In the beginning  there was Yahoo Chat. The genesis of all the clubs here, began there. When the Chat Scene got a bit bizarre many of the more mannered debaters migrated to the club format so that they could expound in a more cogent manner . A History of some of the Yahoo Clubs that are predecessors to this site can be found here 

Some of the more successful clubs in the political arena were  PIC and SPIN CYCLE II. 

Then Yahoo went a little crazy and decided to merge a successful format with their Groups format. The transition was a disaster with many of the regular members of the forums unwilling or unable to tolerate the constant billboard displays and service interruptions that were inherent in Groups. Something needed to be done. Alternatives were looked at . Test homes were established. Alliances formed.

When the dust settled there were two competing formats for the founders of PIC ( the larger club involved ) to choose from; the Debategate site , which was untried but a great concept and the more established and well financed MSN Communities. The founders of PIC choose to go with MSN . 

However DebateGate would still be developed as an independent forum community, self financed and self contained and whose destiny was under its own control. It would also still have the Club Format that many of us had come to prefer. 

Thus begins the noble experiment. 

Common resources include site as well as individual forum chat, photo albums and calendars. Email is available to registered members.  We have tried to bring the best of the established communities to our site while maintaining our independence. We are currently housed at a state of the art server with T3 plus speed and 80GB monthly transfer. 

And as we grow , we will be able to compete with the best of them. 

Currently there are seven autonomous forums residing at DebateGate with many more to follow:

Three Dead Horse Saloon:

With many of the original members of PIC present and accounted for,  we offer a good mix of liberal and conservative political thought with a decidedly national flavor. We can be serious and we can be light hearted. We can be passionate about our opinions. We can have week long discussions about various topics as we ponder, debate and clarify the various tangents our members introduce to the topic. We anticipate arguments...  thrusting, parrying and countering the tactics of the opposition . 

Tournament quality debate is the result and we always come back for more. 

Pool 8:

Pool 8  represents the latest re-incarnation in a long line of clubs fondly known as "The Cesspool" In its former life, the Cesspool was developed to provide an arena for all of the alias intrigue and flame wars that infiltrated the main discussion club.  Wild, wacky, and often risqué, The Cesspool originated the "Name That Poster" game and also the 'every member a founder' concept.  The forum is unmoderated. 

Since we have the ability to control access to the forums, we have decided that this forum will be a
no-holds-barred arena designed to resolve differences of opinion, using whatever style of conflict resolution the members deem appropriate with the exception of pornography. 

Registration is required to view and post. 

Culture Vultures

It's about Art. It's about Entertainment. Music, Movies, Books, TV. You name it ,we'll talk about it. Trivia, Bloopers, Coming Attractions and member reviews will keep you up to date with what's hot and what's not Universe Prince and Brassmask are  the ringmasters for this fun forum. 

 Chicken Soup

Grab a cup of coffee and pull up at chair at the kitchen table as friends and family share recipes, discuss parenting , health info and household tips. MissusDe launches this relaxed club. The threaded format makes it easy to categorize and search for whatever you need. 

Story Board

We are trying something entirely different on this board. Some call it a story chain, some call it a collaborative short story, some call it fun. This is the basic premise. 

The founders will issue a challenge. Emailed suggestions  are welcome.

For example, we might set the scene as post civil war , west , railroad barons and ranchers and outlaws. What will we end up with?   The story of Jesse James or Little House on the Prairie. Or some combination of the two. One person will start the chain, the next will add characters,  action or plot twists and on and on and on. We can have two stories interweaving if you like as long as logic is not suspended. You can mix adventure, humor, romance or whatever into the storyline. Your imagination is the limiting factor. So lets give it a whirl.

Tech Zone

A help forum for all things computing. Help will be provided by our  many experienced members . 

Dei Gratia

It is the goal of this forum to have civilized discussion of religious matters. What does "civlized" mean in this context?

The answer can be found in the dictionary, under definition # 2

2. Showing evidence of moral and intellectual advancement; humane, ethical, and reasonable.

Keep in mind the key phrases of that definition: moral and intellectual advancement means that we will not tolerate childish, venomous, denigrating responses to serious religious questions and responses. Humane means that we must acknowledge that everyone involved in the discussion has their own point of view on a subject that is widely interpreted. Ethical, requires that we treat each other in an ethical manner AND that we are not here to engage in activites such as advertising, giving out someone else's personal information, or for the sole purpose of attacking someone personally.

Feel free to visit any of the clubs and get acquainted, 

If you post it ..................................they will come.

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