1. Norwegian scholars have found that the increased number of women on boards has led to more focused and strategic decision-making , increased communication , and decreased conflict .
2. Organizations with women in top leadership positions are also more likely to provide work-life assistance to all employees .
3. Female managers tend to promote a communal and collaborative style of leadership that can improve a companys performance and work culture .
4. In Norway , there has been some advancement in firms human capital as a result of the quotas , which may result in increased profits in the future due to the increasing number of well educated women .
5. This is often related to the high overall education level of women on boards .
6. Companies that score highly on all the OHI measures have also shown superior financial performance .
7. A report from The McKinsey Organizational Health Index -LRB- OHI -RRB- argues that companies with three or more women in top positions -LRB- executive committee and higher -RRB- scored higher than their peers .
8. There are many reports showing that there is a positive correlation between the number of women on high positions and the companies performance .
9. Sandberg , Sheryl , Lean In : Women , Work , and the Will to Lead , New York , 2013 Sandberg , Sheryl , Lean In : Women , Work , and the Will to Lead , New York , 2013
10. In fact , many successful business women , such as Sheryl Sandberg , also argue that more women in business could change business ethics and the male-associated image of successful business model that will bring competitive advantages to companies and thus , to the EU economies . .

What is the general argument implied by these sentences?

Quota-led gender equality in executive boards will help shape a gender sensitive and highly performing business environment.


What claim can be made from the following pieces of evidence?

1. Within that context there is little likelihood that they will provide , with no stimulus , the front-loaded investment necessary for the development of new technologies .
2. The market has no interest in altering a model in which scarcity increases profitability as is the case with the current market .
3. Left unchecked the market has little or no interest to innovate and has the encouragement of the profit motive not to .
4. Instead the state has the capacity to offer both the carrot of guaranteeing a future market and the stick of regulating future carbon emissions .
5. However , corporations have an interest in the sustainability of their individual businesses so will move to new technologies , even if more expensive , if necessary but that will only be the case if the government creates that market artificially .

Standards that are enforced by government legislation means that companies know there will be a guaranteed market for innovations


This House would ban smacking
What is a possible side to this debate?


Sentences: 1. It is difficult to force governments to improve water access , but companies and Public-Private Partnerships -LRB- where private companies pay for most of the infrastructure , but partner with public entities -RRB- can be used to achieve this goal .
2. Water privatization will charge for water , however it will be more fair to the poor and provide them with more options to accessing water that the government is not providing .
3. Some governments are negligent , and there needs to be a solution to give citizens access to clean water without government provision .
4. Clearly this is n't working .
5. 90 % of water is publicly provided , yet 1 billion people do n't have water .
6. Water would ideally be a universally accessible and affordable substance , but governments can not necessarily be trusted to provide water to all of their citizens .
7. The poor are already paying for their water , either directly to entrepreneurs who carry it in tubs and cans up to the shanty towns , or with their time as they spend a large proportion of the family 's labor fetching poor quality water from miles away .
8. Many governments are unfair to the poor , but private providers have no reason to pick favorites .
9. Current regimes in developing countries often provide a state subsidy to the rich , with water provided to middle-class areas and wealthy farmers at a fraction of its true cost , while poorer areas have no supply at all .
10. This problem has only been exacerbated by the shrinking budgets of most countries due to the economic crisis of 2009 .

What claim can be made from these sentences?

Privatization usurps corrupt, unfair governments.


A referendum will create a better political climate.
Come up with some evidence to support this claim.

1. A contented electorate will be more supportive of government and feel included in political life .
2. Not only individuals but also parties will be appeased : the far left and right each feel strongly about this issue .
3. The general public will be appeased : 75 % of voters want the vote held .
4. MPs will fulfil their duty to represent constituent interests by calling the referendum .
5. Pro-Europeans like the Lib Dems also want the referendum : leader Nick Clegg said that `` nothing will do more damage to the pro-European movement than giving room to the suspicion that we have something to hide '' by not holding one .
6. Both sides of the political spectrum wants this issue definitively settled .
7. Euroskeptic parties like UKIP and the BNP have agitated for an in-or-out vote for years , and disguise racism and anti-immigrant sentiment as Euroskepticism in the process .
8. A vote either way would settle the issue and make it harder for them to disguise antisocial aspects of their platforms .
9. Once it has been , politicians will be able to redirect focus and work on crucial issues like the economy .


This House would repatriate all illegal immigrants
What is a possible side to this debate?

Illegal immigration is facilitated by criminal networks


1. See further reading : AMREF USA , 2013 ; AMREF , 2013 .
2. See further readings : UNAID , 2013 .
3. According to the WHO 2013 guidelines of people eligible for ART .
4. ART -LRB- Anti-Retroviral Treatment -RRB- involves drugs which prevent the progression of HIV ; reduce transmission and mortality .
5. See further readings : Private Equity Africa , 2013 .
6. The private sector can help fill this funding gap ; private-sector actors - including Actis - are planning to invest $ 1.2 bn into Adcock Ingram to provide and supply drugs .
7. Public resources are not available , so the private-sector is critical .
8. $ 25-30bn is required to invest in healthcare assets in the next decade to meet needs -LRB- McKinsey and Company , 2007 -RRB- .
9. Sub-Saharan Africa accounts for 24 % of the global disease burden ; but only 1 % of global health expenditure and 3 % of the worlds health workers -LRB- McKinsey and Company , 2007 -RRB- .
10. Furthermore , the private-sector have established partnerships to implement training programmes , improving qualified treatment for HIV , TB and malaria .

What is the general argument implied by these sentences?


Summarize the argument implied by these sentences?

1. There is still a large Muslim minority in India and there are deep underlying social tensions within the country on this basis , along with frosty relations with a nuclear-capable Pakistan .
2. Indias post-independence history is one of partition along religious grounds with Pakistan and then open warfare with that state over territory .
3. If allowing the publication of would result in social unrest then on the balance of harms it is a rational choice to make a limited restriction on freedom of speech rather than see potential millions having their property and lives threatened .
4. In this context , Indias leaders have a special reason to pay attention to the sensibilities of their minority populations .

India has a specific need to main social cohesion


THW Require the Provision of Cannabis in Any State Funded Medical Program
What argument could one make about this debate topic?

All drugs can be used for a variety of purposes some appropriate some inappropriate that’s a matter of choice, treatment should be based on medical reality


This House believes atheism is the only way
What is a possible side to this debate?

In reality there are only two theological positions, atheism and theism; agnosticism is nothing but timid atheism:


This House would treat the desecration and destruction of high-value sites and property of cultural heritage as a crime against humanity.
What is a possible side to this debate?

The desecration and destruction of cultural property is often discriminatory and attacks peoples’ identity.


This House would introduce labels on food to encourage people to eat better
What argument could one make about this debate topic?

Food labeling is an important form of consumer protection


What is the debate topic for the following sentences?

1. University of Illinois Law Review 1 .
2. Even if the criminals assume some people will defend themselves anyway , they also know that people will likely hold back rather than fight .
3. Denying the right to self-defense leaves innocents at the mercy of criminals who would violate their rights .
4. Would-be criminals , when considering the commission of a crime , make an analysis of the likelihood of success and risk to themselves from their potential victims and from the state .
5. The incentive to commit crime when it is illegal for people to defend themselves necessarily increases substantially .
6. 1999 .
7. `` Castles and Carjackers : Proportionality and the Use of Deadly Force in Defense of Dwellings and Property '' .
8. On the other hand , the acknowledgement of the right to self-defense deters crime , as people will be unwilling to risk their own safety in order to commit crimes .
9. Green , Stuart .

This house believes in a right to self-defense


Sentences: 1. The national test ` has not only become too easy for the academically able , but it is still too difficult for the bottom 40 per cent , who cry out for courses to help them make sense of their last three years of compulsoryschooling .
2. A one-size-fits-all national test does not adequately measure the ability of the student , and fails to motivate students in their education .
3. In the United Kingdom , national testing was introduced in 1988 .
4. By 2002 , 90 % of students at the best schools got the top grade , whilst 300,000 of the United Kingdom 's worst pupils failed to pass .
5. Talented students and un-talented students should not be measured by the same test .
6. Handing down a standard national test from the top is bound to end up with a `` one-size-fits-all '' result that does n't suit the weakest or the best students .
7. Any system of standardized testing -LRB- where everyone is given the same test -RRB- assumes that all students learn at the same rate .
8. But this is not the case .
9. The best students find them too easy , the worst students find them too difficult .

What claim can be made from these sentences?

National, standardized tests are a poor measure of student learning


1. Should the U.S. wish to go to war again then it might end up in a situation such as Vietnam , the conflict that inspired the creation of the war powers act .1
2. This is problematic because the decision to go to war should never be one that is taken lightly .
3. Further , the use of international organisations such as the UN and NATO to circumvent congress has bad ramifications for the future as in doing this the U.S. government has significantly lowered the burden required to go to war should it wish to do so in the future .
4. Given that the situation is not an emergency for the U.S. circumventing congress in order to prosecute the war is incredibly harmful as it undermines one of the core institutions in U.S. democracy .
5. Given that this is true , then engagement with Libya to begin with goes against the spirit of US law .
6. Firstly , Libya did not attack US soldiers and did not harm US citizens .

What is the general argument implied by these sentences?

US intervention is not consistent with other aspects of US law


What debate topic are the following sentences about?

1. For example , the bacterial flagellum , the motor that powers bacterial cells , loses all functionality if a single component is removed .
2. Ratzsch , Del. 2009 .
3. `` Teleological Arguments for God 's Existence '' The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy .
4. Besides design , the only explanation of its development is blind chance , which seems less sensible , since in human experience nothing complex can come about without agency .
5. 1 .
6. This refutes the gradualist argument of evolution , since there is no selective pressure on the organism to change when it is functionless .
7. Darwin 's Black Box .
8. Glencoe : Free Press .
9. Likewise , certain organisms can be shown to be irreducibly complex , meaning that if one were to remove any part of such an organism , it could not function .
10. Nature is marked by clear design .


Summarize the argument implied by these sentences?

1. In Moskos own words , corporal punishment allows society to express its disapproval quickly and efficiently , leaving the offenders to move on with the process of reform .
2. It is in the interests of any effective system of rehabilitation to ensure that a non-violent offender remains in contact with their family and remains in employment -LRB- excepting , of course , offenders who have attack or abused family members -RRB- .
3. The decay of an offenders relationships and social support structures is yet another harmful externality of custodial punishment .
4. A corporal sentence caters to the social imperative to punish criminals , but it also allows offenders to remain with their families and to avoid financial hardship by remaining in employment .
5. Families , spouses and social networks can play an important role in supporting and encouraging an offender to engage with rehabilitation programmes .
6. Wives and children can effectively monitor an offenders behaviour when trained staff are unavailable , integrating the reform process with the offenders day to day life .
7. The long-term damage done to an offenders life is not an intended consequence of custodial sentencing .
8. However , it can not be claimed to be a proportionate response to crime , as it affects both serious offenders and those accused of non-violent offences such as burglary or fraud .
9. A custodial sentence is capable of destroying the relationships and livelihood of an offender .
10. Imprisonment means that an offender will be unable to work and will lose his job , if he has one .

Custodial sentences make recidivism more likely


Summarize the argument implied by these sentences?

1. Therefore , it makes more sense to only have one name for each concept , by which that concept shall be known , in order to economize effort and to not waste time creating translations for EU-specific jargon .
2. The EU use technical jargon for which there is often not a direct translation .
3. It is better and more effective to spend the time addressing the issues rather than deciding by which names to call these entities that give rise to issues within the EU .
4. It is not chauvinistic , or even a matter of preference , to use English as a working language over other languages ; it just so happens to be a language that is understood throughout the EU Member States .

One working language understood by all Member States is a more practical way of communicating often untranslatable yet vital EU-specific vocabulary.


Sentences: 1. `` While some people may like to believe that they can train their bodies to not require as much sleep as they once did this belief is false '' A mandatory cap on the hours they work removes the decision from them and avoids this problem .
2. A cap on the amount of work that people do per week allows for proper rest periods .
3. Tired workers are prone to making mistakes , one of the mistakes they can make is to think they can skip necessary sleep with no ill effects .
4. Human beings require downtime in the form of sleep and rest in order to maintain their peak functioning .
5. Long working hours cut into this rest and sleep time and therefore reduce their effectiveness as workers .

What claim can be made from these sentences?

There must be a maximum amount of performance that people are capable of, given rest and reward. To work people too long is to waste their potential.


1. This will become a greater problem as more modifications are introduced .
2. Although this was detected in testing , sooner or later a transferred gene will cause risk to human health because the scientists did not conceive it could be a problem .
3. There are also possible dangers associated with the scientific technique itself by which the DNA is modified , an example is the spread of antibiotic resistance .
4. For example , the addition of nut proteins to soybeans caused those with nut allergies to go into shock upon eating the soybeans .
5. Also , there are a number of dangers associated with the food itself , even without scientific evaluations .
6. U.S. Department of Agriculture -LRB- USDA -RRB- evaluated in 1993 data on genetically modified organisms regarding safety claims .
7. It is true , that in the US , there have been no adverse consequences from over 500 field releases in the United States .
8. Also many reports also failed to mention or even measure any environmental risks connected with GM food commercialisation .
9. The Union of Concerned Scientists -LRB- UCS -RRB- believes that the USDA evaluation was too small scale , to actually asses the risks .
10. The first is that ` Peer review ' -LRB- the checking of scientific test results by fellow scientists -RRB- is often made impossible by the unwillingness of biotechnology companies to give up their results for review .

What is the general argument implied by these sentences?

Genetically modified food is too new and little researched to be allowed for public use.


This House would ban gambling
What argument could one make about this debate topic?

Casinos are often used to mask criminal activity


What claim can be made from the following pieces of evidence?

1. And finally he was initially turned away from the emergency ward because they did not know it was the President they were being asked to treat .
2. Transparency would allow procedures to be in place and advance notice given possibly gaining a few minutes and enabling survival .
3. Daily Guide , How Mills died : Sister tells it all , , 31 August 2012 ,
4. A person is most likely to survive when they have an accident , a heart attack , or some other condition if they get prompt treatment and doctors are aware of any underlying conditions .
5. Mills may well have lived , or lived longer if there had been more transparency about his death .
6. There had been no prior warning that the president might be rushed to hospital despite the doctors having been called in the previous day .
7. For the same reason his outriders were not available leading to indecision over whether to send off the ambulance .

A lack of transparency can endanger the leader


What claim can be made from the following pieces of evidence?

1. -LRB- 7 -RRB- Therefore , the best way to satisfy both sides and achieve peace is to adopt a two-state solution , which is therefore the most just solution .
2. This would be valuable diplomatically , particularly in resolving the larger conflict between Iran and the West .
3. The success of a two-state solution , therefore , would , at a minimum , gain the support and possibly cooperation of the Iranians .
4. -LRB- 6 -RRB- Even the Iranian President Mahmud Ahmadinezhad has stated that Iran would support a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict .
5. Singapore enjoys one of the highest standards of living in the world .
6. The area of the West Bank and Gaza is nine times as large as Singapore 's , yet the combined population of Palestinians in both regions is smaller than that of Singapore .
7. -LRB- 1 -RRB- Moreover , throughout the years polls have consistently showed respectable Israeli and Palestinian majorities in favour of a negotiated two-state settlement .
8. The Palestinians are capable of achieving similar success , through instituting a modern economy based on science , technology and the benefits of peace .
9. For Israel this would mean keeping the vast majority of areas inhabited by Israeli citizens within the state of Israel .
10. A two-state solution can offer sufficient territory for both Israelis and Palestinians .

Only a two-state solution can satisfy both sides


What claim can be made from the following pieces of evidence?

1. Finally , larger economic units are more able to influence international trade regimes .
2. This increases internal trade and economic growth and encourages investors .
3. Federal states are able to remove trade barriers between members which would otherwise exist if there were independent states -LRB- such as difficulties in moving goods due to borders -RRB- .
4. Even in cases of agreed free trade areas between states , there is no overarching authority to ensure timely compliance to agreements .
5. Federal units are able to share resources and concentrate on producing what they are best at -LRB- called comparative advantage -RRB- at a better economy of scale .

Federal states are economically stronger


Tourism is easier to regulate than manufacturing or resource extraction.
Come up with some evidence to support this claim.

1. Two decades earlier , the introduction of laws allowing minimally regulated and discrete incorporation of offshore business entities enabled the Bahamian economy to diversify into the field of financial services , reducing its dependence on tourism .
2. Development of the island would have resulted in the destruction of mangroves and fish habitats , compromising the livelihood of the islands residents .
3. The minute Bahamian island of Bimini came under threat from a large scale development plan proposed , in part , by the Hilton Hotels group .
4. Examples of this process in action can be found in the Bahamas , the Seychelles and South Africa .
5. Reliable funding of state institutions and subsidy and welfare programmes used by the residents of Bimini , reduced demand for jobs supplied by the hotel group .
6. As a result of economic diversification , the government of the Bahamas was able to compel Hilton to restrict its activities .
7. Revenue from tourist activities had enabled the Bahamian state to fund the investment in infrastructure , services and expertise that underlay this process of reform .
8. An oil pipeline will only ever be useful for transporting oil .
9. Roads can ferry medical supplies to communities as easily as they ferry tourists .
10. Not only does resource extraction , by its very nature , require states to consent to its territory sustaining pervasive and long-term environmental damage , it also tends to incentivise infrastructure projects that are only of use to the resource extraction industry .


This House Believes the US is Justified in Using Force to Prevent States From Acquiring Nuclear Weapons
What argument could one make about this debate topic?

The possession of nuclear weapons by some states drives others to militarize, creating arms races.


Summarize the argument implied by these sentences?

1. EurActive , Eastern EU states call for bolder , speedier farm reforms , 14 July 2011 ,
2. Not only are the largest recipients of CAP western countries France , Spain and Germany - also the payments per hectare of arable lands differ significantly between new and old members of EU .
3. The new members of EU with their economies often struggling and more dependent on agriculture -LRB- as is the case of Poland , Bulgaria or Romania -RRB- need more monetary support compared to their western counterparts to produce food of same quality and be competitive in EU market .
4. However , the payments for hectare of land vary from 500 in Greece to less than 100 in Latvia .
5. These different conditions undermine the EUs ethos of fairness and equality of countries .


What claim can be made from the following pieces of evidence?

1. Since Latin was the language of academic discussion until the eighteenth century , it is of great importance for the study of History and Theology .
2. The teaching of classical languages at school enables people to pursue studies in these areas in later life .
3. The influence of classical texts upon subsequent writing and thought makes knowledge of Latin and Ancient Greek necessary for many areas of intellectual enquiry .
4. European literature bristles with classical allusions : the work of Dante , Shakespeare , Milton , Goethe and countless others can not be fully appreciated without close familiarity with the canon of classical writing .

It is necessary for many further forms of academic research.


A robust missile defense shield will provide the protection previously afforded by the doctrine of Mutually Assured Destruction, allowing the US to dismantle much of its dangerous nuclear arsenal
Come up with some evidence to support this claim.

1. This means countries strategic obsession with second-strike capacity , the ability to return fire with nuclear weapons should they be attacked by them -LRB- Mutually Assured Destruction -RRB- , will cease to be an issue , as first-strikes are destined to be wiped out before they hit a single target .
2. With a fully functioning missile defense shield deployed , nuclear-armed ballistic missiles become obsolete , unable to ever reach their targets .
3. This will alleviate the pressure to have stockpiles of warheads and will promote disarmament .
4. What this means is that countries with missile defense systems can feel secure without the need of retaining massive nuclear arsenals .
5. This has been seen in the United States , which since its full adoption of the Aegis system has actively pursued a policy of reaching a new accord with Russia on nuclear arms reduction .
6. Mutually Assured Destruction has become a far less secure strategy as nuclear proliferation has occurred to states with different strategic conceptions .
7. This new step toward nuclear disarmament could not be politically possible in the United States without a replacement defense , which only a national missile defense system can provide .
8. This culminated in 2010 with the signing of the New START -LRB- Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty -RRB- , an accord to reduce the number of strategic nuclear missile launchers by half -LRB- Associated Press , 2011 -RRB- .


1. First , developing mini-nukes puts designers and scientists in the West on the same intellectual page as those seeking to devise nuclear weapons suitable for use in terrorist attacks , such as so-called suitcase-nukes .
2. Research into the design and construction of mini-nukes provides a number of benefits beyond the tactical flexibility conferred by such weapons .
3. Furthermore , the miniaturization of nuclear weapons has applications in other nuclear technologies such as in the design and manufacture of smaller nuclear power facilities .
4. By learning how to build such weapons scientists will be able to devise means of counteracting them should an enemy attempt to employ them in an attack .
5. The United States has long enjoyed technological dominance in the field of nuclear weaponry .
6. Research and development into tactical nuclear weapons are essential for countries to maintain their technological edge in the field of nuclear science .
7. If the United States and the other nuclear powers wish to maintain their position within the nuclear tech order , they must begin investing further in development of similar miniaturized nuclear devices .
8. However , in recent years China and Russia have begun to pour effort into developing ever-smaller nuclear weapons for tactical deployment .
9. Such was case with Cold War technological endeavors , such as the Space Race , which yielded everything from superior computer processors to ballpoint pens .
10. Military technology always finds an outlet in civilian use .

What is the general argument implied by these sentences?

Designing and constructing tactical nuclear weapons allow a state's scientists to maintain a competitive position in nuclear technology.


What is the debate topic for the following sentences?

1. The ICC is part of a growing international norm against war and crimes against humanity .
2. The willingness to prosecute for these crimes particularly if it is done consistently will build norms where even ruthless leaders realise they cant get away with such crimes .
3. The ICC has a high level of soft power in this case .
4. It has the resources to investigate and prosecute , backed up by widespread support from large swathes of the international community .
5. Grono , Nick , The deterrent effect of ICC on the commission of international crimes by government leaders , , 5 October 2012 ,
6. Pursuing war crimes from the Syrian conflict alone will not be enough but when combined with similar measures elsewhere and the arrests of other leaders such as Charles Taylor , Slobodan Milosevic and Laurent Gbagbo show that even leaders are no longer out of reach of international law .
7. The ICC could act as an effective deterrent to the use of chemical weapons and other war crimes by threatening to prosecute individuals who commit them .

This House believes individuals who have committed atrocities in the Syrian Civil War should be investigated by the ICC.


What is the debate topic for the following sentences?

1. Anarchist communities like Freetown Christiana in Copenhagen exist as centres of peace and culture , by standing outside of society it provides a useful commentary on society as well as being an example for how people can live more freely without a state .
2. Anarchist groups were at the forefront of resistance groups in world war two , and today they are at the forefront of protests against the state whenever it tries to take even more from the worst off in society , for example in anti cuts protests in the UK .
3. Even if the state is never overthrown anarchism will always have something important to say .

This house believes that Anarchism is a valuable political ideology


1. The more people are able to spend , the more money flows into the economy , leading to more business and higher employment .
2. This demand-induced economic growth is a very important part of economic growth .
3. Additionally , the minimum wage decreases expensive social welfare payments , since workers no longer need as many supplements to their wages from the state in order to make up for the shortfall created by too-low wages .
4. Without the minimum wage , a downward spiral of spending can ensue , proving deleterious to firms and the economy generally .
5. Mandating a minimum wage can thus benefit firms , even if they do not recognize it , by making workers more productive and also fostering a general work ethic .
6. Employees work harder when they are paid more , but employers can often be more concerned with the short-term bottom line and will not treat workers in the lowest echelons of their firms with much consideration , viewing them instead as disposable and replaceable economic units .
7. Furthermore , better pay means more disposable income in the hands of employees , which leads to greater demand by them for goods and services .
8. As workers feel more valued in the economic system , the more likely they are to work loyally and diligently for their employers .
9. , 1994
10. Freeman , Minimum Wages Again !

What is the general argument implied by these sentences?


This House believes Ghanas ban on smoking in public places is a model for Africa
What argument could one make about this debate topic?


1. Fears and Tears .
2. The Daily Beast .
3. 19 March 2008 .
4. Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Cyprus .
5. 30 August 2008 .
6. Xinhua News Report .
7. Xinhua News .
8. Liu , Melinda .
9. Cyprus supports the principle of a single China .
10. Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Cyprus .

What is the general argument implied by these sentences?

The 'Middle Way' respects China's right to territorial integrity


What debate topic are the following sentences about?

1. Given the first argument about the general perception of women that fraternities promote and it is logical that there might be a higher chance that fraternity members would be involved in crimes such as rape and sexual assault .
2. Further , the drinking culture that often goes with fraternities exacerbates these problems as young men who ordinarily would not succumb to the social pressures do , or perceive a responses from women incorrectly , leading to cases of sexual assault .
3. Whilst the initial proposition argument claims that fraternities lead to the objectification of women and how this harms women indirectly , this argument claims that the men included in fraternities are more likely to physically harm and rape women .
4. The culture of the objectification of women and the expectation that members of a fraternity should have sex leads to incidents where fraternity members will report to other members of the fraternity about women that they got with the night before .
5. Whilst this is typical of most male groups , it becomes more insidious when those who are able to do better with the women often end up doing better within the formal hierarchy of the fraternity .
6. As such , because of these pressures there is often an impetus from members of a fraternity to have sex with women regardless of the consequences .


Summarize the argument implied by these sentences?

1. This is shown even amongst women who still consented to arranged marriages but faced abuse from their husbands such as with the case of Razia Sodagar , whose husband abandoned her for another woman after she failed to fall pregnant .
2. This illustrates how it is not always easy to draw a clear division between arranged marriages and forced marriages , as the former can often bear the same characteristics as the latter .
3. It would therefore be safer to outlaw both .
4. Ethnic domestic violence hidden , , 20 September 2007 , Gotrik , Jennifer , India domestic abuse more common in arranged marriages , , 12 September 2011 , Fighting Arranged Marriage Abuse , BBC , 12 July 1999 -
5. Arranged marriages are often different when practiced in the home countries of many immigrant families in Europe , where women often have networks of friends and relatives to rely on .
6. The danger with allowing arranged marriages to happen in EU countries are that the women at the centre are often far more vulnerable , away from their own family , unfamiliar with the local language and fully reliant on their husbands family .
7. This makes it easier for domestic abuses to go undetected which is simply compounding problems of underreporting .
8. It is therefore likely that there is more domestic violence within arranged marriages .

Women in arranged marriages in Europe are disproportionately likely to suffer abuse


What debate topic are the following sentences about?

1. Not only this means a more personal approach to studying , it also provides people with more flexibility to manage their other commitments , such as work and childcare .
2. Such personal and flexible approach to learning will overtake the rigidity of the traditional university .
3. Moreover , online courses are inherently more flexible .
4. Lectures can be watched and tests taken at any time a person desires -LRB- within the deadlines -RRB- , unlike with scheduled lectures and tests at the traditional university .
5. The vast popularity of MOOCs can be explained by the fact that people are finding it easier to learn this way .
6. The best feature of online learning that it can be done in the privacy of one 's home , which is more convenient than having to move cities or even countries for a university degree .

This House believes that the traditional university will be replaced by online learning


1. NATO membership will help these fledging States to help themselves .
2. This incentivisation is critical given the European Union was and still is expanding slower than NATO many new NATO members such as Albania are years away from achieving EU membership .
3. The criteria for NATO membership include stable democracy ; civilian control of the armed forces ; a sufficient military capacity to make a meaningful contribution to collective security ; and the absence of active disputes on or within the borders of the State .
4. The opportunity of NATO membership creates the incentive for the newly independent republics to achieve internal stability .

What is the general argument implied by these sentences?

NATO expansion would benefit eastern European and post Soviet states


National testing encourages teachers to 'teach to the test', rather than teach life skills
Come up with some evidence to support this claim.

1. As Charles Murray describes , his children 's school lost their best English teacher because he said ' I want to teach my students how to write not teach them how to pass a test that says they can write .
2. This is because teachers will be judged based on how well their students do at tests , not on other important things like whether they are better behaved , more confident or learning faster .
3. Students will be taught how to take tests instead of learning skills and knowledge that will help them become good citizens .
4. National testing will result in teachers `` teaching to the test '' .
5. Childrens education would become focused on a yearly test .
6. Subjects like art and music that are not covered on the national tests could be cut so that more time can be spent teaching students to pass the test .
7. With national testing , they will become good test takers but will miss out on the joy of learning for learnings sake .


This House believes single-sex schools are good for education
What is a possible side to this debate?

Women are better off in single-sex institutions


Summarize the argument implied by these sentences?

1. A large number of Christians are gay , and they can receive better spiritual direction from gay ministers than from heterosexuals who do not understand their lifestyles or relationships as well .
2. Priests have a responsibility to represent the members of their congregations .

Priests have to represent their congregations


The information age makes attempting to hide information on sex impossible
Come up with some evidence to support this claim.

1. They can then use this information to help them decide how reliable any further information they may find from other sources is .
2. That this information when there is safe sex education comes from the school means that the children know that they information is reliable .
3. Most children in the west now have access to the internet and are therefore likely to have access to this information on sex , or at least educational materials on sex even if the childs access to the internet is controlled .
4. The internet provides a vast amount of easily accessible information about sex , of varying degrees of quality .
5. Rather than allowing children to find information on their own through what may well be unreliable resources it is necessary that they should get good reliable information .
6. Given that it is impossible to prevent children from accessing this information if they really want to , it makes sense to present it to them in an organised and accurate fashion .


Claim: Christmas is inextricably linked with an image of a snowy wonderland.
What evidence supports this claim?

1. This is the sort of Christmas shown on greeting cards and celebrated in so many songs -LRB- for example , White Christmas , Jingle Bells , Frosty the Snowman , Walking in a Winter Wonderland , etc. -RRB- .
2. Later the families gather inside around a warm fire to celebrate .
3. When we think of Christmas we see snowy scenes , with people skating and sledging , and children making snowballs and snowmen .
4. We all love the traditional white Christmas .
5. `` The interest in snowy Christmases has its origins in the colder climate of the period 15501850 when Britain was in the grip of a Little Ice Age That way , the traditional image was created .
6. It is n't a proper Christmas without snow .


What claim can be made from the following pieces of evidence?

1. The Occupy movement may well count many social liberals among its members , and these individuals are almost certainly unhappy about many aspects of modern Capitalism but that doesnt make Occupy , or the Athens street protestors Socialist .
2. There is clearly a difference between the general malaise of those protesting the result of the financial crisis and any form of coherent ideology or manifesto for government .
3. The only people pretending that protesters in Athens or Rome or the Occupy movement worldwide are in some meaningful way Socialists are aging class warriors from the seventies .

Although there are protests as a result of the banking crisis and the resulting financial meltdown, they have no cohesive ideology


The Settlements are illegal, and demonstrate the impotence of the international community
Come up with some evidence to support this claim.

1. Furthermore , their continued expansion is something that each and every Palestinian can see every day .
2. As a result , the continued expansion both : 1 .
3. The Settlements , constructed on land that is neither recognizably Israels nor which Israel has even claimed to annex are illegal , encroaching on the territory of a future Palestinian state .
4. It is absurd for the international community to demand the creation of a Palestinian state in the West Bank , and yet allow Israel to establish its population on that land in settlements that view themselves and are viewed by Israel as Israeli territory .
5. Convinces Palestinian opinion that the negotiating process is an Israeli game to buy time until they have changed the facts on the ground .
6. As a consequence of these two factors , the continued expansion of settlements has an impact in driving Palestinians towards violent resistance even beyond the direct impact of the settlement construction by undermining their faith in International Law , and by adding a sense of urgency to their grievances .
7. Destroys Palestinian confidence in the ability and willingness of the International community to enforce its own promises , especially after repeated American and European promises to stop their construction .
8. 2 .


This House would expand NATO
What is a possible side to this debate?

NATO expansion was, and is, necessary for international stability


What debate topic are the following sentences about?

1. An aggressor in a war can not be seen as a just actor and has therefore contributed to its own seclusion by acting in such a manner .
2. This marked Eritrea as the aggressor .
3. 1 -RRB- BBC , Eritrea broke law in border war , 21 December 2005 2 -RRB- Briggs , P. Ethiopia pg .30
4. Eritrea was officially recognised by an international Claims Commission as the initiator of the war .
5. Eritrea was responsible for instigating the war against Ethiopia , making it liable for its increased isolation .
6. They removed the Ethiopian presence from the state , compromising territorial integrity and incurred a reaction from Ethiopia .
7. The state invaded the region of Badme after a long diplomatic dispute over the border issue as they believed the territory was rightfully theirs .

This House believes that Eritrea is responsible for its isolation


Should we fear the power of government over the Internet?
What is a possible side to this debate?

Regulating the Internet is a means for governments to spy on their citizens


Sentences: 1. Locking up Pussy Riot in order to stop their opposition therefore fits in with Putins previous actions against his opposition and seems likely to be the desired result .
2. In the light of that , it seems an extraordinary coincidence that what he would have wanted is exactly what happened .
3. There seems to be little doubt in any ones mind that Putin and his regime were the focus of the protest .
4. It is , equally , no secret that Putin has a fairly brutal attitude towards political dissent ; he has expelled even allies in parliament for criticism , uses force to crush unsanctioned protests , and locks up potential opponents .
5. Suggesting that this is a happy coincidence for Putin would be a little like suggesting that the decision to have term limits for the presidency , just not for Putin , was just the happy outcome of an impartial process .
6. If this was just the Church and the courts happening to favour the interests of an over-mighty president , then Putin must be the luckiest man alive .
7. Putin himself said after they were sentenced `` We have red lines beyond which starts the destruction of the moral foundations of our society If people cross this line they should be made responsible in line with the law . ''
8. Putins record is not one that suggests that he is happy to step back and allow events to take their course in the hope that what he wants to happen just chances to come along quite the reverse .

What claim can be made from these sentences?

The blasphemy charge looks suspiciously convenient for Putin


What is the debate topic for the following sentences?

1. , accessed 28 August 2011
2. This is exemplified by the fact that in the 2005 General Elections , a plurality of English votes were cast in favour of the Conservative Party , -LRB- 35.7 % compared to labour 's 35.4 % -RRB- but a Labour Government was elected , partly on the back of the heavily Labour-dominated Scottish and Welsh votes .
3. This process is clearly unfair , and generates an inequality within the UK .
4. However , having done the Scottish and Welsh the service of allowing them to elect representatives of their political preferences , the UK denies this right to the English , forcing them to continue to be subject to the political preferences of the Scottish and Welsh , who can vote in Westminster elections .
5. Proponents of devolution must , therefore , believe that such differences exist .
6. If political preferences were the same between these nations , there would be no problem with having one central Parliament .
7. The devolution settlement acknowledges that the political preferences and cultural identities of the Scottish , Welsh and English peoples are sufficiently different to warrant the creation of separate Scottish and Welsh legislatures .
8. The status quo denies the English their own distinctive political identity .

This House would devolve power to an English Parliament


This house believes that Anarchism is a valuable political ideology
What is a possible side to this debate?

The state is a meaningless metaphysical entity that is unnecessary and indeed detrimental for our lives.


Claim: People can love more than one other person
What evidence supports this claim?

1. The idea that the individual can only truly love one person is artificial and false , a product of a particular time , place and culture .
2. In fact , in a study on human societies worldwide , of 1231 societies noted , only 186 were entirely monogamous .
3. Polygamy is not about freedom to fornicate with anyone ; it 's about cementing relationships with individuals one wants to spend the rest of one 's life with , just as in monogamous marriages .


This House Would Implement A Fat Tax
What argument could one make about this debate topic?

An individual's BMI is no longer a purely personal matter


What debate topic are the following sentences about?

1. It is palpably and demonstrably true that news outlets seek to avoid offending their market ; so liberal newspapers avoid exposs of bad behaviour by blacks or homosexuals otherwise they wouldnt have a readership .
2. Indeed , the news outlets that fail to do so are the ones most frequently and vociferously denounced by the high-minded intelligentsia who so frequently argue that broadcasting issues such as this constitutes free speech .
3. Western journalists may find it awkward that many in the Arab world find the issue of homosexuality unpleasant or offensive but many of the same journalists would be aghast if they were asked to report activities that ran counter to their cultural sensibilities simply as fact .
4. Most journalists try to minimise the harm caused by their reporting as shown by a study interviewing journalists on their ethics but how they define this harm and what they think will cause offence differs .
5. Expletives or graphic images of violence or sex are routinely prevented because they would cause offence , giving personal details might cause distress and are omitted as a courtesy , and the identities of minors are protected as a point of law in most jurisdictions .
6. Journalists and editors use their judgement all the time on what is acceptable to print or broadcast .
7. Where a particular fact or image is likely to cause offence or distress , it is routine to exercise self-censorship its called discretion and professional judgement .
8. It is simply untrue to suggest that journalists report the unvarnished truth with no regard to its ramifications .
9. Trask , Larry , The Other Marks on Your Keyboard , , 1997 , Posner , Richard , A. , Bad News , , 31 July 2005 , Deppa , Joan A , & Plaisance , Patrick Lee , 2009 Perceptions and Manifestations of Autonomy , Transparency and Harm Among U.S. Newspaper Journalists , , pp.328-386 , p. 358 ,

This House believes that news organisations should be free to exclude news of homosexuality where it causes offence to their viewers


Sentences: 1. As Russian president Medvedev stated in 2008 : No state can be pleased about having representatives of a military bloc to which it does not belong coming close to its borders .
2. The second issue is NATOs plans to expand with Ukraine and Georgia , which Russia has traditionally regarded as part of their sphere of influence .
3. Russia concludes that the missile defence system therefore must be directed at them .
4. The first is a proposal by the U.S. to put up a missile defence system in Poland , the Czech Republic and on warships in the Black Sea under the flag of NATO to protect against missiles from Iran or North Korea , which , according to Russia , would never fly over these countries in any attack .
5. There are two issues keeping Russia cautious of NATO as a military alliance .

What claim can be made from these sentences?

NATO destabilizes peaceful relations with Russia


This House believes that bribery is sometimes acceptable
What is a possible side to this debate?


This House Supports Scottish Independence
What argument could one make about this debate topic?

An independent Scotland has enormous economic potential to join other small European nations, especially as a leader in technology and renewable energy


What is the debate topic for the following sentences?

1. In the U.S. during the year 2001 , routine childhood immunizations against seven diseases were estimated to save over $ 40 billion per birth-year cohort in overall social costs including $ 10 billion in direct health costs , and the societal benefit-cost ratio for these vaccinations was estimated to be 16.5 billion .
2. Commonly-used vaccines are a cost-effective and preventive way of promoting health , compared to the treatment of acute or chronic disease .
3. This is also supported by a WHO study , that claims : We calculate that the average percentage increase in income for the children whose immunization coverage increases through will rise from 0.78 per cent in 2005 to 2.39 per cent by 2020 .
4. Another aspect is also , that productivity rates remain high and less money is earmarked for social and health transfers because people are healthier .
5. The total increase in income per year once the vaccinated cohort of children start earning will rise from $ 410 million in 2005 to $ 1.34 billion by 2020 -LRB- at a cost of $ 638 million in 2005 and $ 748 million in 2020 -RRB- .
6. This equates to an increase in annual earnings per child of $ 14 by 2020 .
7. This study based on economic and health indicators is part of the world immunization program GAVI .

This House Would Make Vaccination Compulsory


This House would  abolish congressional earmarks
What is a possible side to this debate?

Earmarks transfer too much power to political parties' central leadership


Public acknowledgement of the right to nuclear deterrence will benefit the public regulation of nuclear weapons generally
Come up with some evidence to support this claim.

1. Thus , greater openness and freedom in the development of nuclear weapons will increase the security of nuclear stockpiles .
2. Knowledge of states nuclear capability allows greater regulation and cooperation in development of nuclear programs from developed countries with more advanced nuclear programs .
3. When nuclear deterrence is an acknowledged right of states , they will necessarily be less concealing of their capability , as the deterrent effect works only because it is visible and widely known .
4. This will cause a diminution in clandestine nuclear weapons programs , and will reduce the chances of weapons-grade material falling into the hands of terrorists .
5. Developed countries can help construct and maintain the nuclear weapons of other countries , helping to guarantee the safety protocols of countries programs are suitably robust .


Claim: Genetically modified food is a danger to eco-systems.
What evidence supports this claim?

1. Furthermore , not all companies have access to the terminator technology .
2. This can be prevented with the terminator gene .
3. However , use of this is immoral for reasons outlined below .
4. In addition , removing certain varieties of crops causes organisms , which feed on these crops , to be wiped out as well , such as the butterfly population decimated by a recent Monsanto field trial .
5. This supports the concerns that GM plants or transgenes can escape into the environment and that the impacts of broad-spectrum herbicides used with the herbicide tolerant GM crops on the countryside ecosystems have consequences .
6. One of the impacts was that the toxin was produced by Bt crops -LRB- GMOs -RRB- on no-target species -LRB- butterflies -RRB- , which lead to them dying .
7. Another concern is also that pollen produced from GM crops can be blown into neighboring fields where it fertilizes unmodified crops .
8. GM foods also present a danger to the environment .
9. The use of these crops is causing fewer strains to be planted .
10. In a traditional ecosystem based on 100 varieties of rice , a disease wiping out one strain is not too much of a problem .


Sentences: 1. For professions like acting and music this tends to be the late twenties and early thirties .
2. In reality for most people this would be when they are in their fifties .
3. Nobody would suggest that members of other professions should be expected to interrupt it when they are at the height of their profession .
4. For most professions , getting military service out of the way early in ones career makes sense .
5. Regulations should reflect reality , in this instance that means allowing performers to get on with their careers .
6. Military service anywhere in the world is considered to be something you undertake before your career , not in the middle of it .
7. In the light of this setting the age limit where it is is uniquely unfair to performers just as it is to athletes .
8. Indeed , for pop singers in particular their career is likely to be over when they are 35 .

What claim can be made from these sentences?

Having the age of 30 as the cut-off point is uniquely unfair to performers as this is the age when they are likely to be at the height of their fame and towards the end of their career.


Tibet presents an explosive domestic political issue for China which the latter would benefit from eliminating
Come up with some evidence to support this claim.

1. Given that China is already losing money on the province , it may well be worth it for China to jettison it in order to gain much greater international benefits .
2. Internationally , the Tibetan issue keeps Chinas Human Rights record in the news and almost torpedoed the 2008 Olympic games .
3. Furthermore , the economic and political disenfranchisement of the Tibetan people is an enormous domestic problem , as it has led to large numbers becoming unemployed and moving to other parts of China where they form an underclass .
4. Domestically , violence in Tibet is the most serious domestic disturbance facing the Chinese government , and the fact that there is nearly constant violence between Han Settlers and Tibetans forces the Chinese to alienate everyone in order to contain it .
5. Tibet , and the resistance Tibetans continue to show to Chinese rule presents a toxic domestic and international political problem that costs far more than it worth .


This House would stimulate (or subsidise) mother tongue education for large immigrant groups.
What argument could one make about this debate topic?

Conserving languages and immigrant community cultures


What debate topic are the following sentences about?

1. Bush Chose to spend that on tax cuts and two extremely expensive wars -LRB- the War in Iraq was the mostly costly war , in relative terms , in US history except for WWII -RRB- .
2. At the end of the Clinton presidency the government was running at a healthy surplus following the longest sustained period of growth in US history .
3. Alan Greenspan , and many others , have pointed out that the impact of continued deficits is likely to be higher interest rates at a time when the country can ill afford them which will hurt the economy .
4. Obama was landed with the problems that Bush created , but has chosen to extend spending rather than control the deficit.As The country is no longer at war , there is no real reason to be running at a deficit .

This House would prioritise eliminating the budget deficit over increasing domestic spending


What debate topic are the following sentences about?

1. The international discouragement of the practice of chewing coca leaves and the prohibition on its use by Andeans when they travel or reside abroad can thus be seen as a violation of their indigenous religious and traditional rights , and therefore is not acceptable on a moral level .
2. All South American countries have signed several declarations by the Union of South American Nations -LRB- UNASUR -RRB- that acknowledged that the chewing of coca leaves is an ancestral cultural expression that should be respected by the international community .
3. Coca has also been a vital part of the religious traditions of the Andean peoples from the pre-Inca period through to the present , being used ` to communicate with the supernatural world and obtain its protection , especially with offerings to the Pachamama , the personification and spiritual form of the earth . '
4. The custom of chewing coca leaves may date back as far as 3000 BC in the region , and so hugely pre-dates cocaine consumption , and thus should n't be bundled with it or banned on the grounds that cocaine is banned .
5. This is why so many nations in this region can not and simply will not ever conform to any international ban that calls for phasing it out .
6. Coca chewing is hugely prevalent amongst the peoples of the Andes , and their social relationship with it is akin to that of ours with coffee in Western nations .

This House would legalise the growing of coca leaf


Sentences: 1. The Times reported in Franglais and somewhat comically on the predominance of English in the Union ; `` Ils sadresseraint lUnion Europenne cinq fois every day en franglais '' -LRB- sic ! -RRB- .
2. When translated from Franglais into English , it reads They address the European Union every day in Franglais .
3. The French language can not realistically survive if is not upheld as a relevant and respected language in official contexts .
4. It is a very emotive and sensitive issue for the French people .
5. The EU was founded by a Frenchman , Robert Schuman , France and Germany were two of the five founding members , the Union was created to ally France with Germany and before Britain joined , the French vetoed Britains entry .
6. Now , the French feel their part is Europe is becoming diluted by the use of English .
7. By forcing them to accept the English language in the context of an EU meeting only opens the gate to making them accept the same rules as other nations ; if their own language is silenced , so too is their voice of expression and opposition .
8. The following example demonstrates the reality of the threat to the French language being used correctly in formal contexts .
9. In March , 2005 , the then French Prime Minister Jacques Chirac shocked and appalled his people by making an address to the European Union in English .
10. French representatives present walked out in protest .

What claim can be made from these sentences?

The French language is still increasing in relevance through the European Union


1. Moreover when the ban is only when entering public buildings it can be enforced by the teacher , or the building 's security guards rather than being an issue for the police to deal with .
2. , accessed 28/8/11
3. There are many societies that have had bans on a religious symbol in public buildings , for example in France where there is a ban on religious symbols in schools has been in force since 2004 .
4. In France the ban is made even easier to enforce by restricting it to ` conspicuous ' religious apparel .
5. A ban would be simple to create and enforce .
6. Religious symbols are for the most part meant to be shown therefore it is simple for police or authorities to check that someone is not wearing them .

What is the general argument implied by these sentences?


1. This then takes the issue out of the hands of the politicians and puts it into the hands of the people .
2. Indeed remittances are noticeably stable with money still being sent home during recessions and can even be countercyclical as migrants will send more if they know things are bad back home .
3. A change to remittances would reduce this vulnerability ; it would be much more difficult for donors to suspend the tax breaks they provide for remittances to individual countries than it is to cut aid .
4. He wants a higher level of direct ownership in the nations projects and wants it because western donors had suspended aid .
5. The President Paul Kagame has said aid is never enough and we need to complement it with homegrown schemes to accelerate growth .
6. Rwanda has been trying to increase the size of remittances in order to increase its autonomy .

What is the general argument implied by these sentences?

Provides autonomy for developing countries


Claim: Money from the National Lottery is essential to arts programmes, just as it is to many other organisations in the UK.
What evidence supports this claim?

1. The National Lottery , accessed 31/5/11 .
2. Last year -LRB- 2010 -RRB- 16.67 % of the donations made were to arts organisations , the same amount that was given to sport and heritage projects .
3. Since the lottery began in Britain in1994 over 25 billion has been given to good causes .
4. Equal distribution of this public lottery is the only way to ensure that people are being fairly treated when they buy their lottery ticket , even though the good causes their money goes to may not be their primary concern .
5. This money makes up an significant part of many organisations budgets , and stopping this funding whilst still giving to sports and heritage foundations would be discriminatory and unfair .


What claim can be made from the following pieces of evidence?

1. This would help integrate central Africa economically into the global economy making the region much more attractive for investment .
2. The building of the dams could be combined with canalisation and locks to enable international goods to be easily transported to and from the interior .
3. The rapids cut the middle Congo off from the sea .
4. While the Congo is mostly navigable it is only usable internally .


Summarize the argument implied by these sentences?

1. As a consequence , the only clear solution is the removal of the settlements .
2. The existence of the settlements makes these security policies a necessity .
3. Security needs subsequently require that this road be protected from attacks by creating a large military presence along its route , and in many cases moving existing Palestinian settlements .
4. It needs a road for its residents to safely travel to and from work in Israel .
5. For one thing , a settlement can not function in isolation .
6. The settlements themselves are self-perpetuating in a manner that makes them pernicious to the rights and very existence of neighbouring Palestinian communities .
7. The security needs of settlements create a situation which makes the livelihood of Palestinians impossible .
8. The result is that even a settlement of a few hundred families rapidly requires the takeover of an amount of land out of all proportion to the actual number of settlers involved , and any further expansion compounds the problem .
9. In turn settlements require their fields to be protected by high walls and electric fences to protect them from attack , and the construction crews building them also require protection .
10. At the very least Palestinian areas are bisected by impassable thoroughfares .

Settlements remove Palestinians from their own land, and they produce a self-perpetuating cycle in their search for security


1. As Morin-Chartier argues , the EU directives are about being a model for one another and the quotas will serve as an archetype for others worldwide .
2. Therefore , the quotas are necessary to encourage progress in this field as other tools have not brought equal gender representation .
3. This is not simply a national issue , but a pan-EU problem of justice and equal rights .
4. Gender equality is linked to the fundamental human rights that the EU endorses and the lack of progress in terms of women in high positions of Europe requires a proactive stance .
5. Gender equality at the workplace is an important principle that businesses should follow .
6. If we consider men and women to be equal then they should be equally represented at the top levels of politics , society , and business .

What is the general argument implied by these sentences?

Gender equality is based on fundamental human rights endorsed by the EU which needs to be addressed


Sentences: 1. If patients are detained then doctors will have a better idea of their patient 's usual behaviour and therefore be better at reading their symptoms .
2. As a society we should put effort into helping those suffering from mental illness and detention is one way of being sure that they are receiving and maintain treatment .
3. This also means that doctors are able to keep an eye on patients so that if the patient is no longer a risk , they can be let out .

What claim can be made from these sentences?

It will ensure people are receiving the correct treatment


Sentences: 1. If public officials had information that a massive protest is being organized , which could spiral into violence and endanger the safety of the public , it would be irresponsible for the government not to try to prevent such a protest .
2. The internet can be used as a tool to create an imminent threat to the public .
3. An example of this happening was the use first of Facebook and twitter and then of Blackberry messenger to organise and share information on the riots in London in the summer of 2011 .
4. Governments are entrusted with protecting public safety and security , and not preventing such a treat would constitute a failure in the performance of their duties .

What claim can be made from these sentences?

The internet as a threat to public safety.


Summarize the argument implied by these sentences?

1. CCIII , No. 2 , Fall 2003 ,
2. Pressman , Jeremy , The Second Intifada : Background and Causes of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict , , Vol .
3. Even when there is no cease fire there will be no reason for the terrorists to escalate if their demands are being taken seriously .
4. The best way to prevent this cycle of violence is to negotiate , even if this is mostly to buy time .
5. In this case Arafat hoped a round of violence would bring about concessions .
6. This is because when the terrorists fail they are unlikely to pack up ; instead they will try to find a bigger lever to course the state into making the move they want .
7. When the state fights back the by the terrorists response is almost always more bloodshed using more and more extreme methods for example the first intifada was fought using sticks and stones , but when this , and the peace process that followed it failed , or rather did not show the results that was hoped for , the second was a major step up to suicide bombing .
8. When fighting terrorists the state either needs to answer some of the terrorists demands or fight back .

No negotiation encourages the hunt for a bigger lever


What claim can be made from the following pieces of evidence?

1. They make an ass of the law and show that the nanny state is overreaching .
2. Newspapers are full of examples of absurd ASBOs .
3. Other examples include a prostitute who was prohibited from carrying condoms in an area that included her drug clinic , a prohibition on mobile soup vans that fed the homeless and a deaf girl who was banned from spitting in public .
4. People trying to kill themselves really arent going to be put off by the prospect of breaching their ASBO .

There is no respect among the population for ASBOS


This House believes that there should be a presumption in favour of publication for information held by public bodies
What is a possible side to this debate?

If public bodies do not have an obligation to publish information, there will always be a temptation to find any available excuses to avoid transparency.


This House wants a line-item veto amendment
What is a possible side to this debate?

The line item veto prevents an abuse by congress


What debate topic are the following sentences about?

1. Suicide is a waste of life .
2. It is an immoral act that ignores the sacrosanct nature of human life something that is universally considered to be the case as shown by being something nearly all religions consider to be the case .
3. Failure to criminalize such a flagrant violation of the sanctity of human life condemns any society as irreligious and immoral .
4. Nowadays we hear everyone talking about human rights ; we hear precious little about human obligations .
5. If we believe in the moral worth of human rights we do so because we think that human life is a wonderful thing and something with which we should not interfere .
6. Whether the interference is by others or by ourselves , any action that denigrates human life is morally wrong for precisely the reason that we support human rights .
7. We have an obligation to preserve all life , including our own .

This House believes that suicide should be a criminal offence


Summarize the argument implied by these sentences?

1. Free speech is not relative or conditional and certainly should not be determined on the basis of the thickness of someones chequebook .
2. Smaller businesses and other organisations see their freedom of expression worst hit by laws that prevent them from associating themselves in any way with major events , to the detriment of their communities .
3. Those organisations without access to huge legal departments are hardest hit , further disadvantaging them against corporations who can already outspend them on advertising .
4. In this regard , freedom of information is a very real issue .
5. Sponsors are simply using this to increase an already fairly unfair advantage ; many people supported Britains bid for the games on the basis that it would offer great benefits to local businesses , legislation restricting their ability to use their geographical and cultural association with the event make that pledge look extremely hollow .
6. Free speech means that in the world of words and ideas , at least , there is an even playing field and undermining that runs against a sense of natural justice .
7. The major sponsors already went into this situation with massive advantages over small traders who had the sole advantage of the geographical proximity to the events .
8. One of the noticeable failings of the Games is just how little positive impact they have had for small business in East London where most of the events are being held added to this , 62 % of small businesses think the games will have no impact while 25 % believe the impact will be negative and business outside the capital have actually suffered as a result .
9. Coke isnt planning to make their money back on direct sales of their product around venues but on the prestige it brings them as a global brand .
10. The idea that , for example , Coca Cola can prevent street vendors in the Olympic Village from selling Pepsi is absurd .

Those unable to respond will be worst hit


Summarize the argument implied by these sentences?

1. The parent should be given standards of teaching that they must adhere to before the inspections occur , and the standards should be sufficiently flexible to reflect children learn at different speeds and that not all children 's development reflects fairly on their teacher .
2. If the child is deemed to be falling behind his age group , the parent may be forced to return the child to a school .
3. To ensure they are not neglected , parents hoping to home-school must both register the fact they are home-schooling their child and submit to regular , state inspections of the child 's progress .
4. Parents who take their children out of school , or choose to home-school due to apprehensions over the quality of state education , should be entitled to do so provided the child is better off as a result .

Parents should be permitted to home-school their children provided they register the fact and submit to inspections


Claim: Reform would strengthen the House of Lords
What evidence supports this claim?

1. Reform of the House of Lords would strengthen the legitimacy of the house and therefore improve its functions .
2. By electing the second chamber they would gain the legitimacy to not simply stall bills but reject them all together or drafts bills of their own , thus facilitating a more dynamic government , able to change .
3. Using a different electoral technique , for example Proportional Representation with members sitting for longer periods would allow them to still be of a different composition to the House of Commons and not sway to short-term political popularity .
4. Electing different portions at different times would also guard against a freak landslide result affecting the houses balance .
5. By creating a worthy opposition to the House of Commons all issues would be debated and decided upon more fairly and government would be more closely monitored .


This house would allow gay couples to marry
What argument could one make about this debate topic?

Marriage is about more than procreation, therefore gay couples should not be denied the right to marry due to their biology.


What debate topic are the following sentences about?

1. It has been proven by a study at the University of Toronto , Canada , that women need inspirational female role models more than men ; they need it to be demonstrated that it is possible to overcome barrier .
2. Only if one generation is pushed towards politics can there be role models for potential future women MPs to follow ; for that reason it need not be a permanent measure , just one that gets the ball rolling .
3. Positive discrimination is the only way to encourage women to stand .
4. At present there is a vicious circle whereby women see no point in standing for politics because it is viewed as a male-dominated institution .
5. This will help achieve true progress in the future .
6. It 's about changing stereotypes and perception -LRB- particularly of the concept ` leadership ' , which we automatically think of as a male trait -RRB- .
7. This measure would simply allow women to overcome the institutional sexism in the selection committees of the established political parties , which has for so long prevented a representative number of women from becoming candidates , and would encourage other women to try and emulate that .
8. Positive discrimination would provide this evidence and support .

This House would introduce positive discrimination to put more women in parliament


What debate topic are the following sentences about?

1. Debt relief is particularly needed in countries affected by natural disasters , where much of the aid is focused on solving immediate concerns as opposed to getting the economy back on track .
2. Not only do they desperately need more money to cope with the disaster , but the economic impact of the tragedy reduces their ability to service their loans anyway .
3. Debt relief is much needed for the worlds poorest nations and the only way to ensure that they get back on the road to economic development .
4. Without debt relief , the cycle of poverty , disease and corruption would continue and possibly spread to other parts of the world .
5. What is the point of the developed world promising hundreds of millions of dollars in post-disaster aid , if they then take away much more money each year in debt charges ?
6. A cancelling of debt is a mechanism that dates back to antiquity as a means of resetting power and wealth inequalities that have expanded to critical levels .

THIS HOUSE BELIEVES that countries which suffer from natural disasters should receive debt relief


This House would go vegetarian
What argument could one make about this debate topic?


What claim can be made from the following pieces of evidence?

1. But with the advent of the internet and mass media , it is now easier than ever to consult the public on issues of concern to them .
2. In the past , it was impractical to organise frequent referendums due to the difficulty and expense of holding them .
3. For example , Switzerland regularly holds referendums on all sorts of issues in an efficient manner which commands widespread public support .

Modern technology makes consultation easier than ever.


1. The word nigger is not racist .
2. Only intent , not the word nigger , can be racist .
3. There are other words besides `` nigger '' that is just as offensive because of the connotation , like eggplant .
4. A word can never be racist , the only way a word is racist if it is used with racist intent and explained that way .
5. The term is both endearing and disrespectful depending on the situation in which it used .
6. The word by itself has no meaning ; the history of the word and the situations in which the word is used brings the word to life .
7. and it 's reviewed as positive or I can say `` You 're a nigga , '' and it can be seen as negative .
8. For example I can say `` You 're my nigga ! ''
9. Blacks use `` nigger '' to defy the history of the word and evoke empowerment Randall Kennedy .
10. The common debate about this word does n't exist so much with how to use it , but more so who uses it .

What is the general argument implied by these sentences?


What is the debate topic for the following sentences?

1. 26 June 1945 ,
2. Where a large group people do not feel represented or accepted by a state and thus do not consent to its rule , the states control over that people becomes illegitimate .
3. The right to self-determination is a basic human right which underpins the legitimacy of the nation-state .
4. United Nations , UN Charter , Chapter I : Purposes and Principles , Art. 1 , Part 2 .
5. The right to national self-determination is enshrined with the UN charter and formed the basis for the independence of Slovenia , Croatia , Macedonia , Kosovo and Montenegro .

This House would allow the Republika Srpska to secede from Bosnia & Herzegovina


1. Olson , 2010 3 .
2. The Economist , 1996 2 .
3. 1 .
4. It is clearly discriminatory and reflects an out-dated view of homosexuality .
5. As New York State Senator Mark Grisanti admitted when voting in favour of a 2011 bill , I can not deny a personthe same rights that I have with my wife .
6. To permit heterosexual couples to profess their love through the bonds of marriage , but deny that same right to homosexual couples ultimately devalues their love , a love that is no weaker or less valid than that of straight couples .
7. Gay marriage is possibly , as Theodore Olson , a former Bush administration Republican suggests , the last major civil-rights milestone yet to be surpassed .
8. The contemporary views of society ought to change with the times ; as recently as 1967 , blacks and whites in some Americans could not marry , no-one would defend such a law now .
9. Such discrimination should be eradicated by permitting gay couples to marry as a means of professing their love to each other .
10. One of the last bastions of discrimination against gays lies in the fact that gay couples in many countries are at present not allowed to marry .

What is the general argument implied by these sentences?

It is discriminatory to refuse gay couples the right to marry


1. -LSB- 1 -RSB- -LSB- 2 -RSB-
2. Air strikes went on to destroy artillery , armor and other weapons that could be used for indiscriminate attacks .
3. The intervention therefore stopped large scale civilian bloodshed .
4. Military jets and helicopter gunships were indiscriminately unleashed upon people who had no means to defend themselves against assault from the air .
5. The resolution of a no fly zone passed by the security council weakened and prevented government forces from killing people and destroying cities using air strikes -LSB- 2 -RSB- .
6. From the day of the uprising in Benghazi , the government was committed to fight back till the end .
7. Gaddafi asserted that he will chase down the protesters and cleanse house by house while his son said that rivers of blood would flow with thousands of deaths , if the uprising didnt stop -LSB- 1 -RSB- .

What is the general argument implied by these sentences?

Intervention prevented an impending bloodbath in Benghazi.


Sentences: 1. Fairness requires that cohabiting couples share their property on separation : when couples have lived together for a long period -LRB- such as five years or more -RRB- they will have gained benefits at each others expense but also suffered disadvantages for the others benefit .
2. If one partner gives up a career to raise children or support the other in their career , they are seriously disadvantaged upon separation .
3. Where the other partner has gained as a result of this sacrifice , they should compensate the former , so that the two parties can move towards independence in equal positions .
4. Parties may choose not to marry , but this should not have to cause such financial harm to one partner .

What claim can be made from these sentences?

The courts have a duty to develop services that will meet the needs of society


Schengen helps divide Europe as not all members take part.
Come up with some evidence to support this claim.

1. The fact that not all the EU members are part of the Schengen agreement means that the EU is divided in two areas : one in which the free movement of people is achieved and one in which it is not .
2. The Schengen Area , adopted by some countries in Europe but not others , will create a difference of interest which will irrevocably divide the EU over time .
3. This could turn out to be a particularly divisive force within a Union that is already faltering having failed to sign a common Constitution and settled for a watered down treaty instead .
4. This threatens to create two different ways of approaching the questions of justice and security within the EU : one that is managed through the SIS system and Europol , and one that is managed through the traditional justice and home affairs legislation within the Union framework itself .


Sentences: 1. As open source software is often either free or cheaper than closed source alternatives , this approach enables local authorities , private businesses and individual citizens to interact more easily with the state , removing many of the obstacles and objections to the wider adoption of information technology .
2. The result is that businesses and Brazilian citizens can use the same open source software at home , knowing they will be able to interact with their government .
3. Brazils Digital Inclusion Program , for example , has selected open source software for 58 government units rather than Windows or Microsoft Office .
4. Governments are one of the few organisations which can define industry standards because citizens and businesses increasingly have to interact with governments electronically .
5. Network effects explain why Microsofts monopoly of around 90 % of the desktop market with its Windows and Office software has been so hard to challenge .
6. Economists use the term network effect to describe the phenomenon whereby , as several people use the same communication platform -LRB- be it a specific device , such as a telephone , or a complicated service , such as Facebook -RRB- , it becomes more valuable for others to use because they can share and collaborate on work with a wider range of individuals .

What claim can be made from these sentences?

Governments can re-define industry standards by choosing open source software.


Sentences: 1. The documents that currently make up the written component of the UK 's informal constitution provide an accessible starting point .
2. Such ancient texts and treaties as the Magna Carta would provide for a smooth transition from commonly-accepted legal principles to the formal entrenchment of those principles in the clauses of a constitution .
3. While under the status quo all laws passed by parliament are considered of equal significance , there is an informal recognition by some jurists that certain laws , such as the Human Rights Act , enjoy a favored position within a hierarchy of laws .
4. A written constitution would simply help to formalize this de facto hierarchy .

What claim can be made from these sentences?


Sentences: 1. To be successful , boxers have to train for 8 hours a day 6 days a week , spending the best years of their lives in the gym .
2. The truth is that boxers are only treated as money-making devices by their promoters and the boxing industry .
3. Because most boxers lack a formal education and spend all their time in the gym they employ managers to handle their business affairs ; very often the boxers entourage control the fighters destiny .
4. This relationship can be exploitative given the inequality of bargaining power and the fact that most boxers need to make as much money as they can before they are worn out .
5. Its time to break up this industry before any more young athletes get taken advantage of in a bad way .
6. Loc Wacquant , The pugilistic point of view : How boxers think and feel about their trade , , Vol .
7. Oftentimes the promoters actively make it more dangerous , exploiting their clients for criminal ends .
8. In his exploration of boxing deaths throughout history , Joseph Svinth finds that in addition to health reasons , many deaths were criminal , with the promoter playing the dual role of gangster .
9. Whilst it may well be in the fighters interest to hang-up his gloves , those around him have a financial incentive to push fighters into more and more title defences or comebacks .
10. The decisions that older boxers make provide further proof that they feel they have been exploited : over 80 % of older boxers surveyed in Chicago said that they did not want their children to be boxers .

What claim can be made from these sentences?

Boxing is famously exploitative, but a ban could prevent youth from falling into the sport’s economic trap.


This house supports the idea of participatory democracy
What argument could one make about this debate topic?

Participatory Democracy Preserves our Natural Liberty


What claim can be made from the following pieces of evidence?

1. When various bans across different parts of the world began to be put in place on the advertising of tobacco products the companies behind them had to find both loopholes and alternative ways of advertising their product to both current but most importantly new potential customers .
2. One way of continuing to advertise was to invest in product placement within film which many bans did not block .
3. The ban on advertising in the UK was introduced in 1991 , by 1995 the instances of smoking in films had increased fourfold and the appearance of cigarette brands went up by a massive 600 % .
4. -LRB- BBC , 1998 -RRB- A study by the American Lung Association also found after reviewing 145 movies ... that PG-13 movies contain more tobacco use than R-rated films intended for adults .
5. and In a similar study the following year found that eighty percent of the popular PG-13 movies examined depicted tobacco use .
6. -LRB- Media Awareness Network , 2010 -RRB- This clearly demonstrates that tobacco companies are using films to advertise their products , and particularly towards young children , this should be regulated .

Tobacco companies may use movies to circumvent bans on advertising cigarettes


What is the debate topic for the following sentences?

1. The Telegraph , Archbishop of Canterbury hits out at cross ban , 4 April 2010 ,
2. Indeed , British Airways , Eweidas employer , has since changed their policy to permit staff to wear religious or charitable imagery in large part because of the absurdity of the position .
3. The difference between the significance of the claims could not be greater .
4. In the case of Nadia Eweida , at least , the employers case was based on the idea that wearing a symbol of that faith might not enhance their uniform .
5. People of faith attest that those beliefs determine the nature of their own identity and their place in the Universe .
6. Daily Mail .
7. There is no suggestion that harm to another could have been caused here and , therefore , no reason not to respect the heartfelt beliefs of the individuals involved .
8. On one hand there are individuals protecting their sincere beliefs in the most profound of issues and , on the other , managers applying what the Archbishop of Canterbury described as wooden-headed bureaucratic silliness .
9. The case against Chaplin was based on health and safety legislation - but not because the cross and chain posed a risk to others but to herself ; a risk she was , presumably , prepared to accept .

This House believes Christians should be allowed to wear the Cross at work


This House believes the European Union should adopt a single working language through which to operate.
What is a possible side to this debate?

Working through many languages in the European Union costs money that could be spent on EU’s projects rather than unnecessary conversation.


This House would enforce term limits on the executive branch of government
What is a possible side to this debate?

Freeing the executive from re-election concerns can help focus attention on the public interest


This House would subsidise poor communities
What is a possible side to this debate?

Substandard living conditions have a broad environmental impact


This House believes that religious beliefs should override government laws
What is a possible side to this debate?

Relationship between state and religious population


The peoples within the state have no desire to live together.
Come up with some evidence to support this claim.

1. They already essentially live in separate states but without the ability to actually direct their own affairs or receive international recognition .
2. The constituents peoples -LRB- Serbs , Croats and Bosniaks -RRB- live almost entirely in separate segregated areas with very little communal intermixing .
3. Wikipedia , Ethnic groups in Bosnia and Herzegovina , Application of Genocide convention , Dissenting opinion of Judge Kreca , International Court of Justice , 11 July 1996 , p. 738 ,
4. It should be remembered that the Bosnian Serbs have already voted ponce for secession as in a referendum in November 1991 in areas which were Serb ethnic 96.4 % voted for an independent State within the then Yugoslav federation .


What is the debate topic for the following sentences?

1. Labour needs to move left to fight on their own ground forcing other parties to match their more populist policies such as renationalising the railways .
2. Since the start of the 1990s Labour has moved to the right to contest the centre ground of politics .
3. This worked in 1997 when the Conservatives were a spent force after 17 Years in power .
4. Tony Blair successfully stole the conservatives moderate policies .
5. However this has resulted in the centre ground moving to the right with policies such as austerity and welfare cuts becoming a consensus .

This House believes a move to the left is good for Labour


What debate topic are the following sentences about?

1. Such major changes must be put to popular vote , the citizens of each EU member state have a right to legitimise or reject these changes that push for a more centralized European superstate .
2. The Lisbon Treaty does not only affect international policies , criminal law and national justice systems , it also gives power over to the Commission and European Court .
3. It gives the European Union a legal personality , allowing it to sign international agreements and member countries are now made subject to majority voting -LSB- 1 -RSB- .
4. The Lisbon Treaty significantly affects the workings of each member country .
5. , -LRB- 13 January 2008 -RRB- .
6. -LSB- 1 -RSB- European Commission , , viewed on 13 June 2011 -LSB- 2 -RSB- Foley , Kathy , Lisbon treat : yes , no or eh ?
7. Voters should be included in the debate and key issues need to be highlighted not just ignored .
8. Furthermore the will of the people needs to be trusted , if a reform is intentionally ambiguous and complicated , which was one of the criticisms of the Lisbon Treaty -LSB- 2 -RSB- , it is the job of the politician to explain the cause to the public .

This House would hold a referendum on any new EU treaty


This is no different than political comment, etc.
Come up with some evidence to support this claim.

1. For the sake of consistency , if nothing else , Tarek Mehanna should join them .
2. Ministers of God , political activists and intellectuals have raised the issue of the loss of life among civilians in the Muslim world and the questionable justification of those losses on the grounds of national security .
3. Yet none of them are in prison .
4. Americas allies around the world have questioned the continued presence of US troops in the region and , in many cases , withdrawn their own - andif removing troops from the fight is not aiding the enemy , it would be difficult to imagine what might be .
5. And yet they remain at liberty .
6. They have also pointed out that the only rational response to overwhelming American military superiority in terms of hardware is the kind of warfare being undertaken by insurgents from Bagdad to Kabul .
7. Scholars , commentators and satirists have pointed out the hypocrisy of current US strategy in the Islamic world .
8. Mainstream politicians have called for an immediate withdrawal of American troops and the claims emanating from the right of the Republican Party that doing so gives succour to Americas enemies now sounds as shrill as they do bizarre .
9. None of them are in prison .
10. There may well be those on the American Right who would happily imprison all of these groups but the reality is that they remain at large .


State ownership is not a good way of controlling funds
Come up with some evidence to support this claim.

1. Since the 1980s countries everywhere have followed the example of Thatchers Britain and privatised their industries , freeing them to compete efficiently and to generate more wealth and jobs than they had ever done in state hands .
2. State ownership distorted incentives , interfered with management and produced decades of underinvestment , poor service to consumers , and national economic failure with the most extreme example being the Soviet Union itself .
3. In the 1970s many states owned nationalised industries as part of an attempt at socialist economic planning that has now been discredited .
4. The ownership of important businesses by sovereign wealth funds runs counter to the economic policy pursued by almost every government over the past 25 years .
5. Going back to state ownership of business is a dangerous backward step , especially as it is now foreign governments that are doing the nationalising .


What is the debate topic for the following sentences?

1. Its focus is on individuals aggregated into interest groups as the main actors in integration , so the focus is on low politics and the areas which become integrated in the European Union reflect that .
2. As such there has been much more progress on economic integration than there has on creating a common foreign and security policy .
3. Neo-functionalism is an example of a liberal theory of regional integration .
4. Its focus is on human welfare needs , not political conflict and law .
5. It also accepts the independent role of international organisations and that the transformation of the international regional system towards a better order is feasible so making the European Union a project worth investing effort in .
6. Center for European studies , European Union Common Foreign and Security Policy , unc.edu ,

Neo-functionalism explains the integration of the European Union