Almost three dozen club members and others convened for the first club evening of Streitkultur Berlin (SKB). Only a few blocks away, the new President of Germany (Bundespräsident) was elected in the Reichstag, while the newly founded debating club debated the topic that was to ultimately prove as the old President’s downfall. They asked: “Should German military operations be allowed to assert economic interests?”, thus re-debating the final motion of this year’s German Debating Championships, this time in OPD debating style. Before the debate, club President Christoph Krakowiak introduced the rules to all those present and then handed off to the debate’s chairwoman Helen Leutloff.

The speakers hailed form a wide array of backgrounds, and highly experienced debaters mingled with beginners. They all debated the big questions about war and peace, admissable reasons to start a war and the survival of a people. Some also suggested that Germany should follow the Swiss’ example and construct a better tax and banking system – Make money, not war.

The evening was  characterized by a mixture of strong arguments and cheerful sociality. Two facts were established by the end of the day:

• Germany has a new Bundespräsident: Christian Wulff.
• And: Germany has a new debating club: Streitkultur Berlin.

glx / fnp