Category Archive Op-ed Articles

There are many debate formats in the Netherlands. In this new series, debaters tell you why they think a certain debate format is the best. This time: Eloquentia. Do you want to read more about how Eloquentia works? Click here.

I am Noah, twenty years young and the president of ASDV Bonaparte. I am also a municipal councillor for GroenLinks and I study law at the University of Amsterdam.

At Bonaparte, we debate in both the AP and BP format but my absolute favourite is Eloquence (Eloquentia in Dutch, elo for short). Rhetoric and eloquence are central to this format. You don’t win with just good argumentation but you have to actually convince your audience.

There are many debate formats in the Netherlands. In this new series, debaters tell you why they think a certain debate format is the best. This time: British Parliamentary (BP). Do you want to read more about how British Parliamentary works? Click here.

My name is Silke Zwart and I am currently studying political science at the Radboud University in Nijmegen. About a year and a half ago I discovered Utrecht Debating Society. This year I can also take on the role of vice-chair of the association! In these eighteen months, I have experienced a lot of fun debates on many different topics. I’ve debated whether Cookie Monster should be on a diet, whether we should sacrifice our partner at the European Championships to an Aztec God, and whether we support lean-in feminism. Although these debates sometimes took place in the American Parliamentary (AP) format, since my membership I have developed a fondness for British Parliamentary (BP) debates. In this article, I’ll explain why this is the case!

There are many debate formats in the Netherlands. In this new series, debaters tell you why they think a certain debate format is the best. This time: American Parliamentary (AP). Do you want to read more about how American Parliamentary works? Click here.

My name is Joeri Willems. I work as an employment consultant and debated at the Erasmus Debating Society. The American versus British Parliamentary (BP) discussion was a big topic when I started debating but a fight that AP unfortunately lost. To me, this discussion is kind of a false contradiction; kind of like a discussion between chocolate and pizza. Most prefer to live in a world where both pizza and chocolate exist. AP is the debate flavour that is unique and delicious and I wouldn’t want to miss it.

In this article, I discuss whether all criminal defendants should use a public defender. This was the topic of debate during round 1 of the Leiden Open 2020.

Infoslide: A public defender is a lawyer employed by the state in a criminal trial to represent the defendant.

Motion: THW require all criminal defendants to use a public defender.

Round 1 – Leiden Open 2020

In this article, I discuss the trade-off between common law and civil law. This was the topic of debate during round 5 of the Eindhoven Open 2020.

Infoslide: In a civil law system (like in the Netherlands, Germany and France), the law is primarily made by parliament. Judges apply and interpret it but generally try to keep as close to it as possible. In a common law system (like the UK and US), the law is primarily made by judges. They formulate generally applicable rules based on individual cases, which they base on what is common and what is perceived as just.

Motion: This House prefers a common law system over a civil law system.

Round 5 – Eindhoven Open 2020

By Victor Domen

Tabbing is easier than ever. Tabbycat has all sorts of built-in features that allow for efficient and fair judge allocations and breaks based on the imported data. Nevertheless, I am of the opinion we currently do not use Tabbycat to its full potential. In this short article, I will make the case we should use standardised tests to assess judges and create a more fair and equal judge break.

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In my opinion, the motion of the novice final of the Delft Open 2020 is one of the most interesting of the tournament. In this article, I will briefly outline an important characterization, after which I will present an argument for both sides of the debate. Have you come up with other arguments? Then leave them in the comments!

THW rather be an individual of average appearance and extreme intelligence, than of extreme beauty and average intelligence.

Novice final – Delft Open 2020