The handout for effective impromptu speeches is available for download here. The most important element of an effective speech is clear structure, an organized presentation that makes your arguments clear to the listener.
Debate class section.
Background Information
- Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy Backgrounder (good)
- Debating Science Issues: Organ Transplantation
- Federal Government Staff Discussion Paper on Organ Transplantation (good)
- Rantz and Curley Debate Organ Transplantation
Pro
- Why Legalizing Organ Sales Would Save Lives
- Cash for Kidneys
- Why Selling Kidneys Should Be Legal
- The Case for Legal Organ Sales
Con
We’ll be debating the issue of whaling during the block schedule on Wednesday. Our topics will be:
- Do nations and cultural groups have the right to hunt whales as part of their cultural expression?
- Is hunting whales cruel because of their intelligence and socialization?
- Do the economic/scientific benefits of whaling justify it?
Some evidence will be available here, but you should primarily do your own research.
- Arguments in favor of whaling
- Arguments against whaling
Some of the best articles on the topic are available here:
- The Whale Debate
- Why Japan Keeps Whaling
- Japanese, Norwegians, and Icelanders Spout Off
- Japanese Whaling: Why the West is in the Wrong
- Opposition to Whaling: Arguments and Ethics
- Ecological Arguments Against Whaling
- Is Whaling Culturally Significant?
- The Animal Welfare Argument Against Whaling
- The Argument Against Whaling
- Why We Should Let Faeroe Islanders Hunt Whales
- Good Whale Hunting
- Why Japan Supports Whaling
Background Information on the United Nations
- Structure of the United Nations
- Universal Declaration of Human Rights
- Timeline of Major Events in the UN
- Current UN Peacekeeping Operations
- The World Health Organization
Information for Class Activity
On Friday, we’ll have a test over existentialist philosophy. You can download all of the notes here (be sure to scroll down to the bottom for the notes on all of the individual philosophers).
The test will cover:
- introduction to existentialism
- Jean-Paul Sartre
- Albert Camus
- Friederich Nietzsche
- Soren Kierkegaard
- Andre Malraux
- Simone de Beauvoir
We’ll review the materials on Thursday and test on Friday. You might even check out this study guide which distills the core concepts from the unit into a single handout.