Harvard updates:

Email: tchathur16@gmail.com

No disclosure theory! For real though.. I cannot vote on text message screenshots with emojis and haha reactions... like is that not judge intervention?! It seems that I am attracting a lot of FW vs K aff debates and something you need to do in LD as both parties is engage with the other side rather than this infinitely regressive up layering strategy people seem to be going for. LD is different from policy in that you do not have the privilege of a debate partner standing up in a separate speech doing that work for you!

Affiliations: Barrington high school

I debated LD on the local and nat circuits for four years at Barrington High School. I competed in college policy at UW-Madison and graduated in 2021! :)

TL;DR: Have fun! Don’t be mean. Read anything you want in front of me as long as it’s well explained and warranted. Slow down for tags, authors, interps, numbers, and important issues in the final rebuttals. Don’t be a sexist, homophobic, racist etc. debate is a safe space and you are not welcome here if you intentionally hurt others. If you have any questions please ask. Rupaul's Drag Race references make my day better and will be reflected in your speaks <3 <3

Speed/In round things: Go as slow or as fast as you want, but please please please please please please be clear. I want an email chain. Please disclose otherwise we're going to have a debate about disclosure theory and I really will be sad judging that debate. Like extremely sad and your speaks will probably suffer. I'm good with flex prep just sort that out with your opponent. I get that prep time is super stressful and I'm not going to enforce the prep ends when you send out the email chain. Just take your prep and then you can send it out (IN A TIMELY MANNER PLEASE).

Policy

Plans: If you're planning on having like 80 million blip cards please slow down for tags and authors :)

Cps: consult Cps are probably theoretically illegitimate but that being said you can have that theory debate and I feel confident judging that type of debate; should be competitive; I also don't really care if it's topical or non-topical either as long as it's won.

DAs: (true for plans too) Super long link chains etc will require more from you to win the arg; other than that do your thing

K (AFF): If you have sensitive content trigger warning please! I am also totally good with performance affs using songs, narratives, and poems (and yall can go for them as offense too). Also, if I think your aff is super strategic, meaningful and well-written, regardless of the outcome of the round you’ll likely get high speaks because I love it when debaters put a lot of thought into their advocacies. If you’re hitting FW(policy framework not value and value criterion) there’s got to be a good analysis on the impact turns (same applies to T and theory).

(Neg): I'm fine with anything, just as long as you slow down in the 2NR and really take time to explain what is going on. I may not always be super super familiar with super Pomo args so just make sure to crystallize and explain the implication of your args. If the K is your A strat Don’t concede the permutation. Just don’t do it.I need a good link story and how the alt frames the aff in the 2NR or I will probably be more compelled to vote on the 2AR responses . I also think K tricks are pretty strategic, go for the floating PIK/value to life arguments/linear Das to the aff. I think the aff should be prepared to deal with a lot of these strategies and it’ll take some work to get me to vote otherwise because most of the time the neg is ahead on this issue.

Condo: This is more of a policy thing but if you read like 7 conditional advocacies as the negative, I’ll sympathize with the affirmative in the sense that 1ar extensions don’t need to be the best because TIME SKEW IS REAL. Also, I’ll probably err aff on that theory debate just because it’s the burden of proof on the negative to tell me why reading so many conditional advocacies is good for education and is a fair practice—but hey if you win it I’ll vote on it. I’ll grant the negative one conditional advocacy as a default though since it is necessary to test the affirmative from multiple angles.

FW: makes the game work

T: YEET. T is fine and I enjoy debating T in policy. Multiple T interps is probably unfair but whatever y'all gotta do y'all gotta do. Default competing interps.

LD:

I believe that theory can be used as a winning strategy, since I did this a lot as a debater. I AM TOTALLY OK with 1Ns going for frivolous theory as long as it’s convincing enough of an abuse story. However, 1AR metatheory is given a lot of lee way (don’t know if I spelled that right) for multiple shells and other off cases. In terms of debating theory, I am super persuaded by good standards overviews in your final speeches instead of going for the nitty gritty line by line. Often times, I think debaters just get lost on the tech aspect of theory but don’t actually weigh their arguments. If there’s no weighing done I will have to intervene and I probably won’t be happy doing it. I default to theory coming before substance.. not sure why some people make the argument that contention offense comes first. I won’t vote on it if you make it.. so don’t make it :P. If you’re going for a non traditional voter like substantive engagement, you’ll have to do some work telling me why it comes before fairness and education.

I meets: don’t just say I meet and not fully warrant your explanation; if I can’t remember why you meet the interp at the end of the round then I will probably drop you and you won’t be happy.

RVIs: I default to no RVI. Obvi I’ll vote on it if it’s justified and explained clearly.

Drop the Debater vs. Drop the Arg: DD as a default. I’ll vote on drop the arg if it’s won.

Tricks/Spikes/Fun Stuff: People don’t usually read a wall of spikes anymore, but if that applies to your aff here are a few things to keep in mind when you’re debating in front of me:

1) I don’t want the case to be an unintelligible block of text. I.e there needs to be some form of demarcation within the wall of spikes so I know how many/what arguments you have

2) I can’t believe this was ever a thing but concealing spikes within spikes is probably a good way to lose the round in front of me. For example, saying “all neg interps are counterinterps because of x,y,z. Furthermore, [totally new spike that’s unrelated to the previous spike]”. No one’s going to be able to flow that, and I certainly will not flow it. If it’s not on my flow then I cannot vote on it.

3) Definitely have fun with tricks and spikes and other funny arguments you want to read. I really enjoyed these debates and think they are quite fun. If you are able to successfully go for a win off of a dropped spike that’s a win 30—no questions asked. If there are clear internal links to fairness and education in your spikes you don’t need to spend too much time on extending them in the 1AR. A simple “voter for fairness and education drop the debater because [] no RVI because []” is sufficient.

Condo: see policy

K: see policy

Policy args: see policy

Actual FW LD Debate: don’t pref me unless you’re going to rely on some trick or something to spike out of their offense or will actually crystallize and explain stuff to me because honestly I am incompetent at evaluating competing ethical FWs.

Traditional Debate: WEIGHWEIGHWEIGH. Even if it’s not nat debate just explain stuff to me with good overviews. Also traditional debate does not mean that tech isn’t an issue. A dropped argument is a true argument. Don’t make me vote on the value debate because I definitely will not do that. I default to both cases valuing morality so don’t even bother wasting time on that argument if your opponent has a value of morality.

I was a nationally competitive policy debater for Brookfield Central 1989-1993.

I'm not philosophically opposed to anything per se, but will need to be told why any particular theory-based argument should impact my decision. (That doesn't mean I'm reluctant to go with it, it just means you shouldn't assume a familiarity on my part with current theory.)

Don't assume I know lingo (re: argument theory or current topic terminology). Do assume I am willing and able to be taught.

Speak how you prefer to speak. My skills hearing and flowing high rates of speed exist, but are under a few decades of rust. With appropriate clarity and reasonable volume, I should be fine. It should be obvious to you if I'm not able to follow.

Debate is a competitive activity. I have no problem with playing to win, but don't be mean.

I am new to the PF format, but I think I get it.

Give me a decision framework, or you'll force me to make one up based on your arguments. You'd probably rather have me using yours.

I am a former policy debater and former coach of a nationally competitive policy team back in the early 1990s. I have been out of the activity for about 20 years. My love and respect for the activity is strong even if my actual familiarity with current theory or jargon is weak. My flowing skills are there through a bit rusty and I have no experience with this year’s policy topic. I really love it when people speak clearly and signpost and make my flowing easy - if you do that you can talk as fast as you’d like.

In an ideal world, I might be a little traditional in that I really enjoy when teams focus on the actual policy arguments stemming from the resolution. I want to see clash. I like disads with clear well-evidenced link stories, However, I know that there are many ways to win a round and I am open to most arguments; but, you must do a great job explaining it and assume no knowledge on my part. I strongly want you to give me a clear decision making calculus for the round.

One final note - you can be argumentatively great AND be nice. I have little tolerance for people being mean, nasty or arrogant in a round. Crush the argument AND be a good person.

Last update: 2/11/2020

TOP-LEVEL:

-TLDR: do what you do best, and if you do it well, I’ll try my best to be fair, receptive, and interested

-Add me to the email chain: gordon.kochman@gmail.com

-I try not to read evidence if I can help it, which means I won’t open your speech docs until the end of the round, and I’ll only do so if needed. I won't follow you in the speech doc, so if you're gonna blaze through your theory block, you might want to reconsider.

-I try to keep a straight face during speeches. If I'm being expressive, then something horrible/funny/important/etc. just happened.

-Please be kind to each other

-My last name is pronounced “coach-man,” but you can refer to me as Gordon. Whatever you do, PLEASE do not call me "judge."

ABOUT ME:

-My debate experience: I debated for four years at New Trier High School (2009-2013) and for two years at Whitman College (2013-2015) while the team existed during my tenure. I’m a former 2N/1A. I’ve been involved in coaching and judging since I graduated high school. I'm a lawyer in my day job.

-Affiliations: New Trier High School, Whitman College, University of Wisconsin, Homestead High School

-Co-founder of the Never Spark Society with Tim Freehan

-I mostly debated policy arguments and soft-left K arguments. I fully understand how these arguments are bad and boring in their own way, so simply because I debated these arguments in the past does not mean that I think they’re the best, most interesting, or correct arguments. I’m open enough to recognize there are multiple ways of debating and engaging with the resolution, both from my time as a debater and later as a judge and coach.

-Disclaimer: What is included in this paradigm is meant to help you decide where to put me on your pref sheets, strike from your strike card, or adjust your strategy before the round. Most of this paradigm includes my predispositions and (unless otherwise noted) NOT my closely-held beliefs that are firm and unshakable.

NON-NEGOTIABLES:

-Please be kind to each other and don’t be racist, sexist, ableist, or any other variation of rude/intentionally horrible.

-To the extent required, this is a communicative activity that encompasses speech. As a result, I will only flow what you say in your speech (open CX is fine). Unless provided a performative reason, I am not a fan of multiple people participating in a speech or playing a video/audio clip.

-Debate is a game, and I’ve had the pleasure to enjoy it as a game. However, I understand that debate is more than that for some people (it’s how they afford their education, it’s their job, it’s their community, etc.). I try to comport myself such that everyone can have the experience in this activity that is enjoyable. Simply because I have enjoyed debate in one way does not mean that other debaters need to conform to my experience.

-There are obvious formalities in a round that exist no matter what. These include: one team must win, speaker points must be awarded, etc.

GENERAL DEBATE PREDISPOSITIONS:

-Tech over truth in the abstract and to a point. Generally, the more “true” your claim is, the less tech you need to win it (and vice-versa). The same goes for how big of a claim you’re making. The bigger the claim, the more work that’s needed. It’s gonna take more than a one-liner to win a claim that a mindset shift occurs post-economic collapse. Arguments are claims with warrants. One-line conclusory statements aren’t gonna cut it if you don’t provide a warrant.

-Things I likely won’t vote for: I would recommend that you use your common sense here. If your argument is overtly and/or intentionally racist/sexist/homophobic/etc., then you might want to reconsider. Not only do I not want to be in those rounds, but I don’t think the team you’re opposing wants those arguments in the round, either. As a co-founder of the Never Spark Society, this might tip you off to some types of arguments I don't enjoy...

PREDISPOSITIONS REGARDING SPECIFIC AREAS OF DEBATE:

-My thoughts regarding "non-topical" affs are probably what most people want to know up-front. I never read these affs when I debated and would spend a large amount of time planning how to debate these affs, but as a judge, I don’t really harbor any animus towards these affs. I don’t think that my thoughts here should be dispositive one way or another in these rounds. If you win your argument and explain why that means you win the round, then you should win. Despite my following thoughts on topicality versus policy affs, I'm SIGNIFICANTLY less persuaded by procedural arguments on framework than by method-based arguments on framework. In other words, I'm less likely to vote on "fairness" than an argument about how we should engage with the state or try to produce change.

-Topicality (versus policy affs) is about competing interpretations of the topic. This also means that potential abuse is a sufficient reason to vote neg on T. I would extend T into the block in a majority of my rounds and think I have a relatively lower threshold for voting on T against policy affs than most judges.

-I tend to lean neg on most theory and default to rejecting the argument unless provided a reason to reject the team. That doesn’t mean it isn’t a winnable argument, and there are certainly theory arguments that are stronger than others (conditionality is significantly more viable than no neg fiat, for instance). Regardless, this shouldn’t deter you from using these arguments on the aff. As a former 2N I do have a proclivity to protect the 2NR, so be absolutely certain that your 2AR will be an extrapolation of 1AR arguments if this is your ultimate strategy.

-Most CPs are fine, with a few exceptions. Consult CPs, for instance, are probably bad. I'm fine with CPs that have internal net-benefits to generate competition. I can be persuaded by perm do the CP args on the aff.

-Is the politics DA a thing? Eh, probably not (RIP). Will I vote for it anyway? Absolutely.

-Regarding Ks, I would read soft-left Ks with a general policy strategy and go for them on occasion. I’m by no means an expert in any specific K literature. I’m not very familiar with a ton of high-theory or postmodern arguments, so your burden to explain them is relevant. The more “out there” K you plan to read, the more explanation you’ll need. I should be familiar with your argument at a basic level regardless of what you read, but it is unlikely that I understand the nuances of your specific argument unless you can explain them to me. If you’re curious if you should read your K this round or how much work you should put into your explanation/overview, I would recommend reading it with more explanation rather than less. If you can adequately explain why you should win as a result of the K, then you should win.

-I’m a huge proponent of impact turns, which unfortunately aren’t as utilized as I’d like. However, I’m not a fan of some impact turns like spark (lol), wipeout, etc.

BACKGROUND

I’ve coached Public Forum debate for 5 years. I debated policy in high school and college, as well as coaching policy at the high school level for a couple of years.

PARADIGM

I’m mostly a tabula rasa judge, therefore the following are only preferences.

ARGUMENT

I flow. Speed isn’t an issue, but you must be clear. I’m suspicious of long link chains. I enjoy theory in debate, but please develop your arguments.

Please don’t make me weigh the argument for you. Telling me that your contention outweighs because you say it does or that you save 30 million lives (when the one card you use says a larger process than your proposal may affect 30 million people) forces me to enter the debate. I don’t want to do that. Thus, I am sensitive to probability arguments.

I like topicality arguments, but few public forum debaters know how to make them because they rarely do. Be careful here.

Over the years, debaters who go line by line as opposed to big argument dumps tend to win more with me.

Extend defense in summary

EVIDENCE

Evidence quality really matters to me. Please don’t overclaim it. I’m sympathetic to evidence indicts and suspicious of evidence summaries.

Do not use ellipses to delete large amounts of evidence. If I think you’ve misinterpreted a card, I will call for it, even if your opponents don’t.

I want to hear the source first, before the evidence. Please be clear as to when the card ends and when you begin.

CROSSFIRE

I don’t flow crossfire and don’t vote on it unless it is accurately presented and developed in speech. As such, I do listen carefully to crossfire.

Debated three years of PF at Neenah High School and currently in third year of policy at UW-Madison. I'm comfortable with both policy and K debates. Something I find important is to stay organized; roadmaps are helpful, signposting, more so. Open cross is fine.

You should pay close attention to your delivery and the tone of your argumentation. Looking confident and making judges feel like your arguments are obviously true can seriously help shape an RFD. Additionally, take time to slow down in the 2NR/2AR and have two or three "ethos moments" where you stare a judge down and explain to them why a couple arguments are the most important ones in the world. If your 2NR/2AR is just you spreading for 5 minutes without actually changing your inflection or speed to articulate the crucial segments of your speech, I will likely miss some important arguments.

Peter Rehani

UPDATED 11/15/19: Clarified evidence policy and paradigm comprehension reward.

UPDATED 5/25/19 for NCFL NATIONALS SPECIFICALLY: Regarding prep time, I will allow 10 seconds for teams to find cards under the requester’s prep time; after that, I will consider it an abuse of prep time and therefore it will not count.

PF TLDR: Heavily flow based judge. My biggest voters rely on extensions and clash in the round. Weigh and define the voters in the final focus. If you have a framework, I expect you to explain why you win under that framework (similarly, if your opponent's provide a framework, weigh under that too). Signpost. Signpost. Signpost.

Congress TLDR: I try to weigh speaking style equally for debate--for debate, I look for clash, extension, and clear reference back to previous speakers. Avoid rehash at all costs, else you will end up on the bottom of my ballot. Speak clearly and ensure that your speeches are clear and well structured.

I strongly encourage you to read this thoroughly. PLEASE ASK ME BEFORE THE ROUND IF SOMETHING IS UNCLEAR TO YOU. I will gladly answer any questions before the round (or after the round). I will try my absolute best to justify my decisions to you (debaters!) during PF disclosure, and if I'm not communicating in a way that you understand, it is YOUR responsibility speak up and let me know.

PF Paradigm:

• If the tournament doesn't explicitly disallow plans and both teams agree before the round to allow plans, feel free to run a plan-based debate if the topic calls for it. I find it more educational.
• In the case of an evidence question being called, I default to tournament rules; barring specific guidelines from the tournament (if tournaments require prep to be run), my policy is to begin prep as soon as the opposing team provides the exact location of the reference. All citations should include dates. Paraphrasing is a realistic way to get more evidence on the flow, but you shouldn't be using evidence as your argument -- they are there to supplement and support your arguments. Otherwise I default to not running prep for evidence exchange.
• If it's not in the final focus, it's not a voter.
• I appreciate effective crossfire, however I don't flow it unless you explicitly tell me to write something down, like a specific concession (hint: you should do this, explicitly say "write that down").
• I am inclined to reward good communication with speaker points and a mind more receptive to your arguments.
• Outside of the fact that the 2nd overall speech is allowed to just read case, I expect FULL case/off-case coverage in EVERY speech starting with the 2nd rebuttal (4th overall speech) -- i.e. extend everything that you want weighed. The 1st rebuttal (3rd overall speech) doesn't need to extend case -- they just need to refute the opposing case.
• Exception to the above: Framework. If you're speaking second, don't wait until 15 minutes into the round to tell me your framework. You're obligated to make those arguments in case. I vastly prefer to see framework at the top of all speeches, as it provides structure and a lens to understand your arguments--if you wait 1:30 into summary to discuss framework, it's likely that I'll lose it on the flow.
• For rebuttal, my general preference for the sake of sanity in organization is concise, top down, line by line responses. I feel that this is often the best way to ensure that you get through everything in the case. Rebuttal does not have to repeat everything, but should provide organized responses. Please signpost.
• I am very likely not the judge you want if you're running a non-canonical strategy, like a "kritik". I am an engineer and I have a fairly rigid policymaker paradigm.
• I don't flow anything called an "overview". Overviews are heuristic explanations to help me make sense of the round. Please don't expect to generate offense off of an overview.
• I'm fine if you'd like to time yourselves with an alarm; however, for the sake of common courtesy, please turn this off if you plan to time your opponents.
• I am inclined to give bonus speaker points if I see an effort to "read me" as a judge, even if you read me wrong. Cite my paradigm if you need to. Learning to figure out your audience is a crucial life skill. On a related note: if you use the secret word 'lobster' in your speech, I will give you and your partner a metaphorical 0.5 extra speaker points, since it means you read my philosophy thoroughly. This applies to LD too.
• I generally prefer debates I'd be able to show to a school administrator and have them be impressed by the activity rather than offended or scared.
• Please give me voter issues in the final focus. Weigh if at all possible. When I weigh for you, hell breaks loose. I cannot stress this enough.

Congress Paradigm:

• I try to judge congressional debate through as balanced a lens as possible--this means I tend to value speaking quality equally to the quality of your debate abilities.
• Typically, the biggest reason that I knock speakers down comes from non-original arguments/causing rehash in the debate. I feel that this decreases the quality of the debate and fundamentally mitigates the educational benefits of congressional debate.
• Regarding roleplay of a true Congress, I think it adds a bit of humor to the debate and leads to more engaged speakers.
• On the note of questioning, I prefer when students keep questions as concise as possible to avoid burying the speaker in a mountain of jargon.
• Clash and extension (similar to my PF paradigm) are my biggest factors on the debate side--please please please introduce clash and cite the speaker that you are extending or clashing. It helps to follow the flow of the argument as you speak, and it demonstrates you're actually paying attention.
• The later you speak in cycle, the more clash I expect to see and I judge on that metric. Similarly, I strongly dislike having 2 speeches on the same side, as it often leads to rehash. If you are speaking for the second time on the same bill, I look more closely for unique arguments and extended clash, and tend to judge these speeches slightly more harshly.
• Extension of questioning time often leads to less speeches getting in, and ultimately means that less people get a chance to speak. For this reason, I'm typically opposed to having students extend their questioning periods.
• For later cycle, I don't mind crystallization speeches but I do expect to see weighing and clear reference back to previous speakers.
• As stated above, your evidence is not your argument--It serves to support your argument.
• Speaking: gestures and clear movements add to structure and to the quality of your speech. Gesturing for the sake of gesturing, and non directed movements do not. I tend to prefer when speakers keep it simple with the style instead of over-complicating everything.
• For authorships, sponsorships, and first negs, I tend to look at fluency breaks and time more critically, as these are speeches that should be well rehearsed ahead of time.
• I view a logical argument that flows well to be on par with literal evidence from a perspective of supporting your arguments. This means that 1-you shouldn't be afraid to use logic in your speeches and 2-evidence debates will not hold up for me.

I debated PF all four years in high school.

Pretty basic. Make sure you stay organized, which means clear roadmaps and signposting throughout speeches. My single biggest preference would probably just be that impact calc is really really important. Make sure you argue things in their full weight, don't leave me any space for assumptions., connect the dots for me. In a nutshell, stay organized, make impact calc a focus, and make sure you pull through your arguments.

Misc.

Please time yourselves/ hold each other accountable :)

Speak clearly, obviously... conviction, and logical presentation of arguments will get you high speaks

Don't be an asshole

I flow CX

That's about it. If you have any questions then ask!

Greetings All,

I am a debate coach of over 20 years. I have coached Policy, Public Forum, Congress and Lincoln-Douglas Debate. My favorite is L-D, but only if you DO NOT SPREAD! I have judged at Nationals and have watched some of the best debater's in the country debate the issues, they don't cram a bunch of junk into the round.

If you prepared a good case, defend it, respect your opponent (don't be rude) and can counter your opponent you have a strong chance of winning the round.

I expect a value, the means to measure it and contentions (main arguments).

I DO NOT LIKE CRITIQUES! All your opponent has to do in the round in my book is to call you out for it and your opponent will get the win.

I expect you to be able to explain your points and defend them in CX and flow your arguments into your rebuttal. DO NOT BRING IN NEW EVIDENCE OR ARGUMENTS INTO REBUTTALS. Give me examples or context, so you can apply your case to the resolution. I need you to show me that you comprehend the resolution and how to apply values to it. The more you explain or give me context, the more convinced I am of your comprehension of your case and it will increase the chance of a winning ballot.

I strongly suggest that you pull your value through at every turn you can (within each contention), try to bring it into CX and of course the rebuttal. You can drop your value and value criteria if you accept your opponent, but this is risky and not recommended. At the end of your constructive and rebuttal summarize why you won!

Again, DO NOT SPREAD! If I can hear you breathe you have likely already lost the round!

I have been teaching public speaking for over 25 years. There are few careers that benefit from SPREADING! I make it a point to remind students of this!

The quick and dirty: I prefer policy oriented arguments (DAs, CPs, util-oriented impact calc) over K / value oriented arguments. That doesn't mean I won't vote for / understand your K, just make sure to explain it more strategically in the context of the round.

Email for fileshare:

umstotd@elmbrookschools.org

Don't postround me. I judge on what I heard in the round and nothing you say after the round will change my ballot. If you do choose to postround me I will walk out of the room and give you the lowest speaks possible for the tournament. You may email me with questions after the round provided your adult coach is CCed on the email.

POLICY
Three years policy debate experience, head coach at Brookfield Central High School.

I'm a tabula rasa judge, but if you don't tell me what to vote on, I'll fall back to which is the better policy based on impact calculus. Do the impact calculus for me, unless you want me to do it myself.

I'm not a fan of Topicality. I'll hear it, and I'll flow it, but you must convince me that it's a voter and your definition can't be absolutely ridiculous.

I love Counterplans, as I was a CP-heavy debater myself. Kritiks are fine, but give me a clear alternative and make sure that you explain your K well.

You can speed, but not through tags or analytic arguments. I need to be able to flow. I'll tell you if you're speaking too quickly for me.

Use roadmaps and signposting. It makes it easier for me to flow, and better for you if I can understand the debate.

Clash is by and large one of the most important things in a debate for me. You'll keep my attention and get much higher speaker points.

I like real-world impacts. You might have a hard time convincing me of global extinction. Be smart when it comes to impacts and make sure they realistically link.

Open C-X is fine, but don't go overboard. Keep in mind that it's your partner's C-X, and if you use all of it, I will dock you speaker points.

New in the 2 - I'm okay with this I suppose...but with this in mind, the Affirmative is definitely free to run theory on this if the 2N is just trying to spread the Aff out of the round by saving their entire offense for the 2NC.

LINCOLN-DOUGLAS
First and foremost, I evaluate the framework. However, even if you lose the framework, that doesn't mean you've lost the round. Prove your case can fit under your opponent's framework. If I can still evaluate your case under your opponent's framework, I can still buy your case. As far as the contention debate goes, I don't necessarily buy that you have to win every contention to win the contention debate. You don't have to take out all of your opponent's contentions, either. Focus on impacts. Focus on weighing your case against your opponent's case, and how each contention provides the best example of the value. The team who provides the most evidence that shows affirming/negating will benefit society (through either value) more will win the debate.

I welcome CPs, Ks, and ROTBs, as long as you are running them because YOU understand them, not because you think your opponent WON'T. The point of debate is education, and running a tricky K in a convoluted way to confuse your opponent won't win you a ballot in front of me. Be clear and contribute to the education of debate. I prefer that you don't spread too much in LD. Although I do judge policy as well, and can flow most speed, it's not my preference.
I'll disclose but I'm not going to give you excessive oral critiques. That's what my ballot is for.

Public Forum Judging Paradigm:

All you need to know: Weigh.

Less relevant information:

*********************

Experience: 4 years mostly circuit PF, congress, extemp; college APDA

Criteria justifying intervention:

1. New arguments in 2nd FF

2. No weighing or implicating = forces me to make value judgements

3. Multiple routes to the ballot without weighing = I'll usually pick the cleanest

*********************

Speaker point criteria, in order of importance:

1. Be very clear and articulate with your explanations and each extensions; blippiness loses you points and clarity wins you points and rounds.

2. Be fluid and graceful as a speaker; persuasiveness.

3. Have a good strategy during crossfire and don't be a dick.

*********************

FAQ:

1. I don't care if you come back in 2nd rebuttal; sometimes it's effective and sometimes it's not.

2. Important defense really should be in 2nd summary and it's not a bad idea to have it in 1st summary.

3. I can follow speed but if you don't talk well at high speed I probably won't be able to flow well either.

4. I'll vote off any argument, including theory, but you must have good/persuasive theory (as you would any other argument).

Debate Experience: Graduated 2017; 4 years of PF debate(mainly circuit) for James Madison Memorial High School - Did ok

1) Clean extensions - This means responding to every response on your relevant offense in summary. Extend your warrants and impacts fully eg: If you say the tagline or a card name - I will not flow it for you; you must explain the argument behind the tagline or card name.

2) Weighing- Weighing is the first thing I evaluate at the end of the round. Tell me where I should vote

3) Summaries and Final Focus - You can extend defense directly from first rebuttal to first final focus unless the second speaking team goes back to case in second rebuttal. All offense must be in summary and final focus.

Those three things are the most important and applicable to every debate round.

4) Speed. I'm fine with speed. I will tell you to slow down if you go fast enough for me to not be able to flow.

5) Theory/K's. I'm good with Theory and K's. You should probably not be fast with Theory arguments in front of me because it gives me less time to understand the argument.

6) Plans/CP's. I can accept plans/cp's if either your opponents don't call you out on the plan/cp or you give me a convincing reason why your particular plan/cp should be allowed in the realm of PF. For people responding to plan/cp's, saying its a plan/cp works but it would be appreciated if you implicated out why plan/cp's are bad in PF past the "its against the rules".

6) Second Rebuttal. Second Rebuttal doesn't have to go back to case. I think its strategic for you to do so. As a former first speaker whose partner didn't go back to case, summaries were often unnecessarily hard. I wish he made better choices in debate and life.

7) Dropped Arguments: Arguments are dropped after you ignore it in summary. Please collapse strategically. If you don't respond to turns on a dropped argument, your opponents can extend them. Kicking contentions/subpoints are okay as long as you do it correctly.

8) Evidence. All evidence must have author and source. eg: "Vovata of Harvard University" rather than "Vovata" or "Harvard University". I will call for evidence if either your opponent wants me to or if its extended in two different ways.

9) Dates: I think if you have time you can put dates in your case/rebuttal. If you don't, you can open up yourself to date theory. For people running date theory - tell me why it puts you in a structural disadvantage in context to the topic. Don't just cite "NSDA Rules"

10) Speaker Points: I hate the speaker point system so I give >29's to almost everyone. I also generally try to give first speakers more speaker points. Don't be rude/make up new stuff in second final focus and you should be fine.

11) Off-time road maps. I like off-time road maps. You can get pretty specific with them before your speeches.

For LD (updated 11/8/2018)

The general gist of my LD paradigm is similar to my PF paradigm. However, I will not try to impose my activity(PF) on yours. That means that any aspect of my paradigm is always up for negotiation and I'll try to keep an open mind on any argument that you guys bring to the table. Please ask if you have any specific questions about an argument or an argument type.