Mitigating factors in criminal cases are defined as circumstances that lessens the defendant's severity or culpability of a criminal offense. These include the defendant's age, whether they were sane when the crime was commited, and whether they had any previous records of criminal behaviour.

"For the purposes of this debate, there exists a safe technology which can accurately simulate the experience of being in prison. A person within the simulation will experience the simulation as fully real, including time passing slowly as in ""real life"", while not interacting with others in the ""real world"". In reality, even a long sentence in the simulation will be done in a matter of days"

A financial settlement is an official agreement between parties intended to resolve a dispute or conflict without having to go to or complete a trial. As a result of financial settlement, no further legal action can be pursued.

ASEAN’s non-interference policy dictates that member states should not intervene in the internal affairs of other member states. It is based on the belief that respecting national sovereignty and territorial integrity is crucial for regional stability and cooperation.

A cartel is when a group of producers agree to coordinate supply of their product to the market, which means they can control prices such as when you cut supply to increase prices or flood the market to decrease prices. For example, OPEC is a cartel of oil-producing states that is led by Saudi Arabia.

NATO is a military alliance of 32 member states. NATO is a collective security system: its member states agree to defend each other against attacks by third parties. As of June 2022, NATO had deployed 40,000 troops along its Eastern flank to deter Russian aggression. More than half of this number have been deployed in Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary, Slovakia, and Poland.

In 1954 the Chinese Ministry of Health (CMoH) began a series of programmes to revive and study the practice of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) in China. Examples of TCM include herbal medicine and acupuncture. The field has not been extensively researched before, with some practices described as psuedoscientific and dangerous. 

China annexed (taken over) Tibet in 1951 and the economy has expanded under Chinese rule, although expressions of religion and culture are heavily policed. Policies in Tibet include: government-sponsored migration of Chinese citizens, widespread development of infrastructure (schools, railways, highways), as well as the replacement of Tibetan with Chinese as the primary language in schools and administration. 

"Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama, ruled as a king in Tibet before being exiled by China when they took over and currently resides in India as a refugee. He is an important advocate for more Tibetan autonomy from Chinese rule, and is a symbol of unity amongst different schools in Tibetan Buddhism. Dalai Lamas are believed to be the reincarnation of the Bodhisattva of Compassion. The reincarnations of spiritual leaders can be located through posthumous instructions of the dead leader and certain religious ceremonies. 

China had installed spiritual leaders not recognised as official reincarnations and stated that they will elect their Dalai Lama upon Tenzin's death.

For the purposes of this debate, reincarnation is real.

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You are an ethnic minority parent to a single child. You have the option to enroll your child in a public school or homeschool your child, where they will learn at home, educated either by yourself your spouse or private tutors. Academically, the child's performance in all subjects will be the same in both scenarios.

Pokémon are creatures with specialized abilities and are highly sentient. In the world of Pokémon, many trainers strive to become the Pokémon Champion through Pokémon battles against 8 Gym Leaders, the Elite 4, and an incumbent Champion. In battles, Pokémon are ordered to attack each other until one faints, although they will not kill each other. You get money when you win battles. You may use your Pokémon in other ways such as competing in Beauty Contests, or using them in your daily job, although this is less renowned and less lucrative.

Podcast culture refers to the growing trend of producing and consuming audio content on various topics through digital platforms. Unlike social media, which focuses on brief and visual interactions, podcasts offer in-depth, on-demand shows that cater to specific interests.

The gig economy is a labor market that relies heavily on temporary and part-time positions filled by independent contractors and freelancers rather than full-time permanent employees. Examples of gig jobs include delivery drivers, graphic designers and online tutors

The #blockout campaign is a Pro-Palestinian campaign on social media platforms that asks participants to block accounts of celebrities silent about the Israeli campaign in Gaza. It is a campaign with no clear leadership or goals, and multiple user-created blocklists have circulated. Some celebrities (Lizzo, Chris Olsen, Brittany Broski) have since posted videos encouraging supporters to donate to Palestinian families and aid organisations, although their late actions have been criticised as performative.

In this debate “ safe spaces” refers to physical places free of bias, conflict, criticism, or potentially threatening actions, ideas, or conversations; oftentimes with the purpose to protect vulnerable or minority groups (women, racial minorities, et cetera)