Debatepedia is "the Wikipedia of pros and cons". Its mission is to "clarify public debates and improve decision-making globally". Debatepedia is a project of the International Debate Education Association (IDEA), a 501c3 non-profit. It utilizes the same wiki technology powering Wikipedia to engage you and other citizen-editors in clarifying public debates by centralizing them into a single pro/con encyclopedia. This helps you, other citizens, and leaders better weigh ALL the pros and cons, develop positions, and make more informed decisions, votes, etc... And this significantly improves democracy and people's lives. Get startedJoin our Facebook group Debatepedia is endorsed by the National Forensic League.
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PRO: Tax cuts for rich can be safely expired as they offer least stimulus"A Real Debate on Taxes." New York Times Editorial. August 23, 2010: "Tax cuts for low-, middle- and upper-middle-income taxpayers should be temporarily extended because those taxpayers tend to spend most of their income and the economy needs consumer spending. That would cost roughly $140 billion next year, but the spur to the economy is more important than the budgetary impact. [...] Tax cuts for the rich can safely be allowed to expire because wealthy taxpayers tend to save rather than spend their tax savings. The revenue from letting these expire — nearly $40 billion next year — would be better spent on job-creating measures."
CONS: Bad idea to raise taxes during down-turn Budget Committee Chairman Kent Conrad of North Dakota: "As a general rule, you don't want to be cutting spending or raising taxes in the midst of a downturn."[1]
Sarah Palin said in early August 2010 on Fox News Sunday that it is "idiotic to think about increasing taxes at a time like this" and that cutting them will "lead to even fewer job opportunities for Americans."[2]
Offshore wind farms are large collections of wind turbines on the water off coastlines, which take advantage of ideal wind conditions to produce abundant electricity.
Though non-controversial in many places around the world, they have met significant resistance in America. Cape Wind, a giant 130-turbine and 420-megawatt project in Massachusetts’s Nantucket Sound, has been opposed since its proposal in 2001 by a group called the Alliance to Protect Nantucket Sound as well as prominent Massachusetts politicians. Nevertheless, Cape Wind won final approval by federal agencies between April and August of 2010. And simultaneously, New Jersey passed a law on August 22nd mandating that a percentage of electricity sold in the state be from offshore turbines. With things looking up for the industry, it is worthwhile to do a final gut-check on the pros and cons to ensure it is something we should support, subsidize, mandate, and foster in the marketplace. read more here
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September 2nd. Acd91 added a number of new arguments to Debate: Gun control.
August 31st. The con side of the most recent Debate Digest article: Debate: Expiring Bush tax cuts for the wealthy in 2010 is fairly weak, with not enough sources and arguments documented. Have a look, and feel free to strengthen it.
August 29th. Svaha created her user page with a very brief bio.
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