# Great Debates **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/c/great-debates/13.md?page=541 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 542 --- ## [The Extreme Right Obama Hate is Flat Out Nuts](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-extreme-right-obama-hate-is-flat-out-nuts/493312)
**Author:** [@Stoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stoid)\ **Replies:** 219\ **Last updated:** [April 27, 2009, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-extreme-right-obama-hate-is-flat-out-nuts/493312 "2009-04-27T15:34:47Z")
Before anyone around here goes nuts…note the word “extreme”. Have you seen Huffposts slideshow of yesterday’s most offensive signs? Pretty stunning stuff. And completely disconnected from reality. And just nuts. Beca… --- ## [Pirate Bay Found Guilty](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pirate-bay-found-guilty/493430)
**Author:** [@hobscrk777](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hobscrk777)\ **Replies:** 168\ **Last updated:** [April 27, 2009, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pirate-bay-found-guilty/493430 "2009-04-27T14:20:18Z")
Stories here (Engadget), here (Gizmodo), and here (Torrent Freak). Each of the four founders has been sentenced to one year in prison and fined $905,000. Strangely, the verdict doesn’t also mandate the shutdown of the w… --- ## [How has Zionism become the new world "evil"?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-has-zionism-become-the-new-world-evil/494386)
**Author:** [@Querent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Querent)\ **Replies:** 32\ **Last updated:** [April 27, 2009, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-has-zionism-become-the-new-world-evil/494386 "2009-04-27T13:56:38Z")
:frowning: So why am I suddenly hearing all this crap about “Zionism is racism”, “Zionism is to Jews what Nazism was to Germans”? Is the Arab/Islamist propaganda so good, or is antisemitism growing again with the downtu… --- ## [Dawkins makes another innocent mistake: The Gospels](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dawkins-makes-another-innocent-mistake-the-gospels/493877)
**Author:** [@ITR\_champion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ITR_champion)\ **Replies:** 124\ **Last updated:** [April 27, 2009, 1:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dawkins-makes-another-innocent-mistake-the-gospels/493877 "2009-04-27T13:49:29Z")
In The God Delusion, Richard Dawkins says “The four Gospels that made it into the official canon were chosen, more or less arbitrarily, our of a larger sample of at least a dozen including the Gospels of Thomas, Peter, N… --- ## [How much of a problem is overpopulation for the planet?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-of-a-problem-is-overpopulation-for-the-planet/491100)
**Author:** [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Replies:** 162\ **Last updated:** [April 27, 2009, 9:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-of-a-problem-is-overpopulation-for-the-planet/491100 "2009-04-27T09:10:50Z")
In this thread Chief Pendent makes (over several posts) the following argument: Now the ploy of saying that there-is-this-other-problem-that I-think-is-bigger-so-caring-about-the-one-we-are-discussing-is-hypocritical a… --- ## [Illusions: free speech or free press?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/illusions-free-speech-or-free-press/494246)
**Author:** [@Fish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fish)\ **Replies:** 16\ **Last updated:** [April 27, 2009, 8:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/illusions-free-speech-or-free-press/494246 "2009-04-27T08:36:02Z")
Suppose there were someone — or a number of someones — with the superhero-esque ability to cast or create full-sensory illusions. As far as I can tell, it’s not illegal to lie (except in certain circumstances: filing a … --- ## [Believers: Why doesn't God save martyrs from torture and death?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/believers-why-doesnt-god-save-martyrs-from-torture-and-death/493853)
**Author:** [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Replies:** 160\ **Last updated:** [April 27, 2009, 8:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/believers-why-doesnt-god-save-martyrs-from-torture-and-death/493853 "2009-04-27T08:26:37Z")
Recently I have been listening to Leonard Cohen. One of his songs, “Joan of Arc,” is about, shockingly, Joan of Arc. Or, I should say, Saint Joan of Arc, as she is long since canonized. Given that the Roman Catholic C… --- ## [What's With All The Jew Hate?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-all-the-jew-hate/494021)
**Author:** [@tr0psn4j](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tr0psn4j)\ **Replies:** 99\ **Last updated:** [April 27, 2009, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-all-the-jew-hate/494021 "2009-04-27T03:48:14Z")
Ive lost count of the number of people who think Jews rule this world and run all the major businesses and therefore they’re bad. It’s completely futile trying to engage in an argument involving that line of thought too. … --- ## [Would Peru and Chile Actually Go To War?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-peru-and-chile-actually-go-to-war/494348)
**Author:** [@ralph124c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ralph124c)\ **Replies:** 6\ **Last updated:** [April 27, 2009, 1:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-peru-and-chile-actually-go-to-war/494348 "2009-04-27T01:34:30Z")
I was browsing youtube, and a saw something that I thought very strange…all kinds of video clips projecting a war between Chile and Peru. Why would such a war take place? As I recall, the last conflict was in 1881 (the… --- ## [Low carbon fuels](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/low-carbon-fuels/494398)
**Author:** [@Dog80](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dog80)\ **Replies:** 3\ **Last updated:** [April 26, 2009, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/low-carbon-fuels/494398 "2009-04-26T21:07:39Z")
Calif. approves nation’s 1st low-carbon fuel rule According to the article, low-carbon doesn’t refer to the fuel itself but rather the whole process of manufacturing, handling and transporting the fuel. But how is this… --- ## [Why is the Godwin's Law corollary considered valid in the first place?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-godwins-law-corollary-considered-valid-in-the-first-place/493961)
**Author:** [@tclouie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tclouie)\ **Replies:** 11\ **Last updated:** [April 26, 2009, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-godwins-law-corollary-considered-valid-in-the-first-place/493961 "2009-04-26T19:25:48Z")
For reference: Godwin's law - Wikipedia As far as I can tell, the original Godwin’s Law merely states that the longer a discussion thread goes on, the closer the probability of comparisons to Hitler and Nazis being empl… --- ## [Will Pakistan be the terrorists' gateway to nukes?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-pakistan-be-the-terrorists-gateway-to-nukes/494125)
**Author:** [@Sinaijon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sinaijon)\ **Replies:** 26\ **Last updated:** [April 26, 2009, 9:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-pakistan-be-the-terrorists-gateway-to-nukes/494125 "2009-04-26T09:32:32Z")
http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2009/04/22/clinton-pakistan-swat765.html Last week, Pakistan basically ceded a bunch of territory to the Taliban in exchange for a cease fire. However, it didn’t take long for the militan… --- ## [Did any good come of Lincoln's assassination?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-any-good-come-of-lincolns-assassination/494244)
**Author:** [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Replies:** 21\ **Last updated:** [April 26, 2009, 1:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-any-good-come-of-lincolns-assassination/494244 "2009-04-26T01:03:02Z")
Garfield’s death spurred civil service reform. McKinley’s death brought Theodore Roosevelt, a much better President IMHO, to office. Kennedy’s death enabled LBJ to get JFK’s domestic program, and much more, through Con… --- ## [How Did Janet Napolitano Get her Job?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-janet-napolitano-get-her-job/494020)
**Author:** [@ralph124c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ralph124c)\ **Replies:** 38\ **Last updated:** [April 25, 2009, 11:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-janet-napolitano-get-her-job/494020 "2009-04-25T23:35:07Z")
I was just reading her latest revelation…that Canada allowed the 9/11 tragedy to happen! This after her ridiculous memo , accusing US Army veterans of being right-wing terrorists! This woman appears to have the mentalty… --- ## [What if the US Had Purchased the Gadsden Purchase as Originally Envisioned?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-if-the-us-had-purchased-the-gadsden-purchase-as-originally-envisioned/494235)
**Author:** [@Ephemera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ephemera)\ **Replies:** 9\ **Last updated:** [April 25, 2009, 2:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-if-the-us-had-purchased-the-gadsden-purchase-as-originally-envisioned/494235 "2009-04-25T14:16:06Z")
The Gadsden Purchase is a 29,670-square-mile region in southern Arizona and southwestern New Mexico that was purchased from Mexico by the United States in a treaty signed in 1853. Its purchase was intended to allow the c… --- ## [Why are some right wing leaders and spokespeople toying with the idea of civil war?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-right-wing-leaders-and-spokespeople-toying-with-the-idea-of-civil-war/493381)
**Author:** [@Frylock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frylock)\ **Replies:** 98\ **Last updated:** [April 25, 2009, 6:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-right-wing-leaders-and-spokespeople-toying-with-the-idea-of-civil-war/493381 "2009-04-25T06:11:31Z")
I’m sure I don’t need to bring cites. Hannity ran the pole. Glenn Beck dedicated an episode to the idea. Rick Perry slips in secession talk into his interviews and speeches. Signs at the “tea bag parties” reinforced the … --- ## [In Cali: Mug people all you want, just don't carry a gun.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-cali-mug-people-all-you-want-just-dont-carry-a-gun/493929)
**Author:** [@E-Sabbath](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E-Sabbath)\ **Replies:** 35\ **Last updated:** [April 25, 2009, 5:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-cali-mug-people-all-you-want-just-dont-carry-a-gun/493929 "2009-04-25T05:38:00Z")
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=%2Fc%2Fa%2F2009%2F04%2F21%2FBAK9176EGO.DTL&feed=rss.bayarea Now, we all know the cops have no legal requirement to protect citizens from crime. But this seems interesting. App… --- ## [What are the cheapest ways to die?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-cheapest-ways-to-die/493054)
**Author:** [@Fastidiots](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fastidiots)\ **Replies:** 45\ **Last updated:** [April 25, 2009, 4:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-cheapest-ways-to-die/493054 "2009-04-25T04:03:40Z")
I live in Alberta, where we are on the doorstep of a gargantuan economic issue where we are expected to continue to provide our current level of healthcare (superb) to a massive portion of our aging population. What are … --- ## [California Dopers: After Arnold . . . Jerry Brown?!](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/california-dopers-after-arnold-jerry-brown/493916)
**Author:** [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Replies:** 23\ **Last updated:** [April 25, 2009, 3:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/california-dopers-after-arnold-jerry-brown/493916 "2009-04-25T03:04:54Z")
Apparently he’s thinking about running for a third term as governor. (Doesn’t CA have term limits? Or do they only apply to consecutive terms?) CA Dopers, does he have a shot? Is “Governor Moonbeam’s” previous admini… --- ## [I'm a moron](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-a-moron/494220)
**Author:** [@boozilu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/boozilu)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [April 24, 2009, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-a-moron/494220 "2009-04-24T15:54:35Z")
11 --- ## [High speed rail ... how well will it fly?//Obama unveils high-speed rail plan](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/high-speed-rail-how-well-will-it-fly-obama-unveils-high-speed-rail-plan/493347)
**Author:** [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Replies:** 163\ **Last updated:** [April 24, 2009, 12:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/high-speed-rail-how-well-will-it-fly-obama-unveils-high-speed-rail-plan/493347 "2009-04-24T12:41:09Z")
Back in December I had taken LaHood’s nomination to be a sign that Well now comes this. So yeah it does seem like LaHood did mean that. But will it happen and how well will it be used? --- ## [Vaccination and Autism. How wide spread is this belief?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vaccination-and-autism-how-wide-spread-is-this-belief/493231)
**Author:** [@CyclopticXander](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CyclopticXander)\ **Replies:** 100\ **Last updated:** [April 24, 2009, 12:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vaccination-and-autism-how-wide-spread-is-this-belief/493231 "2009-04-24T12:37:01Z")
From my reading it is clear what the scientific consensus on the issue is, but seeing Jenny McCarthy and Jim Carey on Larry King the other night perpetuating the myth really made me pause. How wide spread is this miscon… --- ## [Killing the last two is worse than killing two.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/killing-the-last-two-is-worse-than-killing-two/493805)
**Author:** [@Revenant\_Threshold](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revenant_Threshold)\ **Replies:** 26\ **Last updated:** [April 24, 2009, 12:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/killing-the-last-two-is-worse-than-killing-two/493805 "2009-04-24T00:43:14Z")
This thought came to me, but i’m not entirely sure I can support it. On the face of it, it seems like an “obvious” thing - if you kill the last two of a species (or one if you don’t need two), that’s a worse crime than k… --- ## [Is Dick Cheney right?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-dick-cheney-right/493833)
**Author:** [@Sinaijon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sinaijon)\ **Replies:** 185\ **Last updated:** [April 23, 2009, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-dick-cheney-right/493833 "2009-04-23T22:52:12Z")
http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2009/04/20/cheney-i-dont-think-weve-got-much-to-apologize-for/ Dick Cheney is calling for the CIA to release memos and documents detailing the successes resulting from the use of tor… --- ## [Would you have shot the gun confiscators when they came to your door?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-have-shot-the-gun-confiscators-when-they-came-to-your-door/492770)
**Author:** [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Replies:** 171\ **Last updated:** [April 23, 2009, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-have-shot-the-gun-confiscators-when-they-came-to-your-door/492770 "2009-04-23T19:35:40Z")
So, suppose you happened to be a resident of New Orleans during the Hurricane Katrina disaster, and the 2nd Amendment-supporters’ nightmare scenerio came to pass: armed government enforcers came to your door and demande… --- ## [Who are the liberal Republicans/conservative Democrats?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-the-liberal-republicans-conservative-democrats/494121)
**Author:** [@gitfiddle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gitfiddle)\ **Replies:** 6\ **Last updated:** [April 23, 2009, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-the-liberal-republicans-conservative-democrats/494121 "2009-04-23T19:22:10Z")
People so often say that you should confuse liberal/conservative with Democrat/Republican because there are supposedly liberals and conservatives in both parties. Who are they then? I’m not talking about moderates, min… --- ## [Single Chinese male/female ratios now @ 120/100. How will this effect their society?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/single-chinese-male-female-ratios-now-120-100-how-will-this-effect-their-society/493767)
**Author:** [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Replies:** 66\ **Last updated:** [April 23, 2009, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/single-chinese-male-female-ratios-now-120-100-how-will-this-effect-their-society/493767 "2009-04-23T18:49:23Z")
Per this articledoes this this imbalance have an implications for the future of Chinese society? --- ## [The glorification of ignorance](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-glorification-of-ignorance/493816)
**Author:** [@Stalky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stalky)\ **Replies:** 23\ **Last updated:** [April 23, 2009, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-glorification-of-ignorance/493816 "2009-04-23T18:38:46Z")
There’s a virtue that i run into on a fairly regular basis that always comes to baffle me on closer analysis. What the heck is virtuous about innocence? I have a kid, so I’ve been forced to really think about this firs… --- ## [South African Elections](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/south-african-elections/494066)
**Author:** [@Rodgers01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rodgers01)\ **Replies:** 3\ **Last updated:** [April 23, 2009, 12:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/south-african-elections/494066 "2009-04-23T12:47:41Z")
Last September I started a thread asking for opinions on Jacob Zuma, who seemed headed to be the next president of South Africa. The response at the time was pretty blase, and I considered my rather alarmist ignorance o… --- ## [Why did Irish Independence fracture along sectarian lines?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-irish-independence-fracture-along-sectarian-lines/493802)
**Author:** [@Valteron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Valteron)\ **Replies:** 19\ **Last updated:** [April 23, 2009, 8:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-irish-independence-fracture-along-sectarian-lines/493802 "2009-04-23T08:45:12Z")
For starters, I am NOT Irish, and I am neither a Protestant nor a Catholic but an atheist. (Aye, but are ye a Catholic atheist or a Protestant atheist?:D) I am, however, a history buff and I came across an odd and inter… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/great-debates/13.md?page=540) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/great-debates/13.md?page=542)