Debate

[weemumlessmngrl.livejournal.com]

Okay everyone! It is now time to let you all in on this month's debate topic. I meant to post this earlier today, but I apologize.. V-day smoozing to take care of. I will be posting the official start of the debate tomorrow evening at about 5:30 Central Standard Time, and it will remain open for a full 24 hours, unless there are still comments being made at that moment. In that case, I'll wait till it all dies down.

So.. best of luck to you all in preparing your topics! And please, spread the word so we can have more than a couple of participants from each house this time!


The Ministry of Magic:
Friend or Foe?

To many, the Ministry is a place that gives protection to wizards from the outside world. It keeps Muggles from knowing too much, or harm from happening. But to others, it may be viewed as a place as wretched and twisted as Hell itself, being controlled by people who are all too easy to lure with money, charm, and status.

Arguing for Friend will be Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff, Foe will be Gryffindor and Slytherin.


Please ask any questions that you may have now so that you can be fully prepared tomorrow!


EDIT:


1. This is all in fun. Feel free to take it seriously, but keep yourself grounded.
2. In the heat of debate, please refrain from using any sort of personal attacks. This should be obvious, and this will get you docked points.
3. Please do not leave the topic, or leave your assigned side. This is also a good way to lose points as well!
4. What happens in debate stays in debate. I don't want to see any of you getting catty with each other for whatever sort of battles go on in the debate post. When we leave the debate, we're all friends again!
5. Every qualified comment will earn you points. A qualified comment means:
a. A point is made.
b. The comment is more than three sentences long.
c. The comment stays on topic and is correct according to the side you are debating.
d. The comment is signed. And by that, I do have to request that if you accidently forget to sign it, that you delete the comment and repost with your name and house in it. Otherwise, should the thread collapse, I might not catch that you were signing in another comment.
6. Please do not plan any sort of strategies in your common rooms. I want this to be your own genius, not what a prefect tells you to say. ;) Besides, there's more pride in coming up with something intelligent on your own, right? However, it is okay to track your house's progress or root your team on there. I won't be in the common rooms to make sure you guys follow this rule, so use the honor code.
7. If you make a comment that is just so out there that it has to be deleted, expect your house to suffer from the loss of a very large amount of points. So just don't do it, kay? :)
8. If you have any questions/concerns/complaints, please direct them at me via either IM (Mohawkalahka on AIM or rockinrollagrrl on Yahoo!) or email (meli_p@livejournal.com) instead of leaving them in a post.



Scoring is as follows:
10 points/5 knuts for participating (aka, for your first qualifying comment), then 5 points/2 knuts for each additional qualified comment posted after your initial one.

Comments

[shakiracrazy.livejournal.com]

Ooo... good topic!!! :D

[weemumlessmngrl.livejournal.com]

Thanks!!

[boley.livejournal.com]

Umm...is there any particular houses going for either side? or do we just argue what we personally belive is correct?

Andrea//Hufflepuff

[boley.livejournal.com]

Nevermind, im an idiot.

Andrea//Hufflepuff

[weemumlessmngrl.livejournal.com]

Haha, it's okay. :)

[tangerinesidhe.livejournal.com]

Yay! Debate time! And I should be able to participate this time around. :)

Can you remind us on how the awarding of points works and the basic rules and whatnot?

--Destiny, Gryffindor

[weemumlessmngrl.livejournal.com]

Oh, I knew I forgot to do something.. haha. Sure, I will go back and add all of that in a couple of minutes.

[tangerinesidhe.livejournal.com]

The rules and scoring are in conflict with each other on the awarding of points. Which is correct?

[weemumlessmngrl.livejournal.com]

Ahh.. I didn't fix that either.

'Scuse me while I get my head straight. I'm out of it tonight...

[tangerinesidhe.livejournal.com]

No problems.

I'm perpetually confused. Thus my many questions. :)

[weemumlessmngrl.livejournal.com]

Haha, if not for the perpetually confused, those of us with a temporary lack of eye for detail would be screwed, so to say. ;)

[pikacharma.livejournal.com]

Now this...is a kickass topic.

[weemumlessmngrl.livejournal.com]

Good. :)

[bloodied-aura.livejournal.com]

Fantastic debate! I would have been happy with either side, too, yay.

I do have a question though, having not participated in previous debates... when the debate starts, will it be on this post, or...? What's happening with that?
And do I just post my comment, eg "The Ministry is lame, ~ Meghan, Gryffindor" (not that that would be my comment), and then that's that? Or do I have to relate my comment to what's been said before?
I assume you can rebut comments the opposing side has made, but I just wanted to know if I can make a comment myself without addressing points made by the other side.
Oh, also, since I guess there will be many comments on the thing, are points deducted for accidentally repeating a point already made? I know in real-life debating it's normally not a problem, but I just wanted to know.

Thankeh.

[weemumlessmngrl.livejournal.com]

Good questions!!

The debate will be opened in a new post, that way everyone will see it on their f-list as soon as it is open.

Feel free to make a comment that addresses all of your points! Last debate, that's practically all that we did. You're also open to comment off of points for the other side, or even your own. Keep in mind that the entire point of the debate is to convince the other side that you are write, and comment with that in mind.

You can address the same points multiple times if you can, as long as you don't start to sound like a broken record. ;)

I try to work off of the rules of an actual debate as much as it is possible, so keep that in mind.

[saffic-saffric.livejournal.com]

Total great topic.

See y'all today.!

[weemumlessmngrl.livejournal.com]

Thanks!

[k1mono.livejournal.com]

Great topic, and as I am in the UK and it will be nearly midnight, when the debate gets under way. I am going to put my opinion forward early in the morning when I have had a good nights sleep ;o)

Cheers for now

Ren: Gryffindor

[weemumlessmngrl.livejournal.com]

Well, we'll be open a full 24 hours this time, so you can do it anytime during your day. :) Technically, it'll open midnight one night and close midnight the next. Good timing for you! :)