Family & Relationships debate motions

In response to the increasingly large number of senior citizens being relegated to their care, who go unvisited by family and are isolated by age and illness, UK care homes are planning to deploy robots, in an attempt to allay the widespread loneliness felt by them and boost their mental health. The wheeled machines will initiate rudimentary conversations, play residents' favourite music, teach them languages, and offer practical help, including medicine reminders. These robots can hold simple conversations, have basic emotional responses, and be programmed to people's interests. These robots do not replace human employees in these facilities, of which there often aren't enough, but are meant to supplement their care.

For the purpose of this debate you are a couple in their late 30s. You have always wanted to have children but have failed to conceive. You find out you can have a child who will be incredibly successful and happy in life due to your parenting; however upon reaching adulthood they would abandon you. This is the only child that you can have.

For the purpose of this debate, a pessimistic outlook on life refers to an outlook whereby individuals have low expectations with regards to the success/happiness that one can acquire during their lifetime

you learnt that your friend's significant other cheated on them, though they are otherwise a happy couple with long-term plans for the future. You are very convinced it was a one-time mistake

A saviour sibling is a child who is conceived in order to provide an organ or cell transplant to a sibling that is affected with a fatal disease. These medical procedures are not fatal for the saviour sibling.

You are a researcher specialising in deep space communications. You discover proof of the existence of an extraterrestrial community living in complete harmony, with no concept of violence or oppression. The community has powerful technology that would be able to cure major diseases and ensure food, water, and energy security on earth. You are the only one with this information.

Familial care labour describes work like household chores, household planning and coordination

You are a 35-year-old single woman in China. One day you received a pill. When you take the pill, upon confirmation in consciousness, you can make someone fall in love with you. The fall in love process would be felt by the target as being natural. The target of the pill would never know the usage of such pill. The pill is safe and irreversible and can only be used once in lifetime.

In the tv show One Love, there is irrefutable proof that you can find your 'One True Match' (OTM) through DNA matching that was invited by a company. When you meet your One True Match, you feel an undeniable, chemical connection to them. All you have to do is submit your DNA to this company and they will match you to someone. Your OTM could be from a different country, etc. but they have to have submitted their DNA too. You only have 1 OTM in this world.

Clark Kent aka Superman is an alien from the planet Krypton and the world's most powerful hero. He is happily married to Lois Lane, an investigative reporter who made a name for herself by reporting on Superman. Lois has known Clark's identity since before they were married. They have a 15-year-old daughter named Martha, who does not appear to have manifested any powers yet and does not know that she is Superman's daughter. Clark believes that it is unlikely, though technically possible, that Martha would develop powers as late as now instead of at birth.

In the Pokémon anime, one of the main plot lines is between Team Rocket and Ash Ketchum (the protaganist). Team Rocket is an organisation that attempts to capture Pokémon for their evil ends. Three of the 'grunts' that work for Team Rocket are Jessie, James, and Meowth. Since the beginning of the anime, they have been trying to capture Ash's Pikachu due to it being perceived as an especially powerful Pikachu. However, nearly every single episode, they fail to do so. At multiple points in the anime, Jessie, James and Meowth have considered the capture of Pikachu to be symbolic regardless of the fact they keep losing. On rare occasions, such as when battling another evil organisation, Team Rocket and Ash have fought side by side

During World War II, the Pevensie children, Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy, are evacuated from a London to live in a stranger's country house. While playing hide and side, they discover a wardrobe and enters the fantasy world of Narnia. After defeating the White Witch and saving Narnia, the siblings are crowned Kings and Queens of Narnia. Fifteen years later, the Pevensies, now young adults, discover the wardrobe they entered Narnia from. Presume for the purposes of this debate that the Pevensies are aware that, should they depart Narnia, they may never return, and will return to their residence in their former child forms (but with memories intact) seconds after they left.

You are an emotional individual. You are unable to keep secrets or feelings hidden especially those of the romantic kind. You've told everyone about how you love a girl named Michellin except Michellin herself. You are studying in a religious college similar to a Catholic college where boys outnumber girls by 8 to1 and dating is looked down upon in your college. Due to the difference in gender ratio, most girls are notably dating better looking individuals. You are pretty average on the scale in the whole batch at the absolute middle and thus if someone is dating on the basis of looks you're still a lot lower than most of the other guys. Michellin is a girl with a very bubbly personality and you both share a Language and Literature class where you talk and you also play chess. The rumours about your crush have reached everywhere, even to teachers but she does not seem to react differently. You start feeling that she may like you because of how dear she holds you and acts around you. You feel that she already knows about the rumours about you liking her but you cannot openly talk to her about it. You decide that it is important for yourself and your own emotional and mental health to confess and come clean about it to get closure even if she rejects you.

A nuclear family is a family group consisting of two parents and their children (one or more). It is in contrast to alloparenting – 'sharing and caring derived from the pooled energy' of a network of 'grandparents, aunts, uncles, siblings, distantly related kin, and non-kin'.

You are a highly educated woman working in the tech industry in Europe. You are currently married to a man and you are expecting your first child, which you tried to conceive for years.

For the purpose of this debate, a "culture of reconciliation" refers to a general want or attitude for people to seek reconciiliation, with family members after growing apart, experiencing serious falling outs, or going through incidents which may have caused the family to estrange themselves from one another.

Communal child rearing refers to a method of raising children in which collective education is provided by the government from the day of birth until adulthood. The authority is responsible for the rearing and well-being of all the children, taking care of their food, clothing, and medical treatment. Everyone receives the same share of everything, and parents are not involved economically in the upbringing of their children. While undergoing this education, children would live together in communal houses where they would spend most of their time away from their parents.

Tiger Parenting is a term which refers to strict or demanding parents who push their children to be successful academically by attaining high levels of scholastic and academic achievement, sometimes to the detriment of the child's social, psychological and emotional well-being.

Premise: 1: A child was born with a severe physical defect but with supreme intellect having the knowledge on the cure for cancer.; 2. The Government wanted to separate the child from its parents to devote it to become a state scientist.; 3. If the parents would agree, the government would give everything they want but they would have to waive their parental rights in perpetuity.

WWE wrestlers are legally considered to be independent contractors, meaning that in theory they are allowed to work elsewhere, and must pay for their own expenses including health insurance and gain no employee benefits. WWE wrestlers, however, are forced to sign exclusivity contracts that are so limiting that they cannot even use third party platforms such as twitch to generate revenue without the company's permission and them getting a percentage. Andrew Yang has promised to initiate an invest

In conditional love, love is "earned" on the basis of conscious or unconscious conditions being met, whereas, in unconditional love, love is "given freely" to the loved one "no matter what"

The Assassins Brotherhood is a recently formed, unaffiliated, secretive organization of highly talented assassins. They have a near-perfect track record of committing highly visible, extra-judicial killings, with no direct collateral damage and escaping unidentified afterwards. Their location is a complete mystery, and all attempts to hunt them down have ended in failure. Their philosophy or "creed" instructs their organization to protect the weak by targeting leaders of authoritarian states.

Chris Benoit is one of the best in-ring wrestlers to have ever existed. He had an outstandingly successful career with the WWE (winner of 22 championships), and was considered a model pro for wrestlers, until he committed a double murder-suicide in 2007, killing his wife and son, along with himself. No motive has clearly been established, but what is undisputed, is that thanks to the grind WWE put him through (chair shots to the head, risky head-first dives etc), his brain had advanced CTE (A disease that impairs thinking, and causes behavioral and mood problems- commonly seen among athletes from contact sports like wrestling, boxing, rugby, American football), with some terming it to resemble "the brain of an 80 year old with Alzheimer's". By all accounts, Benoit had not demonstrated any such violent tendencies prior to performing the stunts that led to the CTE. Till date, the WWE refuses to acknowledge Chris Benoit for the career he had, denies the records he holds, and cuts out any footage of his matches from their extensive archived footage. Pro Wrestling continues to be one of the most occupationally hazardous professions out there, and in recent years, the WWE has taken steps like the banning of hair shots to the head, to avoid concussions. For the purpose of this debate, the WWE Hall of Fame is a list of individuals to which the WWE inducts peple with the most accomplishments in the WWE, either as wrestlers, trainers, managers, commentators, or announcers, to recognize and celebrate their careers.

In this parallel reality, Earth has a second moon, Terraformed to support life, but significantly less prosperous (much less fertile, no natural resources), a communist society has been established on that moon. In this society people are genuinelly equal, governmental power is not manipulated or corrupted, and basic needs are mostly provided, but the living standard is about that of people living on 10$ a day.

For the purpose of this debate, "humble culture" refers to a culture where people are encouraged (either by others; or themselves; or both) to actively refrain from publicly showing/revealing their successes, possessions and achievements

You are a bachelor living alone in a large city in which a new virus has started to spread. The virus is extremely contagious and has a high death rate. The state has declared a lockdown on your city - no one may enter or leave. You do not show symptoms as of yet, but cannot know whether or not you are infected.

A professional sports club of a city in the West which has a glorious past but is currently struggling to compete at the top. A group of investors, led by Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund, the Public Investment Fund, launched a bid to purchase the club. PIF has almost US$400bln under management, with multiple times the resources of any other sports club owners.

Kal Ho Naa Ho: Naina Catherine Kapur is a pessimistic, uptight student who lives in New York City with her widowed mother Jennifer Kapur (her father committed suicide). Jennifer runs an unsuccessful café with her neighbour. Naina has a best friend: her classmate, Rohit Patel. Her life is dull and overshadowed by her father's loss until Aman Mathur and his mother move in next door. Aman's cheerfulness gradually wins over Naina's family and he slowly starts to solve their problems. He suggests that they change the café to an Indian restaurant and its success alleviates their financial burdens. Aman encourages Naina to be happy and to live life to the fullest; she falls in love with him. Rohit also falls in love with Naina and asks Aman's help in expressing his feelings. Naina tells Rohit there is something she must say to him, leading him to think that she reciprocates his feelings. Naina reveals she is in love with Aman instead. Shaken, Rohit calls Aman to tell him what has happened. Naina goes to Aman's house and is shocked to see a wedding photograph of Aman and his wife, Priya. Heartbroken, she leaves. Aman's mother confronts him about what has happened. He says he loves Naina, but has decided to hide it because he is dying from a heart condition. He is not actually married; Priya is his childhood friend and doctor. Aman vows to bring Naina and Rohit together before he dies. He believes that Rohit will be able to provide for her better than he can. He hatches a plan to transform Naina and Rohit's bond, and gradually their friendship blossoms into love. Naina discovers his plan and chides Aman for trying to ruin her friendship with Rohit. Aman takes out Rohit's diary and confesses his feelings for Naina, saying (lying) that they are Rohit's words. Naina forgives Aman and Rohit. Rohit proposes to Naina, and she accepts. During Naina and Rohit's engagement as a result of excessive dancing and a lack of care, Aman has a heart attack. Only his mother knows he has been admitted to the hospital. Naina encounters Priya at a jewellery store, whom she recognises as Aman's wife. She introduces herself and her husband, Abhay, who reveals the truth about Aman. Shocked, Naina realises that Aman has sacrificed his love for her and leaves the mall in an emotional frenzy. Priya calls up Aman and informs him about what happened. Aman leaves the hospital and meets a frustrated Rohit, who asks why he and not Aman should marry Naina. Aman urges Rohit to marry Naina as a sign of respect for his dying wish to see Naina happy. Aman meets Naina, and they embrace while he tries to persuade her that he does not love her. Rohit and Naina's wedding, in which Aman attends, takes place soon afterward. Sometime after the wedding, Aman is on his deathbed and says goodbye to everyone. Shortly after he dies.

In a system of communal parenting, children are the responsibility of the entire community and are not raised by their biological parents. Generally children live in a communal home with appointed caregivers. The community takes on the financial burden of raising them and decides upon disciplinary and education standards as a collective.

You are an underpaid blue collar worker in the underdeveloped town of Springfield. You have a wife, two kids and a baby. You're offered a managerial position in Cyprus Creek, a richer town across the country. The new position offers significantly greater pay, life benefits and opportunity to progress. Your family must come with you.

You are a single adult living alone during the COVID-19 pandemic. You have recently begun talking to an ex-partner of yours, with whom you ended things prior to the pandemic due to incompatibilities in personality and lifestyle

Jodie and Mary were conjoined twins (i.e. twins physically joined together), conjoined at the hip. Jodie was much stronger than Mary; Jodie's heart was essentially pumping blood for Mary's body. The health of both twins was very poor during infancy, due mostly to Mary's weak body. Doctors estimate that the twins were likely to die if left joined, but if they were surgically separated, Mary would definitely die immediately, and Jodie would go on to live a normal life.

Club 27 represents musicians, artists, and actors who died when they were 27 years old, most often as a consequence of alcohol, sex and drug abuse. Some of the most prominent examples include Kurt Cobain, Amy Winehouse, Jimmy Hendrix etc. Motion: Thi

For the purposes of this debate, Michel Temer, the Vice-President, in 2016, planned and executed a coup of Etat against Dilma Rousseff, former President of Brazil.

In conditional love, love is "earned" on the basis of conscious or unconscious conditions being met, whereas, in unconditional love, love is "given freely" to the loved one "no matter what"

You are a doctor in a neonatal emergency unit of a hospital. One night, two critical cases come to you - a wealthy couple's newborn baby and an extremely poor couple's newborn baby are both diagnosed with Disease X. Despite hours of frantic efforts from your part to keep them alive, tragedy strikes by the time it is dawn and the wealthy couple's baby dies.

In the 1960s 72% of Americans over 18 were married. In 2015, about half were. Across Europe, marriage rates have dropped "close to 50% since 1965." This trend holds true across most OECD countries. Motion: THR

"Collective parenting" refers to child-rearing by multiple adults, which may or may not include the child's birth parents. "Multiple adults" here could mean the entire community, a subset of the community, or one or more multi-parent households.

Stunting phyisical development is a medical procedure tha typically halts all physical growth and development at a prepubescent stage. Some parents desire to have doctors perform this procedure on their severely mentally disabled children so that it will be easier to care for their needs.

Situation slide: You are a single British mother with a teenage son and daughter. The UK has recently mandated internet providers to use filters to block pornographic material. The filter can be taken down by a phone call by an adult. You do not watch porn.