Warm-up Debating Championship 2022 - Bảng Anh

(1) Phan Thanh Giản was one of the foremost mandarins of the Nguyễn court. He played a key role in negotiating the Treaty of Saigon with the French in 1862. The treaty had 12 clauses, the most important being : Art. 2- Đại Nam (the country’s name then) allows French and Spanish missionaries to preach and the Vietnamese to practice the Christian faith freely. Art. 3- Đại Nam cedes to France the three eastern provinces of Biên Hòa, Gia Định and Định Tường and the island of Poulo Condor (Côn Đảo). Art. 8- Đại Nam agrees to pay France 4 million dollars worth of silver over 10 years as war reparation. Art. 11- France will return Vĩnh Long Province to Đại Nam once the three eastern provinces have been pacified. (2) Phan Thanh Giản was later recalled to Huế to get instructions to conduct an extraordinary embassy to Paris and negotiate the return of the eastern provinces. In Paris, after intense discussions, French Minister of the Navy and the Colonies Prosper de Chasseloup-Laubat opposed the return of Cochinchina to Vietnam, and with the threat of resignation of the whole cabinet, forced Napoleon III to order the cancellation of the proposed agreement in June 1864. Thus the Saigon Treaty of 1862 remained in full effect. Because of his main role in the negotiations, Phan Thanh Giản was blamed by the Vietnamese people and the Huế Court.

Hanoi plans to ban motorbikes in core districts after 2025, five years earlier than an earlier plan, in order to reduce traffic congestion and emissions. The capital has around 5.6 million motorbikes and 600,000 automobiles. Currently, in Hanoi, the public bus system plies 140 routes, meeting an estimated 31 percent of total demand. The recently opened Cat Linh-Ha Dong metro service, along with the proposed Nhon-Hanoi Railway Station route, would each be able to meet 5-7 percent of travel demand in the city, according to an expert.

"(1) In the liveshow of Rap Viet Season 2's Finals, TLinh, who was the finalist of the show's season 1 and is now a rising star in the music industry, performed her new song. After her performance, the host had a conversation with her as follows. Host: Performing ""Single Ladies"", are you single at the moment? TLinh: Can you ask another question that is, genuinely, more appropriate? Host: Oh, more appropriate, right? So ... are you single? TLinh (laughed): Do I really need to answer this question? (2) The short interview fueled controversies about her behaviour. Some said she did not respect an older colleague, while others defended her response criticising the host's questions about celebrities' personal lives. TLinh later posted an apology on her social media explaining that the performance did not go as planned, which made her anxious answering the host's question. She did not intend to be mean towards the host and stated that he did not do anything wrong asking her such questions."

Peer-to-peer (P2P) lending enables individuals to obtain loans directly from other individuals, cutting out the financial institution as the middleman. Websites that facilitate P2P lending have greatly increased its adoption as an alternative method of financing. P2P lending websites connect borrowers directly to investors. Each website sets the rates and the terms and enables the transaction. Most sites have a wide range of interest rates based on the creditworthiness of the applicant.

"(1) Financial Independence, Retire Early (FIRE) is a movement of people devoted to a program of extreme savings (usually 50-70% annual income) and investment (on average 10% annually minimum) that aims to allow them to retire far earlier than traditional budgets and retirement plans would permit. [Mathematical background] FIRE followers comply with the 4% rule, and this simple formula for calculating your FIRE number: Annual Expenses x 25 = FIRE number. It means when you reach the FIRE number, you no longer need to worry about working, because you just need to withdraw 4% from your portfolio annually to cover your expenses. (2) Voluntary social insurance in Vietnam is defined as a form of social insurance organized by the State in which a participant may select a premium rate and a method of premium payment suitable to his/her income and the State supports his/her payment of social insurance premiums for him/her to enjoy retirement and survivor allowance regimes. [Mathematical background] (+) The monthly payment is equal to 22% of the monthly income chosen by the participants of voluntary social insurance. (+) The minimum monthly income selected by participants of voluntary social insurance is equal to the poverty line of rural areas as prescribed by the Prime Minister and the highest is 20 times the base salary at the time of payment. (+) Monthly voluntary social insurance payment = 22% x monthly income chosen by the participants of voluntary social insurance."

(1) Epicureanism argued that pleasure was the chief good in life. Hence, Epicurus advocated living in such a way as to derive the greatest amount of pleasure possible during one’s lifetime, yet doing so moderately in order to avoid the suffering incurred by overindulgence in such pleasure. Emphasis was placed on pleasures of the mind rather than on physical pleasures. Unnecessary and, especially, artificially produced desires were to be suppressed. Since the political life could give rise to desires that could disturb virtue and one’s peace of mind, such as a lust for power or a desire for fame, participation in politics was discouraged. Further, Epicurus sought to eliminate the fear of the gods and of death, seeing those two fears as chief causes of strife in life. Epicurus actively recommended against passionate love, and believed it best to avoid marriage altogether. He viewed recreational sex as a natural, but not necessary desire that should be generally avoided. (2) Epicurus laid great emphasis on developing friendships as the basis of a satisfying life. While the pursuit of pleasure formed the focal point of the philosophy, this was largely directed to the “static pleasures” of minimizing pain, anxiety and suffering. ""When we say . . . that pleasure is the end and aim, we do not mean the pleasures of the prodigal or the pleasures of sensuality, as we are understood to do by some through ignorance, prejudice or wilful misrepresentation. By pleasure we mean the absence of pain in the body and of trouble in the soul. It is not by an unbroken succession of drinking bouts and of revelry, not by sexual lust, nor the enjoyment of fish and other delicacies of a luxurious table, which produce a pleasant life; it is sober reasoning, searching out the grounds of every choice and avoidance, and banishing those beliefs through which the greatest tumults take possession of the soul."""