[Debatewise RRT] Re: Holiday debates
- From: astha alang <astha_alang@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <debatewiserrt@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Wed, 30 Dec 2009 03:31:49 +0000
Ill do return/resell unwanted gifts.
Best,
Astha
From: alex@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
To: debatewiserrt@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [Debatewise RRT] Holiday debates
Date: Tue, 29 Dec 2009 23:59:12 +0000
Hi all,
I hope you enjoyed Christmas, and have a happy new year. I am sure you are all
relaxing, possibly thinking of how to burn off some of those calories and the
new year’s resolutions you will never keep. I hope that the RRT is as
successful next year as it has been this year. In the mean time some debates
for you to be doing while you are indoors on hogmanay... or not!
Alex
Debates:
Cut generals not soldiers.
The British Army has one general for every 400 soldiers. Considering that
generals are only the top few ranks and we are not including the many more
majors, captains etc does Britain have too many generals? It would seem that
the obvious place to start making cuts into the military is to reduce the size
of the officer corps.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/politics/article6969921.ece
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/politics/article6544223.ece
Yemen: America’s next war?
While very few people are talking about Yemen being America’s next war it is
obvious that something needs to be done to prevent Yemen becoming a failed
state and to reduce any Al Qaeda presence there. Afghanistan has shown how
difficult it would be to fight a war in Yemen, there is similar terrain, though
not the ethnic divisions. However the reason behind the war in Afghanistan is
essentially what is happening in Yemen, a country that is becoming a base for
al Qaeda and Islamic fundamentalism. Is this sufficient cause to take action?
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/8429843.stm
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/terrorism-in-the-uk/6898945/Detroit-terror-attack-Yemen-is-the-true-home-of-Al-Qaeda.html
Literacy targets for toddlers are a waste of time.
There is a gender gap between boys and girls even before they enter school. To
the government this must mean more targets. To the rest of us a more sensible
approach might be to let children below school age learn at their own pace.
Does a gender gap at this stage matter or should we have targets and try to
teach boys better?
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/education/article4387301.ece
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/education/education-news/boys-aged-three-must-work-more-1852087.html
Is Iran nearing a tipping point?
Once demonstrations get to a certain size, or the government is unwilling to
cause too much bloodshed protests can topple a government. The overthrow of the
Shah demonstrated this, as did the rolling back of communism in 1989.
Unfortunately it is very difficult to measure when or if the protesters will
gain the upper hand or the willingness of the authorities to be brutal in
putting down protests. It may depend partially on how big the change would be;
in this case the tipping point may be quite low as the likely change in regime
is simply from the more radical elements to more moderate elements within the
current elite rather than a full scale revolution.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/middle_east/article6969863.ece
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703278604574624302036557422.html
Avatar will kill off big earning movie stars?
There have been numerous films this year that have made large amounts of money
but have not had big stars attached. Avatar in particular shows that there are
other ways of engaging audiences rather than paying immense pay checks to a few
faces that everyone recognises. Avatar does it with its 3D graphics.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2009/dec/08/film-celebrity-wilting
http://www.slashfilm.com/2009/11/16/is-the-hollywood-movie-star-dead/
http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/film/article6969880.ece
Return/resell unwanted gifts.
Many charities are encouraging us to give our unwanted gifts to them so that
they can be put to good use. Alternatively we might want to go and demand a
refund, or get a replacement. We may even take to selling them online. However
should we really be disposing of gifts that others have bought for us, should
the solution not simply be that we buy less presents that are better chosen
rather than get a load of presents that are then not wanted.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/personalfinance/consumertips/6873912/How-to-recycle-your-unwanted-Christmas-presents.html
http://www.itnewsonline.com/showrwstory.php?storyid=1718
Throw the kids out.
The scope of Peter Mandelson in government has been steadily advancing as his
department swallows others. He is now publishing advice for parents on how to
persuade their children to move out and stop being dependents. In some cases
persuading children to move out may be a good idea but in the middle of a
recession it seems like a waste of effort. Those who have returned home would
not have the resources to make their own home while burdened with student debt
and without a job. So kick the kids out of the house to sink or swim?
http://women.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/women/families/article6969872.ece
http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2009/dec/29/tough-love-parents-graduate-unemployment
Government theft or sensible use of funds.
The government wants to effectively nationalise charitable funds for hospitals.
New accounting rules will bring these funds raised onto the hospitals balance
sheet. This has advantages, transparency, and areas that can support themselves
with charitable donations can take less from the overall pot for the NHS so
these government resources can go to areas that do not have successful
charitable funds. In a recession bringing these funds onto the books makes
sense as they can help plug gaps as funding is falling. There are however
problems. Who is going to donate to a charity that is effectively the
Department of Health? This would break down the barrier between the charities
and the NHS harming both. The opposition also argues it will allow stealth cuts
with charity making up the shortfall.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/politics/article6969955.ece
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1118821/
We should focus more on the thousands who are executed in China rather than an
individual British citizen.
There may well be good reasons for why the Chinese government has chosen to
ignore the representations of the British government for Akmal Shaikh. In the
case of the British Government it has to act in this case because Akmal was a
British citizen. However China would probably be more cooperative, or at least
more inclined to listen if we did not rave about one person and attempt to show
the holes in their legal system. Instead we should be working with China to
improve its legal system and at the same time reduce the number of executions.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/blog/2009/dec/29/china-akmal-shaikh-execution
http://www.cfr.org/publication/10063/chinas_legal_reform_at_the_crossroads.html
http://www.atimes.com/atimes/China/JF18Ad01.html
http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1446976
Use Revisewise @ http://revisewise.debatewise.com/
_________________________________________________________________
Add your Gmail and Yahoo! Mail email accounts into Hotmail - it's easy
http://clk.atdmt.com/UKM/go/186394592/direct/01/
Other related posts:
