Debating Bottled Water

Debates have become a regular part of our society. We debate among friends over what we should do about a cute guy,we debate with our parents about curfew, and, well, we debate with anyone over politics. However, often times, we are so involved with our own perspective that we loose sight of the perspective of the other person.

We become so intent on convincing the other person that we are right, that we don't realize that we might not be, and that PERHAPS the other side does have a valid point.This leads to ego (and ethno) centrism.
However, without this debating process, the ones that keep an open mind learn a lot about other people within their own culture and people that come from different cultures and upbringings. We can learn a lot from someone who was simply brought up differently, and who has different values and morals. Not only can respectful debating help us learn more about each other and learn to respect our differences, but it could potentially change the way you see things. And this is that counteracts ego and etho centrism. Once we learn to understand and appreciate the different ways of looking at things, we can gain a better respect for different people and cultures. It can also make you think about things you believe that you may have never thought about before. A healthy debate can challenge your beliefs by making you explain them.


My best friend is extremely political.She reads the New York Times like crazy, and goes to rallies and is very strongly opinionated on everything political.So am I. And we do not always have the same opinions on things. And so naturally, we debate on a lot of things. For instance, she believes that bottled water is a crime against humanity, that we should not privatize an essential aspect to life, should be completely irradiated, and have us use tap water. I believe that bottled water is a great way to provide clean water to countries that do not have access, and are a great way for those that do to have an easy portable way to stay hydrated.But because we have debated over this, we both have a better understanding of why bottled water is both good and bad. She admitted that it is good sometimes, and I admitted that I, who do have access to clean water, should not drink it as much as I do. Debating can be very useful in understanding differences, and learning to accept different ways of thinking- if you keep an open mind.