The Archive

The questions. The debates. The verdicts.

Explore every session of The Long Council.

36 of 127 sessions
  1. 10 June 2026

    How can Western democracies reduce bureaucracy?

    Verdict

    Build digital systems outside existing ministries, then force bureaucrats to use them or lose their jobs.

    DemocracyGovernance
  2. 4 June 2026

    Should the EU build an army?

    Verdict

    Yes, but only if Europe commits real money and accepts unified command.

    GeopoliticsEuropeWarGovernance
  3. 4 June 2026

    Why do Israelis perceive Palestinian suffering differently than most Western countries do?

    Verdict

    Israelis live under existential threat while Western observers debate from safety. Both see the same deaths through different survival calculations.

    DemocracyWar
  4. 2 June 2026

    Is Europe experiencing democratic backslide, and does a rightward shift among governments pose a problem?

    Verdict

    Europe's rightward shift represents democratic choice exercised against democratic norms.

    DemocracyEuropeGovernance
  5. 1 June 2026

    Is China's surveillance system a public safety success or a human rights failure?

    Verdict

    China's surveillance system delivers measurable stability and development outcomes while systematically destroying individual agency and human rights protections.

    ChinaGovernance
  6. 30 May 2026

    May a country ban social media platforms?

    Verdict

    Yes, but only when platforms threaten genuine security interests, not when governments want to silence criticism.

    DemocracyGeopoliticsWarTechnology
  7. 30 May 2026

    How should the current political crisis in Turkey, involving the appointment of a trustee to the CHP and the conflict between Erdoğan and Kılıçdaroğlu, be evaluated in light of Atatürk's warning about "negligence, betrayal, and delusion"?

    Verdict

    Turkey faces systematic constitutional breakdown, but the council splits on whether resistance or patience better preserves the republic.

    DemocracyWar
  8. 30 May 2026

    How can Turkey restore its democracy while Erdogan systematically eliminates political opponents?

    Verdict

    Turkey's captured institutions cannot be reformed from within, but comprehensive reconstruction requires economic crisis to fracture Erdogan's coalition first.

    DemocracyEconomyGovernance
  9. 30 May 2026

    Can Turkey become a secular society again after Erdogan's rule?

    Verdict

    Turkey can become secular again, but only through gradual institutional reform, not revolutionary transformation.

    Governance
  10. 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
  11. 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
  12. 27 May 2026

    What conditions would make a Ukraine ceasefire durable and acceptable?

    Verdict

    Ukraine must choose between accepting territorial losses now for institutional protections, or fighting longer to build independent deterrent capacity.

    WarGovernance
  13. 19 May 2026

    How can we structure Dutch democracy so that it works less divisively?

    Verdict

    Dutch democracy needs institutions that force hard decisions, but the council splits on whether centralized authority or distributed governance delivers them.

    DemocracyGovernanceNetherlands
  14. 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
  15. 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
  16. 12 May 2026

    Should UK PM Starmer resign?

    Verdict

    Starmer should resign if he cannot unite Labour around policies Britain needs.

    Europe
  17. 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
  18. 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
  19. 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
  20. 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
  21. 8 May 2026

    How would Confucius judge Trump's leadership?

    Verdict

    Trump succeeds by the measures that matter to him but destroys the trust that makes democratic leadership possible.

    DemocracyChinaGovernance
  22. 8 May 2026

    How do we strengthen democracy?

    Verdict

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

    DemocracyGovernance
  23. 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
  24. 7 May 2026

    Should western democracies introduce mandatory voting?

    Verdict

    Mandatory voting forces civic engagement but destroys the voluntary choice that makes democratic participation authentic.

    Democracy
  25. 6 May 2026

    How can trust in political leadership be restored in western democracies. Provide concrete steps and measures.

    Verdict

    Western democracies can restore trust through competent institutions or authentic participation, but not both simultaneously.

    DemocracyGovernance