debate -- Developing a tradition of debate over email
About debate	English (USA)
The idea behind this mailing list is two-pronged. On the one hand we seek a forum of people who know how to argue, so that we can intelligently discuss any issue. On the other we wish to develop a tradition of online debate. Quantitatively, most corporate communication, public debate and general discussion today happens on the Internet. Be it an email to a coworker or a comment made on a news story. Mailing lists are the archetype for such discussion. They provide a medium for fast-pace debates, only in written form. The combination between quick thinking and writing critically works wonderfully in mailing lists. Like in debate you spend time both on rebutting an opponent's arguments and you present your own point of view. While the discussion is written, the opponents often respond directly to specific parts of text as well as general themes. Keeping track of the different arguments is not always straight-forward, techniques and mistakes such as taking text out of context and language misunderstandings can hijack a debate unless careful. Further, there is background noise by those who don't know how to argue or just wish to shut you up (namely, Trolls). Mailing lists also have the "quiet majority" audience, who the arguer needs to persuade, and not alienate. Write too much and people will lose interest. Be too concise and you will be accused of waffling. Purpose: Make use of a mailing list to debate. Proposed methodologies: 1. Informal chat Bring in people who are good at expressing themselves, being persuasive, and constructing arguments. Let them chat to each other on current events and topics of interest. New people will join and learn by absorbing the culture of conversation and criticism from responses. 2. Formal chat Take the first idea, only limit the number of messages each person can send per case or per day. That way it is still natural chat, but people have to invest thought on where to reply and how. This also gives the debate a formal feel to it. 3. Debate form Ask people who want to debate to email in, and divide them into teams. The teams will then argue the subject matter from whatever point of view they are given. All three methods will be used on the mailing list as we try things out, until we reach an understanding of what works best. Getting started! For now, please feel welcome to introduce any subject. You are requested to keep your message short, explain your point of view, and avoid truisms which leave no place for further discussion. If we don't like your subject of choice, it will die out or be ignored. Also, while we care about content for a good discussion, we also care about form. If you use a logical fallacy for example, expect to be completely ignored or called up on it depending on the mind-set of the list members. Some folks here are master rhetors (or lawyers). Others are newbies. Newbies will be treated with respect, but are expected to show they learn. Gadi Evron and Steve Llano To see the collection of prior postings to the list, visit the debate Archives.
Using debate
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