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The Debate Thread!
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The Debate Thread!
The Debate Thread! Anything except politics and religion allowed here (though that could change). So, I know Oregano and Ima and maybe more people seemed interested in debate. List subjects you would like to talk about.
I just thought people might be interested.
submitted by Amy G., age 14, PA
(June 3, 2011 - 6:11 pm)
(June 3, 2011 - 6:11 pm)
Oh, how about: Should the driver's license age be raised? Or the drinking age? Or debating on whether junk food does more harm than it does good. Sorry.... I just don't want to debate this! :)
HAHAHA Spamboy says "yuck". He doesn't like the topic either!
(June 11, 2011 - 5:29 pm)
@Ima- you brought up some very good points about every person having different strengths and weaknesses, and more.
@R~D~- I just want to make sure that I understand what you said--it seemed to me that what you said was that if a (Catholic?) woman didn't have children she should enter a convent. Is that right? I'm just checking.
But if that is what you think, what happens to the freedom that all men and women are supposed to be guaranteed? Freedom to choose what you want to do. I don't want to make this a religous thing though--because you could argue that people should be free to follow the requirements and commands of their religions. I agree with that, however. But there are probably many strict Catholic women who are strong and independent, and don't have a family. (That is not to say that being strong and independent has to do with not having kids.)
What other points of feminism can we talk about? What about women in sports?
(June 11, 2011 - 5:52 pm)
Sorry, Amy, like I said, the Admins deleted most of what I had said, so it didn't exactly come out at all right! Let's see if I can put it a *tad* bit better... no, that's not exactly it... A person should be dedicating their life to God however He wants them to. So if a person is called to raise children, wonderful! If a person is called to be a religious, wonderful! But a person who does neither seems a bit selfish to me, don't you think? It's hard for those who do not believe in God (or at least not that strongly) to see my point here, because my religion is a huge part of me. :) So, TO ME, if a woman is only focused on herself and not helping others find God, raising children to find God, etc, then that doesn't sit well with me. That would be a radical feminist, so you can see why I disagree. But... let's change the subject shall we? :D I understand Admins, I'm definitely not blaming you! This is an extremely touchy subject!
You worded this better, RD, using "TO ME," etc. I respect your views, but also those of others who may disagree. Freedom of expression is one of the great parts of our country!
Admin
(June 11, 2011 - 9:18 pm)
Ok, ok. My opinion: Men and women are equal. But feminists take this statement so far that they wind up saying "women are better than men." If you state that they're equal, feminists agree, but really they wind up making men out to be worse. Which they aren't! Which is why I'm proud to call myself a sexist.
Spamboy says envx. Envy? Women envy men! Exactly! So smart, Spamboy.
(June 12, 2011 - 8:37 am)
Thank you Admin! When you approve, it makes me happy. :)
@TheTopperGirl: I thought being sexist is preferring one gender over the other? So what you said doesn't exactly make sense...
You're welcome. I always appreciate your thoughtful comments.
Admin
(June 12, 2011 - 11:00 am)
I also think we should start a different topic. Vegetarianism/veganism sounds good. I am not a vegetarian or vegan. How many people are vegetarians or vegans?
(June 12, 2011 - 11:40 am)
I am not going back to the other topic to say what I was going to say cause I would probably go on and on so I won't say it.
I am neither a vegan or a vegetarian. I don't really agree with either as God gave us animals to eat and clothe us. Of course some people do it for health reasons, some people do it because they don't like the idea of eating animals, and others do it for various religious reasons. (Tell me if I missed any other reasons.) Those are all fine, but I don't think I would ever stop eating meat or using animal products for any reason.
(June 12, 2011 - 3:35 pm)
H'm, the only problem with the vegan/veggie debate is that those that are vegan can get offended by this, but those that aren't really aren't offended. But we can do this if you like.
RE feminism, FYI: I'm just reading a great story that's coming up in the September 2011 Cricket. It's set in ancient Greece, in times when girls were not allowed to go to school or learn to read, but were expected to stay home, spin wool, and do other domestic things only. Talk about the lack of women's rights! But I don't mean to send you backward. Moving on to vegetarianism is fine.
Admin
(June 12, 2011 - 9:22 pm)
This debate is intended to not be offensive to vegans. It should always be respectful of each side.
@Lizzy: I think you covered basically all the reasons people are vegetarians or vegans. I think that it kind of depends on the climate you live in. For example, the Inuit people in Alaska have to eat a lot of meat because of the cold climate, but they have a lot of respect for nature. But I wouldn't agree with someone who eats a big factory farm steak every other day, no matter where they live.
Personally I think eating meat in small amounts from a place that isn't cruel to the animals is fine.
(June 13, 2011 - 1:13 pm)
If you're going to quibble about animals' rights, you'll have to quibble about vegetables' rights too, and fungi' rights, and bacteria' rights, and amoeba' rights. CP Erewhon. Great book.
(June 14, 2011 - 8:50 am)
Yes, I wouldn't eat anything if I didn't need to to survive, but animals are much more intelligent than plants, vegetables, or fungi, and therefore more likely to deserve rights. If you're going to use that argument, you might as well start with, "If you're going to quibble about humans' rights, you'll have to quibble about animals' rights, too, and vegetables' rights, and..."
(June 15, 2011 - 8:10 pm)
So, our topic is now veganism and vegetarianism?
RE: Feminism: I, this is my own opinion, believe that woman and men should be thought as equal and that people shouldn't just think of us as "people who sit at home and cook, clean and have children."
(June 14, 2011 - 7:55 am)
@ R~D~: I see your point, but I disagree. There are other very good things you can do besides raising children and joining a convent. What about working to save lives at a hospital, or to save an endangered species? Some people would have time for childcare, too, but what if the woman was devoting so much time to those wonderful causes--or others--that she just doesn't have time for childcare, and her husband doesn't, either? Neglect is... bad. My mom grew up with an irresponsible mother who would leave her children home alone when they were really litte, and from what I've heard, it has had some terrible lasting effects, especially on my mom's oldest sister. Mind you, my grandmother was just leaving because she wanted to, to go shopping and such (she has schizophrenia and bipolar disorder and is delusional, so I imagine she didn't realize exactly what was going on), bu the effects probably would have been similar even if it was to go save lives. What if someone isn't Catholic but knows that she would not be a good parent (if, for example, she had horrible self-control and would completely lose her head if a child thhrew a tantrum)--should she really just raise a child just in case she gets better, even if that means accidentally ruining someone's childhood? Or, again, what if someone isn't Catholic but doesn't fall in love and doesn't want to adopt because being a single parent is HARD. If I don't fall in love, that will probably happen to me--I'll be really busy volunteering and whatnot in addition to my paid job, and it just wouldn't work. Mind you, I don't want to actually give BIRTH regardlesss because A) There is an overpopulation problem, so it's really not what we need, B) Even if you give birth and raise your children perfectly, there will still be chidren who grew up with horrible lives and could have been adopted, and C) It HURTS, but I can definitely understand why someone would give birth, and I certainly don't have a problem with other people doing it, and I actually like the idea, and I'm quite grateful to my parents. I do want to adopt if I get married, though, so don't worry. :)
I do think that people should have a good reason for not raising a child. It's just that there are a myriad of possible good reasons. A convent is one of them, but it's only one of them. I mean, maybe we just disagree on what constitutes a good reason, of course; I just think saving lives would definitely be one of them.
Re: Vegetarianism: I'm vegan for personal moral reasons, but I don't have a problem with other people eating meat. It's not as if the animals aren't killed for a reason, so I woould never actively try to prevent someone from eating meat, although I wouldn't give any to them, either. I think it's a personal decision. I do think, also, that something really needs to be done about the way meat and dairy animals are treated, because I think it's a huge problem, but still, I understand meat-eating. The first time I tried to give it up, when I was 7, I had to stop and try again next year. It worked then, though; I just had to take it in steps. It's been more than 4 years now, and I can't imagine it any other way anymore.
(June 14, 2011 - 12:32 pm)
@Ima: In a way, that is kinda leading a religious life even if you aren't religious. Helping others is something Jesus would want and I think that's a great idea (if that's what you were called for). Like Blessed (Mother) Teresa! She spent her entire life (even though she was a nun) in Calcutta helping the poor and sick. I guess I went way too strongly on the fact that people should have children. Some people just aren't able, even though they try, and some SHOULDN'T have children, like you said. Anyway, if every single person had five or so kids, then the world would be overpopulated. My main point was: If a woman spends her life friviously thinking about herself, to me, that's an incorrect way to live, when she could be raising children or helping others (which is what I said earlier, so in a way I was already agreeing with you even though we didn't know it. :D). I completely disagree with the overpopulation. I believe that's just the media (and that's what some feminists may believe!! That's another reason I'm anti-feminist!) and like I said, everyone can fit in the state of Texas!!!! Yes, certain cities may be overpopulated, but not the entire world. Do you believe that China's one child law is good? That's something that can be debated. I think it's awful.
(June 14, 2011 - 8:08 pm)
I think that the one child law in China is awful. It reminds me of Shadow Children and we see where that went.
Of course, I understand (like Ima said) not everyone has to have or wants to have children. I have reletives without children. They're all really busy and travel a lot for example and it's really hard to add a child/children to that.
Okay, they were worried about food and overpopulation in China but banning more than one child. I just think that's... hmm... weird... not right... *needs words to express her thoughts* Why should someone be told they can't have more than one child? It's a joy for them (okay probably) and the child. I think it would really... suck (?) (stupid word I know)...without a sibling. My sister can be annoying but she's there to play with and have fun with when I'm bored (mostly).
@Robyn D.- Just wondering, I know you're religious and all and I respect that and I don't want this to offend you, really, really not because you're a great CB friend and all but does volunteering really have something to do with God/Jesus/religion?
Oh, and I've decided that I'm a feminest, by the way.
Ordi says puma. Okay, you want a puma? I get the point... :)
(June 15, 2011 - 10:33 am)