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| Abortion |
| created: 09/29/00, modified: 04/13/09 |
| Should abortion be permitted? |
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| Abortion, Parental Consent |
| created: 12/02/02, modified: 06/08/05 |
| Should parental consent be required for underage pregnant women to have abortions? |
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| Adoption, International |
| created: 11/30/-1, modified: 04/06/09 |
| Should couples be banned from adopting children overseas? |
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| African Affairs, Intervention in |
| created: 11/01/00, modified: 07/14/09 |
| Should African disputes and conflicts be handled by African countries themselves, rather than by external international organisations? |
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| African Languages in African Schools |
| created: 10/31/00, modified: 05/20/09 |
| Should native tongues take precedence in African schools, or should English and other non-African languages be the languages of the school room? |
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| African Union |
| created: 05/17/03, modified: 07/24/06 |
| Should countries in Africa become a political and economic union? |
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| Age Discrimination |
| created: 11/30/-1, modified: 04/06/09 |
| Should age discrimination be made illegal in the workplace? |
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| Alcohol |
| created: 11/13/00, modified: 08/22/09 |
| Should the sale and consumption of alcohol – the world’s favourite drug – be further restricted, or even banned? |
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| Alternative Vote |
| created: 06/07/10, modified: 08/20/10 |
| Should the current electoral system be replaced with the Alternative Voting System? |
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| Anarchism |
| created: 06/24/01, modified: 08/28/09 |
| Is Anarchism a valuable political ideology? |
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| Animal Experimentation |
| created: 06/28/00, modified: 04/07/09 |
| Is it morally acceptable to experiment on non-human animals to develop products and medicines that benefit human beings? |
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| Animal Rights |
| created: 06/30/00, modified: 04/09/09 |
| Do non-human animals have rights? |
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| Anorexics, Force-Feeding of |
| created: 07/20/02, modified: 07/20/02 |
| Should the medical profession force-feed anorexics as part of their treatment? |
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| Antarctic Exploitation |
| created: 02/01/04, modified: 07/24/06 |
| Should the present ban on exploiting the resources of the Antarctic be maintained? |
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| Armed Police |
| created: 11/30/-1, modified: 04/04/09 |
| Should a police force be routinely armed? |
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| Arranged Marriages |
| created: 11/13/02, modified: 11/13/02 |
| Should arranged marriages be outlawed? |
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| ASEAN, Abolition of |
| created: 11/30/-1, modified: 04/04/09 |
| Should the Association of Southeast Asian Nations be abandoned? |
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| Aviation, international taxation of |
| created: 01/06/06, modified: 07/24/06 |
| Should aviation fuel for domestic and international flights be taxed to combat climate change? Could such a tax be used to fund development aid? Are there viable alternatives? |
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| Balance in the media |
| created: 09/04/08, modified: 06/01/10 |
| Should news broadcasters be required to be balanced and impartial in their reporting of events? |
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| Bank Bailouts |
| created: 06/12/09, modified: 05/31/10 |
| Should the government bailout banks and financial institutions? |
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| Beauty Contests |
| created: 05/17/03, modified: 05/17/03 |
| Are beauty contests harmful? |
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| Beijing Olympics, Boycott |
| created: 09/09/07, modified: 06/19/10 |
| Should we refuse to send a team to the Beijing Olympics in 2008? |
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| Bilateral vs Multilateral Aid |
| created: 09/12/05, modified: 07/24/06 |
| Should the USA prefer to give aid money bilaterally (directly to individual countries or projects) or multilaterally (channelling it through United Nations agencies, World Bank, NGOs, etc.)? |
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| Bill of Rights [UK] |
| created: 08/07/01, modified: 10/29/09 |
| Should the UK have a Bill of Rights ? |
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| Biofuels |
| created: 08/21/07, modified: 08/21/10 |
| Are biofuels a better alternative to fossil fuels? Should their use be encouraged by government regulations and subsidy? |
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| Blood Sports |
| created: 12/02/02, modified: 12/02/02 |
| Should blood sports be banned? |
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| Boarding School |
| created: 11/30/-1, modified: 04/04/09 |
| Is boarding school beneficial to children? |
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| Breath Tests, Random |
| created: 01/15/06, modified: 11/30/-1 |
| Are random breath tests for drivers a good idea? |
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| Bribery / Corruption |
| created: 09/17/03, modified: 07/24/06 |
| Is it ever acceptable to pay a bribe? Should companies who pay bribes abroad be prosecuted for it in their own countries? Should the ones who give bribes be treated equally to those who take bribes? |
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| Britain’s EU Rebate, end |
| created: 01/04/06, modified: 11/30/-1 |
| Should Britain give up its annual rebate on its payments to the European Union? |
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| Busing |
| created: 09/01/09, modified: 09/01/09 |
| Should children be ‘bused’ to schools outside of their neighbourhood, to ensure diversity within schools? |
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| Calendar Reform |
| created: 11/06/00, modified: 08/19/09 |
| Should the current Gregorian calendar be reformed? Should worldwide calendars be standardised? |
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| Cameras in Courtrooms |
| created: 09/26/00, modified: 04/12/09 |
| Should cameras be placed in courtrooms so that criminal trials can be televised? |
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| Campaign Finance Reform |
| created: 09/17/03, modified: 09/17/03 |
| Should limits or regulations be placed on how candidates raise funds, and/or spend them, during political campaigns? |
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| Capital Punishment |
| created: 11/13/00, modified: 08/22/09 |
| Is it ever justifiable to execute criminals? |
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| Capitalism vs Socialism |
| created: 09/13/05, modified: 07/24/06 |
| Which is the superior system – capitalism, or socialism? |
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| Censorship of the Arts |
| created: 07/20/00, modified: 04/09/09 |
| What is the right balance to strike between freedom of and restrictions upon artistic expression? |
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| Chechnya, Intervention in |
| created: 04/23/01, modified: 07/24/06 |
| Should outside nations or international organisations become involved in the military conflict in the Russian province of Chechnya? |
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| Child Curfews |
| created: 04/24/01, modified: 08/25/09 |
| Should young people be subjected to night-time curfews as a way to reduce crime? |
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| Child Labour |
| created: 12/02/02, modified: 12/02/02 |
| Is the imposition of sanctions on states the best way to end child labour? |
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| Child Performers, Banning |
| created: 11/30/-1, modified: 02/28/09 |
| Should children be allowed to work in the performing arts or professional sports? |
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| Child Soldiers, Prosecution |
| created: 09/05/09, modified: 09/05/09 |
| Should countries prosecute child soldiers for the crimes they committed during wartime? Should there be an international minimum age of criminal responsibility for war crimes and crimes against humanity? |
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| Children, Choosing Sex of |
| created: 09/13/05, modified: 11/30/-1 |
| Should parents be allowed to select the gender of their offspring? |
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| China, Fear of |
| created: 11/01/00, modified: 07/12/09 |
| Does China give the rest of the world reasons for fear, in political, economic or social terms? Or is the ‘Terror from the East’ merely a myth ? |
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| Civil Disobedience |
| created: 11/03/00, modified: 08/16/09 |
| When is it justifiable for protesters and activists to break the law for the sake of their cause? |
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| Clash of Civilisations: Myth or Reality? |
| created: 04/20/07, modified: 08/21/10 |
| Is the idea that we are experiencing a clash of civilisations between Islam and the Christian West a myth, or does it have a basis in reality? |
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| Co-curricular activities in schools |
| created: 01/02/09, modified: 01/02/09 |
| Should schools and colleges increase the importance placed on co-curricular activities, so that they are formally recognised as equal to the academic curriculum? |
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| Coal, use of |
| created: 09/08/06, modified: 08/26/10 |
| Should the US Rely More Heavily on Coal Energy? |
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| Coalition Government |
| created: 10/04/01, modified: 10/04/01 |
| Is coalition government preferable to government by a single political party? |
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| Colonialism: Compensation for |
| created: 11/30/-1, modified: 07/24/06 |
| Should former colonial powers pay reparations to former colonies for their past activities? |
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| Compulsory Voting |
| created: 10/03/00, modified: 04/18/09 |
| Should voting in elections be compulsory? |
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| Condoms in Schools |
| created: 09/17/03, modified: 09/17/03 |
| Should publicly supported education programs include the distribution of condoms? |
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| Congressional redistricting in the USA |
| created: 02/21/08, modified: 07/26/10 |
| Should electoral districts for the US House of Representatives be drawn by an independent authority or by state legislatures? |
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| Corruption, Benefits of |
| created: 06/12/06, modified: 08/28/10 |
| Should public corruption be accepted as a normal state of affairs in countries at a certain stage of development? |
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| Cosmetic Surgery |
| created: 11/03/06, modified: 08/26/10 |
| Should cosmetic surgery be banned? |
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| Covenant Marriage |
| created: 06/12/06, modified: 08/28/10 |
| Should covenant marriages be supported in preference to traditional marriages? Should the state promote covenant marriage? |
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| Creationism in Public Schools |
| Debatabase Junior Topic |
| created: 07/30/10, modified: 07/30/10 |
| What should state-funded schools teach about the origins of mankind? Should the teaching of creationism be allowed in classrooms alongside, or as an alternative to the theory of evolution? |
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| Creationism vs Evolution |
| created: 12/02/02, modified: 12/02/02 |
| Should schools be allowed to teach creationism alongside evolution as part of their science curriculum? |
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| Criminal Responsibility, Age of |
| Debatabase Junior Topic |
| created: 09/06/09, modified: 09/06/09 |
| Should the age of criminal responsibility be raised to 16 or even 18 across the world? |
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| Cultural Treasures |
| created: 11/02/00, modified: 08/12/09 |
| Should cultural treasures be returned to their country of origin? |
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| Date Rape |
| created: 05/17/03, modified: 05/17/03 |
| Should there be a separate criminal offence of date rape? |
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| Debate, Limits of |
| created: 05/17/03, modified: 05/17/03 |
| Are certain topics inappropriate for debate? |
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| Democracy |
| created: 11/03/00, modified: 08/16/09 |
| Is democracy, as is so often assumed, really the best form of government? |
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| Democracy Promotion |
| created: 04/02/07, modified: 08/21/10 |
| Should the United States promote democracy internationally? |
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| Developing World Debt |
| created: 10/03/00, modified: 04/17/09 |
| Should developed countries cancel the debts of the poorest nations? |
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| Devolution |
| created: 06/24/01, modified: 08/28/09 |
| Is devolution (in Scotland and Wales) to be regretted? (UK specific) |
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| Digital Rights Management (DRM) Technology |
| created: 06/04/07, modified: 08/21/10 |
| Should media companies and software producers be allowed to use Digital Rights Management technologies in order to protect their media from illegal use, duplication and reproduction? |
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| Direct .vs. Indirect Aid |
| created: 05/23/06, modified: 08/28/10 |
| Should foreign aid donor nations and the World Bank continue to give the majority of their aid through the direct channel of Official Development Assistance (ODA), or should they instead give that aid indirectly to Charities, NGO’s, PVO’s and microfinance initiatives? (NB. See also Bilateral .vs. Multilateral Aid) |
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| Divorce |
| created: 11/03/00, modified: 08/16/09 |
| Should divorce be made even easier to obtain, or are there social and moral reasons to discourage it? |
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| DNA Database for Criminals |
| created: 10/04/01, modified: 12/31/09 |
| Should we create a database of DNA that can be used by police authorities in order to apprehend criminals? |
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| Do It Yourself / Home Improvement |
| created: 05/24/08, modified: 06/04/10 |
| Is trying to improve your home yourself worthwhile, or should building, decoration and interior design work be left to paid professionals? |
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| Dollarization |
| created: 01/04/03, modified: 07/24/06 |
| Should countries change their official currency to the U.S. dollar? |
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| Double Jeopardy Rule, Abolition of |
| created: 05/17/03, modified: 05/17/03 |
| ‘Double jeopardy’ means being tried twice for the same offence. The ‘double jeopardy’ rule means that an individual cannot be tried again for the same offence if acquitted. Should the rule be scrapped? |
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| Driftnets |
| created: 12/31/07, modified: 07/26/10 |
| Should there be a worldwide ban on the use of driftnets to catch fish, including within each country’s Exclusive Economic Zone? |
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| Driving Age, raise to 18 |
| Debatabase Junior Topic |
| created: 12/31/08, modified: 12/31/08 |
| Should the age at which you can legally drive be raised to 18? |
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| Drug Patent Laws |
| created: 10/13/02, modified: 10/13/02 |
| Should the pharmaceutical patenting system be liberalised? |
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| Drugs in Sport |
| created: 09/29/00, modified: 04/13/09 |
| Should the use of performance-enhancing drugs in sport be legalised? |
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| E.U. to impose sanctions on Israel |
| created: 01/31/10, modified: 01/31/10 |
| Should the E.U. impose economic sanctions on Israel? Would that have a beneficial influence on the peace process in the Middle East? |
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| Economic Development vs the Environment |
| Debatabase Junior Topic |
| created: 06/05/07, modified: 06/19/10 |
| Is the economic development of developing countries more important than protecting the environment? |
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| Education Vouchers |
| created: 11/13/02, modified: 07/24/06 |
| Should a voucher system be used to introduce choice and competition between schools? |
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| Energy Crisis: Nuclear vs Renewable Sources |
| created: 07/04/00, modified: 04/09/09 |
| Is nuclear power the best way to meet the ever-increasing energy needs of the planet, or do alternative energy sources provide a viable alternative? |
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| English language spelling reform |
| Debatabase Junior Topic |
| created: 08/26/08, modified: 06/01/10 |
| Should we change the way words in the English language are spelled, to make them more like the way they are spoken? |
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| Environmentally Linked Aid |
| created: 06/30/00, modified: 04/07/09 |
| Should developed countries force developing countries to protect the environment by making it a condition of aid? |
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| Estate Tax |
| created: 05/28/08, modified: 07/26/10 |
| Should there be a tax on property at the time of death? |
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| Ethical Foreign Policy |
| created: 04/02/02, modified: 07/24/06 |
| Is it possible for a modern government to pursue an active foreign policy with ethics at the centre? Should governments always try to do the moral thing? |
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| EU Constitution |
| created: 11/30/-1, modified: 02/20/09 |
| Should the European Union (EU) adopt a Constitution? |
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| EU Council of Ministers (EU), Voting by |
| created: 11/30/-1, modified: 02/20/09 |
| Should all remaining areas of unanimous decision-making be replaced by majority decision making in the European Union’s Council of Ministers? |
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| EU President, Direct Election of |
| created: 08/14/02, modified: 08/14/02 |
| Given the EU’s recent expansion and growth as an international body, is it time it had a directly elected leader? |
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| EU Working Language |
| created: 11/30/-1, modified: 02/20/09 |
| Should the EU introduce one working language? |
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| European Defence Force |
| created: 08/08/00, modified: 04/09/09 |
| Should the European Union have its own standing army? |
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| European Federalism |
| created: 09/12/00, modified: 04/12/09 |
| Should the European Union become a federal superstate, with consequent loss of national sovereignty for member countries? |
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| European Parliament, Powers of |
| created: 11/30/-1, modified: 02/20/09 |
| Should the European Parliament be given greater powers in the European Union (EU)? |
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| European Union and the UN Security Council |
| created: 06/07/10, modified: 08/20/10 |
| Should the EU have a permanent seat in the EU Security Council? Should this come at the expense of the existing permanent seats held by the UK and France? |
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| European Union Constitution |
| created: 12/02/06, modified: 08/25/10 |
| Whether European Union member countries should vote for the proposed EU constitution |
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| European Union Expansion |
| created: 08/21/00, modified: 04/11/09 |
| Should the EU expand to include all those European states which wish to join? |
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| European Union: New Members |
| created: 09/17/03, modified: 07/24/06 |
| Should the countries of Central and South-East Europe join the European Union? |
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| Exams |
| created: 11/03/00, modified: 08/15/09 |
| Should examinations be replaced with other forms of assessment? |
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| Extraordinary Rendition |
| created: 11/10/07, modified: 08/21/10 |
| Is the practice of extraordinary rendition a useful and necessary policy in the fight against terrorism? |
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| Extremist Political Parties, Banning of |
| created: 08/14/02, modified: 07/24/06 |
| Should extremist political parties be banned from standing for political office? Does their right to have their say outweigh the harm and offence that they cause? |
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| Factory Farming |
| created: 11/30/-1, modified: 02/20/09 |
| Should ‘factory farming’ be banned? |
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| Faith Schools |
| created: 04/02/02, modified: 04/02/02 |
| Should the state fund schools run by particular faiths? |
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| Fat Tax |
| created: 02/01/04, modified: 11/30/-1 |
| Should there be a tax on fatty foods? |
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| Federal Government |
| created: 11/07/00, modified: 08/19/09 |
| Is a confederation the best way to run national or supra-national affairs? |
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| Feminism |
| created: 05/17/03, modified: 05/17/03 |
| Is feminism still relevant? |
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| File-sharing |
| created: 11/30/-1, modified: 02/14/09 |
| Should unregulated distribution of copyrighted works over Internet be allowed? |
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| Flat Tax |
| created: 10/13/02, modified: 10/13/02 |
| Are flat taxes the best system? |
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| Food labelling |
| Debatabase Junior Topic |
| created: 12/28/09, modified: 12/28/09 |
| Would warning labels on food make people eat better? |
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| Football (soccer), restrictions on overseas players |
| Debatabase Junior Topic |
| created: 06/01/08, modified: 07/26/10 |
| Should the game of football adopt FIFA’s six-plus-five plan for a maximum of five foreign players in a club side? Should the European Union change its rules to allow this? |
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| For money or love? |
| created: 08/25/10, modified: 08/25/10 |
| Is love more important than love in marriage? |
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| Foreign-born Presidents |
| created: 08/02/05, modified: 11/30/-1 |
| The US Constitution prohibits people originally from other countries from being President. Should it be amended to change this? |
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| Gambling and casinos |
| created: 10/29/06, modified: 08/26/10 |
| Should gambling be banned or severely restricted? Or should casinos be encouraged? |
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| Gangsta Rap, Censorship of |
| created: 11/30/-1, modified: 02/14/09 |
| Should the government censor lyrics of songs that are violent or expletive, for example “gangsta” rap? |
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| Gay Marriages |
| created: 11/01/00, modified: 05/28/09 |
| Should homosexual couples be allowed to marry? |
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| Gays in the Military |
| created: 11/10/00, modified: 08/20/09 |
| Should gays and lesbians be allowed into the armed forces? |
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| Gene Patenting |
| created: 10/02/00, modified: 04/14/09 |
| Should genes be patented? |
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| Genetic Screening |
| created: 11/03/00, modified: 08/14/09 |
| Should we intervene in the genetic makeup of our children? Should genetic screening be used to produce genetically healthy or even "designer" babies? |
|
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| Genetically Modified Food |
| created: 06/30/00, modified: 04/07/09 |
| Are there environmental, moral, or health issues associated with genetically modified food? Should it be banned? |
|
|
| Geneva Convention |
| created: 09/14/09, modified: 05/31/10 |
| Should governments respect the Geneva Conventions in the War on Terror? |
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| George W. Bush |
| created: 05/03/01, modified: 07/24/06 |
| Is George W. Bush good for America, and for the wider world? |
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| Global Fund, US support for |
| created: 01/15/06, modified: 07/24/06 |
| Should the USA increase its financial commitment to the Global Fund to better fight AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria? |
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| Global Tax |
| created: 12/06/05, modified: 11/30/-1 |
| Should the United States support a global tax? |
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| Global Warming: Is More Action Needed? |
| created: 07/04/00, modified: 04/09/09 |
| Although still a controversial subject, there is a growing consensus that global climate changes are being caused by environmental pollution, especially by greenhouse gases. Do we need to take more urgent action to halt this trend? |
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| Global warming. |
| created: 07/30/07, modified: 11/30/-1 |
| Should people have a limit of carbon emiisions they make - and should they go over the limit, pay a huge tax? |
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| Goat, give at Christmas |
| created: 01/03/07, modified: 08/23/10 |
| Is it a good idea to give as gifts the donation of farm animals for developing world communities? |
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| God, Existence of |
| created: 04/02/02, modified: 04/02/02 |
| Does God exist? If so, can we prove he does? How can we know anything about God? Is it sacrilegious to even ask? This can only be the briefest of surveys. |
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| Governments bailouts |
| created: 01/09/10, modified: 05/31/10 |
| Should governments ever bail out private corporations facing bankruptcy? |
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| Graduate Tax |
| created: 04/24/01, modified: 08/25/09 |
| Should Higher Education be funded by a tax on graduates? |
|
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| Greenhouse Gas: Trading
of Quotas |
| created: 07/04/00, modified: 04/09/09 |
| Should countries be allowed to buy greenhouse gas quotas from other countries and so, in effect, pay for the right to pollute more? Or should polluters simply be heavily taxed if they exceed their own quotas? |
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| Grey Imports |
| created: 11/30/-1, modified: 02/06/09 |
| Should retailers be allowed to import for resale “grey” goods from abroad? |
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| Gun Control |
| created: 10/02/00, modified: 04/14/09 |
| Should laws be passed to limit gun ownership further? |
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| Habeas Corpus, Restrictions on |
| created: 07/30/10, modified: 07/30/10 |
| Should the ancient right of Habeas Corpus be limited or suspended as part of efforts to combat terrorism? |
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| Harmonisation of Taxation within the European Union |
| created: 09/12/00, modified: 04/12/09 |
| Should the EU further restrict the powers of its member states to set their own tax rates? Should proposed harmonisation measures be passed by majority voting or remain subject to national vetoes? |
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| Hate Crimes |
| created: 09/17/03, modified: 09/17/03 |
| Should acts of hate be criminalized? What acts should be considered hate crimes? |
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| Hate Speech on Campus |
| created: 08/31/00, modified: 04/11/09 |
| Is it correct for university authorities to ban hate speech? |
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| Health Care, Universal |
| Debatabase Junior Topic |
| created: 04/10/08, modified: 07/26/10 |
| Should the United States introduce a universal health care system? |
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| Highrise Housing |
| created: 12/30/06, modified: 08/23/10 |
| Should highrise housing be encouraged? |
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