John Hahm Invitational
2021 — IL/US
Nov Judges Paradigm List
All Paradigms: Show HideEmail: rgu6@illinois.edu and gurachael@gmail.com (in case one doesn't work)
wy '21 (policy)
uiuc '25 (parli)
I am not familiar with the emerging technologies topic this year so please contextualize whenever you can.
I’m not really good with K debates. However, if you do run a K, make sure it is well explained. Be very clear when explaining the link, impact, and alt to the k. I don’t like super wild K’s, so be careful with those.
For the rebuttals, tell me what I should be voting for and why you should win. During novice year, I think it is especially important to do impact calc and evidence comparison.
Please signpost and tell me which argument you are answering and do line-by-line. This would make it easier for me to flow your speech.
Also, have fun and try your best.
add me to the email chain -- ohernandez55@cps.edu
Northside '21
Harvard '25
she/her
Add me to the email chain: laurenhollis@college.harvard.edu
---
Background: I debated for 4 years at Northside College Prep in Chicago, Illinois. I went to workshops over the summer including the Chicago Debate Summer Institute, DDIx, and DDI. I'm currently debating at Harvard. My debating experience is all with policy debate, but I have judged public forum as well.
I am open to all types of debate - DA, CP, T, K, theory - go for it.
Instances of racism, sexism, xenophobia, homophobia, etc will not be tolerated.
I will vote you down if you are egregiously clipping.
Please be nice to one another! Debate should be an enjoyable activity that you are continuously learning from :)
Northside '21
Northwestern '25
0 time TOC qualifier, 4 years of debate for Northside College Prep
He/Him
--
If I am judging a virtual debate and you send documents with analytics omitted, you will be docked speaker points. Your mic quality is not nearly as good as you think it is, so why would you voluntarily make it harder for the person who's deciding which team wins (me) to understand what you're saying by omitting a useful visual supplement? Act like I'm half-deaf.
--
Pay attention to where you use jargon and explain or contextualize where you can. This topic has lots of acronyms so it would help to say full phrases and what they actually mean at least once in-round.
If you can't explain an argument you plan to read in front of me at a conversational speed, there are very good odds that you won't win me over when trying to spread it. Debate what you're comfortable with, not what you think I'll like the most.
I avoid reading speech docs where possible. I will read a card if it is referenced during cross-ex, as well as if specific warrants are called to my attention during speeches. However, I will not give the full robustness of a card's argument to you if all you are doing is repeating the author's name and the claim.
Primarily debated soft left affs in high school, but have also read traditional policy. I have read every kind of argument on the neg. Increasingly sympathetic to traditional big stick affs as a judge, just because soft left debaters have a structurally harder time winning the debate.
Thoughts on arguments:
- Both aff and neg teams severely underfocus on case. This is almost universal. For the neg, aff evidence is never as good as it's made out to be and should be called out in the 1NC. If you're an aff team and truly believe your case is good, then actually spend time talking about why your warrants respond to the neg's on- and off-case arguments (which it should if it's good) beyond just saying that you are extending X card.
- Disads reach zero risk very easily. Although framing debates tend to be ineffective and misfocused, my general perspective is that low probability likely negates high magnitude at the point that a layman would consider your DA contrived. I like politics DAs but they tend to be really bad, and case-specific DAs are often the most interesting but always harder to develop. In general, if you think your DA is good, I'll probably think it's okay; if you think your DA is bad, I'll probably think it's terrible. A good internal link makes everything I said above moot.
- Counterplans have been massacred without forgiveness and it makes me sad. I strongly dislike the current norm of going for the most abusive counterplan that can still be voted for, but a won argument is a won argument. Still, I tend to bias aff theory against CPs even if it's not a reason to reject the team. (advantage cps > pics/agent cps > process cps > cps that compete off of a single word). As far as complicated mechanisms go, go nuts, I'll be able to grasp it.
- Not sure what this topic holds, but I imagine lots of the research will be focused on security and reps-based kritiks. One characteristic of Ks which somehow appears all the time in K Aff debates but never gets drawn own on the neg side is the role of Ks in shaping how the round is argued. If you treat your K like a counterplan, you're fighting a losing battle. I'm not necessarily pro "framework K," but ultimately the alternative is just a digestible manifestation of the epistemology/pedagogy/whatever that you claim the aff is undermining.
- Topicality debates tend to be dependent on a lot of factors external to the resolution - mainly how late into the year it is and how many affs have already been generated on the topic. A small topic tends to lean aff on allowing innovative (to an extent) plans, but large topics justify limiting what affs are acceptable more stringently. In a given round, this is largely irrelevant, but good debaters draw these characteristics in as warrants on the standards debate. These claims provide rhetorical strength and can help the persuasiveness of the line-by-line on interpretations/standards substantially.
- K Affs are interesting and I'll happily vote on them, but I am, personally, reasonably persuaded by aff arguments favoring predictability and the benefits of switch-side debate. A good kritikal aff is not one which critiques the resolution, but critiques the way that we debate the resolution. If your aff does the latter, most framework arguments go out the window. I will deduct speaker points for 2ACs that have a massive overview but doesn't include it in the doc.
- K v K debates are the debates I have debated and certainly judged the least. I think it's the burden of the aff to prove that perms are allowed in a method debate since the aff has already gone so far as to reject the resolution to justify reading their advocacy, but it is up for discussion. Cap links to just about everything but that doesn't always means it's good. The Parenti and Emanuele card is not nearly good enough for the amount it gets read by neg teams. Most of what I said in my thoughts on Ks extends here too.
Two separate instances of clipping will result in an auto-loss and zero speaker points for both debaters. To be clear, clipping is intentionally skipping highlighted parts of a card while acting as though it was still read. To not clip, explicitly state when you stop reading a card before fully finishing ("cut the card at [x]"), keep track of where you stopped reading that card, and after your speech ask if anyone in the round wants a marked copy of your document where the highlighting you didn't read in the card is omitted.
***FOR NOVICES: HOW TO WIN***
Flowing is the most important (and underutilized) skill in debate. Write down your opponent's arguments. All of them.
Do line-by-line - Read and answer everything you just wrote down. Answer your opponent's arguments. All of them.
Novices that learn how to do both of these semi-competently will win the vast majority of their rounds.
This is my Paradigm -- Noah Kern (noahkern@gmail.com)
If you're a novice, good job checking my paradigm. Put me on the email chain please.
Debated for Northside for 4 years.
He/Him
--
I am fairly familiar with IR jargon but I have only judged 1 round on the 2022-23 topic. Take that as you will.
Go at whatever speed you're most comfortable with, flow everything the opponent argues, answer all of your opponent's arguments in order, and aim to make it as easy as possible for me (or whoever is judging you) to understand your arguments.
please add to the email chain:
HS Debate: 18-22 (4 years) -- Walter Payton WM
College Debate: 23 (1 year) -- Michigan MS
Top
Judging record is more informative than judging opinions.
How I Decide Rounds
I go through parts of the debate in this order, and stop at one if it is sufficient for me to not need to go further.
1. The flow.
This aspect is all tech, no truth. As far as I can tell, I am easily among the most tech-oriented debaters/judges in debate right now. I imagine I'd pull the trigger on a small technical concession much more readily than many other judges. Similarly, I think there are probably far more low point wins than are actually given out. The flow is where my analysis will end for almost all crushes and many debates that are semi-close but not that that close. I have switched to flowing on computer because back-to-back analytics were unflowable for me on paper. I still have no qualms voting you down on an argument I didn't flow in a speech because you were spreading through blocks even if it truly had been there, but hopefully flowing on computer will make this less of an issue.
2. Evidence
Mixture of tech and truth (truer args have better ev, but better card cutters/researchers will put out better ev). I get to this level of analysis in two circumstances: either a) I'm told to read cards or evidence quality is centered in the debate or b) despite not being told to read ev, the flow is too close to vote on alone. This is where most good, close debates will end.
3. Minor Intervention
Tech guided by truth. If I still can't comfortably decide a round based on ev and flow, I'll do things like give more weight to evidence quality despite not being told to by the debaters, look for potential cross-apps, or try to find something like that to decide a round without having to fully insert my opinion. This is where most bad debates without enough judge instruction will end.
4. Major Intervention
All truth. This is where bad debates with no clash and no judge instruction will end.
Biases
I hope to use the above steps consistently irregardless of what args are in front of me, and I think judges who are ideologically predisposed for or against a certain argument or style are annoying. I hope these biases won't affect my decisions, but the way someone has debated/coached will inevitably affect their judging in some way, so following is a list of biases based on how I've debated:
1. Policy bias. I'm almost certainly better for the K than you think (especially Ks on the NEG), and certainly better for it than my debating record would suggest; cross-apply all the tech first stuff here -- more than happy to vote on some small conceded disad to a NEG framework model if competently extended. This bias is mainly limited to thinking about these debates differently from how primarily K debaters would since I've almost always been on the policy side of policy v K debates.
2. 2N bias. This is small and to be honest could help the AFF more than it helps the NEG because I'm somewhat lenient for 1ARs in terms of if I count an extension to be an argument. I think structural AFF side bias (first and last speech) is probably true in theory but tech determines if I think that's true when judging. Overall I don't expect this to affect my judging very much. Probably one of the most 50/50 judges on condo. Default to judge kick.
3. "Small School" bias. For the most part I think people complaining about being from a "small school" would be better off spending the time they spend talking about it cutting cards, and if you do that you'll be just as competitive as your peer from a big school. However, the one area where I think there is truly a difference in schools is that I think a sizeable majority of judges are likely to (obviously subconsciously) factor school's/team's rep into their decision in close debates. I hate this and have a bit of a chip on my shoulder because of it. If debate rounds could be judged blindly I'd be all for it. I obviously won't hack for "small schools" or against "big schools," but when I was doing prefs late in my career I frequently wondered if a judge who would be good for me in most debates might be bad for me in those few key debates where I was hitting a team with more rep. I am not one of those judges.
4. Good argument bias. This is maybe too obvious to warrant saying. I'll vote on tricks and dropped ASPEC or whatever (all the flow first stuff applies for annoying args as well) but obviously in a close debate find it easier to vote for an argument with good ev, deep defenses, well-explained warrants, etc., and will likely award higher speaks in those kinds of debates.
Stuff I Frequently Wondered About Judges
-- What framework impact? --
I almost always went for fairness and consider it the most strategic, however I know I was considerably worse going for non-fairness impacts when I tried to adapt to judges, so I would just do whatever you like best.
.
-- Can I go for the K/K AFF? --
Yes.
.
-- How many condo? --
Don't care. If you lose condo you'll lose and if you win condo you'll win, the amount you read probably won't end up mattering past a good 2A contextualizing their interp to the round.
.
-- Do advantage counterplans need solvency advocates? --
Don't care.
.
-- 1NC construction/do they care about a ton of off? --
Don't care. Do whatever.
.
-- Insert rehighlightings? --
Fine.
.
-- Plan text in a vacuum? --
Fine.
.
-- Is going for theory hopeless? --
No.
.
-- If they drop condo or aspec or it's a crush etc do I have to fill the whole 2NR/2AR? --
No.
.
Speaks
Mean speaks is 28.5, standard deviation is .4, so two-thirds of debaters will be from 28.1-28.9, 95% will be from 27.7 to 29.3, and essentially all will be from 27.3 to 29.7.
Hello everybody! I'm Sarah, I'm a senior, varsity debater, and co-captain (aka part of the triumvirate) of the debate team at Jones. She/her/hers pronouns please.
For the email chain: srrubinov@gmail.com
TLDR: signpost, truth > tech, don't like voting T for core file debates, weird things are good but your things are better, be kind and respectful to everyone in round, NO UKRAINE, I don't bite so talk to me. I'm here to help! P.s. I seem to be aff-biased? Do with that what you will.
LONG VERSION:
*March '22 update: DO NOT TALK TO ME ABOUT UKRAINE. Do not use it as an argument, try not to mention it, and just generally think through why you feel compelled to bring it up in round (p.s. I have personal connections to the conflict so please tread extremely carefully). The Russia DA is fine but if you want to use the Ukraine crisis to support it, please do your best to just imply or indirectly refer to the situation. If you want me to expand on why/how I feel about this, just ask.*
- SIGNPOST YOUR SPEECHES. Tell me where I should be putting your arguments. Otherwise, I will do the work for you which will 1) make me upset and 2) result in an outcome you might not be happy with. You do not get to tell me that I missed your argument if you didn't tell me where that argument should be.
- I severely lean truth > tech. You shouldn't change your strategy or specifically tailor the round to be only about truth, but I am telling you my biases in advance so you aren't surprised in round. Conceded arguments still default to true arguments, but I will entertain reasonability claims on concessions (I'm a 1A so I get it).
- I refuse to participate in ballot commodification (but you have to explain to me why the ballot is being commodified for me to vote on it). Also, do not tell me that a vote in either direction equates to me advocating for nuclear war/human rights violations/death/etc.
- I really really really don't like voting on T at Novice tournaments, but I will if I have to. Please don't make me vote on T.
- DO NOT TELL ME THAT A VOTE EQUATES TO ME ADVOCATING FOR NUCLEAR WAR/HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS/DEATH/ETC. I will be very upset and will dock speaks.
- I like weird, quirky theory/procedural arguments; you just have to explain them and win them. If you like wipeout, space col, or any other thing that would put you on a traditional policy judge's hit list, I'm here for it. Also, I might give you +0.1 speaks just for being ballsy (but only read those args if you want to/like to, not just for the speaks!).
- ABSOLUTELY NO SEXISM, HOMOPHOBIA, RACISM, OR OTHER DISCRIMINATION IS TOLERATED (I will vote on this: if it's obvious, it's an automatic loss, I'll give you the lowest speaks possible, and I will be speaking to your coaches and tab. If it isn't obvious, and you want to debate the round K-style, explain to me why/how a team is being discriminatory in some way OR explain how the round was specifically structured in a discriminatory way in the last rebuttal)
- I am a K debater. I know the basics of policy debate, but I am not up to date on whatever is happening in Congress rn, nor do I understand all of the abbreviations your aff specifically uses. Mention what your abbreviations are! Your opponents also probably don't know what they stand for.
- RE: the aff-biased thing. I'm noticing that some judges vote neg on presumption, but I find myself doing the opposite. I have a high threshold for neg arguments to negate any and all benefits that may come from passing the plan. I tend to evaluate the neg on effective proof of the plan being undesirable and lack of aff solvency. (this may be confusing, sorry!)
- Be mindful of online debate! Speak a little slower, a little louder, and articulate more. Be understanding of tech difficulties or lags. I will never take points off for asking clarifying questions, especially if you're lagging, so ask! I give each round 10 minutes of tech time, so just let me know if you want/need to use it. That allowance is me trusting you not to steal prep. Do NOT abuse my compassion.
- Sending speech docs is not prep unless it takes a long time (and I mean, like five minutes or more) or something was forgotten before the speech started. I am very generous with time, but I will start being stricter if I find out you aren't timing your own speeches.
- I am old fashioned and still flow 100% on paper.
- Try your best and have fun!
I promise I'm not trying to scare you or harm you, I'm here to help you learn! My notes are only there to inform you of what's in my head while I'm judging. You can always ask me questions about why I voted a certain way or anything debate and I will do my best to answer. Also! Please let me know if something has made you uncomfortable, either during round or post-round. My email is always open to you! Good luck!
I prefer Jairo (pronounced hi-roe) over judge, but im fine with either
He/They
2A/1N for Solorio 19-23
Not debating at Northwestern 23-27
Assistant Coach at Von Steuben 24-Present
Background+Top level stuff
I debated both in nat circ and udl (Chicago Debate League) tournaments during high school. Went to camp during my freshie and soph (virtual) years, so if any questions then I am more than willing to answer.
For the current high school topic, assume I know very little---the only experience I have with it is from the other times i've judged/helped coach teams at tourneys
Tech>Truth---Doesnt mean you dont have to contextualize/explain what them dropping something means for the round, you still have to explain and make clear what the argument is for me to evaluate it in your favor
Better for policy---didn't do K debate, but don't let that stop you from running what you want///i'll vote for anything if you are winning it
No specific way to assign speaks, just be nice, speak pretty, explain things well, and youll do alright
I feel like I can be a pretty visual person with my face, so if I approve or disapprove of something then you will be able to tell(nodding head for good, scrunching my face for not so good, you get the gist)
Anything that promotes violence, discrimination, or hate is an immediate L, lowest speaks possible, and a report to tab
Specifics
In case you are wondering about in depth thoughts on arguments:
DAs
I really like disads and I think they are a staple of what neg args should be in debate. For every disad, paint me a story of how the disad actually happens if the plan were to pass, from the UQ up to the moment of the impact(big red button is pressed, oceans rise and we get 2012 IRL, the environment collapses, etc.)
- For the neg---should always be in a 1nc. For later speeches, if running DA by itself, tell me why it turns the case and do impact calc. If running as a net benefit, tell me exactly how the cp avoids the DA. Avoid generic links as much as possible; if generic link is called out then I am much much less to weigh the DA as highly as the aff
- For the aff---the best strat to go for is straight turn imo. If done well , then you have forced the neg into an awkard position and you are fully in control of that flow. Honestly if the neg fumbles the straight turn answers too then I am all for a pure straight turn 2ar. If not possible, then the main canon of arguments work, just prove why case outweighs
CTs
I LOVE case turns. These debates can get messy tho, so for both sides make sure to 1. keep the story clean and concise 2. try to organize LBL as much as possible
- Neg---If you wanna go for a CT, then you have to make sure to tell me all throughout the debate how the aff links and how the impact outweighs. Personally, I dont mind it if you sandbag in the block, so go crazy with impacts if you have them, just make sure to answer all the aff args they present cus even once concession can take out the whole ct for me
- Aff---For most of the CTs run, theres a high likelihood you link. It might just be me, but if its clear the aff links, then I just want to see you bite the bullet and tell me why that linking is good(i.e, if you increase growth then do growth good, if heg then heg good, so on, and give me specifics as to why its good). Obviously, this doesn't mean you can just disregard their impacts, so make sure to also answer or group the impacts they had. If they sandbag in the block, then crossapplying is your friend
CPs
CPs are really interesting because theyre either really good or really mid. In general, Agent/Process cps are legit, I find consult cps boring, and if your cp has more than like 5 planks then don't even run it(even you know its abusive). Also, sufficiency framing is iffy---if your cp doesnt solve the impact of the aff, then why even run it
- Neg---THE CP HAS TO BE A REASON TO REJECT THE AFF, PLEASEEEEEEE. That means even if the cp is plan plus, I still wont vote for it. You need to prove to me in the 2nr 2 things: First, you are able to access the plan and solve for the impacts through your cp, and second, doing the plan alone is bad/doing the cp would solve for discrepancies with the plan alone. That being said, you ALWAYS need a net benefit, whether it be internal or external, and explain how the CP avoids that
- Aff---Personally, I like seeing shifty perms being run and exploited like crazy if conceded. By shifty, I dont mean different wordings of the cp text so dont do that, but shifty as in like "do plan and have agency do x instead". In general, POSTAL works great with cps so just stick to that and youll be good
T
T has sucked these past few topics cus everything is so untopical but borderline topical. That being said, don't just run T as a strat skew cus that just wastes flow and could be used for more substantive off. However, still good to always have T on both sides in case of anything
- Neg---I feel like T is really underappreciated against smaller affs. If you are able to call out a team effectively on how theyre untopical, then keep it going all throughout the round and call out if their counterinterps are generic, if they severely underlimit, and so on. T can get very messy though, so unless you have a really good feeling about T, dont run it because I know we dont wanna argue over definitions for 2 hours
- Aff---If you know you're borderline topical, you better have a damn good counterinterp. Apart from that, main canon of arguments work in front of me
Ks
Ks are really interesting but far from my specialty(I had to debate under a hard right policy coach for 4 years, dont blame me). With that tho, I am really only interested/know more of the main canon of neg ks, so stuff like cap, security, afropess, queer. fem, etc. If your k is high theory, then dont pref me(I dont wanna hear about baudrillard for 2 hours)
- Neg---In front of me, you link you lose is valid ONLY IF you win framework(run it as like a da in a way). I really dont buy many alts of the ks as realistic, so if you know your alt isnt that amazing and the aff is calling you out on it, just drop it and resort to talking about how they make matters worse and why I need to evaluate the K more than I do the aff. However, if you run some generic links against the aff, then I am much much less likely to weigh it that highly if they call out the generality
- Aff---Ima be straight and to the point in what I like to see v ks- first strat, call out why the alt fails and why its probably unrealistic/doesnt solve. Second, if they kick the alt, go for case outweighs and specifically why case outweighs, so if you need util then run it in the 2ac, or impact d then also run it in the 2ac, and hell you can even do case turns k to take out the impacts. For all of that to work though, you NEED to win and stay on top of framework, so keep framework on top of the k flow in every speech. Perms are pretty weak v ks, so still read them but dont depend on them for the 2ar
K affs
In all honesty, I am not in tune with k affs like that, so I am not the best judge to run these in front of. However, if it is your main strategy, then you should run what you are most comfortable with
- Neg---Unless you would also run Cap against them, you should just run FW. I buy FW the most against k affs, just stay on top of their answers to your arguments and you should be alright
- Aff---For a k aff to stick in front of me, I need a clear explanation why running the k aff solves for your impacts and why this round is specifically necessary. I need a role of the ballot from the get go(2ac fs, 1ac preempt maybe even) and for this to be explained in depth in the later parts of the round. In a similar fashion, I need an explanation of why running on the neg cant solve, and you need to explain to me how the alt looks like in action
Theory
Most theory is really a wash for me. The only one I will vote for is condo, but that also depends on the round and how many conditional off are run
Misc. Stuff
I like jokes---if you make me laugh then i'll give you +.1-.2 speaks---specifically, joke about Conor Cameron or Victoria Yonter(and if it flies), i'll give +.3
Please put me on the email chain: sammywinchesterwalsh@gmail.com.
I debated for Northside for four years and graduated in 2022. I am not debating in college.
I lean policy, but I will vote on anything if you are winning it.
Clash is especially important, go a level further than the tag, tell me why you are right and they are wrong.
Please do not forget about Case.
T and Theory - If you lose any T or theory arguments that are ran against you, I will usually vote against you. Though the standards of the argument need to be impacted out to be considered. For example "They lost T." is not enough for me to vote on, you need to go a level.
DAs and CPs - Very comfortable with them, go for it.
Policy Aff v. K - As I lean policy, if you are running a K, turns case arguments work best with me. On framework for both sides, make sure it is consistent. Please try not to change your interpretation or standards throughout the round. Unless it is an integral part of the K to ignore Case, don't concede or forget about case in the 2NR. I am decently comfortable with the standard Ks, but anything super specific or academic, you will need to make it make sense to me. I will not vote on something I do not understand by the end of the round. If you are going for it, you should be able to explain it adequately.
K Aff - I will not vote on something I do not understand by the end of the round. If you are going for it, you should be able to explain it adequately. Especially since academic K's are about learning. However, if you're framing is based on being confused, you're going to need to do some explanation there, but if you win it, I will vote accordingly. Arguments against K Affs that I like are other Ks and Cede the Political, though anything can work.
aw4ng@mit.edu or anniewang2003@gmail.com
ncp'21 mit'25 they/them
you can call me whatever! annie is fine, judge is fine too :-)
this is the tldr; if you want to know more about specific arguments i generally agree with kyujin derradji. (i will say -- i am unqualified to judge k v k debates! please pref me low if that is your preferred strat because i will make a decision that you may or may not be happy with.)
no particular ideological predispositions, feel free to read your wacky impact turns or k affs in front of me. (this should go without saying, but obviously this doesn't apply to hateful arguments [racism/sexism/any other ism good, etc.]) this being said, obviously every judge has biases (for instance, i have vastly more experience with policy) but i will endeavor to adjudicate these debates without bringing too much of my own background into them.
i have not judged many rounds on this topic, have little to no background knowledge, and am not very smart. please take that how you will re: explaining your aff, particularly if it's jargon-y or niche.
i follow along with the speech doc -- that means i notice you clipping. i'll stop the round and vote you down if you do (intentionally). clipping = skipping lines (not words, that happens) in cards, saying you read evidence you didn't, failing to send a marked copy if asked for or sending an incorrect marked copy.
online debate: try to have your cameras on if tech/wifi allows, it's a lot more humanizing than staring at icons all day.
everyone should be in constant contact with their partner so if any tech issues arise we can get them sorted out quickly.
coleweese1@gmail.com
4 years of high school debate (18-22), am no longer debating.
Zero topic knowledge, err on the side of maximum explanation.
Top:
Tech over truth, but truer arguments are easier to win. Any argumentative preferences I list below speak to which arguments I find more true/intuitively persuasive than others. Preferences are certainly not set in stone and I will be swayed by good debating.
My flow is the most important determinant of who I vote for. I will vote on dropped arguments, even if they are quick. At the same time, I will not vote for arguments that I don't have flowed even if you think you made them. I will read evidence, but I will only read evidence that is extended through the end of the round. I will give more weight to evidence that is explained more fully.
Speaks:
I try to keep an average of 28.5 and am not afraid to give low points.
Policy v K:
I find it easier to understand policy arguments and was policy in high school, but am definitely willing to vote for Ks on the neg and think they are strategic. I'm a little less willing to vote for K-affs, but will do it.
Framework/T-USFG:
I am most persuaded by fairness impacts, but if you feel more comfortable with others, feel free to go for those. Interpretations are important to me. I feel like judges often find a middle ground between an aff's framework interp and a neg's counterinterp, I will not do this.
T:
People don't go for reasonability enough. I also think predictability outweighs limits.
Theory:
I am more likely to vote on theory than your average judge. Default position is that condo is good, and judge kick is an extension of that, but can obviously be convinced otherwise.
Misc:
Don't spread through analytics and be clear.
I think people let vague plan writing off too easily. If the plan text could be interpreted as something other than what the aff thinks it does, that's probably a solvency deficit.
I would prefer you read rehighlightings, but don't care enough to penalize you if you insert them.
Might be a hot take, but I think the perm double bind is fire.
New affs probably don't justify neg cheating.