I read this Slate Star Codex post today about the fact that there is no real debate going on between

I read this Slate Star Codex post today about the fact that there is no real debate going on between political sides. That is, two people aren't meeting in a room in good faith and talking to each other with the goal of both listening and persuading.

It would be pretty cool if someone put together an organization testing the impact of real debate. Organize debates between major Republicans and Democrats across the country. Not the actual candidates, just people on each side. Maybe even folks who aren't tied to campaigns but really like one candidate or another. That would be an interesting experiment (and also quite relevant to the point I posted two openers down...)

I bet people would show up to listen. Maybe not thousands, but solid dozens. Even hundreds sometimes. It could be a thing that grew and might have a surprising effect.

Whatever you think of this idea, I just want to add this quote from the post which I thought was funny and clever and illuminating:

"As the old saying goes, “First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then they fight you half-heartedly, then they’re neutral, then they then they grudgingly say you might have a point even though you’re annoying, then they say on balance you’re mostly right although you ignore some of the most important facets of the issue, then you win."