On Sunday, 27 February, we were delighted to welcome not John Kennedy and Richard Nixon, pictured, but David Langwallner, Barrister at Law at 1MCB Chambers and writer; Tom Hamilton, Associate Director of WPI Strategy; and Marc Whitmore, CEO of UpRising, to Dartmouth House for a lively show debate on theme of ‘This House Believes that the COVID-19 pandemic demonstrates that we should prioritise security and safety over personal liberty’.
This event was supported by Cassandra Voices, the publisher of independent voices that inspire new thinking (cassandravoices.com) and on its website, David Langwallner has written an interesting piece expanding on his views about the importance of public debate. As he writes,
‘Conflict is resolved best through argument with the truth sacrosanct, ideally via open-ended public debate. This should not merely be rhetoric, but include arguments of substance. And the ESU provides, or can provide, that forum. Perhaps uniquely so. Indeed, it was heartening to encounter a multi-generational debate that included insightful youthful interventions.
If the English-Speaking Union can revitalise the young with a passion for genuine public communication, it will be performing a great service, training a new generation of professionals in the essential and transferable skills of advocacy, public communication and, above all, respect for the truth.’
The next Dartmouth House Debate is on Monday, 9 May 2022 at 18.30 to debate the motion that ‘This House believes that cryptocurrency and NFTs are a hyped-up fad.’ Find out more and reserve your tickets here.
If you would like to support Cassandra Voices, you may do so via an ongoing donation through Patreon or via a one-off donation here.
