Joe Garde has set up Irishdebate.com, a forum for online debate, using his expertise in setting up online meetings. The debates are recorded, and put up on the web for sharing and remixing. I'm very interested in this type of service for a few reasons.
First, I'm a nerd, and anything using the interwobble is one up for me. Second, public policy debates in Ireland need something different: too often, important topics get truncated by lack of airtime ("that's all we've got time for, folks"). Third, debates are often sidelined by iconoclasts and headbangers, or muddied by too much booze. I'm interested in doing something a little different. So: I've put a call for debate topics out on twitter, and I'm putting one up here, have your say in the comments, if you'd like. Anyone can join these debates, and anyone can watch the result afterward and comment/share/remix. Minister Ciaran Cuffe just did one today on proper planning, have a look and see how that went.
Ana Nelson made the point that there should be ground rules for these debates, lest they end up as just point-scoring, and I'll write up notes on a book she recommended this morning--perhaps we could discuss these rules, too.
Well done on setting this up. I sure many will be able to take advantage from it.
Trevor Mitchell
http://www.irishshopper.com
For all things Irish