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The Paradigm Dowling Catholic

2020 — Online, IA/US

Novice Policy Paradigm List

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Mawuli Agbefe Evanston Twp High School 4 rounds

Last changed on Mon January 8, 2024 at 3:53 AM CDT

DONT RUN ENACT EXCLUDES courts in front of me. It’s wrong and absurd. What would a topic excluding the Supreme Court look like on criminal justice topic. The resolution says USFG. Supreme Court part of USFG.

put me on the Email chain. Silvermdc1@gmail.com

IN MOST ROunds I’m not reading every card on the doc because it’s a communicative activity. I’ve learned that often some peoples explanation of their evidence doesn’t line up with what the text says. In a situation where I’m on a panel where the other judges are reading the cards I too will as well.

while you’re speaking I prefer you turn your camera on. Understand if you don’t have bandwidth to support it.

I evaluate disease based/ pandemic based impacts much more seriously now due to ongoing effects of COVID 19. I still believe that debate is a game, educational one however I want to fully acknowledge the serious situation of where we are in our country with policing. I’m sure we can have debates while being tactful and understanding for some folks the issue can be personal.

I'll shake your hand if it's like your last round of high school debate and I so happen to judge it. It's weird to me when a kid tries to shake my hand after a round though. I did it when I was debating and didn't realize how odd it was. Oops.

It's likely that I'll laugh some don't take it personally I laugh all the time and I'm not making fun of you. I'm a human being and have lots of beliefs and feelings about debate but I'm persuadable. I don't flow Cross X obviously but sometimes questions and or answers end up impacting my perception of the round.

Arguments that I like hearing

I love the politics disadvantage, I like strategic counterplans. relevant case arguments, specfic d/as to plans.

Non-traditional AFFs or teams.

I'll listen to K affs or teams that don't affirm the resolution. Honestly though it's not my cup of tea. Over the years debate has been changing and I guess I've changed in some ways with it.

Other stuff

NEW Counterplans in the 2NC I'm not cool with unless the 2AC reads an add on.

SPeaker points
I evaluate how well you answered your opponents arguments, ETHOs, persuasiveness, Humor, STRATEGIC DECISIONS. There are times when one team is clearly more dominant or one student is a superior speaker. That's GREAT!! I'm not going to reward you with speaker points for walloping a weaker team. You're not going to be penalized either but it's clear when you have a challenge and when you just get an easy draw in round.

IF I HAVE NEVER MET YOU BEFORE DON'T EMAIL ME ASKING FOR EVIDENCE FROM ROUNDS I JUDGED

ARGUMENTs I'd rather not hear.
SPARK
WIPEOUT

SCHLAG

Schopenhauer

Arguments I find offensive and refuse to flow
RACISM GOOD
PATRIARCHY GOOD

If we're talking about paradigm I view debate as a game. It's an educational game but a game still. I think most rules are debateable. I think speech times are consistent and not a breakable rule, ad-hominem attacks are not acceptable.

Even if your're not friends with your debate partner treat them respect and please no bickering with them.

I'd prefer if people do an e-mail stream instead of flashing or other methods of sharing evidence.

KRITIKS

I'll listen to your criticism. Few things. I think there needs to be a coherent link story with the affirmative, words or scholarship the affirtmative said in cross-x. Your K will not be a viable strategy in front of me without a link story. It's a very tough hill to win a K in front of me without an Alternative. Debaters have done it before but it's been less than 5 times.

Explain and analyze what the alternative does.
Who does it
How does a world compare post alternative to pre-alternative?

NEgative Framework
Should interpt various words in the resolution
Have clear brightline about why your view of debate is best for education
Address proper forums for critical arguments people make
Have voting issues that explain why your vision of debate is desirable.
I prioritize role of the ballot issues.

PERFORMANCE/POEMS/ Interpretive
I'll entertain it I guess, I'm probaly not the most recceptive though. Explain how you want me to fairly evaluate these concerns. Also consider what type of ground you're leaving your opponent without making them go for reprehensible args like: Patriarchy Good or racism good.

Counterplans
Need to have a solvency advocate
A text
Literature
Can be topical in my mind
Net benefit or D/A to prefer CP to aff

Needs to be some breathing room between Counterplan and plan. PICS are fine however I don't think it's legit to jack someone elses aff and making a minute difference there isn't lit for.
Legitimate Competition

A reason the permutation can't work besides theory arguments.

Theory

DON'T JUST READ THEORY BLOCKS AGAINST Each other. Respond in a line by line fashion to opponents theory args. Dropped arguments are conceded arguments obviously. In a close debate don't assume because you have a blippy quick theory argument it's neccessarily going to win you a debate in front of me if you didn't invest much time in it.

Rebuttals
1. Engage with opponents evidence and arguments.
2. Make contextual differences.
3. Humor is fine but don't try to be funny if you're not.
4. Clarity is preferred over speed. Not telling you to go slow but if I can't coherently understand what you're saying we have a problem. Like if you're unclear or slurr a bunch of words while you're spreading.
5. HAVE FUN! Getting trophies and winning tournaments is cool but I'm more concerned what kind of person you're in the process of becoming. Winning isn't everything.

Topicality

Don't trivialize T. Burden is on the affirmative to prove they are topical. I'll listen to reasonablity or competing Interpretations framework. I don't believe in one more than other and can be persuaded either way. Standards by which to evaluate and voting issues are nice things to have in addition to an Interpretation.

Arguments I like on T that I find have been lost to the wayside.

Reasons to prefer source of dictionary, information about changing language norms and meaning, the usage of the word in soceity currently.

Grammar analysis pertaining to the resolution.

Framers Intent/ Resolution planning arguments

Voting issues you think someone who thinks debate is an educational game would like to hear.

Disadvantages

Link Story that is specific to AFFIRMATIVE.

Impacts that would make a worse world than aff.

Author qualifications matter to me, Sources of your evidence matter to me. How well you're able to explain your claims matter to me. Evidentiary comparison to your opponents authors are saying.

General stylistics things

Some kind of labelling for arguments like numbers or letters before the tags is preferrable. If you have questions feel free to e-mail me. silvermdc1@gmail.com

Elizabeth Bennett Iowa City Liberty 2 rounds

Charlotte Blasi Oak Park and River Forest 5 rounds

Ana Bojinov Niles North High School 2 rounds

Brandon Bousquette Univ Of Chicago Lab School 3 rounds

Kaitlyn Bowles Glenbrook North 3 rounds

Last changed on Wed March 6, 2024 at 10:44 PM EDT

she/her

please add kaitlyndebate@gmail.com to the email chain

water topic:

I have judged very few rounds on the water topic. please be thorough in your explanations of arguments/concepts, especially more technical ones like topicality

top level

I debated at gbn for four years as a 2a/1n

don't call me "judge," kaitlyn is just fine

please be respectful to your opponents - racism/sexism/homophobia/ableism/etc will obviously not be tolerated

the most enjoyable debates to watch are ones in which both teams have a good grasp of the bigger picture, especially in the final rebuttals. tell me what is most important to my decision and win that, otherwise I will have to make decisions on my own that might not always go in your favor. impact calc is essential to any good 2nr/2ar

I will try to have my camera on during online debates, and I prefer that all debaters do as well. if there are outstanding tech issues, exceptions can be made

all of my notes below are lists of my general biases, but I think everything is up for debate in a round. I will attempt to be as open as possible when deciding

disads

I love them, there's not much that can go wrong here. case-specific disads are the best, obviously. turns case, when carded and used well, is very strategic

politics debates can be very fun when done well, and the most important part is often the overall "story" of the disad. make sure your story is present throughout the debate

aff teams should have a "counter-story" of the disad - how does your aff interact with the disad? also, straight turning politics is really fun

counterplans

I have gone for my fair share of "cheaty" counterplans, and thus will probably understand your consult cp. however, the more complex/cheaty your cp gets, the easier it is for an aff team to come up with a good perm that resolves all of the internal links

solvency deficits must have an impact that outweighs the impact to the disad - the more impact calculus, the better

theory

most theory arguments are reasons to reject the argument, not the team - condo is the one exception. Don't be afraid to go for condo, but if there's a way you can win on substance I will be much happier as theory debates are often difficult to resolve

judge kick is an extension of conditionality that is not always justified. debate it

re: theory that's in the 1nc but isn't in the doc/is hidden in some way - it's probably stupid, and the aff probably gets new answers

topicality

I read what most people consider to be untopical policy affs, so I appreciate an aff that is able to stretch the topic in an interesting way. that said, you need to have a good defense of legal precision/predictability to hedge back on the neg's (most likely very persuasive) limits impacts. these debates, if well-researched, can be very fun

legal precision > contextual precision > limits > ground > education

impact turns

they're a fun time. go wild

kritiks

ks I am familiar with - security, set col, neolib (all the basic policy ks). anything else and I will need much more explanation. however, if a neg team is thorough in their explanation of their theory and how it impacts the round, I could see myself voting for them

on the aff - affs that either have an extinction outweighs and framework push or can interact with the k in an interesting way are the most persuasive to me

I generally feel that the aff should be able to weigh the impacts of the plan

perfcon is a viable argument that the aff gets to sever their reps

framing contentions

Not the biggest fan. if you do read one, you need to debate down the disad or I will be very hesitant to do that work for you just because you mentioned the conjunctive fallacy. counterplans are a very good way to obviate the framing contention

k affs

I'm probably not the judge for you. I tend to think t-usfg is true and there is usually a topical version of the aff. however, if you have an impact turn or disad you can read on the neg, that's a much more fun debate

aff teams probably need a good (read: predictable and limiting) counter-interp and a persuasive disad to the neg's model to win

clipping

L & 25 if caught clipping, but the other team should have recorded evidence (as I will not be listening for it) and be willing to stake the round on it. if you get caught clipping, you get an L and 25s. if you stake the round on it and no clipping took place/you have no evidence, you get an L and 25s

Daniel Bruns Glenbrook North 3 rounds

Please add me to the email chain: danielbrunsdebate@gmail.com

Paradigm Short Version:

- Very tech over truth

- I don't like Ks

- I'm a big fan of theory

- 2 condo worlds, 3 max

- I'm not super familiar with the topic, so overviews are extremely important

Paradigm Long Version:

About me:

- GBN 22

- Debated two years in high school on the immigration topic and the arms sales topic

- I didn't go to camp this summer so I don't know a huge amount on this topic

Tech v Truth:

- I am extremely tech over truth

- I will evaluate literally any argument regardless of my personal beliefs on it

DAs:

- Politics DAs are really fun, but if you want to read one you need to be really good at arguing the link, and you need to win uniqueness

- Generic DAs are fine on this topic as long as you know your links forward and backward

- Plan specific DAs are probably your best way to get voted up with me as your judge, especially if you read them as a net benefit to a PIC

- Aff, read some impact turns, they make the debate a lot more fun

CPs:

- PICs are really good arguments, but theory violations against them are in my mind legitimate

- Any plan specific CP will fair better with me than a generic, but all CPs are totally viable

- Explain your perms or I will not flow them, they don't need to be long explanations but at least one sentence.

- I'm unlikely to judge kick, unless the neg has a really incredibly reason why I should

Ks/K-affs:

- K debates, in my opinion, are the absolute worst debates. They are always very messy, lots of stuff gets dropped, and novices who read them rarely fully understand what they are reading.

- I am extremely truth over tech, so if you read a K I will listen to it. That said, any judge intervention I do on a K will be against the K.

- If you are a K team or just like Ks, your best bet with me is security, neolib, K, and maybe Agamben.

- Plan specific links please please please. Generic links are fine if that's all you have, but at the very least make them topic relevant if you can't make them plan relevant.

- The alt needs to be concrete, grass roots movements are not a good alt in my opinion

- In terms of K-affs, I'd really rather you not read one, but if you absolutely must, know this:

- I side super super neg on framework

- I'm not going to vote on something that's identity or survival strategy

- The closer the plan is to concrete the policy the more likely you are to get my vote

- The K-aff needs to be in the direction in the topic.

- Don't read more than two, otherwise you leave yourself open to theory violations

- You need to explain the impact of a violation to win

- I tend to side a little neg on T, just because I think a lot of affs cheat there way out of the topic, and I'd rather see a debate that teaches everyone in the room more about CJR then a debate that goes into slight depth on a topic that is kind of related to CJR

Theory:

- Theory debates are really fun, and of all the novice judges I'm probably most likely to vote on it

- I love condo, and will vote on it even if there is only one conditional advocacy read. That said, I think 2 conditional advocacies is probably the max amount of condo advocacies without it being a violation. I would maybe allow three, but after three I'm almost definitely voting aff.

- Don't spread through analytics or I probably won't flow them.

- All theory violations need to be at least a sentence or two in the 2AC to get a vote, but I'd like to see more than that

- If it's a new aff, the neg can do literally whatever they want and I won't vote them down on theory

- I will not add any flows after the 1NC except for perhaps a theory flow

- I think if you spam theory violations that is fine, but depth over breath

- ASPEC/OSPEC is a bleh argument, please don't read it, it takes one sentence from the Aff to shut it down

Speaks:

- I like to give the higher side of speaks

- Because this is novice debate, I will give you perfect speaks only if you don't drop a single argument the entire debate

Derrik Chen Glenbrook North 3 rounds

Last changed on Sun March 24, 2024 at 12:19 PM CDT

Glenbrook North '21

He/him/his

Please add derrikcdebate@gmail.com to the email chain, and please give the email chain a relevant name (e.g. "Round 1 Viking Rumble: GBN XX [AFF] v. GBN YY [NEG])

Top Level:

Qualifications: Debated at Glenbrook North for four years as a 2A and mostly read extinction impacts. Champion and 4th speaker at the Cross River Classic Invitational, qualified to the TOC, etc.

Novices -- don't adapt to me. I'll adapt to you. Please be respectful, especially during cross-ex. There is no need to be overly rude, defensive, demeaning, etc. Everyone's learning.

My ideal debate to judge is one where teams go substantially slower, engage with and collapse to truthful arguments, and make bold strategic decisions. I would much rather judge a debate where the NEG reads four developed offcase positions than one where the NEG reads eight or more scattered offcase with no clear strategic vision. However, I do understand the strategic necessity of reading large amounts of offcase, so feel free to do whatever you please.

I largely agree with this section of Anthony Miklovis's paradigm: You do you. I'll do my best to not be ideological. Below are my predispositions that I'll usually err towards when debated equally. None of these are absolute truths and can be easily reversed through technical debating. BUT, my familiarity with certain arguments might affect my ability to adjudicate claims in round, so do be mindful of that when I say "you do you."

I'd like it if debaters gave me easy outs rather than forcing me to dive deeply into contested issues

Sending analytics is good for clash

Please speak slower and clearer, and watch my facial reactions to your arguments, as I tend to be rather expressive

Please respect your opponents

Rounds judged on the water topic: 46

'21-'22 lowest speaks: 27.5

'21-'22 highest speaks: 29.6

'21-'22 average speaks: 28.7

Ks:

I encourage you to read kritiks that function as disadvantages (e.g. Neolib/Cap K)

I find that the aff should get to weigh in the plan in almost all circumstances

It will be very difficult to convince me to vote for high theory or post-modernism

I do not find most ontology claims persuasive

Perf con makes sense versus epistemology claims

Planless Affs:

Generally not the judge for you

The aff should be related to and in the direction of the topic

Fairness is an impact, but I find clash and education-based arguments to be more persuasive

Counterinterps are usually self serving, so I would rather you impact turn T

NEG teams should impact turn (cap good, heg good, etc.)

Please do not go for a K vs a planless aff unless you can explain it extremely well

Topicality:

I would rather you not go for topicality in front of me, but I understand if it's the only option you have versus an abusive affirmative

Precision > everything. I think most interpretation evidence is atrocious and aff teams should exploit that more

I have never seen an affirmative team reasonably explain reasonability, but that does not mean that it is a bad argument

Counterplans:

I'll judge kick if the 2NR makes the argument. Sufficiency framing seems to be a waste of breath because I will always evaluate if the counterplan solves enough of the case.

Process counterplans are probably illegit (oftentimes dependent on literature), but I would rather affirmatives go for a solvency deficit and net benefit takeout than a tricky permutation or theoretical objection

Intuitive analytical advantage counterplans are strategic. Advantage counterplans + impact turns seem to be underutilized strategies that are killer.

Counterplans that are probably bad: international fiat, object fiat, delay fiat, 'going through legal deficits' fiat

If you want to go for theory, make more specific theory arguments to filter NEG offense

Disads:

The preferred 2NR. When I debated, I read politics, rider, case-specific, etc. Neg ground is atrocious, so I understand and would absolutely enjoy if you decide to go for politics. I think that turns case is usually the deciding factor in disad debates. Please do multiple levels of turns case (e.g. link turns internal link, link turns impact, AND impact turns internal link, etc.)

I think no risk is possible but difficult if the NEG executes correctly

Most disad internal links make little sense, so smart analytics can always lower disad risk

The 1AR seems to get away with a lot of murder here

Theory:

I don't think neg teams explain why conditionality is good well.

I have yet to see a team go for ASPEC, but I think it's a competent strategy given all the agent abuse affs seem to do these days. Same with vagueness, I guess.

Misc.

"Troll" arguments are interesting thought experiments, but I'm unlikely to vote on them

Debaters should time themselves during the round. I'll try to keep track of time, but I'm not perfect.

I want to judge impact turn debates (dedev, please)

Scale:

Policy---x----------------------------------------K

Read a plan-x-----------------------------------Do whatever

Tech----------------x------------------------------Truth

Read no cards----------------x-------------------Read all the cards

Conditionality good-------------------x----------Conditionality bad

PIC's good---x-----------------------------------PIC's bad

States CP good-----x-----------------------------States CP bad

Go for T-----------------------------------x------Don't go for T

Politics DA is a thing-x-------------------------------Politics DA not a thing

Always VTL-x--------------------------------------Sometimes NVTL

UQ matters most--------------------x-------------Link matters most

Not our Baudrillard------------------------------x- Yes your Baudrillard

Clarity-x--------------------------------------------Srsly who doesn't like clarity

Presumption------x--------------------------------Never votes on presumption

Resting grumpy face--x---------------------------Grumpy face is your fault

Longer ev--------------------x--------------------More ev

"Insert this rehighlighting"----------------------x-I only read what you read

Fiat solves circumvention-----x---------------------LOL trump messes w/ ur aff

2017 speaker points-------x------------------------2007 speaker points

CX about impacts---------------------x-----------CX about links and solvency

Fiat double bind------------------------------------------x-literally any other arg

Ellis Chen Iowa City Liberty 1 rounds None

Taylor Daker Glenbrook North 4 rounds

Art Delgado Blue Valley Northwest 6 rounds

Jake Dizon New Trier High School 3 rounds

Chris Dressler Glenbrook South High School 3 rounds

Lauren Ernst Iowa City Liberty 4 rounds

Last changed on Sun July 30, 2023 at 10:59 AM CDT

About me/TL;DR:

She/her
Debated at Iowa City West High School 2014-2018
Education: UMich - Bachelor's ('22) and Master's ('23) studying Economics, Cognitive Science, Biopsychology, Cognition and Neuroscience (BCN), and Management (Master's)

If you get one thing out of my paradigm, it's that I don't flow off docs, I don't look at docs during the debate, and I only look at cards if the debate is really close and the debate hinges on 1-3 cards and there's something about the card itself that is contested (rare event).

Another thing: prep stops when you hit send on your email, not "stop prep, okay I'm sending it out"

With that being said, please put me on the email chain: laernst@umich.edu just in case that rare situation happens.

I have a name, please use it. I will be sad if I am only referred to as "judge".

IF ONLINE: please speak a little slower (tech sound distortion makes you and me sad), and hold timers away from your computer mic, I'm jumpy and the loud beeps are yucky to my brain(especially if they're mid speech, I will likely stop flowing for a sec and potentially miss something)

Ask questions if you want clarification or if I forgot anything :)

Please put trigger warnings on your args as needed and ask if they're okay before the round (for the sake of myself and your opponents) -- one caveat: please do not read su*cide arguments in front of me -- I will go to tab and get you a different judge if needed but no one wants to deal with me crying in the back.

Long Overview --

I debated primarily policy arguments throughout high school and if you rely on jargon my brain will shut off and you will be just as frustrated with me as I am with you. However, I'll be open to whatever you want to debate, just be aware I might need additional explanation. In general, case-specific everything is wonderful. I also actually enjoy well-executed kritiks, just don't read a 2-minute overview, and if you say "sarcophagous DA" I will mentally cry.

Caveat to "open to whatever": if you make the round an unsafe space (race, gender, mental health, disability, etc based), I will end the round, drop you and give you the lowest speaks I can and probably follow up with your coach. Be mature, and good people. If you think "can I say this?" don't. Also, asking for pronouns is always okay. You also are never obligated to share your pronouns.

Also, debate is supposed to be fun, not stressful. Have fun, be nice, and if you make me laugh or excited your speaks will increase. Also, if you get excited about an argument, I'll get excited because smiles and laughter are contagious.

I vote on what I can give a coherent RFD on. If I look lost, I probably am. Help me help you. If at the end of the round, I don't understand your theory, I will not vote on it. I avoid going into the email chain and I do not flow off speech docs. I make decisions based on the shortest path.

Since I do not flow off of speech docs, I would recommend looking up occasionally to see if I am flowing. If I'm not and you want me to be, slow down and fix your clarity. It is not on me to fix your clarity. I will stop flowing and stare at you if I can't understand what you're saying. Oh I also flow cross x. Same thing applies. During cross and in general, remember you should be facing and speaking to the judge. Also, if it's early, you should slow down, no one can go their fastest first thing in the morning.

It has recently come to my attention that ethics violations with respect to broken links, forgetting authors in a cite, etc., are popular ballot-winning tactics. I, for the most part, will not vote on this. Save your crappy ethics violation for a different round, you probably need those 20 seconds to explain a warrant in your card. That being said, if something is legitimately an ethics violation (e.g. clipping cards), I'll vote on that in a heartbeat.

Generic stuff --

I will do my best to be open if you're doing your best to communicate. Debate isn't about who can speak the fastest, it's about who can EFFECTIVELY COMMUNICATE ARGUMENTS the best (aka how many arguments the judge gets on their flow per minute). I love watching people do what they love and I love to learn, so feel free to do whatever as long as you're confident you can communicate your argument to me and teach me something.

I will not make arguments for you, something has to be on the flow and I try to avoid judge intervention as much as possible. Also along those lines, dropped = true, but you have to tell me WHY IT MATTERS that they dropped it. Otherwise, I'll be frustrated.

If you make any argument vaguely related to behavioral or decision science there will be at least a small part of me that gets really excited, especially if it's psychology related.

My high school experience would land me squarely in the "policy" camp, but y'know I'm here to watch you do something you love so don't stop doing what you love because you're afraid I'll drop you on principle. I read big stick policy affs my first two years in high school, then ended with my senior year reading a soft left aff I cared about and going for the cap k consistently (was a 2A, switched to 2N). Also, I discovered that I like Ks more after finishing my undergrad and returning to debate.

T --

I default to competing interpretations, usually because reasonability is incorrectly debated most of the time. Reasonability applies to the definition, not the aff, that is, is your definition something a reasonable person thinks that word means. Please go slower on T. Don't spread it like you would a card because I'll miss half your standards and everyone will be sad at the end of the debate. Probably especially you.

K --

I'm most comfortable with cap and security. Pomo usually makes me want to cry because it relies so heavily on jargon. If you can successfully explain your kritik with minimal (preferably zero) jargon, I am 110% here for that. However, I am not heavily versed in the lit. The same goes for identity Ks. I love a good identity debate, but I'll need additional explanation because I do not read the lit. Psychoanalysis is a) a pseudo-science, b) written by Freud and I just disagree with what he called "science," and c) is usually not deployed well in debate. I will vote on it, but I'll be sad.

The alt better solve the impacts of the kritik. Otherwise, everyone will be sad.

Also, it'll be difficult to convince me to exclude either the aff or the k.

If I haven't made it clear enough, I hate jargon. It's a crutch and to me, usually functions as words to freak the other team out. My main issue with kritiks is that the theories behind them are usually deployed poorly in debate and come off as an attempt to confuse or intimidate the other team. I am intrigued by the theories behind most Ks, so please explain your argument to me, I'd love to learn more about your theories.

Planless affs --

Look, I went for f/w consistently. I can be persuaded either way, but everyone has to do explanation otherwise I'm going to be sad. Specific analysis of each other's arguments makes the debate better for everyone. I'd rather see a negative strategy engaging with the thesis of the aff rather than framework. For the love of debate and coherent RFDs please explain things.

Aff, labeling your DAs is nice and all but "Sarcophagus DA" makes me sad. That tells me not a lot about the DA and honestly, you probably could have made the same argument without labeling it as a DA. Also, if you show that there is a role for the neg in your world of debate, I am much more likely to vote for you.

Rejecting debate altogether will probably make me sad.

Neg, fairness can be won as an impact in itself, but can also be an internal link to other stuff - e.g. there's a distinction between fairness as a competitive incentive and fairness in terms of education. Make your analysis specific to the aff, don't just read the blocked-out version that your coach gave you.

Topic-specific planless affs actually make me really happy. There was an identity team that I debated on the education topic that had a beautiful model minority aff without a plan and I loved that debate. If you can teach me, great.

CP --

I love me a smart counterplan. Be it a PIC or winged in the 1NC because of a card in the 1AC, if it's smart and kinda sneaky I love it. However, don't be awful and read a lot of one-liner counterplans because that ends up being a waste of paper which will make me sad because I like trees. Plus that sucks as a 2A and I'll listen to theory.

Process counterplans are cool IF THE PROCESS MAKES SENSE IN CONTEXT OF THE AFF. Throwing a process CP at an aff and hoping it sticks is bad. I'll listen to process theory, but it usually isn't a reason to reject the team. These just get kinda tricky so you'd better have a darn good explanation for competition and a legitimate net benefit that isn't contrived and just kinda awful *insert snarky GBN comment here*

2 advocacies, you're fine. 3, you're probably still okay. 4 is pushing it, but if you have a really good reason you might be able to pull it off.

Disclaimer, since I was a 2A for a while, I am sympathetic to theory. However, I usually default to reject the argument, not the team (add reasoning for this please please please if you spread theory I'll be sad).

Theory (because it fits under counterplans best)-- I will just about only vote on condo unless it's something that is never answered but is impacted out. Please, if I have to vote on intrinsic bad or severance bad for a perm you do not go for because you forgot to say "reject the argument not the team solves all of their offense," I will be SAD. Seriously, could be the LAST SPEECH OF THE ROUND AND YOU DROPPED IT THE REST OF THE ROUND BECAUSE IT WAS BLIPPY and I'll grant "reject the arg not the team."

DA --

The more case-specific the better. I am a fan of storytelling and if you can coherently explain link chains and internal links and have it sound more plausible than some DAs sound, I'll be happy.

I feel like I have to mention politics DAs at some point in this. I love politics but gut check yourself, don't pick your most obscure scenario, and hope the other team doesn't have answers because if it's that obscure, a good 2A will wipe the floor with you with just analytics.

For economics, please understand the economic theory behind your disad. I studied econ and I enjoy these arguments, but they're bad disads when not understood or executed poorly. Hopefully it's not an issue this year.

Also, case turns are good. Really good.

Nathan Glancy Niles West High School 5 rounds

Last changed on Fri January 26, 2024 at 8:36 AM CDT

Last Updated: November, 2023. Please put me on the chain: nathanglancy124@gmail.com

***Background***

Debated at:

Niles West High School (2014-2018)

Trinity University (2018-2020)

Michigan State University (2020-2023)

Coached for:

Winston Churchill (2018-19)

Niles West High School (2020-2023)

Niles North HS (2023-now)

University of Wyoming (2023-now)

I debated for 9 years, all the way from Oceans to Personhood. I've been a 2n for longer than I've been a 2a, but at heart I am a 2a. I currently coach at Niles North High School in northwest Chicagoland and do remote coaching for the University of Wyoming. I went for policy-style arguments throughout my debate career and relied on debate to help realize/finance my college education. Debate's done a lot for me and I'd like to think I'm doing what I can for debate. If you already know me, say hi!! If you don't know me yet, don't mind the fact that I have a grumpy resting face! I'm not shy and would love to show you pictures of my dog.

***TL;DR***

I really want to ensure you all have a satisfying judging experience. I think this means it is my role as a judge to try my best to render a decision based on the arguments made in the debate. I care about debate's existence and success. I hope that is reflected in my feedback and my efforts as a judge.

High school debaters will do well in front of me if they keep the round organized and moving, show their motivation to improve/learn/win, and maintain a positive approach to the round despite the competitive nature of debate. They'll do even better if this is coupled with good, SPECIFIC arguments :)

College Debaters should consider me capable of judging whatever you need me to. I don't have any large predispositions and therefore I would consider myself quite impressionable if faced with good judge instruction and application of arguments at the end of the debate.

I have comparatively lower amounts of college topic knowledge - fair word of warning for acronyms

*Non-argument Things*

CLIPPING: I am soooooo done with people getting away with murder clipping everywhere. In that light, I will now start dropping non-novice teams that meet my minimum standard for clipping. Triggering any one of these conditions will result in an immediate loss after the speech, with minimum speaks to the individual who does it...

1. Speaker skips a paragraph of a card in a speech

2. Speaker skips a sentence that is 10 or more words in a speech

3. Speakers skips 3-5 words 5 times within a speech

4. Speaker systematically skips 1-2 words throughout a speech

Speaks: I will reward speaks mostly on the following criteria...

1. How did you impact your team's ability to win?

2. How did you impact my judging? Did something impress me?

3. Mastery of Material - "knowing what's going on" at the highest level

4. Mastery of Tech/Organization - did you cause/fix any unnecessary/avoidable decision time hurdles?

Clarity: I'm starting to care way way more about the clarity of argument communicated earlier for how I assess risk later in the debate. I really feel like rewarding good packaging of arguments, labeling, and organization that guides the judge through what you're saying AND why that matters. I will try and highly prioritize this analysis over reading every card and seeing who did the better research project. However, instructing me to read a portion of a card obviously constitutes a form of argument that I will take into account.

Conduct: The more we have good vibes in the round, the better the experience will be for everyone. Feel free to have competitive spirit, but don't let that turn you into an unlikeable person!! That's not a winning recipe. Also I am a fan of corny humor, often to a fault. I have given one 30 in my lifetime, and it was to someone who's joke made me uncontrollably laugh during the 2ar (they lost). Don't reach for a bad joke though that's never funny.

Online Debate: Before EVERY speech and EVERY CX, please confirm that everyone is here AND that the sound is clear! Feel free to do camera on or off, I understand everyone has their reasons. Please be understanding of the different complications of online debate and let's do everything we can to keep online accessible and effective. Oh and I HATE prep stealing and doing it while online doesn't excuse it.

***Argument Things***

Case:

I should understand a consistent explanation of the 1ac and its advantages throughout the debate. Changing this narrative or being dodgy/vague is easily subject to punishment by a good neg team. AFF teams should punish teams that are light on case using clear 2ac articulations of dropped arguments instead of being equally as vague. 2NRs on case should focus on identifying what AFF impacts your case defense is responding to.

I am starting to get really tired of bad highlighting here and teams that point this out can mitigate offense here.

DAs:

They're cool, but oh my gosh do teams double, triple, quadruple turn themselves with these so often! I don't care about spamming DAs, but I wish more AFF teams would exploit contradictions in "neg flex". Neg teams can best win their DAs by getting impact framing out early and being clear about 1ar concessions to establish a high risk of your offense.

I am starting to get really tired of bad highlighting here and teams that point this out can mitigate offense here.

I think explaining your vision of the topic is one of the most underrated and underutilized ways to win a T debate. Please just explain to me why in your squad room you decided that T made sense? What's the "core thing" that the AFF did that is the controversy being debated?

Things that help a lot: TVA, case-list of good AFFs under your interpretation, case-list of bad AFFs under their interpretation, definition comparison, explanation of neg ground under your interpretation AND the other teams'.

Theory:

I HATE bad theory arguments and don't want to vote on them, but I hate teams that don't flow slightly more so I will vote on that stuff (and if I miss one line ASPEC that's on you, debate's a communication activity!). Bad theory debating is a one way ticket to low speaks, but good theory debating can drastically alter how rounds go down.

I'm pretty good for theory all things considered. I went for states CP theory a lot on the education topic and am a 2a at heart, but as someone who was a 2n I understand the deep, deep love we share for condo. I feel like the best theory debaters are FLOWABLE while doing their theory debating, SPECIFIC in their impact articulation beyond just talking about clashing and doing some fair education, and INSTRUCTIVE to the judge on questions of impact comparison and justifying new arguments.

CPs:

CPs are defense and should be explained in the context of what it is defending against (the 1ac's mandate, evidence, and how the advantages are explained). This is how I often think about deficits and how a CP implicates my ballot. Re-cutting the 1ac/AFF evidence is usually the gold standard for proving a CP sufficiently solves. I feel like fore-fronting how you explain a CP early and not deviating from that is the best way to ensure you don't bring in new explanations so I don't let the AFF get new answers. I lowkey hate process CPs but sometimes it must be done.

Ks:

I'm better for the K than you think, but likely need more judge instruction about how to apply X argument. Better for evidence-heavy OR depth-focused debate. Any amount of generic evidence is best addressed through specific analysis.

"Exceeds expectations"/I've gone for: Cap, Security, Biopolitics/Agamben

"Meeting expectations"/I feel fine judging: Set Col, Anti-blackness (Nihilism, Pessimism, to name a few), Orientalism/Colonialism, Imperialism, Queer pessimism, Trans pessimism, Ableism

"Needs improvement"/err towards over-explaining: Psychoanalysis, Bataille, Heideggerian stuff, Baudrillard, Deleuze

I have not judged a KvK debate yet.

Framework:

I almost exclusively went for t-usfg/framework in HS and college, but that doesn't make me care about dropping a policy team. Impact articulation matters for me but far too often I find teams blending concepts such as fairness and clash in incoherent ways. I don't care about the label, but rather the underling explanation and how it is being applied in the debate. If you have any other questions look at Josh Harrington's philosophy on K AFFs, that'll reflect roughly how I feel.

Nate's sliding scales about debate:

Tech/Truth----------------------------X-Facts are Facts & Dropped args are as true as the warrants conceded

Condo-------X----------------------Respect the Aff Peasant (have and will vote on it, clear args in the 1ar key)

Process CP/Normal Means Competition----------------------------X- 100 plank case-specific advantage CP

Super Big CP-----------------X------------Deep Case Debating

Simply saying "Sufficiency Framing"-----------------------------X-Explain why CP solves sufficiently

Zero Risk Framing----------X-------------------Any Risk Framing

Perm Double Bind--------------X---------------Haha Silly Policy Hacks

Deb8=Karl Rove----------------------------X-That was one dude

Salad K----------------------------X-Single K Thesis

Economic Growth----------------------------X-( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

***Miscellaneous***

Email chain is always preferable to anything else barring tech issues

I don't like cards in the body of the email... but nobody seems to care... oh well...

I am fine with open cx. All people should be.

The Prep Rule: I will increase speaks from what I would have given by .1 for every minute of prep not used - speaks can be earned by specifically telling me the balance of prep your team had remaining before their last rebuttal. Capped at .5 boosted speaks.

Massive pet peeve: if you call a CP a "see-pee" I will think about it so much that it might disrupt my flowing and you might instantly lose (I am being sarcastic).

here's a photo collage about debate that I made in high school:

Image result for T Related image Image result for impact turn Image result for criticism bad

Dennis Guno Glenbrook North 3 rounds

Griffin Jacobs Glenbrook South High School 6 rounds

Last changed on Sat December 17, 2022 at 1:44 AM CDT

minnesota 25

yes email chain - one.griffin.jacobs@gmail.com

top line//tldr

i will always vote for the team that does the better debating, you do not need to tell me to vote for the team that does the better debating. both teams can argue about what "the better debating" means but i will always vote for the team that does the better debating

i will try to evaluate the debate in the way that the debaters have prioritized arguments - i will look for the easiest way out of deciding a debate and go from there - this makes impact framing and judge instruction very important for me

depth > breath - this is the most important thing on my paradigm. i think that any given team needs a maximum of 3 pieces of offense to win any given round and should explain why they're winning that/those argument(s) and why it means they win the round extensively. more than 6 offcase will make me grumpy, although i will still listen to all of them

tech > truth - having truth on your side is obviously good and will win the round when the flow is close but debate is about your ability to debate, not about your ability to read objectively true arguments

evidence quality > quantity - most arguments don't need cards - if you are reading evidence, make sure it is specific and warranted - if you cannot explain the warrants in your cards, i will give them far less weight - author qualifications mean a lot less to me than warrants

i have a debate level understanding of whatever kind of literature you're planning on reading unless you're being truly innovative

STOP MISUSING ONTOLOGY CLAIMS - ontology is important, but almost zero actual qualified authors will say that ontology means that nothing good can ever happen - aff teams vs the k need to make this point more.

i will assume util is trutil until told otherwise

i really really really really really strongly dislike arguments that require me to make a judgment call on whether or not one team or debater is a good person/good people - if something is so egregious that a team should be disqualified from a round or tournament either i will directly intervene before the round ends or you should take it up with the tournament and the other team's coaches

the case debate

i know it is cliché - but this is very important! - do not assume i know what your aff is/does, this makes the 2ac/2ar overview crucial

i am probably a better judge for presumption than most - most aff teams need to make massive stretches in order to solve the impacts they specify in the 1AC - this is why i generally prefer affs with specific and solvable impacts

i'm super down for impact turns - everything from co2 ag to china war good to wipeout is cool with me as long as it's explained well

disadvantages

disads don't always need uniqueness - if the impact is framed as a sliding scale, the link can definitely overcome uniqueness problems

impact framing matters a lot - most teams in a DA debate will agree to magnitude x probability - if both teams agree to this framing timeframe is the tiebreaker

i love internal link defense - a lot of teams surprisingly don't do this that much - most DA internal link scenarios are ridiculous and some well warranted defenses to them are quite persuasive to me

politics da's - i will usually default to thinking that durable fiat doesn't solve them because you only fiat enough congress members to pass the plan - i am however persuaded by non-normative interpretations of fiat that allow aff teams to avoid politics da's (like should =/= immediate) - i am fine for political capital links as long as you have specific evidence

counterplans

functional > textual competition - i think there are ways to explain textual competition as functional competition (especially with courts counterplans with specific evidence), however i generally find textual competition unpersuasive

sufficiency framing unless the aff team makes arguments that contradict this - i will generally assume that if a risk of the net benefit outweighs the risk of the solvency deficit, i will vote negative on the cp

theory (except for condo) is probably a reason to reject the argument, not the team

topicality/procedurals

precision is generally the gold standard unless community consensus heavily contradicts it and makes debate near impossible

i like it when t blocks are specific to the topic - case lists of what you allow/what they justify and listing off ground lost is good

effects and extra t arguments are under utilized and pretty important - especially because they're the only real way of snuffing out questionably topical affs that destroy debatability and limits

non resolutional procedurals are cringe but obviously if this is your thing still go for it, especially if it's dropped

kritiks

specific links to the mechanism of the aff are always best but if you only have generic cards, application and explanation specific to the aff will be enough to win a pretty big risk of the link

the alt really needs to solve the links - otherwise i will view the k as a mostly non-unique linear da - this is still winnable but makes it unnecessarily harder for the neg

framework is obviously important - i see the framework debate on a k from the neg more similarly to a framework debate against a k aff more than most, it's a debate about models of debate - this is why i'm generally less receptive to "you link, you lose" framework arguments, especially when the neg is making a sweeping ontology claim, it really leaves no role for the aff

2nr framing and link storytelling is crucial

the alt can result in or solve the aff without losing to the perm - but it requires a more nuanced link and alt explanation - usually about sequencing/framing or solving the internal links of the aff, but not resulting in its mechanism

kritik affirmatives

these are by far the worst and best debates

i am a fine judge for framework/t-usfg - however i will say that i would prefer you do literally anything else besides going for a procedural fairness impact - obviously, if you win it, i'll vote for you, but i will be incredibly grumpy about it - clash and education are far better impacts and allow you to have turns case warrants

if you do choose to go for framework/t-usfg - you really need to be going to the case page in the 2nr - otherwise you're just kind of gifting the aff full solvency and their impact turns which makes it infinitely easier for the aff

for aff teams - i think there are really only 2 strategic ways to debate framework - either impact turn everything and ignore the topic or just be a hard left topical aff - i am increasingly confused by k teams that do this "we're half topical" nonsense because it makes it much harder for you to solve your impact turns while still linking you to all of their framework offense

"the state is an assemblage" is not a real argument

1ac cross-x is crucial - i think every 2n should be asking "what is the role of the negative?" and "what is the relationship between the aff and solving 1ac impacts?" and every 1a should have a well prepared answer to these

i think that a lot of kritical affs have inherency issues and that these very often justify a presumption ballot

pics are often very strategic against critical affirmatives - especially ones that affirm something incredibly sweeping and broad

i love kvk debates - links need specificity though - links along the lines of "you didn't mention/analyze *x*" are incredibly unpersuasive to me - i love the cap k but if your link is "you didn't use the state" i will be quite annoyed

"no perms in a method/tactics debate" is a pretty sound argument to me, especially because it's one of the only ways to garner competition against k affs - competition should be established in cx tho

Carter Kastory Glenbrook North 4 rounds

Halimah Khan Niles North High School 2 rounds None

Emma Kingston Blue Valley Northwest 6 rounds

Last changed on Thu October 29, 2020 at 9:32 AM CDT

BVNW '20

GWU '24

*currently helping out BVNW children

she/her

add me to the chain please: emmakingston12@gmail.com

I spent way too long trying to think of things for this and if it makes no sense to you please ask me questions before rounds and I'll answer.

Random Thoughts:

I won't vote on shit out of round.

Please do evidence comparison of some sort.

Spend the 20 secs to read the rehighlightings.

No risk is a thing.

Good analytics can beat trash evidence if you point it out.

Don't speak so fast you become mush mouth- I will clear you like 2-3 times before I just stop flowing.

I default to competing interpretations. I flow on paper, so your gonna have to slow these debates down a lil bit so I can write things down.

Please do impact calc in T debates!!!

Reasonability checks abuse is gonna need some explaining other than those three words coming out of your mouth for me to give it any weight.

T is not an RVI nor is it genocide.

People spread through T blocks like its a 1nr on a ptx da with 50 cards, if you do that, you will get lower speaks and I won't get all the words out of your mouth on the flow. Slow it down please.

Case:

Do what you do. I always tended to read affs in the middle of the topic- so this is probably where I'm most comfortable.

Call out bs internal link chains that 2as tend to get away with.

Please put something other than generic impact d on the case page.

Case turns can be fun and I've had my fair share of spark, dedev, and wipeout debates.

K Affs:

please no

I get prefs don't always get you your favorite judge in the back of the room and I won't drop you just because y'all aren't reading a plan, but if you have me in the back I will need more judge instruction on how to evaluate arguments.

The aff def needs to have some sort of tangible link to the topic for me to vote for it. A good counterinterp + turning neg offense can make a persuasive ballot.

I think I've realized that I have less trouble understanding high theory arguments and more get lost in how they interact in the debate space. Just take the extra step to explain things please.

Explain how the aff actually does something to move away in the squo in some way so I don't have to vote for presumption.

Please do not make your fairness arguments about another team's school, social location, or personal background.

I tend to lean on the side that fairness is an impact, granted I don't think its the strongest one but do with that what you will.

I will reward cool strats against planless affs- that being said I was def a FW/cap debater except for one time where Zaki gave me like 40 cps to read and that was p fun.

Go for a terminal impact in the 2nr against a k aff please- a lot of people forget to do this and make the 2ar a lot easier than it should.

Good case debate in the 2nr vs a K aff can mitigate a lot of offense in my brain, especially if the 2nr is fw.

Debate is probs a game, but whether or not that game spills up is a debate to be had.

Also arguments like debate bad are just not smart and there is better offense in fw debates to use.

rev v rev debates will confuse my tiny brain and I tend to think that there are better strats if you have me in the back.

Ks:

I'm not the best for these debates, I will get basic Ks like security, cap, abolition, etc. but anything high theory and your gonna start to lose me.

The aff almost always gets to weigh the case- so winning a clear link to the plan and indicting their model of FW is probs a good idea if you want my ballot.

Not the biggest fan of large overviews that are longer than like 1-1.5 minutes, try to go in 2ac line-by-line order.

Also, k tricks/k buzzwords will basically get you nowhere unless it goes dropped.

CPs:

fun

I am all for "cheating" CPs. Process, conditions, consult. I love them all. Hot take?: states and parole cps were legit.

I don't really love 2nc cp amendments- I tend to think that 10 secs before a round thinking about wording would solve a lot of this.

CPs in the 1nc where you kick like 20 planks in the block aren't my favorite- but you do you.

DAs:

also fun

I love a good ptx da- especially well-developed ones.

Teams tend to do a lot of turns case analysis for like 10 secs at the top of the flow and then never specify how it implicates the debate in any way, if your gonna turn the case- explain it!! Good turns case analysis, however, can make a close debate turn in your favor.

Offense on DAs makes things fun.

Please kick out of things cleanly so you don't lose yourself a debate on a dropped/poorly answered turn.

I stg all of soph and junior year I went for tax reform and farm bill- so clear internal link chains and nuanced link args will get you far.

Theory:

Condo is probably good- although I do tend to think there is a distinction to be made between like 1 and 9 worlds- however where that brightline is, I'm not quite sure.

^I'm 1-1 in how I vote in condo debates as of now. So I guess if going for condo is the only way out you have in the 2ar go for it.

I'm probably unlikely to reject a team for a lot of theory args other than condo- but I will reject a CP/DA if you debate it well.

Closing Thoughts:

Debate is a pretty damn cool place. That being said please don't say toxic shit in round, I will probably drop you and definitely drop your speaks. ie being racist, sexist, homophobic, transphobic, ableist, etc. ain't cool and I will call you out on it. Also please don't be an ass in cross-ex, that's also not cool. Some people that have influenced my debate career include TEllis, David Kingston, Arvind Shankar, and most of the bvnw squad in general- so if that tells you anything there it is. Also thanks to Lex Barrett, Zaki Mansoor, and Will Soper for making senior year p cool (they probs have influenced my debate thoughts in more ways than id care to admit tbh). Also, Shaurir wanted to be in this for giving me answers to Ks during the season, so thanks ig.

Keryk Kuiper Hire 6 rounds

Last changed on Sun January 7, 2024 at 2:53 PM EDT

Lane Tech - 2012 - 2013

Iowa City High - 2013 - 2016

University of Northern Iowa - 2016 - 2017

Emporia State 2018 - 2021

Berkeley Prep - 2021 -

-----

2022 Update

TLDR:

-email chain -

BerkeleyPrepDocs@gmail.com

natodocs@googlegroups.com

-Recently retired k-leaning flex debater/resident performative stunt queen for Berkeley Prep Debate

-would much rather judge a really good policy v policy round than a poorly executed k round - BUT - would ultimately prefer to judge a k v k round where both sides have competing and creative strategies that they are both a) deeply invested in and b) have interesting interpretations of. Those are the rounds I always had the most fun in, but to be clear, I have also realized over the years that a policy v policy round has the potential for just as much, if not more and have no problem judging these debates.

-the team executing whatever argument they are most comfortable with at the highest level they can, will always in my eyes have an easier time getting my ballot/receiving higher speaks which means that the the speeches I want to see are those that you are enthused about giving and ultimately, I want you to be excited to be able to do whatever it is that you are best at.

-went for everything from big stick warming affs to f*** debate performance 1AC's, to Black/Native Studies like Warren, Wilderson, Moten, King, Gumbs and Hartman to Queer theory like Butler, Edelman and Trans-Rage to High theory like Nietzsche, Baudy and OOO as well as Procedurals like T/FW/A- and I-Spec, Disads/Case turns like to deterrence, politics and SPARK and of course, multiple different flavors of counterplans. so regardless of what it is you go for I'm down - just don't take this as an excuse to not use judge instruction/concise explanations that makes sense - even if I was a Nietzsche one - trick in high school that doesn't mean I'm going to do the nihilism work for you. All this is to say is that whoever you may be, you should feel comfortable that I have in some way or another had a certain level of experience with your literature base.

Important Note:

Due to recent events its been suggested to me that I add a layer to my philosophy I wasn't sure was necessary, but in an effort to help protect future debaters/debate rounds, as well as myself/fellow judges, here is what I will say -

While I do empathize with the competitive nature of this activity, it should go without saying that if there is violence of any kind, whether that be intentional or not, my role as an educator in this community is to intervene if that situation deems my involvement to be necessary and I want to make it very clear that I have no qualms in doing so. Its important to recognize when we have to put the game aside and understand as a community that we have a responsibility to learn from situations like those and to be better as we move forward. SO just for the sake of clarity, I do not have a desire to stop rounds, in fact - quite the opposite. However, my role as a judge (one that I would hope others embody when judging my own students) is one that adjudicates the round in the most equitable means possible AS WELL AS one that ensures the safety of, to the best of my capacity, each debate round and all of its participants/observers.

Also - Sometimes, and not always, but in the same fashion as countless other judges, I can, at times, be a very reactive/nonverbal judge. Understanding that those kinds of things are a) an inevitable part of this activity b) not always caused by something you did and c) can be incredibly critical in your in round-decision making is crucial and is a fundamental skill that I believe to be vastly important in succeeding within this activity. HOWEVER, that means that whether or not you choose to modify what you are doing based off how I am reacting is, at the end of the day, your decision and your decision alone - recognizing when to do so/when not to is a core facet of competing.

Strike me if you don't like it.

specific feels about certain things:

- have aff specific link explanations regardless of offcase position - that doesnt mean that every card has to be specific to the aff but your explanation of the link should be as specific to the 1AC as you can make possible - extra speaker points to those who can successfully pull lines

- hot take: after all this time in online debate, I will in fact "verbally interject if unable to hear" regardless of whether you make that clear to me before you begin your speech - so as a personal preference don't feel obligated to say that anymore. Id rather you just give me an order and start after getting some signal (verbal or visual) that we're all ready. as an incentive to help try and stop this practice, expect a lil boost in points.

- that being said, "as specific to the 1AC" means you could have a really good link to aff's mechanism. or you could have a great state link. or a link to their impacts. etc. it doesnt matter to me what the link is as long as it is well developed and made specific to what the 1AC is. I dont want to hear the same generic state link as much as the next person but if you make it creative and you use the aff than I dont see a problem.

- affirmatives could be about the topic, or they could not be, its up to you as long as whatever you choose to do you can defend and explain. If you're not about the topic and its a framework debate, I need to know what your model of debate is or why you shouldnt need to defend one etc. if youre reading a performance aff, the performance is just as important if not more than the evidence you are reading - so dont forget to extend the performance throughout the debate and use it to answer the other teams arguments.

- whether its one off or 8 please be aware of the contradictions you will be making in the 1NC and be prepared to defend them or have some sort of plan if called out.

- on that note theory debates are fine and could be fun. im not that opposed to voting on theory arguments of all varieties as long as you spend a sufficient amount of time in the rebuttals to warrant me voting on them. most of the time thats a substantial amount if not the entirety of one or more of your rebuttals.

- perm debates are weird and i dont feel great voting for "do both" without at least an explanation of how that works. "you dont get a perm in method debates" feels wrong mostly because like these are all made up debate things anyways and permutations are good ways to test the competitiveness of ks/cps/cas. that being said, if you have a good justification for why the aff shouldnt get one and they do an insufficient job of answering it, i will obviously vote on "no perms in method debates"

- dropped arguments are probably true arguments, but there are always ways to recover, however, not every argument made in a debate is an actual argument and being able to identify what is and isn't will boost your speaker points

speaks:

how these are determined is inherently arbitrary across the board and let's not pretend I have some kind of rubric for you that perfectly outlines the difference between a 28.5 and a 28.6, or a 29.3 and a 29.4, or that my 29.3 will be the same as some other judges.

I do however think about speaks in terms of a competitive ladder, with sections that require certain innate skills which ended up being fairly consistent with other judges, if not slightly on the higher side of things. Hopefully, this section will more so help give you an idea of how you can improve your speeches for the next time you have me in the back.

-26s: these are few and far between, but if are to get one of these, we've probably already talked about what happened after the round. The key here is probably don't do whatever is that you did, and is most likely related to the stuff I talked about at the top.

-27s: If you're getting something in this range from me, it means you should be focusing on speaking drills (with an emphasis on clarity, and efficiency), as well as developing a deeper/fuller analysis of your arguments that picks apart the detailed warrants within the evidence you are reading.

-28s: Still need to be doing drills, but this time with more of an emphasis on affective delivery, finding a comfortable speed, and endurance. At this point, what I probably need to see more from you is effective decision making as well as judge instruction - in order to move into the 29 range, you should be writing my ballot for me with your final rebuttals in so far as using those speeches to narrow the debate down and effectively execute whatever route that may be by painting a picture of what has happened leading up to this moment

-29s: at this point, you're probably fairly clear and can effectively distinguish between pitches and tones as you go in order to emphasize relevant points. The only drills you should be doing here should be concerned with efficiency and breathing control, and if you are in the low 29's this is most likely a clarity issue and you should probably slow down a bit in order to avoid stumbling and bump your speaks up to high 29's. Higher 29's are most likely those who are making the correct decisions at most if not all stages of the debate, and successfully execute the final speeches in ways that prioritize judge instruction, and clearly lay the ballot out for me throughout the speech.

-30s: I actually don't have a problem giving these out, because I think my bar for a "perfect" speech can be subjective in so far as 30's for me can definitely make mistakes, but in the end you had a spectacular debate where you gave it everything you could and then some. I try not to give these out often though because of the risk it could possibly mess with your seeding/breaking, so if you do get one of these, thanks - I had a wonderful experience judging you.

-0.0 - 0.9 - this section is similar for every category in that it is dependent on things like argument extension and packaging, handling flows/the line by line, cross ex, link debating, etc. however, a team that is in the 29 range will have a higher bar to meet for those sort of minutia parts of your speech than those in the 28 or 27. That's because as you improve in delivery you should also be improving in execution, which means that in my eyes, a debater who may be in the 27 range the first time I see them, but is now speaking in the 28 range will have a higher bar than they did before in order to get into the high 28s.

Katherine Lavelle Hire 3 rounds

Last changed on Thu January 9, 2020 at 3:38 PM CDT

Kate Lavelle – Associate Professor of Communication Studies - Public Communication & Advocacy at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse

21 years of policy debate experience as a competitor and coach [NSDA (high school) & NDT/CEDA/ADA as a college competitor (John Carroll University) and coach/Director of Forensics (Miami University, Wayne State, Augustana, Northern Iowa]

Debate in general – I frequently judged policy debate until 2013. While I have been off the circuit for awhile, I teach public speaking and debate courses at UWL. Participating in policy debate was a transformative experience for me, and as a judge, I want to help support an educational experience for everyone in the round. see my role as evaluating arguments based on how they are debated in the round. I will not read much evidence after the round or attempt to reconstruct the debate based on all of the evidence you all read.

Because I’m not actively coaching a team right now, be sure to explain topic specific arguments, particularly in the final rebuttals. I encourage topic specific arguments, but make sure that some of the jargon of the topic is discussed in the round. All major arguments in the round must have significance within the context of the round and other major arguments.

In terms of behavior, here’s the deal: if someone makes an inappropriate statement (or acts inappropriately) in the round, I’m going to say something when it happens. I love debate, and I’m happy to judge. I encourage you all to be assertive and respectful in the round. Watch my non-verbals during the round. If something is unclear or doesn’t make sense to me, you can usually tell by watching me.

Decision Calculus – fewer arguments is better for me. I would encourage you to present a variety of arguments until the final two speeches. A good 2NR doesn’t go for everything – and you should have enough development in the block to spend the right amount of time on your round winners.

The 2NR should choose 1 (if going for T or K) to 2-3 (DA, CP, case) arguments and explain why this wins you the round in spite of aff arguments. Close the door on potential aff winners (hidden theory, turn story)

The 2AR should provide a clear story for why your advocacy is superior. This could be your case, a turn story you have developed, etc. It is wise to have as much connection between the 1AR/2AR as possible, a brand new 2AR will not beat a good 2NR.

Case Specific Arguments – I follow the news, but I’m not cutting cards. I like case debates; a good case debate is developed with specific, recent evidence. As long as you explain the nuances of your case specific arguments, I appreciate these types of arguments. You are better off spending time on developed arguments than having a ton of “arguments” that aren’t developed.

Topicality – I like a good T debate. Have a copy of the resolution for me. Both teams – be specific, explain what is/not topical under the different T interpretations. I don’t have strong opinions on what is the “best” standard to evaluate T. Aff – have a good counter interpretation/definition, provide enough doubt about the negative interpretation, provide good counterstandards. T is a procedural issue, not a turn argument. Pre round, write a good plan text to avoid T arguments. Neg – have a good, contextual definition, provide specific ways that aff is potentially/actually not topical (cases, ways they explode the topic). Provide good reasons for me to vote on T. Spend time on it if you are going to go for it. Show how the plan text is not topical.

Kritiks –My academic research is rhetoric of sports. I have done some work with Orientalism, Spivak, Foucault, whiteness, masculinity, blackness, critical discourse analysis, and feminism in sports. For me, a good kritik debate is thoughtful. How does the kritik operate in the round? How does the offending team violate the kritik? (Framing of arguments, languages, solution-oriented world)? Especially in the block, go a bit slower on the K. I prefer more development of arguments in the round, as opposed to an artificial discussion of a theory. Include a brief overview and explain how the argument functions in the round.

I am open to a wide variety of critical arguments, but I have problems sorting them out in rounds when they are discussed as an abstract concept, not as a functioning argument in the round. For instance, my favorite type of kritik debate is one that operates as a solvency take out or turn. Alternative debates can be a bit hard to defend in the last speech; I think you should run them, make good arguments to why the affirmative links to the kritik, even in a world where they “solve.” If you are affirmative, make no link arguments and permutation arguments. I think that there are good arguments about why plan action and rethinking can work together. I don’t that the affirmative loses advocacy just because a kritik is run. Instead, make arguments about why you provide a more specific avenue to address the problems in the affirmative plan. As for framework debates, I think that they aren’t necessary (such as presenting them in the 1AC), but I think the affirmative has the right to defend that fiat is good. I am more interested in the substantive debate than the framework debate.

Disads – Disads are good. I like disads. Make sure that you develop impact calculus in the last two speeches. I also think that more specific arguments on DAs trump lots of blippy theory arguments.

Theory - I am kind of “eh” on theory. If you are going to win theory, I think that you need to be answering all of your opponents’ arguments, as well as making good reasons why your theory argument is better. Spend some time on theory if you want me to vote on this issue.

Counterplans - I think that you should to discuss solvency deficits between the counterplan and case. It can be frustrating as a judge if debaters don’t explain how a CP works or what the net benefits are. A short overview in the block can be a good place to provide this explanation. If you are running a super case specific counterplan, spend some time on it.

Performance – Here’s the deal – I think that performance arguments/advocacies operate like any other argument in the round, you have to defend some advocacy and explain how it functions with the opposing arguments. I know that the structure of many performance arguments can make this difficult, but I think that some attempt needs to happen (it may not happen until the end of the debate). As a judge, it’s hard to understand all of the intricacies of a performance argument when it functions in isolation to other arguments in the round.

Flowing - I flow on paper. Keep this in mind if you have very long overviews on positions.

If you have any questions, just ask!

Hongxia Ma West High School SLC 6 rounds

Jeremy Margolin Iowa City West 6 rounds

Kalen McCain Iowa City Liberty 2 rounds

Last changed on Fri January 5, 2024 at 6:02 AM CDT

Speechdrop.net is strictly superior to email chains for in-round file sharing, but feel free to contact me via Kalen.pop@gmail.com

I've been involved in policy debate since 2012 and a coach since 2018, currently Head Coach at Iowa City Liberty High School. By day, I'm employed as a sentient Politics DA. (Journalist with a major in political science.)

TLDR: I'll vote on anything you can make me understand. I love DA/CP/Case debates, I'm not a bad judge for the Kritik, but I've been told I'm not a great judge for it either. Speed reading is fine in the abstract, but I do hold debaters to a higher standard of clarity than I think many other judges to. Speed-reading through your analytics will guarantee I miss something.

Detailed Paradigm: everything below this line is background on my opinions, NOT a hard and fast rule about how you should debate in front of me. I do everything in my power to be cool about it, check bias at the door, etc.

Speed Reading: is fine. But don't spread analytics, please. 250 WPM on analytical arguments is really pushing it. I know that some judges can flow that fast, but I am not one of them: my handwriting sucks and is capped at like, normal tagline pace. Otherwise, you're free to go as fast as I can comprehend. I'll yell "CLEAR!" if I can't.

Policy stuff: Yeah of course I'll vote on disads and counterplans and case arguments and topicality. Are there people who don't?

CP theory: Listen, I'll vote on it, but I won't like it. I strongly advise that theory-loving 2As give warranted voters in the speech, and that 1ARs do actual line-by-line rather than pre-written monologues.

Kritiks: are pretty rad, whether they're read as part of a 12-off 1NC or a 1-off, no case strat. I want to be clear, though: I REALLY NEED to understand what you're saying to vote for you with confidence. I find a lot of very talented K debaters just assume that I know what "biopolitical assemblages of ontological Being" or whatever means. I do not.

K affs: are fine. I myself usually stuck to policy stuff when I debated, but I'll hear it out. You should probably have a good reason not to be topical, though. Some people have told me I'm a bad judge for K affs, others have told me I was the most insightful judge at the tournament. (More have told me I was a bad judge for it though, for what it's worth.)

Other debate formats:

PF: PF is traditionally about being persuasive, whereas policy is about being right. If you can do both I'll be impressed and probably give you a 30. Otherwise, I feel like I have a more or less firm grasp on your activity, but I certainly don't have all of its norms memorized.

LD: I have no idea how your activity works and at this point I'm too afraid to ask. Whoever successfully teaches me LD debate will get an automatic 30. Please dumb your Ks down for me, I'm a policy hack.

Congress: Listen, I did one congress round in high school and left it with 0 understanding of how it's supposed to work. If I'm in the back of your room, it means tabroom made a mistake. Because of my background in policy debate, I imagine I'll be biased in favor of better arguments rather than better decorum.

Jackson Miller New Trier High School 6 rounds

Last changed on Tue April 11, 2023 at 5:55 PM CDT

[Names of schools, years of graduation]

I debated for [number] years and made it to [a hotel ballroom nobody cares about].

Have fun always, try your best always. Like really I put it at the top for a reason. Don't insult your opponents. Don't be mean to your partner. The more you think you're better than them the more I'm gonna want you to be wrong.

Put me on the email chain please: jacksonemdebate@gmail.com

I wanted to try and come up with a good song for you to listen to as you read my paradigm like I do with every topic. It's kinda hard to hit all three areas of the topic at once, maybe try like this (although it's definitely not long enough). I feel like this might be the closest I can get since it involves like resurrection which I guess is like biotechnology.

General

(Disclaimer: I like to think I judged decently actively on arms sales and cjr (a combined 75 rounds if I'm counting correctly), but the only judging I did on water was a single season opener. On top of that, I've gotten a lot further into my computer science education since the last time I judged - I'm now officially an incoming software engineer - which I'm sure has radically altered the way I think about things, and probably mostly in ways I'm yet to realize. I wrote this paradigm like 3 years ago and it hasn't changed at all (beyond me removing cynical comments about the debate community that I'm no longer qualified to make 3 yrs out of debate), whereas I myself probably have changed somewhat.)

I know jack-squat about [topic], both in terms of the actual issue as well as how people have been debating it this year. So, I can’t wait for you to teach me! What I can assure you of though is that I’ll never go on facebook or anything during either speeches or cross-ex, and frankly that’s more than some judges can say.

Short version: Tech over truth. Long version: Remember that I am mortal. I would say evaluate my argument preferences under the assumption that those arguments have not been dropped/critically under-covered. Everybody says and understands that the judge votes for whoever best persuaded them, and that's true. But, I think what people often miss is that the judge isn't being persuaded in terms of which team they think is "right," but rather which team they think won the round.

Debaters have been telling me that the K has become more popular as judges and debaters have become more familiar with it. I have like, not judged enough at a high enough level to be part of that shift.

[Statements that amount to "Make good arguments"]

Getting the sense defense has become severely underrated.

I get annoyed when judge paradigms tell you to "act like you care," because I think what they're really saying is "act like you care about winning." In reality, all you should be caring about is just debate itself - and that's distinct. So, I'll tell you to care about debate. I'd maintain that policy debate is a very, uh...heuristic environment, and I stuck with it (kinda?) and am better off for it. But if you still don't care, just stop going to debate tournaments if you can. There's nothing wrong with not liking debate or not caring about it, and you don't owe it to anybody to participate if you really just don't wanna. But on a intra-tournament, round-to-round basis, not putting in full effort is probably bad.

Don'ts

Don't read suicide good. Don't read extinction good. Don't read warming good. Don't read racism good. Don't read sexism good. etc.

Boo to the Schlaang super seat and AntoniNO. I'm gonna suggest you don't read Baudrillard (I hope I spelled that incorrectly), both in front of me and in front of all your other judges.

Don't say "no neg fiat." If you read troll arguments like consult asgard or like time triangular pyramid I'll dock the 2N's speaks.

S e n d a n a l y t i c s.

K Affs

I'm not calling them "planless affs" or "performance affs" or wutevr so that might already give you some indication.

The point of debate is to gain critical thinking skills by repeatedly practicing the comparative analysis of theoretical worlds (counting the squo as one) by framing facts and deductions as uniqueness, links, impacts, etc as a means of trying to understand the implication of those facts upon the imagined theoretical worlds. Critical thinking skills =/= the skill of criticizing things - that's just a coincidence in their spelling. Though, it also isn't at all as though those two concepts are just completely decoupled.

You can win without reading a plan, but you're going to have a rough time unless you have some reason why reading your aff and receiving a ballot improves the status quo. There are many ways to accomplish this and I really want you do at least one of them.

I'd say I find many of the framework arguments both neg and aff teams make to be pretty unconvincing and unoriginal. Neg teams, I'd love for you to think about why k affs would be hard to debate against even if they were predictable. Aff teams, I'd love to hear about why an inability to engage institutions irl means it's bad to debate [topic] in theory/as an educational exercise to practice critical thinking. I could write a million of those requests.

This is gonna sound silly, but I honestly don't find fairness or predictability to be that convincing, at least not in the way I often saw them deployed. Like personally, never once have I heard of a high school debater or coach putting in the time to cut a case neg to an aff unless they already knew for a fact that that aff was being read by a team they were particularly afraid of. Yet at the same time, I do not at all think "predictability" is pointless to talk about. For fairness, I guess I'll just say "fairness is an internal link". I encourage you to really think about what people can get out of debate and what things like fairness and predictability really look like and what their implications are.

*Run framework*. Otherwise, I will be sad and not like the round very much so like just please do. If you think running framework is unethical or wutevr please strike me. Lol I had to have at least one of those in here.

Get creative with your 1NCs. Think about what new opportunities unconventional affs might afford you, both in terms of positions and args within flows. If a center-left layperson wouldn't think it's "unethical" to read, I probably won't either.

I feel like a lot of times when aff teams say "debate isn't a game," they still treat it like it is one.

Neg Kritiks

I'll definitely vote for some Ks, but if your link is only "you use the state" or "you use the [topic]” you're gonna have a tough time getting me to vote for the K.

I didn't even actually debate the [topic] topic I'm sorry I was just trying to look edgy.

But seriously, links are the most important part of K debates and DA debates alike because they, and they alone, are the root for any comparative analysis you can do. They are the only direct way for *you* to illustrate a distinction between the world you're advocating for and the world your opponents are advocating. All of your internal links and impacts are just arguments for why that discrepancy matters. (Okay yeah if they're running a CP differences between worlds are more obvious.)

Number one tip I would say - both to the aff and the neg - is just impact out your args. Never assume I know why you auto-win if you "win the ontology debate." Similarly, you need to explain, impact and probably persuade me of things like "fiat isn't real" and "social death." It is likely that your "tricks" are - in my eyes - actually just bad arguments. Don't get me wrong: a dropped arg is a dropped arg, but a prerequisite to something being a dropped arg is it *being an arg*.

****

Also just like generally about "dropped arguments" - an argument being dropped means that it is substantially easier to extend, not that you no longer have to extend it. If you wanna go for a "dropped argument" in front of me then you should make sure to mention that argument's claim and warrant (and, in rebuttals, its implications for how the round should be decided) in every speech from when you first read it until the debate ends.

****

I default to assuming that the K has to have an alt that solves impacts and is mutually exclusive with the aff. If the impacts the k solves aren't as important as the one the aff solves, I'll vote aff.

"Extinction already 'happens, happened, or will have had happened' for x ppl bc social death" is a hard sell for me, especially if you're trying to argue that it means nuclear war isn't bad.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5iPH-br_eJQ

Go to case. Like with *defense*.

Go to case. Seriously.

CPs

Have as many planks as you want. You can read new planks. You can probably amend existing planks, too.

Having a good solvency advocate (so like one from a source actually written in the context of [topic]) usually makes me think a counter-plan is more theoretically legit.

Love an intelligent counter-plan. I don't like process CPs but they definitely are a thing people read.

Theory and T

Honestly, refer to K aff section.

Probably won't win on T unless the aff really isn't T and there's some concrete, specific abuse. The abuse is less of an internal link to a fairness based-RoB and more just really strong evidence for why their model of debate is bad.

I'm much more likely to vote on theory and T when I'm convinced there was in-round abuse. I lean neg on condo but definitely do not think infinite condo is okay.

Everything Else

[Irrelevant opinions] (I mean to be fair that's like most of this paradigm but)

[Relevant opinions immediately made irrelevant by a barrage of qualifiers]

Other

[Encouraging you to make jokes even though in reality that always plays out really awkwardly in round]

Subbi namakula Niles West High School 6 rounds

Last changed on Sat February 4, 2023 at 4:33 AM CDT

If you are a novice, none of these things apply to you. please just do your best. Your speaks are solely dependent on you being kind and nice to everyone in the room.- I don't need to be on the email chain! You all amaze me every day!

(Policy, Public Forum, then LD)

POLICY

I'm Subbi and I do Policy debate at the University of Iowa. GO HAWKS I debated for 3 years at Niles West.

First things first, make arguments you are comfortable and happy with. This is an activity that is inherently for the students participating in it. Read what you want to read and tell me why it matters and why I should vote on it. That being said please don't say racist/sexist/ableist language during a round. I'm just not gonna vote on racism good.

@Both Aff and Neg- Making fewer arguments that are extremely warranted is better than making more arguments that are not as warranted. I love common sense arguments and analytics. I don't think you need a card for every argument you make. If you make a persuasive analytic I'm all for that. I think debaters should be able and be encouraged to make arguments outside of cards. I prefer structural impacts over extinction-level impacts if you do make an extinction impact, have a really good internal link chain analysis.

@Policy Aff- Policy affs are really precise and garner GOOD SKILLS and I love them. I LOVE theory and I have a very low threshold for voting on it. I don't like really long case overviews. I will always weigh the affirmative unless told otherwise by the Neg. Winning against a one-off K in front of me requires you to at least win the Perm and a no link argument. I am very biased towards structural and ontological impacts like I don't think extinction outweighs everyday mundane violence, that being said have impact defense.

@Non-Traditional Affirmatives- Non-traditional affirmatives are really fun and give good EDUCATION and I love them. Non-Traditional Affs don't have to win that the Ballot is key in front of me, I will hold them to the same standard I hold the policy affs to, which is "you have to prove that the aff is a good idea. I need the aff to at least be reasonably within the bounds of the resolution.

@Policy Neg- Please don't read spark, death good, or PIC/KS.

@K Neg- If you're a one-off K team, please have a good explanation of your Links. You don't need to win an Alt in front of me to win the K, but you have to win impacts and framing, and why your theory means the aff can not solve or turns the case. Please have great answers to the permutation because I think most times the permutation is probably good, and I admit that I lean aff when it comes to permutations In one-off rounds.

@Negs Vs Non-Traditional Affs- If your ammo against non-traditional affs is two off cap and FW, lose the cap in front of me and just read external impacts that the aff can't solve but can be solved by core policy education. Case debates are really good against Non-traditional affs, Utilitarian framing is good, survival strategies are bad, No root cause. All of these are valid and good arguments to read. Don't drop the case ever. Don't let the aff weigh the entire aff against FW because they will almost always win. I like framework debates where the impact isn't fairness but education and skills. If you go for a Kritik against these Kinds of Affirmatives, I will have a high threshold for the aff being able to get a permutation, especially if they don't have an advocacy statement, but you must make this argument. Also, contextualize your Links to their theory/aff.

@cross ex- Look at me and don't laugh at your opponent's answer. Many people have done this with me in the back and it really hurts your ethos. Please be nice to each other, I have hella feelings and I don't wanna vote up a mean team.

Miscellaneous

- Please show up to rounds on time, ESP NOVICE, I will vote on disclosure theory so fast.

-Email subbi45hope@gmail.com

-Cx is a speech- Brian Rubaie 2k16

-I will never judge kick, ever.

-Don't steal prep.

-Have Fun :)

-I'm here to protect the 2NR.

-Will vote you down if you own Air Pods!!

-fam the wilder your alt, the higher the speaks lol.

- I have a low threshold for presumption if you are running a policy aff, I am not voting for presumption against a K aff.

Hey, I actually love and prefer judging PF. People in PF are a lot more polite and they always acknowledge me in the round and I like that.

PRO- Strongly prefer if pro always goes first in speeches and in the crossfire. I think to me a good pro is very persuasive and organized. I would prefer if you have two well-written and well-explained advantages rather than a bunch of shallow ones. I don't need you to extend everything in every speech but you should definitely have your points in the last two speeches if you want me to consider them.

CON- I think I am CON-leaning but that doesn't mean this is an easy ballot. You should offer good counterexamples, and directly answer their points in the last 3 speeches. I prefer that you have less defensive arguments and are more focused on proving the pro harmful.

Crossfire- You get a question, they get a question, then you get a follow-up. I hate hate hate when someone dominates the crossfire and doesn't allow for the other person to question, very rude. Will drop your speaks.

NOTES- I am fine with speed, I will reward politeness. Thank you for debating for me!

Hi so I have only judged a few rounds of LD, I think I have a good enough grasp on what is going on. I give a lot of leeway for the pro because they have a very short speech when answering a very long one. I prefer if this wasn't a debate about super old philosophers. That's right, I am NOT here for a Kant vs Locke debate. Most of these philosophers were super racist and if you want to talk philosophy there are philosophers today that you can reference.

James Piazza Hire 6 rounds

Lizzie Prete Niles West High School 5 rounds

Last changed on Sat February 12, 2022 at 6:41 AM CDT

Niles West '14

UIUC '18

I coach for Niles West debate and have for the past 6 years. I have coached and judged in every level from novice to elimination rounds in varsity divisions. I have also coached and judged on local, regional, and national circuits.

Yes, I would like to be sent speech docs but I will not be flowing off of them --- elipre@d219.org

I debated for three years for Niles West and one year at Michigan State University on the legalization topic. My experience in debate is 50/50 policy and K.

I would like to emphasize that I am totally down for the K as much as I am totally down for a policy debate.

First and foremost: I do not allow my preconceived notions about certain types of arguments affect my decision-making. I view debate as an activity that develops critical thinking and advocacy skills, so do that in whatever way you think is best suited for your situation (granted that it is respectful and not offensive).

Certain arguments:

FYI: dropped arguments are not true arguments --- whoever makes the argument has the burden of proof.

T – love a good T debate. compare interpretations and evidence adequately. the impact level is the most important to me in T debates, and you should be comparing standards/impacts. don't forget the internal link debate. fairness is an impact in and of itself.

DAs – are essential to a good debate I think. impact calc and overviews are important. think we can all agree on that.

Ks and Framework – I love the K, I went for it a lot in high school. they are good for debate *if they answer the affirmative*. Please engage the affirmative. This entails making specific link arguments as well as thorough turns case analysis. I am probably familiar with your literature, however, I will not weigh your buzzwords more than logical aff arguments against your K. If you want my ballot, you need to first and foremost TALK ABOUT THE AFF. Read specific links to the aff’s representations and impacts, not just to the topic in general.

The link debate is crucial – and the aff should recognize if the neg is not doing an adequately specific job explaining their link story. Additionally, you need to make turns case arguments. I will not be compelled by a mere floating pik in the 2NR – that’s cheating. Give me analysis about why the aff reifies its own impacts. Absent this, I usually default to weighing the 1AC heavily against the K.

Relating to framework, I have a high threshold for interpretations that limit out critiques entirely. I would rather see debaters interact with the substance of the criticism than talk shallowly about fairness and predictability (especially if it is a common argument). A lot of the times, framework debates are lazy.

Planless affs: Totally down for them, especially on the criminal justice system reform topic. Perhaps they could be read on the neg, but that does not mean that they should not be read on the aff. This is good news if you are negative going for framework because switch side debate probably solves a lot of aff offense if there is a topical version of the aff. This is also good news for the aff because I can just as likely be persuaded that the reading of your aff in the debate space creates something unique (i.e., whatever you are solving for). A policy action, whether or not it's done by the federal government, should be a priority for the aff to defend. Please just do something that gives the negative a role in the debate. SLOW DOWN on taglines if they are paragraphs.

***

Meta things:

1. Clarity (important for online debate) - I've changed my stance on this since online debate became a thing. Still definitely say words. Sending analytics in speech doc and/or slowing down on analytics 1) helps me which is, in turn, good for you and 2) (at worst) facilitates clash because your opponents can also hear and know what you are saying, which is also good for everyone educationally!

Ideally I would not have to work too hard to hear what you are saying. I am bad at multitasking, so if I’m working too hard I’ll probably miss an argument or two. Please enunciate tag lines especially. If I can’t decipher your answer to an argument, I will consider it dropped.

2. Be respectful – yes, debate is a competitive activity, but it is also an academic thought exercise. I encourage assertiveness and confidence in round, but if you are rude, I will reduce your speaker points. Rudeness includes excessively cutting your opponent off or talking over them in cross-ex, excessively interrupting your partner's speech to prompt them, being unnecessarily snarky towards your opponents, etc. Please just be nice :)

3. Logic - a lot of times, debaters get wrapped up in the technicality of their debates. While tech is important, it shouldn’t come at the expense of doing things like explaining your arguments, pointing out logical flaws in your opponents’ arguments, and telling me how I should evaluate a particular flow in the context of the whole debate. I tend to reward teams that provide consistent, clear, and smart meta-level framing issues – it makes my job 100 times easier, and it minimizes the extent to which I have to intervene to decide the debate. I will not do work for you on an argument even if I am familiar with it – I judge off of my flow exclusively.

4. DO NOT assume that I am following along on the speech doc as you are giving a speech, because I am probably not.

5. Trolly arguments will probably get you low speaks and some eyerolls. Debate is an educational activity. By my standards, "trolly" includes timecube, xenos paradox, turing tests, etc. Y'all are smart people. I think you catch my drift here.

Hayley Prins Mill Valley 3 rounds

Soundjata Sharod Univ Of Chicago Lab School 3 rounds

Last changed on Thu November 5, 2020 at 6:25 AM EDT

Soundjata Sharod

Email: soundjatasharod@gmail.com

I competed in the National Circuit and sometimes in the Chicago Urban Debate League for 4 years at UC Laboratory Schools.

For my sophomore, junior, and senior years, I utilized mostly Kirtikal arguments like Afropessimism, Neolib Ks, Pan K, and Baudrillard Ks. However, im incredibly receptive to all argument types. I appreciate passion and creativity in whatever type of arguing is going on. I have a special place in my heart for performance debate.

My mother is African, and my father is African American. I personally identify as black, but these days I’m not sure. I don't care what pronouns you refer to me by, but I identify as a man.

The Rundown

1. Truth v.s. Tech

Leading towards tech. I don’t automatically presume that dropped arguments are 100% true, but I’m still a lot more likely to vote for dropped arguments. I do take technical leads very seriously. Dropped arguments are an easy way to decide debates, and I’m generally looking for an easy way to resolve debates.

If you kinda drop an argument and if you can make cross-application in speech, I’ll cut you some slack. Emphasis on some.

2. Is debate a game?

Its a slippery slope arguing that debate is just a game, because my ultimate goal in these types of debates is to decide what it should be. Because a lot of Krtikal affs are positioned to frame debate as some sort of revolutionary space or radical potentiality, it hard to win that a mere intellectual game only about policy is important in this world.

Please win a TVA.

- Winning a TVA for me pretty much is an automatic win for framework. But now in days, its hard to do it. Most of them strip the aff of their theory and education, which tends to be what the aff’s interp is about. If your going for the TVA, then you have to really sell your version of education and have compelling disads on the affs theory.

- You may have to win that debate should keep existing. Now in days, teams shrug at the possibility that their theory is activity destroying and world shattering, because that tends to be the goal.

3. Policy specific topicality

I love topicality. It’s definitely a voting issue. At the most, there should be 3 violations. If you spread through the block, put the analytics in the doc!

4. Ks

Framework and impact framing is the most important argument in this debate. That being said, I expect to hear a role of the judge or role of the debate argument in the negative block. Line by line refutation of the affs standards is also expected.

I wish i didnt have to say this but links need to be specific to the aff— decently specific. It has to be contextualized to a specific mechanism of the aff. Debates about risks of links are quite weird to me especially when we are talking about broad socio-political problems that are in some way already happening. You cant kinda be capitalist, antiblack, or facist. It’s either they are that thing you say or or they’re not.

Alternatives can be optional, but not having them in the 2nr makes it a lot harder for me to hang my ballot on something. Be clear upfront on the alternative. I’f your not, then i will pull the trigger and vote on a permutation even if the disads are extends.

Floating pics are bad.

5. Case turns/ Disads/ Counterplans

I need a coherent story. Overviews with impact analysis are important. Perms are a thing that I’m fine with. Perm theory— not so much.

Simon Sheaff Hire 6 rounds

Last changed on Wed January 3, 2024 at 6:57 AM EDT

Background: 4 years at Baylor University, 1-Time NDT Qualifier. Assistant Coach at the U.S. Naval Academy, 2018-2022, Assistant Coach at Dowling Catholic High School, 2019-Present. Currently a Ph.D. Candidate in Political Science and I work for the Legislative Services Agency in Iowa.

Yes I want to be on the email chain: Sheaffly@gmail.com. Also email me with questions about this paradigm.

Paradigms are difficult to write because there are so many potential audiences. From novice middle schoolers to varsity college debaters, I judge it all. As a result, I want everyone reading this paradigm to realize that it was written mostly in terms of varsity college debates. I think about debate a little differently in high school and a little differently when it comes to novice debates, but I hope this gives you a general idea of how to debate in front of me

== TL;DR ==

Do line-by-line. I do not flow straight down and I do not flow off the speech doc. I am a DA/CP/Case kind of judge. I am bad at understanding kritiks and I am biased towards the topic being good. Be nice.

== Top Level - Flowing ==

It has become clear to me after years of judging that most of my decisions center not around my biases about arguments (which I won’t pretend not to have), but rather around my ability to understand your argument. My ability to understand your argument is directly related to how clean my flow is. Thus, it is in your best interest to make my flow very clean. I used to think I was bad at flowing, but I've come to the conclusion that line-by-line and organized debate has become a lost art. Debaters who learn this art are much more likely to win in front of me.

You are NOT as clear on tags as you think you are. Getting every 4th word of a tag is okay only if every 4th word is the key nouns and verbs. This is never true. So slow down on your tags, I am NOT READING THEM.

I’m not gonna flow everything straight down and then reconstruct the debate afterwards. The 1NC sets the order of the debate on the case, the 2AC sets the order of the debate off case. Abide by that order. Otherwise, I will spend time trying to figure out where to put your argument rather than writing it down and that’s bad for you.

Another tip: Find ways to give me pen time. For example, do not read 4 perms in a row. It’s impossible for me to write down all of those words. Plus, it’s always first and you haven’t even given me time to flip my paper over. And then your next argument is always an analytic about how the CP doesn’t solve and then I can’t write that down either. So stop doing things like that.

== Top Level – Arguments ==

Basic stuff: I love creativity and learning from debate. Make it clear to me how much you know about the arguments you are making. I don’t think this means you have to have cut every card you read, but understanding not just the substance of your argument, but the tricks within them is important.

As I said above, the thing that will be a problem for me is not understanding your argument. Unfortunately, this probably impacts Kritik debaters more than policy debaters, but I’ll get to that in a minute.

I am probably a little more truth > tech than most judges. I believe in technical debate, but I also believe that debate is a place where truth is important. I don't care how many cards you have that say something, if the other team asserts it is not true and they are correct, they win the point.

== Top Level - Community Norms ==

1) For online debate, prep time stops when you unmute yourself and say stop prep. A couple of reasons for this. a) I have no way of verifying when you actually stopped prep if you come out and say "we stopped 15 seconds ago" and b) neither do your opponents, which means that you are basically forcing them to steal prep. I don't like it so that's the rule.

2) Debate is a messed-up community already. Don't make it more so. Be nice to each other. Have fun in the debate while you are disagreeing. If you make it seem like you think the other team is stupid during the debate, it's gonna make me grumpy. I love debate and I love watching people do it, but I hate confrontation and I hate it when people get angry about debates that don't matter that much in the long term. Be nice. Please.

3) This is mostly for high schoolers, where I see this issue all the time: If you are going to send a document without your analytics in it, making the version of the doc without the analytics in it IS PREP TIME. You don't get 45 seconds to send the document. Y'all are GenZ, I know you can send an email faster than that. You get 15 seconds before I break in and ask what the deal is. You get 20 seconds before I start prep again.

== Specifics ==

Affirmatives...

...Which Defend the Topic - I enjoy creativity. This includes creative interpretations of topicality. You should also read my thoughts on DAs as they apply to how you construct your advantages. Clear story is good.

...Which Do Not Defend the Topic - I am likely not a great judge for you. I think I may have a reputation as someone who hates these arguments. That reputation is not unearned, I built it up for years. But over time I’ve come to become a lot more accepting of them. There are many of these affirmatives that I think provide valuable debate. The problem I have is that I cannot figure out an interpretation of debate that allows the valuable "K Affs," but limits out the affs that I think are generally created to confuse their way to a win rather than provide actual valuable propositions for debate. I will always think of framework as a debate about what you JUSTIFY, rather than what you DO, and every interpretation I have ever seen in these debates simply lets in too much of the uneducational debates without providing a clear basis for clash.

I realize this sounds like I have been totally brainwashed by framework, and perhaps I have. But I want to be honest about where I'm at. That said, I think the above makes clear that if you have a defensible INTERPRETATION, I am willing to listen to it. You should also look at the section under kritiks, because I think it describes the fact that I need the actual argument of the affirmative to be clear. This generally means that, if your tags are poems, I am not ideologically opposed to that proposition, but you better also have very clear explanation of why you read that poem.

Negative Strategies

Framework: See discussion above. Good strategy. Impact, impact, impact. Education > procedural fairness > any other impact. “Ks are bad” is a bad argument, “their interpretation makes debate worse and uneducational” is a winnable argument. Topical version of the aff goes a long way with me.

Topicality: Good strategy. Impact, impact, impact. Case lists. Why that case list is bad. Affirmatives, you should talk about your education. I love creative interps of the topic if you defend them. But for the love of god slow down.

Disads: Absolutely. Well constructed DAs are very fun to watch. However, see truth vs. tech above – I have a lower threshold for “zero risk of a [link, impact, internal link] etc.” I love Politics DAs, but they’re all lies. I am up-to-date on the news. If you are not, do not go for the politics DA using updates your coaches cut. You will say things that betray that you don’t know what you’re talking about and it will hurt your speaks. Creative impact calc (outside of just magnitude, timeframe, probability) is the best impact calc.

Counterplans: I'm tired of the negative getting away with murder. I am VERY willing to listen to theory debates about some of these crazy process CPs which compete off of a net benefit or immedicacy/certainty. Theory debates are fun for me but for the love of god slow down. Otherwise, yeah, CPs are fine.

Kritiks: Eh. You can see the discussion above about K affs. I used to be rigidly ideological about hating the K. I am now convinced that the K can make good points. But because I was so against them for so long, I don’t understand them. I still think some Kritiks (here I am thinking mostly of French/German dudes) are basically designed to confuse the other team into losing. Problem is, I can’t tell the difference between those Kritiks and other Kritiks, because all Kritiks confuse me.

Very basic Ks are fine. Realism is bad, heg is bad, capitalism is bad, I get. Get much beyond that and I get lost. It's not that I think you're wrong it's that I have always been uninterested so I never learned what you're talking about. I cannot emphasize enough how little I understand what you're talking about. If this is your thing and I am already your judge, conceptualize your K like a DA/CP strategy and explain it to me like I have never heard it before. Literally, in your 2NC say: "We believe that X is bad. We believe that they do X because of this argument they have made. We believe the alternative solves for X." I cannot stress enough how serious I am that that sentence should be the top of your 2NC and 2NR. I have had this sentence in my judge philosophy for 3 years and this has been the top of the 2NC once (in a JV debate!). I do not know how much clearer I can be. Again, I am not morally opposed to Kritiks (anymore), I just do not understand them and I will not vote for something I do not understand. I believe you need a good link. Yes, the world is terrible, but why is the aff terrible. You also need to make your tags not a paragraph long, I never learned how to flow tags that were that long.

Warren Sprouse Washington 6 rounds

Merritt Z Weber Wayzata High School 6 rounds

Last changed on Mon October 18, 2021 at 5:29 AM CDT

Emmie Weber (they/she/he in order of pref)

merrittzweber11@gmail.com

612-719-2259 (most efficient way to contact me)

Hello, homies.

TD;LR FOR NEW DEBATERS/PEOPLE WHO ARE SKIMMING MY PARADIGM BEFORE ROUND

I have heavy debate experience, primarily in nontraditional debate. I am comfortable analyzing all arguments, but I do have some personal biases against certain arguments (sketchy counterplans). Any speed or method of presentation are fine with me, but if your speech is incomprehensible because of clarity, it will not be flowed. I absolutely love tricky arguments, so if you feel comfortable running them, your speaks and the ballot may thank you. Otherwise, feel free to run whatever you're cool with. I'll probably be cool with it too. The best debates are debates with clash. Period.

About me (applicable to all debate forms)

I am a fifth year policy debater who has also debated PF and Congo (1 tournament each). I have coached policy for about two years now. I'd consider myself up to date in debate norms and practices. As a debater, I've run pretty much every argument, but this doesn't mean I'm a "K judge". Specifically, I've read multiple versions of queer theory, ableism, and Baudrillard (all performative). My favourite rounds to judge and debate in are rounds where it seems like all debaters are enjoying themselves. That means knowing your evidence and vibing with the round.Please don't assume that I know what you're talking about when you mention some obscure topic related acronym. This also means I'll err tech over truth 80% of the time. I have judged both PF and policy, and I am incredibly comfortable flowing and keeping up with the round.

I’m generally a very aggressive debater. Thus, my facial expressions are next to none. I’m also not professional in the slightest, but I write detailed ballots. However, you will be able to hear my cells dying if you do something I dislike in a round.

My RFDs may come off as very critical, but this is for the debaters' sakes. I will acknowledge a good debate when I see one, but at the same time, I will criticise fundamental mistakes.

My ballots reflect flaws in the debaters' speaking and kudos for good arguments. My verbal RFD will include more tech-y stuff including what I think would be an ideal strategy as well as a short analysis about the routes to victory for both teams.

Strong beliefs

I WILL NOT FLOW ANY ARGUMENTS I CANNOT HEAR.

Debate is fun, but I am still unsure if it is a game or not.

Shady counterplans are nice, but only when the planks are clear.

The 1AR is a hard speech, but I will still hold them to a high standard.

I shouldn't have to evaluate based on the small text of a card (I'll weigh it but like, it makes me sad)

There is no 3NR - that includes arguing with me after a round.

I will only flow the person who is supposed to be speaking in a speech.

EVERYTHING in a debate is up for debate. There is a difference between rules and norms, but if no tournament rules are broken, I am willing to evaluate anything that debaters are able to persuade me to evaluate. This means speech times, prep times, disclosure, etc. A note on disclosure - disclosure is necessary to have a good debate, BUT, it's understandable if your performance doesn't include words or includes works that the author wishes to remain off of public domain (in those situations, please send out your performance as a speech doc, but it is not necessary to share on openev or before round)

Speaker points will be evaluated based on what is said in the debate. To be more specific, your speaks from me will be exclusively from what you've said in a speech. THIS EXCLUDES: cross, prep, and conversations post round. However, if you bring up something from cross in a speech, I will adjust your points accordingly.

Reading the camp abolition K doesn't make you a K debater. It makes you an edgy policy debater at best.

Argument preferences

I evaluate all non-offensive arguments with even weight.

I'm a big fan of nontraditional arguments. If you think you can pull it off or if you're just sick of debating, I'm probably the judge to troll in front of. I have a very high threshold for what I consider an absurd or unweighable argument. I've won a debate once reading 12 theory violations. Very fun

It appears I have a personal preference for soft left or kritiky stuff, but I will and have voted on hard right arguments. I do think that in order for an argument to be considered performative, it needs to have some element of performance in it (ex. a dance, a poem, a song). Otherwise, I consider it a typical argument until you prove me wrong.

Repetitive theory debates make me die inside, but I'll still vote for whoever debated it the best. I prefer out of round impacts with K-ish stuff like ableism. It appears I'm incredibly techy when it comes to theory.

I WILL NOT make any arguments for you. Judge kick is not a thing for me. Nor is disregarding bad theory arguments. Reasonability on T needs to write my ballot for me (@2A's). Any argument is an argument in front of me, no matter what it is. However, simply "vote neg on presumption" is not an argument. Similarly, "this card is old" is also not an argument. I need a fleshed out idea of why I'm voting a certain way.

One thing to be noted is that I don't typically keep up with politics. My knowledge is limited to politics that are popularly shared on social media. This doesn't mean that I won't be familiar with your politics disad, but it also means that if it's more technical (ex. [x] state in the senate is key), I won't have any knowledge other than the cards provided. Good debaters will be able to use this to their advantage. That being said, full disclosure - as of 12/12/20, I have voted solely on a politics disad twice in 2 years of judging.

I will applaud arguments that take guts like performances or dedev if done correctly.

Stuff for online debating

I don't care if your camera is on. I won't deck speaks for it. I do ask that if all debaters are in agreement, there be a uniform opinion on cameras. If, for example, one debater has their camera on, that puts me in a very awkward position in determining speaks. On default, my camera will be off, but y'all can ask for my cam to be on for rebuttals to see my facial expressions.

I keep my RFDs short, so tech issues aren't a big deal for me unless we're the slowest round in the tourney.

However, send out analytics if your internet sucks. If I can't hear or read it, I can't flow it. It's helpful for everyone in the debate, and it avoids frustration. I will also never call clear. It's up to debaters to articulate their arguments properly. Similarly, if your unclarity continues through rebuttals, I will flow to the best of my ability, but I cannot promise that I will catch every word of the 2NR block that you spread.

Typically, debating in front of me will feel like you're debating in front of a wall. If y'all are able to run the round without my intervention, I will be happier and more likely to boost your speaks. There is no need to ask me to get water or to start your prep time. I will run the clock exactly as debaters in my round will. This standard is different for novice debaters in front of me. If there are novices, I will prompt debaters if needed with no negative reflection on speaks.

Tips to deck your speaks

- Being offensive or unnecessarily rude (there's a fine line between aggressiveness and being an a-hole)

- Spreading unclearly (I have a high threshold. If I can't understand you, this'll hurt you a lot)

- Spreading in a voice that is clearly different from your own (does it go up by 3 octaves?)

- Mispronouning

- Being super passive in cross x (ideally there shouldn't be any silence in cross, so if you're looking for a card, you should also be answering or asking a question)

- Cards with 2 lines highlighted

- Asking me for my case before round

- Personal attacks on other debaters/me

Things I like

- Confidence (and maybe a bit of arrogance)

- Non-repetitive debates

- Somehow including objects and/or incredible body language in your speech (+.2 speaks) Ex. "About yay size war"; "according to my pocket constitution"; prolonged, threatening eye contact with me

- Making me smile (+.1 speaks per) and/or making me laugh (+.5 speaks per)

- Including the word "coda" in your speech (+.2 speaks - proves you read my paradigm. This will apply to every debater in the round. Just because your partner says it, doesn't mean your speaks will be boosted)

Things I don't care about

- Prep time (As stated above, my timer will mirror all debaters' timers. I do not track it, but I expect for those who know better to not steal prep)

- Looking nice or presentable while speaking (I'll write comments on your presentation, but that's mainly for the sake of you knowing how to persuade lay judges)

- Swearing and slang (I'm still a teenager. It's likely I'll understand your teenage dialect)

- Asking me if I'm ready. it's awkward and strange.

- Professionalism (Y'all are high schoolers talking about stuff that is way beyond the expectations of what people think you should know. You might as well have a hell of a time while doing it)

Questions? I show up early to round. AMA

Simon Weiss Iowa City Liberty 1 rounds

Adam White Mill Valley 3 rounds

Last changed on Mon April 22, 2024 at 8:44 AM CDT

Adam White

He/Him

Last Substantive Paradigm Update: 4/12/24

Georgetown '25 (debating). 3x NDT elim participant.

Affiliations: Blue Valley West

adamwhite(dot)debate(at)gmail(dot)com---Yes Chain. Please include the following pieces of information in the subject line: Year, Tournament, Round Number, Aff Team, Neg Team

Feel free to email me at any time for questions, requests, etc.

---Strike Check---

Most familiar with policy arguments; bad for kritiks/arguments that don't contest the aff's core premises but comfortable voting for those that do; intuitively skeptical of affs that don’t affirm the resolution.

My 2NRs over my college career:

vs affs with a plan: 30 CP+DA, 16 DA, 3 T, 6 CP, 1 K, 3 CT

vs affs without a plan: 12 T, 7 K, 5 DA, 1 CT, 4 DA+CA

---General Notes---

Do not send me a speech doc that is not a verbatimized Microsoft Word document absent extenuating circumstances.

Yes marked docs. No cards in email body. Yes card doc with relevant cards referenced in the 2NR/2AR. No inserting rehighlighted ev to make new warrants.

---Top Level---

My favorite debates to judge, and the ones I am most confident in evaluating, are those where 2NR offense is in the form of a disad or case turn against an affirmative with well-explained and coherent internal link chains to specific impacts.

Absent judge instruction to the contrary, I will default to voting negative unless the aff proves the resolution true by example.

I refuse to evaluate anything that occurred outside of the debate round.

I flow by ear and will not follow along in the doc.

---Evidence---

I care about evidence a lot, both in terms of quantity and quality. The 2NR and 2AR should speak to the specific warrants in their evidence they would like me to read.

If I am reading evidence for you, I will only give you access to your highlighted words. I don't care if cards are short, but I care substantially that there is relative grammatical coherence.

That said, I give smart analytics a lot of weight, and I give evidence with no author credentials little weight.

---Case Debating With A Plan---

2As get away with murder. 2Ns should exploit that by explicitly flagging warrants in 1NC case evidence that the 2AC does not contest.

“Util/consequentialism bad” arguments are not very persuasive to me if the aff has a consequence to their plan that they would like me to evaluate in a utilitarian manner.

---Disads---

I like them. I like them a lot. I’d prefer to vote on ones that make sense.

---Counterplans---

I don’t entirely understand debates over sufficiency framing—if the neg offense generated by a net benefit outweighs the impacted solvency deficits generated by the aff, then I vote neg.

I tend to care more about arbitrariness/logic/predictability than debatability, though this is not absolute (for instance, aff intrinsicness tests seem unworkable on many topics even if they are logical).

I prefer for theory debates (process/consult/delay/whatever bad) to be couched in terms of why I should normatively view a specific permutation as legitimate. Otherwise, I have a hard time overcoming the inevitable neg arbitrariness argument.

I find conditionality bad arguments fairly unpersuasive. "We/they get 3!" is not super persuasive to me (see arbitrariness over debatability). I am amenable to the claim that conditionality bad is a reason to stick the neg with all the advocacies, not to reject the team.

I default to placing the burden on the aff to prove their advocacy desirable in relation to both the status quo and competitive advocacies introduced by the negative.

---Topicality vs Plans---

Retweet statement about arbitrariness/predictability over debatability. I view topicality as a descriptive question where we interpret the words in the resolution, not create new ones.

Given the above, I have a very high threshold for interpretation evidence quality (and to some degree quantity) that both teams will have to overcome.

I am somewhat persuaded by reasonability claims that operate at the level of interpretations and less so those that are about the specific aff in question.

I am very amenable to smuggling in topicality debates on PICs out of words in the plan.

---Kritiks---

I am fully comfortable discounting an argument if I do not understand it.

Evidence is important. I am heavily skeptical of concluding that broad, structural claims are true absent a strong epistemic basis for doing so. The world is a complex place, and overarching claims for how everything operates without specificity is a losing game if properly exploited. This also goes for policy-oriented teams, particularly with regard to IR.

The explanation of the kritik should be consistent both internally within the round and vis-à-vis the evidence. If your argument doesn’t start as the security K, it should not end as the security K.

Framework---I will not arbitrarily decide some middle ground interpretation between the aff and neg framework interps unless one team tells me that it's an option. Both teams, please explain your interp: can the neg win for disproving a single aff justification? How do I weigh policy consequences against epistemological indicts? Does the aff get to weigh the totality of their representations? Does the neg get PIKs? Should we imagine the aff as being implemented using the 1AC's representations? Is neg offense against aff justifications based on the policies those justifications would lead us to, or based on the consequences of introducing said scholarship in debate, or something else entirely? I am pretty good for neg framework interps that link turn fairness and clash against "FW: No Ks/plan consequences only," but only if the above set of questions is answered.

---Kritikal Affs---

Against T: I am fairly good for affirmatives that counterdefine words in the resolution in a nuanced/interesting way and defend that interpretation. I feel that most counterinterpretations are entirely arbitrary.

I am highly skeptical that the way I vote in a given debate has any meaningful impact on anything.

If the aff makes an argument for why they should win the debate, and the neg proves that the opposite of that argument is true, then I vote neg.

Given that the resolution and usual policy-making paradigms are abandoned in these debates, I am unsure how presumption should function. Hence, neg teams should explain why I should view presumption in a certain way if they want it to be an important part of the 2NR.

---Topicality/FW---

I am not dogmatic about what impact you read.

When going for a fairness impact, I will need more dot-connecting and explanation in the 2NR than many other judges. I implicitly feel that fairness is an impact, but I find some explanations uncompelling that others have found entirely sufficient.

TVAs are generally overutilized and Read-It-On-The-Neg is generally underutilized as defense, but each have their place against specific 2AC arguments.

Vince Woolums Iowa City High School 3 rounds

Last changed on Sat December 12, 2020 at 8:52 AM CDT

Add me to the email chain:
vwoolums@gmail.com

Background:
I debated for Iowa City High 1989-1993 on the prisons, space, and homelessness topics then graduated early. I won lots of rounds and speaker awards. I didn't debate in college because life happened otherwise. I hold BA degrees in English and Political Science with a lot of incomplete Master's level work. I work a full time project management job in the aerospace industry, enjoy bicycling and spending time with my seven year old son. Since 2009 I've been the Director of Debate at Iowa City High and enjoy coaching both casual and highly competitive teams. I am very familiar with the criminal justice topic.

New:
Not using the President's* given name in any form will slightly increase your speaks.

Tl;dr

Policymaker by default. I vote on well constructed, true arguments presented in a technically proficient manner. I'm not the best judge for you if you're an advocacy, narrative, performance, or project team.

Before the Round - VCX:
I'm primarily a policymaker, but I also think stock issues are important. It's my deeply held belief that policy debate requires a plan text and that Affirmative teams should employ the USFG through its subsidiary agencies as actors, as directed by the resolution. My preferences are case debate, counterplan/disad debate, solvency mechanism debate, core K debates.

There is a place for every argument and story, but I'm not convinced that the following belong in policy debate: narratives, performance, personal advocacy, and/or projects. I'm open minded, and don't disinclude the aforementioned out of hand, but if it helps assist in your selection of judge strikes then I don't think I'm very well qualified to judge these debates.

I'm fine with core kritiks, including but not limited to cap/neolib, colonialism, gender, and security, but stray into the margins of philosophy, psychology, semiotics, sociology, etc in front of me at your peril.

I demand in-round decorum. Rudeness and ad hominem fallacy will NOT be tolerated. Debaters who militarize their identity to the point of excluding others will not do well in front of me.

I suppose I'm at odds with the community in that I favor of 'truth over tech', as you will need to win the technical side of debates with truthful arguments to gain my ballot. I can't in good faith hang a ballot on evidence that may be several years old and is no longer a factual representation of the status quo, which is particularly important on this years topic.

You should ask me for clarifications of this entire judge philosophy AND ask any other questions before the round. Absent your questions, I will assume that you have read and understood this philosophy. For example, if you have to ask me "do you take prep for flashing speeches" anytime after the start of the 1AC, well, just don't do that. If you ask me during 1AC CX "hey do you allow tag team CX" then expect your points to suffer. Always ask questions before the round begins. Always. This includes specific questions about my voting threshold etc for any particular arguments you wish to deploy that aren't discussed below.

CX:
I prefer you ask and answer your own questions. I require politeness during cross ex. Cross-ex isn't Crossfire. I flow CX and consider your answers to be binding in all forms. CX is the most important and underrated speech in policy debate.

K's and Framework:
We are participants in policy debate; hence, policy debate briefs -- similar to those that are written to assist theoretical policymakers in making critical policy decisions for the United States federal government -- provide the stasis point for our arguments, which requires scenario analyses geared toward solving real world problems and not simply rejecting or refusing to engage the topic.

That said, I'm fine with kritik debates as long as you articulate the finer points of your argument -- like alternative solvency -- in a way that makes sense without relying on debate jargon. For example, if you stand up in a 1NC and read an IR Fem shell but can't answer any questions about it in cross-ex, then I will not be impressed. If you are taking a theoretical or philosophical/critical approach to the topic, then I find it more engaging when you explain your position in clear, non-debate terms. It demonstrates a level of understanding about the criticism that extends well beyond the debate space, and I support that as an educational endeavor.

Similarly, with framework debates, highlight the advantages or disadvantages to competing methodologies in a clear concise way (no cloud/overview clash, use actual line-by-line) and it becomes a lot easier to vote on framework and/or separately evaluate aff and neg impacts. I'm better with discourse, ethical scholar, reps, and that kind of framework and less okay with meta, ontological, or psych frameworks, the latter mostly outside my studies.

Regurgitating debate jargon on complex academic topics that are (sometimes merely at best) tangential to substantive policy debates does not demonstrate to me that you grasp the underlying issues; instead, it tells me you primarily want to win debates and have selected an esoteric critical and/or theoretical position that other debaters aren't as familiar with in order to do so.

Topicality/Framework:
I've seen some fantastic, well organized T debates, and ones that make my head hurt. Go for T, I will vote on it, but keep the refutation and line-by-line clean. I don't have a clear default to competing interpretations or reasonability, so be persuasive. Explain why you meet, or why you're losing ground and exploding limits. I am not persuaded by arguments that disqualify T as a voter or attempt to impact turn T. It's a STOCK ISSUE and always a voter.

Counterplans:
Yes please!, but be invested in them. They need solvency advocates that compete with and test the Aff's solvency mechanism. Perms, likewise, test the competitive structures of the counterplan and are therefore legitimate. I'm not persuaded by severance theory because the Aff doesn't garner offense from the perm. Instead of reading severance, spend time actually addressing the competition between the plan and counterplan. Finally, I don't default to any theoretical objections either aff or neg on counterplans, but cheaty counterplans do exist. For example, is your process counterplan part of normal means? If so, then perm probably solves. Is States counterplan bad? Probably not, because devolution of powers is a thing. Have country x do the plan? Tricky ... there are a lot of countries and likely an unfair burden to the Aff to prepare for all of them. Etc, see below.

Theory:
On the one hand, I prefer not voting on theory; however, if the abuse is egregious, or the claim particularly compelling, then I will vote on it. I have a high threshold for "abusiveness" claims. On the other hand, I can easily be persuaded that Condo is bad if, for example, a 1NC reads six+ off, of which three are conditional counterplans/kritiks, and then the 2N has the audacity to whine about a 'blippy 2AC'. I have, in fact, voted Aff on Condo! Otherwise, no memorable RFD's on theory. While the Aff carries the burden of winning their case, the Neg has a similar burden to shape the discussion. It's my opinion we learn more by digging deeper into a smaller set of arguments rather than learning very little about many.

Speech and Prep time:
Set up an email chain before the round.

I run a speech and prep timer.

Cross-ex starts when the speech stops, unless either team asks for prep before CX. Prep starts immediately following CX ends unless the next speaker indicates they're ready and a speech has been sent. Otherwise, I stop prep when you have sent the speech.

I'm going to get on a soapbox here. If you use Gmail, then be sure the "Undo Send" feature is off. Then, during the time we're all waiting for the speech to arrive - unless you are the speaker setting up a stand for your laptop, taking a drink of water, etc - everyone in the room should be DOING NOTHING. No looking at your flows/backflowing, no typing on the computer. No separating out your 'card doc' from speech doc. There is a terrible amount of mental prep time stolen between starting CX after getting flows together and waiting for emails, etc.

Further, I support tournaments moving forward with "decision time" because these small minutes of delay really drag a tournament. At any tournament with decision time, I will begin the round promptly at the start time regardless of whether a team is present or not.

Speed:
Generally, I'm fine with speed. I flow on a laptop and type ~80wpm. I'm okay with most things speech-related provided I can audibly differentiate your tags, cards, cites, and analytic arguments. This is particularly true of overviews and 2NR/2AR (see below), but also of any complex argument like Theory or T. The speech act, for all our outside the round research and preparations, is the purpose of debate. Organizing your speech is vitally important to its persuasiveness.

As other paradigms I've recently read point out: 'cloud clash is not a thing' and 50% or more of your speech spent on an overview is just clumsy and unrefined. Do your work on the line-by-line answering the other team's arguments.

Furthermore, I come from a time in debate when people used numbering systems and "line by line" meant answering all the opponents arguments in order. If you use numbering systems, such as on 1NC case "1. No impact: ...", and the 2AC says "off 1NC 1", then I will be mightily impressed and your speaks will increase dramatically. It's so much easier to flow because the Synergy template auto numbers, which is a beautiful thing.

If I need you to speak more clearly, enunciate, slow down, or emphasize your tags, I will call out for it verbally in-round. You get one call out and after that your partner needs to be watching me to make sure I'm capturing what you want me to capture. It's up to you to crystallize your arguments in a meaningful, rhetorical way.

Lastly, judges aren't AI bots, so don't get mad at us when we don't flow every single word of your gale-force word salad overview. Yeah, I type fast, but if your Rate of Delivery is 300 and I'm at ~80wpm, do the math. Especially true if you aren't slowing down your tags and cites.

The RFD:
Now that you've read this far, in-round experiences account for more than my preconceived notions of debate as stated above, including K's, debate theory, framework, and the topic in general provided you make your case or arguments compelling and don't make me do any of the work on the flow for you.

All things considered, I will render a decision on any well-developed argument.

If you have questions about the RFD, please ask them politely.

29+ speaks:
you should definitely break and probably blew my mind somehow;
you did NOT exaggerate, powertag, under-highlight your evidence, including its warrants;
you made cogent link, internal link, and impact calculus arguments;
you properly refuted the nexus question(s) in the round;
you were really easy to flow, with great intonation, inflection, and cadence;
you focused on speaking coherently instead of technically;
you told a compelling story using well-honed rhetorical devices and true arguments, presented persuasively;
you were polite yet assertive in CX and during your speeches and answered/asked your own questions.

27.5-28.9 speaks:
you did a pretty good job answering all the arguments, but you may have dropped some stuff;
you were too fast or too unintelligible, and didn't adapt to me flowing you;
you didn't do as good a job analyzing arguments as you could have;
you exaggerated your evidence beyond what the author intended, or beyond the warrants you read;
you didn't persuade me, you were snarky or needed your partner's help in CX, etc.

25-27.5 speaks:
you did a poor job refuting arguments, or you dropped whole arguments;
you were unintelligible;
you didn't analyze the arguments or perform a cogent impact calculus;
you used ad hominem arguments or were aggressive either in your speech or CX;
you needed a lot of help answering/asking CX questions.

0-25 speaks
you did something I found egregiously offensive (racism, sexism, other bigotries);
you used fraudulent evidence;
you clipped cards;
you forfeit, or left the debate for any of your own personal reasons.

Pet peeves:
I really don't like when a team interferes with their opponents speech or prep by requesting evidence and/or asking for your flash drive back, or by whispering to your teammate so loudly I can't hear the speaker, or by throwing backpacks, laptop cords around, etc. If these are a problem, then your speaker points will assuredly suffer.

Good luck to all!

Audrey Yang Wayzata High School 6 rounds

Last changed on Tue January 23, 2024 at 7:01 AM EDT

Personal Information:

probably will not be judging anytime soon, and i'm updating this paradigm simply because tabroom made me. and if i am it's prob gonna be novices (if in policy) bc i'm very out of practice.

i debated in high school policy.

Email: awyang2951@gmail.com

POLICY

______

TL/DR

I'm mostly tabula rasa (I try my best); just don't make any offensive arguments. I am probably (unintentionally, I'm sorry!) predisposed to policy-like arguments, such as framework against the kritik. BTW I have VERY limited topic knowledge, so be aware of acronyms or anything hyper-specific to the topic, especially T definitions.

I've also very unfortunately had to judge more PF tournaments than policy ones, so be patient with me about this topic.

Specific stuff:

Aff: By the 2AR, you better have a cohesive, comprehensible story of what your affirmative does and what it is. Including K affs. However, if your entire story was explained in the 2AR and not before that, and it's difficult for me and/or the other team to understand you, the threshold for winning is very high.

DAs: I like disads, and most of my neg rounds I've gone for one with a CP. Ptx and specific topic disads are probably very good ways to gain education about intricacies of the topic and nuances of policy. The neg should also have a cohesive story on what causes the disad to happen and what impact this leads to.

CPs: CPs are pretty cool. I like them. Even some of the trashiest disads become viable 2NRs combined with a good CP that solves. They obviously need to be competitive and NOT link to the net benefit. Also, theory can be a reason to reject the CP. Agent, Process, States etc. can be reasons to reject the CP. Judge kick? Meh. I'll decide depending on the round. Condo is usually the only reason to reject the team even if the CP is kicked.

Ks: I'm probably unfamiliar with most of the literature so you'll have to explain it thoroughly. Framework is very important and I'm most likely subconsciously aff-biased on the issue. Otherwise, really weigh the impact of the kritik against the impact of the affirmative. You also don't necessarily need an alternative to win, case turns and/or root cause arguments might be sufficient to win my ballot.

T: T is about two competing models of what debate for the year should look like. That being said, I have no idea of anything on this topic, so please explain your stuff. Talk about whose model is better for the year, (limits and ground, education and fairness, etc.) and whether the affirmative meets either interpretation. T is a gateway issue and I won't be persuaded to weigh the aff's impact before it.

Speaker Points (this stuff is basically all for novices. for jv and varsity, i'm same as p much everyone else):

A 28.4 should be average. If you're good, I'll make them higher, obviously.

A 26 is if you are mean. Like, substantially mean. Yelling at the other team. Or stealing prep. Or saying something offensive.

A 30 if you would have been able to beat my partner and me our senior year.

For novices, a 28.8 or above is only possible:

1. If you are actually a novice that DOES A LINE-BY-LINE. please. do a line-by-line. it makes my flow prettier.

2. If you are a novice team that ACTUALLY SPLITS THE BLOCK. I HATE when the 2NC just takes everything and the 1NR just repeats it. It just ruins my otherwise really pretty flow.

3. If you are nice to the other team and have tag team be REASONABLE.

4. If you FLOW IN PEN - flowing in pencils or worse, COLORED PENCILS, should literally be BANNED from debate

5. If you don't extend 5 off in the 2NR - please just go for one thing... for your own benefit?

A 29 if I feel like you are REALLY REALLY good.

A 29.5 if I feel like you should be in JV.

TL/DR

I'm a policy judge so I may weigh things a bit differently compared to a typical PF judge. Weigh your impacts and actually answer the opponents' arguments; don't just use broad, sweeping claims with nothing to back it up.

Long Version

Again, I was in policy, so I will probably judge your round with a policy perspective (whether subconsciously or not), in that:

1. I don't really accept impacts that are not really impacts. I am not convinced econ growth in and of itself is a good thing, for example (the exception is climate change. I think that you can just say "climate change" without listing potential disasters, as the negative effects of climate change are implicitly obvious). However, I will be very easy to convince that this impact leads to some terminal impact: increasing the job market as a result of econ growth can inherently be a good thing (unless the other side convinces me that the jobs are exploitative or something).

2. I'll, in a round, consider nuke war and other extinction impacts likelier than they actually are (in reality). As long as you win an internal link chain, you're good.

I have judged too many rounds in which PF debaters just read and say things at each other instead of actually clashing. It makes my job incredibly difficult because I might as well flip a coin at the end of the round to determine who wins, as I have two (or worse, >2) completely competing versions of what reality is/should be and no reason to prefer either of them. Do impact calculus and ENGAGE with the other team's arguments, PLEASE.

Speaks

I've heard that a 27.5 is average. So that is your baseline.

Stefanie Zin Okemos High School 4 rounds

Last changed on Fri January 26, 2024 at 4:54 AM EDT

Greetings!

Hi! I am Stefanie Zin.

Please add me to the e-mail chain: zinst4364@gmail.com

If you don't read ANYTHING else, please read the following:

1.PLEASE SIGNPOST

2.PLEASE PROVIDE A ROADMAP

Okay, now that I've said that:

While I debated in high school for four years, and in college for two, it was a while ago. I have VERY LIMITED familiarity with most Kritiks and definitely not as fast a flow as I used to be. That said, you needn't act like you are giving an "after dinner speech". Related to speed, I also appreciate intelligibility. My motto is, "If I can't understand what you said, I can't flow it and if I can't flow it, I can't vote on it." To borrow a statement from my Ex-Husband, David Zin, "Debate is still a communication activity, even if we rip along at several hundred words a minute."

I am a bit of a traditionalist: I tend to have a stock issues approach to the AFF, I like clear and succinct tags on evidence. You can read the evidence as fast as you want (assuming you are intelligible). I appreciate it when the 2NR/2AR not only provide me with justification as to why they win, but contrasts their position to the other team and explain how they outweigh.

Tag team CX is okay, within reason. I award speaker points based on the quality/content of the speeches as well as CX performance. I want all of the debaters to be able to think on their feet and not rely solely on their partner to "carry them through the round". Please demonstrate your independent understanding and mastery of the material (this will be rewarded).

Finally, I have a deep and profound respect for civility in a debate round. Your goal should be to prevail based on the content and quality of your argumentation, not on your ability to subject your opponent to abject misery and totally debase them. (This type of behavior will NOT be rewarded and you will NOT be happy with your Speaker Points as a result).

Please consider the following elements with an "X" denoting my position with respect to the spectrum of characteristics.

No Tag Team CX---------------------------X---Tag Team CX okay (within reason

Tech---------------------X----------------------Truth

Policy--X---------------------------------------Kritiks (As stated above, I have very limited experience with Kritiks.)

Theory--------------------------------------X------Substance

I'll read no cards----------------------X-----------I'll read all the cards

Lots of so-so cards ---------------------X-------- A few good, longer cards

Debate is about ideas--------------------X-------------------Debate is about people

Debate is good/valuable -X--------------------------------It's not

Conditionality bad-------------------------X--------------------Conditionality good

No process CPs ------------------------------X---------------Lit determines legitimacy

Politics DA not a thing --------------------------------X-------------(Good) Politics DA is a thing

Running Kritiks assuming I am infinitely UNFAMILIAR with them-----------------------X- Explain the K and the Alt and Framework

Framework with respect to Kritiks - PLEASE EXPLAIN HOW YOUR FRAMEWORK IS PREFERABLE and how I should weigh it!!!

Clarity--X-------------------------------------------Unintelligibility (Trust me on this!)

I'm a robot-----------------------------------------X-Slow down on tags/cites/analytics/theory

Aff Ground--------------------X-------------------------Limits

Long overviews-----------------------------------X----Articulate positions, line by line

2NRs that collapse ---X------------------------------- 2NRs that go for everything

2ARs that assume I will vote AFF regardless------------------------------X-2ARs that tell my WHY to vote AFF.

I look forward to an enjoyable experience judging you and your team!

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