Debates are contentious things by their very nature. They might be polite debates with rules and procedures, but they're adversarial and that makes them contentious.

There's nothing wrong with that, mind you. The fact that there's disagreement is just how the world works and debates allow people to try and change hearts and minds or, at least, show that there's a reason people hold the positions they do.

But on the gun issue, all too often, there's less debate and more lecturing.

Few on the anti-gun side really seem able to articulate what folks on this side really think on the issue. As a result, they just tell us we're monsters, that we're fine seeing dead children, and a host of other pretty awful things.

And they don't care to learn any different.

So that's what was running through my mind when I saw about this attempt at a calm, reasonable "debate" on the issue of guns in one Minnesota community.

The Ely chapter of Braver Angels will hold a public gathering on Thursday, Aug. 15 to discuss gun control. The meeting will be held at 6 p.m. at the Ely Senior Center and is open to the public.

Have you heard of a Braver Angels debate? It’s different from typical political debates or high school contests.

People gather for a respectful and insightful conversation in a Braver Angels debate. Participants listen to each other, share their ideas, and might even change their perspectives.

Here’s how it works: Instead of trying to win votes or argue a position they don’t believe in, everyone discusses a specific topic. They express their thoughts and respectfully ask questions.

The goal is to understand different viewpoints better and strengthen community connections.

The discussion follows a unique format. Participants take turns speaking and asking questions through a chair, which keeps the discussion orderly and focused.

After each person speaks, others can ask a couple of questions before the speaker returns to their seat. This process ensures an organized conversation where everyone has a chance to contribute and respond.

It's all very nice and polite, it sounds like, and that's probably for the best. It means that at least some people will hear the other side of the conversation whereas they normally would never know there actually was another side.

It would be really easy to applaud this on those grounds alone.

This is all well and good and it's definitely not going to hurt anything. A lot of people out there, particularly in Minnesota don't realize there are reasons people don't support gun control, in part because the media pretty much suppresses many of those arguments as best they can.

But will it change anyone's mind on anything? Probably not.

We on the gun rights side of things know all the anti-gun arguments. We're inundated with them day in, day out. They're there on our televisions and computer screens at every turn. We can't escape those arguments, sometimes despite our best efforts.

Meanwhile, on the other side, so many gun control supporters see gun control as a positional good, meaning they believe that good people support gun control and anyone who doesn't is a bad person. Those folks aren't really open to changing that perception.

So this is going to happen, people will attend and applaud themselves for being very reasonable and polite, but ultimately, few if any minds will be changed one way or the other.