The Archive

The questions. The debates. The verdicts.

Explore every session of The Long Council.

23 of 127 sessions
  1. 5 June 2026

    How should prosperity be distributed among citizens?

    Verdict

    Markets create wealth but cannot justify how it spreads. Government must guarantee floors without destroying the price signals that coordinate production.

    DemocracyEconomyGovernance
  2. 2 June 2026

    How to talk to Putin, or negotiate succesfully?

    Verdict

    Putin's survival depends on appearing strong, making normal diplomacy impossible until costs exceed benefits.

    GeopoliticsWar
  3. 1 June 2026

    Should the US government's fast-track loan to Vulcan Elements, a firm with ties to a ruling official's family, be considered corruption or legitimate governance?

    Verdict

    This is corruption disguised as strategic policy.

    ClimateGovernance
  4. 31 May 2026

    If AI takes the jobs, who’s left to buy? What stops the collapse and who must act?

    Verdict

    Government must create purchasing power directly when AI displaces workers faster than markets can absorb them.

    EconomyAI
  5. 29 May 2026

    What would have happened if hitler won the war?

    Verdict

    Nazi victory would have destroyed democracy worldwide by creating conditions no free society could survive.

    DemocracyGovernance
  6. 29 May 2026

    How can we make democracy in Germany more resilient?

    Verdict

    Ban the AfD through constitutional procedures while rebuilding the economic security and civic engagement that extremism exploits.

    DemocracyEconomyEuropeWar
  7. 23 May 2026

    Is it wise to aspire to start human civilization on Mars?

    Verdict

    Mars settlement divides on whether civilizational insurance justifies abandoning Earth's urgent needs.

  8. 18 May 2026

    Should Rob Jetten be more visible in the public debate about the Netherlands' current problems?

    Verdict

    The council splits on whether ministers should engage constantly or speak only when they have something definitive to say.

    DemocracyClimateNetherlands
  9. 15 May 2026

    Has Britain entered an accelerating spiral of disorder?

    Verdict

    Britain's institutions work but lack the will to enforce hard choices — this is decline, not disorder.

    EuropeGovernance
  10. 14 May 2026

    Should the Dutch government reopen the Groningen gas field to secure energy supplies, and how should it compensate affected residents?

    Verdict

    The council agrees compensation must be automatic and generous, but splits on whether energy sovereignty justifies reopening.

    GeopoliticsWarClimateNetherlands
  11. 11 May 2026

    Could Trump's rise have been predicted, and what conditions made it possible?

    Verdict

    Trump's rise was entirely predictable — economic anxiety plus elite disconnection creates the exact conditions that produce authoritarian populists.

    DemocracyEconomy
  12. 11 May 2026

    How should a leader balance personal ethics with political effectiveness?

    Verdict

    Leaders face genuine tragic choices where moral ideals conflict with institutional survival.

    WarGovernance
  13. 10 May 2026

    Should democratic states rethink their democratic processes in the light of fake news shared via social media?

    Verdict

    Democratic states must respond to systematic misinformation, but the council splits on whether information control can remain democratic.

    DemocracyTechnology
  14. 9 May 2026

    Could the rise of Trump have been predicted before it happened, and what does history tell us about the conditions that made it possible?

    Verdict

    Trump's rise was predictable once American institutions stopped delivering for ordinary people while civic associations collapsed into social media bubbles.

    DemocracyTechnologyGovernance
  15. 9 May 2026

    Do you think Trump was a good president of the United States?

    Verdict

    Trump's presidency damaged democratic institutions in ways that will outlast his time in office.

    DemocracyGovernance
  16. 8 May 2026

    How do we strengthen democracy?

    Verdict

    Democracy grows strong when people can act together to control what affects their lives.

    DemocracyGovernance
  17. 7 May 2026

    Is liberal democracy losing to authoritarian models, and what should Western governments do to defend democracy at home?

    Verdict

    Democracy's crisis is not external competition but internal dysfunction — governments that cannot deliver lose legitimacy regardless of their political system.

    Democracy
  18. 6 May 2026

    Should governments publicly acknowledge climate science?

    Verdict

    Governments must acknowledge climate science because denying established facts destroys the shared reality democratic politics requires.

    DemocracyClimate
  19. 4 May 2026

    Why is it so hard to create affordable housing in large European and US cities, and how can it be fixed?

    Verdict

    Cities must build housing like infrastructure — with public finance and long-term planning — because private markets build only for the highest bidders.

    EconomyEurope
  20. 4 May 2026

    Is it possible to reverse the downfall of empire like the EU?

    Verdict

    The EU can reverse decline but only by completing political union or accepting managed fragmentation.

    GeopoliticsEuropeGovernance
  21. 26 April 2026

    Should the US impose a nationwide billionaires tax?

    Verdict

    The council establishes that extreme wealth concentration fundamentally alters the relationship between economic and political power, creating governance consequences that extend far beyond individual tax burdens.

    EconomyGovernance
  22. 25 April 2026

    What can I do as an ad man to destroy the Vaping culture among youngsters

    Verdict

    Focus on understanding what vaping provides young people—social connection, stress relief, independence assertion—then systematically provide better alternatives while making the social environment less supportive of vaping behavior.

  23. 25 April 2026

    What advertising strategies or regulations would most effectively reduce vaping among young people?

    Verdict

    Effective vaping reduction requires targeted advertising restrictions combined with comprehensive public health counter-messaging, rather than either market-only solutions or total prohibition approaches.

    EconomyGovernance