Debate and Discussion
For more formal discussion for politics, religion, current affairs and other matters
364 topics in this forum
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- 17 replies
- 1.3k views
Question is self-explanatory. I know the elections for America are coming up soon and I've heard a lot of differing opinions surrounding the two candidates. Just wondering what you all thought of them.
Last reply by dniviE, -
Can be a vet and eat meat?
by Guest The Guardian of Asgard- 10 replies
- 3.6k views
Well this occurred to me since I'm an aspiring vet, do you think it makes sense to save animals lives and then let them be mass produced just to slaughtered? Can you image having a pack of sausages with your name on it since you were born? Isn't their existence futile in its purest form?
Last reply by funny10sport, -
- 45 replies
- 5.9k views
Would religion cease to exist? I know this might sound silly but would religion then become a science rather than a belief ? Remember that this is all hypothetical Would that mean religious people are correct in thinking that God exists and no longer have a belief they have knowledge or would atheists still think they are correct since God is proof making the previous mindset of religion (as a belief) false? Just poorly formulated thought i had in my mind close it if you think that's necessary
Last reply by URA BOAT, -
- 5 replies
- 1.1k views
So I'm sure you guys have all seen or heard the news reports that a load of Americans made a very crappy amateur video (which I have not seen) that apparently mocks Islam as a religion. They made it months ago, but somehow it came to prominence lately and the consequence has been a sort-of mass hysteria of protests, violence and murders. Despite the US government condemning it and to be honest almost everybody condemning it. I suppose the thing which has shocked me most is the sheer lack of proportion of the trigger and the reaction. Basically it's a load of idiots making a rubbish video which very clearly basically nobody at all endorses. So why the hell is the response …
Last reply by misshaha, -
- 4 replies
- 2.1k views
I and my TOK teacher got into an argument about ethics. I've asked would it be important to write about in my TOK essay that ethics (one of the keywords of the title) are dynamic, i.e. that ethical principles change over time. She disagreed and said, that there are some principles that might change, but most of them stay the same. I've said that I believe there are few, if there are any, ethical principles that are always true and do not change, and asked her to give me an example. Her example was: It is always morally wrong to kill another human being solely for your own enjoyment. Even though it was a tough one, I replied that during slave-trading era, it was believed t…
Last reply by aldld, -
- 40 replies
- 4.9k views
Why? I mean, why?
Last reply by Hossein Ahmed, -
- 1 reply
- 713 views
No really sure how this forum works.... Only signed up today just wondering what people (especially in the Uk) think of the education reforms. (sorry if this is already a topic )
Last reply by Sandwich, -
Is it good or bad to be an Introvert? 1 2
by Guest KAPOWW!!- 32 replies
- 5.7k views
Well there's two ways of looking at it: Being an Introvert: Pros: You enjoy your own company You have time to spend with yourself, ergo you understand yourself more deeply.(Not as easy and insignificant as it sounds) Cons: You miss out on socializing, social life, possibly relationships(hmm..) You prefer to avoid parties since that involves meeting other people(I know there are arguments, that Introverts have a lot to say when they get started, but prefer keeping to themselves) You can critique these points, but these are off the top of my head, so don't pay much heed. Their real purpose, though, is to give you a background about the topic. The topic titles and de…
Last reply by CrimsonRed, -
- 8 replies
- 1.8k views
Absorbing heaps of things at once in a short amount of time is something I can manage But the thought of having to be creative in a machine-like manner is just scary Then again, I was never that artistic So yeah, what's your impression? Or on a scale of 1 to 10?
Last reply by m-shanghai, -
- 5 replies
- 2.4k views
which one you think is more important in life IQ or EQ, why?
Last reply by Sammie Backman, -
- 1 reply
- 829 views
A couple of months ago, we had a meeting in our school regarding a good enviroment and preventing bullying. One thing in the small pamphlet that made me reflect upon the nature of defining was that, as it said in the pamphlete: you are the only one who can say that you have been insulted. While this may seem good and well that everyone should be able to school without being insulted, it raises much larger questions such that who should be able to define a religion, political party or a doctrine? The members of said institutions, the opposition or maybe just a group of highly educated academics?
Last reply by Award Winning Boss, -
- 3 replies
- 1.1k views
As far as I'm concerned feeling ashamed or shameful is purely self destructive.. Is there anything else to this emotion? Is it significant in any way shape or form? It seems so important when it comes to religion... does anyone actually interpret this emotion as a good thing? Of course it's important to see the error of your ways when you make mistakes and hurt people, but isn't that where guilt should come in? and not feeling ashamed?
Last reply by Sandwich, -
- 2 replies
- 1k views
I wrote a paper on gingerism a couple of years ago, focusing on gingerism in the UK. I thought the situation sounded really awful as I am such a ginger-lover myself. I think it is such an interesting topic, but since I lack exposure to redheads I thought I'd take advantage of the IB student body being as international as it is and ask about your experiences from where you live. Do you think gingerism/teasing gingers acceptable in some social circles where you live? Have you ever seen redheaded people get picked on because of the colour of the hair? (For those of you who don't know, gingerism is the term used to refer to prejudices agains people with red/ginger hair.)
Last reply by Ezak, -
- 11 replies
- 2.4k views
As the title says: to what extent are we defined by other people? Hypothetically speaking, if you somebody took you and put you in the middle of nowhere with no links whatsoever in or out, would you know who you were? Are you a joker if the people who know you tell jokes aren't there? Are you nice if nobody has ever seen you do a kind thing? Are you smart if nobody knows you're smart? I've always found this a mixture of fascinating and terrifying. Sometimes I think it's all ridiculous and if you have a quality, it's a part of your identity -- and at other times I think that without other people, there would be no definition of you as a person "in-themself" because the wa…
Last reply by Ezak, -
- 1 reply
- 1.2k views
Hey guys! So I'm about to start my third-year this fall and I'm writing a dissertation as one of my optional modules in International law. The topic I'm considering to write on is the legal test employed in international law in recognising a legitimate government of a state in a situation of duality of governing entities. Essentially, my topic questions how should we determine when an authority, claiming to be a government of a state, should be recognised as such, when there is another authority claiming to be the same. I wanted to know what your position on this issue was because there is no determinative test in international law to answer this question. To put it in co…
Last reply by flinquinnster, -
- 21 replies
- 2.6k views
When we spoke about equality in philosophy, our teacher said that he'd heard that there's a Danish law saying that if you marry a foreigner, you have to move out of Denmark. Is this true?
Last reply by Babydolleyes, -
- 12 replies
- 1.7k views
During my four years in the IB program at a Florida high school, I found that the implementation of the program fostered racism. The program made our school a magnet, so while the non-IB (or "traditional" students) all came from the relatively poor local neighborhood (which students referred to as “the ghetto”), IB kids came from all over Tampa Bay and mostly -- though not uniformly -- wealthy families. Out of the 136 IB students in my class level, I can recall five black students and three Hispanic students, a fair number of Asian and Indian students, at least one Middle Eastern student, and the rest of us were white. Of the 300-something traditional students in my class…
Last reply by Stanislaw, -
- 2 replies
- 1.1k views
For those that haven't seen the latest craze, it's a rubber band with a hollogram that is supposed to resonant with your body, giving you extra strength and flexibility. While the product fails in any real double- blind test, that is not what I want to discuss. Naturally, some people are gullible, maybe I should say a lot. Is it really ok to claim things which has not been proven to be true? Is it legit to point towards obscure theories with proof that can't be found in nature, but is explained by a deliberately vague use of language and terms. I guess you could say that anything goes and as long as it is working for them it is none of our bussiness, but is it really okay…
Last reply by Ezak, -
What do you hardcore TOKers think about things like equal rights for homosexuals, gay marriage and other issues such as... A christian preacher in ENGLAND was arrested for quoting the bible and using phrases such as "stop homosexuality it's wrong" in public. Your thoughts, please I'm interested Morpheus x
Last reply by MariusIBDP, -
- 33 replies
- 4.2k views
What are your opinions on the two different types of education (in terms of the parents who send their kids there or the students who attend these schools, etc...)?
Last reply by Tony Stark, -
- 5 replies
- 1.6k views
This mainly directs to those of you living in the UK. Having read about issues such as binge drinking or drug abuse in Britain, I am just pondering whether British teenagers are really poorly behaving or whether it is just the media that make them appear like that. Personally, I can't imagine youth in Britain being so different to other countries, where this sort of problems does not occur as often in the news, but maybe I am just biased. Also, do you think that social inequalities alter the behaviour of the youth in Britain?
Last reply by Nabz, -
- 16 replies
- 2.5k views
Some parents don't really care about their children. They don't even bother where their children always go, with whom their children befriend, how their children are doing etc etc. And the children somehow don't want to share their problems with their parents since their parents seem don't care about them and some even ignore them. They prefer to share their problems with peers and buddies. And in order to release stress, they will join their friends to do bad things like taking drugs etc etc. When their parents know about this, then they'll be grounded and all. But their parents never actually show that they care about them and never actually asked them what the problems…
Last reply by Nabz, -
- 5 replies
- 920 views
Feel free to respond!
Last reply by kcabbe, -
- 6 replies
- 1.4k views
We were discussing this one day in TOK class. If you were walking on the side of the road one day, and you saw a friend of yours being gang banged. Would you jump in and help or would you walk away? Would your answer be any different if instead of being gang banged, you saw your friend at gun point? If you walked away in any of the scenarios would you be considered weak and selfish because you were looking out only for yourself and you were unwilling to pluck up the courage to save your friend? Does self preservation prevail for you whenever you yourself are in danger? Would love to hear what you guys would do and why
Last reply by Babydolleyes, -
- 12 replies
- 1.7k views
Now hear me out, I understand that this is a topic very close to a lot of people, and something which people can find understandably offensive, but I think that there is a good discussion here so long as everybody remembers that this is just a discussion and nobody intends anything personally. Is it homophobic or offensive to use the word 'gay' in a non-negative portrayal? if two people of the same sex were to be in a photo in which they were to be in what could be considered a fairly close embrace, smiling away, appearing to be romantically associated, would it be homophobic for one of the people in the picture to make comment and say that they look "like a gay couple"? …
Last reply by The Economist, -
[Anonymous message to US]Have you heard of this group? What do you think of its actions? To what extent do you agree?
Last reply by Jyrgen, -
- 22 replies
- 3.8k views
I've had this discussion before so I thought I'd post it here. So far, I've argued for both sides of the debate because my opinions changed, but right now I'm somewhere in the middle. How important is grammar/spelling? I mean, of course I'm not asking if it's important in an IA or an essay or anything else thats academic or professional. However, I'm talking in terms of everyday use. I know some people who wouldnt care if i type lik dis, because they still get my message....or maybe they even type like that themselves. But I do know some people who would instantly call out the fact that I missed an apostrophe in the "that's" above. Personally, I think I'm in the midd…
Last reply by Wykked Wytch, -
- 5 replies
- 730 views
I've always held a lot of respect for comedians- really good comedians- that are of course funny, friendly, and all that good stuff. One of the trademark features of every professional comedian is their ability to keep a straight face in front of the audience. I know the act is all set up, so that the comedian does not crack up like the audience. I think it's pretty respectable that they are able to keep a calm and collected face while giving their act, and even when they improvise, breaking the fourth wall, they are still able to maintain their "air of professionalism" by not laughing like a moron. But with this, do you think they may find things less amusing in general …
Last reply by Austin Glau, -
- 14 replies
- 1.5k views
Hello. Some find that meditation is good to be practised, especially by IB students since IB students are always being stressful. It is said that meditation keeps your mind relax and you'll feel better if you undergo meditation. But some also find that meditation is a waste of time. I'm a Muslim and I am on Sufi meditation. I spend about 40 minutes per day for meditation alone. But within the 40 minutes, some do find that it is better to do assignments, to study, etc... So, what is your personal viewpoint regarding to meditation? If you are on meditation, how much do you spend per day for meditation alone?
Last reply by URA BOAT, -
- 7 replies
- 2.2k views
Hi IBers! So, I've seen an article about a local (sort of) celebrity who bleached her skin to the extent that she now looks Caucasian ( she's black and had dark skin before),I'm curious as to what you think about skin lightening and tanning. As a resident of an African nation,I can tell you that skin lightening in my region is very common.Having light skin here pretty much means that society will consider you pretty.I have no statistics to prove this but one example I could give of this occurring is in rap music videos - dark skinned girls are a rarity. The celebrity mentioned above has been on the receiving end of many negative comments about her supposed identity cri…
Last reply by Gee :), -
Private Tuitions-What's your opinion?
by Guest The Guardian of Asgard- 14 replies
- 1.8k views
Hey guys! so here in India private or group tuitions are quite the fad at least with the state board, I for one look down upon this 'practice' I mean FCOL tuition are only for those who can't push themselves to study! and often their teachers prepare them in marks oriented manner, so even if they score more than you in tests and exams they air-heads when it comes to application. What's your say?
Last reply by ananya.agrawal95, -
- 4 replies
- 1.4k views
Ron Paul is finding great success among young people who like his message of liberty. However, I find his message of liberty somewhat concerning. He supports states' rights on many issues. For example, he insisted that he would not have voted for the 1964 Civil Rights Act. According to him, the government was overstepping its bounds. Paul would have left the issue of discrimination to the states. This doesn't seem right for me. The more progressive states might pass bills similar to the epochal 1964 Civil Rights Act, but then, what about the states such as Alabama? Alabama might not pass a similar bill for a long long time. In this case, I think that the federal governm…
Last reply by otter12, -
- 34 replies
- 6k views
Hi IBees!v alrighty, I am of the opinion that marriage just complicates things for no reason (other than tax benefits).So at the risk of offending people,I will proceed. I understand that people fall in love but why do they feel so much pressure to get married? Why don't they just continue liviing in their committed relationships?Isn't it just the same thing really? Why do people wear rings as symbols of their love? I mean,why is the ring of so much significance? If a person is committed,surely they don't need a ring to tell them that (not against people wearing rings just because they want to though) I find it really unnecessary.I don't understand why people get …
Last reply by chrnomyuu, -
- 2 replies
- 864 views
title says it all
Last reply by Desmodus04, -
Does the Struggle for survival justify killing?
by Guest Jar Jar D'oh!- 3 replies
- 839 views
Hey guys, this is sort of the conclusion 2 of my previous topics led me to, if you've participated in them you'll realize that this was the most recurring argument people gave to justify eating meat. Begin!
Last reply by funny10sport, -
- 3 replies
- 889 views
So this thought has been haunting me for some time now. What makes us glorify behaviour such as alcoholism, depression and decadence? There are countless famous people that have gained recognition for abuse or addiction. In some ways I feel that most of us can see a certain beauty in feeling bad, but I just can't wrap my head around why?
Last reply by marauder7, -
- 9 replies
- 2k views
What do you think about this bill? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stop_Online_Piracy_Act
Last reply by Daniel Inchan Jung, -
- 3 replies
- 1.1k views
Do you believe that your destiny is written and you're just playing the script? Or do you believe that you are in control of your destiny? And why?
Last reply by marauder7, -
- 7 replies
- 1.8k views
Any particular opinions on Tiger Mums?
Last reply by marauder7, -
- 8 replies
- 900 views
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bxP0VnbHSxE
Last reply by URA BOAT, -
- 1 reply
- 924 views
Hello everyone, so i have my TOK presentation in 10 days and i finished it all, added interviews with peoples opinion but i would love to have some more opinions that i could add in to prove my point. please check it out it would be a great thank you This is my TOK presentation --> Does everyone have a good side? YES or NO? what do you think? after answering this question consider this: This guy named Jack Black, left home at the age of 17, he was not treated badly at home he just started following the 'wrong people'. Today Jack is 30, and is the head leader of the biggest woman and child traffic. Let me just give an example, they would take innocent kids in Afric…
Last reply by Survival Robot, -
- 8 replies
- 1.8k views
As I progress though my schooling, I've begun to question a lot of the aspects of the structure of school. Lately, I've been really fed up with the concept of grades/marks. I feel it takes away from what school should really be about, which is learning. Students take notes in class and memorize seemingly mundane facts to get good marks on assessments. Most of the time, these students are not genuinely interested in the material being taught in class anyway, they are merely in the class because they "have to". Occasionally teachers will assign projects, but these are generally poorly done because of the lack of commitment of the students. In my opinion, memorization is not…
Last reply by Razzker, -
Israel is going a bit far this time, with more killings of civilians than actually targeted Hamas extremists. This conflict has gone on long enough, and it's pretty apparent by now, that infancy has prevailed over maturity in the conflict. I'm all for Zionism but they don't really have to be that brutal about it now. Thoughts? Conflicting view points?
Last reply by THE IBKID, -
- 26 replies
- 4.3k views
I love debating capital punishment. It's probably because I can easily argue from both sides. Capital punishment (for those who don't know) is when a convicted felon is charged with death (which is brought about by a number of ways, e.g. Electrocution, poisoning, etc.) So is Capital Punishment necessary for a society to function properly, especially in this day and age? What are its benefits and drawbacks?
Last reply by Award Winning Boss, -
- 1 reply
- 760 views
If this has been made already I apologise. I'm either blind or it wasn't there. Do you agree with the death penalty? So if it is active in your country, do you support it or disagree with it? Or vice versa if it isn't in practice do you wish for it to be brought back or just introduced? Furthermore do you agree with the method of execution that is used in different countries? For example, the US is mostly the lethal injection. In Saudi Arabia there is stoning and hanging. Would you change anything? So many questions... oh well. Discuss
Last reply by Award Winning Boss, -
- 14 replies
- 2.3k views
Alright, you have a golden flute. There are three people you can choose from based on who you want to give this golden flute to (it;s made form gold and can be played): -A poor man -A flute maker -Or a flute player State your assumptions too make your point more clear.
Last reply by Avan:), -
- 13 replies
- 1.6k views
I find that the situation in the United States and in the world is reaching a critical point. Not only economically with the Eurozone Crisis or politically with moments in the Middle East but also socially and environmentally. I find it fascinating how societies around the world find themselves divided on how to deal with the current situation. This division is clearly shown in America where there are strong disagreements between the Democrats and the Republicans over how to deal with the debt crisis. What I find even more fascinating is how there is massive disagreement within the Republican Party itself over foreign policy! Have American's started to realise that there …
Last reply by Prince Hamlet, -
Nuclear power 1 2 3
by shalala- 59 replies
- 7.4k views
So basically, the other day I was discussing with my brother whether nuclear power is a maintainable source of energy.(Here I am taking for granted that most people think that fossil and bio fuel should be phased out.) Me and my brother turned out to have rather different opinions where he is pro, and I am con. Thus, I might have a bit too imaginary approach, haha. Now I am turning to this forum for a better perspective. Is nuclear something we should expand or reduce? Is it positive that nuclear power now is in a offensive light due to what happended in Japan?
Last reply by Sabs44, -
- 12 replies
- 2.8k views
One of the major points of the IB, as I understand it, is that it aims to make everybody into something it calls a "global citizen". Although this comes across to the public as one of the more well-intentioned but ultimately scarily brain-washy aspects of the diploma programme, I personally found that it was also the emptiest part, the IB Learner Profile and the concept of global citizenship being, together, the most redundant parts of the programme. Then again, maybe this is inevitable. After all, nobody really knows what "global citizenship" entails, or even what it is at its core. Is there such a thing? Is it desirable? Does it simply mean that we pay some sort of att…
Last reply by bobE, -
To what extent does music close a person in their own world?
by Guest JimmyK- 12 replies
- 1.7k views
It's not for a TOK Presentation or anything lol it's just curiosity to know what people think about music as a cause for closeness of a person to the "outside" world As we all know, to listen to music, nowadays, people have earphones and headphones which consequently means that they won't be able to listen to what others are saying and they will only be focusing on the music they're listening to. Plus, music creates groups within a society according to their taste and all that... On the other hand, at the same time that it creates groups, it allows people from different backgrounds to come together and share experiences. In addition, we have the concerts which gather load…
Last reply by superassification,