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  • This house regrets the rise of eager criticism in art

    Infoslide

    From David Ehrlich: “I might have hated Wicked. I say ““might” not because I’m unsure of my general feelings toward the film but rather because I’m unsure of what it means for me to hate a piece of art at a time when hair-trigger hostility is so deeply suffused into the air we breathe”.

    Queen's High School Tournament 2025 · Round 4 · 2025-04-13

  • This House, as Johnston, would choose to be posted at Drakenthorn over Virelia

    Infoslide

    Johnston is a career diplomat who finally got his promotion. He is able to chose his next posting form one of the two options: 1) Virelia - a strict island which bans drinking, extra-marital sex, drugs, popular entertainment and even fine-food. Instead it is populated by outstanding orchestra, well-curated galleries and operas. 2)Drakenthorn - on the other hand, was an intellectual and cultural dessert, yet it is filled with the perfect activities for hedonist. It has fine restaurants, thriving comedy and also liberal attitude to sex and drugs. Both islands are identical in geography, and economically.

    Debatable Open 2025 · Novice Finals · 2025-04-12

  • This House Would release the fish

    Infoslide

    Marie is a single adult who lives alone. One day, she decided to cook a fish dish for dinner. She bought a live fish from the wet market and brought it home. But when she opened the bag, something unexpected happened—the fish suddenly screamed in a human voice and began to speak. It begged for its life, saying it had family still living in a nearby pond, not far from Marie’s home. The fish pleaded with Marie to show mercy and promised to remember her kindness if she spared its life.

    Debatable Open 2025 · Novice Finals · 2025-04-12

  • When responding to civilian casualties, this house believes that military action taken does not have to meet the principle of proportionality.

    Infoslide

    The principle of proportionality asserts that an act of war is just if and only if the harm caused by it is proportionate to the harm intended to be inflicted by the opposing warring party.

    Colgate Open 2025 · Grand Final · 2025-04-12

  • This House Would frame the murderer over the well-meaning man

    Infoslide

    You are a prosecutor by profession. One day, you discover that a kind, well- meaning man accidentally caused the death of an innocent woman. As you investigate the case, you uncover something troubling: the available forensic and circumstantial evidence could easily be used to frame someone else—a man widely believed to have murdered multiple people, but who has always escaped justice due to lack of proof. Now, you face a difficult choice: do you prosecute the harmless man who made a tragic mistake, or use this chance to finally put a dangerous repeat killer behind bars?

    Debatable Open 2025 · Novice Finals · 2025-04-12

  • Behind the veil of ignorance, this house, as a superhero, would prefer to exist in the Incredibles model of superhero regulation to the Sokovia accords.

    Infoslide

    In _The Incredibles_ , governments compelled superheroes to hide their powers and return to 'normal' lives. In rare cases, some superheroes elected to do vigilante work. In _The Avengers_ , superheroes were under the control of the Sokovia Accords, which allowed superheroes to continue to exist, but under the directive of the United Nations.

    Colgate Open 2025 · Round 3 · 2025-04-12

  • This house prefers a world with widespread belief in divine indifference

    Infoslide

    "Divine indifference" is a concept suggesting that if a deity exists, it does not actively interfere in the natural world or human affairs. Proponents argue that the deity created the universe and its laws but doesn't engage in daily events or individual lives. This contrasts with "divine intervention," where a deity actively influences events and responds to human actions and prayers.

    BITS Pilani Parliamentary Debate 2025 · Round 5 · 2025-04-11

  • This House Believes That the entity to which the AI is ultimately answerable ought to be a jury of randomly selected ordinary people rather than a panel of the three most intelligent moral philosophers in the world.

    Infoslide

    In the near future, humankind has developed a super-intelligent Artificial Intelligence (AI) system in order to rule over humanity. The AI has undergone rigorous alignment training to ensure that its incentives are aligned with the values and interests of the human race as a whole. The AI possesses the capability to solve many coordination problems and other issues that currently trouble human governments. The AI will be programmed such that it is at the top of most chains of command in the world. However, there will be one entity to which the AI is ultimately answerable. This entity has the power to decide on what to do in lieu of the AI in the event that there exists a profound moral quandary that the entity determines the AI is unable to properly address. It also has the ability to shut down the AI system. For the purposes of this debate, assume that all governments have consented to be subordinate to the AI and that it can effectively govern the human race.

    Glasgow Ancients 2025 · Grand Final · 2025-04-11