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Debates - Let's Chat

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LanDroid

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Debates - Let's Chat

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A while back a few Booktalkers watched a debate about creationism and discussed it live in the chat room on this site. Here are some upcoming online debates; we might try live-chatting again if there is sufficient interest?
Embrace The Common Core 9/9/14 6:45 - 8:30 p.m. EST
Flexing America's Muscles In The Middle East Will Make Things Worse 9/30
Indiscriminate Collection of U.S. Phone Records Violates the Fourth Amendment 10/7
Income Inequality Impairs The American Dream Of Upward Mobility 10/22
Legalize Assisted Suicide 11/13
Genetically Modify Food 12/3/14

http://intelligencesquaredus.org/debate ... ng-debates
:argue:
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LanDroid

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Re: Debates - Let's Chat

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Well this topic didn't generate much interest, but one of the more interesting debates on the list above is coming up Tuesday evening 10/7 from 6:30 - 8:00 p.m. EST. We could pop into the chat room here at Booktalk during the live streaming and discuss it on our own. There is a vote and a winner at the end of the debate.

MASS COLLECTION OF U.S. PHONE RECORDS VIOLATES THE FOURTH AMENDMENT
Some say that indiscriminate collection of U.S. phone records is a gross invasion of privacy. Others say that it is necessary to keep us safe. But what does the U.S. Constitution say? "The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.” Is collection of phone records a “search” or “seizure"? If so, is it “unreasonable”? Does it require a particularized warrant and probable cause? These are among the most consequential—and controversial—constitutional questions of our time.

http://intelligencesquaredus.org/debate ... ment&tab=4
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Chris OConnor

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Re: Debates - Let's Chat

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Sorry I didn't pay attention to this very exciting idea of yours.

I'm personally interested in the upcoming "Legalize Assisted Suicide 11/13" debate, but I'm not seeing how we can watch this debate live and for free. Do you know? To me it looks like you have to buy tickets to attend it live. I'm not seeing anything about it streaming live and for free.

I'll look some more...
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Chris OConnor

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Re: Debates - Let's Chat

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Ahh now I see! You can view past debates.

Edit:

And you can also view live streaming debates. This is great.
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Re: Debates - Let's Chat

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BUMP - Next debate is this Thursday evening 6:45 p.m. EST. Visit the Booktalk chat room to discuss live...

Legalize Assisted Suicide
In 1994, Oregon voters passed the Death with Dignity Act, which legalized physician-assisted suicide for the terminally ill. Since then, it has become legal in 4 more states, including New Mexico, where the state court ruling that it is constitutional is under appeal. Is it, in the words of the American Medical Association’s code of ethics, “fundamentally incompatible with the physician’s role as healer”? Will these laws lead to a slippery slope, where the vulnerable are pressured to choose death and human life is devalued? Or do we need to recognize everyone’s basic right to autonomy, the right to end pain and suffering, and the right to choose to die with dignity?
http://intelligencesquaredus.org/debate ... cide&tab=4

I"m sure the following story will come up...

Right to die' campaigners will use Brittany Maynard as a 'poster girl' for a worldwide push for 'right to die' laws. A video of the 29-year-old explaining why she was making use of legislation allowing 'death with dignity' in Oregon has now been watched by more than 15 million people on YouTube. The success of the video, filmed just days before her death earlier this month, has been seized on by the charity Compassion & Choices, which backed her decision to travel to Oregon to die, and who now plan to use it to push their pro-assisted death message worldwide.

Maynard, 29, who was originally from California, had moved to Portland, Oregon, after being diagnosed with stage 4 glioblastoma, because she wanted to control the timing and manner of her own death. Ms Maynard was diagnosed in January with stage IV glioblastoma multiforme, an aggressive form of terminal brain cancer. In April, doctors gave her just six months to live. She hit headlines around the world and became the face of the right-to-die movement after revealing her plans to end her own life this month under Oregon's Death with Dignity Act.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article ... dying.html

FWIW - I can't make this debate...
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Chris OConnor

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Re: Debates - Let's Chat

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You can't attend and I might not have time either. So I'm not going to do any type of real announcement on this one.

What we should do prior to any events like this is schedule and have a few casual chats in the BookTalk.org chat room where at least 5+ people show up. We need to get members accustomed to entering and using the chat room before we put much energy into promoting a debate again.

I'll work on this soon. ;-)
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Chris OConnor

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Re: Debates - Let's Chat

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As I sit here and knock out some brainless busy-work I'm listening to the past debate, "Russia Is A Marginal Power."

This is fascinating and I do think BookTalk.org members would enjoy these Intelligence Squared debates and concurrent chats with fellow BookTalk.org members. Maybe not tomorrow but we'll have to soon give one of the upcoming debates a spin.
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Re: Debates - Let's Chat

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I would be interested in seeing live debates about censorship, book banning in public schools, etc.
I am just your typical movie nerd, postcard collector and aspiring writer.
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Chris OConnor

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Re: Debates - Let's Chat

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Movie Nerd, have you looked through the past debates on Intelligence Squared? Maybe they have a past debate on censorship. I don't see any future debates on that subject but they only seem to schedule and announce debates that are in the immediate future. There could be one on censorship in the upcoming months.
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Re: Debates - Let's Chat

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Chris OConnor wrote:Movie Nerd, have you looked through the past debates on Intelligence Squared? Maybe they have a past debate on censorship. I don't see any future debates on that subject but they only seem to schedule and announce debates that are in the immediate future. There could be one on censorship in the upcoming months.
I'll be sure to check those out. I would still like to see future debates, as books are still being banned in schools for ridiculous reasons, and privacy invasions from the NSA have us all censoring ourselves.
I am just your typical movie nerd, postcard collector and aspiring writer.
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