What is the point of a debate? What is so special about it? Is it important?
Now that I am really thinking about it, aren’t most of our conversations a debate in themselves? We all put forward our point and if needed defend it. I believe debating is a very good practice, by debating I do not mean standing in front of a formidably sized audience and delivering. It is always better to question a thing or two but again asking too many questions might have the effect of making you a social outcast (Oh, that guy the one who cannot speak a sentence with out using question mark? Oh my, look even his nose looks like a question mark!)
Being in part of a debate really help you, you are more aware of the environment and the world you stay in. You make your own beliefs instead of them having been thrust upon you (this IS good) . But many a times we have seen debates getting ugly with finger pointing, slandering, turning into an out and out brawl and in some unfortunately-not-so-rare-cases… a full fledged war…
The sad thing about a debate is, human beings are probably not ready for it… come to think of it… most of us have such low acceptance of change, especially when the change is changing something you made up, something you believe in… I do not have the exact statistics but, I do believe that it is very rare to have a debate and the other party has changed its thinking, mostly I have seen people endorsing in a good debate and then going for a beer (if out of office) or a Coffee (while in office) and still sticking to the same side they were originally on.
Debates on religion are really dangerous, most of it is base less, there is no rule to compare which is right and which is wrong. There are no facts only beliefs, those beliefs too have been passed down from someone else… who heard it from someone else… and no one knows where it began… but we all have a good idea where it is gonna end… Answer is NEVER or in ANNIHILATION of at least one of the debating group.
Not all who debate with beliefs as their only ally are religious fanatics, people do start that way, I know of a sweet person who deserves a special mention here… she would jump headlong in to an argument armed only with belief and lot of intensity, but like all sweet people do… she sees the point of the discussion and when she realizes she is wrong she admits it… and when she knows it has been proved that she is right, she gives that wonderful smile which makes you admit that you are wrong… 
She taught me that blind beliefs are good as long as one is ready to accept the good arguments of the other side with out blindly eliminating them…
I for one believe that beliefs should be garnered by one self, they should not be accepted blindly. When faced with a situation, one should learn from a neutral point of view, then make up the mind.
It could make the world a better place you know…
