# Great Debates **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/c/great-debates/13.md?page=280 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 281 --- ## [Should the government be able to require that NGOs uphold certain behaviors in order to get funding?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-government-be-able-to-require-that-ngos-uphold-certain-behaviors-in-order-to-get-funding/656539)
**Author:** [@Tastes\_of\_Chocolate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tastes_of_Chocolate)\ **Replies:** 37\ **Last updated:** [April 28, 2013, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-government-be-able-to-require-that-ngos-uphold-certain-behaviors-in-order-to-get-funding/656539 "2013-04-28T23:40:44Z")
Yesterday the US Supreme Court heard arguments on if US funding to anti-AIDS/HIV groups could be tied to requirements that those groups follow a set stance anti-prostitution stance. Bloomberg’s Article, Washington TimesF… --- ## [why would legal polygamy be such a problem?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-legal-polygamy-be-such-a-problem/655536)
**Author:** [@Alzarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alzarian)\ **Replies:** 83\ **Last updated:** [April 28, 2013, 9:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-legal-polygamy-be-such-a-problem/655536 "2013-04-28T21:57:08Z")
A very popular “argument” used by politicians who wish to stand in the way of progress… er, gay marriage, is that it would somehow create a slippery slope that would lead to other forms of marriage, such as polygamy, bes… --- ## [Everything is rigged](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/everything-is-rigged/656864)
**Author:** [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [April 27, 2013, 11:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/everything-is-rigged/656864 "2013-04-27T23:07:01Z")
According to Rolling Stones magazine, the international swaps market, the interest rates based on it, and perhaps ultimately the price of everything that is bought and sold, is rigged at the top by the major players: A… --- ## [Discrimination at CVS against Asians?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discrimination-at-cvs-against-asians/656082)
**Author:** [@UltraVires](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UltraVires)\ **Replies:** 104\ **Last updated:** [April 27, 2013, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discrimination-at-cvs-against-asians/656082 "2013-04-27T20:48:13Z")
Okay, some moron employee referred to a customer of Korean descent, Ms. Lee, as “Ching Chong” Lee on her receipt for identification purposes. Is/should this be actionable? I say “no.” I simply chalk this up to genera… --- ## [Why should "In God We Trust" be on our currency?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-should-in-god-we-trust-be-on-our-currency/654633)
**Author:** [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Replies:** 237\ **Last updated:** [April 27, 2013, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-should-in-god-we-trust-be-on-our-currency/654633 "2013-04-27T19:34:33Z")
Is there any reason why the phrase “In God We Trust” should be kept on our currency? If you would object to it’s removal, please tell me why. --- ## [Gold As an Investment.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gold-as-an-investment/655312)
**Author:** [@Jim\_B](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_B)\ **Replies:** 84\ **Last updated:** [April 27, 2013, 1:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gold-as-an-investment/655312 "2013-04-27T13:11:16Z")
I’ve often wondered, just how good of an investment is gold? I recently heard a commercial on tv that touted it as an investment that was “never worth zero”. That may be true, but is it really a good investment? Specific… --- ## [Why was Kosovo allowed to claim North Kosovo?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-was-kosovo-allowed-to-claim-north-kosovo/656578)
**Author:** [@Apollon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Apollon)\ **Replies:** 13\ **Last updated:** [April 27, 2013, 6:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-was-kosovo-allowed-to-claim-north-kosovo/656578 "2013-04-27T06:18:13Z")
According to Wikipedia, 95% of the inhabitants of North Kosovo are Serbs. The population refuses to acknowledge that they have been separated from Serbia, and pretend they’re still being ruled from Belgrade. This situ… --- ## [The GOP must seize the center or die](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-gop-must-seize-the-center-or-die/656787)
**Author:** [@Llama\_Llogophile](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Llama_Llogophile)\ **Replies:** 38\ **Last updated:** [April 27, 2013, 5:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-gop-must-seize-the-center-or-die/656787 "2013-04-27T05:46:31Z")
NPR has a debate show called Intelligence Squared. The latest episode debated the resolution The GOP must seize the center or die. Arguing for were David Brooks and Mickey Edwards, with Ralph Reed and Laura Ingraham argu… --- ## [What is a "god"?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-a-god/655153)
**Author:** [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Replies:** 188\ **Last updated:** [April 27, 2013, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-a-god/655153 "2013-04-27T02:07:11Z")
There have been multiple threads about “God” and how we would react if there was one, but getting the OPs of these threads to pin down exactly what they mean by “God” can be like pulling teeth. What are the minimum requ… --- ## [What if Argentina & Chile were British?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-if-argentina-chile-were-british/610752)
**Author:** [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Replies:** 30\ **Last updated:** [April 27, 2013, 12:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-if-argentina-chile-were-british/610752 "2013-04-27T00:43:36Z")
Inspired by this thread. In 1589, the English retaliated for the Spanish Armada by sending an English Armada to attack Spain – it failed just as spectacularly as the Spaniards’. But consider this AH scenario: Sir Franc… --- ## [Capital gains taxes are not negatively correlated to growth](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/capital-gains-taxes-are-not-negatively-correlated-to-growth/656715)
**Author:** [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Replies:** 13\ **Last updated:** [April 26, 2013, 10:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/capital-gains-taxes-are-not-negatively-correlated-to-growth/656715 "2013-04-26T22:44:41Z")
I’m reading political posts instead of working, and I found something linked somewhere that I found interesting: Capital gains top tax rates plotted against contemporary economic gro… --- ## [The Boston Marathon Bombing Debate Thread](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-boston-marathon-bombing-debate-thread/655799)
**Author:** [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qin_Shi_Huangdi)\ **Replies:** 334\ **Last updated:** [April 26, 2013, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-boston-marathon-bombing-debate-thread/655799 "2013-04-26T19:10:11Z")
Since a lot of posts I saw in the MPSIMS thread were political, I think it would better if there was a thread here to debate the more controversial aspects of the Boston Marathon bombing. The most obvious controversial … --- ## [How soon until the Tsarnaev brothers were framed conspiracy theory takes root?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-soon-until-the-tsarnaev-brothers-were-framed-conspiracy-theory-takes-root/656215)
**Author:** [@spifflog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/spifflog)\ **Replies:** 55\ **Last updated:** [April 26, 2013, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-soon-until-the-tsarnaev-brothers-were-framed-conspiracy-theory-takes-root/656215 "2013-04-26T15:05:08Z")
While all of us are innocent until proved guilty in a court of law, in the court of public opinion, it appears that the Tsarnaev brothers are fairly guilty. “Fairly” meaning we still have to wait for more of the facts t… --- ## [Will a quarter of all women really get raped?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-a-quarter-of-all-women-really-get-raped/156364)
**Author:** [@airdisc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/airdisc)\ **Replies:** 200\ **Last updated:** [April 26, 2013, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-a-quarter-of-all-women-really-get-raped/156364 "2013-04-26T13:51:21Z")
I’ve heard from several people that 1 in 4 women will be raped some time in their lives. The statistic varies somewhat, and I’ve heard 1 in 6 as well. I think this applies to just the United States. Any truth to this? --- ## [Waco Explosion Triumph of Deregulation](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/waco-explosion-triumph-of-deregulation/656098)
**Author:** [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Replies:** 137\ **Last updated:** [April 26, 2013, 4:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/waco-explosion-triumph-of-deregulation/656098 "2013-04-26T04:21:18Z")
Rachel Maddow reports that: The middle school that was destroyed was within 1000 feet of the fertilizer plant that blew up. Lucky the explosion happened at 6:30 pm or there might be a lot of little bodies under the ru… --- ## [Is Coerced Conversion to Buddhism Unknown to History?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-coerced-conversion-to-buddhism-unknown-to-history/655425)
**Author:** [@StusBlues](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StusBlues)\ **Replies:** 52\ **Last updated:** [April 25, 2013, 2:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-coerced-conversion-to-buddhism-unknown-to-history/655425 "2013-04-25T14:01:11Z")
I’m reading What the Buddha Taught by Walpola Rahula. In his opening chapter, Dr. Rahula claims that “there is not a single example of persecution or the shedding of a drop of blood in converting people to Buddhism, or i… --- ## [What does Jihad really require of faithful Muslims](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-jihad-really-require-of-faithful-muslims/656166)
**Author:** [@HurricaneDitka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HurricaneDitka)\ **Replies:** 104\ **Last updated:** [April 25, 2013, 11:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-jihad-really-require-of-faithful-muslims/656166 "2013-04-25T11:56:13Z")
What does Jihad really require of faithful Muslims? Is it just an internal struggle for personal purification, as some on the Left seem to suggest, or does it mean pressure cooker bombs and shooting campus police, as th… --- ## [De-extinct T-Rex Synthetically?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/de-extinct-t-rex-synthetically/655423)
**Author:** [@Tibby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tibby)\ **Replies:** 56\ **Last updated:** [April 25, 2013, 7:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/de-extinct-t-rex-synthetically/655423 "2013-04-25T07:28:29Z")
Apparently, we are entering the dawn of artificial gene synthesis and on the brink of de-extincting recently extinct species. If we were to advance those disciplines and include comparative DNA sequence analysis methodol… --- ## [Fluoride - Pineal Gland blocker?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fluoride-pineal-gland-blocker/633178)
**Author:** [@thebizness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thebizness)\ **Replies:** 71\ **Last updated:** [April 25, 2013, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fluoride-pineal-gland-blocker/633178 "2013-04-25T01:16:42Z")
I’ve heard a vast collection of stories, studies and theories on this. I’m always initially a skeptic, but after becoming very interested in the human brain/pineal gland/higher consciousness, I found the studies to have… --- ## [What if Alexander Hamilton had lived?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-if-alexander-hamilton-had-lived/656443)
**Author:** [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Replies:** 39\ **Last updated:** [April 24, 2013, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-if-alexander-hamilton-had-lived/656443 "2013-04-24T22:41:30Z")
Let’s say there was no duel with Aaron Burr. Hamilton was only 49 when he died in 1804. He was one of the youngest of the Founding Fathers and could have reasonably been expected to outlast all the others. What would hav… --- ## [Let's Talk Marriages](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-marriages/656515)
**Author:** [@Enright3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enright3)\ **Replies:** 31\ **Last updated:** [April 24, 2013, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-marriages/656515 "2013-04-24T17:34:40Z")
So France has legalized gay marriage. It’s obviously a a big topic here in the USA as well. Would the issue be as big if there was a legal status of Domestic Partner that companies had to adhere to in regards to benefi… --- ## [How much should states kowtow to big employers?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-should-states-kowtow-to-big-employers/656537)
**Author:** [@Leaper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaper)\ **Replies:** 9\ **Last updated:** [April 24, 2013, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-should-states-kowtow-to-big-employers/656537 "2013-04-24T16:54:16Z")
Every time a huge corporation that employs a lot of people in multiple states makes investments in a “business friendly” state (the Carolinas seem to be a popular place of late), people (especially conservatives) in the … --- ## [Should the government be able to require that NGOs uphold certain behaviors in order to get funding?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-government-be-able-to-require-that-ngos-uphold-certain-behaviors-in-order-to-get-funding/656541)
**Author:** [@Tastes\_of\_Chocolate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tastes_of_Chocolate)\ **Replies:** 0\ **Last updated:** [April 23, 2013, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-government-be-able-to-require-that-ngos-uphold-certain-behaviors-in-order-to-get-funding/656541 "2013-04-23T21:45:52Z")
Duplicate - disregard --- ## [Why did Adam Lanza fall off the grid in 2009?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-adam-lanza-fall-off-the-grid-in-2009/656315)
**Author:** [@Tollhouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tollhouse)\ **Replies:** 156\ **Last updated:** [April 23, 2013, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-adam-lanza-fall-off-the-grid-in-2009/656315 "2013-04-23T20:09:06Z")
Why is it that the last time Adam Lanza was seen alive was back in 2009? --- ## [Ethical question: public weed smoking](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ethical-question-public-weed-smoking/656525)
**Author:** [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [April 23, 2013, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ethical-question-public-weed-smoking/656525 "2013-04-23T19:35:01Z")
I was just watching a video and this thought occurred to me. If a public figure were to go to Seattle to do an interview that would be broadcast nationally and in the course of it, light up a joint, how does that play in… --- ## [For Gun Rights Advocates - Gun control you would support?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/for-gun-rights-advocates-gun-control-you-would-support/644757)
**Author:** [@Bone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bone)\ **Replies:** 142\ **Last updated:** [April 23, 2013, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/for-gun-rights-advocates-gun-control-you-would-support/644757 "2013-04-23T16:52:02Z")
One thing that gets less attention is that many laws surrounding firearms in the US are at the state level. What may be permissible in one state is prohibited in others. I’m from CA where we have fairly restrictive law… --- ## [Bio Station Alpha](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bio-station-alpha/656380)
**Author:** [@shadowofneo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shadowofneo)\ **Replies:** 48\ **Last updated:** [April 23, 2013, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bio-station-alpha/656380 "2013-04-23T14:07:03Z")
What’s the deal? Image Fragment/Artifact? I’m sure most of you know by now there is more going on up there than meets the eye or choose some other detection method, however this is what we know/suspect. Bio Station Alph… --- ## [What was the deal with Lin Biao?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-deal-with-lin-biao/655998)
**Author:** [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Replies:** 10\ **Last updated:** [April 23, 2013, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-deal-with-lin-biao/655998 "2013-04-23T13:43:19Z")
Lin Biao for those following along at home. So what was the reason for Mao’s decision to turn on Lin? From everything I’ve heard, Lin was a pliant puppet who would never have actually led a conspiracy or tried to take o… --- ## [Why does America lose its head over 'terror' but ignore its daily gun deaths?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-america-lose-its-head-over-terror-but-ignore-its-daily-gun-deaths/656392)
**Author:** [@stui\_magpie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stui_magpie)\ **Replies:** 50\ **Last updated:** [April 23, 2013, 9:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-america-lose-its-head-over-terror-but-ignore-its-daily-gun-deaths/656392 "2013-04-23T09:02:20Z")
I saw this article in an English news site. Very thought provoking IMO. I’d be interested in opinions from US citizens. A lot of the article seems to ring true for me, but I’m not from the USA. Not a troll, not flami… --- ## [Why Is a "Real" Limb Worth more Than a Prosthetic Limb](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-a-real-limb-worth-more-than-a-prosthetic-limb/652985)
**Author:** [@Klaatu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Klaatu)\ **Replies:** 56\ **Last updated:** [April 22, 2013, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-a-real-limb-worth-more-than-a-prosthetic-limb/652985 "2013-04-22T23:29:37Z")
I am an amputee. I had my right leg chopped off above the knee in an industrial accident in 1986. I am fine. My topic is strictly about medical insurance coverage for prosthetic devices. I currently have a C-leg, which … [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/great-debates/13.md?page=279) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/great-debates/13.md?page=281)