Pre-Marital Sex

Let me begin by thanking Mr. Witty for bringing up this topic that he obviously feels passionate about. One of the things DDO has taught me is that it's not necessary to chase down all of the red herrings you come across in other people's arguments. So, I don't feel the need to keep refuting bad arguments over and over again in this debate. In fact, I feel so confident that my position is virtually unassailable at this point that I am going to be very brief in this round. =====> A Critique of Witty11's Arguments <===== Contention 1: STDs A. "Having sex with only your spouse is healthier than having sex with multiple partners." Once again, my opponent's contention is based on a false dichotomy. [1] People that have sex outside of the bounds of marriage are not guaranteed to have sex with multiple partners. B. "By waiting to have sex until after you are married, you minimize risks, and you can completely avoid risks if your spouse is also a virgin. Additionally, contraception (i.e., condoms) fail 31% of the time; this is an extremely "risky" high percentage, given the fact that AIDS CAN KILL YOU!" My opponent's contention is an appeal to fear [2], and it is based on faulty statistics. Condoms don't fail 31 percent of the time; this assertion is ridiculous. Condoms are both effective at preventing the spread of aids [3], and they are effective at preventing pregnancies. Depending on whether or not condoms are used correctly, they can help prevent pregnancies 97 percent of the time. [4] Contention 2: Sex and Emotional Health " If [two people] are that deeply in love why would they not want to get married" -Witty11 None of your business; how's that for an answer. If two people are in love and they don't want to get married for whatever reason, then that is their choice. Arguing that they should avoid having sex because of this is simply outrageous. Contention 3: Sex and Pregnancies This argument is dead and meaningless. Contention 4: Single Parent Households This argument is dead and meaningless. Contention 5: Single Parent Households [part 2] Like contentions 3 and 4, this argument is also dead and meaningless. My opponent's arguments only become more exposed for their weakness as this debate has continued forward. =====> In Defense of Premarital Sex <====== Contention 1: Sex, in and of itself, is a non-moral activity. "Explain to me how sex is not a moral activity because if this were true, there would be no laws against prohibiting any sexual act (i.e. rape, sodomy, prostitution, pedophilia, etc.)" Like I said before, sex is a morally neutral activity. Whether or not sex is immoral depends on the context it takes place it in. There is nothing prima facie wrong with engaging in consensual sexual activity. Simply put, sex is a way people express their love for one another. Adults can engage in it in a responsible manner that doesn't harm anyone. Therefore, the notion that people should limit their sexual activity by the arbitrary status of marriage is simply an indefensible position. Moreover, even if I granted the primary claims of my opponent's arguments, his resolution would still fail. Under the current resolution, committed couples that aren't married shouldn't have sex. And couples should also avoid having sex the night before their wedding. Like I've pointed out earlier, this is a ridiculous consequence of my antagonist's views. ::Conclusion:: I really don't know what more I can say. I've completely crippled all of my opponent's arguments. Consequently, Witty11 has decided to engage in quite a bit of fear mongering about sex, abortions, and contraception. None of these tactics should be persuasive to anyone. ::References:: 1. http://www.iep.utm.edu... 2. http://www.iep.utm.edu... 3. http://www.avert.org... 4. http://www.youngwomenshealth.org...