BeIR/webis-touche2020 huggingface dataset:
Gun Control Should Be Introduced In America

Sorry for the misunderstanding. When I defined gun control I said laws and regulations regarding guns which don't necessarily mean a ban on any type of gun it just means more laws regarding guns. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Firstly, Unsurprisingly America has more guns than any country in the world. A staggering 89 guns for every 100 people. This is far more then doubling the second leading country in this area. The USA also has the most gun homicides (A staggering 22 more per million then the second leading country in the world) and also the most deaths because of guns in general. This data was all collected by the United Nations. There has been research conducted by Leah Libresco that shows that these two things are directly related. Another smart group of individuals, who also found that these two things were connected are the Harvard School of Public Health"s Injury Control Research Center. The Boston University School of Public Health found similar findings showing that a 1 percent increase in guns was most likely to create a 0.9 percent increase in firearm homicide rate at the state level. In all these findings the variables were controlled and the research was performed by experts. All this data proves that America's easy access to guns and quantity of guns leads to more violence. Having so many guns makes it incredibly easy for criminals and felons to access. To fix this problem America would have a limit on the number of guns made and imported into America. We could also have stricter laws on who could have guns. An example of a few is making background checks mandatory so that there would be less of a need for guns in America. We could also make an age restriction on guns. Don't you think its a bit weird how kids aren't allowed to drink until their 21 but they're allowed to have a weapon that kills humans? Thank you for reading my argument and I hope you consider it deeply. Sources: https://www.vox.com...
Gun Control Should Be Introduced In America

Right, so first off I'm not really sure what the exact argument is. Many people nowadays, (given recent events), say that a simple "assault weapons" ban is all we need to stop shootings. While I disagree that gun control has proven to decrease the amount of homicides, I think that a blanket gun ban makes a better argument than simply an "assault rifle" ban. If you would like to state your opinion on this, just so i know exactly what the "Gun control" we are introducing to America, is. Commonly, leftists will say that they understand the second amendment and right to bear arms, but claim it is unnecessary for someone to have assault rifles. Anyways, I wont get into assault rifles until you state your exact intentions. Now onto my points. 1. Guns are what this country was founded on, and to completely ignore the founding principals and the men who gave their lives for that right is not appealing to me. 2. Guns are used for protection all the time, and save many lives per year. Taking these away could possibly endanger citizens, and we may see an increase in robberies, rape, and murder. 3. The logistics. Think about a ban in america. If we are talking a full- confiscation, that is impossible. There are around 300,000,000 guns in the country,and many owners would not be ok with having them taken away. There would be essentially a civil war. And if you are talking a buy-back like in Australia, then I don't think that the majority of gun owners would sell, especially if they didn't in Australia. Thanks for reading, and if you could just state the question and the exact intentions, that would help me a lot.
The Kalam Cosmological Argument is Sound

Pro has not defended any of the premises. In lieu of rebutting Pro's 'argument', I will instead argue against the KCA itself.1. Everything that begins to exist has a cause.Causality holds only at the macro level and only in spacetime. For instance, radioactive decay occurs spontaneously, as do the quantum fluctuations that create virtual particles. These phenomena are examples of quantum indeterminacy. [1] [2]2. The universe began to exist.When one says that something began to exist, they are saying that there is a point in time in which that thing does exist (now, in the case of the universe) and that there is a point in time in which the the thing doesn't exist. Non-being to being requires change.It is problematic to say that the universe began to exist because change requires time, which is a property of the the universe! From this it follows that the universe has existed at every point in time!The resolution has been negated.[1] http://www.thefreedictionary.com... [2] http://www.infidels.org...
The Kalam Cosmological Argument is Sound

Everything that exists has a beginning except that which is not part of the formation of creation. Consciousness have always been the Living Word in which manifested the things that are seen with naked eye as matters or else. The one thing one should note is that consciousness does not require a beginning. Or you could also assert that Consciousness is the "I AM" that always were before "BE" came to be. Here is an example from the Gospel of John Ch. 1: "In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with G-D and the Word was G-D." This illustrates the Consciousness and 'Total Knowledge" because the Word was G-D. Furthermore that same Word is described been made flesh and dwelt among mankind. So here we have the "Word" and that same "Word" being made flesh and blood. For this simple fact, Consciousness is certainly not in need of a creator because it's existence does not evolve with time. Instead it created time for what were created from the beginning. Therefore my argument is that G-D is the source of eternity and maker of time to decorate this eternal space. Certainly if anyone take their time to read scriptures that Word will be revealed in them as well.
Poetry

First blood my opponent has drawn, with her tale of grief-filled song. This round is full of pain, here's my piece entitled "In Vein". In Vein She sits alone, in her room Curtains pulled, she awaits her doom Because she realize It is life she despise She walks alone through the halls, Trying to ignore the names she's called. They're jeering, taunting, laughing-trying, Do they know, inside she's dying? Alone to home she strides again, Wondering when it will finally end. Praying it would come soon, She'll cause it, she says, her own doom. White tiles splattered with crimson stains, This, her final attempt to dispose of pain. One more cut, she says, just one more, Into the darkness she was lured. Ashes to ashes. dust to dust, There was no one she could trust. To carry her burden, share her pain, Her attempt to live, was all in vain. By: Risha I look forward to round 3, Where surrealism is the theme. Let your imagination come to life, For in this my opponent strives.
Poetry

Here's BeepBy me, Annie: The flashes of light The susurrus and bangs of sound The gush of a liquid, red, blood. The blood-curling scream of agony The smell of rotting death Echoing throughout, the last, long breath The grunts of pain The flickering eyelids The soft, “I’m sorry. He’s not going to make it.” The sobbing of parents Of the long gone As they lay him down, Safe and sound, Under almost everything, In the ground. He takes one last look as they leave him, Alone in his blanket of dirt, asleep. He holds firmly to Death, not wanting, not able, to weep. The tears shed, as the lights came back on The final bows To deafening applause A statement to all the people: “Trying to get over loss There is no family, where at least one person hasn't’t diedand gone. “They haven’t left forever You’ll see them again one day. Just like he and Death reunited with them all on stage.” A beginning must always have an end. And ironically, life always goes on Even when one has gone. You can’t prevent it One day, you’re sure to leave So fitting then it is to end this poem with “Beeeeep.”By: Annie I now hand over to my talented opponentWho's got a full closet of armour to her aidI hope I did good, or else my ego might need a band-aid.
Poetry

Upon the train of awesomeness i now am, On my way to familiar land. Where poetry encompasses all, Welcome everyone, one and all. I must say thank you mate, For creating this epicly, awesome, majestic debate. It's almost as awesome as you, And your poems are truly you. Here round 1 I'm accepting, Round 2 may be quite depressing. Round 3 is surrealism i hear, Round 4, society beware. The finale shall be our farewell, In all i hope this debate goes well. My pieces they shall be, Written directly from the heart of me.
Poetry

Second round we begin,we write about something negative- grief, death or sadness. Third round, we continue along, in which in which surrealism is our theme. Then we move on to dealing with something-anything with society. For the last round, is a farewell, To all our voters and readers as well. Remember though, these poems must be yours. If they aren't original, you'll consider yourself forfetied . .. and a lost cause. Good luck my friend Risha and cheers to the beginning of a fun debate! May our rounds be awesome and never forfeited or late! Main rules: No dialect. Must be original pieces. Please judge on: rhyming, if it makes sense and most importantly- which ever floats your boat!
Poetry

The great finale, the final farewell It is here, i can tell This debate was awesome, i shan't lie Here's my final piece entitled "Goodbye?"< Goodbye? We've been through so much together, But not everything lasts forever. Conquering stormy weather we've done, But now our faith, it is gone. Because every beginning has an end, Everyone has once lost a friend. Through these times we tend to fear, As our thoughts, our minds become impaired. We keep the ones who are dear, Close to us when dark times are near. But what can we do ? When the choice is a double lose. My dear one has come to say goodbye, But without I can no longer fly. I see you stride through the door, No, without you, i can not soar. As the words leave your mouth, I want to scream, I want to shout. We need each other, no doubt, I need to know what you're thinking about. You begin to leave, you turn to stride, Unconsciously I am t your side. Waterfalls stream down my face, I explain, with this choice, neither can win this race. As we embrace, the future we seek, Then you, yourself begin to speak; We've gone through so much together, We shall conquer this stormy weather. They say every beginning has an end, But to prevent it, one must fend. I have fended, now i can fly, Because i refused to say goodbye. ~Risha ********************************* The end is here, This is what i feared. However i must say, This was an awesome debate. I'd like to thank Annie for creating this, Not a detail did she miss. She tried so hard, she did her best, This was no easy contest. Round 1 we accepted and started the race, Round 2 sorrow was in play. Round 3 was surrealism, i feared, Round 4 upon society was glared. Round 5 was the curtain call, I'd like to thank Annie, the readers and all. For this debate was one of the best, I'm sure no other can contest. thank you
Poetry

Goodbye The tears well in my eyes This is what I despise I hate to say goodbye. I look at you this last time I feel like my blood’s become lime. You’ve committed the perfect crime: You stole my heart. It’s lodged in my throat I feel like I am going to choke. My eyes burn and suddenly I can’t breathe, Much less see. I can’t control it now I want to stop but don’t know how. How? Please help me. How? My vision is blurred My shoulders rack with sobs But I want to see you for the last time so I want it tostop. I hear a whimper And know you’re a goner I squeeze my eyes shut not wanting this to be how we remember. You hold me closer to your warm chest And leave me there for a while to rest But everything has an end- the worst things and the best. You pull away and I shake my head But no! You go ahead Trying to get away from me after all we’ve said. Our eyes meet and I can see the despair You don’t want to leave! I try to convince myself it’s fear But your blank eyes tell me you’re not here; don’t care. Our fingers slip apart And I feel you move away I start to scream and bang my hands against everywhere againand again. Don’t leave me. Don’t go please. How I love you so, My Evangeline… Wait for me. It’s only goodbye for now Our love will remain with each other strong. One day we’ll prove everyone wrong But before they can say goodbye or apologize, We’ll both be gone. -Annie Farewell DW and voters I hope you enjoyed our poems. This was indeed cool and fun. It’s unfortunate it is almost done. I hand over the floor to Risha Who’ll now leave you speechless. Thanks to everyone for your support and advice. I hope my last poem was better and nice.
Poetry

Here we discuss society, Influential it is to you and me, Ignite your spark Here is "Mark" Today it seems to me, Society isn't what it's supposed to be; Letting one express himself freely, Instead it discriminates brutally. If original expression, out is slipped, It's soon clasped in society's firm, iron grip. Because whenever there's a spark, It's soon diminished by society's bloody mark. Trying to be yourself is long gone, In society's game, one is just a pawn. Waiting to be played, in society's next move, Conformation to this must be proved. Alienation results as failure to comply, And they wonder why at night we cry ? Bringing us down in every way, Of course! someone must pay. Don't listen to this, don't be fooled, Or this may just be your doom. Fail to comply, You will soar, you shall fly. False expressions, let them be flipped, Break free from society's grip. It's not strong, you are ample, By society, you shan't to be trampled. Be the one with that spark, Refuse to be stained with its bloody mark. Only you can free yourself from this prison, Many have tried, they have risen. Make society what its supposed to be, Not what others think and see. Use your spark, Upon society, make your mark. sorry, it's kinda long.
Poetry

First time trying this rhyming scheme So please try to bear with me… People People are everywhere, Happy, lost, sad and even scared, Scavenging the earth, Wanting the truth to be un-earthed. Some people are Barbies and dolls,Wanting to perfect their outer walls. They don a mask to hide their true side Living under their reality, a lie. Some people are gazelles and deer, Just wondering here and there, With innocent doe eyes And genuine laughs and smiles. Some people are foxes and vixens Hungry to take what they can; Slashing apart the naïve and innocent For they are repelled by their ignorance. Some people are lizards, Crawling the wards, Flies on the walls, Ready to report to anyone People hide behind masks Instead of bask-ing In their identity With glory People follow whatever others do To be part of a crew Indoctrinating themselves in convention Instead of recognizing they’re one in a million People are strange And do crazy things At the end of the day, Who are you in society’s plague? Are you, you? Or are you, me? Am I you? Or am I, who I am and want to be? -AnnieOn to our last round,So sad...A farewell was boundTo come though it makes us feel bad...
Poetry

I'm not to familiar with surrealism .. but I tried anyway. Impending Danger The branches dance to a mysterious tune, Canopies of leaves foretell impending doom. The wind's tune continues to play, It's the countdown, day by day. The surrender of leaves keep count, The voice of the stems whispers, no doubt Suddenly, they bow down to the master, It is here the impended danger. The lonely one strolls down the path, The trunks whisper as he pass. Gossip about his great wrath, How long would HE last? He then approaches and all are free, All his subjects bow down to thee. His mighty hand raises-he is great, All is quiet, they await their fate. He is the Immortelle tree, Standing there majestically. He rustles, "Prepare for the enemy, for they bring great misery. It is the carnival of misery, the festival of foes. They will come, and they will go. Who can survive this catastrophe? Can he? The the mighty, majestic, Immortelle tree? by: Risha Surrealism has come to an end, Did u comprehend ? Next we deal with society, This may benefit both you and me. To my opponent I wish the best, In this time of duress. BOO! XD hi Annie
Poetry

Dreams seem by Annie I close my eyes And dream away Mimicking the sighs, I sway. Through happy endings And fields of blue-grey The princess sings Happy, joyful and gay Through smiles and laughter And colourful dresses Friendly banters My heart caresses. Dinosaurs and unicorns run about Ready to give anyone a ride Since it’s fun to be out Instead of wasting away inside. Everyone holds hands And banters together as one There’s no lying or backbiting No cruelty or corruption. And then I yawn And rise from my sleep After the break of dawn Curling me back into reality I guess it’s true Everything’s better in a dream I can now see, can you? That nothing is ever as it seems… -Annie DauntlessWarrior is an awesome poet, I honestly don’t know how she does that. Her work is just so great It had me working on this night and day…
"13 Reasons Why" Has Done More Good Than Harm

Okay, so I'm going to present a sliver of what I would like to say, and then I will refute my opponents point. Terms: 13 Reasons Why: a show on Netflix about a girl in high school who commits suicide, and leaves behind a series of tapes. "Good than harm": it has resulted in more benefits that harms 1. Scapegoating Important Issues -After facing backlash from the public for horrific scenes of rape, suicide, sodomy, beatings, and more, the shows creators defended the show by saying, "we are bringing light to issues that people deal with everyday. It may not be the prettiest thing to watch, and some of the scenes are very harsh, but it still brings light to different issues." Ultimately, this just isn't true. Yes, it may bring some sort of light to these issues, but really, it does it in the worst way possible. 12 Reasons Why's main defense is, "we giving people awareness," but showing scenes of people being raped, murdered, on drugs, and getting sodomized brings no more awareness to these serious issues than just talking about them. They say, "we are helping people," but they aren't. They are literally profiting off of depicting suicide, and other issues instead of actually addressing them. Not to mention that these depictions can be super triggering and unhealthy. Many teens have been killing themselves over disturbing images. A boy committed suicide, then left tapes, similar to Hannah. 13 Reasons Why teaches children that committing suicide is a way to get revenge on people, when this isn't. Interested to hear your response. Thanks
Mittens is a horrible name for a cat

I guess I'll start with my argument... First of all, according to "Cat Names Meow," Mittens is in the top 40 names for male cats (http://www.catnamesmeow.com...). Secondly, Mittens has a nice ring to it, and if the cat were to have spawn...you could say, "Oh boy, look at Mittens' kittens!" Everyone loves a good rhyme. Finally, cats are generally not very responsive when called by name, at least in my own experience. Therefore, it doesn't really matter what you name your cat. "Mittens" might not be a wonderful name, but it's not horrible.
Curb childhood Obesity for USA

Since my opponent isn't willing to expand his thoughts about this subject, I will move onto my next argument. Obese people are being discriminated against, and will continue to be discriminated against until they lose weight. In a study done by researchers at Rice University, he found out that "Sales clerks tend to subtly discriminate against overweight shoppers but treat them more favorably if they perceive that the individual is trying to lose weight" "Ten average-weight Caucasian women between the ages of 19 and 28 played the role of customer in four different scenarios: an average-weight shopper in casual attire, an average-weight shopper in professional attire, an obese shopper (the result of a size 22 obesity prosthetic worn under the clothing) in casual attire and an obese shopper in professional attire. Following a memorized script, the shoppers sought assistance with picking out a birthday gift in various stores; after each shopping experience, they filled out a questionnaire evaluating the way they were treated by the sales clerk. A tape recorder in their purse captured the conversations so that the sales clerks' tone, inflection and choice of words could be analyzed. In addition, the researchers stationed an observer in the store within hearing range of the shopper to provide a second opinion of how each interaction fared by filling out a questionnaire after each shopping experience. Based on data from interactions in 152 stores in a large mall, the researchers found greater levels of interpersonal discrimination directed toward obese shoppers than toward average-weight shoppers. The findings were based on the observers' and customers' reports of the sales clerks' eye contact, friendliness, rudeness, smile, premature ending of the interaction, length of interaction time, and negative language and tone. Almost three-fourths of the sales clerks were women." >http://www.eurekalert.org... Discrimination towards the obese and overweight is just one more reason why we should fight towards ending this epidemic. Children growing up in these conditions seem to have more psychological disadvantages than those who grew up with an average weight. Children who get called names may have a hard time socializing with one another later on in life, and can cause severe damages to their personalities. As stated online at "http://www.suicide.org...; "People who are morbidly obese not only have to deal with the extra weight on their bodies, but also a social stigma associated with obesity. Clearly, the social stigma can be contributory to the onset of depression. The findings in the study that morbidly obese people are five times more likely to be depressed than those who are not, also means that people who are morbidly obese are at a high risk for suicide." If we increase the number of activities, and decrease the number of fattening foods obesity rates could decrease by half!