In the majlis, or open-house audience, informality and spontaneity mix with the complicated thorny topics of the day.

They recently debated the rather thorny topic of government intervention in social media through a series of (uncensored) blog posts and began to engage in proper debate.

For example, Yoko tackles the thorny topics of racism.

With the first question, however, he had to shift from a focus on areas of progress to the thornier topic of the war in Bosnia.

National symbol or thorny topic?

I asked for other readers' views on this thorny topic, of which the following are just a selection (with my comments, where appropriate).

Many said they were bewildered about her willingness to engage in a public disagreement with the President and to enter the thorny topic of Puerto Rican politics.

Dr. King, and the drive for a national holiday in his honor, has long been a thorny topic for Mr. Reagan.

These thrillers usually tackled thorny topics like animal rights and surrogate motherhood.