Norma J Smith Memorial Tournament 2021
2021 — NSDA Campus, OK/US
CX Paradigm List
All Paradigms: Show Hideupdated march ‘22
pronouns: they/them
put me on the email chain: lizclayton6@gmail.com
experience: debated 7 years in middle/high school policy for crossings in oklahoma city
tl;dr-
1. be nice
2. have fun
3. do what you want, just do it well
Tech---------X-------------------------------- Truth
online debate
i’m okay with speed, however, i can’t hear as well over a speaker, so either slow down a little bit or make sure to enunciate- i don’t want to miss anything!
preferences
none of my preferences affect my decision. the categories below reflect what i am most experienced in/what arguments i would be best at evaluating.
K- Dislike -----------------------------------------X Like
CP- Dislike -------------------------------------X—-- Like
DA- Dislike -------------------------------------X--- Like
T- Dislike ------------------------------X----------- Like
FW- Dislike ------------------------------------X----- Like
Theory- Dislike -----------------------X------------------ Like
Case Neg- Dislike ---------------------------------X-------- Like
specifics
K
mostly ran antiblackness, settler colonialism, and deleuze/guattari, sometimes baudrillard, psychoanalysis, and cap.
i will look at the framework debate first. keep your arguments consistent and clear. i feel like it often gets muddled because both sides forget that they must impact out and do comparative analysis with their standards. if there's not a role of the judge i will default to... a judge at a debate tournament. (if you want me to be a policymaker you gotta tell me) the aff gets to weigh itself against the alternative. i default to choosing the best option (util if no impact framing)- how i frame the ballot is up to y’all. lots of clash on the flow is appreciated.
love a good link debate. be specific! if you have more than one, it helps my flow if you number them. evidence indicts are cool. i have high standards for any k link, generic "you talk about/don't talk about X so you're guilty of X" is not particularly convincing unless it's dropped or severely undercovered.
the impact debate is so important! probability matters. have a decent timeframe for terminal impacts. anything long-term not very convincing, especially if the aff wins timeframe arguments for their impact. use ptm. (probability, timeframe, magnitude)
tell the story of how the alternative functions, and pls explain how each perm is a worse option than the alt. idk how i feel about utopian alt arguments because technically the aff is also guilty of utopianism. most of the time nobody really sits on it anyway, so do what you will with that information.
DA
i’m not really picky about them except don’t read more than one with the same impact. pls have solid uniqueness evidence, i will read it if there's unresolved uq stuff. high standard for the link debate, there must be a reasonable way for the aff to cause the impacts.
CP
can’t go wrong with a solid advantage cp. have a clear net benefit (i default to best option) and explain mutual exclusivity.
T
t is a voting issue and never a reverse voting issue. impact comparison is super important. having da's on it is cool. engage the opponent's arguments.
Theory
i see it mishandled often. there has to be a tangible risk of abuse, a reasonable interpretation, and supporting examples for me to want to vote on it.
Aff
policy affs should have solid internal link chains, explain what the aff actually does, who does it, who it affects, etc. explain why your solution is the best solution.
k affs should have an advocacy statement. the aff position shouldn't change mid-round. i have very high expectations for the internal link and solvency. explain who the aff is good for, why its a good idea, etc. same as before, explain why your solution is the best solution.
Hi! I’m an assistant coach at Southern Nazarene University and have been since 2021. Previously, I coached at Crossings Christian from 2020-2023. I started debating in the sixth grade and debated at Crossings from 2013-2020. I competed at the high school national level since the eighth grade, broke at a couple TOCQs, and won two 5A state titles in Oklahoma.
I was a flex debater, which means I debated both policy and the K and am comfortable with either. I ran many different Ks during my seven years of debate, such as Agamben, Cap, Setcol, Afropess (with a black partner), Baudrillard, and Psychoanalysis. I don’t have anything against nontopical or performance affs, and I’m generally tech over truth.
There are a few things I’ll vote a team down for, no matter what’s happening in the rest of the round:
- Being rude, laughing at, or mocking the other team.
- Death good, suicide good, or advocating for killing people, especially if these arguments are contextualized to someone in the room.
Things I like:
- A nice joke in your speech, even if it’s corny. Have fun in the round!
- Being respectful to your opponents and your partner.
- Telling me what I should write for my RFD.
Things I dislike:
- Disclosure theory, perf con good theory, and multiple worlds good theory. I especially dislike multiple worlds good theory being used as a reason why your 2AC block doesn’t contradict itself.
- The phrase “This card/argument is trash” or similar phrases. Tell me why the argument’s bad instead of just insulting it.
- Ks without alts.
- Wipeout
- Eugenics good
RCDS '20
MSU '24
TLDR
Email chain scottyscott1424@gmail.com
Fine with speed
Make sure you kick out of stuff right
Good for the K and Policy, generally more experienced with policy affs and flex negative strategies.
Full stuff
Hi I'm Mitchell or Scotty, either work, I did 4 years of high school debate for Riverfield Country Day School as well as 4 years of Debate for Michigan State University. Competing at both the local and national level.
I decided to scratch most of my prewritten paradigm, it felt like debaters tried to overadapt to what my preconceived biases are, when I should be trying to evaluate a debate. So I'll leave it at this, win your arguments and win the debate, and I'll vote for you, generally regardless of what it it (exceptions for inherently problematic arguments like sexism, racism, ableism, etc.)
Cool with everything, run what you want (yes even strange things like wipeout), I generally have a soft spot for the fun but completely unrealistic arguments. Not a bias so much as an acknowledgment that I will in fact vote for it if you win.
I think condo is getting a little stretched, feel free to read as many as you want, but any more than 5 and I'll lower your speaks a little.
I'm generally pretty open to debate how the debaters want to debate. Things I don't have patience for are sexism, racism, ableism, etc. and "progressive debate bad" arguing Ks are an invalid strat or speed is bad for comprehension is not super persuasive for me. (Note about speed, if you have a reason for a more conversational speed round, feel free to ask for one before the round, the other team should honor this, but trying to catch a team with either a speed K or speed theory when you didn't ask for no speed is not persuasive to me)
if you have questions, feel free to ask before rounds and feel free to reach out post-round.
As for CX, I lean in the traditional direction of favoring well-researched and crafted AFFs that link to the topic, solve genuine harms and produce plausible advantages. NEGs need to produce offense and defense arguments, looking for clear on-case attax and Off-case flows with specific links and significant impacts and CPs that are competitive. T args are usually a waste of time with me unless NEG can prove serious abuse of the topic. I'll vote on the K if I can buy the Alt. I ask to see cards on regularly. As for speed, if it is clear, I can flow it, and if I can flow it I can weigh/judge it. I'll yell "Clear" once, and after that, if the speaker is unintelligible, I put down my G2.
In LD, I flow everything--even CX. I look for good Framework clash/comparison and weighing which V/C will carry the round. Contentions must clearly link to the FW, backed up by solid evidence. I'm looking for debaters who can cover both flows thoroughly and offer a clear, concise pathway to getting my ballot. Try to stay steady and organized. Present good voters and weigh them against your opponent. I will listen to progressive strategies if they make sense to me.
With PF, I flow it all, but I in all honesty, I am looking for the team that can articulate the best scenario, back it up with stellar evidence, speak with authority and avoid making CX a barking fest.