# Great Debates **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/c/great-debates/13.md?page=781 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 782 --- ## [Would people in the US really try to fight the military/police with hunting rifles?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-people-in-the-us-really-try-to-fight-the-military-police-with-hunting-rifles/362910)
**Author:** [@Martini\_Enfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martini_Enfield)\ **Replies:** 103\ **Last updated:** [July 4, 2006, 12:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-people-in-the-us-really-try-to-fight-the-military-police-with-hunting-rifles/362910 "2006-07-04T12:31:23Z")
Kind of inspired by a thread on the merits (or lack thereof) regarding the separate storage of firearms and ammunition, I’m reminded of a constant theme I see from a subsection of legitimate gun owners in the US- namely,… --- ## [AT&T claims to own your personal data](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/at-t-claims-to-own-your-personal-data/361656)
**Author:** [@Tastes\_of\_Chocolate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tastes_of_Chocolate)\ **Replies:** 6\ **Last updated:** [July 4, 2006, 10:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/at-t-claims-to-own-your-personal-data/361656 "2006-07-04T10:55:56Z")
AT&T put out a new privacy policy today, and is requiring customer approval as a condition of service. Per the new policy, AT&T states that they own all confidential data, not their customers, and that they can use it, … --- ## [Why so few women/minorities among Nobel Prize Winners](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-so-few-women-minorities-among-nobel-prize-winners/363002)
**Author:** [@Gestalt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gestalt)\ **Replies:** 25\ **Last updated:** [July 4, 2006, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-so-few-women-minorities-among-nobel-prize-winners/363002 "2006-07-04T03:09:52Z")
I was recently perusing a list of all the nobel prize winners, and while I wasn’t suprised at the plethora of white males in the earlier parts of the 20th century, it surprised me quite a bit that even from the 1970’s o… --- ## [Causality](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/causality/363099)
**Author:** [@BalancedSoul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BalancedSoul)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [July 4, 2006, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/causality/363099 "2006-07-04T01:04:51Z")
If its not one thing its another, you only ever hear about the ones that DID, nobod perfect, as soon as your conceived your dying, get rid of this coffee its horrible, take me roughly from behind, no not like that like t… --- ## [Is there any way Ohio can have an honest election in November?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-way-ohio-can-have-an-honest-election-in-november/362654)
**Author:** [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Replies:** 98\ **Last updated:** [July 3, 2006, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-way-ohio-can-have-an-honest-election-in-november/362654 "2006-07-03T23:34:19Z")
Kenneth Blackwell is still Ohio’s secretary of state; and, not incidentally, he’s running for governor. --- ## [Does Thomas Jefferson deserve our adulation?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-thomas-jefferson-deserve-our-adulation/362827)
**Author:** [@Valteron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Valteron)\ **Replies:** 89\ **Last updated:** [July 3, 2006, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-thomas-jefferson-deserve-our-adulation/362827 "2006-07-03T17:08:38Z")
“I have sworn upon the altar of God, eternal hostility against every form of tyranny over the mind of man.” - \[RIGHT\] – Thomas Jefferson \[/RIGHT\] Let me begin by saying straight off that I have always liked Jefferson.… --- ## ["Imperial policy" on hostages in Jerry Pournelle's CoDominium/Empire of Man universe](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/imperial-policy-on-hostages-in-jerry-pournelles-codominium-empire-of-man-universe/362957)
**Author:** [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [July 3, 2006, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/imperial-policy-on-hostages-in-jerry-pournelles-codominium-empire-of-man-universe/362957 "2006-07-03T15:27:25Z")
Inspired by this thread: In Jerry Pournelle’s SF novel King David’s Spaceship, set in his CoDominium/Empire of Man universe, it is mentioned at one point that the Empire has a very definite policy regarding hostages: I… --- ## [Were Nazi death camp guards any more "evil" than Gitmo guards? Both followed orders](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-nazi-death-camp-guards-any-more-evil-than-gitmo-guards-both-followed-orders/362847)
**Author:** [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Replies:** 45\ **Last updated:** [July 3, 2006, 2:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-nazi-death-camp-guards-any-more-evil-than-gitmo-guards-both-followed-orders/362847 "2006-07-03T02:09:50Z")
Just curious how that moral calculus pays out. People will do amazingly cruel things under the rationale of “just following orders”. Do Gitmo guards terrorizing prisoners to get information get a pass vs Nazi guards te… --- ## [If God can do anything, can God sin?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-god-can-do-anything-can-god-sin/362835)
**Author:** [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Replies:** 23\ **Last updated:** [July 2, 2006, 11:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-god-can-do-anything-can-god-sin/362835 "2006-07-02T23:37:26Z")
Much more profound than the old “make a rock so big He Himself can’t lift it” paradox, don’t you think? That goes merely to the logical implications of the concept of omnipotence. (St. Augustine said it is a sin to sup… --- ## [Incivility in Politics](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/incivility-in-politics/362931)
**Author:** [@sctrojan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sctrojan)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [July 2, 2006, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/incivility-in-politics/362931 "2006-07-02T17:30:38Z")
The rhetoric employed by the left and the right in political discourse is far too vitriolic. Because they have been so much more successful in the broadcast media, it seems that the Right is most guilty. Rush Limbaugh … --- ## [Federal Govt LOST $2 Billion on Katrina Relief-No Outrage?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/federal-govt-lost-2-billion-on-katrina-relief-no-outrage/362681)
**Author:** [@ralph124c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ralph124c)\ **Replies:** 17\ **Last updated:** [July 2, 2006, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/federal-govt-lost-2-billion-on-katrina-relief-no-outrage/362681 "2006-07-02T14:44:51Z")
Well I’m PO’d-that money was stolen-by people who never deserved to have it! The list of scams is endless-people gettin 20 $1000 debit cars, people registering for assitance who NEVER set foo in NOLA, crooked politicians… --- ## [Is this a bad thing to do?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-bad-thing-to-do/362922)
**Author:** [@Anise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anise)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [July 2, 2006, 11:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-bad-thing-to-do/362922 "2006-07-02T11:49:29Z")
So let’s say that a person broke up with her bf, because he was leaving to permanently move to Texas soon and was distancing himself from her rather than going through all the complications of dealing with a long-distanc… --- ## [Iraq insurgents make offer](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iraq-insurgents-make-offer/362598)
**Author:** [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Replies:** 40\ **Last updated:** [July 1, 2006, 9:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iraq-insurgents-make-offer/362598 "2006-07-01T09:40:40Z")
Was reading this article today and thought I’d bring it here and see what folks think: Is it a good offer? Should the US/Iraq take it seriously? CAN the US and Iraq take it seriously? What kind of guarentees could… --- ## [A Different Approach to High School Detention](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-different-approach-to-high-school-detention/362181)
**Author:** [@Siege](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siege)\ **Replies:** 28\ **Last updated:** [July 1, 2006, 7:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-different-approach-to-high-school-detention/362181 "2006-07-01T07:33:36Z")
Last night, while having dinner with the folks, they told me what a friend of theirs faced when he was given detention. He was given a difficult problem and told detention would end when he found the correct answer. No… --- ## [Social climbing: why did Presbyterians wanna be Episcopalians?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/social-climbing-why-did-presbyterians-wanna-be-episcopalians/362608)
**Author:** [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Replies:** 14\ **Last updated:** [July 1, 2006, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/social-climbing-why-did-presbyterians-wanna-be-episcopalians/362608 "2006-07-01T01:06:41Z")
My paternal great-grandfather and, from what I’ve read, quite a few other prosperous Americans in the late 1800s and early 1900s abandoned their Presbyterian faith to become Episcopalians. Was that regarded, at least by… --- ## [Post WWII policy question](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/post-wwii-policy-question/362789)
**Author:** [@stonewall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stonewall)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [June 30, 2006, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/post-wwii-policy-question/362789 "2006-06-30T22:43:41Z")
Before the end of WWII, the lines were already being drawn between the Warsaw Pact and the NATO countries. Democracy and Communism, at the most basic level. Why didn’t the US/UK et.al. force the issue after the defeat … --- ## [A radical voting proposal](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-radical-voting-proposal/362787)
**Author:** [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [June 30, 2006, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-radical-voting-proposal/362787 "2006-06-30T20:54:41Z")
In another thread, we were talking about the problem of how voters keep sending mediocre politicians to office. As others have noted in the past, the paradox is that while voters claim to want dedicated and fair minded v… --- ## [How can we end corruption in the NY Board of Education?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-we-end-corruption-in-the-ny-board-of-education/362441)
**Author:** [@romanu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/romanu)\ **Replies:** 8\ **Last updated:** [June 30, 2006, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-we-end-corruption-in-the-ny-board-of-education/362441 "2006-06-30T19:57:56Z")
Alas, my first two years as a math teacher have ended with one thing on my mind. I have not been able used the book a single time because it is not aligned with the standards. And the bottom line is that it is a poor qua… --- ## [Which party are conservatives supposed to support these days?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-party-are-conservatives-supposed-to-support-these-days/362484)
**Author:** [@zuma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zuma)\ **Replies:** 52\ **Last updated:** [June 30, 2006, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-party-are-conservatives-supposed-to-support-these-days/362484 "2006-06-30T19:30:28Z")
I am not sure who to support anymore. I support states rights, minimal government intrusion into individual rights (“Government is the problem, not the solution” - Reagan), fiscal responsibility, and all that is classic… --- ## [Eminent Domain - give Bush some credit](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eminent-domain-give-bush-some-credit/362370)
**Author:** [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Replies:** 34\ **Last updated:** [June 30, 2006, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eminent-domain-give-bush-some-credit/362370 "2006-06-30T16:33:38Z")
Dubya has restricted Federal use of Eminent Domain by Executive order. Or is this smoke and mirrors? --- ## [Are Democrats the Party of "Cut & Run" ?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-democrats-the-party-of-cut-run/361575)
**Author:** [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Replies:** 127\ **Last updated:** [June 30, 2006, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-democrats-the-party-of-cut-run/361575 "2006-06-30T13:48:49Z")
At a recent speech to a GOP fundraiser in New Hampshire, White House adviser Karl Rove accused the Democrats of “fall\[ing\] back on that party’s old pattern of cutting and running.” What exactly is this based on? When h… --- ## [on/off topic](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/on-off-topic/362110)
**Author:** [@yelimS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yelimS)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [June 30, 2006, 6:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/on-off-topic/362110 "2006-06-30T06:00:32Z")
As some of you might have noticed already, I tend to digress quite a lot. I don’t really see the problem, though - most matters, especially the ones discussed here, are too complex to understand fully if you don’t put th… --- ## [Why didn't "Bloody Mary" have her sister Elizabeth executed?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-didnt-bloody-mary-have-her-sister-elizabeth-executed/362607)
**Author:** [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Replies:** 12\ **Last updated:** [June 30, 2006, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-didnt-bloody-mary-have-her-sister-elizabeth-executed/362607 "2006-06-30T03:09:43Z")
Queen Mary died in 1558, having married the Spanish king and done her best to make England Catholic again - executing over 200 Protestants along the way - after her father Henry VIII’s break with Rome. Her half-sister P… --- ## [Appropriateness of "indian head" gold piece](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/appropriateness-of-indian-head-gold-piece/361242)
**Author:** [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Replies:** 40\ **Last updated:** [June 30, 2006, 1:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/appropriateness-of-indian-head-gold-piece/361242 "2006-06-30T01:56:12Z")
When I read that the US will be issuing a new gold piece, based on the old “buffalo nickel” design, my first thought was to wonder whether the indian head on the flip side was entirely appropriate. My frame of reference… --- ## [Should the Fourth Estate decide National Security Issues?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-fourth-estate-decide-national-security-issues/361881)
**Author:** [@magellan01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/magellan01)\ **Replies:** 93\ **Last updated:** [June 29, 2006, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-fourth-estate-decide-national-security-issues/361881 "2006-06-29T21:56:33Z")
It appears that both the NY Times and LA Times have deemed themselves the best arbiters for deciding if a secret government program to fight terrorism should be made public, stripping it of much of its usefullness. From… --- ## [Aout a previous thread with a sequence of coded prayers](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aout-a-previous-thread-with-a-sequence-of-coded-prayers/361789)
**Author:** [@ragerdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ragerdude)\ **Replies:** 13\ **Last updated:** [June 29, 2006, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aout-a-previous-thread-with-a-sequence-of-coded-prayers/361789 "2006-06-29T18:48:01Z")
I’m looking for a previous thread. (Yes, I searched.) A certain non-Christian sincerely and honestly wanted to try to reach out to see if God was there. A well-respected Christian (either Liberal or Polycarp, forgive … --- ## [Why We Keep Fighting Wars](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-we-keep-fighting-wars/362516)
**Author:** [@DanBlather](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DanBlather)\ **Replies:** 15\ **Last updated:** [June 29, 2006, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-we-keep-fighting-wars/362516 "2006-06-29T18:44:00Z")
Just saw a really sad story about the death of a Marine that was in Farenheit 9/11. Two comments by his father really struck me: I have heard this sentiment so often, for this and other wars, but it is hard to see how … --- ## [WWI-Could it Have Been Stopped?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wwi-could-it-have-been-stopped/362101)
**Author:** [@ralph124c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ralph124c)\ **Replies:** 43\ **Last updated:** [June 29, 2006, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wwi-could-it-have-been-stopped/362101 "2006-06-29T16:43:44Z")
The horrible waste of human life that was WWI was a tragedy. I’m wondering if Imperia Germany might have persued peace overtures , perhaps by 1915? If so, would the allies have accepted them? Suppose these were the terms… --- ## [Putin's Kill Order](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/putins-kill-order/362524)
**Author:** [@Loopydude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loopydude)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [June 29, 2006, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/putins-kill-order/362524 "2006-06-29T14:14:24Z")
Read about it here. The rather explicit blame laid upon the U.S. for the security situation in Iraq means this statement amounts to “Since you can’t do anything about it, we will.” So, the questions are A) Will Russia … --- ## [What will it (realistically) take: Global Warming](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-will-it-realistically-take-global-warming/361795)
**Author:** [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Replies:** 59\ **Last updated:** [June 29, 2006, 7:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-will-it-realistically-take-global-warming/361795 "2006-06-29T07:27:03Z")
I was reading today that a report was issued to Congress stating with appearent certainty that temperatures today are the hottest they have been in at least 400 years (world wide)…perhaps as long as the last 2000 years i… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/great-debates/13.md?page=780) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/great-debates/13.md?page=782)