I'm a college student with high school debate experience in PF and Congress. (I was told by my former coach to add that I am a 4-time national qualifier and 2-time national semifinalist in Congress)

To put it simply, treat me as a lay judge. I believe that the way you present your arguments is just as important as what you are arguing. I weigh style and arguments equally.

Do not speed. I will deduct points for ad hominem attacks, condescension, and rudeness. I will not rule for anything blatantly offensive or oppressive, and I have a bias towards utilitarian and egalitarian arguments and real-world impacts.

Please do your best to come to round preflowed

1. I don't call for cards unless you tell me to

2. Make sure whatever is said in your final focus was stated in summary if you want me to evaluate it

3. Extend arguments (I do flow across if warranted). If they drop points, don't waste time on the extensions but still explain the warrants briefly.
4. Speed: I'll probably be fine with speed (I judged LD and PF) but I will ask you to slow down if necessary (speaker points are subjective and I do not weight them heavily)

5. I do listen during crossfire but don't flow at all so if you want me to note anything said, make sure to bring it up in a speech

6. Please do your best to weigh in summary and final focus in terms of probability, scope, magnitude, etc.

7. Not a big fan of running K's in PF because I don't think people run them efficiently

Feel free to ask me any more questions in round.

Former coach. Current debate boomer. Put me on the email chain, leokiminardo@gmail.com.

Please standardize the title of the email chain as [Tournament Name] [Round x] [Aff] v [Neg].

Zoom

1. I will say "slower" twice, and if it becomes more incoherent, I'll stop flowing.

2. I'll have my camera on during your speeches and my RFD.

Kindness

1. If a team asks you to not spread, please make the accommodation. If you don't, you can still win the debate, but I'll dunk your speaks.

2. If your arguments discuss sensitive issues, talk about it before the round. If there aren't any alternatives, please be thoughtful moving forward.

K Affs

1. I personally lean 80/20 in favor of reading a plan. I end up voting 50/50.

2. Debates should be about competing scholarship or literature, not about ones self.

3. DA/CP debate makes as many good people as it does bad people.

Speaks

1. I'm tough on speaker points.

2. I'm very expressive, so you'll know whether I vibe with what you're saying or not.

3. Technical, well organized policy debates make smooth brain feel good.

4. DA + Case or T 2NRs are always impressive and brilliant.

5. Copy/pasting cards into the body will drop your speaks .1 every time it happens.

Have fun!

Whats up! Im Gordon (he/him pronouns)

2 things that I think are important to note without changing this whole paradigm

1) After doing more larp debate I'm definitely much more qualified to judge this type of debate, but you still have to beat the K if you face one

2) After having judges challenge my identity and argumentation after round I will do my best to ensure that the round is a safe space overall while trying to give yall feedback, so lemme know if you don't think im doing that.

Please give me content warnings for graphic depictions of abuse and suicide. Do not be racist, homophobic, transphobic, or unnecessarily rude throughout the round.

Background - I am a junior at CHS and I compete on my local circuit as well as the nat circuit. I've seen a lot of different arguments and a lot of different Strats so I'm open to pretty much everything. But here are the specifics anyway bc I do have some specific things.

K>Policy>Theory>Phil

Policy

Policy is always a chill Strat, and I'm always down for a chill plan debate against some da's and cp's. Make sure you have contextualized links for all your da's (politics da's are cool, I ran these when I did policy so your chillin if this is your go to Strat). CP's should have some sort of solvency and prove why they're competitive. As far as affirming goes Plan debate/ whole res / traditional debate is awesome too. Just do what you do best.

K affs

Honestly, these are my go to Strat on Aff. I generally lean towards the belief that you should defend the resolution, but if your completely non T that's chill just articulate why fore fronting this discussion is better than debating the topic. If your blatantly non T, please just don't act like you defend the res. I want to see some sort of method/advocacy besides rejecting a bunch of stuff, ie: What does your aff do?

K's

Go for it. Have actual links, not just state bad (it gets really boring and you'll usually lose the link debate) and you'll probably good. Rob's and Rotj is chill but I do slightly lean towards the counter role of the ballot that I should vote for the better debater, so really articulate why yours is key. I'm probably not the best judge for high level theory Kritiks (besides Beadrillard lol) so I'll need a lot of articulation here. Definitely go for identity K's as well as more generic K's like Security and whatever, I'm always down for em.

Theory

Probably not great for frivolous theory, just bc I feel kinda obligated to allow the ar/nr have a bunch of defense to the shell and just not vote on it. That said, if you have actual abuse, go for it. I'm here for disclosure but not if your using it against someone who doesn't even know the wiki exists. Thats messed up dawg. I like 1ar theory, and I will vote on condo bad theory if they run more than 2 condo, but maybe if they run two condo (if its done really well ig). Don't run it on 1 condo please. Pics bad/piks bad - do it. I'm here for most cp theory. NO TRICKS PLS

T

I like T debates. Go for whatever. On T fw, I will vote on it for sure even though I ran k affs. I'm probably 50/50 on T fw v k affs bc I ran T fw too so I'm open to it. Default c/I, dta, no RVI's. I'm cool if you go for the RVI.

Phil

Not my strong suit. Slow down and explain clearly

Speed

You can spread, if your opponents cool with it, otherwise nope. I'm down for whatever speed you wanna go at if your opponents good with it. Add me to the chain gkraussdebate@mail.com

You can always run whatever arguments, even in front of more lay debaters, but i will evaluate arguments from these debaters even if they are not in "standard circuit" format especially bc I've been in that position

Traditional judge - Ask me in round.

This is my fourth time judging. I am an amateur volunteer judge (aka someone's mom). I prefer the talking at a moderate to slow pace so I can understand and flow. I also value respectful discourse from both teams.

For email chain: yilin@modernbrain.com

1. I did not compete in speech and debate but have been involved in speech and debate since 2016. I’ve Judged and watched a fair amount of rounds, mostly in speech, with some in Congress and PF. Also judged a few rounds in LD and other form of debates.
2. Speech and debate are such amazing activities, enjoy yourself and do your best!
3. Please be respectful and kind.
4. If you see me in a speech round, know that I care about authenticity, evidence, creativity, and presentation.
5. If you see me in a debate round, please don’t spread, and be clear so I can understand you. Tell me where I should be flowing. Tell me why you are winning. Tell me why should I vote for you.
6. Have FUN!

rubyshea.m@gmail.com

I debated for Flintridge Prep for 4 years

taconeel6s@gmail.com

-Tech>truth, I'll vote on most conceded args but still hv warrants

-Frontline turns in 2nd rebuttal or it's 100% conceded

-1st summary needs to extend defense

-Speed is fine but i rlly do not feel like flowing 80 turns so go as fast as u want without having to send a doc

-do comparative weighing

-I'll disclose if everyone's cool w it

-signpost

-wear whatever's comfortable

-be nice, it's never that deep

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Updates from NPDI 2023

Read the perm. if you go slow know that I will fall asleep. I hate case debate because no one knows how to write unique DAs. Like pls read my paradigm lol i.e. Policy affs 2 (applies to neg as well I guess).

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I am a current student at UC Berkeley’26 and compete for PDB.

In high school, I competed for Flintridge Prep in parli, policy, and a few tournaments in LD. I was coached by Khamani Griffin (my thoughts about debate were influenced by him but are not the same). I was a flex team in HS: policy aff, tech neg, but I also read DAs and CPs bc my district was lay.

I have almost exclusively read the K + K-aff last year (MLM).

Send me speech docs scott.schuster1@icould.com

WSD at bottom. PF at bottom.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

General

1. I generally don't care what you read unless it is clearly problematic. You still have to justify what you read. (tab judge: tech>>>>Truth)
2. I can hang with most speed (if online slow down a bit 70-80% top speed). I'll slow if I can't understand you. You don't have to slow unless slowed. Don't spread out novices unless both teams are chill.
3. I'll try to evaluate the round to the best of my ability. if you don't agree/ don't understand email me.
4. I'll try to protect the flow. Still call Point of Orders
5. Speaks are fake. I'll default 28-29.
6. Blueberries (still links to fruit T though so L)
7. I shouldn’t have to say this, but some members of the community need to hear this: don’t be racist, sexist, homophobic, transphobic, etc. if you make these arguments, I will drop you instantly, give lowest speaks, and have a nice conversation with your coach. Also if you cite, read, or defend in any way a Nazi, someone who the Nazi’s used to justify their theory, or someone who was generally related to them I will do the same.

Parli/Policy/TOC LD

Policy affs:

1. I am down to evaluate these. I pref the k aff right now, but I have read policy affs every round in HS.
2. Pls make these interesting. Don’t just paste in generic back-file advantages. I would prefer you to read something I have never heard before than the standard heg or Econ adv you read every round.
3. I will still evaluate generics, but not happily.

DAs/CPs

1. I went for these quite a bit in my district. Similar to policy affs section, don’t read generic DAs If you can.
2. I am down for PICs or cheater CPs.
3. I don’t have a way I lean on condo yet. I’ll vote on condo, but I probably won’t vote on n-1 interps where n is the number of CPs they read.

Theory/Topicality

1. I have read both of these extensively in policy.
2. I have a low threshold to vote on t.
3. I am down to listen to MG theory, loc theory. Tell me which I should evaluate first.
4. I’ll vote on anything that is not Shoes T or Nebel T.
5. I have a high threshold for speed t. Unless you have an access need, I probably won’t vote on speed t.
6. If you read disclosure and are a big/well-funded school, I probably will be very unlikely to vote for you. If I think they just straight drop the arg and vote on that, I probably tank speaks.

K/K-affs

1. These have been my main strategy this year. I am learning more of them and probably will like these debates a lot.
2. My main lit base is Mao. I have heard debates on a few other Ks. I.e. I won’t know your lit base, so pls explain it well.
3. I like FW debates for the K-aff but am also down to hear k v k debates.

WSD

If I am judging you in WSD, I will treat it like any other debate round. I don't care about any of the nonsense point systems. At the end of the day, Worlds is a debate event and all debate events have standard things I am looking for. Warrant your claims. I have yet to see a worlds debater do that. I will not vote on any arguments that rely on warrantless claims.

PF ONLY (If you are in another event I will not eval in this way)

Pf is not policy-lite. Don't treat it as such.

Probably best to strike me if you do any of the things below. I am 100% down for tech when it is read correctly. However, if you read tech and don't know how to deal with it, I will eval it to the best of my ability but tank speaks (i.e. 25s). This includes the K, K-Aff, T, Theory, T-FW, FW (kritical sense). i.e. literally anything that came from LD/Policy/Parli. If you read a K that follows the pattern of "I am some ______ (*insert demographic here*) and I should win for that" without reading any lit I will eval but tank speaks. If I have heard the same aff word for word I will tank speaks. pls write your own cases especially if your team has more than 2 teams.

I have been told PF is starting to read theory from LD/Policy. If this is your shell and you don't have the 4 parts of a shell, I will tank speaks. You need to have an Interp, Vio, Standards, and Voters. No paragraph T for PF.I have also heard you have been reading these positions in the wrong way like you took the name and went a very different direction. If I see this and your T shell is garbage I will have a hard time evaluating it.

If both sides read any of the previously mentioned arguments and do it so poorly I can't eval the debate/ anger me enough I will flip a coin.

If you spread in a manner that is trying to mirror other debaters but you can't spread I will tank speaks. Pls just speak how you would in any normal conversation. Don't double breath if you don't put a word in between the breaths.

Speech docs should be sent on time. prep doesn't stop until you hit send. Don't send speech docs unless going like 250+ WPM. I will call for card docs at the end of the round. Analytics are not nice to put in, they are a must. You have 3 mins + any unused prep time to send the doc after the round or I will drop you and tank speaks. I take evidence ethics in PF EXTREMELY seriously. I will drop if everything is not provided.

I am not the happiest with PF right now, so don’t test me. You can ignore my paradigm, but don’t get mad when I drop you and tank speaks.

Background:

I have been competing in debate for six years. I competed in Policy Debate in highschool and then competed in Parli debate in college. I currently compete with Concordia University Irvine. I have been coaching policy, parli, and LD at the middle and highschool level for two years now.

Policy:

I am arguably most comfortable with a policy style of debate, since I’ve done so much of it in both policy and parli. That being said, if you’re not introducing a plan, doesn’t mean I won’t enjoy the debate just as much. If you are introducing a plan, I really wanna make sure you have specific solvency for the plan; don’t just say you’re going to do x thing and then not tell me exactly what that thing does. If you’re passing a bill, give me a summary of what the bill does. As far as counterplans go, I'm fine with any of them. I like PICs. I think that the negative always has the right to introduce a counterplan, as long as it's competitive.

Values:

I really enjoy value debates. But if you’re going to defend a value, you better know REALLY well what that value means. I don’t want to hear you defend deontology and then not know how deontology functions through your contentions and what it means in the framing of the round.

Kritiks:

The tl;dr: I’m good with the K but give me a bit of background on the author you’re reading.

I don’t enjoy the kritik when I’m competing, but I enjoy judging them. I have a lot of experience in kiritical debate and I’ve read a lot of authors and seen a lot of Ks, so I’d like to think I’m pretty well versed. Authors I’ve read that I’d say I’m very comfortable with: Foucault, Baudrillard, hooks, Marx, and Tickner. I’ve read a lot of feminist lit so I’m pretty comfortable with any sort of fem K, and I’ve read a handful of other miscellaneous books as well. That being said, if you’re defending a certain author, be sure to know that author backwards and forwards and be able to explain it to me if I look confused. Approach me like a judge that is good on the K and I’ll keep up, but my non-verbals will tell you if I’m lost. If I’m shaking my head, my head is cocked to the side, or I look confused, please clarify what your thesis is – I haven’t read every book ever and for a lot of Ks I’ll need at least a bit of background. Also, please explain how the alt solves – I don’t care if your alt is political or not, just give me clear solvency for whatever it is.

Theory:

The tl;dr: I love theory and will vote on it if you give me a good reason to.

I was always a theory debater. I think it can be the fastest and best way to win the round for both sides. I will definitely take into consideration any theory coming out of any speech as long as there’s a substantiated reason for it. But if you’re going to run theory, make sure you have a clear interp and competitive standards. I’ve seen and run pretty much every type of theory imaginable so I understand when there’s a reason for it and will have a pretty low threshold if you defend it well – I’ve run theory in the last speech of the round based on what someone did in the speech before me, so I’m willing to vote on something like that – but if you’re gonna go for it, go for it. Collapse to theory or I won’t buy it. I have run RVIs before and I don’t see them as abusive as long as you give a good defense for why this is a situation when I should vote on an RVI. Don’t just tell me “they ran theory so they should lose,” explain how that situation specifically is an abusive use of theory and why that warrants me dropping them. I love condo debates but I don’t necessarily think that condo is good or bad; I vote for the team that makes the better argument on that. As far as speed procedurals go, run them if you think it’s warranted but if you’re gonna run a speed procedural, you better have called clear at least 3 times and the other team has not slowed down. Basically, as long as you give me substantiated abuse on theory I’ll vote on it but if you give me a reasonable explanation of why you’re not being abusive I’m just as likely to vote for you.

IF YOU RUN A K OR PROCEDURAL ABOUT ABUSIVE BEHAVIOR, ie TRIGGER WARNINGS BEING ABUSED, I WILL STOP THE ROUND TO MAKE SURE ALL THE DEBATERS FEEL SAFE AND ARE WILLING TO CONTINUE. I don’t want to make anyone feel like they are unsafe when they are debating, so PLEASE bring that to my attention and I will do what I can to make you feel safe.

Things I want to see:

The tl;dr: Clash, impacts, and good impact analysis.

If someone argues something and you drop it; it’s unrefuted offense for the other team and I will consider that in my decision. But I won’t always catch every dropped argument so if you see it, call it out. But make sure you’re directly clashing with your opponents’ points. I like seeing good clash in the round and I’d rather see ya’ll collapse to one argument that has good clash on both sides then to see you stick to your blocks and have the round be like two ships passing in the night.

I also realllllllly want to see good impacts. Explain to me why your arguments matter. If you don’t give me a way to evaluate your arguments against what the other team is saying then that leaves me with a ton of responsibility at the end of the round and I’ll pick the argument I like better. I don’t care how big or small your impact is, just tell me why it matters.

I also really want to see impact analysis at the end of the round. Weigh your impacts on probability, timeframe, magnitude, and probability. I need you to compare your impacts to the other side’s a tell me why I should vote for you (and I much prefer to see that then voting issues since the impacts are what matters).

Miscellaneous stuff:

Be nice. People call me a point fairy and I typically am but I have no problem dropping your speaks if you’re rude in round. I have no tolerance for abusive behavior in round and if you’re a total jerk I’ll drop you.

Speed is fine; I can keep up as long as the other team can, and if I can’t I’ll call clear. And if you're a debater and someone is going too fast for you, please call clear or slow - I won't evaluate an argument about speed unless you attempt to get the other team to slow down first.

If you’re reading an argument about sexual assault, violence, or anything similar, please give a content warning at the beginning of the round so everyone is prepared.

I think debate is a game and I vote for the team that does the best debating, so I try not to have hard and fast opinions on debate. The round is what you make it and I’ll adapt to that unless extenuating circumstances force me to otherwise. Good luck!

Background: competed for 3 years in PF in high school and 1 year in Policy and Parli respectively.

Email chain: ahs.birder@gmail.com

I'm pretty open to, and will vote on, pretty much any argument (K, pics, fw, condo etc. and theory saying all the above are bad are all fair game) - as long as they're explained well, which means comprehensible to a lay audience: so take the time to explain the warrant (+ impact if applicable) and extend it through every speech, don't assume a) that I know what you're talking about or b) that I'll remember what you said in earlier speeches. Give me a convincing argument for why you won the round in your final speech - in the sense that I should be able to vote for you without having listened to any of the debate beforehand (although ofc I'll be flowing the whole thing). I try really hard not to intervene.

I'm ok with speed but please slow down for tags and send me a speech doc!

Please be nice to each other, be charitable and play fair with each other (for example, please no prep time/card calling shenanigans, I trust you guys to be chill with that) and overall relax during the debate, we're all here to have fun! :) (also please free to be casual/comfortable re. attire, especially online)

If you have any questions (or just want to chat), feel free to shoot me an email or ask me before round! This isn't out of courtesy, I genuinely love talking about anything and everything!

I did policy debate in highschool, Parli and IPDA in college and I teach MS LD and PF. However, with that said, I mainly coach speech so I'm definitely not as proficient in flow as I was years ago. I am familiar with circuit rules. In terms of debate, I like sign posting, clear turns and impact calc. Basically, don't make me do your work for you. In terms of solvency presses, mmm its LD so not really. Kritiks, I'm really not a fan of them (unless its legitimate) but if dropped or not addressed I'll take it into voters. Finally watch cp language I'm using CHSA rules this tournament so no go. Also not a fan of evidence battles but will hear out framework debates. Basically, run it more trad and all will be well.

I have 6+ years of experience judging at many local tournaments, CHSSA and NSDA Nationals. Have judged all events (congress, all forms of debate, all forms of IE). I value both content and style. Do not particularly appreciate spreading.