NSDA Middle School Nationals
2018 — Fort Lauderdale, FL/US
Lincoln Douglas Paradigm List
All Paradigms: Show HideHi,
I competed in LD and Policy for six years at Newark Science/Science Park High School. I also competed for 3 years at Wake Forest University in college policy. If, for some reason this helps, my specialities in high school and collegiate debate were critical arguments, soft left policy, and (critical and normative) T-framework. I'm best in clash debates, K v K, or K v T-FWK debates.
For the email chains: b.aaron3693 [@] gmail [.] com
Updates for TOC:
1) If you are unclear in any way, I will be brutally honest and say clear twice in your speech. If you don't adjust and are still unclear after the two times, I am heavily open to just saying "I didn't catch that argument" or "You were unclear" as my RFD.
2) LDers, tricks and normative phil aren't it for me. I'm just not the judge you should pref for any of those arguments because it's not my area of expertise. Same goes for one line blips. If the argument doesn't have a warrant, I will not vote for it.
3) Please properly disclose your arguments! I've glitched out before in online judging and have had competitors and other judges on panels glitch out too. It's so helpful that you are sending out marked documents and properly disclosing during the round.
4) My topic knowledge is constrained. I default to debaters to educate me on topic specific content, which means that you should default to explaining your arguments well.
On Speed and Document Accountability
Please start off at 75% of your speed then gradually get faster. Online debate doesn't help clarity either so you have to overcompensate for that. Also, just to make it explicit, I will not vote on arguments I don't catch on the flow especially when you are unclear. I hate flowing based on the document. I'll make sure to say clear when needed but, after two times, your speaks are getting docked.
All changes to the original file you sent out must be sent out immediately after your speech. For example, if you read through your 1NC and mark two cards and skip over a paragraph of analytics, the marked version of your document needs to be sent out. This aids in accountability purposes. I usually follow along and mark them myself but some of yall just overestimate your speed and skip around a bunch which makes doing so hard.
Arguments
I understand how arguments work.
Default to over-explanation of your position and get rid of acronyms. I love examples and non-abstract argumentation. And, for the love of everything, varsity debaters, throw it back to novice year where your coaches yelled at you to weigh and crystalize. It's SO helpful no matter what year you are.
Lastly, I'm NOT a tabula rasa judge. Anyone who says that is lying and/or oblivious to power dynamics. My experiences in debate and life will always inform my thinking which means please don't be racist, sexist, or offensive.
Hello, everyone!
My name is Julian Aguilar and I currently attend Turlock High School in Turlock, CA - a ways away from here. I have competed successfully in Lincoln Douglas, Parliamentary Debate, World Schools Debate, and Original Prose and Poetry at league tournaments, invitational tournaments, the CHSSA State Tournament, and the NSDA National Tournament. I am the current lead team captain of my school, for the second year in a row (for reference). I have coached Lincoln-Douglas debate for four years, and have coached World Schools for three.
I will follow judging guidelines and rules down to a tee for any debate event. The below is merely my preference. Again, please note that I will follow all guidelines of the events to a tee (and I do indeed know all the rules). I value the crafted format of the event.
My decisions will never, ever, ever be based on:
• Personal bias: My preference for a side of the resolution or a topic bias shall not enter into the decision. I will decide the round based on the arguments presented in that round. Objectivity is my primary responsibility.
• Partiality: I will not be influenced by the reputation of or relationship with the debaters, schools, or coaches. If a situation arises where impartiality is in doubt, I have the responsibility to report this potential conflict of interest to the tab room.
• New arguments introduced into rebuttals: I will disregard new arguments introduced in the rebuttals (where applicable). This does not include the introduction of new evidence in support of points already advanced or the answering of arguments introduced by opponents.
For debates, I prefer quality rather than quantity. In other words, I do not agree with, enjoy, or encourage spreading or a rapid-fire delivery to spew information. I will not flow anything I cannot follow. I will not count anything said after my timer indicates time is up, nor will I count "off-time" roadmaps - they are on-time.
Please note I will not disclose (nor am I allowed to disclose) but am happy to provide feedback.
VERY IMPORTANT INFORMATION
I will go to TAB (without hesitation) and report if you break one of the following rules:
During a debate, speakers may not communicate with their coach, other team members who are not speaking in that debate, or any person in the audience.
During the debate, students may bring prepared notes with them into the round. However, no electronic retrieval devices (except the use of cellular phones on airplane mode for timing), including tablet and laptop computers, are permitted in the round.
A kind reminder to please silence the alarms when timing. I will alert you using debate protocol when protected time is done and when speaker time is up. I will welcome speakers when I am ready.
Another kind reminder that a judge’s scoring decisions using debate event-specific criteria are at the sole discretion of the judge(s) in the round and cannot be protested.
Some key things I am looking for:
*Please note that my political standings are more moderate left-of-center, but these in no way will ever impact my decision. As a debater, I understand that you do not get to choose your side and will not hold you to that. With that being said, no racist, sexist, or any other obscenely offensive comments will be tolerated.
1. Good clash on substance; and if required and necessary, definitional clash happens - but do not force it.
2. Impacts and warrants are present and follow the intended clear logic that debates normally should adhere to, while supported with cards. Cards should not lead the argument; your argument should lead the cards.
--- On that note, cards are not everything. The evidence is good, but not everything! Cards do not convince me, you do! Do not merely state cards. Follow through with commentary, warrants, and impacts.
3. Presentation and decorum are essential to any speech or debate event. While it is not everything, it elevates all arguments if you can clearly and professionally present yourself. This means that I will be holistically looking at speed, enunciation, filler words usage, organization, preparedness, and enthusiasm (do not sound like a robot). I will and can ding you for making faces, rolling eyes, and/or any other rude non-verbal communication.
4. Each debater has an equal burden to prove the validity of their respective side of the resolution as a general principle. Dropping one contention is bad, but should not be grounds for voting for one side - unless that one contention was major and pivotal to the round. Voting issues are a big deal, don't make me choose what areas you won/lost... tell me!
5. Make sure to ensure control over the debate. Do not let it skew to your opponent; stand your ground. Stay confident and consistent.
Hey y’all. I’m David and I debated at Newark Science for 4 years on the state, regional, and national level.
College Debate: rundebate@gmail.com
High School Debate:asafuadjayedavid@gmail.com
My influences in debate have been Chris Randall, Jonathan Alston, Aaron Timmons, Christian Quiroz, Carlos Astacio, Willie Johnson, Elijah Smith in addition to a few others.
Conflicts:
-Newark Science
-Rutgers
I coach with DebateDrills- the following URL has our roster, MJP conflict policy,code of conduct, relevant team policies, and harassment/bullying complaint form:https://www.debatedrills.com/club-team-policies/lincoln-douglas-team-policy
Two primary beliefs:
1. Debate is a communicative activity and the power in debate is because the students take control of the discourse. I am an adjudicator but the debate is yours to have. The debate is yours, your speaker points are mine.
2. I am not tabula rasa. Anyone that claims that they have no biases or have the ability to put ALL biases away is probably wrong. I will try to put certain biases away but I will always hold on to some of them. For example, don’t make racist, sexist, transphobic, etc arguments in front of me. Use your judgment on that.
FW
I predict I will spend a majority of my time in these debates. I will be upfront. I do not think debate are made better or worse by the inclusion of a plan based on a predictable stasis point. On a truth level, there are great K debaters and terrible ones, great policy debaters and terrible ones. However, after 6 years of being in these debates, I am more than willing to evaluate any move on FW. My thoughts when going for FW are fairly simple. I think fairness impacts are cleaner but much less comparable. I think education and skills based impacts are easier to weigh and fairly convincing but can be more work than getting the kill on fairness is an intrinsic good. On the other side, I see the CI as a roadblock for the neg to get through and a piece of mitigatory defense but to win the debate in front of me the impact turn is likely your best route. While I dont believe a plan necessarily makes debates better, you will have a difficult time convincing me that anything outside of a topical plan constrained by the resolution will be more limiting and/or predictable. This should tell you that I dont consider those terms to necessarily mean better and in front of me that will largely be the center of the competing models debate.
Kritiks
These are my favorite arguments to hear and were the arguments that I read most of my career. Please DO NOT just read these because you see me in the back of the room. As I mentioned on FW there are terrible K debates and like New Yorkers with pizza I can be a bit of a snob about the K. Please make sure you explain your link story and what your alt does. I feel like these are the areas where K debates often get stuck. I like K weighing which is heavily dependent on framing. I feel like people throw out buzzwords such as antiblackness and expecting me to check off my ballot right there. Explain it or you will lose to heg good. K Lit is diverse. I do not know enough high theory K’s. I only cared enough to read just enough to prove them wrong or find inconsistencies. Please explain things like Deleuze, Derrida, and Heidegger to me in a less esoteric manner than usual.
CPs
CP’s are cool. I love a variety of CP’s but in order to win a CP in my head you need to either solve the entirety of the aff with some net benefit or prove that the net benefit to the CP outweighs the aff. Competition is a thing. I do believe certain counterplans can be egregious but that’s for y’all to debate about. My immediate thoughts absent a coherent argument being made.
1. No judge kick
2. Condo is good. You're probably pushing it at 4 but condo is good
3. Sufficiency framing is true
Tricks
Nah. If you were looking for this part to see whether you can read this. Umm No. Win debates. JK You can try to get me to understand it but I likely won't and won't care to either.
Theory
Just like people think that I love K’s because I came from Newark, people think I hate theory which is far from true. I’m actually a fan of well-constructed shells and actually really enjoyed reading theory myself. I’m not a fan of tricky shells and also don’t really like disclosure theory but I’ll vote on it. Just have an actual abuse story. I won’t even list my defaults because I am so susceptible to having them changed if you make an argument as to why. The one thing I will say is that theory is a procedural. Do with that information what you may.
DA’s
Their fine. I feel like internal link stories are out of control but more power to you. If you feel like you have to read 10 internal links to reach your nuke war scenario and you can win all of them, more power to you. Just make the story make sense. I vote for things that matter and make sense. Zero risk is a thing but its very hard to get to. If someone zeroes the DA, you messed up royally somewhere.
Plans
YAY. Read you nice plans. Be ready to defend them. T debates are fairly exciting especially over mechanism ground. Similar to FW debates, I would like a picture of what debate looks like over a season with this interpretation.
Presumption.
Default neg. Least change from the squo is good. If the neg goes for an alt, it switches to the aff absent a snuff on the case. Arguments change my calculus so if there is a conceded aff presumption arg that's how I'll presume. I'm easy.
LD Specific
Tricks
Nah. If you were looking for this part to see whether you can read this. Umm No. Win debates. JK You can try to get me to understand it but I likely won't and won't care to either.
I like flow debate, jargon is fine with me but if it's PF remember that it's supposed to be for the average individual to watch, so keep it minimal.
If you're running a K in LD you're really going to have to sell me on it, I'm not the biggest fan. If you run a K in PF it's going to be very difficult for you to pick up my ballot, but not impossible. I don't believe Ks capture the spirit of Public Forum debate, but if you have a legitimate K I'm not closed to the idea.
Like I said earlier, I like flow debate, meaning I like a lot of clash with your opponent's arguments. Evidence analysis is always a good thing, analyze their evidence for me. I enjoy being persuaded as well. With me, do your own style of debate, I'm probably going to appreciate that more than if you read this paradigm and try to debate with a different style. Not to say I don't think competitors can alter their style to meet specific judges, I just enjoy seeing debaters at their best.
General
I did LD for 4 years at Melissa High School and I'm competing in policy and LD at Missouri State.
I want to be on the email chain! Also feel free to email me any questions after the round. halliecrain@gmail.com
I’m cool with anything, just give voters. Impacts are key in the round and I’d like to see clash. Make sure you signpost and read card tags clearly!
Let's be nice and have a fun round! I will tank speaker points for being rude in round.
LD
I'd like to see some sort of framework in LD, if you win framework you probably win the round. If you don't give voters, I defer to framework and impact calc.
I'll vote on T and Theory in LD but if you read it please go for it!
I'll vote on any off cases, just make sure your links are strong.
Policy
Honestly I'm cool with whatever but I'd prefer no new in the 2nc.
*a quick note about K literature; I love K's and will absolutely vote on them, however, be wary of reading anti-blackness, particularly Wilderson, in front of me if you are not a person of color.
General: I debated 4 years of LD in high school (2014-2018) and am now a fourth-year student at Emory University. She/her pronouns. It’s been a few years since I’ve debated so I prefer traditional LD rounds and know little to nothing about the current topic (avoid too much LARP). I like debates that are clear, concise, interesting, and generally give good vibes. Include me in the email chain (dingrn823@gmail.com).
Speed: Don't sacrifice clarity. If I can't understand it, I can’t flow. ALWAYS slow down on the tags and authors please. Hate messy spreading.
Extensions: I need to hear a clear claim, warrant, and impact for the argument to be fully extended. Otherwise, I won't weigh any argument that is partially extended as much. Crystallization key.
CP's: CP's must have an articulated net benefit. I honestly think PICs aren't very fair so I am very easily swayed by aff theory args. Disads: Impact calc is key and if you don’t clearly extend I won’t weigh! Also, I need to see an internal link. I can't/won't weigh your impacts w/o links.
T: Unless the aff is blatantly untopical, I think you shouldn't waste your time with topicality. That said, I do believe T is a voter.
Please signpost/roadmap - Since I'm a flow judge, I really hate when it is unclear where you are and I get bounced around the flow. ***If you don't tell me where you are, I literally can’t flow.
I expect to hear voters in the 2AR and 2NR.
Other: Do not be annoying or rude to your opponent. Extra speaks for humor.
For the email chain: noah0036@gmail.com
2024 MN Sections/State:
-For speed: I can flow the high end of rapid conversational pace and the lower end of true spreading. If you are double clutching while spreading, that is likely too fast. I will give verbal "Slow" or "Clear" instructions if needed.
-I'll vote on pretty much any argument (but tricks might not be arguments).
-Signpost Signpost Signpost. I prefer "Contention x, subpoint x" or other language that describes where in the case I should be looking over the use of only card names when extending arguments.
-Engaging in warrant comparison, describing your argument in straightforward terms, and doing specific weighing between impacts makes me happy. Quality over quantity for warrants. Write my ballot for me and you will get good speaks.
-If you are running non-traditional arguments, please read this
- Distinct offs are highly preferred to "layified" cases where C1 is a DA and C2 is a CP ect.
- I hold the debater that introduces the non-traditional argument to a higher standard of structure. (i.e. if you read a K, I expect labeled FW, alt, ect. but your opponent can read competition args and I will treat those as perms even if they don't say the word "perm").
- Overall higher bar if you are reading circuit args into a traditional debater. I think theory, counterplans, and Kritiques are good for debate, but when those strategies are used to confuse and exclude your opponent that makes me sad. Don't be evasive in CX about how arguments function, and I require a more explicit delineation of why pre-fiat arguments come first in order to vote on them. The brightline will be if a typical JV debater who has never seen your argument couldn't follow why your uplayer comes first, you didn't explain it enough.
Who am I:
I'm a debater who graduated in 2018 and got a whopping total of 0 bids and competed in 0 bid rounds. I still enjoyed circuit debate, but this means I am probably not the best judge for late outrounds. Graduated from Lakeville North High School with 4 years of LD and did four years of Parli at the University of Minnesota. That most recent Parli experience shapes a lot of what I think about debate. The other important disclosure is I do not keep up with the circuit generally so I am not going to be as up on the current LD meta.
Things I like:
Engagement! I'm going to like rebuttals that don't just sail past the prior speech based on some prewritten frontlines, but instead address the core issues that the other side brings up.
Respect also goes a long way. Debate is an important space and when people act in good faith it makes me happy.
Analytic extensions. I debated in Parli where carded evidence isn't a thing, I find it much easier to follow a straightforward couple sentence explanation than words cut from different parts of a paper where they might not reach the same conclusion that the powertag on top of the card would suggest they do.
Things I don't like:
Being deliberately difficult to engage with. Dodging CX questions with vague answers when in the next speech you all of a sudden can articulate the thesis of your arguments in very concise and definitive language is not debating, it's running from engagement (and cowardice is a voting issue). Don't rely on your opponent not understanding your arguments well enough so you win.
Relying on the speech doc to get arguments across. My personal belief is that the speech doc is to make sure you don't clip cards and give the judge and opponent something to look back on as a record of what was said, but I see it be used more and more as something that lets debaters artificially inflate their WPM by decreasing the clarity by which they speak and letting the doc pick up the slack. The doc doesn't argue, you do.
Specific arguments:
These are all just preferences. I think saying "I'm Tab" doesn't mean anything, but I will try to intervene as little as possible. That being said here are some mindsets I have coming into the round. Unless otherwise noted I can and will vote on any argument presented, some bars just might be higher than others.
LARPing - This is how I debated most of the time, so I like to see it done well, and a CP 2DA neg strat is always fun to watch.
Tricks - If you rely on aprioris or weirdly worded spike that are extended as game over issues I'm probably not your judge. I won't reject you on face but my interp of the burden of rejoinder (the thing that makes dropped args true) is that if the first reading of an argument was shifty or arbitrary, even if none of that argument was addressed in the following speech by your opponent, a new characterization or explanation of that argument is just that: new. This means I am significantly more lenient to responses to blips that get blown up. However, if these arguments are clearly labeled as voting issues the first speech that they are read then a lot of my reservations about this style of debate are alleviated. This goes back to prior notes about avoiding engagement.
Phil - Label everything. I probably don't understand Kant or whoever as well as you do so implicating the important parts of the case as soon as possible make it a lot easier for me to track. I think well done phil can be leveraged well against anything but making these arguments as clear as possible helps me a lot. I think phil is often used by tricky debaters so see above to make sure I don't get sad with you.
Ks - Ks are cool! I didn't read a lot of them in high school, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't read them in front of me. What is does mean is that I don't know the lit and buzzwords are useless. I am familiar with some Cap, Ableism, Anti-blackness, Setcol and Neocol lit bases (in that order) but mostly in a conceptual level not a "I've read the book" level. I know some surface level info about a tiny bit of pomo things, but that please do not assume I know what your buzzwords mean. To make me love you and your K, explain it to me in simple, concise terms. I would prefer a paragraph analytic tag about what it means to find lines of flight than a D&G card cut in language I don't understand. This also applies to alts, I'd really like to know what the alt does. If it's a mindset shift, cool let me know. If it's micropol rejection, cool tell me that's what it is. I think the best alts also incorporate post fiat offense i.e read "Endorse Violent Socialist Revolution" in front of me instead of "Interrogate the epistemology of the aff through a lens of historical materialism."
Role of the Ballots- I find it really hard to frame any offense out of the debate. I default to "Vote for who did the better debating. Everything else is just impact weighing." That being said, if you are winning reasons why your role of the ballot is good it make it a lot easier for your impacts to outweigh those of your opponents, but I don't think it moots them entirely absent arguments that the impacts for their RoB don't matter (i.e. conceded fiat illusory claims means without arguments about how fiated impacts have importance outside of the imaginary will let me completely ignore the extinction claims of an aff)
Theory - Multiple frivolous theories are not good, you can read your spec args or whatever theory shell that might be strategic but probably doesn't actually impact the meta model of debate but reading more than one of these just seems like you are reading a lot of low risk uplayering offence that skirts clash in favor of dropped tidbits. I default to Competing Interps, Theory is top layer, no RVIs but my bar for aff getting RVIs is much lower than neg getting RVIs. Condo is on a round per round basis, but multiple condo are probably not the best, PICs can be good or bad, spec is boring.
Non-Topical/K Affs - I used to absolutely hate these, but I most certainly do not now. I think they are a good part of debate and allow people to take back power, so I will absolutely vote for a non-topical aff but see my notes on Ks and K lit. If you happen to be debating an affirmative that is not topical, FW will work if you win it even if I'm not happy that you read it, but if the aff is disclosed please at least answer some of case. That being said I don't think theory is inherently violent and that means there are smarter interps that don't have to indite the ability of these types of affs to exist in debate but can challenge the specific implementation of a given non-t aff. I.e. must defend fiat but not necessarily resolutional fiat, may not garner offense off a rejection of the resolution (but can off non resolutional things), no Utopian fiat ect. I would also recommend counter methods (and I am a bit partial to the argument that there are no perms in a methods debate) or method piks as long as you actually engage in questions of the affirmative I will probably be happy.
Misc:
Speed - I can listen to you if you are clear. I'd put myself at about 6/10 of top speed, but this being said be careful with blippy args. Not only would I rather hear 2 actually warranted case turns, I probably will not flow half of your twelve point case dump if each of the twelve are only one sentence answers.
Ways to boost your speaker points in front of me -
1. Know what you are talking about. Being well versed in the lit is a great way to make me like you.
2. Jokes. Tournaments are long and can get boring so if I laugh that is a good thing.
3. Be nice.
4. Be organized, if you are all over the place that is a bad thing
5. Creativity will also make me happy.
Belvidere North High School class of 2019
Illinois Institute of Technology class of 2023
Double Major:
Biomedical Engineering: Cell and Tissue Engineering
&
Humanities
Founded Lincoln Douglas Debate at Belvidere North
Parlimentry debate at IIT
I’m a fairly traditional judge for LD. (Read: No K's) Plans and/or counter plans aren't necessary for LD. If you think abuse is happening in the round just say so, don’t read a theory shell. I'm not afraid to give out LPWs. I will use the new speaker point scale with 25 as average instead of 27. This means that typical debaters will fall between 23 and 27 points, exceptionally talented debaters get 28+ and exceptionally inadequate debaters get 22-.
My paradigm:
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The value/value criterion debate is important!!! Whoever wins the framework debate essentially decides what ideology I will be judging the round with.
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Even though the framework is important it is not a voting issue. Your voters should essentially be what impacts that you are pulling through. Saying “I win on framework” isn’t an impact for you to pull through so it’s not a voting issue.
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SIGNPOST!!! I don't feel comfortable guessing where something should go as it might give you an unfair advantage/disadvantage. It is your job to debate not mine. This is a really easy spot to lose speaker points/the round.
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I flow arguments not cards. Debaters are relying too much on cards in rebuttal speeches. I want to hear arguments, not references to arguments. For example, "Cross-apply the smith 19 card" is not an argument.
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I don’t flow cross but actually ask questions during it. It's not more speech time. And no, you cannot use prep time as cross.
- I can handle speed 99% of the time and I will flow it as long as you aren't using it as an abusive tactic to speed out your opponent. Keep in mind that speaking well and unnecessary amounts speed are polar opposites. One of my biggest pet peeves in debate is when speed is used and there is a significant amount of time left on the clock, DON'T DO IT.
I'm a second-year student at ASU with three years of high school speech and debate experience, specifically in LD. I coached at Southwest Speech and Debate Institute and am currently an assistant coach at Brophy College Prep in Phoenix. In terms of how to win my ballot, I will vote on pretty much any argument so long as it is well-developed and warranted throughout the round. My debate philosophy is that debaters should impact their arguments out to a framework and evaluate the round through a comparative worlds approach; that being said, don't let that limit the scope of the debate. While I was not a progressive debater, I have always been interested in progressive argumentation and enjoy watching these rounds. I prefer structural Ks above most forms of progressive debate and I place more value on that than I do policy style cases. I have a higher threshold for theory, but if there is abuse, I will consider voting for it. I'm fine with any speed (just put me on the email chain) but be sure that your opponent can understand you in order to have a productive round.
email: hanna.griffin88@gmail.com
Hi! My name is Ian, and I use he/him pronouns.
I was a policy debater in Idaho who graduated in 2019. I'm familiar with and comfortable evaluating most arguments. A few things:
I'm a flow judge. It's been some time since I last debated, so please make voters clear and do the work weighing them against each-other so I don't have to. I like kritiks but please don't assume I know the literature.
I'm comfortable with speed, but please slow down and speak louder on your tags. If I can't flow your speech without the doc, your speaker points won't be awesome.
Debate is a game. Please have fun and be nice!
Tabs judge. I will listen to any argument, however backing it up with actual evidence is imperative.
Email: justin.korean5@gmail.com
I debated at Kamiak for 4 years as a 2A and enjoyed the activity during my high school years. However, I am not into debate at all anymore and may require slightly more explanation than most judges you are used to.
I haven't judged at all this year so any acronyms you say will go right over my head. Just say the full thing.
VERY IMPORTANT
Tell me a funny joke before the round and I might boost your speaker points.
I hate judge intervention and will do everything strictly by the flow. It always confuses me when some people say tech over truth but reject arguments on the basis of principles. I will go strictly by the flow and if an opponent drops the argument that "grass is blue" I will presume that "grass is blue" until the end of the round.
Background:
I went policy on affirmative and "flex" on negative that ranged from reading 1 off Ks to 10 offs.
tldr:
Tech > Truth. Read whatever you want, but try to write my ballot for me. If left to my own devices, I'll lean on my defaults and that'll make people sad and sad people is not rad cause they all get mad. lol. I probably won't be the best judge for you if the debate comes down to a K aff vs framework or topicality.
Affs:
An affirmative should have a plan, but I am not opposed to a planless aff.
Disads:
I like them, but don't assume that I know your disad the moment you say the heading of it. Impact Calc is also pretty underrated.
Counterplans:
I like them. They're cool. Also, explain what the perm would look like instead of saying perm
Ks
I like them. Links are important to me for Ks and Ks should have an alt.
Topicality:
I don't know much on this topic so you might have to slow down a bit for me to completely understand it. Also, I tend to lean on reasonability.
K aff vs framework:
I only ran framework once during my sophomore year against a K aff and never did it ever again. K aff vs framework rounds are slightly messy to me because it just feels like real genuine clash never happens and I've forgotten a lot of the vocabulary and tech that are commonly used in those rounds. If you do run fwk, I prefer it if you would slow down and do a bit more explanation.
K aff vs K:
I'm actually more comfortable with this because this is what a good chunk of my k aff debate rounds looked like. I prefer if there was genuine clash that happened. Many times throughout these debates it feels like there are a bunch of arguments made by both teams that go unanswered by both teams and thus it puts me in a point where I have to intervene.
Theory:
Have an interp and impact. I am willing to vote on "complete" cheap theory shots if they are dropped (it always confuses me when people say they are tech over truth but aren't willing to buy dropped arguments) BUT if the sole reason why you got my ballot was because of that theory arg, I will also drop your speaks :).
Additional Info:
I think speaker points are dumb, but I'll start with a 28.7 and work my way up or down.
In your final rebuttal speech, please write out my ballot for me. Start with an overview and explain to me why you won and how I should frame the debate.
I have voted neg all year and this is making me sad.
"And therefore, as when there is a controversy in an account, the parties must by their own accord, set up for right Reason, the Reason of some Arbitrator, or Judge, to whose sentence they will both stand, or their controversie must either come to blowes, or be undecided, for want of a right Reason constituted by Nature."
- Thomas Hobbes, Leviathan, Pt. 1, Ch. 5, para. 3
General
I did LD debate for four years in high school, so I understand the event's jargon and how arguments interact with each other in terms of the framework and contention level. This means that I also flow the debate and will make note if a debater extends a conceded argument (so don't expect to win me over with a flowery 2AR if your 1AR was a dropfest). I am definitely tabula rasa, so I'll accept any arguments made in the round as long as they are either uncontested or better upheld in terms of clash, even if I personally disagree or know a given statistic is misleading. However, I will not accept any arguments that are blatantly offensive or abusive (ex: racism and ridiculous "observations" that make it impossible for your opponent to win the round). I cast my ballot by picking the superior framework and weighing who has the most offense under that framework in terms of cards and contentions.
Speed
I'm alright with a faster than normal pace, but please don't go full blast. If you feel the need to send me your speech doc via e-mail, then you're definitely going past the line.
Counterplans/kritiks/other policy stuff
I'm alright with you running these in the right context (i.e. it's pretty unfair to run a policy-esque plantext at a traditional tournament in which your opponent almost certainly has no familiarity with such arguments). However, I'm probably less likely to vote on these arguments compared to a traditional 1AC or 1NC, so run them at your own discretion. I'm most open to counterplans, as those are pretty intuitive and they already get run all the time in oblique fashion anyway.
Policy
Unfortunately, I am sometimes dragged into judging this event. I did policy a handful of times in high school, but I don't have the same level of familiarity with the event that I do with LD. Most of the stuff from above applies (i.e. no new arguments in your rebuttal speeches, an argument that's dropped and extended is considered true within the round).
I understand that you generally have to spread in order to read your 1AC or 1NC in time, so I simply ask you to slow down (relatively speaking) in your rebuttals and speak clearly when you spread.
Don't run ultra-esoteric kritiks. If your K asks me to do something like "embrace the queer suicide bomber," "embrace the death drive," or embrace whatever form of ______ futurism, I will probably be less likely to vote for it (to put it lightly). My paradigm is generally tabula rasa, but I'd rather be upfront about arguments I'm skeptical of and often don't follow. If you run these arguments, you will probably get killed by utopian fiat, or your opponent will respond at the level of the K and the round will essentially become a coin flip because I won't follow a lot of the clash.
Collapse and focus on a few key arguments if you're arguing over theory. The last thing I want is to have to vote based on some three second blip you made in one of your rebuttals and I didn't even have time to flow properly.
I'm a former 4-year LD (primary) and policy (secondary) debater from Wichita East. I'm a Tabla Rosa style judge and will try hard to only make my decisions based on what is said in-round, but, if no framing is provided, I will default to my personal methods of judging. In LD by default, I will decide the winner using the winning criteria to see whether the Aff or Neg best achieves the winning value. In policy by default, I will use the winning framework to decide which impacts to prioritize then see if the Aff or status quo is a net benefit. I'm always okay with spreading(LD or policy) if you slow down on tag lines and analytics. Make sure you emphasize any information you want me to notice in cards.
For LD, I will default to the traditional value/criteria debate when I make my decision. However, if you all want a policy style debate, I can use that to determine the round, but you will need to make and win the argument that a policy style evaluation is better.
For Policy, anything goes. You can spread. You can use the K. You can use topical counter-plans. I don't care what you do, but the other team can always win the argument that some practice in unfair, so cover your rear if you're going to play it risky. More than anything, DO IMPACT CALCULUS! Otherwise I'm just having to guess what the best way to evaluate your arguments are.
Debated for 4 years for Colleyville heritage. 2 years Cx, 2 years Ld.
I used to more of a K debater but weaker on phil debate, but I will listen to it, just make sure to explain it thoroughly
Please do not shake my hand after the round.
Email chains: arsh.ladhani@gmail.com
Open to anything,
Tag team cx ok, flashing doesn't count as prep
I'm probably less open to 2ar extrapolation/spin than most judges, but because of the debate communities trend towards this, Ill allow more spin, but if the 1ar / block just cold concedes an argument/warrant, I wont justify any new arguments against it
every pun is worth + .1 speaks
T - I generally feel that alot of T debates end up resolving around reasonability, but no one really tells me what to do with the reas/ competing interps debate, so more work on the actual line by line as well as impacting out this arg would be nice. If the aff goes for offense, I generally like to see more impact calc on what outweighs
k - Im good with the fw + kick alt strat or going for the alt - 2 important things for me - 1. Links are super important to me for K's, so specific links to the aff, or a justification for generic links, and actually explaining what happens and how I should judge if you win fw or the alt and what happens to the rest of the k because of it. I know a decent amount of k lit, but if you run something not meta, please explain the k more slowly - floating PICS are kinda abusive and I think the 1ar gets new answers, but I won't strike it down
CP/DA - I'll accept judge kick if its flagged in the block and dropped by the 1ar, otherwise I think its pretty abusive. - I think offense for the aff is super important and generally underused - I generally think defense doesn't take out the entire disad, unless the aff is winning it pretty definitively.
Theory - I'll judge theory super techy based on standards mostly, because impact calc i almost non-existent.
speaks are below a 28. if I think you're in the bottom quarter of a tournament, between 28-29 if i think you deserve being in the middle of a tournament, and a 29+ if I thikn you deserve to be in the top quarter
I like going back to the core of each debate format. In LD, I expect thorough clash on the value criterion debate as well as clear tagging and communication. I will be as progressive as I need to be in the round.
I graduated class of 2018 from Lakeville South High School. My background is mainly in LD, but I have participated in a wide variety of categories(PF, Big Questions, World Schools, Policy, Congress). I evaluate the flow first and foremost. I want clear argumentation with explicit extensions/turns/road-mapping. I will believe anything you say in round and it is the job of your opponent to point out any false points in your case. Extinction impacts are fine with me and it gives me a clear spot to vote. When I watch you debate I want a fun and interesting round for everyone involved. Also please don't have a value debate over morality and justice unless there is a reason for it.
SPEED: I am ok with speaking fast so long as you aren't outright spreading. If you spread and your opponent asks you not to, I will tank your speaks.
OFFs: Personally I think offs make very fun and engaging debate, however that is only when they are run correctly. If you are good at running off case arguments then run them, I would love to see that in round. If you cannot run off case arguments well, please do not run those arguments.
Please be respectful of your opponent and your judges at all times. I will not tolerate inappropriate behavior during speech and debate rounds.
Debate
Always be sure to ask your judge and your opponent if we are ready before you begin a speech.
Remember that presenting a clear argument takes precedence over speed.
If you are in the middle of a sentence and time is up (either during a constructive or cross-examination), I will allow you to finish your sentence.
I look for a well-developed case that includes clear identification of the value, value criterion, contentions, points of clash, and voting issues.
You may use your electronic device to time yourself, but keep in mind that your judge is the official timekeeper in the round. Please be sure that your device is in silent mode.
For virtual tournaments please mute yourself if you are not speaking. You can unmute during your speeches and cross-examination periods.
Speech
I will be happy to provide you with time signals. Please let me know before you begin the specific time signals that you would like (i.e.., 5 down, fist at 10, etc.)
Most importantly, have fun!
For virtual tournaments please keep yourself muted when you are not performing.
Please refrain from texting and playing on your phone during other students' performances.
World Schools Debate
As World Schools Debate is not the same as policy or Lincoln-Douglas Debate, please refrain from spreading during the round. Your speech should be delivered at a conversational pace. Be sure to make eye contact and deliver your speech instead of reading word for word from your paper. World Schools Debate focuses on both the quality of the arguments and the quality of speech delivery.
Please make sure that your POIs are limited to 15 seconds each. If you do not wish to entertain an opponent's POI at a given time, please do so respectfully. Use your discretion about when to address a POI, but please make sure that you are not rejecting EVERY POI attempt during your speech. There are no POIs during the first and last minute of each constructive speech. POIs are also not permitted during reply speeches.
You may use a cell phone (placed in airplane mode) to time yourselves during the round. The judge is the official timekeeper. NSDA does not allow the use of computers during the round, so please make sure that all computers are away.
LD
Speed: I can handle/flow most levels of speed, however spreading will get you marked down. If I cannot understand you, I will put down my pen and stop flowing— that is your only warning.
Clash: I value the core value/criterion clash to be the most important in this round, and I will most likely vote for whoever can best uphold the values presented in the round.
Respect: I don’t mind if you’re a sassy or aggressive debater, however, if you are straight up rude to your opponent (especially in cx) you will lose.
Misc: my time is the official time, all roadmaps are off time, and I give prep in 30-second intervals.
I am a flow judge, the round is judged on what the two debaters make of it, and I vote on the issues presented in the key voters.
WSD
Speed: No speed! Conversational only, or you’ll be marked down
Clash: In WSD, I don’t count drops, please focus solely on the main arguments presented in the round.
Respect: Respect is the most important, it’s okay to be sassy and aggressive, but disrespectful teams will lose.
Misc: My time is the official time, I judge according to WSD standards.
I'm a former high school LD debater. I am familiar with progressive arguments, but everything will need to be explained and brought back to the resolution and framework if applicable. Overall, I'm ok with anything, just give voters and connect back to resolution.
Judging debate events is always fun for me and I try to be thorough in my comments and RFD. Here are my preferences for judging.
Off timer roadmaps are acceptable and preferred to save speech time for argumentation.
Debaters should use evidence that reflects the taglines presented as well as provide impact statements that align with the evidence presented. The impacts should be logical, realistic, and reflect thoughtfulness.
RFD almost always comes down to the voting issues you present in your last speech and the takeaways that I get to from these voting issues, so don't forget to do this in you last speech(es).
PF: no plans/counterplans allowed. If grand crossfire gets overwhelming or abusive I will cut it short no questions asked. I will vote against new evidence/arguments run in final focus as this is unfair to the other team.
LD: I tend to be a bit more traditional and weigh the round on the value/criterion clash that should be consistent through the subsequent clash of points. Higher speaks will be awarded to debaters who keep the V/C framework in mind throughout the debate.
Policy: If you spread, expect me to ask for all the evidence in your speech. Topicality is an argument that should sparingly be used and if I don't agree with the T or you spend too much time on T, I will vote this down.
Congress: I like amendments and tend to pick up on when alliances try to block someone from speaking. If you only get one speech and get blocked from further speeches later in the debate I will try my best to acknowledge this and will not rank you lower for that. Any coalitions that routinely block students from speaking will be ranked lower for being abusive.
I will automatically vote against you if you present an argument that is abusive to the other debater/team, racist, sexist, ableist, elitist, or otherwise bigoted. I try my best to break my poker face when this happens to allow you to correct this action. If you choose to ignore my nonverbal feedback, you lose no questions asked.
Important Stuff is Bolded
My name is Andrew Shea (he/him). You can call me Judge Shea, Andrew, Fire Lord O’Shea, whatever floats your boat.
I am pursuing a major in history and a minor in international relations at the University of Iowa. I am working towards a phd in transnational labor history and relations.
I have a cat named Haywood after Harry Haywood. He is amazing and cool. Ask and I am happy to show pictures.
My email for contact is: ajhamilton112601@gmail.com
I competed at John F Kennedy High School in CR IA. I was coached by Jesse Meyer who remains a large influence on me today.
I judge mainly LD and PF. I was mostly a K debater and did okay throughout my career. I generally understand most arguments. My paradigm breaks down into prefs/speech paradigm, in-round debate behavior, and in-depth LD/PF prefs. Please ask questions if you have any. I am always looking to improve.
LD Cheat Sheet
1 K
2 Phil
3 Trad* or Policy/LARP
4 Theory/Strike**
5 Tricks/Strike (don’t know enough to competently judge)
*I think trad is a good debate format and can be competitive/clash with circuit debate. I put it higher up to tell trad debaters they can pref me without concern.
**I won’t vote you down because you run theory. I just have a lower threshold for response to theory. For example I don’t think you need to run a counter interp or RVIs to respond but if you do, you should do it well.
Two things of note:
- I am ok with spreading but ask your opponent beforehand preferably in front of me. If you did not ask (or ignore attempts to find accommodation) and your opponent runs theory/disability arg on why spreading is bad I am more liable (not guaranteed) to drop you. However I'll note I have no "bad" WPM. I think if you have an issue saying "clear" or "speed" is the responsibility of the debater. If you have a problem with their overall speed mention something to your opponent after the speech. TLDR If you both agree to spread great, if you have an issue with spreading: advocate for yourself and work with each other under the best of intentions. All that said I am also less liable to vote for a 2ar spreading theory shell if no objections were raised prior.
- I am pro Flex Prep but you have to ask before round. I prefer this to avoid someone being denied the opportunity to use it in round. In elims I go with the majority judge view on flex prep.
PF Cheat Sheet
1 Trad PF
2 Critical Args
3Theory/Strike
I am basically fine with anything in PF but theory annoys me. I really prefer normal PF but I won’t mentally check out if you don’t.
See above LD prefs for spreading/flex prep
Speech Judging
I am by no means an experienced speech judge but I have coached the very basics and I did exempt and spontaneous in high school. I like to see confidence, good use of the space in a room, rehearsed body movements (don’t just keep your hands in one position unless that is your character's thing for something such as a HI), and just do your best.
Unless explicitly prohibited by tournament rules let me know if you want to give hand signals for time. I would be happy to do them.
Debater Behavior
Ask and Advocate: Debate should be a friendly and welcoming space. To that end, ask and advocate for yourself. If you have an issue or a question please ask. If you feel harmed in some way or see something that bothers you, advocate for yourself. I am happy to facilitate in any way I can to make debate a better space for all. In no way should gender, disability, or class make you feel unsafe in this space.
Assertive and Polite: It is ok to be determined and assertive in a debate round but never belittle your opponent or be snarky to them. Everyone here is a person first and foremost along with being a student. Debate is a pedagogical game and I find it vastly more useful to educate rather than to belittle someone for not understanding or for making a "bad argument" that said, you should absolutely seek to control a round and narrative. Raised and passionate voices are ok but avoid yelling or taking a dismissive, arrogant tone. Be very cognizant of that difference when debating women/non men debaters, sexism is all too prevalent and unacceptable in the debate space and such dynamics do influence my judging particularly in the way I give speaks.
On Spreading: I am not anti-spreading. While I don't think it is a good norm for debate I do understand that it is the default and if everyone is ok with it I will be too. I prefer that people ask before round because I have met several debaters who have had disabilities that prevented them from spreading. I would like debate to realize spreading should be moved away from but because I don't run a camp or have money I at least want to make the space more accessible to different debaters in lieu of some larger change.
Judge Behavior
As a judge I will: provide you with in-depth feedback and always explain to you why I interpreted something the way I did. I will not always be right and make mistakes but I will do my best to explain my reasoning.
Do everything I can to answer questions or redirect you towards resources who can do it better
Provide a safe environment for debaters as someone in the community who cares and who will listen.
LD Prefs in-depth
Since I mainly judge LD here is more in depth thoughts for those who care to read them:
K debate: I love K debate. My political beliefs lead me to love hearing Parenti, Gramsci, Lenin, Mao, Marx, Losurdo, Fanon, and many others along the communist and decolonial based lines. As such I will be happy when I hear cap bad, china isn’t the devil, palestine will be free, etc. That said I familiar with many other authors and I am generally friendly towards hearing any new arguments and I am happy to learn about anything new.
Phil: I know some but not alot. I would love to learn more and therefore feel free to run anything just explain it well.
Trad: I think it can and should endeavor to be more competitive with circuit debate.
Policy/Larp: I don’t necessarily have a problem with it, sometimes I just find it boring. Honestly I have grown to like it more because I actually do enjoy hearing about the resolution.
Theory: I won’t vote someone down because they run theory but I firmly believe that theory is often used in a way that makes debate poor and ruins the quality of argumentation. I think it harms accessibility and as a result my threshold for response is lower. While I feel like I have a decent grasp on theory debate there is a greater risk of me not fully comprehending your argument as I haven't attempted to immerse myself in the mechanics due to my dislike.
What I look for in a good LD round
Overview: Like a real overview which represents the interactions that happened in the round with a narrative. Challenge yourself to have it be more than a summary of what your case is.
Weighing: Like actual weighing. Extending your impact is great but you need to explain why your impact should be valued more compared to your opponents
1nr Card Drop: I see people spread as fast as possible through their speech and then just extend whatever their opponent did not respond too and think they won the round. I need some weight and explanation of the warrant from arguments to vote on them. When there isn't, my threshold for responding or weighing them is lower than the arguments you developed. Developing arguments is good and makes me value them more than your 17th apriori which has “big” implications in the round because your opponent conceded it.
Truth vs Tech: I'm more tech. Basically that's it.
Tabula Rasa: I'm not. I will not tolerate racist, sexist, ableist, classist behavior. I also have strongly held beliefs of what debate should be to get better. That said if I think such behavior has occured I am more likely to stop the round and refer the issue to tab. What I won't do is vote someone down because your K says they are literally the devil for not being topical. I am more receptive to the argument that the argument is some "-ism" not the person. We are learners here and should educate and build people up.
Judge Intervention: This is a very tricky topic for me. So because in the debate space we generally agree that a judgeshould intervene if some racism, sexism, issue occurs yet however we don't think this when it comes to things like reproducing imperialist talking points. We don't typically weigh the reproduction of these dominant idealogical norms as bad whereas only over racism and sexism is despite the fact that systems like imperialism harm far more people than an indvidual sexist or racist comment. So I think when people say "no judge intervention" that doesn't make alot of sense because we have decided as a community that we won't tolerate some things. So therefore I think a good take to approach this (not the best) is that judge intervention should be approached when the debaters says it is necessary as a top shelf/layer argument and then for the oppenent to argue why it shouldn't be perhaps by arguing their idea of what they want the judge to do is not good. This for example should take place in the debate over the role of the ballot. In terms of judge intervention regarding "why did you weigh x argument y way" generally if I think its close it may simply come down to persuviness, the narrative, or may best guess.
Teach me something: Honestly this goes for debaters, coaches, and other judges. I want to learn and improve and be a positive force in the debate space. I love learning about new theories and concepts. As such it may be helpful to take the time to explain the mechanics of an argument without the internal jargon to maximize education.
PF in-depth prefs
Trad pf vs Circuit pf: It's weird that there is now a difference between trad and circuit/prog PF debate and I am not exactly a fan that its come to this. That said I prefer normal PF rounds over critical arguments as I don't think the format lends itself to progressive.
Theory: See LD prefs for opinions on theory.
Evidence: My evidence standards are a bit higher in PF due to frequent bad paraphrasing. I will likely review cards which are deemed critical in round during prep time. If I find that the card itself is misconstrued I will be annoyed and have a lower threshold for response to the arguments that rely on the card. That said I think there is a difference in making an argument which misconstrues the card rather than the card itself being misconstrued. That's just debate.
That's all folks.
I debated for four years at William Tennent High School, mostly LD (but I did a good amount of Policy as well). I am now an Assistant Coach at Pennsbury High School and a student of philosophy at the University of Pittsburgh. The details of my personal life may bore you, but I only include them so you can know that I am not completely clueless in the realm of debate.
To save your time and mine, I have attempted to reduce my judging philosophy to a handful of bullet-points:
>The most important aspect of my judging philosophy is tabula rasa.
>I keep a detailed flow and value line-by-line debate. I will probably notice if you drop something.
>I am fine with spreading. Just be sure to say taglines/author names clearly. I will say clear if I cannot understand you.
>I love good framework debate. It's easier for me to pick a winner when I have a clear lens through which I can evaluate the round.
>I guess evidence is nice and a good thing to have. Extending that evidence throughout the round is also nice.
Feel free to ask me any questions that you might have. I will answer them to the best of my ability.
"As the biggest library if it is in disorder is not as useful as a small but well-arranged one, so you may accumulate a vast amount of knowledge but it will be of far less value to you than a much smaller amount if you have not thought it over for yourself..." - Arthur Schopenhauer
My debate experience:
4 years NFA-LD (one-person policy) at Lewis & Clark College, 2019-2023
3 years LD and CX at Timberline High School, 2016-2019
I prefer speechdrop.com for ev sharing but if there's an email chain, put me on it: dude.its.rose@gmail.com
TL;DR version:My goal as a judge is to first be receptive to whatever kind of round you want to have and second to make the round as accessible and educational to both teams. Speed is fine. I am pretty much down for whatever you want to read and specify some of my preferences below. I'm a K debater at heart but highly encourage you to debate the way you're most comfortable. Please ask questions before the round if you have any and after if you want my input for improvement.
I think debate is so fun and so silly and I want y'all to have a fun, educational round if I can make that happen. Also feel free to email me after if you have questions, want files or anything.
General Stuff
Speaks: I give high speaks (28-30) unless you've done something that warrants intervention from your coach. This includes being needlessly mean to an opponent (snark and sass are fine, but PLEASE temper it to the round) or being blatantly racist, sexist, homophobic, transphobic, ableist, etc. The latter will earn you 20s an an L. Absolutely no excuses.
How to Win: I want to be lazy and not intervene. The best way to win my ballot is to make my job as easy as possible. Make your weighing clear, try to clean up the framing debate, prioritize the organization of my flow as much as possible -- If I'm putting an argument somewhere you don't want if because you forgot to signpost, that might hurt you in the outcome of the round. These are all skills I continued to develop up to the end of my competition career and You Should Too
Tech v Truth?: I think "tech vs truth" is an oversimplified dichotomy and I definitely have arguments I am more skeptical of (disclosed below) BUT a dropped argument is a dropped argument, ya know? I default to tech but am 100% receptive to a clearly articulated framework arg about why that's bad with strong explanation about what that means for my weighing of various parts of the flow.
Other Stuff: If you can make me laugh that helps your speaks. I accept cash bribes.
Speed is fine, but you gotta slow down a little on your analytics and especially on T; make sure everything gets on my flow. Also, if your opponent clears/slows you DO IT -- I'll vote for speed theory.
Specific Stuff (CX, other policy formats)
Topicality/Theory: I see T as an accountability tool. You don't need proven abuse but I am more persuaded by proven over potential abuse. I don't love blippy T and generally have a low threshold for reasonability in these instances. I default to T being a priori but 100% will listen to and vote on "___ outweighs T" args, Ks of T, RVIs, anything you want to put here. If you want to have a T debate PLEASE prioritize clarity and organization and impact out your voters.
CPs: I've become a sucker for a smart CP that's actually competitive and actually solves the aff. Advantage CPs are also a neat, underutilized tool.
DAs: Cool. I am more receptive to a probable link chain with a soft left/structural violence impact over something improbably with a high magnitude impact, but run whatever you want.
Case: GOD I love a strong debate on case. I will vote on straight case but please have offense there if you're asking me to do it. I've never voted on terminal defense bc the aff can always eke out a "1% risk of solvency" arg so Give Me Offense Please God.
Ks (neg): 100% down. These were my favorites to read and write as a debater so I've got a soft spot. I'm holding you to the same standard I hold a DA/CP combo though, so that means your weakest point is basically always the alt. I don't need an alt solves the aff arg if you're winning your impacts are more important, but it doesn't hurt. I am also more persuaded by alts that have a clear action. I have a lot of familiarity with a lot of lit but plz don't assume I or your opponent are as capable of sifting through your arguments as you are. I do not understand D&G and you can't make me.
Ks (aff): Hell yeah. I prefer a good topic link story but don't NEED a justification for rejecting the topic to let you do your thing. I also prefer a clear action taken by the aff -- ideally something you can explain in a sentence.
Perm: I default to the perm being an advocacy bc everyone treats it like that, but irl I think it's prolly just a test of competition. You do not need to win a perm to beat a CP or Alt if you have offense on the CP/Alt.
Condo: I think negs should get access to one condo position, anymore and you should be prepared to defend against theory but I'm not automatically voting for condo bad. Also don't lie about being uncondo when you're not!!!!!!! I'll dock ur speaks and will be easily persuaded by a 2AR that goes all in on why you should lose for that.
Arguments I Do Not Like: Disclosure theory, overpopulation, cap good, extinction good, anything in this general camp of arguments. None of these are auto-Ls, just know I fundamentally do not believe you when you say these things. These still need to be answered. For BS like impact turning racism, sexism, etc. see what I said under speaks.
Ask me anything else or send me an email if you want clarification :D
Background: I’m a sophomore at the University of Pennsylvania majoring in Gender Studies & Communication, and I did both LD and policy (with a brief stint in PF) for Dallastown High School in Pennsylvania. I competed on both traditional and progressive circuits, so I’m pretty much cool with whatever you want to run. However, as a competitor, I mostly ran non-t affs, soft-left affs, and kritiks.
pronouns: she/her/hers
email chain: emiwhite@sas.upenn.edu
* I care a lot about respect and safety in-round. Debate has a tendency to be a really toxic/hostile environment sometimes, so please don't contribute to that. Similarly, if at any point during the round you feel uncomfortable/unsafe, feel free to stop the round and let me know. I will not tolerate debaters being egregiously disrespectful or inconsiderate of their opponents. This applies to actions done knowingly that make the round inaccessible (e.g. not flashing your case when spreading, not giving content warnings for sensitive topics, etc.) as well as how you speak to/about your opponent (e.g. excessively interrupting them or being overly condescending). TLDR: just be nice y'all, it's not that hard.
**If you spread, EMAIL ME AND YOUR OPPONENT YOUR CASE. Ideally this applies to prewritten analytics as well (or really anything that is typed out and sendable). I cannot stress this enough! If you don’t, I’ll probably dock speaks and be a much less happy judge. I like to think I’m pretty good at flowing at high speeds, but there’s always the chance that I miss something if I don’t have a copy of it, especially since audio can cut out on virtual platforms.
Kritiks: I love them! This was about 80% of what I did in debate, so I love seeing a good K round. However, a bad K debate is probably my least favorite thing to watch, so don’t think that I’ll vote for any kritik no matter what - you need to explain your position clearly, especially your alt.
Non-T affs: I read these for most of my junior and senior year, so I’m very comfortable rejecting/reinterpreting the topic as long as you tell me why I should and what your aff does instead. As far as T vs. a non-t aff — It’s not my favorite thing to see (I personally think reading a K or counter-method is more interesting and creative), but if it’s what you’re good at, go for it. aff still has to explain where they get offense and why topicality is bad, neg has to justify why the aff’s non-topical position is uniquely harmful/abusive, not just why defending the topic is good generally.
Phil/framework: I’m familiar with the basics (deont, virtue ethics, and consequentialism) more so than any other FW authors (especially really obscure ones). I’ll gladly judge other phil - I just may not have any experience with them, so you’ll have to explain it clearly and weigh well. If you could give a quick overview of the theory in non-jargony language during your 1ar/2nr that would also be super helpful. Know your position well and clarify exactly what offense does and doesn’t count under your framework, and you should be fine.
Theory: I generally find it to be unnecessary and used to make the round inaccessible. If there is legitimately no other way for you to respond to your opponent and/or they've done something really really abusive, then read theory. Otherwise, be creative and use logic to tell me why their argument doesn’t make sense - don’t rely on tricky wordings or surprise interps to get my ballot. Also slow down a bit and explain - I will miss something if you rattle off 3 standards in 5 seconds with minimal warranting.
Tricks: I'm ok with one or two spikes in an aff, but as far as a completely tricks case - please just don’t. I will not be amused, I will dock speaks, and you probably won’t get my ballot.
TLDR: Tech over truth. Go as fast as you want, but be clear. Tell me how to weigh. Extensions should include the original warrant. I'm good for LARP & policy arguments, I can evaluate K debate, and I am probably not your pick for a performance/non-T aff. Don't be rude to your opponent.
Cheat sheet:
LARP: 1-2
Theory: 1-2
Phil: 1
K: 3
Other: 3-5
I'd like to be part of the email chain, if there is one: lindseywilliams411@gmail.com
GEN: I competed on the circuit for 4 years and went to the TOC in LD. I currently coach for Harker. I'm most comfortable with policy-style arguments and LARP fare, along with theory.
-I default to an offense-defense paradigm. This is the only way I've found to judge debates that both makes sense and is fair, so if you don't want me to use it, you'll have to explain how else I should approach the round.
-True evidence ethics claims are not theory arguments. If you genuinely believe that your opponent has committed an evidence ethics violation, you need to tell me in those terms. The debate will end, the claim will be evaluated, and if there are tournament procedures for EE disputes, I'll initiate them.
-Disclosure is good and should be encouraged. I debated for a small school. I attended multiple tournaments without teammates or a coach. I could talk at length about why this is the best practice for small schools and lone wolf debaters. (Also, disclosure theory is boring, as are debates that come down to it.)
LARP: This was most of my circuit repertoire. I'm extremely comfortable judging these debates. Notes:
-The perm is a test of competition, not a change in advocacy. If you're going to kick something, it should be clean (concede defense on the link).
-Not going for something is not the same as kicking it.
T: I like a good T interp. As with all theory, the abuse story should be tailored to the shell and the violation; hurling around generic blocks about limits and ground will always be less compelling than a cohesive explanation of how your interp specifically encourages substantive debate. Notes:
-I tend to believe that topicality is a true argument. Do with that what you will.
-Someday, in a better place, in a better time, I dream of a world where a debater correctly explains genericity.
Theory: I have a decently low threshold for theory, with the exception of obviously frivolous stuff (e.g. highlighting theory, font theory, etc. — but don't stress too much about what "frivolous" means here, trust your gut). Notes:
-I soft default to competing interps > reasonability, no RVIs > RVIs, and fairness > education. By "default" I mean that in a circumstance where neither debater says any of these words, this is where I fall. It's not a hard preference.
-I won't vote on spikes where the warrant only appears in the last speech. The abuse story has to be delineated in the actual shell.
-I'm a pretty hard sell on RVIs. For one thing, I think going for them is usually a bad strategic move; I'm also disposed against them on theoretical grounds. Still, I'll hear the argument.
-Specific articulations of the nature of the abuse strengthen the shell. The best carded standards in the world won't really help if you can't point to who or what component of debate is being injured by the violation.
-I will not vote on 2AR theory unless there is something truly reprehensible in the 2NR. To me, this is the same thing as judge intervention, and my threshold for it is accordingly high.
K: I've encountered most standard lit on the circuit. I appreciate a K that's well-written and well-researched, and not just the same literature being recut and recycled for the umpteenth time. Notes:
-I need a clear explanation of the alt. I have to know where the solvency is coming from, and to what extent it's working.
-Mindset shift alts probably aren't abusive so much as they make for an uphill solvency debate.
-The K can be leveled against theory, but I default to theory > K unless the debater tells me otherwise. This is another soft default.
Tricks: no
Performance/kritikal affs: Fine, but please give me explicit instructions on how you want me to weigh it in the round. I have a LARP brain and I think in terms of offense/defense, so telling me how your interpretive framework can fit into that paradigm will make both of our lives easier.
Speaks: I average around a 28.5 for any given tournament, and I go up or down from there. I tend to give points for good strategy and smart decision-making in the late speeches. I don't disclose speaks.
If you have any questions, shoot me an email or approach me before the round.
(my daughter wrote this for me based on what she thinks I know about debate)
General:
Don't read bad args just to pick up an easy ballot or I'll roast you in the rfd about how illogical they are. If the arg is dropped and weighed, I guess I'll still vote on them.
Don't read bad evidence, that's annoying and sneaky.
I like narrative debates! And weighing!
Speed:
I can handle a little speed but definitely don't spread.
Second Half:
Parallelism. I won't vote off of arguments that weren't in both summary and final focus.
Technical stuff:
I understand turns and will vote on them. Usually tech>truth but if you're using oddly technical jargon explain what it is (fiat, topicality,etc). Do not run theory/ks unless you can go slowly and clearly tell me how my ballot functions in the round.
Virtual delivery - I will not count off for things that are out of your control like where you are or how clearly I can see you. However, if there are audio issues where I cannot understand you, it will be very hard for me to judge appropriately.
Interp events - Tell me a story and make me feel something. I need to believe that you are this/these character(s). If I do not believe that, you lost me. Some things to help with that are making sure you match your character physically and incorporate clear blocking so that I know what is going on. However, blocking should always be motivated and adding to the story, not distracting or taking away. Creative blocking using the camera and things like that is always fun to see. Voice inflection is so important. Are you just giving me lines you memorized or are you becoming the character and understanding how your character would say them? Pieces that are too vulgar with language or content may be docked. It needs to add to the story, not take-away. Having a strong intro to tell me why this story is relevant and how it could make a difference will help as well.
Oratory/Info - Organization of the speech needs to be appropriate and try to captivate my attention while including tone and inflection. Be creative! Topics that are not often talked about or having a fresh perspective are ways I will remember you and set you apart. Be careful when using hand gestures. They can become distracting at times, so make sure they feel natural and help communicate effectively. Most importantly, make sure there is sufficient evidence to support your claims. Info- boards have to add to the speech not just use them for the sake of using them. I also have to be able to see/read what is on the board.
Extemp - I prefer there to be structure to your speech as well as evidence to support your claims. Careful not to let your opinion take over. At this level, the cleaner your speech is, the better.
Debate: I do not have a ton of experience with Debate, but I look for those who are strong speakers and also have the best argument. I also do not advocate for rapid-fire delivery and I judge more on quality rather than quantity.
UPDATED 2/21/20: I do not judge as often as I may once have. At most local events, I find myself on the operations side of a tournament.
That should not terrify you – I am a career public servant, who happens to coach debate because I appreciate everything that it taught me as a student. You should assume that I approach debate rounds this way: what is the best decision I can make given the information presented to me?
It may sound old-fashioned, but I do not wish to be on any email chains. I have sadly witnessed teams answering entire disadvantages not read by their opponents simply because they were included in said distribution. Not to be outdone, I have read ballots where judges voted on evidence that nobody read. I pledge to keep the best flow I can. If I need to see a piece of evidence, and the particular league or tournament's rules allow for that, I will call for it.
If you are short on time reading this, my paradigm can be expressed in six (6) words: do your thing and be nice. If you are really short on time, we can go with four (4): old guy, still flows.
Policy:
1. Speed is fine, but clarity is necessary. I cannot vote on what I do not have typed/written down. I try hard to listen to the text of the evidence presented;
2. Open cross-examination is acceptable, but if it is clear than one member of the team is not able to participate at the same level, speaker points will suffer;
3. My preference is tabula rasa; in the absence of any alternative framework, I look first to any potential violation(s) of stock issues and then default to a policymaking perspective.
Lincoln Douglas:
1. I do not mind an LD round that gets on down the flow;
2. My preference is tabula rasa; in the absence of any alternative framework, I will default to a whole resolution lens looking first to the value/value criterion debate.
Public Forum/Speech:
1. Nothing earth-shattering here. I am less speed tolerant in public forum and I will simply apply the ballot criteria to whatever speech event is at hand.
Regardless of event, we enter the debate knowing the resolution and some basic rules of the road (e.g., speech times, likely printed on the ballot). By tabula rasa I mean that the debaters establish the framework for evaluating debates. You should do what you do best and do it well. Arguments should have three parts – a claim, a warrant, and some sort of greater implication regardless of your style.
I still believe that good decisions should flow like water. Great rebuttals frame debates and clash wins rounds. My ballots will provide a succinct RFD, possibly pointing out either strengths or opportunities for improvement as we progress through the speeches. 3AR/3NR oral critiques nauseate me: what I say out loud (if disclosure is permitted) will almost certainly match what I am placing on your ballot. Your coach should see comments too. You did not go to the dentist; my RFD is never going to read “oral.”
Finally, be respectful of your partners, opponents, and judges. I have zero tolerance for poor behavior in debate rounds.
Apple Valley 2021 update - ballot specifically instructs me: "In the novice division, debaters are expected to make arguments that are appropriate for their experience level. Judges should consider only arguments that, in their best judgement, are explained in a way that a first-semester novice could reasonably be expected to understand and effectively engage."
So, I will exclude certain arguments from evaluation for the first time ever. What certain arguments? I'll know it when I see it but as a general guide: easy to understand apriori's and NIBs are fine, but Lacan, insanely dense trick affs, theory shells, most pre-fiat offense, I will ignore. If you have a question about any specific argument don't be afraid to ask, I'll be in round room as early as possible.
Updated - 9/22/2019
Hi, I’m Lucas Bryant, I debated for around 4 years on the national circuit in LD and have dabbled in policy, congress once, and PF like twice.
Email - bryant.lucas1205@gmail.com
General info- primary role is minimizing intervention and be tab, assumptions like the AC is 6 minutes and conceded arguments are true I will enforce probably unless convinced otherwise. Everything is fair game. Also, tech > truth. For lay, I give leeway if neither debater extends but if one does and the other doesn't it's an auto-L for the person who didn't.
Speaks- I use John Staunton's speaks mechanism now. https://www.dropbox.com/s/uiw9hvdy5yl0t1h/Speaker%20Points.pdf?dl=0
Framework- losing influence in the meta which is a shame, determines what offense is / what impacts are/ how to weigh. I default to epistemic confidence, Biggest mistake in framework rounds is just a bunch of conceded preclusion claims with no interaction, I’ll attempt to resolve these by doing work myself which I don’t want to do.
-TJFs: fine and strategic, maybe abusive, idk that's for y'all to settle.
-Triggers/Contingent Standards: abusive but can be funny
-Skep: mixed feelings, seems lazy in terms of debate application, read unique skep args plz. Skep aff’s are always welcome btw.
-Impact justified fwrks: are awful and hurt my feelings, this won’t hurt your speaks or change my evaluation if it's not an issue brought up by the debaters in the round
Theory- I understand theory for it's strategic purpose. I don’t default on any paradigm issue, they should be in round, things like spirit v text of interp obviously don’t matter if no semantic I-meets are made. Also, I’m fine if counter-interp txt is just “I’ll defend the violation” or “converse / inverse of their interp”. I will never “gut check” against theory args. The "frivolous" nature of shells is determined in round.
-Interps: don’t repeat while extending, I got it the first time, just say “extend the interp”. You should flash this / type it out at a minimum. Don’t be too lengthy or too short. Positively / Negatively worded interp as metatheory makes no sense to me - still will vote on it though.
-offensive counter-interps: just read it a new off / meta-theory shell, calling it an offensive counter-interp seems like you’re just trying to get an RVI when you don’t need one to begin with.
-spikes: are great and some are probably a bit necessary depending on the flavor of the aff. I’m totally fine with hearing a 5 min UV with generic pre-empts and your speaks won’t suffer, you do you.
-disclosure: My opinions don’t matter in round, I’ll vote on disclosure happily if you won it but won’t like cap speaks or vote someone down solely for not disclosing if it’s not mentioned in-round.
K’s- where some of the best debates happen, nothing is cooler than an amazing 2nr collapse, but be slightly original please.
-Performance: they’re fine, make it clear whether or not the act of performance is pre-fiat offense for you.
-Literature: not going to list what I’ve read or authors I like, if you have a concern just ask before the round. My familiarity with any lit base has no influence on my decision. If an understandable claim is conceded that has a complex warrant, an absurdly long explanation isnt necessary.
-K’s v/of Framework: probably slightly abusive possibly but eh who cares, I'll default to the ROTB and standard/value criterion being on the same layer - if Kant is evil in it's application (w/o any like Teehan weighing) but it's true in determining what is ethical then that doesn't matter. Preclusion / Hijack claims make sense in this debate.
-“Going Right”: is maybe not as strategic but equally compelling, read theory to not engage if you want too, or even better, do both.
LARP- plans are cool, soft-left aff’s are dominating right now but that doesn’t mean I don’t enjoy a good extinction impact. I've done a decent bit of LARPing (reading a burner aff, crazy strategic) but rarely against a larp debater so not sure how I would be at resolving a pure Adv CP v. plan strat. But I've been in these rounds and babe some experience, it probably won't be an issue.
Misc- sit, stand, lay on the floor or levitate, idc as long as I can hear you clearly. Flashing isn’t prep time but if everyone in round wants it to be then it’s up to y’all. Embedded clash doesn’t exist unless made explicit or it’s your opponents lack of signposting / messiness was the cause of why an argument would need to be evaluated with embedded clash. If there's anything I didn't explicitly mention, just ask.
Please add me on the email chain: amandaciocca@gmail.com
I feel like this is important to add at the top bc no one reads paradigms anymore: OPINIONS ON 1AC DISCLO AND TRICKS HAVE CHANGED
Most of you are familiar with my judging preferences but just a little background on me. FSU grad with a Bachelor in Intersectional Women's Studies and Media/Comm. I competed in LD for four years (Im sure you can find my records somewhere idk, I've judged enough to be qualified anyway), I also competed as a varsity policy team for UMW my freshman year of college pre-covid. I worked at TDC over the summer and I privately coach some kiddos so I've been active in the activity. I also am the co-founder of the Latine and Hispanic Debate Foundation, follow us on ig @landhdebatefoundation
Im most comfortable with K's, K v T-fwk, LARP, and some phil, slightly more comfy evaling substantive theory debates.
Favorite things I've read/ judged: Borderlands, any Anzaldúa position, Crenshaw, Latine IdPol, Intersectional Fem, Set Col, Black Fem, Queer Pess, and NonT K Affs v T-fwk/Cap.
Alright here are some people I paradigmatically agree with: Deena Mcnamara, Charles Karcher, Delon Fuller, Joey Tarnowski, Jack Ave, Elijah Pitt, Lily Guizat, and Isaac Chao.
Standing conflicts: Clear Lake MK, Clear Lake RM, Heights CT, Heritage Independent WT, Clear Springs EG, Lincoln East BH
Pref guide:
K: 1
LARP: 1
Phil: 2/3 (more comfy w Kant, Hobbes, Rawls, Butler)
Trad: 3
Theory: 2
Tricks: 4
________________________________________________
LD Specs:
Does Amanda vote you down for being mean? This seems to be a question floating around so I'll just say this: any blatant verbal discrimination/harassment of an opponent will get you an L 20. I don't tolerate in-round violence, I will stop the round and will ask you to leave the room. HOWEVER, if you just are slightly big headed and/or arrogant idc. You do you, but just be respectful to other people in the room. Please use proper pronouns!! The round is no place for hate.
Theory: I bumped theory from a 3 to 2 because I've been enjoying it a lot more. Used to really hate 1AC disclo but have recognized its necessity sometimes. Also have started to really enjoy a good theory debate but PLEASE read paradigm issues on your shells! I've voted recently on ROTB Spec, ASpec, Disclo, and CSA. Let that guide your prefs however you'd like.
Traditional-I am perfectly alright with traditional debate. I loved it as a freshman and sophomore. Highly recommend preffing me for a lay judge. I value debaters making strats accessible for all debaters. Make sure that you are weighing and using that short 1AR/2AR to crystalize and extend your arguments. Nothing is ever implied, please use well-warranted args. I have so much respect for strong traditional debaters on the circuit but I will hold you to the same standards as I hold progressive kiddos.
LARP-I'm fine with LARP debate. Policy-making is cool, do whatever you want. Plan texts need a solvency advocate, idc what ur coach says. CP's are cool, make sure there is some sort of net benefit and also if you don't answer the perm I'll be very sad. DA's are fun as long as there is a clear link to the aff, also for the love of god weigh. Your UQ needs to be from like two days ago PLEASE, enough of UQ from five years ago.
K- K's are groovy. I think non-t k affs are cool, just need clear explanation why that is good for debate. Don't like when it creates assumptions about your opponents identity because that just creates hostile rounds (that I have definitely had and they are not fun). Intersectional Fem Lit was my jam, everyone can read fem (it's not a framework that is meant to exclude people from reading it, love a good fem debate :)) Please extend the text of the ROTB, I need some framing when extending. Please refer to my tricks section to see my opinion on K tricks.
Phil-I love good phil debates, I'm comfortable with standard Util v Kant and more abstract framework debates. I think if you go this route you need to win why your paradigm is ethically relevant, and then be able to win offense/defense underneath that framing mech. Love Derrida, Hooks, and anything that has a little philosophical spice.
Tricks- LOVE K TRICKS BRING THEM BACK! Have voted on Indexicals and Solipsism. This is probably my weakest place in regards to judging but that doesn't mean I won't try. If you want to pref me and read tricks then just make sure they are clear and there is an explanation somewhere in the round about how it functions in the round and I'll try my best to judge accordingly.I hate debates that are just sloppy tricks debate, if this applies to you then dont pref me at all like please don't pref me if you just want to meme around.
Performance-I have a pretty decent ability to judge a performance debate and I think they are pretty dope. However, I don't think that debaters need to degrade their opponent during a round to "get the point across" especially because I think that ruins the integrity of the round itself. If you are going to engage in an in-round performance, please extend it in rebuttals or else I fail to understand how it is important to the aff/neg.
If you see my pronoun listed as "judge," please note that it started as a joke at my expense. In the end, I've left it as a reminder to judge every competitor as an individual with dignity and without bias.
-----------------Speech-----------------
Do your best and be respectful of others in the room. Tell me if you want time signals. I will try and ask every competitor what they want, but it is the affirmative responsibility of each competitor to communicate what they want. I expect that you will know the rules and requirements of whichever league you are competing. Unless you are double-entered, you are expected to stay the whole time. If you are double-entered, please tell me before we begin, and do not interrupt a fellow presenter while leaving or entering. I will go in the order of the ballot. Give a warning if the piece you are presenting might cause anyone discomfort. If you need to leave for a necessary reason, please do so quietly. (You don't need to tell me why, but I may check to see if you're ok after. I worry a lot, sorry!).
Silence your personal technology devices. I would suggest using airplane mode to limit any visual notifications. Honor your fellow competitors and yourself with being mindful of your surroundings.
-----------------Debate-----------------
For LD, if you are not talking, you're prepping.
There is one official time-keeper, the judge(s). You are welcome to time yourself using your phone or another device as a timer. Your timer should be silenced and not interrupting you or your opponent's speaking time. Please ask if you want notifications whether on prep or debating and I'll be happy to let you know. When your time is up, I will inform you quietly so you can finish your sentence.
From the 2022 NCFL Bylaws "The resolution is a proposition of value, not policy. Debaters are to develop argumentation on the resolution in its entirety, based on conflicting underlying principles and values to support their positions. To that end, they are not responsible for practical applications. No plan or counterplan shall be offered by either debater."
Be polite. Argue your case effectively and clearly. As the debater, you (or your team) will decide that method. Speaking more quickly will not help you case if you are not clear. As a judge, I will attempt to read up on your topic of debate ahead of time, but it is best to assume that I know nothing and provide definitions accordingly. Be sure to ask both myself and your opponent if we are ready.
Silence your personal technology devices. I would suggest using airplane mode to limit any visual notifications. Anything that interrupts your speaking time will count against you. Doubly so if you interrupt your opponent. I'd appreciate it, as a courtesy, if you are using a phone for notes, etc (if allowed for your style of debate) to warn me ahead of time.
Internet access is being allowed in some tournaments. The rules governing access can generally be found on the tabroom page for the tournament. I have every expectation that you will use network access honorably and ethically.
I have been asked many times if I have a preference for types of arguments or styles of debate and the answer is that it doesn't matter. You are are the speaker, not I. Progressive, traditional, plans, counterplans, theories, or kritiks, your job is to convince me that your side's position is the strongest.
Extemp Debate:
Be prepared to move quickly through the round. Reminder: The use of evidence is permitted, but not a focal point due to the limited time available to prepare a case for the round. We will NOT be sending cases back and forth (unless you truly want to use your limited prep and speaking time to do so. I will be judging you exclusively on what you say out loud, so I don't recommend it!) I would recommend that you not spread. If you choose to, you'd best be on the top of your articulation game. Again, I will be judging you exclusively on what you say out loud, so I don't recommend it!
Policy Debate (CX): (Feel free to do the 1950s version of a policy round. You know, before they developed spreading. Since this is unlikely....) If you are passing cards back and forth, give me no reason to wonder if you are appropriating prep time. If you are passing cards, do so expeditiously. (Why yes, I'd like to be on the email chain! My email is tim@squirrelnest.net) Be prepared with USB drives or another medium for sharing documents. Please note, this isn't supposed to be war of the USB drives. Taking more than a minute to transfer a file will add up. Out of respect for your fellow competitors and the tabroom, I will be urging you in-round to move forward expeditiously. Especially at the varsity level. There is no requirement to be able to pass cases or
----World Schools & Parliamentary Debate ----
I'm not going to treat this as LD/CX Jr, honest. This is NOT an event that should be featuring spreading, and the speed should max out at the upper end of a standard conversation.
NO OFFTIME ROADMAPS!!!
Argument execution is important. Each speaker should communicate using an effective combination of public speaking norms. Namely conversational speech rate, appropriate pitch and tone, and confident body language. Eye contact is key, so limit what you're reading verbatim from paper. If you read from a paper in a monotone voice for 8 long minutes, you will put me to sleep as well as your opponents. Please don't do this!
Case construction should flow seamlessly and I recommend it be logically laid out. Evidence calls are not allowed generally. Check the tournament's rules. If you think something is wrong, well, that's what POIs are for.
Do NOT abuse POIs. I will heavily dock speaker points in the event of any abuse.
NSDA nationals note: No electronic devices!!! Everything is on paper! (Other tournaments: internet use will be allowed on a per tournament basis). Any timers should be silenced!
Use of knocking and tapping in the appropriate manner is encouraged. My timer will ding for protected time. Humor will never be amiss in any round I judge.
Ask me questions before the round begins.
cards, so if there is a technology problem, we will be moving forward. Be prepared!!!
-----------------Big Questions-----------------
This is NOT an event that should be featuring spreading. Your need to appeal to the philosophy of your position in a orderly efficient manner in important. Collegial discussion needs to be your manner to approach this and be successful. Please note, this is one of the few events where a judge can declare a forfeit without consulting tabroom. You MUST remain topical. This is NOT an event to play games with kritiks and counterplans, etc. I have every expectation that you will take this event seriously. In doing so, you show respect for your team, your opponents, your judge, and yourself.
-----Legacy Pandemic Rules-----
Pandemic edition: Tell me if you can't stand or if there is another environmental concern in your presentation area. I know a lot of you are in bedrooms and otherwise at home. Do the best you can. I will NOT being taking in to account your environment with respect to your rankings.
Upon entering the room, put the title of your piece in the chat window and list whether you are double entered. Time signals can be in the form of an on-screen timepiece or traditional time signals.
I am a parent judge and you will need to persuade me with your arguments. I don’t do a detailed flow so please feel free to repeat. Speaking clearly will definitely help me understand your stand better. Value and value criterion are very important to me and my decision will be based on the values used to debate your case. Speak at a medium speed (3) so I can understand. Foul language and use of jargons is unacceptable.
Experience-
I have done all debate events, but I have substantially more experience with LD (both traditional and progressive). Four time state qualifier and two time national qualifier, once in Extemp and once in Worlds. While competing in Worlds, my team placed sixth and I placed fourth speaker.
Worlds-
I will judge the round how it should be judged according to Worlds norms and standards. Don’t try to be too limiting with framing, definitions or models. I will not evaluate the round using any other influences (LD, CX, PF). Ideal speed would be about conversational, and spreading will result in a a reduction of speaker points, speaking quickly to cover everything may not. I love POIs when done tastefully. Don’t stand up constantly with the sole purpose of distracting your opponent, but everybody needs to be asking them (not just the same team members). I also think that using POIs as more than just questions is a phenomenal strategy (20% of your overall rank).
LD-
Framework-
I prefer to have a framework to weigh the round with. Some sort of weighing mechanism makes the round more clear. I tend to evaluate different impacts though that weighing mechanism presented and won.
Arguments-
I need warrants and impacts. I will vote on most anything not obviously offensive (racism, sexism, homophobia ect.). While I have some familiarity with K's, it is not anything close to being extensive. If you decide to run one, you will probably have to give me more analysis and slow down more for claims and warrants (adding me to an email chain or flashing it won't hurt). I also require clash.
PF-
A framework is preferred, but not necessary. There needs to be clash and the other team's case must be addressed. My least favorite debates are those that heavily center on only one case because that usually results in a purely defense/offense debate.
Speaking-
I would rank myself as about a 7 as far as speed goes. Answers to questions-
I don't care where you sit
I don't care if you time on your phone
I don't need to see if your laptop/phone is on airplane mode
I don't care if you sit or stand for cross ex
Hello!
I am a parent judge who has judged pretty much every event offered by NSDA, so I will explain what that means for you, and what I’m looking for.
I value speaker points as much as actual technique, meaning that I prefer you speak clear and concise rather than fast and technical. If you chose to do the latter, however, I will be able to keep up and score accordingly.
I do not consider any arguments that haven’t been fully extended in final focus, nor will consider cards mentioned past first speaker’s summary.
I am not a big fan of theory, personally I think it is sidestepping the overall art of debate, so if you feel the need to use theory, make sure it is convincing enough for me to make an exception.
If it takes you longer than a minute to send a card, I’m taking the remained out of your prep time. When reading cards please say month and year.
Remember debate is supposed to be as fun and supportive as it is informative and important. Please be respectful of one another, I do not tolerate rude or hurtful comments.
Experience: I debated for 4 years for Austintown Fitch High School in Ohio. I was in Lincoln Douglas for 3 years, and Public Forum for 1. I just finished my fifth year of coaching high school LD Debate. I was at John F. Kennedy Catholic HS in Warren, OH for 3 years and am currently at Columbiana HS in Columbiana, OH.
Community Involvement: I am the Administrative Director of Triumph Debate. Triumph Debate is a debate camp for high school LD Debate. We also publish topic briefs based on the NSDA LD resolutions and offer educational resources.
Education: I am a student at Youngstown State University in Youngstown, OH studying Language Arts Education. I love a smart debate!
What kind of judge am I? I am a flow judge. If you cover the flow better than your opponent, there's a good chance that I will give you the win.
Style: As a whole, Ohio is a traditional style state. I have never debated outside of the state of Ohio. As I have no national circuit experience, I can and will vote you down for the following things:
-
Use of Ks
-
Theory that lacks sufficient explanation
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Spreading!!
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Decorum- be courteous with one another. I want to see an intelligent debate and being rude takes away from that.
Speaker Points:
Under 26: I don’t anticipate having to go this low at a national tournament, but if you do one of the things I listed above, you can expect this. If you seem like you have no idea what you’re talking about and did no prep, you can also expect to score in this range.
26-27: Solid debate, didn’t do anything offensive, exhibited some knowledge of the subject at hand. Could be more prepared. If you have obvious style issues (hard to follow/understand) you could score here.
28-29: Very good job throughout the entirety of the debate.
30: One of the best I have ever seen. Outstanding knowledge and application of philosophy, which case is based upon. Superior command of the room while still treating your opponent like a dignified human being. Clearly stated warrants for your claims that were extended throughout the debate.
Disclosure:
I am a fan of disclosure and will disclose at tournaments that allow the practice.
Experience: I debated in PFD and Congress both in-state and on the national circuit from 2008 to 2012. I coached high school and middle school debate from 2012 to 2015. I graduated from ASU with a degree in Political Science in 2015. I worked in political campaigning for 4 years, and now I'm in my third year of law school at ASU.
Preferences: I'll ultimately vote on the issues you tell me to vote on and weigh how you tell me to weigh if you make a persuasive argument as to why I should do that. That is why it's so critically important for you to tell me what to vote on, how to weigh it, and why. I was a progressive PFD debater for the years I debated, but debate evolves quickly and it's been quite a few years. I don't prefer any particular type of arguments, but I do prefer impacts that are grounded in reality and judged against a clear value structure, because I think there's a lot of educational value in that. Explain clearly what you're doing, why you're doing it, and why its impacts outweigh those of your opponent. If you debate so that the flow is clean and there are clear and persuasive justifications for the choices you're making, you'll be in good shape.
I debated Policy for 6 years (2014-2020), so I’m pretty much fine with anything. Also did some PF and LD. I’ve also been out of debate for a few years though and have little topic knowledge. Don’t be offensive. I mostly read topical affs and was predominantly policy debater on the neg. I am fine and familiar with Kritiks, but it wasn’t my go to 2NR strategy. I love T debate and theory, but that very much does not mean RVIs or tricks, which I will generally not vote on.
Prep ends when you hit send on the email, not before.
Add me to the Email Chain: beh2024@stanford.edu
I am a parent judge with limited previous judging experience.
My preferred rate of delivery is a 2-3 out of 5. If you are unclear, I will not flow your arguments even if they are true. This helps me understand your arguments and better allow me to evaluate the round.
Substance debate and contention level debate under the resolution is most important. Framework is important as well, but you should make the best argument as I will vote for the most persuasive speaker.
It is very important to have strong evidence to back up your claims. If you make assertions without good authors/sources/credentials to support your position, that is not a strong case.
It is recommended that you include voting issues at the end of the round that crystallize your position and your speech so that I, as the judge, know what to vote on and who to vote for.
Moderate speed. I consider both style of debate and strength of argument important
I have coached for over 15 years and before that, I competed in high school both at state and nats (policy debate in particular).
For any debate, I'm old school. Debate is about a meaningful exchange of ideas, presenting them in such a way as to persuade your audience. I don't like debate jargon. While I know what you mean when you say "cross apply my "Pena 19 card," that doesn't change anything in my book. Apply the substance of that card to the argument you are trying to make. I flow, but I don't flow everything.
I don't enjoy wastes of time. If you want to exchange cases before the round, that's your right. But don't ask for cards in between speeches. Wait for cross ex or cross fire (when it was intended) and make it a formal part of the questioning process.
Warrants are very important to me. Explain to me why you draw a particular conclusion. If you say universal childcare is bad because it increases feelings of anxiety and depression, you better explain to me why (and don't simply reply on a statistic). I want to know that you understand what you are arguing.
I don't accept whatever you tell me just because you have a card for it, I'm not a tabula rasa judge. If what you say doesn't make sense (within a reasonable amount of latitude), don't expect me to buy your argument.
Lastly, I'm not a fan of speed. Pretend I'm a lay judge who keeps giving you a quizzical look whenever you speed up. If I can't follow what you're saying, it is as though you never said it.
This activity is about learning how to be better communicators in life, not simply to win a competition.
I did public forum for 4 years in South Florida at University School.
As far as what it takes to win my ballot I'm fairly simple. Because I'm from a PF background I prefer arguments having to do with the topic as opposed to things like theory because I'm not as familiar with it. With that being said I still will evaluate theory and do enjoy new types of argumentation just make sure you're very clear about what I'm flowing and how you want me to evaluate it. I'm not comfortable with judging K's as I'm not very familiar with them. Also PLEASE signpost it makes it so much easier for me to flow and I'll be a lot happier.
I'm fine with speed but no spreading or else I'll start crying and I can't read my flow if there are tears on it.
If you can make the round funny I'll like you more and I'll give you higher speaker points.
Be nice to each other because it makes me uncomfortable when people are mean to each other but a little bit of sass is appreciated.
Old paradigm, I will no longer give extra speaks for anything listed as extra speaks, but I think this paradigm is a classic: https://tinyurl.com/yyhknlsn
[Updated 3/3/2021] In fact, here is a list of things I dislike that I will probably not be giving good speaks for: https://tinyurl.com/55u4juwp
Email: conal.t.mcginnis@gmail.com
Tricks: 1*
Framework: 1
Theory: 1
K: 6
LARP: Strike
To clarify: I like K's and LARP the LEAST (as in, you should rate me a 6 if you like Ks and strike me if you LARP a lot) and I like Tricks, Framework, and Theory the MOST (you should rate me a 1 if you like Tricks, Framework, and Theory a lot).
Util is bad enough to be beaten by sneezing on it
Overall I am willing to vote on anything that isn't an instance of explicit isms (racism, sexism, etc.).
Other than that, here's a bunch of small things in a list. I add to this list as I encounter new stuff that warrants being added to the list based on having difficulty of decision in a particular round:
1. Part in parcel of me not being a great judge for LARP due to my low understanding of complex util scenarios is that I am not going to be doing a lot of work for y'all. I also will NOT be reading through a ton of cards for you after the round unless you specifically point out to me cards that I should be reading to evaluate the round properly.
2. I know it's nice to get to hide tricks in the walls of text but if you want to maximize the chances that I notice something extra special you should like slightly change the tone or speed of delivery on it or something.
3. If you have something extremely important for me to pay attention to in CX please say "Yo judge this is important" or something because I'm probably prepping or playing some dumbass game.
4. I will evaluate all speeches in a debate round.
"Evaluate after" arguments: If there are arguments that in order for me to evaluate after a certain speech I must intervene, I will do so. For example, if there is a 1N shell and a 1AR I-meet, I will have to intervene to see if the I-meet actually meets the shell.
Update: In order for me to evaluate "evaluate after" arguments, I will have to take the round at face value at the point that the speeches have stopped. However, as an extension of the paradigm item above, the issue is that many times in order for me to determine who has won at a particular point of speeches being over, I need to have some explanation of how the debaters thing those speeches play out. If either debater makes an argument for why, if the round were to stop at X speech, they would win the round (even if this argument is after X speech) I will treat it as a valid argument for clarifying how I make my decision. Assuming that the "evaluate after" argument is conceded/true, I won't allow debaters to insert arguments back in time but if they point out something like "judge, if you look at your flow for the round, if you only evaluate (for example) the AC and the NC, then the aff would win because X," then I will treat it as an argument.
Update P.S.: "Evaluate after" arguments are silly. I of course won't on face not vote on them, but please reconsider reading them.
Update P.S. 2: "Evaluate after" causes a grandfather paradox. Example: If "Evaluate after the 1NC" is read in the 1NC, it must be extended in the 2NR in order for me as the judge to recognize it as a won argument that changes the paradigmatic evaluation of the round. However, the moment that paradigmatic shift occurs, I no longer consider the 2NR to have happened or been evaluated for the purposes of the round, and thus the "Evaluate after the 1NC" argument was never extended and the paradigmatic evaluation shift never occurred.
5. "Independent voters" are not independent - they are dependent entirely on what is almost always a new framework that involves some impact that is presumed to be preclusive. I expect independent voter arguments to have strong warrants as to why their micro-frameworks actually come first. Just saying "this is morally repugnant so it's an independent voter" is not a sufficient warrant.
Also - independent voters that come in the form of construing a framework to an implication requires that you actually demonstrate that it is correct that that implication is true. For example, if you say "Kant justifies racism" and your opponent warrants why their reading of the Kantian ethical theory doesn't justify racism, then you can't win the independent voter just because it is independent.
6. I will no longer field arguments that attempt to increase speaker points. I think they are enjoyable and fun but they likely are not good long term for the activity, given that when taken to their logical conclusion, each debater could allocate a small amount of time to a warranted argument for giving them a 30, and then simply concede each others argument to guarantee they both get maximal speaks (and at that point speaker points no longer serve a purpose).
7. My understanding of unconditional advocacies is that once you claim to defend an advocacy unconditionally you are bound to defending any disadvantages or turns to that advocacy. It does not mean you are bound to spend time extending the advocacy in the 2NR, but if the aff goes for offense in the 2AR that links to this unconditional advocacy and the neg never went for that advocacy, the aff's offense on that flow still stands.
Update: Role of the Ballots are frameworks and do not have a conditionality.
8. Don't like new 2AR theory arguments.
9. I don't time! Please time yourselves and time each other. I highly recommend that you personally use a TIMER as opposed to a STOPWATCH. This will prevent you from accidentally going over time! If your opponent is going over time, interrupt them! If your opponent goes over time and you don't interrupt them, then there's not much I can do. If you are certain they went over time and your opponent agrees to some other way to reconcile the fact that they went over time, like giving you more time as well, then go ahead. I do not have a pre-determined solution to this possibility. I only have this blurb here because it just happened in a round so this is for all of the future rounds where this may happen again.
10. If you do something really inventive and interesting and I find it genuinely funny or enjoyable to listen to and give good speaks for it, don't run around and tell any teammate or friend who has me as a judge to make the same arguments. If I see the exact same arguments I will probably consider the joke to be stale or re-used. Particularly funny things MIGHT fly but like, if I can tell it's just a ploy for speaks I will be sadge.
11. In general, for online events, say "Is anyone not ready" instead of "Is everyone ready" solely because my speaking is gated by pressing unmute, which is annoying when I have my excel sheet pulled up. I'll stop you if I'm not ready, and you can assume I'm ready otherwise. (However, for in person events, say "Is everyone ready" because I'm right there!)
12. I will not vote for you if you read "The neg may not make arguments" and the neg so much as sneezes a theory shell at you.
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For traditional rounds: speak and argue however you want (bar racism, sexism, homophobia, or any other ism or phobia)
*WHEN YOU READ TRICKS: I PREFER BEING UP FRONT ABOUT THEM. Pretending you don't know what an a priori is is annoying. Honestly, just highlight every a priori and tell your opponent: "here are all the a prioris"**.
**Seriously, I have yet to see anyone do this. Do it, it would be funny, I think.
I prefer a slow debate, as it ensures more engagement with the opponent's position, so spreading will not be good.
I am only confident in my ability to understand LARP.
Tradiational debate judge with an overall lay appeal. I will keep a flow of arguments, but expect clear signposting and warranting of arguments. Avoid spreading, I can keep up but if you don't make it digestible it will be missed.
You need to have a value and Value criterion.
you need to have logical arguments and sound evidence
you need to be respectful and fair
You need to attack your opponents case well and defend your own case well in order for you to win the round
I want a traditional LD round with a sound value and value criterion debate and as well as good contention debate. Talks slowly and clearly so I can understand.
Pronouns: He/him. Email: Pavelshirley@gmail.com add me to the chain
I am an LD debater at Mountain Brook. I am very much a flow judge and will vote entirely only arguments you have explicitly made. I am fine with speed and will listen to pretty much any argument that isn't open racist/homophobic/sexist/ etc.
This is meant to be an LD paradigm, so I'll just go over what I think of stock arguments.
Ks - I like Ks and understand most, but that does not mean you can just stand up and not explain your arguments. I am not a huge fan of High Theory. On the topic of K affs, I'm not a fan. That doesn't mean I won't listen to one but I'd really rather you don't. As a general rule, I expect any aff to advocacy statement whether you defend the resolution or not. Also perms, I really like smart perm debates.
DAs - I really like topic specific DAs. These are some of my favorite debates to watch and while I don't particularly like PTXs, Federalism, or other uber-generic DAs I'll still listen and readily vote on any that make it to the 2NR intact.
CPs - I'm also a fan of CPs. I love topic-specific advantage CPs but that doesn't mean I don't like more run-of-the-mill PICs. I also think embedded net-benefits are smart and will not be dogmatic about having the net-benefit be an explicitly separate DA.
Theory - I love theory. That is different from liking bad theory though. There should a somewhat true abuse claim and all the other generics going into theory. I really don't like answers like "gut check" or something similarly non-responsive. The way I see theory means that I view it as any other arguments, so if an argument is only "this is unfair" with no further warrants. Also layer, just do it. I'll listen.
LD FW - I don't like Phil and I love Util. The smartest thing to do in front of me is to just make it a Util debate and move on.
FW FW- I don't understand the trend in Circuit LD to discount FW against K affs and the like. I say this to mean that I like FW and will vote on it.
I'm not a fan of tricks like "resolved means the Rez has already happened" or including "presume neg" in one card tag and then making it the entire 2NR. I have a pretty low threshold for theory or analytics against these types of arguments.
AFF:
I already mentioned under Ks that I have a strong preference for topical affs. From there I have few preferences. I don't care about having big stick arguments or plan texts I just expect you to be able to defend both. Lastly, I don't like phil affs and I think the affirmative has to defend the implications of the affirmative.
Underview
Everything I have already said applies to Novice Debate but obviously, my threshold for the quality of argumentation is lower. Please don't be mean in CX and don't try to "teach" your opponent in round.
If you mention my paradigm to me it proves you read it, so I'll immediately give you 1 extra speaker point.
I am an LD debater at Mountain Brook High School and I used to participate in Policy and Public Forum.
Novice LD--Betty Gunn Invitational
If you are here looking at this page as a novice debater, good for you you're on the right track.
I view a round from the top down on my flow, starting with the framework. The framework debate needs to happen. Even if you and your opponent have the same framework, you need to explain how your case should be viewed by me as a judge using that framework.
PLEASE weigh impacts so I don't have to do it for you. I know that you are a novice so even if you try to weigh your arguments against your opponents.
General Note: I do not fully understand (and for this reason greatly dislike) Kantian frameworks. If you choose to run one, please explain it thoroughly to me. I will not vote for you just because you stumped your opponent with arguments they don't understand. You need to understand them too.
I'm willing to listen to any type of argument you'd like to read but I can get lost in heavy philosophy, especially if it's poorly explained.
I will not make arguments for you at the end of the round, but you can help me sign my ballot by telling my what my role as a judge is in the round.
I do not flow CX but I do observe and pay attention so bring back up points in later speeches about something that went down in CX if you want me to weigh it.
Don't steal prep time. I will reflect it in your speaker points if you do. I don't charge prep time for emailing or flashing your case to your opponent.
Also, make a Ratatouille reference and I'll give you 30 speaks--JK JK, but in all seriousness that is the best Pixar movie of all time and I'm willing to debate you about it after the round if you like.
Be courteous to your opponent and have fun!
Policy Style Args for LD
CPs--Love them as a 1N, hate them as a 2A. If you run a CP make sure you have a solid net benefit. I will vote on Condo, especially in LD, if you run a bad CP and then kick it in the last speech
DAs--these are good too; make sure you have a solid link; the first thing I look at when questioning the legitimacy of a DA is the link to the Aff
Ks--I know little to nothing about heavy theory or philosophy Ks; I will listen to you and try to understand but if you are thinking about running something like Baudrillard or Foucault or Psychoanalysis I will have zero clue what you are talking about; I'm totally down for you to run Capitalism or Security or something like that
FW--I will default to a policy-making framework unless you tell me otherwise; please don't make miniature DAs on the FW flow, I will be confused and you don't want that
Plan Texts in LD--they are ok; that being said, I'm not afraid to pull the trigger on Topicality
I'm totally fine with traditional LD arguments
I'm ok with speed but, like very judge, make sure you're clear. If you are not clear I will say clear once and then I will just stop flowing.
PLEASE DO IMPACT CALC at the end of the round. It's like filling out my ballot for me
PS impact calc doesn't just mean here's this impact it better than this one. You need to explain/defend your link chain too.
Feel free to ask me any question you'd like too
Good luck!
I'm a traditional LD judge - I prefer a traditional V/VC framework, and like a philosophical debate that substantively engages the resolution.
I have very limited tolerance for speed / lack of clarity.
Affiliation: Woodrow Wilson High School (DC- 2015-2020)
Other Coaching positions: T.A. Edison High School (VA -1993-1997), W.T. Woodson High School (VA--1997-2000).
Email: tim.stroud@k12.dc.gov. Please use the File Share function on NSDA Campus if it is available over an e-mail exchange.
Coach of 25+ years at the high school level. Coached debaters throughout the years who have excelled at the TOC, nationals, invitationals, etc. I think of myself as a tabula rasa judge. Beware when I have to do more work than the debaters in the round I am far less inclined to vote in a debater's favor. Simply put, the better debater is one who presents, defends, and ends their advocacy with a clear logical/analytical position based upon solid research and an understanding of the proposed resolution.
Avoid at all costs: Flex prep, tricks, non-topical positions, wasted time in rounds doing doc exchanges, long roadmaps, time suck arguments, cond args in LD (if the intent isn't to debate it throughout the round, then don't put it out on the flow...), generic shells with absolutely no links to the resolution--Baudrillard, etc. IF YOUR advocacy IS TO DISRESPECT, QUESTION THE VALIDITY OF, OR MAKE A MOCKERY OF DEBATE please change your tactics OR consider finding another activity to engage in.
Framework/Standards Debate--Set a standard for the round that makes sense in terms of the activity. If you are debating policy, make a policy argument and support it accordingly. If you are debating LD, let's hear about the resolution. Tangential theory arguments that lack a clear link make the purpose of the resolution suspect. I vote on whether to affirm or negate the resolution...not a critique on the consequential outcome of forced policy parameters.
Case Structure: Contentions should be carefully crafted, contain warrants and impacts and link back to the standards in order to provide a well researched/reasoned case position. A case position that is founded upon theory arguments that is without research or evidence to support the basic claims are simply assertions and will be treated as such. If they are run and the opponent fails to point that out they are passing up an opportunity for an easy ballot. Same goes for warrantless case/plan spikes that are advocated for in the constructive and then neglected/punted for the remainder of the round which serve merely as a strategic time suck for the opponent. I am not a judge that will pretty much ever vote for tricks, time suck arguments, or spreading intended to overwhelm the opponent. If you are offering 6 off case arguments in LD then I am probably listening to poorly constructed, warrentless claims that don't have a chance of overcoming affirmative presumption. Yup, I've actually voted on presumption arguments offered by the aff in the last year.
Neg: if the only thing run is a structural security K or overly general CP shells then be prepared to prove and defend specific links to the resolution. Aff debaters who can chip away at uniqueness, internal links, impacts, or alternatives are greatly rewarded.
Speed--I can flow it if you can get it out...however, if it is unintelligible or full of debate jargon that doesn't either further the argument or advance your position then I will be far less compelled to write it down, understand it, or vote for it at the end of the round. Simple lines of analytics are not arguments...they should be explained.
Flowing--I do
Time--Feel free to time yourselves, but excessive road maps, getting set up, outside of CX card checks, and things that should have been accomplished in CX or during prep time are a waste of time. Unless there are a slew of arguments that need to be reorganized for some reason at the top of the speech, simply sign-post as you speak.
RFD: If the tournament allows it I will provide my decision at the end of the debate. It is based upon the debater that provided--throughout the round--a logically sound set of arguments that are presented in a cogent manner. I have little tolerance for high school students who continue their advocacy during the RFD. If you would like to engage in a dialogue about the round during breaks in the tournament feel free to approach me in the hallway or cafeteria.
Speaking: This is a communication activity that carries with it standards for decorum. If you are appearing before a judge for the first time, I coach my debaters to always put their best foot forward. That goes towards always defaulting toward the norm that the judge expects you to stand for CX, address your advocacy toward the judge, and show a level of courteousness that one might encounter in any professional work environment. Speaker points reflect all of these elements.
I prefer policy arguments over critical arguments, but I will definitely pull the trigger if a K convinces me.
Spreading is good, just slow down for tags and for theory. If I can't understand what you're saying for those I'm not flowing it.
Tech over truth. If an argument is ridiculous explain to me why it's ridiculous.
Debate is an educational activity. Ask me any questions you have about my judge philosophy, RFD, or arguments in debate and I'll be happy to explain. My email is russdebate@gmail.com .
LD:
Framework is a lens to view arguments through. It tells me how to decide my ballot, but it doesn't write the ballot. A conceded framework is not a round deciding event, but it decides which impacts I vote for.
I prefer a clear, evidenced-based debate.
Don't let my experience fool you into thinking I like fast, jargony debates.
Use an email chain - include me (lizannwood@hotmail.com) on it, and be honest about the evidence. Paraphrasing is one of my biggest pet peeves. (Post-rounding and making me wait for endless exchanges of evidence are the others).
I will leave my camera on, so you can see me. You can trust you have my full attention, and if connectivity issues affect any of the speeches, I'll audibly interrupt you and stop the timer till connections improve (within reason, of course).
If the timer is stopped, no one is prepping.
Avoid talking over each other online -it makes it impossible for your judges to hear either of you.
Don't be rude or condescending. You can be authoritative while also being polite.
Experience:
Mountain Brook Schools Director of Speech and Debate 2013 - current
Mountain Brook High School debate coach 2012-2013
Thompson High School policy debater 1991-1995
I'm a parent judge and will vote on what I feel is the most persuasive. Please present your case in a comprehensible way. Please do not use debate jargon and please do not spread. If I don't understand you, I will not be able to vote for you.
I am currently a policy and PF coach at Taipei American School. My previous affiliations include Fulbright Taiwan, the University of Wyoming, Apple Valley High School, The Harker School, the University of Oklahoma, and Bartlesville High School.
Email for the chain: lwzhou10 at gmail.com
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TOC Public Forum
Put the Public back in Public Forum.
I won't vote for arguments spread, theory, kritiks, or anything unrelated to the truth or falsity of the resolution.
I don't want to hear spreading, kritiks, theory, etc. I find it extremely difficult to vote for arguments that lack resolutional basis (e.g., most theory or procedural arguments, some kritikal arguments, etc.). I find trends to evade debate over the topic to be anathema to my beliefs about what Public Forum debate ought to look like.I care that you debate the topic in a way that reflects serious engagement with the relevant scholarly literature. I would also prefer to judge debates that do not contain references to arcane debate norms or jargon.
Additionally, I expect that your evidence abides by NSDA rules as outlined in the NSDA Evidence Guide. If I find evidence that does not conform to these guidelines, I will minimally disregard that piece of evidence and maximally vote against you.
tl;dr won't blink twice about voting against teams that violate evidence rules or try to make PF sound like policy-lite.
Other Things
Exchanging evidence in a manner consistent with the NSDA's rules on evidence exchange has become a painfully slow process. Please simply set up an email chain or use an online file sharing service in order to quickly facilitate the exchange of relevant evidence. Calling for individual pieces of evidence appears to me as nothing more than prep stealing.
If the Final Focus is all read from the computer, just send me the speech docs before the debate starts to save us some time. I'll also cap your speaks at 28.5.
I do not believe that either team has any obligation to "frontline" in second rebuttal, but my preferences on this are malleable. If "frontlining" is the agreed upon norm, I expect that the second speaking team also devote time to rebuttals in the constructive speeches.
The idea of defense being "sticky" seems illogical to me.
There is also a strong trend towards under-developing arguments in an activity that already operates with compressed speech times. I also strongly dislike the practice of spamming one-line quotes with no context (or warrant) from a dozen sources in a single speech. I will reward teams generously if they invest in a few well-warranted arguments which they spend time meaningfully weighing compared to if they continue to shotgun arguments with little regard for their plausibility or quality.
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Policy
Stolen from Matt Liu: "Feb 2022 update: If your highlighting is incoherent gibberish, you will earn the speaker points of someone who said incoherent gibberish. The more of your highlighting that is incoherent, the more of your speech will be incoherent, and the less points you will earn. To earn speaker points, you must communicate coherent ideas."
I debated for OU back in the day but you shouldn't read too much into that—I wasn't ever particularly good or invested when I was competing. I lean more towards the policy side than the K side and I'm probably going to be unfamiliar with a lot of the ins-and-outs of most kritiks, although I will do my best to fairly evaluate the debate as it happens.
1. I tend to think the role of the aff is to demonstrate that the benefits of a topical plan outweigh its costs and that the role of the neg is to demonstrate that the costs and/or opportunity costs of the aff's plan outweigh its benefits.
2. I find variations of "fairness bad" or "logic/reasoning bad," to be incredibly difficult to win given that I think those are fundamental presuppositions of debate itself. Similarly, I find procedural fairness impacts to be the best 2NRs on T/Framework.
3. Conditionality seems obviously good, but I'm not opposed to a 2AR on condo. Most other theory arguments seem like reasons to reject the argument, not the team. I lean towards reasonability. Most counterplan issues seem best resolved at the level of competition, not theory.
4. Warrant depth is good. Argument comparison is good. Both together—even better.
5. Give judge instruction—tell me how to evaluate the debate.
None of these biases are locked in—in-round debating will be the ultimate determinant of an argument’s legitimacy.
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LD
I've judged over 1000 LD and policy rounds from novice locals to TOC elims. I am not particularly partial to a style in which you debate the topic, e.g. philosophical, kritikal, traditional, etc., but I do care that you debate the topic. Frivolous theory or kritiks that shift the question of the debate start a few steps behind for me.
Ideological stances that might influence prefs:
1. Fairness and logic are good—args to the contrary are self-defeating.
2. The aff should defend the topic; the neg should disprove the aff—I've voted against framework/for Ks a decent amount too but it's just a tougher route to take in front of me.
3. Some tricks are fine, most stretch the definition of what counts as an argument—anything that relies almost entirely on your opponent dropping it probably isn't even worth making in front of me.
4. I think Nebel T is true, but tech > truth.
5. Conditionality is probably bad in LD, but it's not that hard to defend condo good; most other counterplan issues are best resolved at the level of competition, not theory.
6. I'm inclined to think that everything other than conditionality and T should be a reason to reject the arg. Most other theoretical objections aren't particularly persuasive to me.
7. I'm generally against sandbagging both in the 1NC and 1AR. I would rather the 1NC read 1 less off case position in favor of more developed case analysis, impact calc, or fully complete arguments. I would rather the 1AR make 1 less theory argument in favor of actually explaining what the words "perm do both" mean. How much "new-ness" is allowed in the 2NR or 2AR is obviously contextual but the default is that it's determined by how new your opponent was.
8. Ev ethics are important—I'll default to the NSDA Evidence Guide.
9. I'd prefer not to read your cards—I'd rather you explain them to me.
None of these biases are locked in—in-round debating will be the ultimate determinant of an argument’s legitimacy. I'm not sure I have strong opinions about much else. Like most other judges, I like evidence quality, impact calculus, and strategic choices. Like most other judges, I dislike cheating, unclarity, and impropriety.
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Traditional LD
I will NOT hesitate drop anyone who spreads or engages in debate practices that would not be persuasive or understandable to a reasonable person—this is not negotiable. Please do not see my policy background or circuit LD experience as an invitation to make this round uninteresting for everyone involved.
1. Please time yourselves. Using a phone is fine.
2. Yes, off-time roadmaps are good.
3. Offense (why you win) is superior to defense (why you don't lose). I'm much more interested in the former; don't spend so much time on the latter.
4. The criterion/framework is not a voting issue. If you say it is, I'll make a big sad face :(.
5. I prefer more principled and philosophical arguments in debate. If the debate does become a question about the consequences of adopting some policy, I prefer empirical studies and examples over random predictions without evidence.
6. I prefer voting issues to be given as they arise on the flow, not in a discrete section at the end of rebuttal speeches.
7. You do not need to ask me to use your prep time (although I will keep track of time myself).
8. You can read my longer LD paradigm at the bottom for a more detailed view at my decision-making process.
9. You MUST follow the NSDA Evidence Rules (High School Manual here, shorter version here). I care deeply about evidentiary ethics in an academic event and I will not hesitate to punish to the full extent allowed by the rules up to, and including, voting against you.
10. I hate evasion. Direct clash with your opponent's central points is preferred.
11. I will keep a rigorous flow, time all speeches, and not hesitate to enforce those time limits.
Good luck!
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WSD
My debate experience is primarily in LD, policy, and PF. I do not consider myself well-versed in all the intricacies or nuances of WSD strategy and norms. My only strong preference is that want to see well-developed and warranted arguments. I would prefer fewer, better developed arguments over more, less-developed arguments.
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Online Procedural Concerns
1. Follow tournament procedure regarding online competition best practices.
2. Record your speeches locally. If you cut out and don't have a local backup, that's a you problem.
3. Keep your camera on when you speak, I don't care if it's on otherwise. Only exception is if there are tech or internet issues---keeping the camera off for the entirety of the debate otherwise is a good way to lose speaker points.
4. I'll keep my camera off for prep time, but I'll verbally indicate I'm ready before each speech and turn on the camera for your speeches. If you don't hear me say I'm ready and see my camera on, don't start.
5. Yes, I'll say clear and stuff for online rounds.
Hi I'm Marco! If you have any specific questions feel free to ask me before the round.
email: marma00419@gmail.com
Graduated from Clements HS in 2023 and now attend UT Austin.
Qualified for TFA state 4x, NSDA Nats 2x, and competed on the Nat Circuit soph/junior year, so I've encountered various styles of debate.
Shortcuts:
T/Theory: 1-2 (I default no RVIs, competing interps, DTA (and DTD on T), but all of these things are contextual to the shell).
LARP: 1-2
K's: 1-3
High Theory/More Obscure K's: 3-4
Phil: 2-4
Dense Phil/Tricks: 4-strike
With that in mind, I don't have any overarching/specific stylistic preference for how you debate. I mostly read T/Theory, LARP, stock K's (Cap/Dean, Security, SetCol), some other K's (Wynter/Weheliye, Spanos), and almost never read/went for Phil or Tricks.
Read whatever you feel most comfortable with but keep in mind I'll always appreciate 1. Strategic decision-making and 2. clarity/clear warranting regardless of what arguments you go for.
The exception is that ***I will be unhappy judging a debate full of messy/cheesy tricks*** Especially online, these debates are often very difficult to resolve and uneducational for everyone.
LARP:
I'm probably most comfortable judging these types of debates. Generally, err on the side of over-explanation for your arguments and please weigh (the more dense the debate, the more important this is). Collapse well and make strategic arguments.
T/Theory:
I think this type of debate can be pretty fun and interesting but at the same time can honestly be really annoying /cheesy. I will have a lower threshold for responses the more absurd the argument is (which is also true in general). Go slow on analytics and make sure to weigh on every layer of the debate.
K's:
Refer to my shortcut for more specific stuff on my preferences for K's/what I'm comfortable with. That being said, if I can't give a coherent explanation of your theory of power/alternative/a clear link then I'm most likely not going to be voting for you so please overexplain, especially if you do read more obscure/dense literature. In general, I think links should be contextual to the aff and the framing of the K should be as coherent as possible. Non-T Aff's are fine.
Phil/Tricks:
I pretty much never read these arguments myself but I did debate against them quite a bit. I'll evaluate them to the best of my ability but realistically if this is your A-strat I'm probably not the best judge for you. I think smart tricks and phil can be very interesting, especially when it's not presented in a really shifty way. Also, I'm good with judging most stock Phil (Kant, Hobbes, Levinas). Also please please slow down.
General Notes:
Speaks - this will be a reflection of your strategic decisions in the round and how well you know the arguments you're reading. I feel like CX is usually a big indicator if you actually understand your literature or are reading off a document someone compiled for you before the round, in which case I'll always reward the person that debates with a flare and understanding of their argumentation. In general, I'm pretty chill with speaks so you'll probably get a 29 or higher unless you make me upset.
Be nice. Debate should be a safe space, which means if you do something that is racist/homophobic/misogynistic/transphobic or something similar, I'll drop you with 0 speaks. Also in general, just be cool and treat your opponent with respect especially if they're less experienced than you.
If you want to have a slower/traditional/stock round, that's completely fine but I'll still judge tech>truth and value clever strategy/argumentation so take that as you will.
Most of my debate beliefs closely align with/are influenced by Sesh Joe, Ben Erdmann, Kyren Khairah, Vishnu Nataraja
Finally, make sure to have fun! At the end of the day, debate should be an educational (and hopefully enjoyable) activity for you.