The Confederate flag holds a history of slavery, oppression, and racism. If anyone wants to debate that they will in turn be denying reality, it is that simple. Some may say they are honoring the flag as a symbol of states' rights or individual liberties, both great messages to our nation. However, a better symbol could be used. The negative connotation attached to the Confederate Flag is so depraving that anyone who is against segregation and slavery should not warrant its display. To exemplify this point, another symbol should be put into light. The swastika is a religious symbol in Hinduism, but in present day anyone who wore it would be labeled as anti-semitic and supportive of the death of over 6 million human beings. So how could it be Okay to adorn another symbol that supported the oppression of an entire race of people? It is shameful that our nation still holds on to this malicious symbol of the past, and I believe it should be banned from public display.

Yes that is of course the ideal. However, in an educational system that tries to give everyone a chance to receive a high school diploma a thought provoking and higher level curriculum is just not possible. Let's take my classes for example, I am in all APs, which is Advanced Placement for those who are not still in high school, and that means that if I pass an exam at the end of the year I get college credit. This also means that in order to prepare me to pass this academically rigourous test that is equivilant to a college exam my teachers must make me think about the subject analytically. I cannot just memorize facts but must also be able to explain the how and the why. So in this fashion, mine and my fellow classmates' education is up to par with the standards you want for the country. However, this is not the case for all the other students of my school and that is an issue of funding and for some of my peers, simply intelligence.

lol which is why we have a two party system where compromise creates a balanced and, usually, prosperous result. Unfortunately, conservatives are no better when given their unhindered chance to shine.

Yes, the Europeans killed millions of people by coming over to the Americas and is rightly termed a holocaust in itself. That was awful, and the treatment of the natives by Columbus and Pizarro was indeed evil. However, are the European nations to blame for this? They were ignorant surely but that is expected considering that they were truly exploring a "New World." Furthermore, this was such a tremendous moment in history that it is impossible for anyone to accurately judge its moral consequence because no one can understand how the world would have developed differently if an alternative path was taken. Without the birth of the US, would Hitler have taken over the world? Without European dominance, would the Iroquois have taken over America and enslaved the other tribes? Would the Aztecs have continued to sacrifice thousands of human beings to their god? These are just a few possibilities because there are truly so many more, and some are worse than what actually happened! So my view to this question is no, because the world would be wholly different if it did not happen leaving me without any basis to pass a judgement on it.

Yeah, not really. Religion heals the sick, comforts the dying, feeds the poor, shelters the homeless, arouses inspiration, and at its very "core" is good. Jesus, Muhammad, Abraham, all amazing people and the God they worship, whether you believe in Him or not, is the epitomy of good. Now to put all this in context of the question and the present world, it is the greed and evil of humanity that is the cause of all problems. To use the institution of religion as a shield, a sword, or a scapegoat as you are doing in this case is simply wrong.

No there is not completely conclusive evidence that people are born gay. However, there is also even less evidence to support that you become gay solely through life experiences and development. Gay men have brain anatomy that looks similar to a heterosexual woman, there are numerous positive correlations between physical attributes and the prevelance of homosexuality, a twin has a higher chance of being gay if his brother is gay, fruit flies can have their sexuality changed by the gene replacement, and than there's all the evidence that goes against the hypothesis that homosexuality comes from development. Oh and plus the very simple truth that you can just ask a gay person and more than likely they will say they were indeed born gay.

haha I think this discussion was started because of the statement I made about being a gay Christian. But you know, if it causes argument and controversy, I won't put any labels on myself. I love God with all my heart and will worship him for eternity, I also find attraction in men, but more importantly, find love in my boyfriend. So that's it, regardless of what anyone else says, nothing else really matters.

Of course we should all strive to do what is right, but what many people fail to realize is that our code of law mirrors the ethics and morals of the people. It is a weak excuse to say you broke the law to do what is right when you did not do everything within the law first. An example given was when a community comes together to kill a pedophile and that is wrong. Wrong because any time when we as a people lose ourselves in passionate zeal and rage and commit such a violent act, regardless of the situation, degrades us. To unite under mob violence against that person, even though he did a horrible thing, only lowers yourself to his level and serves no other purpose. Yes there are times when the law fails to keep up with our morals because of bureaucratic nonsense but I believe a person who truly thinks what he or she did was right will not be deterred because of a prison sentence. Those extreme cases where that is necessary are just that, extreme, and will be dealt with in the courts and weighed in respect to the unique situation. To say the law cannot truly support the morals of the people is a cop out and shows only your own weakness to not recognize the bigger picture.

Just because there are cases in which people get divorces or marry for the wrong reasons, doesn't mean that a religious marriage isn't inherently from God. Yeah I'm Christian, but I'm also homosexual. I hope that when I get married it will be through a religious ceremony, admittidly that might be a little difficult to find a pastor but that is still my hope. God is within every marriage, and it is only through human interaction that the sacrament of marriage becomes something corrupt, but that is my personal belief and I'm sticking to it.

Any argument on the positives or negatives of cigarettes is quite honestly pointless. What you are suggesting is not greater education about the dangers of smoking or a government program to help smokers quit if they wish, but simply a complete ban on the product. This is not practical nor is it ethical in our society. We have seen this exact sentiment in the past, "because I think it hurts you and the people around you, I'm gonna make you stop doing it." Bad way to think because even if you do not get a ban, you still promote discrimination against the smoker which really doesn't help anyone. So really this entire argument comes down to one argument, does anyone really have the authority enforce their morals on another?