# Great Debates **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/c/great-debates/13.md?page=635 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 636 --- ## [Electoral Malaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electoral-malaise/447298)
**Author:** [@focusonz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/focusonz)\ **Replies:** 20\ **Last updated:** [May 13, 2008, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electoral-malaise/447298 "2008-05-13T02:18:30Z")
As of 4/28 on SDMB threads Hillary voters: will you choose Obama or McCain McCain – 4 (23%) because Issues and Experience! Abstain – 1 (5%) Obama – 12 (70%) because Oh Well, with hope! Total – 17 (of 52 post) Ob… --- ## [Atheistic doubt.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atheistic-doubt/448202)
**Author:** [@Lobsang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobsang)\ **Replies:** 80\ **Last updated:** [May 12, 2008, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atheistic-doubt/448202 "2008-05-12T23:36:08Z")
I fully understand all the arguments in atheism which explain existence (universe, planets, our planet) and our existence (animals, humans, us, me) but there are times when the sheer magnificence of it, that it all happ… --- ## [Why can't we all just get long... w/o hating?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-cant-we-all-just-get-long-w-o-hating/447931)
**Author:** [@smiling\_bandit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smiling_bandit)\ **Replies:** 54\ **Last updated:** [May 12, 2008, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-cant-we-all-just-get-long-w-o-hating/447931 "2008-05-12T22:11:28Z")
Something has been bothering me an awful lot in the modern world, and it’s something which ahs essentuially never changed since humans were around. It seems like groups of uhmans cannot disagree without imputing insanity… --- ## [Saucer-Shaped Space Ships.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saucer-shaped-space-ships/448665)
**Author:** [@Jim\_B](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_B)\ **Replies:** 38\ **Last updated:** [May 12, 2008, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saucer-shaped-space-ships/448665 "2008-05-12T21:33:41Z")
I have been thru numerous websites that claim to have evidence of extraterrestrial space ships visiting earth. I am very skeptical of them all. But one thing I have noticed is most of the space ships they claim to have e… --- ## [German Re-Unification: Incomplete?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/german-re-unification-incomplete/448910)
**Author:** [@ralph124c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ralph124c)\ **Replies:** 11\ **Last updated:** [May 12, 2008, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/german-re-unification-incomplete/448910 "2008-05-12T20:26:39Z")
As we all know, East and West Germany unified, after the fall of communism. My question: what about East Prussia? It was part of the German Empire, and it was germanic for centuries before that. So, shouldn’t Poland retu… --- ## [Catholic Bishops to withhold Parish information from Mormons to prevent re-baptisms](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/catholic-bishops-to-withhold-parish-information-from-mormons-to-prevent-re-baptisms/448033)
**Author:** [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Replies:** 188\ **Last updated:** [May 12, 2008, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/catholic-bishops-to-withhold-parish-information-from-mormons-to-prevent-re-baptisms/448033 "2008-05-12T17:01:53Z")
This was kind of unusual --- ## [How much more inflation will these tax rebates cause?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-more-inflation-will-these-tax-rebates-cause/448850)
**Author:** [@DaveRaver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DaveRaver)\ **Replies:** 6\ **Last updated:** [May 12, 2008, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-more-inflation-will-these-tax-rebates-cause/448850 "2008-05-12T15:45:22Z")
The treasury is printing extra hundreds of dollars for every U.S. tax payer, so won’t that make inflation a lot worse? (I’ll take the money anyway.) :rolleyes: --- ## [The Zoned Life--exacerbating our dependence on petroleum?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-zoned-life-exacerbating-our-dependence-on-petroleum/448237)
**Author:** [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Replies:** 59\ **Last updated:** [May 12, 2008, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-zoned-life-exacerbating-our-dependence-on-petroleum/448237 "2008-05-12T14:02:49Z")
I’ve heard often that one of the major reasons American cities and suburbs are the way they are is zoning laws, which result in mile after square mile of single family houses, whose occupants have to commute tens of mile… --- ## [Should it matter if so-and-so is "élite"?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-it-matter-if-so-and-so-is-elite/448339)
**Author:** [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Replies:** 20\ **Last updated:** [May 12, 2008, 3:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-it-matter-if-so-and-so-is-elite/448339 "2008-05-12T03:30:52Z")
There’s a lot of noise about whether Obama is élitist. I think two things are being conflated here. Someone can be in the “élite” (a station anyone taken seriously as a candidate for POTUS can be said to have attained) w… --- ## [Viability of the new "air taxi" business model](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/viability-of-the-new-air-taxi-business-model/448976)
**Author:** [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Replies:** 3\ **Last updated:** [May 12, 2008, 1:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/viability-of-the-new-air-taxi-business-model/448976 "2008-05-12T01:56:25Z")
Back in 2001, James Fallows predicted, in a front-page article in the Atlantic Monthly, that the real future of air travel in America would be, not the huge airliners operating out of major commercial airports, but small… --- ## [Leopold II of Belgium and Justice](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/leopold-ii-of-belgium-and-justice/448657)
**Author:** [@Two\_and\_a\_Half\_Inches\_of\_Fun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Two_and_a_Half_Inches_of_Fun)\ **Replies:** 56\ **Last updated:** [May 12, 2008, 12:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/leopold-ii-of-belgium-and-justice/448657 "2008-05-12T00:27:26Z")
Some people have a hard time reconciling Hitler with a just world. I see no major problem created by Hitler for believing in a just world―he did get some level of comeuppance (it was inadequate to his crimes). Is there … --- ## [Mecca Time to Replace GMT????](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mecca-time-to-replace-gmt/446510)
**Author:** [@kitemaker\_chuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kitemaker_chuck)\ **Replies:** 40\ **Last updated:** [May 11, 2008, 9:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mecca-time-to-replace-gmt/446510 "2008-05-11T21:23:23Z")
Have any fellow Dopers heard anything about a movement afoot to replace GMT with Mecca Time?? I’m asking this question because I heard just the final part of this on the radio, and I haven’t heard or seen anything else … --- ## [Should America stockpile grain?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-america-stockpile-grain/448426)
**Author:** [@LonesomePolecat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LonesomePolecat)\ **Replies:** 22\ **Last updated:** [May 11, 2008, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-america-stockpile-grain/448426 "2008-05-11T19:05:03Z")
We all know the world has changed. India and China, once impoverished, now have robust economies. Middle class Westerners now must compete with an emerging middle class in Asia for grain. We also have to compete with th… --- ## [Why the hell would anyone want to be VP?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-the-hell-would-anyone-want-to-be-vp/448605)
**Author:** [@Menocchio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Menocchio)\ **Replies:** 35\ **Last updated:** [May 11, 2008, 7:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-the-hell-would-anyone-want-to-be-vp/448605 "2008-05-11T07:50:07Z")
It’s been suggested recently that the Democratic nominee should try to heal the rifts in the party by making the losing candidate his or her running mate. I don’t think Clinton or Obama would accept a chance to be VP. … --- ## [Free Will - Does it exist?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/free-will-does-it-exist/439983)
**Author:** [@Anomalous\_Reading](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anomalous_Reading)\ **Replies:** 396\ **Last updated:** [May 10, 2008, 10:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/free-will-does-it-exist/439983 "2008-05-10T22:30:41Z")
Before a complete hijack happens here, I’d like to pose the question to the group at large. Does free will exist? There are a few threads active at the moment that hinge on free will existing, yet… I don’t think it ex… --- ## [The brain IS the personality](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-brain-is-the-personality/446750)
**Author:** [@mswas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mswas)\ **Replies:** 105\ **Last updated:** [May 10, 2008, 10:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-brain-is-the-personality/446750 "2008-05-10T22:10:17Z")
Der Trihs made this comment. He said that when a brain surgeon does brain surgery he is TOUCHING your personality. Is the brain the actual personality? Now before strawmen get introduced. I am not asking: If the br… --- ## [Hillary loaned herself another $6.4 million last month](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hillary-loaned-herself-another-6-4-million-last-month/448424)
**Author:** [@Liberal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Liberal)\ **Replies:** 35\ **Last updated:** [May 10, 2008, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hillary-loaned-herself-another-6-4-million-last-month/448424 "2008-05-10T17:43:17Z")
MSNBC just announced a disclosure from the the Clinton campaign that Hillary did what any of us ordinary people whose problems she shares would do — she loaned herself enough money to buy a couple of homes in the Hampton… --- ## [HRC Fans: Still think the main stream media is unbiased?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hrc-fans-still-think-the-main-stream-media-is-unbiased/448464)
**Author:** [@What\_the](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_the)\ **Replies:** 50\ **Last updated:** [May 10, 2008, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hrc-fans-still-think-the-main-stream-media-is-unbiased/448464 "2008-05-10T14:05:53Z")
You may have noticed the joy today now that Obama is close to finishing her off. Here’s a link to comments from a Salon editor you may not have seen. --- ## [How Hillary Can Unite the Party by Staying In The Race](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-hillary-can-unite-the-party-by-staying-in-the-race/448564)
**Author:** [@Jurph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jurph)\ **Replies:** 12\ **Last updated:** [May 10, 2008, 12:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-hillary-can-unite-the-party-by-staying-in-the-race/448564 "2008-05-10T12:30:26Z")
You probably think I’m crazy for suggesting such a thing. If you haven’t been reading the Forking threads carefully you might have missed my allegiance to Obama, and my strong preference that he follow George W. Bush’s d… --- ## [Is the "obesity crisis" affecting the societal standard of "normal" weight?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-obesity-crisis-affecting-the-societal-standard-of-normal-weight/447954)
**Author:** [@Leaper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaper)\ **Replies:** 45\ **Last updated:** [May 10, 2008, 5:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-obesity-crisis-affecting-the-societal-standard-of-normal-weight/447954 "2008-05-10T05:08:42Z")
Full disclosure: I’m a guy who weighs under 120 pounds at 5’5", so I have absolutely no idea what people who weigh more than that go through. My question was inspired by this thread, specifically by comments made there.… --- ## [Will Hillary run as an independent?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-hillary-run-as-an-independent/448636)
**Author:** [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [May 10, 2008, 3:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-hillary-run-as-an-independent/448636 "2008-05-10T03:35:41Z")
Could even she be that die-hard determined to get into the White House? Or will she hope for a McCain victory and another shot in 2012? --- ## [British side with Confederacy in 1862](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-side-with-confederacy-in-1862/448606)
**Author:** [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Replies:** 49\ **Last updated:** [May 10, 2008, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-side-with-confederacy-in-1862/448606 "2008-05-10T01:48:22Z")
Ok…enough of this politics stuff. Time for something fun. My guess is this subject has been dealt with before but as I’m currently reading Robert Conroy’s 1862 and as I didn’t want to resurrect some old thread I though… --- ## [Justice Scalia on 60 Minutes: Scary Quote](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/justice-scalia-on-60-minutes-scary-quote/447193)
**Author:** [@pingnak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pingnak)\ **Replies:** 455\ **Last updated:** [May 10, 2008, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/justice-scalia-on-60-minutes-scary-quote/447193 "2008-05-10T01:40:17Z")
This sort of made my skin crawl. A guy who claims to be interested in the ‘original intent’ of the constitution, splitting hairs and claiming TORTURE isn’t ‘cruel and unusual punishment’, because ‘it isn’t punishment’. … --- ## [The Constitution: Purpose and Proper Interpretation](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-constitution-purpose-and-proper-interpretation/448458)
**Author:** [@DSYoungEsq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSYoungEsq)\ **Replies:** 47\ **Last updated:** [May 9, 2008, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-constitution-purpose-and-proper-interpretation/448458 "2008-05-09T23:08:49Z")
This thread grows out of some concepts being batted around in the threads on Justice Scalia and the Indiana Voter ID law. I wanted to unhijack those threads by throwing into here the debate over what we should do when i… --- ## [McCain in financial trouble: Dems to blame?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mccain-in-financial-trouble-dems-to-blame/438847)
**Author:** [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Replies:** 36\ **Last updated:** [May 9, 2008, 1:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mccain-in-financial-trouble-dems-to-blame/438847 "2008-05-09T13:21:45Z")
Washington Post article here (first two paragraphs). Elaboration and spin here. And it’s his own Act of which he’s falling foul! So, conspiracy or cockup? Or, is this why Huckabee’s still in the game? --- ## [Obama turns his attention towards McCain - will dems unite sooner than later?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-turns-his-attention-towards-mccain-will-dems-unite-sooner-than-later/448691)
**Author:** [@Phlosphr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Phlosphr)\ **Replies:** 0\ **Last updated:** [May 9, 2008, 1:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-turns-his-attention-towards-mccain-will-dems-unite-sooner-than-later/448691 "2008-05-09T13:05:45Z")
Today, May 9th 2008 with several states left in the primaries - pundits, talking heads, news agencies, gardners, electricians just about everyone is saying Obama is the nominee. I certainly don’t see very many ways Obama… --- ## [All the eggs in one basket: Clinton and Obama](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/all-the-eggs-in-one-basket-clinton-and-obama/448597)
**Author:** [@Eonwe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eonwe)\ **Replies:** 19\ **Last updated:** [May 9, 2008, 10:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/all-the-eggs-in-one-basket-clinton-and-obama/448597 "2008-05-09T10:14:05Z")
Sometime in the next few months, either Clinton or Obama will become the Democratic party nominee to run for president. I’m wondering what people think about the future political careers of each one, assuming a failed b… --- ## [Oil at $1,000 per barrel?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oil-at-1-000-per-barrel/448313)
**Author:** [@Polerius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Polerius)\ **Replies:** 81\ **Last updated:** [May 9, 2008, 5:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oil-at-1-000-per-barrel/448313 "2008-05-09T05:30:07Z")
Can someone explain how oil is valued, and if there are any differences with regular companies’ stock prices? On the stock side: The price of, say, Apple stock can go to $1,000. Nothing is stopping it. As long as people… --- ## [Does God follow rules?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-god-follow-rules/448502)
**Author:** [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Replies:** 22\ **Last updated:** [May 9, 2008, 5:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-god-follow-rules/448502 "2008-05-09T05:09:59Z")
In Christian mythology, does God follow rules? He lays down rules for humanity to follow, but can he himself be capricious or act randomly? Is this the same for other Abrahamic religions, such as Islam and Judaism? --- ## [What exactly is 'elitism'? (Not a rhetorical question.)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-is-elitism-not-a-rhetorical-question/448269)
**Author:** [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Replies:** 129\ **Last updated:** [May 8, 2008, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-is-elitism-not-a-rhetorical-question/448269 "2008-05-08T18:55:02Z")
This may be more apropos for GQ or IMHO since I’m actually seeking a definition, but since 1- I’m specifically asking about it in relation to Obama 2- It requires opinion and since it’s related to the election 3- I’m … [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/great-debates/13.md?page=634) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/great-debates/13.md?page=636)