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PaperclipPerfector  19d ago (text post)   3072 thread views

Small-Scale Question Sunday for September 14, 2025

Do you have a dumb question that you're kind of embarrassed to ask in the main thread? Is there something you're just not sure about?

This is your opportunity to ask questions. No question too simple or too silly.

Culture war topics are accepted, and proposals for a better intro post are appreciated.

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I've seen a tweet:

Note: there's not one prominent Leftist anywhere in the West doing what Charlie Kirk did, i.e. issuing an open debate challenge to all comers and saying "Here's my view, I invite you to try and prove me wrong". None of them are willing to subject their views to that scrutiny.

So my question is - is this true? Does anybody know a leftist that does what Kirk has been doing? I know some leftist bloggers - obviously Scott among them - that can argue their points with decent (in all senses) argument and manner. But it's still preaching, a blog is not an equal debate. Are there any debaters around?

A leftist doing what Charlie did, travelling around colleges to initiate debates, wouldn't really find debates all that often. This does kind of happen though, but they're just called guests, or maybe speakers. They get to use a theatre or or larger classroom and are generally welcomed.

Most of the speakers though come to say their thing - usually as well-structured, well-oiled, often repeated presentation, maybe answer a couple of questions, and move on. They usually don't come to engage in debate, and they do not set it up specifically as "I am here to debate you, come and argue with me, if you want, that's what I am here for". Maybe some do, I don't know, but most of the guest speakers I've seen expect mostly one-sided engagement. So if there are exceptions, that's what I want.

And yes, I realize that if we're talking about colleges, they are leftist sanctuaries. But even leftists occasionally disagree about something, not? And there might be other spaces where one could find and debate non-leftists, not?

I don't think the premise really works. There's so many squirrelly technicalities (Define "open?" Define "debate?") that I don't think you can really equate the two things.

We have a benchmark - Charlie Kirk himself. Compare to what he's been doing. If you need more, I'd be fine with any reasonably argued definition, but I'd define "open" as accessible to everyone, within reason (you can come to open mike, subject to physical availability, ask a question and get an answer from the debater, and be able to challenge the answer and at least briefly engage in discussion), and is explicitly advertised as such. And "debate" as a discussion of a topic where the sides perform a public two-directional dialogue where both sides are equally engaged. For the purposes of this question, this dialogue has to be synchronous.

I don't think you can really equate the two things.

Which two things? I'm not sure what is the second thing.

The tweet was discussed last week, and it turns out Destiny in fact has made some efforts to do this the other way. Given his recent comments, I'm skeptical he'll be making a habit of it in the future, though.

Do you mean this guy? https://x.com/TheOmniLiberal/status/1969862447155540269

I haven't heard much about him before, but I am very skeptical he ever had any habits like that.

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