The jokers statement in the "Dark Knight" that "We are destined to do this forever" is true.

1. BATMAN WON'T KILL JOKER Unlike other super heroes, Batman is entirely human. His name is Bruce Wayne and he has flaws just like everybody else. In fact the parallel character to Batman in the film The Dark Knight was Harvey Dent, who several times throughout the film was called Gotham's White Knight. As most of us know by now (I know my opponent does), Dent's character becomes skewed and we're introduced to the concept and transformation of/into Two Face. A major theme throughout the film was the triumph of evil over good, and the film sought to show how even good people have their limits, inconsistencies, and potential for evil or wrong-doing. Batman is not above those realities. For instance, we know that when he had the choice to either save Rachel (for personal reasons) or Harvey (which would have been the better choice for the public), he made a selfish decision to save Rachel instead. This proves that although Batman is AWESOME, he is not above all aspects of human nature. Corruption is one consequence of being human, which is yet another theme explored in the film. However my point here is that there is no way to prove for certain that just because Batman has risen above corruption in the past, that he will always and forever. -- 2. THE JOKER IS INDESTRUCTABLE Again this is entirely speculatory. Pro feels that Joker's genius/madness will always lead him to outsmarting the authorities, his enemies, etc. However not only can we not foresee the future, but we cannot be exactly sure just where the dichotomy of human nature will take us. Another interesting concept explored in the film The Dark Knight was the fact that good people have the capacity to do bad things, and likewise, bad people have the capacity to do good things as well. This became apparent when the two boats full of citizens chose NOT to blow each other up when they each had the chance. Indeed even a hardened criminal chose to rise above corruption and do the right thing; it was a stellar moment tributed to the goodness of human kind. Likewise, the theme of TWO FACE in general establishes that good and evil are opposing yet EQUAL forces. Thus just as someone completely good (Harvey Dent) could do evil, someone entirely evil (Joker) ALSO has the capacity to do good. And let's face it - a bad guy turned good is pretty common in films, especially super hero movies. Hell the Joker and Batman could even join forces sometime in the future - who knows. (An unlikely team but still my point stands...) -- 3. THE JOKER IS JUST EVIL Pro brings up Alfred's quote of some men just wanting to see the world burn here, which is fine, except for the fact that it doesn't really do anything to support Pro's case. I agree that Joker is psychotic and seemingly an unstoppable force. I also agree that he thrives off chaos and bringing anarchy and madness to the world. Fine. But what does this have to do with the resolution? Simply because chaos and madness are inevitable to humanity does not mean that the Joker's presence or action is necessary in order to sustain it. So...? -- 4. JOKER WON'T KILL BATMAN Here's the thing. The Joker's ultimate goal/pleasure is chaos, corruption, etc. Pro establishes this with his 3rd point. However what to do if Batman threatens to squash the Joker's hopes and dreams...? We must assume that Joker's quest for insanity and disturbia outweighs any feelings that he has for the Batman. Further, Pro has acknowledged that the Joker is completely mad -- I highly doubt he has a terrible amount of compassion. And since one element of madness is inconsistency (in fact it is often used as a determining factor of madness), we must conclude that Joker's actions are entirely non-predictable. Though he has spared Batman in the past, he certainly was not opposed to hurting him severely. Perhaps in the future he will take it a little too far and Batman will be killed. -- MY REASONING: 1) The Joker and Batman have completely opposing goals. One of them is bound to wise up and realize that without destroying the other, neither side will triumph over the other. The Dark Knight evaluates how sometimes either side can win depending on the circumstances/situation, thus without the destruction of the other, it is not possible for there to be complete order (Batman) or complete chaos (Joker). While Joker may be content to just wreak havoc for sh1ts and giggles endlessly, Batman should realize that people are DYING as a result of Joker's little game. One potential outcome (of many) is that he chooses to sacrifice the Joker's life in order to save hundreds/thousands of others. So far he has rejected this path; however, after the Joker's resurrection time and time again, he may come to realize that ending Joker's life is the only way. He may decide that it is the RIGHT way. [ Interject all Pro-death penalty reasoning here :P ] 2) I still maintain that either the Batman or Joker can/will die on accident one day during an intense altercation. Even if it was an accident, it would still be one of them responsible for the others death, hence negating the resolution. Anyway this debate is for fun so I'll end here for now and wait to see what my opponent has to say :)