What I mean as debating is an argument where you are trying to convince the other side, but also trying to defend your own side. Perhaps even re-evaluate your own point. I don't mean for there to be any winners or losers.
By making the goal "convince the other side" that means there is a winner and loser. Namely, the winner is the convincer, and the loser is the convinced. I have no problem switching my "side" when approaching topics, but others are less likely to do so. That's why I think reframing it to be a "discussion" would be better. It doesn't create an "us vs them" mentality, and instead it creates an "us vs the topic" mentality. This allows the community to work as a group to tackle a topic, rather than work against each other. I suppose the most important thing would be to keep it civil. It can be very easy to split a community.
I like this idea, though I agree that maybe #discuss or #discussion would foster more of a cooperative and informative experience. I even think it would be neat to have some threads where people are asked to deliberately approach the issue from the other side's perspective (in good faith). Like #devilsadvocate.