Wilton Sophomore Debater Places at Dartmouth-Coolidge Tournament

Last month, a panel of nine judges heard arguments on a controversial topic. The venue was not the supreme court, however, and the presenters were not lawyers, or at least aren't yet. Barlow sophomore Emma Thomas and her partner William Morgan of Deerfield were the first place team on Thursday at the Calvin Coolidge debate tournament, winning a $500 prize. The runners-up were Justin Jin, a junior at Roxbury Latin School in West Roxbury, MA, and Randy Ramirez, a sophomore at Wilton High School in Wilton, CT.

On the grounds of the Calvin Coolidge historical site, within shouting distance of the president's birthplace and homestead, students from the Dartmouth Debate Institute gathered on a fine day to debate a question central to the times and challenges of Coolidge's administration: are strong property rights necessary for strong economies?

The final round was held before an audience of senior members of the Calvin Coolidge foundation, who sponsored the tournament, and debaters and coaches from around the country and the world. The Affirmative gave a compelling opening, explaining how uncertain private ownership of land doomed the Spanish colonies to be unsuccessful centuries ago and was bound to undermine economic activity in the BRIC nations today. Their position leveraged events from Coolidge's own life to great effect.

As the debate unfolded, the negative view–advanced by Ms. Thomas and Mr. Morgan–proved the sounder: in times of crisis, Emma explained, the government has been able to confiscate and repurpose property to the effect of salvation, as was done by president Roosevelt. The strong growth seen in China is owed precisely to the government's ability to seize land and use it in the collective interest. The thorough refutation and nuanced analysis done by the negative ultimately won the debate, the crowd, and a scholarship courtesy of the Coolidge Foundation.