I think that this is a great public forum topic: it relates to a current event that will educate students on some of the nuanc
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Lesson 4.2 Day 3
| Considering the terms As always, debaters must carefully choose the definitions for the words in the resolution. Aim for fairness and for definitions which withstand scrutiny. Amongst the more important terms you need to address is the term democracy For example, do we mean democracy the form of government wherein all eligible citizens participate equally, or do we mean democracy the system of multiparty elections, freedom of speech, and a representative government In the Oxford English Dictionary , by no means the authoritative source on democracy but at least a good scholarly attempt for my purposes here, democracy is first defined as a system of government by the whole population usually through elected representatives the second definition reads a classless and tolerant form of society while the third definition reads the principles of the Democratic party I have to laugh out loud about the poor judge who listens to a debate over whether or not the Democratic Party ought to use compulsory voting. Debaters on this topic will likely gravitate toward the first definition as it seems inclusive of most nations as well as the more philosophical principles intrinsic to democracy Interpretations may argue about the context of the prepositional phrase Ina democracy and it being more suggestive of a government. But largely, I see no easy way to settle the debate over what was intended by the framers. I think good arguments can be had from the definition being the second for example, in a classless and tolerant society compulsion to vote ought or ought not to exist. In short, the term democracy is fairly easy to define but in the context of the resolution it might be argued to describe the nation compelling voters to vote, or sundry other versions. I think using it as a form of government seems most obvious and it will likely be the norm. |