Feel free to jump into any of our current debates. Or, you may start a new one, by creating a new forum with the question up for debate as the topic.

Discussions relating to the function of the society and new memberships take place here.

Do

1. Let us know when what you are stating is a personal opinion. For opinions, say, "in my opinion," "I don't believe," "I feel that," or some similar indicator.
2. Respect the opinions of others. They are just as entitled to their opinions as you are to yours.
3. Support your facts with resources from the internet. That way, we can discuss the context. Also, if you are stating the opinion of a subject matter expert, give us a source for that.
4. Qualify your generalizations, by saying "generally," or "in general." There are exceptions to every rule... and you're probably talking to one.
5. Familiarize yourself with the basic logical fallacies. Knowing them can help you avoid them in your arguments, and help you identify the flaws in an opponent's reasoning.

Do Not

1. Violate House Rules, which goes without saying.
2. Get personal. Ad hominem attacks are a logical fallacy, and bad form besides. You likely know very little about the person you are attacking, so any such attacks would say more about you than about your target.
3. Repeat yourself excessively. Once a conversation goes circular, you've identified the core difference in the debate. It's best to either take the conversation into a different direction, or just agree to disagree.
4. Give us a link to a 500-page article and expect us to digest and discuss its ramifications on the conversation. Try to link to succinct sources, when possible. If lengthy sources are needed, then please give us a summary of what it says, and/or give us directions to the relevant bits, or quote the relevant bits. Anyone interested enough to read the whole thing can do so if they choose.

Join the Open Debating Society by reporting to this forum, with your political/religious/philosophical affiliations. Membership is not required to participate in the debates.