Go NUCLEAR! Blog

2011 NCFCA National Championship

Submitted by Mary Claire Birdsong on Tue, 06/21/2011 - 3:25pm

This week I had the pleasure of traveling to Gordon College, in Wenham, Massachusetts, to compete in the 2011 culminating event for both debate and speech.  My debate case this year had nothing to do with nuclear energy, and I can’t think of way to relate bilateral trade relations with Russia into the scope of this website.  

Fukushima: It’s Not about Radiation, it’s about Tsunamis

Submitted by Mary Claire Birdsong on Tue, 06/21/2011 - 3:04pm

By Dr. Theodore Rockwell

Japan’s Disaster – Beyond Nuclear Energy

Submitted by Mary Claire Birdsong on Mon, 06/20/2011 - 10:00am

The main story is well established. At 14:46 local time on 11 March 2011, a magnitude 9 earthquake struck off Japan's north-east coast.

Visiting a college in Tennessee, I was poised to complete a week of speeches at a national forensics event on the U.S. urgent need to pursue more advanced nuclear energy options. I was stuck – needing to change the tone and tenor of my speech – without the benefit of the details yet to unfold. Ultimately, it was a lesson in patience and reliance on facts. In science, as in life, “facts are friends.” I finished the week successfully, but sobered, along with the world, at the utter devastation from the natural disaster.

From Case To Cause

Submitted by Mary Claire Birdsong on Tue, 12/07/2010 - 8:52am

Winning isn’t everything .... Now, as much as any students in our league, my partner and I wanted to win. Some people would admonish "debate is about learning" and they would be correct. We do learn in every round, win or lose, primarily because all the debaters in our league show up well-prepared. Losing provides incredible lessons in character, strategy, and comportment. But you can learn while you win, and skip the losing, and that is what we intended to do. We wanted to win at the state level, move on the the regional tournament, and finish high enough to be invited to Nationals.

Environmentally Challenged

Submitted by Mary Claire Birdsong on Mon, 11/15/2010 - 10:44am

The National Christian Forensics Communication Association’s (NCFCA) team policy debate resolution for 2009-10 was Resolved: The United States should significantly reform its environmental policy. Upon hearing the resolution for the first time, neither my debate partner nor I knew which area within environmental policy to tackle. We couldn't say: hey, we're passionate about the EPA standards. Or the Endangered Species Act. Or corn ethanol, pesticides, or salmon runs.

It Began With Debate

Submitted by Mary Claire Birdsong on Mon, 10/11/2010 - 3:18pm

I debate because ...? Debate is an academic pursuit. Most of my debate friends will quickly admit they began their debate experience under some duress. “My mom and dad made me try it” is a common refrain among fellow students. Once we land on our feet, it can even work in our favor if we remind our parents how we are “cooperating” with them! In the home school world, academics are not in short supply - everything from washing the car to making dinner can get lumped into education. Speech and debate compensate for all that, however.

The John Holdren Letter

Submitted by Mary Claire Birdsong on Thu, 09/02/2010 - 8:33pm

On February 1st, 2010, Dr. John Shanahan authored a letter to Dr. John P. Holdren, Director of the White House Office of Science & Technology Policy and President Obama's Science Advisor. This letter also included over 30 pages of signatories from scientists, engineers, and citizens from around the world, over 330 signatories total! This letter is the groundwork of GNI's promotion of nuclear power.

Pages