# Great Debates **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/c/great-debates/13.md?page=798 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 799 --- ## [How do you remove an evil tyrant?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-remove-an-evil-tyrant/352074)
**Author:** [@Capt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Capt)\ **Replies:** 40\ **Last updated:** [April 14, 2006, 12:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-remove-an-evil-tyrant/352074 "2006-04-14T12:36:38Z")
Especially if you want to minimize the suffering of the people? Please consider with resource constraint. What if you are an oppressed civilian with no resource? What if you are a king of a stronger country? --- ## [Is it okay to expect neighbors to supervise your children?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-to-expect-neighbors-to-supervise-your-children/352438)
**Author:** [@Frosted\_Glass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frosted_Glass)\ **Replies:** 27\ **Last updated:** [April 14, 2006, 3:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-to-expect-neighbors-to-supervise-your-children/352438 "2006-04-14T03:23:55Z")
Yesterday, while returning home from my morning run, I encountered my neighbor, from across the street, and eight of her friends. They were sitting on the front lawn as I approached my house. I greeted the neighbor, wh… --- ## [Why does Wal-Mart want to expand into inner-city neighborhoods?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-wal-mart-want-to-expand-into-inner-city-neighborhoods/351489)
**Author:** [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Replies:** 140\ **Last updated:** [April 14, 2006, 2:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-wal-mart-want-to-expand-into-inner-city-neighborhoods/351489 "2006-04-14T02:15:15Z")
Heard on All Things Considered today that Wal-Mart has plans to build 50 new stores in inner-city neighborhoods – while at the same time providing “seminars” to existing store owners on how to compete with Wal-Mart. Pub… --- ## [DJ says "coon" on the air; gets fired](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dj-says-coon-on-the-air-gets-fired/349837)
**Author:** [@Rodgers01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rodgers01)\ **Replies:** 23\ **Last updated:** [April 14, 2006, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dj-says-coon-on-the-air-gets-fired/349837 "2006-04-14T01:47:42Z")
Anyone else see this story? link A radio DJ, while praising Condoleeza Rice and talking about the possibility of her becoming NFL commissioner, says that that would be a big coup – except he accidentally says “coon.” … --- ## [Immoral vs. Unethical](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/immoral-vs-unethical/352267)
**Author:** [@The\_Hamster\_King](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Hamster_King)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [April 13, 2006, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/immoral-vs-unethical/352267 "2006-04-13T18:54:35Z")
Immoral and unethical are not synonyms, although teasing out the difference between the two can be tricky. It occured to me that a good way to understand that difference would be to come up with areas where they don’t o… --- ## [What's the story on intestinal Candida imbalances?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-story-on-intestinal-candida-imbalances/352190)
**Author:** [@Richard\_Parker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_Parker)\ **Replies:** 14\ **Last updated:** [April 13, 2006, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-story-on-intestinal-candida-imbalances/352190 "2006-04-13T17:34:59Z")
Recently, a friend of mine was diagnosed by a naturopath as having high level of Candida in his body. Sort of a non-genital yeast infection, perhaps centered in the intestines, but also other parts of the body including… --- ## [Convince me that the Ivory-billed Woodpecker still exists.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/convince-me-that-the-ivory-billed-woodpecker-still-exists/352008)
**Author:** [@Orange\_Blossom\_Special](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Orange_Blossom_Special)\ **Replies:** 17\ **Last updated:** [April 13, 2006, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/convince-me-that-the-ivory-billed-woodpecker-still-exists/352008 "2006-04-13T17:34:14Z")
Why does the myth of surviving Ivory-billed Woodpeckers continue to be perpetuated? The only evidence that exists are a few eyewitness accounts, some holes in trees that are supposedly larger than the ones made by Pileat… --- ## [Justice, Fairness, and Guantanamo](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/justice-fairness-and-guantanamo/352094)
**Author:** [@Pjen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pjen)\ **Replies:** 20\ **Last updated:** [April 13, 2006, 1:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/justice-fairness-and-guantanamo/352094 "2006-04-13T13:58:00Z")
Compare and Contrast: David Hicks, an Australian is currently in Guantanamo Bay awaiting a Kangaroo court hearing His Government won’t speak for him and allows him to be illegally detained by a foreign power. However,… --- ## [What would be the best way to expel illegals and start over with legal immigration?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-be-the-best-way-to-expel-illegals-and-start-over-with-legal-immigration/351926)
**Author:** [@magellan01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/magellan01)\ **Replies:** 170\ **Last updated:** [April 12, 2006, 9:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-be-the-best-way-to-expel-illegals-and-start-over-with-legal-immigration/351926 "2006-04-12T21:52:22Z")
Okay, we’ve been hearing as part of the immigration debate that nothing can be done about the 11 or 12 million illegals that are already here. That as a practical matter, no one is going to round them all up (whether we … --- ## [DA in duke case Vowes to Keep Investigating](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/da-in-duke-case-vowes-to-keep-investigating/352371)
**Author:** [@iluvurmom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iluvurmom)\ **Replies:** 6\ **Last updated:** [April 12, 2006, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/da-in-duke-case-vowes-to-keep-investigating/352371 "2006-04-12T18:37:27Z")
I have very missed feelings on this but I am pleased to see that the DA is promising to continue to investigate. Although the DNA evidence has come back negaitve so far- I thik there is alot of circumstancial evidence s… --- ## [End gerrymandering! Take redistricting away from the state legislatures!](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/end-gerrymandering-take-redistricting-away-from-the-state-legislatures/302087)
**Author:** [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Replies:** 78\ **Last updated:** [April 12, 2006, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/end-gerrymandering-take-redistricting-away-from-the-state-legislatures/302087 "2006-04-12T16:38:55Z")
In the United States, immediately following each decennial census\* we reapportion our legislative districts – both for state legislatures and for the U.S. House of Representatives – to correct for population shifts and m… --- ## [Adventures in Alternate History: What would happen if America never expanded](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adventures-in-alternate-history-what-would-happen-if-america-never-expanded/352275)
**Author:** [@Stentor\_2.5](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stentor_2.5)\ **Replies:** 21\ **Last updated:** [April 12, 2006, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adventures-in-alternate-history-what-would-happen-if-america-never-expanded/352275 "2006-04-12T15:29:36Z")
Let us imagine that America never expanded beyond the borders of the original thirteen states. We’ll assume that the Revolutionary War did occur, and we still won. But we never annexed Florida, never made the Louisiana… --- ## [The legacy of Jimmy Carter](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-legacy-of-jimmy-carter/349886)
**Author:** [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Replies:** 106\ **Last updated:** [April 12, 2006, 12:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-legacy-of-jimmy-carter/349886 "2006-04-12T12:57:01Z")
Jimmy Carter is a favorite whipping boy for Republicans, who love to point to his presidency as a colossal failure. Jokes abound. But I have to say that if any president, present or past, can even halfway match the leg… --- ## [Silvio Berlusconi Loses in Italy- Who is now left in the Coalition of the Willing?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silvio-berlusconi-loses-in-italy-who-is-now-left-in-the-coalition-of-the-willing/352097)
**Author:** [@Pjen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pjen)\ **Replies:** 33\ **Last updated:** [April 12, 2006, 8:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silvio-berlusconi-loses-in-italy-who-is-now-left-in-the-coalition-of-the-willing/352097 "2006-04-12T08:28:08Z")
As per the tread title. Berlusconi has lost and Prodi has won. Prodi is anti the Iraq coalition and more pro European and less pro American than Berlusconi. With Spain gone the same way, which meaningful allies are no… --- ## [Why is Mars undergoing global warming?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-mars-undergoing-global-warming/350778)
**Author:** [@Flash\_Dancer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flash_Dancer)\ **Replies:** 148\ **Last updated:** [April 12, 2006, 5:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-mars-undergoing-global-warming/350778 "2006-04-12T05:58:16Z")
SUV’s, pollution, etc. … ? --- ## [Will Communism in China die with a bang or a whimper?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-communism-in-china-die-with-a-bang-or-a-whimper/351998)
**Author:** [@Muad\_Dib](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muad_Dib)\ **Replies:** 31\ **Last updated:** [April 12, 2006, 4:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-communism-in-china-die-with-a-bang-or-a-whimper/351998 "2006-04-12T04:32:21Z")
I wonder if it will eventually go out as peacefully as the Soviet Bloc did. The Chinese government seems willing to compromise on anything so long as their basic and total power is left untouched. It is that frightened d… --- ## [What to do about immigration?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-to-do-about-immigration/350258)
**Author:** [@zamboniracer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zamboniracer)\ **Replies:** 268\ **Last updated:** [April 12, 2006, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-to-do-about-immigration/350258 "2006-04-12T02:16:17Z")
What do we do about illegal immigrants? Heck if I know. Recently thousands took to the street to oppose Sen. Bill Frist’s proposal to make it a felony to be in the country without proper documentation. My gut reaction i… --- ## [Illegal immigrants to pay back taxes](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/illegal-immigrants-to-pay-back-taxes/351927)
**Author:** [@suezeekay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/suezeekay)\ **Replies:** 14\ **Last updated:** [April 11, 2006, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/illegal-immigrants-to-pay-back-taxes/351927 "2006-04-11T19:41:11Z")
Part of the proposed legislations in regard to illegal immigrants is to require them to pay back taxes. This is ridiculous. If they come out of “hiding” which they would feel safe to do at that point, they could file … --- ## [Prayer. I don't get it.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prayer-i-dont-get-it/350617)
**Author:** [@Malice](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malice)\ **Replies:** 76\ **Last updated:** [April 11, 2006, 11:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prayer-i-dont-get-it/350617 "2006-04-11T11:28:41Z")
Prayer is encouraged by many faiths, but the more I think about it, the more I wonder why it is not ignored – or actually discouraged – because I think people pray for these reasons, chiefly: Gratitude Ask for things G… --- ## [Believers, why are you sure that god has the right moral values?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/believers-why-are-you-sure-that-god-has-the-right-moral-values/351942)
**Author:** [@mr.jp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mr.jp)\ **Replies:** 115\ **Last updated:** [April 11, 2006, 6:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/believers-why-are-you-sure-that-god-has-the-right-moral-values/351942 "2006-04-11T06:45:45Z")
Let us say that god exists, and that the old testament is not just another bronze age text, but an accurate account of the existence of a very powerful being and his doings. But why does the fact that he is powerful mea… --- ## ["Time-shifting" TV shows via the Internet](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-shifting-tv-shows-via-the-internet/352174)
**Author:** [@Alan\_Smithee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alan_Smithee)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [April 11, 2006, 5:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-shifting-tv-shows-via-the-internet/352174 "2006-04-11T05:07:03Z")
I rarely get a chance to watch the new Doctor Who episodes on Fridays when they are broadcast on the SciFi channel. Instead, I have my mother record them on her DVR and I come by later in the week and watch them. (I sk… --- ## ["Oh, Lord..." - God's name in vain?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-lord-gods-name-in-vain/352026)
**Author:** [@Race\_Bannon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Race_Bannon)\ **Replies:** 6\ **Last updated:** [April 10, 2006, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-lord-gods-name-in-vain/352026 "2006-04-10T22:06:29Z")
I spent a couple days as a chaperone for a high school trip. During some free time, a couple of other parents were discussing religion (they were Baptist, Lutheran, and perhaps other Christian denomniations) one of the… --- ## [Is Afrocentrism Legitimate Scholasticism?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-afrocentrism-legitimate-scholasticism/351380)
**Author:** [@Odesio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Odesio)\ **Replies:** 66\ **Last updated:** [April 10, 2006, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-afrocentrism-legitimate-scholasticism/351380 "2006-04-10T20:24:28Z")
The title says it all. My only experience with Afrocentrism is reading a few unflattering articles and that’s not good enough to form a solid opinion. If I’m incorrect, that’s fine, I don’t mind being shown the truth. … --- ## [Lost Gospel, the Judas Gospel?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lost-gospel-the-judas-gospel/351650)
**Author:** [@PatriotX](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PatriotX)\ **Replies:** 74\ **Last updated:** [April 10, 2006, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lost-gospel-the-judas-gospel/351650 "2006-04-10T18:48:46Z")
Are we gonna add a new book to the Bible? http://www9.nationalgeographic.com/lostgospel/index.html The National Geographic Society has been part of an international effort, in collaboration with the Maecenas Foundation… --- ## [How Will the United States End?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-will-the-united-states-end/351175)
**Author:** [@The\_Hamster\_King](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Hamster_King)\ **Replies:** 88\ **Last updated:** [April 10, 2006, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-will-the-united-states-end/351175 "2006-04-10T14:46:48Z")
(I started a similar thread a couple of years ago and it got quickly derailed, so I’m trying it again and being a little more specific in the OP.) Nothing lasts forever. Great nations rise and fall. Great kings die an… --- ## [Illegal immigrant, Let's be honest](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/illegal-immigrant-lets-be-honest/352051)
**Author:** [@Janx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Janx)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [April 10, 2006, 8:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/illegal-immigrant-lets-be-honest/352051 "2006-04-10T08:43:10Z")
Would you rather have millions of illegal Mexicans here, who are by and large Christians, or millions of illegal Islamic devotees coming in? Every generation has had it’s “immigrant” problem. Please DO NOT tell me the … --- ## [The new UCC ad](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-ucc-ad/350977)
**Author:** [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Replies:** 62\ **Last updated:** [April 10, 2006, 4:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-ucc-ad/350977 "2006-04-10T04:41:30Z")
The United Church of Christ will debut a new ad tomorrow showing churches using ejecter buttons in the pews to “eject” those that don’t fit. This ad is probably even more controversial than the bouncer ads from 2004. No… --- ## [Massachusetts makes health insurance mandatory](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/massachusetts-makes-health-insurance-mandatory/351429)
**Author:** [@Diceman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diceman)\ **Replies:** 49\ **Last updated:** [April 10, 2006, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/massachusetts-makes-health-insurance-mandatory/351429 "2006-04-10T02:47:22Z")
Apparently, Massachusetts will require everyone to have health insurance. From what I heard on the news this morning, they’re going to offer insurance companies “incentives” to offer insurance to low-income families. A… --- ## [Whose "Mafia" Is the Strongest Now?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whose-mafia-is-the-strongest-now/351664)
**Author:** [@rippingtons\_fan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rippingtons_fan)\ **Replies:** 9\ **Last updated:** [April 10, 2006, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whose-mafia-is-the-strongest-now/351664 "2006-04-10T00:28:30Z")
Currently, (in the USA for example), whose organised crime organisation is the most dominant, (the strongest or most pervasive?) (For our purposes, let’s exclude government for the time being.) Does the Italian Mafia st… --- ## [Sirhan Sirhan](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sirhan-sirhan/351866)
**Author:** [@Johanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johanna)\ **Replies:** 12\ **Last updated:** [April 9, 2006, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sirhan-sirhan/351866 "2006-04-09T22:09:44Z")
In a recent thread on hypnosis, the question arose whether anything really happens when someone is hypnotized, or if it’s all bunkum. I brought up the question of how Sirhan Sirhan allegedly “hypnotized himself” as was r… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/great-debates/13.md?page=797) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/great-debates/13.md?page=799)