West Kansas District Tournament
2020 — KS/US
Debate (Big Questions) Paradigm List
All Paradigms: Show HideI'm definitely a policy maker at heart, but if you don't give me great impact calc. I will resort to stock issues.
I am not the biggest fan of counter plans but I recognize that some resolutions lend themselves to them and they are justified and in those cases. I actually enjoy judging them in these situations. Don't run one if you don't know how to do it well though...that will just frustrate me.
I like specific DA's but again, I'll vote on a generic one if they aren't argued well.
I think T is a priori and will vote on it first--even if it's crappy. Answer it.
K's aren't my favorite either--mostly because they aren't run well. However, if you know how to run it and the opposing team can keep up, making it a genuinely good debate, go for it. I'm all about listening to good arguments. Just don't run them if it's a tactic to trip up the other team. That won't fly and it will only be a waste of your time and mine.
Speed doesn't bother me. I can keep up. But spreading as a tactic to avoid clash, and genuine persuasive debate, won't get you far with me.
So, basically, give me clash. Give me a solidly good debate where you are all trying to communicate well. That's what I want to see. I was a 3 year high school debater, and a 1 year college debater. I've been a coach for 12 years. (I took a break to raise my daughter). I know what I'm doing. If I give you a verbal critique at the end of the round, listen. I don't give them often and when I do it's because something is in earnest need of being addressed.
I don't put up with rudeness. Period. I will give you the loss on a 7 if you are awful to an opponent or your partner.
That's it. Good luck!
Savannah Bonilla
pronouns: she/her
Be kind to your opponents!! Yall are here to debate not perpetuate a culture of hostility :)
Email Chain - savannahgrace2302@gmail.com
Experience: 4 years of high school policy with Salina South, currently doing LD and NPDA at Kansas Wesleyan University (2022 PKD Parli Champ ;)) and assistant coaching for Salina South.
I am a mom, and a student on top of being a part of this activity, so this early in the year prob don't assume I am as deep in the literature of this topic as some.
There are some things you should slow down for me. I am gonna flow the speech and not the doc, if you have a really dense block that you fly through as fast as you can, I'm gonna miss some of it.
Your 2AR / 2NR should write the ballot for me. I appreciate impact calculus, I appreciate clear analysis in analyzing arguments. The debate shouldn't be a block reading contest, I want to see more analysis and refutation. For the love of god engage with the material that you are reading.
Framework or K Aff: If I'm your judge in a clash debate, both teams are going to be unhappy. I'll try my best to evaluate both args as fairly as possible. Rounds that I have seen on the question put me at 50/50.
I think debate is a game, but, I am not a fan of judge adaptation, I think you should run what you want, and I will do my best to follow. Big theory debates are going to be frustrating for me to work out, and I will be less confident in my decision. Don't assume I am going to be familiar with every concept that you bring up, if I look like Im not getting it, im prob not.
I tend to be tech>truth, though I hold a lot of value in debating truth and have a low threshold for takeouts of low truth arguments. I don't feel as though I am as 'tech' as some of my peers, it doesn't mean I can't follow, but I might not be as inclined to make my decision here.
I will probably make a decision rather quickly. It doesn't mean that I am not paying attention or evaluating your arguments, I usually just don't need a long time to sort things out. I'm probably going to give you a pretty short and sweet RFD.
I don't think I'm hard to read, if I think your argument is bad, you'll probably see that on my face.
Be nice to one another in the round.
Will I listen to a K? Sure. I have voted here before but you are going to need to do some work.
"I am a K team - all I want to do is read the K, all of the K's, both sides, K-it-up, should I pref you?" Let's not get ahead of ourselves. I will happily listen to your K but it's safe to assume I am not read up on your specific k lit. If it looks like I am not jiving with your K, paint me a picture.
Disads and Counterplans? yes, please
Do you need to shake my hand? No thank you, knucks will suffice :)
Can we go fast? Sure.
Email Chain: brandons3333@outlook.com
Please add me to any email chain made in round because that will ultimately help me dissect your argumentation and relay that importance to round.
I am the South High School assistant debate coach and I did policy debate for 4 years at Salina High School South. I did KDC and DCI circuits in high school so I'm well versed in most styles of debate. In regards to round etiquette , first rule is to make a safe environment for every debater in the room. No one wants to walk into a round that is filled with hostility. Use the correct pronouns for people...point blank, please be respectful to others. When it comes to argumentation I am open to listen to anything. I flow the round and will be in tune with everyone debating so please make sure to extend and have a clear direction of where you want to take your argumentation in the round. When it comes to my judging style I tend to vote on stock issues, but again I am completely open to anyway the round goes so be critical but also make sense. When it comes to speed I can handle spreading as long as you are clear with your taglines and please make sure to signpost. On a line by line basis slow down to articulate your argumentation. I'm not a fan of time sucks, if you're reading an argument tell my why it's important in the round or I won't vote on it. I love theory and K's as long as they clearly relate to the debate. I read Fem and Queer theory in high school but am willing to listen to anything. If there are any other questions please feel free to ask before round.
I debated for four years in high school and did forensics in College.
I am currently the assistant coach at Moundridge High School in Moundridge Kansas.
Policy Debate:
I tend to vote policymaker, if there are no policy options in the round I will vote stock issues.
Individual Issues:
Counter Plans: I will vote for a counter plan both nontopical and topical.
Disadvantages: I will vote for a generic DA. Saying the DA is generic is not an answer that will win.
Topicality: Topically must be argued more than just in a 1NC Shell. If you drop standards and voter I no longer care about your Topicality.
Theory: I will vote on theory arguments if you have evidence along with standards and voters.
Kritik: I will vote on a K. I prefer ones that are in a policy framework but will consider any alt as long as the team defends the position.
I will not vote on just defensive arguments as a policymaker, if there is no reason not to try the plan then I will vote for the plan.
Lincoln Douglas:
I will consider the value and criterion debate first when weighing the round.
Your criterion should logically support your value.
Speed- LD is intended to go deeper rather than broader and more philosophical, your debating about interpretations, not plans. I don't think speed supports this kind of debate. Don't lose depth for the sake of speed.
Evidence- I think that evidence is important, however, a lack of evidence does not mean a loss. Empirical examples can be just as weighty as traditional evidence.
Both debaters are responsible for clashes, don't ignore your opposition's value or criterion. I don't want to hear a debate in a vacuum.
I debated in high school and college. I majored in history and philosophy as an undergrad and have a Masters in communication. I taught high school history, government and journalism for 33 years.
My approach to judging is "The Well Read Man on the Street." That is to say, I am not Tabula Rasa, but neither am I an expert. I expect arguments that are logical, supported by evidence, and real world. I believe that a few good, well developed arguments are far better than many bad, poorly developed arguments. Rhetorical questions do not qualify as an argument in debate.
Evidence must be sourced and plausible. I do not accept at face value sources and evidence that are significantly outside the mainstream. In the era of the internet and ideological extremism, I refuse to give credence to something just because it is printed. The following sources are most credible: peer reviewed journals, government publications, and mainstream media. The following experts are most credible: Academics and professionals in the field, government representatives, non-partisan think tanks.
In regards to topicality, I apply a criteria of a reasonable plain text reading of the resolution.
Cross Ex. is for seeking clarification, not for making an argument or scoring points. While I generally don't pay attention to +X, the following will be reflected negatively in speaker points: refusing to honestly answer honest questions, demanding yes/no answers to questions that are not yes/no questions, being snarky or rude, and filibustering.
I am a firm believer in the negative presumption: i.e., the affirmative must provide significant justification for abandoning the status quo. If the negative runs a counter plan, even a conditional counter plan, it gives up presumption because it is acknowledging there is the possibility of serious flaw in the SQ. However, I will grant the negative the right to offer a minor repair without giving up presumption.
Every judge has his/her own calculus for weighing the advantages and disadvantages of case. Mine tends to value people over things and the common good over the individual.
Stylistically, I view debate as a persuasive communication event. If I can't understand an argument I can't consider it in my decision. It is the speakers responsibility to communicate to me, not my responsibility to figure out what he/she is trying to say. I expect arguments to be labeled and organized.
Finally, there is only one rule in debate: you have to persuade the judge.
I have debated and coached at both the high school and college level.
I would probably call myself a policy maker in that, if left to my own devices, I ask if I would vote for such a proposal as the aff if I were in a position to set policy for some organization.
I don't mind debate about debate theory. Don't plan to win the round by confusion. If you are running some non-traditional stuff, you'll need to justify that to me, and maybe even prove to me you know what you are doing by explaining it to me. If you are going to run a topical counterplan, you'd better be able to tell me why that is a justifiable approach. (Sorry - I am old school on this. At least you know it.)
I am basically a policy maker judge. However, I also consider stock issues.
Things I dislike:
Generic arguments unless they can be directly linked to case.
Speed. I'm an English teacher, and I can take notes. If I can't keep up, you're going too fast. And no, I don't want a copy of your speech. I am judging the round based on the speeches, not the written notes and cards. Your responsibility is to get the information into the round--verbally. That's what I judge.
*Counterplans: Debate the affirmative case! Unless the aff case is totally non-topical, then engage with them. Offering your own plan (which you had ready before the aff ever spoke) defeats the purpose of a debate round, in my opinion, and is actually dodging the responsibility of the negative.
* I know this year's topic is one that spawns counterplans, so I'm not going to give you the loss JUST because you offered a counterplan. I also understand how a counterplan with a Kritique could be effective. However, my basic philosophy is that you should debate the affirmative plan, not offer your own and ursurp the round.
Position on the following:
Topicality: Rarely do I award the win based on topicality. Unless it's blatantly non-topical, it's topical. I do understand though that running topicality arguments gives your partner more time to prepare their speech; just know that your splitting hairs over definitions isn't going to affect my decision.
Kriitiques: I haven't judged a round where a kritique is offered. However, I understand the concept and would expect it to be presented and explained as a Kritique, and an alternative solution/plan should be presented with it.