# Great Debates **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/c/great-debates/13.md?page=862 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 863 --- ## [Jon Stewart August 04, 2005](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jon-stewart-august-04-2005/315669)
**Author:** [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Replies:** 109\ **Last updated:** [August 8, 2005, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jon-stewart-august-04-2005/315669 "2005-08-08T20:58:53Z")
Opening Dialogue was killer tonight. Let me get this right, I heard/saw Bill O’Reilly equate ACLU to terror supporters? WTF But wait it gets worse, he’s tell John McCain about the effectiveness of torture. How does he… --- ## [Agnostics, what would make you believe in God?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/agnostics-what-would-make-you-believe-in-god/314572)
**Author:** [@Chairman\_Pow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chairman_Pow)\ **Replies:** 197\ **Last updated:** [August 8, 2005, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/agnostics-what-would-make-you-believe-in-god/314572 "2005-08-08T20:25:00Z")
Or Goddess, or G-d(s), etc.? I’ve been thinking about this one lately. I’d consider myself an atheist, but there seems to be a lot of stuff that doesn’t fit well with a purely scientific view of the universe. To me, thi… --- ## [Would you divorce your spouse if they got a severe mental handicap in accident?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-divorce-your-spouse-if-they-got-a-severe-mental-handicap-in-accident/315820)
**Author:** [@billsfootballbuffulo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billsfootballbuffulo)\ **Replies:** 25\ **Last updated:** [August 8, 2005, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-divorce-your-spouse-if-they-got-a-severe-mental-handicap-in-accident/315820 "2005-08-08T20:11:42Z")
My friend and I got into an argument about this the other day. I said I would divorce my wife if the injury was really bad. We were talking about an injury that leaves the person with the mental capacity of a 3 year old.… --- ## [How/when will the US era as superpower end?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-when-will-the-us-era-as-superpower-end/315481)
**Author:** [@Charlie\_Tan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Charlie_Tan)\ **Replies:** 54\ **Last updated:** [August 8, 2005, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-when-will-the-us-era-as-superpower-end/315481 "2005-08-08T18:18:09Z")
If it’s one thing we can learn from history, it’s than no empire is forever. Rome, Ottoman, England, Germany, France… All controlled or influenced a sizeable chunk outside their own immediate country at one time and does… --- ## [Ending the war early between GB and Germany in WW2](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ending-the-war-early-between-gb-and-germany-in-ww2/315704)
**Author:** [@ParadoxMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ParadoxMan)\ **Replies:** 9\ **Last updated:** [August 8, 2005, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ending-the-war-early-between-gb-and-germany-in-ww2/315704 "2005-08-08T17:59:43Z")
What would have made Great Britain sue for peace or accept peace in WW2 before Germany invaded Russia? What kind of agreement would have had to been reached? Would GB accept nothing less than complete and unconditional… --- ## [For Jewish readers: Could Satan raise someone from the dead?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/for-jewish-readers-could-satan-raise-someone-from-the-dead/315894)
**Author:** [@rfgdxm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rfgdxm)\ **Replies:** 19\ **Last updated:** [August 8, 2005, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/for-jewish-readers-could-satan-raise-someone-from-the-dead/315894 "2005-08-08T17:30:16Z")
After reading the latest drive-by witnessing post, I had a thought. This witness held that the resurrection of Jesus proved he was the Messiah. I realize that it takes more than that based on Hebrew scripture to fulfill … --- ## [As president of Mexico, how would Obrador relate to the U.S.?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/as-president-of-mexico-how-would-obrador-relate-to-the-u-s/316068)
**Author:** [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [August 8, 2005, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/as-president-of-mexico-how-would-obrador-relate-to-the-u-s/316068 "2005-08-08T17:27:34Z")
Manuel Lopez Obrador (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andrés\_Manuel\_López\_Obrador), former mayor of Mexico City, will be running next year as the presidential candidate of the left-wing Party of the Democratic Revolution (h… --- ## [Should John Bolton be U.S. Ambassador to the UN?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-john-bolton-be-u-s-ambassador-to-the-un/293971)
**Author:** [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Replies:** 117\ **Last updated:** [August 8, 2005, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-john-bolton-be-u-s-ambassador-to-the-un/293971 "2005-08-08T16:45:58Z")
Bush has announced his nominee for the next U.S. Ambassador to the UN: John R. Bolton, who is currently Undersecretary of State for Arms Control and International Security. http://www.iht.com/articles/2005/03/07/news/n… --- ## [Is George W. Bush anti-intellectual?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-george-w-bush-anti-intellectual/315591)
**Author:** [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Replies:** 107\ **Last updated:** [August 8, 2005, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-george-w-bush-anti-intellectual/315591 "2005-08-08T16:16:15Z")
Walloon wants to know why I describe George W. Bush as “anti-intellectual.” It was a side issue in the thread in question, so I started a new thread. Anti-intellectualism is a pose affected by many politicians to appeal… --- ## [Test Case: Bush v Blair - Guantanamo and Rendition](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/test-case-bush-v-blair-guantanamo-and-rendition/314865)
**Author:** [@Pjen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pjen)\ **Replies:** 25\ **Last updated:** [August 8, 2005, 1:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/test-case-bush-v-blair-guantanamo-and-rendition/314865 "2005-08-08T13:16:55Z")
So the British Government and the Bush Administration are at loggerheads over the fate of a British Citizen: The British position is that he is a British Citizen and any extra-legal action against him (transfer to Git… --- ## [Responses to an Israeli's act of terrorism: Reason to hope?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/responses-to-an-israelis-act-of-terrorism-reason-to-hope/315923)
**Author:** [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Replies:** 10\ **Last updated:** [August 8, 2005, 3:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/responses-to-an-israelis-act-of-terrorism-reason-to-hope/315923 "2005-08-08T03:31:19Z")
A lone Israeli army deserter has committed an act of terror, shooting up a bus full of Arab Israelis. A very tragic event. But the responses are reason for hope: It seems that the Israeli government is responding well … --- ## [Is the U.S. a dictatorship?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-u-s-a-dictatorship/315230)
**Author:** [@rwjefferson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rwjefferson)\ **Replies:** 125\ **Last updated:** [August 8, 2005, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-u-s-a-dictatorship/315230 "2005-08-08T02:37:09Z")
Is the U.S. a dictatorship? I always understood that people had unalienable rights and that governments were instituted to secure these rights. I always understood that these were the founding principles, the precedenc… --- ## [Why do conservatives/Repubs hate the UN?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-conservatives-repubs-hate-the-un/315274)
**Author:** [@Soylent\_Gene](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Soylent_Gene)\ **Replies:** 84\ **Last updated:** [August 7, 2005, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-conservatives-repubs-hate-the-un/315274 "2005-08-07T22:28:34Z")
My theory (based on perception) is that conservatives ala John Bolton and President Bush hate the UN because it gives a voice to crummy third world countries populated by dark-skinned people who are only looking for a ha… --- ## [The Ethics of Playing Poker in Illegal Card Rooms](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-ethics-of-playing-poker-in-illegal-card-rooms/315340)
**Author:** [@Pashnish\_Ewing](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pashnish_Ewing)\ **Replies:** 32\ **Last updated:** [August 7, 2005, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-ethics-of-playing-poker-in-illegal-card-rooms/315340 "2005-08-07T18:05:08Z")
I enjoy playing poker. For money. Face-to-face against other humans. Now as I understand it, here in Texas, home poker games are not illegal as long as the “house” doesn’t take a cut. My problem is, not many of my friend… --- ## [Opinions of US improving throughout the world](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/opinions-of-us-improving-throughout-the-world/314990)
**Author:** [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Replies:** 18\ **Last updated:** [August 7, 2005, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/opinions-of-us-improving-throughout-the-world/314990 "2005-08-07T17:49:56Z")
There’s an interesting article in the LA Times today, decribing a new PEW survey that shows support for the U.S. increasing all over the world, including the Muslim world: I wonder if this isn’t partially an effect of … --- ## [A question about Heaven and Hell](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-about-heaven-and-hell/313936)
**Author:** [@MrJimsus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrJimsus)\ **Replies:** 28\ **Last updated:** [August 7, 2005, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-about-heaven-and-hell/313936 "2005-08-07T16:47:21Z")
Hello SD, I’m a long time reader but thought of this question the other day and decided it needed addressing on the site I know I can trust to give insightful ideas. Anyone is welcome to give their thoughts but I’m spec… --- ## [Justice Roberts: Do we need ANOTHER hardcore Catholic on the Supreme Court?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/justice-roberts-do-we-need-another-hardcore-catholic-on-the-supreme-court/315324)
**Author:** [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Replies:** 144\ **Last updated:** [August 7, 2005, 6:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/justice-roberts-do-we-need-another-hardcore-catholic-on-the-supreme-court/315324 "2005-08-07T06:02:54Z")
We already have three Catholics on the Supreme Court: Scalia, Thomas and Kennedy. Two of those Catholics, Scalia and Thomas, are arguably part of the Troglodyte Right. They never saw a civil right they liked. Affirmativ… --- ## [The Iraq War - the good parts](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-iraq-war-the-good-parts/314984)
**Author:** [@Soylent\_Gene](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Soylent_Gene)\ **Replies:** 31\ **Last updated:** [August 6, 2005, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-iraq-war-the-good-parts/314984 "2005-08-06T19:51:23Z")
I have strongly opposed attack on Iraq from day one, so I’m biased against any Cheneyesque or Rumsfeldian spin about how good this war is for whole world. But, I think it’s fair to step back and consider \*\*the good thin… --- ## [What should the NHL do to boost sales?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-the-nhl-do-to-boost-sales/315852)
**Author:** [@souroranges](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/souroranges)\ **Replies:** 8\ **Last updated:** [August 6, 2005, 12:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-the-nhl-do-to-boost-sales/315852 "2005-08-06T12:41:27Z")
NHL season is starting soon! Aren’t you excited?! (No? Me neither. :wink: ) The NHL, or the National Hockey League, will start its first season after last year’s season-closing strike. While I admit that I am not a die… --- ## [IRA declares end to armed resistance: what are the chances?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ira-declares-end-to-armed-resistance-what-are-the-chances/314635)
**Author:** [@Enterprise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enterprise)\ **Replies:** 8\ **Last updated:** [August 6, 2005, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ira-declares-end-to-armed-resistance-what-are-the-chances/314635 "2005-08-06T01:11:33Z")
Guardian Article Is it just me (and Prime Minister Blair) who thinks that this is a gleam of light in the otherwise rather dreary news from the terrorism front? I find it especially meaningful in the light of the last … --- ## [PC overboard - can't mention race in crime lookouts?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pc-overboard-cant-mention-race-in-crime-lookouts/315458)
**Author:** [@Bricker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bricker)\ **Replies:** 33\ **Last updated:** [August 5, 2005, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pc-overboard-cant-mention-race-in-crime-lookouts/315458 "2005-08-05T22:13:36Z")
In this article, which ran last week in the Washington Post, the paper’s ombudsman looks at the Post’s reporting of a tragic crime in which a gang of four men shot and killed two victims, separately, in the course of com… --- ## [Big Oil vs. NRA...Dun Dun Dunn-n-n-n](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-oil-vs-nra-dun-dun-dunn-n-n-n/315332)
**Author:** [@Gangster\_Octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gangster_Octopus)\ **Replies:** 92\ **Last updated:** [August 5, 2005, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-oil-vs-nra-dun-dun-dunn-n-n-n/315332 "2005-08-05T18:44:28Z")
So it seems the NRA is annoyed with ConocoPhillips because they fired some employees who had guns in their cars at the company parking facilities. Link Personally, I agree with ConocoPhillips, simply because I think th… --- ## ["The Crazy Years," or Beware of Nehemiah Scudder](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-crazy-years-or-beware-of-nehemiah-scudder/315494)
**Author:** [@Polycarp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Polycarp)\ **Replies:** 13\ **Last updated:** [August 5, 2005, 1:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-crazy-years-or-beware-of-nehemiah-scudder/315494 "2005-08-05T13:07:52Z")
One of the most depressing quotes in all literature: So what is this quote doing in Great Debates, not Café Society? It has been my theme, almost to one-trick pony status, that the polarization and extreme statements … --- ## [Bill Gates for President - One Million Dollars to Every Person in America](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bill-gates-for-president-one-million-dollars-to-every-person-in-america/315498)
**Author:** [@billsfootballbuffulo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billsfootballbuffulo)\ **Replies:** 30\ **Last updated:** [August 5, 2005, 4:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bill-gates-for-president-one-million-dollars-to-every-person-in-america/315498 "2005-08-05T04:18:41Z")
Could Bill Gates run on the platform that if he was elected President he would give 1 million dollars to every person in America? Or would this be illegal? To assure the people he would actually give the money he could … --- ## [Reversing two recent Supreme Court decisions](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/reversing-two-recent-supreme-court-decisions/315501)
**Author:** [@Nobody](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nobody)\ **Replies:** 32\ **Last updated:** [August 5, 2005, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/reversing-two-recent-supreme-court-decisions/315501 "2005-08-05T02:55:57Z")
Hello. First, I want to say, I’m not sure if this question belongs here, but I wasn’t sure where to post it, so if a Mod or Admin chooses to move it, well then, I guess I’m making you work for a living, aren’t I … --- ## [Why is everybody so scared of human cloning?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-everybody-so-scared-of-human-cloning/314826)
**Author:** [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Replies:** 55\ **Last updated:** [August 5, 2005, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-everybody-so-scared-of-human-cloning/314826 "2005-08-05T01:11:21Z")
Bill Frist, majority leader of the Senate, has decided to break with the Bush Administration and support embryonic stem-cell research (see this thread: “Bill Frist embraces science, rejects Bush.” – http://boards.straig… --- ## [Rove treason coverup investigation widens to include Gonzalez](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rove-treason-coverup-investigation-widens-to-include-gonzalez/314039)
**Author:** [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Replies:** 171\ **Last updated:** [August 4, 2005, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rove-treason-coverup-investigation-widens-to-include-gonzalez/314039 "2005-08-04T21:53:26Z")
I heard on Air America today that Attorney General Alberto Gonzalez is the latest suspect to be implicated in the investigation of the Rove treason case. Seems that Gonzalez, in his role as White House counsel, was notif… --- ## [We Deserve to be Terrorized](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-deserve-to-be-terrorized/315020)
**Author:** [@masheene\_comcast.net](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/masheene_comcast.net)\ **Replies:** 113\ **Last updated:** [August 4, 2005, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-deserve-to-be-terrorized/315020 "2005-08-04T19:10:12Z")
Everyone remembers 9/11. It was a horrible day for humanity and America. However, I am becoming more and more sympathetic to the views of the rest of the world that America is a huge conglomeration of snobs and underedu… --- ## [Let's debate DR-CAFTA](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-debate-dr-cafta/309300)
**Author:** [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Replies:** 18\ **Last updated:** [August 4, 2005, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-debate-dr-cafta/309300 "2005-08-04T18:23:57Z")
There wasn’t that much interest in this thread – “Let’s debate DR-CAFTA and FTAA vs. CARICOM and CSN” – http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=316971 – maybe because I tried to bring in too many interrelate… --- ## [Bill Frist embraces science, rejects Bush.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bill-frist-embraces-science-rejects-bush/314748)
**Author:** [@Chance\_the\_Gardener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chance_the_Gardener)\ **Replies:** 29\ **Last updated:** [August 4, 2005, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bill-frist-embraces-science-rejects-bush/314748 "2005-08-04T16:32:14Z")
Apparently, Senator Frist has decided to back stem cell research, which is cheesing off the Christian right, of course. He’s won praise from Senators Reid and Kennedy, as well as Senator Specter. Nice of you to drop in… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/great-debates/13.md?page=861) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/great-debates/13.md?page=863)