# Great Debates **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/c/great-debates/13.md?page=560 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 561 --- ## [What made Friedman believe real-life markets are rational?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-made-friedman-believe-real-life-markets-are-rational/472252)
**Author:** [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Replies:** 95\ **Last updated:** [January 29, 2009, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-made-friedman-believe-real-life-markets-are-rational/472252 "2009-01-29T01:20:04Z")
I know little about economics in general and probably less about Milton Friedman, but what I keep hearing about him is that he believed that federal oversight of the market was unnecessary because an unregulated market w… --- ## [Is there any difference between Catholic vs. Public schools results?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-difference-between-catholic-vs-public-schools-results/482891)
**Author:** [@chacoguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chacoguy)\ **Replies:** 42\ **Last updated:** [January 29, 2009, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-difference-between-catholic-vs-public-schools-results/482891 "2009-01-29T01:06:35Z")
Expanding on THIS thread, I’m trying to find out if there is any real difference, on standard test scores, between students that attend Catholic Schools vs. Public Schools? I attended a Catholic School from 5th grade un… --- ## [The One-State Solution](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-one-state-solution/482641)
**Author:** [@Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paul_in_Qatar)\ **Replies:** 188\ **Last updated:** [January 28, 2009, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-one-state-solution/482641 "2009-01-28T23:17:16Z")
It was like reading a David Duke speech. He starts with something reasonable and your head goes north-south in agreement. He uses some nice words and the next thing you know you are nodding along with the most outlandish… --- ## [Let's start a new religion](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-start-a-new-religion/482773)
**Author:** [@chacoguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chacoguy)\ **Replies:** 21\ **Last updated:** [January 28, 2009, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-start-a-new-religion/482773 "2009-01-28T22:37:41Z")
Inspired by this thread, I’m thinking that we can produce a “How did I come to exist?” answer that is just as beautiful and amazing; but more thought provoking, than the Biblical one. --- ## [How bad is 2012 going to be?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-bad-is-2012-going-to-be/483291)
**Author:** [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Replies:** 62\ **Last updated:** [January 28, 2009, 10:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-bad-is-2012-going-to-be/483291 "2009-01-28T22:33:01Z")
Was reading this article and hurting myself with the almost constant eye rolling. The thing is…how bad are the crazies and nutcases going to be? I remember hearing that folks were going to come out of the wood work for… --- ## [Resolved: Evolutionary Biology Needs to Drop the Word "Competition"](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/resolved-evolutionary-biology-needs-to-drop-the-word-competition/482937)
**Author:** [@74westy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/74westy)\ **Replies:** 46\ **Last updated:** [January 28, 2009, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/resolved-evolutionary-biology-needs-to-drop-the-word-competition/482937 "2009-01-28T21:02:09Z")
Yesterday Mrs. 74westy and I were listening to a radio science show that discussed male fish who “compete” in the evolutionary struggle by having faster sperm than the next guy. Mrs. 74westy said something along the lin… --- ## [American Football causes horrible damage to the brain--solution?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-football-causes-horrible-damage-to-the-brain-solution/483330)
**Author:** [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\ **Replies:** 44\ **Last updated:** [January 28, 2009, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-football-causes-horrible-damage-to-the-brain-solution/483330 "2009-01-28T20:35:02Z")
A report out today entitled, by the NY Times “New Sign of Brain Damage in the NFL” is sure to stir some controversy. Basically, it shows that concussions, at least in some subset of players, perhaps 20%, seem to lead to… --- ## [Will a mixed-race president change how we regard mixed-race relationships?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-a-mixed-race-president-change-how-we-regard-mixed-race-relationships/483002)
**Author:** [@raindrop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/raindrop)\ **Replies:** 32\ **Last updated:** [January 28, 2009, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-a-mixed-race-president-change-how-we-regard-mixed-race-relationships/483002 "2009-01-28T19:44:17Z")
There have been many comments/posts about Obama’s presidency being an inspiration to blacks. But has anyone (i.e. besides me) thought about how Obama will also affect how mixed-race individuals will regard themselves? Or… --- ## [Obama makes a potentially catastrophic misstep](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-makes-a-potentially-catastrophic-misstep/482655)
**Author:** [@mswas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mswas)\ **Replies:** 100\ **Last updated:** [January 28, 2009, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-makes-a-potentially-catastrophic-misstep/482655 "2009-01-28T18:49:41Z")
China manipulating currency The accusation of currency manipulation is a pretty serious gauntlet to throw down. Currency manipulation is a serious crime and Congress is required to act on it. The government has avoide… --- ## [President Obama is off to a good start](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/president-obama-is-off-to-a-good-start/482651)
**Author:** [@rainwalker78](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rainwalker78)\ **Replies:** 53\ **Last updated:** [January 28, 2009, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/president-obama-is-off-to-a-good-start/482651 "2009-01-28T18:11:48Z")
President Obama seems to be getting off to a good start: From the link: Obama rescinded Bush’s 2001 executive order allowing former presidents, vice presidents, and their heirs to claim executive privilege in determini… --- ## [Did the atomic bomb save lives in the Cold War?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-atomic-bomb-save-lives-in-the-cold-war/483120)
**Author:** [@Absolute](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Absolute)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [January 28, 2009, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-atomic-bomb-save-lives-in-the-cold-war/483120 "2009-01-28T17:12:57Z")
Forget about World War II - did the atomic bomb stave off a large-scale, World War III-style confrontation during the Cold War, and thus save countless lives, or would we have been able to maintain peace with the USSR wi… --- ## [Should Election Day Be a National Holiday?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-election-day-be-a-national-holiday/483185)
**Author:** [@Jim\_B](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_B)\ **Replies:** 25\ **Last updated:** [January 28, 2009, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-election-day-be-a-national-holiday/483185 "2009-01-28T14:47:47Z")
This is something I have been considering for some time now. I may have even posted it on these message boards quite some time back. I honestly don’t recall. Anyways, should Election Day be a national holiday in the U.S.… --- ## [Superhighway/N. American Union](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/superhighway-n-american-union/481848)
**Author:** [@jakesteele](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jakesteele)\ **Replies:** 110\ **Last updated:** [January 28, 2009, 1:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/superhighway-n-american-union/481848 "2009-01-28T13:59:09Z")
What’s the deal with the proposed, 8-lane superhighway, the Amero (sp - like a Euro $), North American Union, etc. I keep hearing about it but most people I talk to seem to blow it off by giving it the “conspiracy nut” … --- ## [Camera Phone Predator Alert Act benefits Predators not Prey](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/camera-phone-predator-alert-act-benefits-predators-not-prey/483121)
**Author:** [@lee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lee)\ **Replies:** 51\ **Last updated:** [January 28, 2009, 6:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/camera-phone-predator-alert-act-benefits-predators-not-prey/483121 "2009-01-28T06:22:39Z")
This bill would make it so that all cell phone camera phones would make a shutter click sound when a picture is taken. This is allegedly helps alert victims that a photo is being taken, preventing covert up the skirt sho… --- ## ["Liberal Arrogance"](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/liberal-arrogance/483352)
**Author:** [@sqweels](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sqweels)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [January 28, 2009, 5:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/liberal-arrogance/483352 "2009-01-28T05:27:12Z")
So Michael Gerson decries “liberal arrogance” in the wake of the Obama victory. That some non-conservatives see in it a defeat of “yahooism” and “jingoism” and “flag-pin shallowness” and “religious zealotry” and “anti-… --- ## [Should new Portland mayor Sam Adams resign?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-new-portland-mayor-sam-adams-resign/483189)
**Author:** [@Invisible\_Chimp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Invisible_Chimp)\ **Replies:** 17\ **Last updated:** [January 28, 2009, 12:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-new-portland-mayor-sam-adams-resign/483189 "2009-01-28T00:24:01Z")
Portland mayor Sam Adams has decided to stay in office despite calls for his resignation after it was revealed that he lied about a relationship with an intern of a state representative. He began a platonic friendship(… --- ## [So what real difference did the US Revolution make?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-real-difference-did-the-us-revolution-make/482276)
**Author:** [@aldiboronti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aldiboronti)\ **Replies:** 31\ **Last updated:** [January 27, 2009, 10:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-real-difference-did-the-us-revolution-make/482276 "2009-01-27T22:33:56Z")
Had the colonists not rebelled isn’t it likely that the US would still have achieved independence eventually, as Canada did? Slavery would in all likelihood have been abolished sooner and it’s possible that the Civil War… --- ## [Speculative History: Makeup of North America Sans US Revolution](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/speculative-history-makeup-of-north-america-sans-us-revolution/482359)
**Author:** [@garygnu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/garygnu)\ **Replies:** 12\ **Last updated:** [January 27, 2009, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/speculative-history-makeup-of-north-america-sans-us-revolution/482359 "2009-01-27T22:07:45Z")
As not to hijack \[thread=502806\]this thread\[/thread\]… Let’s say, in the midst of skirmishes and battles in New England, John Dickinson gains the upper hand in the Continental Congress. During the Siege of Boston, peace … --- ## [Paul Grignon's "Money as Debt"](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-grignons-money-as-debt/482838)
**Author:** [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Replies:** 28\ **Last updated:** [January 27, 2009, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-grignons-money-as-debt/482838 "2009-01-27T20:51:47Z")
One of my friends forwarded me a link to a 47 minute video entitled Money and Debt by Paul Grignon. The video provides a history of money, the gold standard and the fractional reserve banking system. It then takes a po… --- ## [Why don't Christians Skydive?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-christians-skydive/482408)
**Author:** [@SSG\_Schwartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SSG_Schwartz)\ **Replies:** 64\ **Last updated:** [January 27, 2009, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-christians-skydive/482408 "2009-01-27T16:26:38Z")
Ok, I know some of them do, but most don’t. Most also do not swim in shark infested waters, retrieve hand grenades, or even serve in combat arms positions in the US Military. It seems to me that if there is a great rewar… --- ## [When is economic protection a good thing?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-economic-protection-a-good-thing/482191)
**Author:** [@sweeteviljesus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sweeteviljesus)\ **Replies:** 137\ **Last updated:** [January 27, 2009, 9:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-economic-protection-a-good-thing/482191 "2009-01-27T09:29:41Z")
I am reading a book that argues that the costs of economic protection in the form of tariffs and other barriers to trade almost always outweigh the benefits by a wide margin since they help to prop up vested interests at… --- ## [Who gets The Reconstruction Contracts in Gaza?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-gets-the-reconstruction-contracts-in-gaza/483117)
**Author:** [@ralph124c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ralph124c)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [January 27, 2009, 6:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-gets-the-reconstruction-contracts-in-gaza/483117 "2009-01-27T06:46:45Z")
Well, the IDF has pulled out…leaving behind over 5000 destroyed houses, and hundreds of wrecked commercial buildings. There is also infrastructure damage (sidewalks, roads, electric and water lines0 that need to be fixed… --- ## [Obama aide confirms he will end "Don't ask, don't tell" in military](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-aide-confirms-he-will-end-dont-ask-dont-tell-in-military/481331)
**Author:** [@Strassia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Strassia)\ **Replies:** 124\ **Last updated:** [January 26, 2009, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-aide-confirms-he-will-end-dont-ask-dont-tell-in-military/481331 "2009-01-26T19:53:31Z")
It seems that Obama is confirming that he will end the policy put in place by Bill Clinton in 1993. From the San Fran Chronicle: How soon do you think this will happen and what effect will it have on retention and rec… --- ## [American civilians are legitimate targets in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-civilians-are-legitimate-targets-in-the-israeli-palestinian-conflict/479819)
**Author:** [@newcrasher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/newcrasher)\ **Replies:** 487\ **Last updated:** [January 26, 2009, 10:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-civilians-are-legitimate-targets-in-the-israeli-palestinian-conflict/479819 "2009-01-26T10:03:02Z")
I posted this on my church website. I am trying to raise awareness about the suffering of the Palestinian people. I don’t think Jesus would be down with the concept. But that is a debate for another thread. The post … --- ## [Witnessing: Obama's inauguration.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/witnessing-obamas-inauguration/482163)
**Author:** [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Replies:** 60\ **Last updated:** [January 26, 2009, 10:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/witnessing-obamas-inauguration/482163 "2009-01-26T10:00:02Z")
I’m at work and was unable to hear or watch but have at least read the text of his speech. I can only assume that he delivered it well. Those of you who have heard it, what did you think? Did it hit the mark? Does it cl… --- ## [Two Completly Unrelated Debates \[furries/quotations\]](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/two-completly-unrelated-debates-furries-quotations/482828)
**Author:** [@Trepa\_Mayfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trepa_Mayfield)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [January 26, 2009, 9:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/two-completly-unrelated-debates-furries-quotations/482828 "2009-01-26T09:57:11Z")
Great Debates is rather intimidating, so these are two OPs I’ve wanted to post for a while. Firstly: In a thread about ‘The next Civil Rights movement’, someone had mentioned furries. Curious, I asked about it, but she… --- ## [Was justice fully served in the Abu Ghraib torture convictions?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-justice-fully-served-in-the-abu-ghraib-torture-convictions/481395)
**Author:** [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Replies:** 30\ **Last updated:** [January 26, 2009, 5:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-justice-fully-served-in-the-abu-ghraib-torture-convictions/481395 "2009-01-26T05:20:33Z")
In looking at the wiki of the Abu Ghraib torture and prisoner abuse convictions it doesn’t appear that they really reached very high up. Was justice fully served in those convictions, or did some higher ups escape justic… --- ## [Is there a fair way to prosecute terror suspects without compromising sources?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-fair-way-to-prosecute-terror-suspects-without-compromising-sources/482610)
**Author:** [@sweeteviljesus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sweeteviljesus)\ **Replies:** 64\ **Last updated:** [January 26, 2009, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-fair-way-to-prosecute-terror-suspects-without-compromising-sources/482610 "2009-01-26T02:27:04Z")
Subject says it all, I think. Thanks, Rob --- ## [Religion demonstrably bad for America/society?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/religion-demonstrably-bad-for-america-society/482400)
**Author:** [@gitfiddle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gitfiddle)\ **Replies:** 44\ **Last updated:** [January 25, 2009, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/religion-demonstrably-bad-for-america-society/482400 "2009-01-25T21:42:34Z")
I am presenting this out of curiosity. Please make no assumptions as to my beliefs on the subject one way or the other. From the Journal of Religion and Society, entitled “Cross-National Correlations of Quantifiable So… --- ## [Atheists, a question on the origin of the universe](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atheists-a-question-on-the-origin-of-the-universe/481880)
**Author:** [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Replies:** 131\ **Last updated:** [January 25, 2009, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atheists-a-question-on-the-origin-of-the-universe/481880 "2009-01-25T18:10:30Z")
Rather than hijack CalD’s thread, I thought this point might be worth a separate thread: I could equally rewrite this from the opposite side: “If the universe is the result of a purely physical process or event, how di… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/great-debates/13.md?page=559) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/great-debates/13.md?page=561)