fact that a victim voluntarily became intoxicated does not preclude charges of sexual assault, under the idea that the intoxicated person could not consent. From the law… --- ## [Homeless encampments](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/homeless-encampments/965527)
**Author:** [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Replies:** 93\ **Last updated:** [June 16, 2022, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/homeless-encampments/965527 "2022-06-16T22:15:40Z")
In theory, it might be supposed that homeless encampments are built by down-on-their-luck people trying to makeshift the best they can for themselves. That sounds compassionate. And yet the reality is that these either a… --- ## [Hiring someone for an end, without specifying the means?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hiring-someone-for-an-end-without-specifying-the-means/965811)
**Author:** [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Replies:** 17\ **Last updated:** [June 15, 2022, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hiring-someone-for-an-end-without-specifying-the-means/965811 "2022-06-15T00:07:04Z")
Came across this in a novel, but (a) I’m looking for a factual answer, and (b) I’m interested in maybe changing up the details, to discuss what matters — and what should matter, which is why I’m erring on the side of fig… --- ## [On the ethics of doing business with tyrants](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/on-the-ethics-of-doing-business-with-tyrants/966033)
**Author:** [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Replies:** 26\ **Last updated:** [June 12, 2022, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/on-the-ethics-of-doing-business-with-tyrants/966033 "2022-06-12T23:03:04Z")
This is a spin-off of the thread in the Game Room about the LIV golf league, but I think there’s a bigger issue here, which goes beyond sports. Not infrequently (such as with the golf league), there’s a controversy abou… --- ## [Why does it have to be all or nothing with abortion?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-it-have-to-be-all-or-nothing-with-abortion/963939)
**Author:** [@JakeRS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JakeRS)\ **Replies:** 262\ **Last updated:** [June 12, 2022, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-it-have-to-be-all-or-nothing-with-abortion/963939 "2022-06-12T20:27:35Z")
I don’t understand either the pro or anti abortion extremists, why does one always have to completely ignore the rest and not try to find a middle ground? It’s not even that hard, imagine this, abortion allowed for ever… --- ## [Rhetoric Study as a Salve for Misinformation](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rhetoric-study-as-a-salve-for-misinformation/964694)
**Author:** [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Replies:** 26\ **Last updated:** [June 11, 2022, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rhetoric-study-as-a-salve-for-misinformation/964694 "2022-06-11T19:39:41Z")
As I understand it, schools used to teach rhetoric - the art of persuasion and debate - to school children. This was before my time, so I have no exposure to it, but I do know that one of the most effective educational e… --- ## [Russia may be about to invade Ukraine. {Russia has invaded as of Feb 24-2022}](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/russia-may-be-about-to-invade-ukraine-russia-has-invaded-as-of-feb-24-2022/939699)
**Author:** [@Fotheringay-Phipps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fotheringay-Phipps)\ **Replies:** 1100\ **Last updated:** [June 11, 2022, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/russia-may-be-about-to-invade-ukraine-russia-has-invaded-as-of-feb-24-2022/939699 "2022-06-11T01:47:25Z")
Russia Warns of Full-Scale War in Eastern Ukraine, Blames Kyiv The recent deployment of Russian troops along Ukraine’s border and Moscow’s indication that it could intervene in the event of a full-scale war in eastern … --- ## [What if Lee won at Gettysburg?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-if-lee-won-at-gettysburg/965941)
**Author:** [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Replies:** 10\ **Last updated:** [June 10, 2022, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-if-lee-won-at-gettysburg/965941 "2022-06-10T23:53:31Z")
No this is not “Would the CSA had won the war?” Everything I had read says he planned to Get supplies at Harrisburg ??? Profit First of all it makes more sense given the support in Maryland than Pennsylvania that he … --- ## [Minmaxing gun laws](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minmaxing-gun-laws/965515)
**Author:** [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Replies:** 130\ **Last updated:** [June 10, 2022, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minmaxing-gun-laws/965515 "2022-06-10T17:37:12Z")
As suggested by What Exit, I’m hoping to have a focused discussion of gun laws. To wit: what policy measures could be passed that would minimize the deleterious effects on gun owners, while maximizing the protection to h… --- ## [On "antiwork" and necessary labor](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/on-antiwork-and-necessary-labor/963671)
**Author:** [@steronz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/steronz)\ **Replies:** 284\ **Last updated:** [June 9, 2022, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/on-antiwork-and-necessary-labor/963671 "2022-06-09T20:43:03Z")
Many news cycles ago the conservative media had a field day with a “disastrous” interview between Fox News host Jesse Watters and a moderator of the antiwork subreddit. While I think it’s unreasonable to expect a loosel… --- ## [Why is the legal system involved in the shareholder/corporation relationship?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-legal-system-involved-in-the-shareholder-corporation-relationship/963181)
**Author:** [@nate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nate)\ **Replies:** 32\ **Last updated:** [June 8, 2022, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-legal-system-involved-in-the-shareholder-corporation-relationship/963181 "2022-06-08T20:00:02Z")
Shareholders can legitimately sue corporations for not acting in the best interest of the shareholder. But why is the legal system involved in this? Shouldn’t the solution be for the shareholder to sell their shares if t… --- ## [Why did the Patriarchs live so long?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-the-patriarchs-live-so-long/357046)
**Author:** [@Jebus\_H.Christ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jebus_H.Christ)\ **Replies:** 60\ **Last updated:** [June 8, 2022, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-the-patriarchs-live-so-long/357046 "2022-06-08T15:04:34Z")
Below is a link to a website that graphes the ages of the Patriarchs in the Bible (I link only for the graph, not their reasons). Why were the lifespans of the Patriarchs so much longer? Is it supposed to say something a… --- ## [DopeZine vol. 1: The Long Bust](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dopezine-vol-1-the-long-bust/965536)
**Author:** [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Replies:** 24\ **Last updated:** [June 7, 2022, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dopezine-vol-1-the-long-bust/965536 "2022-06-07T01:09:37Z")
… takes deep breath… Welcome to DopeZine vol. 1,\*“The Long Bust”: Wired Magazine’s ‘\*The Long Boom’ 25 Years On”, a collection of original pieces from just some of the Straight Dope Message Board’s most appreciated writ… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/great-debates/13.md?page=25) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/great-debates/13.md?page=27)