Austin Union

Today, America's cultural and religious makeup is anything but uniform; but do its laws, customs, and aspirations remain essentially Christian? Or has the Nation lost its original character? Or was America, in its ancient and modern roots, even founded upon the faith? On February 9th, the Austin Union will be raising this question as an open forum-style debate with the resolution: "Is America a Christian Nation?" As an open forum debate, everyone has the opportunity to speak on the topic, with 5 minutes allocated to each speech. The floor is yours to contribute towards the public discourse. RSVP Required (available on our website).

RSVP here: austinunion.org/events/open-fo…

Today, America's cultural and religious makeup is anything but uniform; but do its laws, customs, and aspirations remain essentially Christian? Or has the Nation lost its original character? Or was America, in its ancient and modern roots, even founded upon the faith? On February 9th, the Austin Union will be raising this question as an open forum-style debate with the resolution: "Is America a Christian Nation?" As an open forum debate, everyone has the opportunity to speak on the topic, with 5 minutes allocated to each speech. The floor is yours to contribute towards the public discourse. RSVP Required (available on our website).

Between Zohran Mamdani's electoral victory and the fallout from the Tucker Carlson/Nick Fuentes interview, it's becoming clear that our country's politics is in the process of being redefined. In order to grasp these shifts for what they are, and to fulfill America's promise of pluralism, they must be brought together in dialogue--not for clicks, not for shock value, or whatever else drives the sophistry sold as "discourse" today, but for the sake of genuine understanding. There is no forum worthy of today's ideas. We are building one at the Austin Union.

Did communism succeed? AU member asks @claraemattei and @PhilWMagness

@curtis_yarvin Why not make it a real debate? We would love to have you back at the Union.

All the things Rufo is doing: fundraising. Everything else will be lost in time. It’s another “Reagan Revolution.” Except for the cocaine and ephebophilia, it might as well have not happened. Remember Viguerie? Pepperidge Farm remembers. Beltway brain

In a world where lies are bought and sold, Truth commands the highest price. The urgency of today’s crises have swelled to a fever pitch - American education is shipwrecked, geopolitical tensions cross red lines, and existential questions about technology threaten humanity with either paradise or purgatory. Yet despite all the hand-wringing over ‘polarization,’ little headway has been made in improving the discourse surrounding these issues. That’s why we started the Austin Union. The great images of the past have recognized the vital importance of debate; whether it is Jacob wrestling with the angels of God, the heroes of Homer defying divine decree, or the American legacy of critical change through fearless speech - the spirit of adversarial dialogue has been etched into the foundations of our civilization. But it is precisely this spirit which is missing in our decisive moment. Today, debate has been relegated to the Twitter warriors, or the comment sections of YouTube videos. Presidential debates are spliced into distorted 15-second clips, allowing politicians to continue talking past each other on platforms abandoned by their detractors. The alternative, long-form podcasting, has left us drowning in a sea of noise and slog. Guests never face down their opposition, and listeners don’t have the bandwidth to digest four hours of meandering conversation. Our moment demands something better. The Austin Union Society offers just that - a new forum, fortified in the old ways. We believe the truth is out there, and that it is vital and urgent. But the way we reach it is not through slow speech and distorted dialogue. We believe in truth through debate. Entirely student run, we are charged with the ambition and frustration of a generation which cannot accept the conditions of contemporary conversation. The pillars of democracy stand upon the foundation of good debate. Ferocity, conviction, and a ruthless commitment to the truth are the basis of our western civilization. We don’t have to agree on the solutions to our many crises - but we do have to agree they are worth fighting over. The Austin Union Society is the platform for that good fight. If it is crucial - bring it to the Union. If it counts for something - debate it with us. If the time to act is now - Fight with us. Join the Austin Union.

@christopherrufo Let's bring it to the Austin Union. Perhaps @bariweiss as the moderator?

I’m in touch with Jonah Goldberg and he has agreed, at least in theory, to a debate. I think this would be a valuable moment to clarify the differences on the Right and, as I’ve said, he can pick the moderator. I’m ready anytime.

"All students will cheat and all work will be AI-generated." @nfergus on the solution. @austin_union

@RosarioFreedom @moonbootspleb Thank you for the recommendation, Anthony!

@moonbootspleb Hey boots! Thanks for clarifying. I do recall some training on this in my days in high school speech and debate. Hey @austin_union, you guys should consider implementing this in your peer-to-peer coaching. Hope this helps!

@RosarioFreedom This is what I was chatting with you about. I had the name wrong. Impact calculus, not Impact weighting. They’ve also seemingly added a 4th pillar of Severity. So: - Magnitude - Probability - Timeframe - Severity en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Impact_ca…

@cpwhitmire moderates "Is the Middle East strategically important?" with @Doranimated and @ELuttwak.

"I like being able to discuss any sort of topic that I would like without any fear of being hated on." — UATX student @austin_union

Check out the Union's latest conversation with Dave Rubin and Jason Calacanis on Trump, AI, and what it takes to make it in our modern moment👇

@ModdedQuad @uaustinorg We were lucky to have you! A great night for UATX students with back-to-back talks on the forefront of tech and policy.

I had an amazing time at @uaustinorg! The students, professors, and staff were all beyond impressive. I can't wait for this university to change the world. I hope to be back again soon. Great job @austin_union as well. Y'all are doing really cool things.

📸 @MarkAbernathy19

Special thanks to @JTLonsdale, @Jason, and @RubinReport for staying up late with the Austin Union last night!

Recently, we hosted a conversation between entrepreneur and UATX donor Jeff Yass and our very own @Jacob_Hornstein, covering everything from libertarianism, betting, to education - and cat videos on TikTok.