Customarily, the NLS Debate Junior has always featured 2
prepared motions in the preliminary rounds of the competition. A prepared
motion is a motion which is disclosed beforehand. This allows teams to read up
on the key concepts involved in the motion and allows, we believe, for a better
debate. Debate is all about articulation of thought and a solid grasp on the
core principles of a motion and relevant real world examples is a vital part of
improved speaking. We firmly believe in the notion that deep arguments, with
principles backed up by examples, are the best way to win debates and project
thought.
The following is the motion for the first round. You
will find a small context paragraph introducing the motion, followed by a few
links that will help you get started in delving into the substance of the
debate:
Context:
Crime is one of the fundamental problems that society finds itself deeply
concerned with. People are denied from living their lives normally when there
is a presence of crime around them.
One of the primary roles of governments is
maintenance of law and order. A critical facet of maintaining law and order is
punishment of criminals for offences committed. The law must propose sanctions
for criminal actions in order for the sanctions to influence behaviour (if I am
not going to be punished for a crime, there is a greater incentive for me to
commit the crime when motivated).
Punishment is a multi-faceted concept with multiple but
concurrent purposes of being a deterrent for future crime, a preventive measure
from future crime, retribution for a crime committed and a process that helps
rehabilitate the criminal (ensuring they do not commit the crime again
and become law-abiding members of society . The most commonly accepted form of
punishment for crimes in the world today is incarceration, locking the criminal
up in a cell for a specified duration (duration dependent on the crime
committed). You might know this term better as imprisonment.
However it is unclear whether prison is effective as a
punishment measure. Empirical and anecdotal evidence both suggest that prison
has adverse impact on a prisoner’s life, putting them through a deprivation of
liberty that renders them unproductive and more likely to return to a life of
crime. It puts great financial and emotional pressure on the family of the
criminal as well, essentially harming innocent individuals. The years spent in
prison represent a huge opportunity cost for the prisoner and society, which
may have been better off with a rehabilitated convict who was free and
contributing to society rather than an individual more prone to crime.
 |
| Ouch. |
An alternative to imprisonment is corporal punishment, or
infliction of physical harm on the convict. Many studies have shown corporal
punishment as having the ability to reduce the chance of a person behaving in a
certain manner, reinforcing the potential deterrent effects of such a form of
punishment. Proponents of corporal punishment often also argue that it allows
an effective punishment to be meted out while also giving removing the harmful
effects that time spent in incarceration inflicts on an individual and their
innocent family members.
Can corporal punishment be an effective replacement
for jail terms? Or does it violate too many norms of basic human decency and
treatment that we have come to accept as desirable for a society?
The government accepts the claims of proponents of corporal
punishment and has proposed the motion:
This House Would
allow prisoners to choose corporal punishment in lieu of part or all of their
sentence
Here are some links to help you get started:
http://www.albany.edu/~grn92/jp13.html (long,
but well worth the full read)
Looking forward to hosting you!
Regards,
The Organizing Committee of the 4th NLS Debate-Junior
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