- clash, clash, clash

- framework and impacts are important

- please go down the flow and signpost

- I hate the vote neg on presumption arg, please refrain from using it, i will only vote on it if I absolutely have to

I consider myself a traditionalist. Lincoln-Douglas debate was created for a reason. The intent of debate is to facilitate communication, therefore use of speed should not be the emphasis in this activity. A good litmus test is the following...would Abraham Lincoln have used spread during his debate with Stephen Douglas? No? Then you probably shouldn't either. Exchange of ideas, discussion of which value is superior, respect and civility should be of paramount importance. Analysis and organization is extremely important. The debater in front of me should explain why their analysis is superior and why their value defeats the opposition.

As I noted above, the intent of debate is to facilitate communication. Speakers need to remember, and this is extremely important, that communication is not only about speaking, but it is also about listening. I have seen it happen more times than I can count, that your opponent will give you information to flip against them in the round, and that flip is not utilized. The tough part is identifying that information. Do not be constrained by what is obvious, meaning do not be afraid to ask "what if". Lateral thinking therefore, is incredibly important to consider.

Further, I consider myself a pragmatist. Originally, Lincoln-Douglas debate was designed as a values-oriented platform. This has evolved into a policy-values hybrid so while I will look at a round from a purely values perspective, the values and values criteria have become more of a means/end assertion. The use of real world links and impacts should support your decision. If you are able to demonstrate why your real world analysis/evidence supports your values/values criteria and you set that parameter up front, I will strongly consider that as a voter. I would however note the following:: the links to your impacts are absolutely critical to establish in the round. Off time roadmaps are also important. Organization is absolutely critical. It is your responsibility to tell me where you are on the flow.

Impact calculus is one of the major concepts I will weigh in your round. That is an incredibly huge point to remember where I am concerned as a judge. However, it is important to consider the nature of the impact. This is where the aforementioned links come into play. Of further note, since LD has become a hybrid, I buy off on solvency being an issue as a means to justify the resolution. Those of you who have had me before as a judge know why that statement alone can determine an entire round. In short, back to the point on the "what if" issue I broached earlier, that would be a very good place to start.

I also look at framework. If you are going to run something out of the norm...i.e. counterplan, Rights Malthus, general breakdown of society, etc., you need to make sure your links are airtight, otherwise I will not consider your impact. The two would operate separate of each other if there is no link.

I started my involvement in LD in 1982, I also debated policy from 1980 to 1982, competed in speech from 1980 to 1984, and competed at the college level in the CEDA format in 1985 and from 1988 to 1990, and have been judging since 2014 in the Spokane, WA area. I also judged policy in the Chicago, IL area in the early 1990"s.

In terms of the January/February 2024 LD topic on reducing military presence in the West Asia/North Africa region, I have very unique experience and perspective. I am retired military, retiring in 2014 and having served 4 years active duty in the Navy and 16 years in the Washington Army National Guard including a one year deployment to Iraq from 2005 to 2006 in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. I saw first hand the effect of what many of you may try to argue. I also attended many briefings from subject matter experts prior to going in country, including geopolitical/economic briefings, etc. I do consider myself a bit more well versed than many judges in this field based on my personal experience. In short, examine your argumentation and analysis carefully. The bigger picture is a major area of focus and as the semester progresses, you will begin to see adjustments based on the feedback you are getting.

A couple of administrative notes. Eye contact is really important if for no other reason, to see how much time you have left. One of my biggest pet peeves is cutting off your opponent during CX. I have no problem annotating that you did so on your ballot so your coach can discuss the matter with you after the tournament. Civility and decorum are important, and I can surmise several of you have had this happen to you. I also do not have a problem with you timing yourself or sharing evidence, provided it does not detract from the overall use of time in the round.

Finally, it is extremely important to remember....this activity can be fun and it will help you in ways you can't even imagine later down the road. Everyone at this tournament, whether they are coaches, judges, your peers, etc...started as a novice. Bad rounds happen. They are a part of the landscape that is debate. This teaches an important life lesson. How do you bounce back from adversity? How do you apply what you have learned to make things better next time?

Remember that the case/argumentation you start off with at the beginning of the semester, will not be what you end up with at the end, provided you do a self assessment at the end of each round. Ask yourself what was supposed to happen. What did happen? What three things went well for you. What three things happened to you that are opportunities for improvement. If you are consistently applying these criteria, and using your coaches/opponents/peers as resources, by default your weaknesses will get shored up. Incidentally, this is a really good life skill as well and can be applied in the real world. Good luck to you going forward!

There was a time in which I had a four word paradigm, but then things happened and now it comes with a disclaimer:

If you are racist, ableist, homophobic, transphobic, or anything of the sort you will lose my ballot on the spot. That being said - Don't kill each other.

I am a 4 year debater with LD being my primary focus. I am comfortable with any argument you wish to run, but be prepared to defend it. When I look at the round I like to look at the round through the lenses of the value and value criterion and then look at the voters that may be present. Please signpost where you are in the flow, it makes it easier to follow you and if I can’t get it down or get it down in the wrong spot it doesn’t end well for you. I don’t flow crossx but if there is something in there you wish to bring up I will flow it.

im not super big on speed, but I can sorta deal with it. If something is dropped don’t just say oh it’s dropped, impact it and show me the significance of that drop.

I’m pretty open. At the end of the day, I think of debate as a game where we write rules ourselves. I’m open to almost any kind of argumentation as long as you can make it feel logical and consistent. Kritiks are fine with me. I like philosophy and studied it, feel free to go for the deep cuts.

One thing to note, I’m not as good at flowing post-Covid. Help me by sign posting and being organized. I will not punish you for speed, but I do need to be able to understand you.

I value links a lot. Walk me through why point A leads to B leads to impact C. I will not fill in the dots for you and if your opponent calls you out on not doing so and you haven’t, I will side with them. Give me an impact calculus! Tell me why you are winning. Lay down the law!

I will always answer questions but I do not disclose unless instructed to by the tournament leaders.

I've been an assistant coach at Ferris High School for four years now. I've coached and judged for Ferris at the local, state, and national level.

Intro:

Tech over truth. Speed is great, I've never had to clear anyone. I don't want to intervene so please do enough work to justify a vote for you (see below, this isn't a problem in most high level debates but if there is heavy framework argumentation in the debate it will be like a breath of fresh air for me). I've voted on Policy, Theory and Kritikal arguments in the past. I like CX debate. I judge because I enjoy the game. Flashing isn't prep but please don't spend too long doing it, a timer should be running for as much time as possible during a debate to preserve fairness and for the good of the tournament schedule. I try to be as attentive as possible so if you have any questions or concerns please let me know before the round starts.

Paradigm proper:

I know that the paradigm so far has been pretty non-specific and not really that helpful but I try to be as much as a blank slate as possible. When it comes to my actual biases, I'm not overly fond of generic procedurals or any arguments that could be described as gimmicky by someone reasonably acquainted with CX. That doesn't mean I won't vote on a procedural but I would probably be more sympathetic towards arguments made against a procedural so long as there isn't a blatant warrant for the procedural to be read.

I'm not particularly tied to any philosophy when it comes to how I should make my decision or what the ballot signifies. Disturbingly often, I'm frustrated by the lack of framework arguments made in rounds and the general lack of instruction about my role is, what my ballot signifies, and what I should be doing when I make my decision. In those sorts of rounds, I'm usually left to make a decision about what I should value most in the debate which is uncomfortable and leaves room for "judging errors" if the framework I was presumed to have assumed but wasn't told to take wasn't taken. I understand that my paradigm should describe the framework that I bring to a round before any arguments have been made, but I am generally apathetic towards most arguments when presented in the abstract. It isn't my job to come to the debate with a well built schema of what should and shouldn't be valued (that is what impact calc and framework arguments are for). In the absence of framework my decision is based off of what arguments I think would be most easily defended in an rfd.

In the unfortunate absence of any framing:

In the absence of any framing to go off of, I suppose I am usually most swayed by the biggest impacts in the round, as most judges are. Those impacts most usually come from policy arguments but can also stem from kritikal arguments as well. I think that a lot of time in rounds is wasted on the link debate, at least in my debate community, which leads to frankly boring debates with excessive defense. I don't vote on defense, there is no reason to (not linking to the negative is not a reason to vote affirmative, it's at best neutral). I like offense heavy debates with well developed off case positions from the negative and well made affirmatives.

Round operation:

My flow is really dense. I write down as much as I am physically able to in every speech. I think that email chains are nice and I appreciate being sent cases. I keep time and will stop speeches that go over time with some leniency. I still encourage everyone to keep track of time within the debate to ensure that everyone is accountable. You can address me as judge, I don't like being referred to directly in a debate round because it breaks my emersion and is at best a waste of time to try to get my attention/ add emphasis to a point when I am already writing down what you are saying. Outside of the round Kyle is fine.

Preparing for a round where I am judge:

Do not fret over anything I said in the sections above. The biggest concern of mine that I bring to a round before anything has been said is the tournament schedule. Please arrive on time. When considering what to run in front of me please consider what would be the most strategic answers to your opponents case. Be polite and respectful to all parties involved. I want to have a pleasant time.

But most importantly of all,

Follow Your Heart.

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Background

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Email: cruddell23@my.whitworth.edu

He/Him

I debated 3 years of LD and 1 year of Policy at Gonzaga Prep High School, 2015-2019. As of The Conway @ Gonzaga, I have no rounds judged or research on the current topics.

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Policy/CX

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I have absolutely no preference for any style of debate. Everything from K/K Affs & Performance to oldschool case debate, T and DA/CP is equally enjoyable if done well. Even "Zero-Off & Case-Turns" is viable, and I'll give you 30 Speaks if you pull it off. Whatever you do, have fun and do what you are good at.

What I do prefer is very specific, focused, technical debates on a few core issues/ideas, especially when they're extremely connective while retaining internal consistency. I enjoy in-depth debate on as few subjects as possible; 1-Off Kritik, 1 DA + Uncondo CP, and super intricate FW rounds are some of my favorite debates. Strategy and tactics are obviously a consideration, but if you think you can win with a 13 minutes block of nothing but quality T then go for it! It's a huge Ethos move for me, and I'll want to judge/vote for you (on the flip-side, I dislike quick, undeveloped shells supplied en masse).

Kritiks & Framework

K debate was my favorite, and ultimately why I switched from LD to Policy. I've read the lit for the authors I've come across in debate, and I should be able to keep up regardless of the author. I am significantly less familiar with most Identity authors, but don't let that stop you from doing you. For all K debate (looking at Pomo specifically), you should be able to explain the entire K well enough that an opponent with minimal background can reasonably follow it. Ignorance isn't a defense, but debate is best when both teams understand what they are debating. Also, if the K is super obscure and confusing, I'm going to assume that it is incorrect/broken/nonsensical and that I'm not just stupid.

Kritikal Affirmatives/Non-Topical Affirmatives are fine and fun if done right, but should be specific to the topic and absolutely needs to win literature-specific net-benefits for the aff's approach to debate/the topic. Non-topical =/= Topic is arbitrary.

K & Framework debate is IMO the most technical debate, and I will give lots of space for strategic maneuvers by both sides. If you are going for these, you need to be utilizing every individual piece to make tactical moves on every flow. Also bear in mind that highly technical debate allows you to lose on highly technical issues. I obviously don't want to vote for cheap-shots and bullshit, but if you lost to it then that's on you.

My default on all types of framing: THE ALT MAY BE CONDITIONAL, BUT THE FRAMING IS NOT. IF YOU SAY CAP IS THE ONLY CONSIDERATION IN THE ROUND, THE OTHER TEAM MAY USE THAT AGAINST YOU.

Also, Floating PIK's are probably cheating.

Topicality & Theory

I (obviously) prefer T and Theory against legitimate abuse, but I'll still vote for it if mishandled. My defaults are: Condo Permissible, Tech>Truth, Competing Interps, Drop the Argument, and most other standard meta positions. I'm almost positive I won't vote for an RVI in Policy.

Good T debate is an art, and I love it when it works. T shouldn't just be boring Theory about a resolutional definition; Internal Disads, Solvency Takeouts, Link Turns, and other technical arguments imbedded within T are what I want to see.

Reasonability is definitely winnable, but you should be able to show what that looks like & why you are reasonable (winning Reasonability =/= winning T)

Counterplans

I enjoy in-depth and unique CP's of all types, and I typically don't vote on Theory against certain types of CP's (except things like Timeframe CP's, unless there is an ultra-specific solvency advocate). For the most part, strong Solvency Advocates = Counterplan is legitimate. I'm not a huge fan of consult CP's, but again if there is specific literature then you're probably good. My CP theory defaults: Condo is Alright, Severence/Intrinsic Perms Bad, Topical CPs Good, Going for the CP shifts presumption Aff.

Please specify if/what CP you decide you are going for. If you don't, I will assume you go for all your competing worlds simultaneously and that the Stat Quo is abandoned.

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Lincoln-Douglas

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First and foremost, I do not believe in 'Traditional' v. 'Progressive' LD; there is only good rhetoric & bad rhetoric. This means most would consider me de facto 'progressive'. That being said, I do believe LD is fundamentally different from CX in nature and that some practices/strategies/styles are less suitable to the format. I'm more than willing to vote against 'progressive' tactics (eg. Spreading, K, Plans, Counterplans, etc) on Theory, but you MUST engage & present theoretical justification for rejection.

TL;DR: "You can't run a counterplan because this is LD" isn't an argument. The Kritik isn't a "Policy Argument", it is an argument Policy debaters use. Whether they are beneficial in LD is for you to debate.

Most of CX above applies, but some key differences:

Kritiks

Please don't treat K debate in LD like you would Policy. You have like 1/2 the time to explain it, and 1/4 the speeches to develop it. If you are running anything remotely complicated, it should preferably be 1-off. K debate in LD is fine, but I will hold the K to the same standards of explanation & technical soundness as Policy despite the time difference, so it's on you to make sure it's all there.

Theory

I believe theory debate to be essential in LD. If you are a 'traditional' debater, this is your tool to shape the debate accordingly, and you should definitely know how to use it. I prefer all Theory arguments to be in a shell format, with clear interps, violations, standards, and voters. I actually will vote on an RVI in LD, especially for the aff, but I expect the entire (or almost the entire) 1AR to be consumed by Theory & RVI.

Framework

I've always thought the Value & Value Criterion format to be kinda funky. I'm fine with it or alternate styles of Framework as long as they are clear. I personally believe the Criteria is what really matters, as most Values end up saying "Good things are good."

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Random Thoughts

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Fun & unique strats =/= Completely wasting everyone's time. You can get away with a lot more with me than with other judges, but there is a fine line between having fun & being annoying. Let that 8-Off Spec file collect more dust, please

Unbreakable rules: Speech Times, Speech Order, Partner Order, One Winner, Silence during Speech (Partner is fine, but won't be flowed; Laptop playing music/audio is fine, but won't be flowed), Clipping/Ethics Violation = Auto Loss. Tag Team CX is fine, but under/over participating will effect speaks.

pls don't ask for speaks

I'm a previous debater in highschool/college levels and I love following peoples flows and logic.

I look more for how a case upholds its stance on a resolution, and love being told how your values are upheld through your criteria and how its the more logical path to follow for this topic than the other's case. I'm very open minded and follow contentions based on their merit not based on my views.

Tell me how to think and defend why I should think that way and that's how you win my vote.

Edit:
Looking at some of the other paradigms I seem to be lacking some overly complicated body and a touch of wildly unnecessary information about myself so I shall fix it here.

you may address me as His Royal Magistrate or any other declarative proper knowns you would address a nobility.
I have debated for 4 years, qualified for state and national level, gone to many taco bells during tournaments, and am a 9th level artificer.
I went to school to become a grand magus but decided that a lovely life of magic crafting was more suited for me and am now Dan 3.
I have many detailed preferences on how every part of every round should be done and will hold you in distain for the next 3 minutes after the round ends if you do not follow them explicitly to the punctuation!
I absolutely positively with all of my being despise satire in all its forms.

As a debate judge, I value a few things:

-Signposting: Please tell me where you are at in the flow to assist in my ability to accurately judge the round. This will also be extra powerful in points of clash -- show me where your cases are in direct contention with one another and why your side should be preferred.

-Cards/Evidence: I get that evidence matters in a debate round. I honestly don't place a lot of value in a lot of a round being focused on when an article was published or when a study was conducted ... like I get that it matters and can be important to a round, but I much so value your wholistic arguments and ideas in your case over niche disputes on sources.

-Impacts: By making your impacts clear and concise, I am better able to understand the most important/essential elements of your argument.

-Voters: By the end of the round, you should be able to tell me why you won the round.

At the end of the day, I am not a very picky judge! I want to see you do what you do best.

If you are in a rush please skim the bolded text for what is relevant to you, the not-bold text that follow is just the longer clarifying explanation for those that might want more details.

wasmith7899@gmail.com is my contact email for any other questions or if you need to add me to a potential link chain

Competed and learned all debate styles in high school.
Competed at NFL(now known as NSDA) Nationals in Congressional Speaking.

Was a high school assistant coach for 3 years. (Currently an unaffiliated judge)
Currently pursuing Bachelor degrees in: Communication, Early Childhood Development, and Psychology.

I do not flow cross-examination period. Meaning only the words spoken in a speech are noted on paper for my decision of the winner. I do listen though so, if you want a notable answer marked in my decision bring it up in your speech so it is on my flow(otherwise it 'didn't happen').

Speed - is no problem. If online I need camera on while spreading though- I have a much harder time keeping up with a case if I cannot read your lips while you're talking if you cannot have your camera on for any reason please slow down your speaking slightly and make sure to emphasize your tags. Standard SpReading rules: Slow for Tagline, Author, Date of evidence. Sign post occasionally. I will say "Clear" if I no long understand you.
I strongly encourage you time yourself. I keep silent Official Time unless told otherwise- but I am not very good at providing time signals while I am also flowing. . If you run out of time I allow approx 4 second grace periods to finish your sentence before I'll have to cut you off. If I am verbally cutting you off you have already gone over time and I will only flow 2-3 more words after the cut off. No new thoughts after time has elapsed. In questioning periods if time runs out with a question unanswered I would prefer a brief answer, but allow the debater to decline and move onto prep for the next speech if they so wish.
If you make personal attacks on your opponent's character, your speaker points will suffer significantly. It is rare but occassionally if you are too rude and lacking in decorum you can loose a round from that alone. (We all make mistakes, malicious intent vs a slip up is very obvious.)

I believe it is your debate round so you, the debater, determine the direction of the debate. I will listen to any type or style of arguments you want to run, simply explain why that is the most important thing to be looked towards in the round. I say I will listen but that does not mean you win just because your argument is unique. Whoever wins is whoever best explains and supports their claims, and refutes your opponents claims.

Tabula Rasa as much as I can be- knowing i have my own biases and experience that I try to leave at the door but isn't entirely possible. Primarily with emphasis on Flow. I weigh what you present and unless you are clearly and blatantly perpetuating obvious falsehoods I simply look at the facts presented on my flow, if something isn't on my flow it didn't happen in the debate.
Every claim needs a warrant and justification of relevance.
I will leave my political opinions at the door and do not reference them. I don't care what party the current acting president or house leader is, you will refer to them by the office they hold and no other. Don't assume that because you think I believe something personally that I will need less supporting evidence for your claims.

In Public-Forum the round is generally yours to do with as you please.
Courtesy to your opponents is vital. Being as 4 people can get very heated on topics quite easily I will not put up with disrespectful, rude, or threatening behavior in anyway. PF Cross-fire is the most common place in the debate sphere I consider if a team should loose on decorum, remember you are still talking to other humans that have to go back to their lives after this round ends, loosing civility is not worth maybe winning a round and if I'm judging you probably wouldn't end up winning anyways.
I love Voters at the end please- it helps show what you as debaters believe to be most important in that round.
If no RA, framework, or definitions are provided by either side I will loosely judge the round assuming the most common Webster definitions of terms and utilize a Cost-Benefit Analysis approach of who most accurately addressed and supported their claims in relevance to resolution question and demand, but student defined frameworks(within reason obviously) are my first preference weighing mechanism for the round.

In Lincoln-Douglas I have a slight preferential bias towards more traditional style and format. I will absolutely still listen to progressive styles, you must simply continue to warrant and justify all claims.
I think values and morality ultimately are the core of LD and debates of value are vital to a good LD debate.
I try to use the Value and and Value-Criterion as my first tool of weighing the round. I would really like to see how the value and value-criterion are supported by the rest of the following points of your cause. Ideally an LD debate does not devolve to just stating one side has a better value than their opponents, and should just win Becuase that value is "better." Instead I like to see V and VC incorporated throughout the flow and relating to your contentions. Tell me how your value is achieved in your world through what you have presented in your case and how you are doing that better or the values you are achieving will have more impact than the evidence and values the opposite side presents. If you get near the end of the debate and aren't sure how to conclude, impact calculus is one of my favorite formats for finishing out a speakers speech to get my onto the same page of what you think was most important in the round today.
If you opt to utilize a Standard instead then you must explicitly explain why you chose a Standard over a Value and Value-Criterion and the relevancy of that, all other incorporation into the debate applies the same as what I want to see for V and VC.
If you are running progressive: your evidence needs to be relevant, if I could read your case in 2 months on a different resolution and nothing would need to change then your case will have much less ground to stand on in my eyes.

In Congress I am a seasoned Parlimentarian, I've held Parli as multiple state level tournaments in both Idaho and Washington, I look to Roberts rules and NSDA standards. I prefer that POs use audible time signals such as knocking or make a timer accessible and easy to see for the speaker. The more you can effectively manage the room and keep things in order without me having to interfere the more successful I will perceive the PO job you did.

In Policy I have the least experience. I have not dealt with Policy style debate much in quite a few years so I am not especially up to date.
I can listen to spreading but I have been hearing LD spreading primarily so consider slowing down a titch - especially on taglines.
Please do not do Performative Affs. I think they are very cool but often, for me, lead to just having more trouble tracking the debate thus harming you in the long run.
Don't expect me to just know your cards and arguments. You have to explain and justify your arguments. If you just say a tag and move on then you aren't willing to work for my vote and likely won't receive it.
I know most concepts within policy but am very lacking on the jargon that coincide so quickly throwing out a lot of jargon specific to this debate types will lose me.

(Not to be confused with David Sposito, who also judges for Ferris)

add me to the chain: dmspingola@gmail.com - subject line: [tournament] [round] [aff team] (aff) vs [neg team]

everything is fine.

debate on the line by line.

highly prepared, technical debates are the most educational and most fun to watch (though framework often satisfies that description).

most things which are unfair are also reciprocally unstrategic; try to debate substance if you can, though sometimes it is an impossible or unreasonable expectation (esp in high school).

me being familiar with a position is not an excuse not to explain it - debate is a communicative activity.

debate is fun - don't ruin it, though I trust you won't.

Feel free to email me with any questions :)

LINCOLN_DOUGLAS UPDATE 1/7/2023

I am clearly a policy judge even though i have judged some LD before and have seen many topics and am familiar with the basics like value, criteria, resolutional analysis, etc. What i have been finding is I need a story in the final rebuttals to win the ballot. Please don't just start the top of your last speech digging into the line-by-line. Please tell me why the line-by-line matters. You will have to concede arguments, more than likely, to win a competitive round so keep in mind that no debater wins every single argument in every single round. I need a comparative explanation of why you should win the round despite the fact that you are losing other arguments on the flow.

JAN/FEB TOPIC: I am finding that you will need more than terrorism, trafficking, or narcotics to win my ballot on the negative. Not to generalize, (that's kind of what we do in our paradigms) the argument has not been very persuasive to me, especially when the data indicates that citizens here commit violent crime at rates far exceeding the immigrant/refugee community. I don't wanna say that it would be impossible to win with this case on the negative, but just know that it might be a difficult and uphill venture. It sounds and feels kinda nativist, to say the least.

UPDATED 1/31/2021

I have been in policy debate since the early nineties. I debated at Gonzaga University in the late nineties. There's not a lot that i haven't seen in this activity. I cant even calculate how many rounds I have actually judged. Speed is obviously fine, if you need to be clearer I will tell you to do so as you are speaking. I really don't do this very often but it is a small issue now with online debate.

I need to be on the email chain and I super prefer flashing your theory arguments (if you really, really wanna win the round on them).

I will vote on framework arguments (AFF or NEG) i have no biases here. I really don't have any biases against arguments like K affirmatives, multiple CPs, condtionality....you name it, its debatable. I will vote on topicality and definitely will vote on stasis based arguments against K affirmatives that are clearly outside the resolution. (this isnt to say dont run non-topical critical Affs, i vote for them frequently.) I really like policy based CP and net benefits VS plan debates. I love a good (or bad) politics disad with super fresh/recent evidence and updates. I will vote on case turns (if they are unique, of course) this is a viable strategy for my ballot. I also like in depth/heavy case debates.

The most fundamental part of my paradigm is this: The debate round exists for the participants, not the judge. The affirmative or negative strategy should be based on what YOU like to run, what YOU feel is important, substantial, or an issue of prima facie concern. I can be persuaded to vote on any type of argument (topicality, critiques, framework, counterplan and net benefits VS the plan, even justification arguments) as long as clear voting issues and/or impact analysis is provided.

One of the best ways to win my ballot is to use “because-even if-because” argumentation. Here’s what I like to see in the last rebuttals:

“The affirmative/negative wins the round because (fill in the blank.) Even if the other team wins their arguments, we still win because (fill in the blank.) This is an old school paradigm that I picked up in the 90s from the late great Becky Galentine.

Furthermore, I need to see issue selection in the final rebuttals. Very rarely will you be winning every argument. Winning one vital argument soundly is better than winning small risks of numerous different impacts or disadvantages. The ability to concede arguments and “collapse down” into the key issues is often the difference when making my decision.

When clear impact analysis or voting issues are not delivered, I often find myself “reading into” your evidence to base my decision. This may help or hinder your case depending on the quality of your evidence. In other words, if your evidence does not say what you claim it does then I may have difficulty voting on the issue. When I cannot come to a clear decision in my mind and “on the flow”, I often look into your evidence for further assistance. At this point I often base my decisions on verbatim text from evidence read, not just taglines. I typically read a lot of evidence at the conclusion of the round. I often find myself voting based on "a preponderance of the evidence." Please make sure you are clear with the authors for each piece of key evidence so I know what to reference in my decision. If you call out an author in the last rebuttal I will almost certainly read that evidence.

Please be aware that i take a long time to decide almost every round. I am typically the last (or next to last) judge to turn in a ballot just about every time. I like to go over all arguments thoroughly.

Finally, I like to see creativity in the debate round. I will vote as a policy maker when put into that paradigm. I have no qualms doing so. Again, the round is yours, not mine. However, I can also be persuaded to vote on “outside the box” types of arguments and usually enjoy those debates immensely.

**Reach out to me via email after the round anytime for further answers regarding my reason for decision. I always save my flows.***

jhyake@hotmail.com