Should felons vote?

The new Lincoln-Douglas debate topic is as follows:

Resolved: In a democratic society, felons ought to retain the right to vote.

This will be the topic LD students will debate in December, January, and the first week of February.

Here's what the novice discussed in 1st block today:

What kind of values/value criterion would work with this case?

• Democracy
• Justice
• Equality
• Social Contract
• What else?

What are some good reasons for felons to be able to vote?

• helps with rehabilitation (felons who participate in a democracy are more likely to follow its rules)
• It's only fair since they are subject to the laws and taxes of the country
• restricting felons from voting may have racist connotations, given the percentage of minorities in prison
• when is a felon not a felon? figuring out when or if the voting rights should be reinstated to a felon can make this a tricky subject
• more people voting = better democracy
• What else can you come up with?

What are some good reasons for felons to be banned from voting?

• revoking voting rights is a valid punishment
• by upholding the affirmative side, one has stripped away the opportunity to restrict felons who have committed voter fraud
• Democracy = representation of public opinion. Most people are "not in favor of granting [voting rights] to incarcerated felons"*
• what else can you think of?

Overall, this is one fascinating topic, and should give us lots of good practice for districts.**
I'm looking forward to reading your cases! Make sure you define your terms - especially "democractic society" and "felons", and be on the lookout for opponents to bring up other countries besides the USA. Good luck!

*see West Coast Briefs, page 7

**(The February/March MSHSAA topic is the one we debate at districts...in other words, the one after this one on the MSHAA site. Ignore the January/February topic on the NFL site - we don't debate that one in Missouri).