A club for everyone: the Pointless Debate Club
Emmanuella Shokare
Staff Writer
Do you enjoy debating? Are there some topics that most people may find pointless and you want to talk about it? Well, you have it here; the Pointless Debate Club, which debates on pointless topics such as, “Is water wet?” “Should mac and cheese be eaten with a fork, or a spoon?”
Meeting time varies but the club meets twice a month, usually later in the evening at about 7 p.m. Scheduled times and locations are sent via their Instagram page (@msupointlessdebateclub), their Engage page and emails.
They also livestream the debates. The club meets Monday, Tuesday or Wednesdays. The club is free, does not require any participation fees, commitments, and is open to all majors, races, ages, religious backgrounds and sexual identities.
The club started in March 2018 by Wallace Pope and Brett Marshall who are co-presidents.
“The other co-President, Wallace Pope, and I are in a fraternity and we always found ourselves arguing about really pointless things and realized that it was a lot of fun and could be a unique way to network with people on campus, so we found an adviser, applied to be an RSO and have since had two meetings that people have really enjoyed,” said Brett Marshall.
You do not need to be a pro at debating. It is a learning process for all. “The main purpose is to give people a fun experience. Our debates are relaxed and they give people a chance to meet others and work together to try persuade the other side as to why they’re right. And so far, we feel like people have really enjoyed their time,” said Brett Marshall.
This helps to improve your communication skills, team-building skills, how to share your opinions and accepting other people’s opinions, be open, make new friends, and can be added to your resume.
According to their constitution and bylaws, debate topics will be selected through a majority hand vote. Members can pitch ideas to the president and then each will be voted on until one topic gets a majority. These debates are meant to be fun and lighthearted.
No debate topic shall ever cover sensitive topics including, but not limited to, politics, religion, abortion, drug use, sexual orientations, etc. During the meetings, each person has the right to be in whichever group they choose.
There is no use of vulgar language, and each person has their time to talk so that everyone will be heard. The jury is to judge fairly with the arguments being made and put their personal opinions aside.
So if you want to meet new people, have some topic ideas, or want your opinions to be heard, you are more than welcome to join the club.
For more information, visit their Instagram @msupointlessdebateclub, or visit their site at: https://mnsumankato.campuslabs.com/engage/organization/pointless-debate-club.
Feature photo courtesy of MSU Pointless Debate Club.