# Great Debates **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/c/great-debates/13.md?page=853 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 854 --- ## [Re accident where a US pilot killed 20 Italian people & walked away legally](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/re-accident-where-a-us-pilot-killed-20-italian-people-walked-away-legally/321104)
**Author:** [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Replies:** 20\ **Last updated:** [September 13, 2005, 6:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/re-accident-where-a-us-pilot-killed-20-italian-people-walked-away-legally/321104 "2005-09-13T06:15:22Z")
Not so much a debate as an international legal question, but I think it’s more appropriate for this forum. Mods move if you must. Some years ago on Feb. 3, 1998, a US Military jet pilot was hot-dogging around in the Ita… --- ## [File Sharing is good for American music](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/file-sharing-is-good-for-american-music/320579)
**Author:** [@Argent\_Towers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Argent_Towers)\ **Replies:** 48\ **Last updated:** [September 13, 2005, 2:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/file-sharing-is-good-for-american-music/320579 "2005-09-13T02:04:21Z")
I’m not encouraging illegal file sharing since that would be going against this board’s policy. On the other hand, I think that it is good for American music. Rock music has become corporatized, and if the bloated corpo… --- ## [Hey, you get to appoint the entire Supreme Court!](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-you-get-to-appoint-the-entire-supreme-court/320693)
**Author:** [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Replies:** 31\ **Last updated:** [September 12, 2005, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-you-get-to-appoint-the-entire-supreme-court/320693 "2005-09-12T15:05:59Z")
So you’re the President. Not Dubya, not Clinton; it’s you. You da man (or woman), and the White House is your crib. One day your Oval Office phone rings, and the Attorney General, aghast, tells you that the entire Sup… --- ## [Katrina and the liberterian POV](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/katrina-and-the-liberterian-pov/321110)
**Author:** [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Replies:** 22\ **Last updated:** [September 12, 2005, 4:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/katrina-and-the-liberterian-pov/321110 "2005-09-12T04:32:03Z")
While it appears that Bush has been biggering government in many venues, in FEMA he did indeed implement a downsizing and attempted a reshifting of responsibility off of a federal and into more local and subcontracted ve… --- ## [Proportional Representation in the US](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/proportional-representation-in-the-us/319067)
**Author:** [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Replies:** 95\ **Last updated:** [September 12, 2005, 3:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/proportional-representation-in-the-us/319067 "2005-09-12T03:13:12Z")
How would politics be affected in the United States if the members of both the Senate and the House of Representatives were also to be elected by a proportional basis? What would the votes of the citizens of the smalles… --- ## [What exactly did Bush do to prepare for Katrina hitting New Orleans.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-did-bush-do-to-prepare-for-katrina-hitting-new-orleans/320946)
**Author:** [@I\_Know\_Nothing](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/I_Know_Nothing)\ **Replies:** 49\ **Last updated:** [September 12, 2005, 2:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-did-bush-do-to-prepare-for-katrina-hitting-new-orleans/320946 "2005-09-12T02:43:36Z")
I read the following paragraph in this NY times article before Katrina hit Florida. This article details the preparation for the four hurricanes that hit Florida in 2004. What exactly was Bush’s preparation for Katri… --- ## [Have they no sense of decency? (Criticising Bush for Katarina)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-they-no-sense-of-decency-criticising-bush-for-katarina/319423)
**Author:** [@yo\_no\_se](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yo_no_se)\ **Replies:** 186\ **Last updated:** [September 12, 2005, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-they-no-sense-of-decency-criticising-bush-for-katarina/319423 "2005-09-12T02:17:08Z")
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE\_ID=46059 The obstructionists are already politicizing Katrina against our President. Will the screeching ever stop? Isn’t it absolutely shameful? I am sickened by… --- ## [Would it be possible to elevate NO above sea level, piecemeal?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-it-be-possible-to-elevate-no-above-sea-level-piecemeal/320068)
**Author:** [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Replies:** 11\ **Last updated:** [September 12, 2005, 2:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-it-be-possible-to-elevate-no-above-sea-level-piecemeal/320068 "2005-09-12T02:09:07Z")
When the water is finally pumped out of New Orleans, a lot of the city is going to remain irretrievably ruined. I’ve been to NO – most people appear to live in one-storey wood-frame houses, and they’re not going to be g… --- ## [FEMA bureaucracy at work: refugees virtually institutionalized?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fema-bureaucracy-at-work-refugees-virtually-institutionalized/321178)
**Author:** [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Replies:** 0\ **Last updated:** [September 12, 2005, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fema-bureaucracy-at-work-refugees-virtually-institutionalized/321178 "2005-09-12T02:06:27Z")
The hosting site appears to be one of those tinfoil-hatteries, and at least one contributor to the thread pokes holes in the more lurid descriptions of this FEMA operation as being way beyond the pale, noting the ease … --- ## ["Disabled student" versus "student with disability"--is one superior?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/disabled-student-versus-student-with-disability-is-one-superior/321111)
**Author:** [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Replies:** 36\ **Last updated:** [September 12, 2005, 1:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/disabled-student-versus-student-with-disability-is-one-superior/321111 "2005-09-12T01:34:11Z")
I’m having a conversation with a professor about something I wrote, in which I said that a certain teacher showed ease at working with disabled students, but betrayed a set of lowered expectations for his black students. … --- ## [Should we eliminate welfare for the middle class](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-we-eliminate-welfare-for-the-middle-class/320786)
**Author:** [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Replies:** 12\ **Last updated:** [September 11, 2005, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-we-eliminate-welfare-for-the-middle-class/320786 "2005-09-11T19:53:30Z")
There seems to be this mistaken belief that welfare is something that ‘those lazy people get’. Not true as most people on welfare pay back into the system as they are only on it a short period of time. However the idea … --- ## [Katrina; It's All Part of the Plan (by the political Right) (ed. title)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/katrina-its-all-part-of-the-plan-by-the-political-right-ed-title/320595)
**Author:** [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Replies:** 42\ **Last updated:** [September 11, 2005, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/katrina-its-all-part-of-the-plan-by-the-political-right-ed-title/320595 "2005-09-11T18:55:18Z")
Look, guys, I know that all this death and suffering can bring you down. But, look, it’s all part of the plan, and, after all, you can’t make an omelette without breaking a few eggs. You might have to go through a few ca… --- ## [What went wrong with the space program? Contemplations on a 1962 "Sci. American"](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-went-wrong-with-the-space-program-contemplations-on-a-1962-sci-american/320122)
**Author:** [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Replies:** 22\ **Last updated:** [September 11, 2005, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-went-wrong-with-the-space-program-contemplations-on-a-1962-sci-american/320122 "2005-09-11T17:42:16Z")
Some time ago I came across a discarded issue of Scientific American from 1962. Looking at that one issue, I find ads full of optimism for tremendous strides in space exploration which were obviously around the corner: … --- ## [What effect (if any) will the constant criticism of Bush have(another Katrina debate)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-effect-if-any-will-the-constant-criticism-of-bush-have-another-katrina-debate/321050)
**Author:** [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Replies:** 18\ **Last updated:** [September 11, 2005, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-effect-if-any-will-the-constant-criticism-of-bush-have-another-katrina-debate/321050 "2005-09-11T17:33:18Z")
Yikes…not ANOTHER Katrina debate, right? :eek: And I’ve generally tried to stay out of the fray on this one…content to mostly hang back and watch as things develop, interjecting my opinions only lightly in the mounta… --- ## [Humans are Becoming Genetically Less Intelligent](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/humans-are-becoming-genetically-less-intelligent/320863)
**Author:** [@Asian-American](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asian-American)\ **Replies:** 53\ **Last updated:** [September 11, 2005, 6:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/humans-are-becoming-genetically-less-intelligent/320863 "2005-09-11T06:19:21Z")
1. Human intelligence is largely hereditary. 2. Civilization depends totally upon innate intelligence. Without innate intelligence, civilization would never have been created. When intelligence declines, so does civiliz… --- ## [Two part question on the Republican party](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/two-part-question-on-the-republican-party/320957)
**Author:** [@Enderw24](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enderw24)\ **Replies:** 18\ **Last updated:** [September 11, 2005, 6:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/two-part-question-on-the-republican-party/320957 "2005-09-11T06:01:36Z")
What does the Republican party stand for? Given your definition, is the President a Republican? Pretty simple, but I’d just like the opinion of others. I’d also like this to not get into a snarky Bush Bash. --- ## ["The President \[doesn't care about\] black people." (ed. title)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-president-doesnt-care-about-black-people-ed-title/320534)
**Author:** [@Biggirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biggirl)\ **Replies:** 138\ **Last updated:** [September 11, 2005, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-president-doesnt-care-about-black-people-ed-title/320534 "2005-09-11T03:48:37Z")
Kanye West’s comments during a relief concert were dismissed as out of place and rude-- which they were. That is not how you go about raising money for disaster victims. But, as monstro put it in another thread: Race is … --- ## [Castro offers to send aid to Katrina victims; no response](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/castro-offers-to-send-aid-to-katrina-victims-no-response/320229)
**Author:** [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Replies:** 46\ **Last updated:** [September 11, 2005, 12:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/castro-offers-to-send-aid-to-katrina-victims-no-response/320229 "2005-09-11T00:50:52Z")
Cuban President Fidel Castro has offered to send 1,500 doctors and 26 tons of supplies and equipment to aid the victims of Hurricane Katrina, but after 48 hours the U.S. government still has made no response. http://www… --- ## [Beyond immediate politics Katrina may be a boon to conservatives philosophically](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beyond-immediate-politics-katrina-may-be-a-boon-to-conservatives-philosophically/320196)
**Author:** [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Replies:** 37\ **Last updated:** [September 10, 2005, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beyond-immediate-politics-katrina-may-be-a-boon-to-conservatives-philosophically/320196 "2005-09-10T22:25:28Z")
I was reading this George Will opinion piece and he made some good points re the liberal and conservative reactions to Katrina. For many the notion of societal security is likely to trump social justice concerns re the … --- ## [Top 10 tanks of all time: Make your picks](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-10-tanks-of-all-time-make-your-picks/320947)
**Author:** [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Replies:** 16\ **Last updated:** [September 10, 2005, 9:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-10-tanks-of-all-time-make-your-picks/320947 "2005-09-10T21:35:36Z")
Was watching the military channel tonight and they had an interesting show on, rating the 10 top tanks of all time. They rated the tanks on the following factors: Firepower Fear Factor Mobility Armor/Protection Pro… --- ## [In a bisexual culture would single sex preference be considered evil & mentally ill](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-a-bisexual-culture-would-single-sex-preference-be-considered-evil-mentally-ill/320446)
**Author:** [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Replies:** 16\ **Last updated:** [September 10, 2005, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-a-bisexual-culture-would-single-sex-preference-be-considered-evil-mentally-ill/320446 "2005-09-10T19:00:33Z")
If we lived in a society that held bisexual relationships up as the norm in sexual relations, would people who only prefer sex with one partner of either the same or opposite sex be treated as badly as homosexuals are in… --- ## [Rate my tract...](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rate-my-tract/320791)
**Author:** [@FriarTed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FriarTed)\ **Replies:** 29\ **Last updated:** [September 10, 2005, 7:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rate-my-tract/320791 "2005-09-10T07:49:23Z")
This is GD, because it’s religious & witnessing, tho what I’m asking for is a critique as to how clearly I express the ideas- what issues it raises that I could clarify, keeping in mind that I want to keep it to one pa… --- ## [Was Rehnquist the worst Chief Justice in US history?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-rehnquist-the-worst-chief-justice-in-us-history/320057)
**Author:** [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Replies:** 62\ **Last updated:** [September 10, 2005, 6:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-rehnquist-the-worst-chief-justice-in-us-history/320057 "2005-09-10T06:00:37Z")
It would be hard to top Roger Taney for that, of course. The Dred Scott decision that made the Civil War inevitable secured his place in history, and illustrated what a decision motivated by solely an ideology of jurisp… --- ## [How can a Jew argue with God...and win?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-a-jew-argue-with-god-and-win/319700)
**Author:** [@Atticus\_Finch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atticus_Finch)\ **Replies:** 47\ **Last updated:** [September 10, 2005, 1:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-a-jew-argue-with-god-and-win/319700 "2005-09-10T01:49:40Z")
I was reading some Talmudic stories and was struck by this one: As I understand this story, the scholars have argued with God, directly contradicting his voice from heaven and a variety of miracles. More surprisingly,… --- ## [Rebuilding New Orleans: land-grab opportunity?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rebuilding-new-orleans-land-grab-opportunity/320020)
**Author:** [@rjung](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rjung)\ **Replies:** 19\ **Last updated:** [September 10, 2005, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rebuilding-new-orleans-land-grab-opportunity/320020 "2005-09-10T00:57:24Z")
(Not sure if this belongs in GD or GQ, but given the potential for heated speculation, I’ll try GD for now…) My understanding is that a lot of the homes that got destroyed by Hurricane Katrina and the ensuing levee brea… --- ## [NO's problems were really caused by the "welfare state" attitudes of the homeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nos-problems-were-really-caused-by-the-welfare-state-attitudes-of-the-homeless/320388)
**Author:** [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Replies:** 58\ **Last updated:** [September 9, 2005, 9:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nos-problems-were-really-caused-by-the-welfare-state-attitudes-of-the-homeless/320388 "2005-09-09T21:23:32Z")
So says this guy the Intellectual Activist. He has different take on the roots of the bad behavior after the disaster. Does his perspective have any validity at all? \[An Unnatural Disaster: A Hurricane Exposes the Man-M… --- ## [FEMA : It's not just Brown.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fema-its-not-just-brown/320846)
**Author:** [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [September 9, 2005, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fema-its-not-just-brown/320846 "2005-09-09T19:28:48Z")
Michael Brown wasn’t the only political crony that Bush put in to run FEMA. Top FEMA officials were Bush political appointees These people need to be kicked out, and people who know how to do their jobs need to replac… --- ## [Katrina aftermatch blamed on ... Bill Clinton?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/katrina-aftermatch-blamed-on-bill-clinton/320801)
**Author:** [@elmwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elmwood)\ **Replies:** 14\ **Last updated:** [September 9, 2005, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/katrina-aftermatch-blamed-on-bill-clinton/320801 "2005-09-09T19:09:58Z")
I knew it was coming. Some red pundits are starting to put the blame for the Katrina aftermath not on Bush, not on local authorities, but on Bill Clinton. While conservatives criticize liberals for “politicizing”, the… --- ## [Alternate Presidencies & Katrina...](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alternate-presidencies-katrina/320792)
**Author:** [@FriarTed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FriarTed)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [September 9, 2005, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alternate-presidencies-katrina/320792 "2005-09-09T18:57:10Z")
My twice-voted-for President Bush & his FEMA/DHS flunkies dropped the ball on Katrina, just as did the La & NO gov’ts- there was a general “stuck on stupid” mode at all three levels. (Thanks to Craig Crawford for that ph… --- ## [polytheism versus monotheism](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polytheism-versus-monotheism/320374)
**Author:** [@rainy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rainy)\ **Replies:** 23\ **Last updated:** [September 9, 2005, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polytheism-versus-monotheism/320374 "2005-09-09T14:34:10Z")
Stipulation: for the purposes of this thread, I want to talk about religions / mythologies strictly as a construct of man, and leave what may or may not be the truth with a capital “T” out. Why did polytheistic religion… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/great-debates/13.md?page=852) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/great-debates/13.md?page=854)