Gordon’s penchant for ginning up controversy: A fetish for argumentation?

In September 2025, I accepted an invitation to speak at Professor Gordon Parker's Festschrift. This paper reflects on some of the topics I expounded upon in my presentation. When executed properly, debating involves skilful and erudite critique, for which Gordon's marvellous mind is innately suited. Therefore, in this paper, I argue that this seemingly innate ability has contributed to his success in argumentation as well as his penchant for entertaining academic discourse. To illustrate this, I retrace an ongoing debate that he and I have had over the past two decades that concerns the validity of subtyping bipolar disorder. Gordon is the quintessential academic gladiator as he never cowers and seldom crows. Consequently, his contributions to the field of mood disorders have been phenomenal and time and again he has proven that he is a true champion. Hence, it is a pleasure to celebrate him and his achievements.