The Samuelson Sweeps
2018 — Lincoln, NE/US
Public Forum Paradigm List
All Paradigms: Show HideIf you don't have time to read all of this, just skim the bold points, and you'll be golden!
Hello! I'm Pranita, and I'm a PF judge. I was not a debater before but did judge regularly for a couple years, so I do have experience with PF. However, pretend like I am more or less a lay judge and don't get too technical with things like links/impacts/warrants, etc. I haven't judged for a couple of years, so also be patient with me being unsure on any new rules and timing changes. Speaking of timing, please keep time on your own as well, especially for prep, so we have some insurance in case I happen to track something wrong.
The things I look for are clearly organized rebuttals, and heavy weighing on the voters. For the rebuttals, make sure I know exactly what on the opponents' case you're responding to. If things get too muddled, I won't be able to catch it and pull through to the summary. Keep in mind: if you don't respond to something on the opponent's case in rebuttal, and start a counterargument in 2nd summary, I will not flow it through. If you drop a point in rebuttal and bring it up in 1st summary, it'll be up to my discretion whether or not I carry it forward, and will be generally grumpy about it if I do. Just get all your responses in the rebuttal, even if you just say one line about it. Anything you don't respond to, I will consider dropped. For the voters in final focus, weigh heavily and clearly! Remind me of the main happenings through the round that lead you to your claim that the voter should be flowed your way. I decide who wins solely on who takes more voters, unless there is a tie.
Crossfire: I like a civilized and polite crossfire section. Remember to look at the judge while speaking, not each other. Make sure to mention anything from cross that you want counted toward your argument again in your speech. I will not take into account points from crossfire that you don't bring up again. I am fine with you showing each other evidence after crossfire so that you can maximize your crossfire time.
Speaking etiquette: Please be humble and courteous. I have little tolerance for condescension/cockiness, and will start docking speaker points if it happens more than once. The point of debate is to masterfully craft a winning argument, not to play mind games on your opponents with an emotionally-driven confidence smackdown. Have genuine respect for your opponents, and you shouldn't have any trouble with this. :) Remember, the moment the round is over, your opponents actually turn into your allies. We have something to learn from everyone, and the moment we forget this, we actually end up losing because we've stopped growing.
I am extremely excited to be judging again and look forward to seeing everyone; good luck and have fun!
Background
- Did college NFA LD for 4 years
Miscellaneous
- I like talking to debaters. Feel free to come chat.
- If I make a face at an argument, I'm confused. It's never personal.
Bias
- Note: I'll vote on any of the arguments below if you win the flow but you may have to work harder depending on your choices. Here are some of my biases.
- I like real-world policy action. My favorite debates affirm or negate a material action/policy to reduce suffering.
- I'll vote on the K but I like alternatives that do something. Any alt that meditates on the nature of human suffering kinda sucks. I'm easily persuaded to disregard it.
- I don't hate philosophy debates but if it's not relevant to the rez, join a book club.
- Don't like pessimism arguments.
- Won't vote on death good/racism good/etc
Paradigm
- Please FRAME THE ROUND! I really don't want to decide which impact I like more.
- Tech > Truth but my BS detector is pretty good too.
- If you want me to look at your opponent's evidence, call it out in your speech
- No sticky defense. If it's dropped and you wanna go for it, extend the warrants. I'm not going to do it for you
- I can do basic cross-application of arguments (not the same thing as warrant extension). That also means contradictions deck overall offense.
- I like Double binds or "Even if" argumentation
- Warrant debates are the best debates. Evidence is good and necessary but you shouldn't hide behind it.
- Speed is fine but proportional clarity is required. I'll yell clear a few times. If you go fast, you better use up all the time.
- If you want to be super aggressive and condescending, you better not suck fam. Don't yell. Ad hominem = 25 speaks
- Don't make faces or talk during the opponent's speech
- A trigger warning for sensitive arguments is good but opponents can't prevent you from reading an argument
- If you bring outside drama into the round I will listen very very closely so I can gossip in the judge's lounge but I won't vote on an accusation I can't verify. If it's an ethics issue contact the tournament.
NFA LD
- K: Not super familiar with most of the literature but walk me through the argument and explain why alt solves the aff. Some kind of material action in the alt is probably recommended. I will vote on a vague alt-bad provided the warrants are good(time skew/allows aff pivot/etc).
- DA: Not much to say here. Win the link. Win the impact. Weigh/Frame. 2 good DAs > 4 bad DAs.
- AFF: Pretty much an auto-lose on T if you aren't doing a material action through the actor of the rez. Neg just needs to say you are stealing neg ground and robbing everyone of topic education.
- T: No proven abuse needed
PF
- No new evidence in summary. New analysis based on evidence that has been read is acceptable
- 2nd Rebuttal is expected to attack and defend. I believe that having all new arguments in rebuttal makes the round clearer, and more educational saving grand cx for final clarifications
- If you wanna read theory in PF, I'll listen but it better be clear and good.
- Don't talk to your partner during their speech
IMPORTANT I talk loud. Im not yelling at you. I have diagnosed hearing loss and I don't hear how loud I am. If it is too loud or you think I am mad at you please ask. I will not be offended. I use a transcribe app to help me hear the speeches. I am not recording you, I am using it to help myself here you better
If you are not from Nebraska feel free to read through or scroll to the bottom for other information.
I am a Hastings High graduate and for those that know Hastings know that we are very traditional in style. For those that do not know, here is what that means for me.
1 - I don't like speed. The speed that was going on when I was debating is nothing like the speed now a days. I do not follow speed very well. If I look at you with a confused or with a blank look and I am not flowing then you need to slow down. I can't vote for a side that was given so fast I can't even hear it. This is my second job and a hobby of mine, which means I am not going to listen to speed on my downtime to try to keep up with you. Besides, nothing about speed is going to prepare you for your future. In the adult world the content matters not how many words per minute you can speak. Debate is a educational experience. No one gets education with speed.
2 - Do not be so focused on your side and your case that you do not clash with your opponent. Clashes are a good thing.
3 - If you are doing LD then do LD. Do not give me policy in LD! Same with PF. If you like policy that much then go do policy. There are different types of debate for a reason so there is no need to combine them. I will never vote for a crazy everything leads to nuclear war and the end of the world with the exception of the opponent dropping the contention. Again debate is to be educational and if you take away from that education by running a bizarre case you will not be voted for.
4 - I am not ok with flex prep time. If you want to ask questions then ask during CX, not prep. The exception to this is if you are asking to see evidence.
5 - Unless there is a medical condition preventing you from standing then you need to be standing during speeches and CX. The exception to this is grand cross in PF.
6 - Debate prepares you for your future. For many of your futures, you will need to be able to act and look professional. Please start doing so now. This includes professional vocabulary.
7 - If you are using a computer/desk on top of desk/stand/etc.then make sure you are not hiding behind it. I want to see you not just look at the back of the computer/stand/desk/etc,.
8 - Give me clear concise voters. State voter one, voter two, and so on.
9 - I want to know impacts and big pictures. I like it when you show why this matters, what will happen in the scenarios you are presenting, and why I should care.
10 - I will buy almost any argument as long as it is logical, and not an argument mentioned in #3. Do not be portraying tax cuts lead the end of the world. No amount of links you can have will ever convince me of this. Keep common sense in mind.
11 - I do not discount any theory just because in the real world it is not 100% achievable. If you can explain your theory well enough and it is logical and considers real-world possibilities then I will not be opposed to it.
12 - I am not focused on 100% solvency. So if that is your only voter you might not win.
13 - I do prefer cases with both a criterion and a value instead of single standard. I have not seen a single standard run well so far. I do not automatically discredit single standard; but if you would look at the Lincoln Douglas textbook on the NSDA website, it talks about cases being formed with a value and a criterion. Please keep that in mind.
14 - Do not argue after the round with me. I will drop your speaker points as it is very rude and offensive to the me as your judge, your opponent, and to any observers. You can ask me questions about the round and why I decided the way I did, but arguing with me over it will not change my decision ever. I will also be reporting any rudeness and arguing with me to your coach. Be mindful of this.
15 - Congress - I like clear contentions and knowing when you are going from one contention to another. I also like clash and want to hear you directly refute other people.
PF: I did public forum for 3 years in high school and was the 2nd speaker. I expect all teams speaking 2nd to defend in the rebuttal or will consider the points dropped. I am generally okay with speed, as long as you don't mumble. Negative teams cannot run counter plans or they will be dropped. More of a line by line then a summative flow. An argument should be brought up in every speech if it is to be weighed at the end of the round. A new argument must be brought up early in first summary or any speeches before that. Anytime after that, the value and credibility to me weakens.
LD: I am new to LD, but not new to debate. I am okay with speed as long as you enunciate, I will either say "Clear" or "Louder" if you do not speak well enough for me to hear. I can Judge well explained arguments, but will need you to do the work for me on framework and which to prefer. Don't just say prefer your criteria, give me a justification for why your framework/value should be weighed over the other teams. For me, you do not win the round if you win the framework, but i use the framework that i think wins, to evaluate the remaining arguments in the round. Since my history is with PF, where counter-plans are not used, I recommend staying to the value debate, but you are not going to automatically lose if you run a CP.
Fair warning: I'll pretty much toss everything here out the window the instant you're an unpleasant or disrespectful jerk in-round, including being a smarmy wanna-be comedian looking for dumb jabs at your opponent.
Stopped coaching and judging "full time" in 2018 to move back into academia. It was a healthy move, but my flow speed has tanked since then. Deal with that.
TOC top speaker in 2006. Former PF coach and active judge. Philosophy, Art and Theatre degrees.
Easy Mode: I disclose results of every round unless attacked by tab not to, and even then just ask me in the hallway before tab yells at me twice. However, you'll know before the end of the round pretty easily what's up just by paying attention. I'll laugh at patent absurdity and scowl at obtuse knuckleheads. My facial expressions detail *exactly* how I feel about what you're doing in every moment. This is bad community theatre facial expressions kind of stuff, people. Use it and react to alter what you do and run in the round.
PF tl;dr-->Expect second team to respond to attacks on case in rebuttal. Summary should crystallize the round, not be a rebuttal expansion. Will not vote on morally reprehensible water tester arguments like 'genocide good' or 'climate science is a liberal lie'. Will vote down on reprehensible decorum including blatant sexism and harassment. Default neg on presumption of affirmative burden of truth/net outcome or in case of insoluable flow.
LD tl;dr-->Somebody entered me in the pool by accident or desperation. I still have a philosophy degree if you're willing to slow the heck down...but I've honestly enjoyed nearly every round I've been in.
CX tl;dr-->Did it and moved on. Not here by choice. Do professional theatre and art criticism, and did Theatre of the Oppressed with Boal at UNO, and continue to be a Joker as part of pedagogical practice. Not impressed by shenanigans. Slow it down but don't insult my intelligence on argument structure.
Longform (PF primary)
It will forever be my goal to treat debate as a fundamentally educational activity. If I have one goal every tournament, it's to make at least one team know that they got the best possible feedback and push forward they've ever gotten from a judge and member of the debate community. We are here to make sure debaters come out the other side of a round as better students and people.
I am happy to see PF move in new and intelligent directions. Willing to listen to direct-clash TV-ready Ted Turner Debate as well as traditional policy maker standpoints, kritiks, theory, and performance elements if presented clearly within the confines of PF time structure, but recognize that you still have to make the round at least productive and educational for all involved rather than attempting to exclude or undercut other teams with a blatant attempt at LD or Policy approaches, and only 4 or 2 minutes to present them. This new-ish nat-style, hyperdismissive wanna-be technical jargon-fest is both annoying and utterly embarrassing in how much it gets wrong in trying to pull from LD and CX. Stop it. Use your time to build a core narrative with solid comparative analysis, not card dumps and baby's-first-topicality.
I hold to a line-by-line flow and expect second team to respond to attacks on their case in addition to engaging the other team's case. Turns and dropped arguments are voters if presented by a team, but in cases of competing voters: theory-framework and direct impact calculations should be done by the debaters. If I end up with null arguments that lack interaction analysis I will look elsewhere before coming back to pick apart the argument interaction myself.
Framework for round structure and impact weight should carry with it minimum standards of preference vs competing frameworks, be it educational, grounds based, or decision process justified. Competing frameworks should not drown out the remainder of the round, especially if you're going to go evidence heavy or engage in competing ideologies. You can still win the round if you accept your opponent's framework if you meet it and can offer comparative analysis that places you in a preferable voting position...and most of the time counter framing is just bickering in PF. Pick one and win everywhere else. If it's truly abusive, it should be an easy call to standards to say so and move on or prefer yours.
Summary should be THE place to present the clarity of your round vision, and make solid decisions on what the round has become, what can be disregarded, and where it should end up. No new arguments [and ideally no new evidence] from here on out. Final focus is an opportunity to pull from the summary vision and perform, crystallize, and leave no question on your side winning.
Aff must show, at minimum, the truth of the resolution. In cases of "on balance" resolutions, you must engage in comparative analysis to develop the status of this truth. Magnitude, time frame, probability, and threshold offer basic elements to compare two impacts.
I will pref neg if aff fails to meet minimum burden of resolution, or if round is left in an inconclusive position/null impact state. Don't expect great speaker points for anyone if that second situation comes up.
So long as the tournament/circuit rules doesn't explicitly forbid it: competitive alternative advocacy is fine by me. [Facing NSDA rules on plans and counterplans though, just follow them explicitly] Permutations by aff against alternative actions by neg are just tests of competition unless you push for wider terms of impact from the perm. However, if aff can show that neg alternatives are non-competitive vs plan/resolutional action, no amount of competing 'solvency' can push neg for a win without them also presenting a net harm to aff that has been dealt with via comparative analysis. Hey aff! Topical counter or alt with no net benefit or harms from neg? Just coopt it, and we can be cool.
I will not vote on any case arguments addressing sexual violence or rape that were not preceded by a pre-round trigger warning. If, upon hearing this trigger warning, the opponent requests the argument not be made and that request is denied, I'll listen/be receptive to theory arguments about why I ought to vote a particular way based on the introduction of that issue. That doesn't mean I'll automatically pull render a final ballot decision on it one way or the other, but I will be exceptionally open to doing so if the argument claiming I should evaluate the mere fact that the sexual violence argument is made is won in the debate.
Generally start at 28 on speaker points and move up or down. 30 is perfection in speaking, argument structure, logic and overall sense of "this is what is good about a PF debater". 26 and below are reserved for refusal to engage in clash or logical analysis while simultaneously being a totally unpleasant individual in terms of respect towards your opponent or myself. Speaker points are an opportunity to send a message of the kinds of interactions that will and will not be acceptable in a safe and educational environment.
Enjoy yourselves and enjoy the event as a whole. Keep it respectful, smart, and funny within the round and you'll make it a better day for everyone involved.
I debated in high school and college (graduated 1968) and have been coaching since. I have lived through the transition from Debate to Policy Debate and the birth and development of both Lincoln-Douglas and Public Forum
Lincoln-Douglas Debate: Lincoln-Douglas (value debate) was created because many people did not like the direction that Policy Debate had gone. As such, LD debate centers around a conflict between two values. Debaters argue that one of the values in the round is of higher importance than the other. This value priority determines the affirmation or negation of the resolution. Thus, the debater argues Justice(ex) is the higher value, and since Justice is the higher value the resolution is affirmed. A plan can be used to demonstrate how the resolution could be applied in a practical sense. Since LD is designed not to have a plan, if the opponent raises that argument, I will vote on that. Otherwise, the plan can be debated in terms of workability, practicality, etc. Regardless of the strategies used – in order to win the round, the debater must win the value conflict.
Public Forum was introduced to correct the flaws that had emerged in LD (excessive speed, strategies and tactics rather than sound argument, etc) and is designed to be judged by a non-debate person. Thus – a good Public Forum Round is clear and persuasive. Arguments and evidence relates directly back to the topic. There are no plans in PF – I will vote on that. A test that I use in judging PF is whether or not a “regular person” would understand the arguments and be able to decide the outcome of the round.
Since debate – in all of its forms – is an educational, communication event the following hold true:
Delivery is the means by which the debater presents the arguments and evidence for decision.
The presentation should be as clear and understandable as possible – rate and articulation are important elements because the judge must hear and understand the case in order to vote on it.
IT IS THE DEBATER’S OBLIGATION TO ADAPT TO THE JUDGE – NOT VICE VERSA.
Debaters should present their material and conduct themselves in a professional manner. They should avoid attitudes (reflected in both tone and facial expression) that are unprofessional. Word choice should be appropriate to an educational event (cussing, swearing, vocabulary choice etc) have NO PLACE in an educational activity.
I'm a fourth year judge. Speed is acceptable. Make sure that you flow through, or I won't consider it. If you make an assertion, mostly likely I'm going to need some evidence that that is true unless you can find a logic that would make your analysis true.
I'm going to take the evidence that the Congress or the executive wants to do something on very flimsy basis unless you can show support that it is mostly likely going to pass through both branches.
When judging a debate I am listening for a few things. A debater must explain their main points with enough factual evidence/statistics for me to consider it relevant. They must then follow that with an explanation of the impact of their contentions/warrants. Without an impact, it is extremely difficult to weigh points in the final tally. Lastly, each side must carry their points over. If you mention something during your opening case but never bring it up again, I won't consider it important enough in the round to weigh it in my decision.
While I try not to let it influence the outcome of the round too much, a debater's presentation is important to me. I won't specifically take points from your case over bad speaking skills unless you do something outrageous. With that being said, if your manner of presenting is distracting, chances are that I won't be focusing on your argumentation as much as I otherwise would be.
Overall, have fun while debating. This is what you've been working for while building your cases and sharpening your skills. I'm always glad to be back in the room and involved with debate.
Respect and decorum. Don't talk over your opponent, don't talk/pack up while they're speaking. Cross isn't for arguing.
I was a first speaker in Public Forum from 2014-2017 and competed Nebraska Circuit/Nat Circuit.
I expect the second team to defend in their Rebuttal.
Don't speed read.
Don't run counter plans for me.
Don't personally attack your opponents in hopes of gaining clout.
Please weigh the arguments in the round, especially in Summary/FF.
I highly recommend providing voters for me because my decision is 100% based off of whatever you give to me in the round.
Try to have fun.
I was debating when public forum first started, and I have been involved with it ever since. As such, I've tried to keep in mind the original spirit of PF while adjusting for what I feel are inevitable aspects of the current nature of the event.
-I think a good PF round should be able to be understood by any average person who reads a lot of news. I expect that an intelligent person, if paying close attention to the round, should be able to follow along while receiving a good understanding of subject material.
-I dislike lying. If it comes out that you are making up something that is clearly not inferable from your evidence, and you are called out on it, I will trust your interpretation of facts slightly less for the rest of the round.
-I am a PF coach, so I usually am versed enough in the topic to give a decent topic analysis. (If it's a foreign policy topic I'm probably not going to fall for BS, but if it's an economics topic you might be able to trick me.) It is okay to speak at a level of assumed basic facts about the resolution, but I will not give unexplained link chains and warrants very much weight.
-Speed is not preferred, but I can usually follow along, and it won't necessarily cost you. If you want to guarantee I catch everything on my flow, don't go too fast.
-Remind me of claim/warrant/impact structure in each speech. I expect robust explanations of these in constructive, and an incorporation of a brief summation of each argument from which you are trying to achieve impacts throughout the round. Simply repeating the names of cards without context might not register very heavily with me.
-I don't flow crossfire really, but I do pay attention to establishment of weighing mechanisms, definitions, moral playing fields, framework agreements, etc., and accept an agreement in crossfire as standing unless nullified in a following speech.
-Don't belittle your opponents personally, for any reason. I know debates get heated and that's ok, just make it about the arguments and not your opponent's intelligence.
-I am used to teams rebuilding in 2nd rebuttal, but it's not necessary if you aren't used to it.
-I get so bored during evidence exchanges. Please keep them necessary and brief. I will accept logical rebukes of your opponent's sources a lot of the time without you having to look at evidence.
-Frameworks need to be responded to, but if you just state it at the beginning of the round and then never mention it again until final focus, I'm probably not going to factor it very heavily into my decision.
-My biggest areas of knowledge from training or formal education are: Ecology, Foreign Policy, International Relations, World Religions, and Political Philosophy. One of my many jobs is being a market gardener of vegetables and flowers. I'm also an avid forager. I might be especially swayed by widespread geological impacts. I love a good pollinator collapse impact link chain; just terrifying.
-If, hypothetically, a round was tied in every way, I would be fine choosing a winner based on who delivered their arguments with more believability and inspiration. You almost certainly aren't going to lose for delivery, but I really appreciate it when somebody is debating like they actually care about what they are talking about.
-- PF --
I would consider myself to be a "traditional" PF judge, if that helps. I flow everything, but you need to impact and explain. I expect the second speaker to respond to the rebuttal of the first speaker. I am good with speed and most other PF styles and tactics. Spreading is highly discouraged. I don't believe it's effective, good, or educational, and I may drop you on face. If you just read cards at me and don't impact them, don't expect me to weigh them. As well, if you only extend a card by saying "Johnson 18, war is bad, pull through" that puts it on the flow but doesn't give it a lot of weight.
I'm open and willing to hear most any argument as long as you can explain it well and back it up. I tend to give long winded RFDs, so if I get talking for a long time, don't hesitate to say something. Sometimes I forget how long I've been going on.
-- LD --
I don't judge LD often. I would probably be considered the more traditional in terms of LD, and my judging style will be similar to my PF judging. I will flow everything. The value seems(?) to be the most important things, so make sure you tie your arguments back to it. Ask me as many questions as you want/need to, I'm still learning LD. I will also not be insulted if you correct me on something or challenge me on something.
Brown '21 | Lincoln East '17 | Email remaining questions to: a.a.zhu24@gmail.com
I will disclose and give oral feedback at the end of the round, just give me time to complete my ballot.
General notes:
- Be nice. I have no patience for people who are jerks. I will drop you, report you for being abusive, tell you in my oral critique, tattle to your coach, and take whatever other means I have available to me to ensure you're never rude in round again. Oh, and your speaks will be as low as they can possibly be.
- Debate how you normally debate. I'm open to everything, as there's a reason you got to where you are. I will never drop a debater or a team because I don't like their style of argument. I believe debate is an educational activity, not only for the students, but for judges as well. That means that we also need to continue to learn and adapt.
PF:
- I do not flow author names, rather, I flow card content. If you want to extend something, tell me what the card says too, don't just "Extend McDonald '18"
- Framework/Observations/Definitions: Don't run them unless it's absolutely necessary. Don't make the debate about the framework/definitions/whatever fluff you have at the beginning, this isn't what PF should be about. I will not vote on a framework just because it is there and is not utilized with your case. If the framework does come into play, however, I will reluctantly consider it. Finally, if both teams propose a framework, give me a good reason to prefer yours over your opponents'.
- Speed doesn't really matter, so long as your opponents and I can both understand you. To this point, if I can't understand what you're saying because of speed, I'll yell "Clear" at you. If I don't understand what you're saying because I don't think it makes sense, I'll look very puzzled at you and not be flowing for an extended period of time.
- I understand that debate is a game, but if you speak second and take prep after your opponents read their case, I reserve the right to deduct your speaks, or in out-rounds, pay less attention to your constructive.
- First rebuttal: don't go back to your own case and re-read what's in it. Feel free to weigh their case against yours, or make new analyses and even sub arguments, but do not simply reread what's already in the case that I heard the first time again. If you're done, end early. Rehashing what I already heard without giving your opponent a chance to respond to it isn't fair or strategic, and this will be reflected in your speaker points.
- I think it's extremely difficult for the second speaking team to win if they don't go back to their own case, but I have seen extremely talented teams pull it off. If the second speaker doesn't do some defense in rebuttal, that leaves the second summary speaker with 10 minutes of speeches to cover in just 2 minutes. If you want to go for this strategy, be my guest, just know that the path to winning on my ballot is paper thin in this scenario, and your summary speaker had better give the best speech of their lives.
- Please do some analysis and impact your cards, don't just throw cards/numbers/stats around. Impact calculus is important. I don't care if you tell me that this program will cost the U.S. $50,000 if you don't tell me what that means in the wider context of things. Will healthcare funding also go down? Will taxpayers have to pay extra? Will we have to cut other government programs? Tell me what is going to happen as a result of the numbers you tell me.
- I prefer big picture summaries. Start trying to narrow down the round into a few main arguments. If you must, fine, I'll try to evaluate "down their flow then down ours", but if you can cut a few arguments out that you deem unimportant, you'll only look better in my eyes.
Last updated: 2/2019