After leaving the Dojo, Dash didn't feel like persisting in something he knew from the beginning couldn't be achieved. If things unfold this way, the atmosphere in this place might become more exciting.
On the next day, which was the day of the debate, Dash was lounging on a long table where they were preparing, and he said, "I never thought this debate would be so intense, much more exciting than the previous ones, if you ask me."
Bert was standing nearby, nervously reading the arguments he had to present. Upon hearing Dash's words, he turned his head slightly and asked confused, "How can you be so calm just when we are about to enter the debate?"
Dash sighed and furrowed his eyebrows. "Well, let's say I've been subjected to many surprises in my life, so these kinds of emotions don't destabilize my behavior."
Devon approached with a bunch of sheets filled with information and looked at Dash, noticing that he hadn't touched the sheets she had given him. After staring at him for a few seconds, she asked, "Do you intend to study a bit? It would be embarrassing if you stayed silent in front of the students who entered the debate."
"Relax, I have everything under control." Dash didn't want to say anything, but he had to keep Devon calm, as it would benefit him before entering the debate.
The last time, he ended up arguing with a girl discussing racism, and he won because the girl had mentioned that people like Devon migrated to another country just to seek new benefits when the Lee family primarily lived here for work. That "fight," which wasn't really a fight as it ended before getting exciting, remained in Dash's memories because of how amusing it had been.
At the moment, Devon was more than excited. This was her first debate with open doors for any school student to optionally enter the auditorium to listen to the entire debate.
The rumor that Devon had fought in her previous debate had spread throughout the school, and the auditorium slowly filled with curious students who expected to see something exciting.
It was well known that the debate club auditorium was empty unless some students were practically forced to participate in case something discussed would appear on an exam. But, in most cases, this place was empty. However, today, without anyone forcing anyone to participate, the place filled up very quickly.
"Have you seen how handsome Dash Hale is? I wonder if he has a girlfriend; it would be amazing to have him as a boyfriend."
"Well, daydream, he has a girlfriend, and it's the same girl he will debate against today. They never separate, so the chances of you talking to him are very low."
"I bet five dollars there will be a fight."
"I don't think so, but it would be incredible if it happened, even if I lose the five dollars."
Dash, who came out of the preparation room, opened his eyes wide to see so many people and murmured, "I told you that attracting attention in a debate is a bad idea; you seem to be more famous with just a silly fight than being a three-time karate champion."
Devon smiled and looked at the now fully packed place. She had been preparing for this debate for a long time and was very grateful that she would be heard at least.
She quickly walked over to the teacher who would be the judge in the debate, and they waited for everything to be ready to start.
The judge, a woman, nodded when she saw everyone was ready to start. She raised her hands and said, "You have five minutes per participant, let the first two go to debate, and we will start with arguments against animal experimentation."
Devon stood up and walked to the podium where there was an active microphone. The same happened on the other side of the team, who aimed to present their argument against.
A girl with glasses looked at Devon with a challenging smile and began to speak with a clear voice: "Today, the need for strict control over animal experimentation worldwide has become an obligation and not a necessity.
"It is proven that in Europe, there are good standards of animal welfare based on knowledge, but it is not the case in other countries. If we don't do something now, the goal of achieving what is sought by regulating animal experimentation will be a lost moral advance in society."
"Every year, more than 115 million animals, counting only vertebrates, are subjected to experimentation supposedly for the benefit of humans. This includes practices such as forcing them to inhale toxic gasses, applying corrosive substances to their skin and eyes, infecting them with HIV, or removing part of their brains."
She paused briefly and pointed out, "Certainly, the number of non-human animals that suffer and die due to these practices is much lower than those victims of the food industry or individuals in the wild who suffer from natural events."
"Now, since the basic interests of these non-human animals in not suffering and not dying matter, it is still necessary to reflect on whether experimenting on them is ethically justified."
The speech against animal experimentation was well-crafted, perfect if Dash had to give his opinion on the words that the girl had said. Everyone knew that the debate club was one of the most challenging because not many were qualified to communicate, but the level they were debating right now had exceeded their imagination.
"I yield my time!" said the girl on the opposing side, almost finishing her time.
Opening the topic, Devon glanced slightly at the sheets full of information in her hands, and because it was her turn to open the debate in favor of animal experimentation.
"Everyone must feel bad about the little knowledge they have on the topic, but let me tell you that animal experimentation has played a vital role in almost all medical discoveries of the last decade."
Devon made a clever pause now that everyone paid attention to her and said in a strong tone, "Almost every Nobel Prize in Medicine winner since 1901 has relied on data obtained from animal models. Believe it or not, we share 95% of our genes with mice, making them an effective model to apply to humans."
"Animals and humans are very similar; we have the same organic systems performing the same functions more or less in the same way. Animals suffer from diseases similar to humans, including cancer, tuberculosis, influenza, and asthma."
"All veterinary research has used animal experimentation. While alternative methods to animals play an important role, they cannot completely replace the use of animal experimentation, and that is something important to understand."
When saying this, Devon looked at the glasses-wearing girl who thought she had done a good job and pointed out, "In vitro techniques and computerized models complement animal models. Many veterinary medicines are the same as those used in humans, including antibiotics, analgesics, and tranquilizers."
"Modern anesthetics, tetanus vaccines, penicillin, and insulin have depended on animal experimentation for their development. Modern surgical techniques, including hip prostheses, kidney transplants, heart transplants, and blood transfusions, have been perfected using animals, and that's something everyone should be thankful for."
"Diagnostic techniques such as CT scans and magnetic resonance imaging have been developed using animals."
While Devon opened the topic in favor, many of those who were here just to see some excitement were left open-mouthed because they sincerely believed until now that the idea of being in favor of animal experimentation was gaining more weight as the arguments in favor became increasingly tough.
"Thanks to animal experimentation, mainly in mice, cancer survival rates have increased. Trastuzumab (Herceptin), a humanized mouse protein, has helped increase the survival rate of cancer patients."
Devon looked at the people and pointed out, "All this could not have been obtained without research on mice. Thanks to animal experimentation, therapies with Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapies (HAART) have been developed, by which AIDS has ceased to be the death sentence it was 30 years ago."
"While Fleming discovered penicillin without using animals, he shared the Nobel Prize with Florey and Chain, who, by experimenting on mice, discovered that it could be used to combat infections."
"Animal research has allowed the development of inhalers for asthma. Asthma kills 200,000 people each year. Animal experimentation has helped develop vaccines, such as those against polio, tuberculosis, meningitis, and recently, human papillomavirus (HPV), which is related to cervical cancer."
Devon said as she analyzed the time she had left.
At the end, Devon looked at the team that was against and asked, "Do you still think the same way?"