Matt Ought to Take his shirt off publicly

I want to take a moment to thank Zaradi for this debate, and to say that if I win this debate, he should indeed take his shirt off...if only to reward my hard work in defeating him in this debate. With that said, I think we can proceed onto the arguments; I think, as Pro, I should go first.ARGUMENTSC1. Reducing SufferingZaradi has said that during his tenure as site Vice-President, he will endeavor to reduce suffering. [1] So, if his goal is to minimize suffering, then it is logical to ask: which course of action best suits that end? There are several reasons to believe that affirming the topic is going to reduce the most suffering.Firstly, many people are suffering feelings of frustration and annoyance at Zaradi for his repeated failure to go shirtless, including myself, YYW, Annie, and ResponsiblyIrresponsible. Zaradi removing his shirt would reduce our suffering by satiating our as yet unfulfilled desires to see him shirtless. Secondly, showing skin has social benefits that have positive, suffering-reducing impacts. "Health benefits of social nudity include stress reduction, satiation of curiosity about the human body, reduction of porn addiction, a sense of full-body integration and developing a wholesome attitude about the opposite gender. Research at the University of Northern Iowa discovered that nudists have significantly higher body self-acceptance. Another study concluded that teens at a New York nudist camp were 'extraordinarily well-adjusted, happy, and thoughtful.” It’s also excellent for children to grow up free of shame about the human body.'" [2] While I am not asking that Zaradi become a nudist (though I wouldn't object if he did), surely exposing his torso to other people will still--in virtue of being more revealing than wearing a shirt--satiate curiosity about the human body, help form a wholesome attitude about the opposite gender, lead to greater self-esteem regarding physical appearance, and maybe even a reduction to porn addiction. After all, in a hangout, Zaradi did mention to YYW that Zaradi's removing his shirt would advance YYW's sexual pleasure. Thirdly, by removing his shirt, Zaradi will finally allow those who wish to see his exposed physique to stop pestering him to go shirtless. This will decrease the frustration of those on hangouts who are getting tired of the requests. C2. Zaradi Owes Me a FavorNo, not a sexual favor, if that's what you were thinking. He owes me a regular kind of favor. I won Zaradi's "Prized Debate Tournament" [3] in which the winner was promised prized money. [4] I also have yet to receive the money promised by Zaradi, and am unable to receive any packages at the moment (my family is unaware of my DDO account, so Zaradi cannot mail to my house). Consequently, I should be entitled--in the spirit of fairness/giving each their due--to compensation I deem to be roughly equivalent to the money owed me. I think seeing Zaradi shirtless in a hangout would be fair compensation.There are several reasons to buy into fairness as a standard. They include:Firstly, as a future Vice-President, Zaradi needs to embody high standards of ethics and act in a way that comports with those ethics. He is a role model on the site, as well as a site leader. Being fair--in all respects--is therefore important given his role on the site.Secondly, the resolution poses an "ought" question. Ought can imply a question of morality or ethics, [5] and fairness is essential to ethics. Fairness is a core criterion used to differentiate right from wrong. For instance, it is wrong to cheat because it gives an unfair advantage to the cheater. It is right to punish people fairly for wrongdoings, because you would give them what they deserve, nothing more, nothing less. Fairness is also human dignity-affirming, as it recognizes that everyone is entitled to a certain bare minimum of treatment, and that everyone should have an opportunity at success.Thirdly, Zaradi is my friend. Treating people fairly is key to maintaining and cultivating friendships. Unfair treatment breeches trust between friends, whilst fair treatment affirms your commitment to your friends. And, just as ethical obligations are ex officio elements of the Vice-Presidency, so too are they ex officio elements of friendship. In virtue of someone being a friend of someone else, they have certain obligations of friendship towards others that they ought to pursue. Friendship is also valuable in and of itself, as it has a variety of health and wellness benefits: Forming close friendships can bring both psychological and physiological benefits, new research has suggested. Published in the journal Development Psychology, the study revealed the presence of a pal can serve to mitigate the effects of negative experiences." [8] Friendship can also produce longevity [9, 10] and intellectual and spiritual benefits. [11] So, there are three key sub-points here to emphasize: (1) Zaradi has an obligation as a friend to be fair, (2) fairness is beneficial for friendship, and if Zaradi values our friendship for itself, he should be fair, and (3) friendship reduces suffering, and since Zaradi values that, he should value friendship and fairness as instrumental goods towards that end.Fourthly, fairness is key to reducing suffering, which is a goal of Zaradi's. If people feel as if they're treated unfairly, they will feel jilted, which results in suffering. Unfairness may also result in more concrete types of suffering or loss. For instance, if I am due $10, but only receive $5, I've been empirically harmed or injured in a sense. Injurious treatment is therefore something Zaradi should seek to end if he wishes to reduce suffering.C3. Community-BuildingOne of the key elements of our campaign this cycle was community-building. [6] Given that community-building is something Zaradi supports, if him taking off his shirt promotes that end, then he ought to do so. When people work toward a common goal, they build an esprit de corps that links them behind that common purpose. Being able to see that purpose realized builds a sense of achievement and camaraderie that positively incentivizes cooperation. Failure to see that objective accomplished in a reasonable amount of time disincentivizes cooperation, or makes that cooperation seem fruitless.For instance, should a soccer team put in hours of training but fail to attain any victories, they may become discouraged, and disband rather than continue. However, if their hard work pays off, the group will see that their cooperation is producing the desired results, and they will be more likely to continue working as a community.Since many members of this site have been working towards Zaradi taking off his shirt, his doing so actually supports the community-building objectives he espouses. Thus, the community-building argument affirms.C4. Zaradi Wants More LoveHe said so himself. [7] One way to get more love is to show more skin. The more skin people see, the more appreciative they'll be, and the more love/attention Zaradi will get. So, revealing himself is actually going to do what Zaradi wants.Additionally, going shirtless may open up new relationship opportunities for him, which may also bring him more love and perhaps reduce his own suffering. If someone sees him shirtless and goes "damn...," Zaradi's options may have just expanded significantly.C5. SexinessZaradi should take off his shirt just to show how sexy he is. 'Nuff said.CONCLUSIONSo, there are a few things to point out here. Firstly, it seems to be in Zaradi's own self-interest to take his shirt off. Doing so would save him the annoyance of constantly being asked to remove his shirt, and it would prevent people from repeatedly interrupting him in hangouts. It may also bring him more love...in several ways, and it would strengthen his friendships in a way that would benefit him. Secondly, taking off his shirt comports with his expressed desire to reduce suffering, by making others happy and producing various social benefits. Thirdly, it is ethical, based on fairness, for him to remove his shirt. Doing so would honor the obligations he assumed as a friend and as a VP, and would serve to repay a debt. And--fourthly and finally--taking off his shirt would further his desire to engage in community-building on DDO. It would affirm the value of cooperation by rewarding people for their joint efforts. Thus, the resolution can be clearly and resoundingly affirmed in a variety of ways.SOURCES1 - http://www.debate.org... [see: 24:30-25:30]2 - http://immortallife.info...3 - http://www.debate.org...4 - http://www.debate.org...5 - http://dictionary.reference.com...6 - http://www.debate.org...7 - http://www.debate.org...8 - http://www.bps.org.uk...9 - http://www.webmd.com...10 - http://www.nytimes.com...11 - http://www.mindbodygreen.com...Please Vote Pro! With that, I hand the floor over to Zaradi...I look forward to a great debate ;)