Earlier this week we had to debate as our class activity in the afternoon. It started from the fact that the last chapter in our Advanced Business Result book was entitled Persuasion.
That day's activity was interesting, where we had to convince someone of something and try to sell something to another. Yes, this is the British Council class. Before the lunch break our instructor told us that we will do a debate, and everyone had to speak.
The class was divided into two and my group chose to do .... Euthanasia. I was in the For part so during lunch we read up some pdf and made notes and they aka my team mates said I will do the rebut.
Let me tell you guys something about debates. It gets personal for me. Especially if I actually believe in the topic. Which is why I took Public Speaking as an elective, instead of Debate.
So, Euthanasia. For me, the only arguments against it are either religion based or human rights based. And being me, I managed to give a rebut taken from the opposition's rebut.
1. Everyone has a different level of tolerance against pain. The doctor doesn't know if the patient is withstanding the pain or not. Hence, we might end the life of someone who is actually not in agonising please-kill-me pain.
Seriously. I can see the flaw in that from the word tolerance. I simply said that yes, everyone is different but its the person who is feeling the pain. Not the doctor. Not the family members. Who are we to say no to a patient in a dire situation?
2. The religion angle.
My defense on this was about how I believe that every religion is the same in terms of wanting their believers to be decent people. But what is decent about letting someone suffer in pain, watch them beg and not do anything about it (this does not include medicine and treatment. I mean this after all of that has been done and still, the pain is there).
I saw some classmates in the other group nodded at that. My hands were shaking after I said my piece. When the instructor asked the other group to vote, we got a whopping 9 out of 11 votes because our points were more convincing.
The other group debated on same sex marriage. It was interesting.
Now, I know some of you might have been disagreeing with what I have said but as my friend said, a debate is rarely right and wrong. It is about the points and how they were said.