Speak slowly or at least at a pace where I can understand you, I don't usually look too favorably on spreading. Please weigh your arguments to showcase why I should vote for you. When giving your rebuttals please signpost so I know which arguments you are addressing or defending. Use actual cards not theoretical arguments when doing rebuttal. Remember to be civil to each other and have fun in debating.

Unfortunately I cannot turn on my own computer camera as it is malfunctioning right now.

TL;DR: Just look at the bolded stuff in the Flow Section if you don't want to read everything.

Background: I debated 4 four years in high school in Public Forum Debate (2016-2020). I dabbled in Extemp.

Lay Stuff:

Don’t be a jerk, otherwise I'm going to give you low speaks and a low point win if you happen to win by flow. If you are any type of -ist in round or has an argument that is- you are dropped. Be inclusive and kind

Speed = fine, but I will say “clear” and stop flowing if too fast.

Speaks: high avg speaks if you do everything right- 28. Ill drop speaks if you are not civil, have an abusive argument/fw. If u make me laugh/snicker +.5 speaks. Also if you do key voters right +.5 speaks.

Clipped or Falsified Evidence = drop, be ethical, stop clipping

Time yourselves and hold each other and your opponents accountable.

CX: it’s for you guys to clarify things/poke holes (it's ok to use it to clarify, don't feel bad). I may listen I may not, I'm still not gonna flow it either way. Whatever you or your opponent says that is important in CX better be brought up in speech otherwise it doesn’t count. Don’t be abusive with follow up questions.

Flow stuff:

I really don't care for Rhetoric heavy debate, just get to the point. I want clash and clear warranting.

I expect 2nd rebuttal to respond to the first rebuttal responses. (The fact that some people don't do this is weird to me).

SIGNPOST WHEREVER YOU GO, it’s a basic skill every debater needs to do.

In general I prefer the Quality > Quantity of responses. Please Don't Card Bomb Me.

Don’t flow through red ink, I will likely catch you and what you say won’t be counted in round. Additionally I have a pet peeve of saying “flow through contention 1” or "flow through smith 19" and then moving on, u better explain to me exactly how your contention/warrant/card actually flows through and what the argument/content is.

I like Key Voters but if you don’t know how to do them I’m fine with down the flow as long as u signpost and condense/collapse well. In Summary since it’s now 3 minutes, I want some weighing analysis at the end, but there should be more weighing in FF.

In your final speeches (esp Summary): Extend your warrants otherwise I am not giving you access to your impacts. If something is brought up in FF that isn't in Summary, it doesn't count- don't flow through red ink, and be consistent with your partner.

PLEASE FOR THE LOVE OF EVERYTHING GOOD WEIGH IN YOUR FINAL SPEECHES. If you don’t weigh you essentially leave it up to my opinion on what I value the most. If you guys can use and talk about multiple weighing mechanisms like the probability, scope, time-frame, magnitude of your impacts in relation to each other, and which mechanism should be preferred over the other- you'll catch my interest. Alongside any logical fallacy names like; “slippery slope”, and “straw man”.

Also you can definitely talk about cards and methodology in your speeches. Just don't let evidence debate be all that the debate boils down to. I may ask for and read for critical cards after the debate too, regardless of evidence debate.

Ill probably disclose at the end if you made the debate clean and easy (and if I am allowed to) but if not I detail the ballot.

Framework/Nontraditional stuff:

Don’t ever give me a “framework is utilitarianism” in case because that is inherently what Public Forum debate is (you can use it as a response in rebuttal and so on). This also goes for "Cost Benefit Analysis" if it is in the resolution. That being said I welcome non traditional frameworks and interpretations of the resolutions that have a rational basis that you can explain well and have cards to back up. I really enjoy and love fw debates. Also shouldn't be an abusive fw.

Please respond to your opponents framework if they have one, cuz that could ultimately cost you the round.

I'd rather not judge a K/theory/plans in PF please (don't really know about them in depth anyway). Although I would rather not judge it, I am open to hearing these Kritiks/Theory but you will need to be able to explain VERY clearly and how it works in round not only to me but your opponents, because if they don't know what you are doing it kind of ends up being abusive cuz they can't or don't know how to respond to them. If you end up using progressive debate techniques in PF I hope it is supplemental to traditional debate cuz as I said above I have a very loose understanding of this stuff and would likely be a time waste.

Plans are not allowed in PF (NSDA Rule). You can have a advocacy (NOT A PLAN- difference is in a plan you specify how you are going through with it, advocacy is just a general recommendation) as long as u can explain how it makes sense under the resolution in round (not after when u are trying to persuade me). Also make sure its not overly abusive to your opponents and puts them in a corner where they can't get out, that ties into being a jerk.

Feel free to ask me questions about any of this or something not here.

Bio: Former PF debater (2014-2018). Been judging PF from 2018-present.

Logistics:

Timing: Time yourself/your opponents. If your opponents are going over time, just raise your phone up (be chill). However, if they go over time and you don't call them out, they get the benefit. Evidence reading off-time, but I reserve the right to say, "Hey, this is taking too long." If all the debaters in the round agree, we can skip grand cross (you can get an extra min of prep instead).

Speed/Speaking: If I'm looking up from my flow and not writing, it means that either a. I can't keep up with you or b. you aren't saying things that I can write on the flow. Either way, not good. If you are worried about the speed issue, give me a copy of your speech.

Etiquette: I'm not very uptight about these things. You can sit during speeches and cross. I don't care about language. I like jokes. To be clear, this just means I like when debaters act chill/normally/informally, I am not ok with insulting/disrespectful language. No need to shake hands.

Also, please get to the round on time, especially at nat-circuit tournaments. If you need a little bit of time to get your stuff together before the round, I will give it to you. Just try not to be late because then I have to tell tournament directors that you don't exist and that will make me and tournament directors sad.

Debate-y Stuff:

Signpost everything. Signpost everything. Signpost everything. Signpost everything. Signpost everything. Signpost...pretty please?

I'd rather not judge a K, you'd better be really good and your opponents really have to not do anything with your K to win with a K. Just don't do it pls. Stay on topic.

No specific advocacy of the Aff (akin to a Policy plan). No alt on the Neg. You can probably tell that I am asking you to not Policy in PF.

Partners can communicate with each other while one of them is giving a speech. Pass them writing on a paper or something if necessary.

Holistically, I am pretty tabula rasa, but if a team says something ridiculous like elephants are purple, if the other team says "no, elephants aren't purple, make them explain the warranting for that claim extensively", that will be good enough response for me.

The beginning (Constructive):

If your frameworks agree, please just stop mentioning it, I'll use it. "But bro, they didn't have a framework, so you HAVE to use ours" is not a good argument (unless your opponents didn't address it at all and it flows cleanly through).

Cross-Ex: I will not judge on what it said in cross-ex. If something important happens, please bring it back up in a speech so I can put it on the flow. Remember I don't care what you say, so don't just engage in cross just to grandstand! Cross-ex can be used to clarify and understand your opponents case so you can make better arguments. Focus on the warranting, cards are not the same things as warrants. Make the discussion meaningful. Seriously, if you don't have any meaningful questions, do not just say things to say things, I do not care at all, we can stop early.

The middle (Rebuttal/Summary):

I like off-time roadmaps before speeches (make it simple, "framework, their case, our case").

I will accept overviews, tell me where the overview goes on the flow (your case or their case).

If you're refuting an argument, tell me what specifically you are responding to. If you're frontlining a response to your case, tell me exactly which responses your frontline applies to. I like numbered responses.

The 2nd rebuttal must address the first one. The first summary should respond to the 2nd rebuttal (also the first speaking team's defense will stick if the second speaking team hasn't responded to it in rebuttal).

When extending cards, I benefit more from hearing you explain the warrant of the card because I really suck at remembering/writing down author names. Example: "Remember the second warrant from John Doe, explaining blah blah blah" <- see how there was an explanation and not just the author name?

Please extend arguments throughout all speeches in a non blippy way, I will straight up cross off stuff on my flow that is not clearly extended. Remember, the summaries contain all the content that you are allowed to discuss in final focus.

Please verbally label turns on the flow, so I can see the offense (just say the word "turn").

If you are gonna collapse on an argument, you can literally just tell me "hey, we are collapsing on contention X"

The end (Summary/FF):

I like carded weighing analysis, but definitely do analytical weighing and explore methodology of studies etc. I really prefer seeing debaters explain the intricacies of their arguments rather than maintain a narrative with what cards flowed through the round. I really hate key voters because they usually lead to bad weighing. Keep it on the flow, tell me why the arguments that are left actually allow you to win (essentially I prefer line-by-line). I strongly encourage collapsing, just make sure to tell me what's important. At the end of the round, I will vote off whoever has the most offense relative to the winning framework. Remember, do analysis using weighing mechanisms like probability/timeframe/magnitude/irreversibility, but then also do analysis on why I should prefer one mechanism over another (strength of link is important). If the last sentence didn't make sense to you, just ask me before the round. If you don't do these things, I will face palm at the end of the round and have no clue as to how I should evaluate offense.

I might ask for cards after the round if I feel like something is sketch or it has been made an issue in the round. However, I would really like for you to call for me to read cards if you feel its needed. I try to be non biased when it comes to my take on the legitimacy of evidence, so unless a team completely misrepresents a card, I can't call them out on their BS unless you tell me to.

Please feel free to ask me questions about my paradigm and the way I judge before the round. I will probably disclose, unless you don't want me to. I will provide a verbal RFD too. You can ask me questions after the round about anything. If you still have important questions but we are out of time because next round needs to start, email me.

Hello speakers: Congratulations on the effort you have made to be a part of these tournaments. I participated in Arizona as a judge last year and I admired every student who presented their case. I know your experience will serve you well in the future.

I participated in speech competitions in high school, and was a debate team member at Catholic University in Washington DC, where I majored in politics--and spent a lot of time working on the school newspaper. Shortly after graduation, I got a job as a news assistant at The Washington Post where I began a long career in print and broadcast journalism, specializing in covering the courts, law and the legal profession. I have a Master of Studies in Law from Yale Law School, where I was a Ford Foundation fellow and participated (with a law student partner) in trial competition. My work experience--post media and prior to retirement--includes more than 10 years in public service as director of communications for the New Hampshire court system and special assistant to the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.

A few thoughts for participants:

Don't speak too fast..as a reporter and interviewer, I am a careful listener and note taker. Best for you to be clear, and efficient about your key points, rather than dashing through an argument.

If you have a script--good. But please, don't just read to me...show me you know your case.

Help me out...Make sure to flag your key points, and the points that you are responding to.....

Presentation: I am a team player, always have been and I like to see that as a judge--respect and recognition of partners, and opponents.

The clash....this is a debate, i know, and argument, but the weight of the facts and reasoning that you present, and the dignity and calm you demonstrate (not noise!) will win the day.

Final thought: Have fun.

I am a recently-retired trial lawyer and have judged in Arizona one previous time. I am a strong supporter of this program not only for people who may want to get into advocacy as a career...but for all who want to develop stage presence and effective communication.

Talk slowly and clearly, despite the significant ground you have to cover. If your judges can’t understand the reasoning behind your positions, your team will be at a significant disadvantage.

Contestants should stand when they are presenting.

Use cross examination to expose the weaknesses in your opponent’s case, and not to repeat your own arguments.

You should signpost your presentation, identifying the opponents’ arguments that you are challenging and the key arguments supporting your position. This helps judges to track both parts of your presentation.

Use your closings, or summations, to identify and reinforce the most important argument underlying your case.

GOOD LUCK!

I was a high school cross-examination (a.k.a. Policy) debater from 1987-1991 at Jesuit High School New Orleans. I am now an assistant coach for Debate at Phoenix Country Day School as well as the Physics teacher. In between, I earned a B.S. in Chemical Engineering and B.A. in Plan II from the University of Texas at Austin (1996), a PhD in Chemical Engineering from MIT (2001), post-doctoral research in Cell Biology at the Duke University Medical Center (2001-2002), and then was an Associate Professor of Biomedical Engineering at Arizona State University (2003-2018).

For Public Forum debate rounds:

1) I do flow. Although I can flow at speed (see below for Policy debate), Public Forum rounds should be about convincing me that your overall argument and position on the resolution is correct. What does this mean? It means that, although dropping an argument is important, it doesn't mean that the argument that was dropped becomes absolute truth. It does mean that your opponent did not refute your original claim and warrant, but you still need to explain how that claim and warrant support your overall position in the round in summary and final focus to convince me that your overall position on the resolution is better than your opponent's. So, in PF rounds, I discourage speed. Speak at a normal pace and trust that I am keeping track of your arguments. Signpost (tell me what argument you're responding to or what overall contention you're talking about) so that I can put your responses where they should go.

2) Use cross-examination periods to ask questions you genuinely want your opponent to answer. Listen to their response respectfully. Don't use cross-examination periods to make arguments. And definitely do not use cross-examination periods to badger or bully your opponent.

3) In summaries and final focuses (foci?), make sure to write my ballot for me by telling me how I should view the various positions in the round. If you use frameworks, tell me how I should view the various positions in the round as if I accept your framework OR your opponent's framework -- do both because you don't know which framework I'm going to find more convincing. The more you can bring the various different individual claims into a holistic view on the resolution, the more you're writing my ballot for me. You still need to win those individual claims (so don't forget to spend some time doing that), but synthesizing those claims into a coherent view of the resolution will go a long way to helping me decide the round. And that's even better if you bring your opponent's claims into that synthesis. For example: "Even if you agree with my opponent's claim that _______, there are still ### million people who benefit because of ________ that we're proposing due to [warrant for that claim]."

4) Remember that clash is critical. Go beyond the taglines to debate the warrants (reasoning) behind the other team's arguments vs. the reasoning behind your own arguments. Then go one step further and help me understand how your argument fits into the larger context of the round to "write my ballot" during your rebuttal / summary / final focus speeches.

For Policy debate rounds:

1) I need to understand what you say. I am fine with spreading as long as you enunciate clearly. And, if a particular argument is critical to your strategy, slow down a bit on the tagline to make sure I flow it properly. I will not be on the evidence chain. I believe debate is a speaking event, so I need to hear you say things and understand them at the speed you deliver them. If a piece of evidence is argued in the round such that my reading what it says after the round may affect my decision, I will ask for a limited number of pieces of evidence after the round. If you want me to look at a particular piece of evidence, tell me that in your speech and explain why reading it should be important to deciding the round.

2) In rebuttals, make sure to write my ballot for me by telling me how I should view the various positions in the round as if I accept your framework OR your opponent's framework -- do both because you don't know which framework I'm going to find more convincing. Unless one or both teams argue to judge the round otherwise, I default to hypothesis testing of the resolution. But I'm certainly willing to be convinced to judge the round in other ways. For example, if you argue a K, just make sure to do a good job convincing me that it's important for me to judge based on the K rather than on the typical framework (i.e., hypothesis testing).

Specifically regarding Ks, if it seems to me that you're just running the K to score a win in the debate round rather than actually caring about the issue being Kritik-ed, you can convince me to vote on it; but you'll find it easier to convince me if you actual care about the issue and legitimately believe the other team is exacerbating the problem. Also, for both Aff and Neg, focus on the "Alt". The Alt should be concrete to the point where I can understand what happens in the world if we do the Alt.

Other argument types:

T - Of course. My default is hypothesis testing unless you tell me otherwise.

CP - A good counterplan debate is great fun. Although CPs are easiest when non-topical and competitive, I'm willing to hear theory arguments that I should allow an exception.

DAs - These are the meat of all good hypothesis testing rounds. Make sure to pay good attention to the internal links in the DA. Also, I'm happy to vote for DAs that don't cause nuclear war. When I debated, my favorite DA was "deficits" which often just led to economic collapse. I'm happy to vote for a DA that causes highly probably harms that are moderately bad, and I find those more convincing than DAs that cause unlikely but world-ending harm.

Case - Please argue case. If nothing more, if you're Neg, please at least make a few arguments against case's solvency and whatever their biggest harms are. If the Neg leaves case with 100% solvency and no doubt about the harms, I find it hard to vote down the Aff. Vice-versa when you're Aff.

Performance Affs/Negs - Your #1 goal in the round (sine qua non) will be to convince me that I should judge the round in a non-traditional way that matches your performance goal. For the Neg, I've found that taking the strategy that I shouldn't vote in that non-traditional way isn't always best -- good Affs are very prepared for that strategy (so this usually only wins against teams that aren't well prepared to run their Aff). So, as the Neg, consider the strategy of accepting the basic premise but do it better (e.g., more inclusive, etc.) than the Aff.

For all of these, remember that clash is critical. Go beyond the taglines to debate the warrants (reasoning) behind the other team's arguments vs. the reasoning behind your own arguments. Then go one step further and help me understand how your argument fits into the larger context of the round to "write my ballot" during your rebuttal speeches.

I look at logic of arguments and evidence to support the assumptions in the arguments. There should be a natural logical flow in the argument or it becomes not valid. Quality and overall impact of arguments brought up count more than quantity. I'm a fan of carefully thought out arguments but I'm not a fan of speed as it leads me to misunderstanding a point. I've judged PF and BQ in the past and has studied science, philosophy, and ethics.

I am an attorney and former Ethics & Compliance Officer for two Fortune 100 companies. My judging experience is more limited, but I have extensive experience and training in the art of persuasion in litigation, with corporate executives and Boards of Directors and in providing training to employees around the world. Speech and Debate Programs like this one offer an invaluable opportunity for students to engage in current topics while developing confidence in public speaking and persuasion skills.

I would encourage participants to speak slowly and clearly and to speak into the camera as much as possible. It is helpful for me as a judge to hear a short summary of your strongest argument(s) upfront and to fill in the support for each as you present. I will be using flow to track not only the arguments your make and the support for each, but also to track your response to your opponents arguments.

I will be looking to see if a participant reinforces his or her strongest points in closing, as often a few strong points can be more persuasive than trying to provide a list of many.

General Background:

I did S&D for four years in High School. I did PF, Congress, Extemp, Impromptu, and Duet. I competed on the national circuit in Congress my junior and senior years. I am the three-time Arizona Division II State Champion in PF 2016, 2017, 2018. I have coached PF, LD, Parli, and Congress. This paradigm goes in the order of PF, LD, Speaks, Congress. I went to Fordham University for my bachelor's in philosophy. I am now a 1L at the University of Nebraska College of Law.

This paradigm has been updated 11/20/20 to consolidate my preferences (so that LDers aren't looking at the PF section for some things -- they are consolidated to the general section) and present them more clearly. Speaks section added on 12/1/20. Change-log: 3/18/21 edited truth skep section for clarity and emphasis. 1/22/21 added minor tweaks to the LD and speaks section for emphasis and clarity, nothing fundamentally changed in evaluation. Updated 12/12/20 to reflect points I want to emphasize after Stanford. Updated 2/16/22, PF section for minor clarity in advance of Harvard. Update 2/19/22 PF section to emphasize points about impacts half-way through Harvard.

Updated 1/4/23 to reflect updated biographical data; new note on RFD/Ballot construction with arguments on presumption; clarification and organization in LD section.

Debate in general:

-I hesitate to say flat out "debate is a game" but I believe that at its core debate is an intellectual activity. Whether or not education is part of that is something to be established in round. Debate is like chess.

-Include content warnings where appropriate to make debate a safe and accessible space. Avoid sexism and other harms that have cropped up in the debate scene. I will vote off theory on this if its ran.

-I've previously had in this paradigm to try to say a full citation instead of the author's last name and year. This isn't necessary. What I want to stress is that I have a hard time writing down names quickly. The rate at which you say Kowalczyk should be slower than your normal rate (dare I say, 1/2 of your normal rate) so I can figure out how to bastardize the spelling when writing it on my flow. Some teams still are having a hard time doing this - If you need an example of what I expect let me know. I will handle any speed, spreading with a doc (add me to the chain: jcohen83@fordham.edu), I will give a verbal 'clear' if needed.

-I am not timing in the debate round. You cross-time. It is 100% up to the competitors for flex-prep and/or timed-evidence.

-I will give an oral RFD and disclose at the end of the round.

-OTRMs: If you are running something progressive that will require me to get another flow out, please let me know in a roadmap about the off. Otherwise, OTRMs waste time if its "going down one side then back to the other".

-I will not pay attention to crossfire/crossex. Anything that happens needs to be brought up in a speech.

-If you want me to read a piece of evidence, tell me to call for it in a speech. Anytime I ask for evidence I will want to see the cut card first, asking specifically for the full pdf if needed.

PF:

-Bringing LD into PF? Go for it; I like progressive argumentation. Just make sure it actually is justified/be prepared to argue the merits of the progressive debate should it come up.

-Don't extend through ink, and make extensions actually an extension. Extensions should have something new, or at least re-explain what was before. Don't give me "Extend the Worstall card" or "Extend the entirety of our C1" and leave it at that because that isn't extending. If your gonna do that the bare bones is to explain what the cards say. You should use the card names while extending because it helps me flow - but don't only leave it at the card name.

-If you are extending an argument in summary you need to include warrant, link, and impact level extensions where applicable. I can't buy the impact calc if the warrant & impacts aren't extended - even varsity teams have trouble with this.

-every argument has to pass a believability threshold. Even if it’s not refuted, if I am not convinced or I don’t ‘buy’ the argument, I don’t weigh it (See Truth>Tech). I get a lot of questions on this: Basically - you need a warrant. I'm a reactive/visible judge most of the time, you can use this to your advantage to see what arguments I'm nodding towards.

-Don't violate the nsda handbook.

-I most likely won't flow final focus. I never did as a competitor so I don't like to as a judge. I was a first speaker. What I am doing during FF is looking around my existing flow and circling/drawing lines/checking things off, etc. The reason for this is that nothing new should be in FF. Anything you are talking about in your final focus should already be extended through summary (this includes briefly mentioning the impacts while extending the case). Like if something is dropped by both teams I'm not just gonna pick it up in the FF. Most importantly with this, summary speakers needs to extend the defense. Defense is non-sticky.

-I prefer Voter Summaries over two world or line by line (with the rule change to 3 minute summaries this is less important but still helpful for my flow, just make sure to signpost well).

-I will truth>tech in PF, my truth is skep. I will not blindly flow anything you say. If you say the sky is green don't expect me to count it on my flow without any warranting. Similarly, if you don't tell me why an impact matters, i.e. terminalized, then I'm not going to be able to use it for the construction of my ballot. I start from a position where I don't know if war is good or bad and if you don't tell me and say "decrease risk of war" as an impact I'm not going to know how to construct a ballot around that. I'm not Tabula Rasa, I default to dropping every argument in the round. If you drop the warrant or don't terminalize, I drop the argument.

Want to be safe? Every impact chain causes death.

-If I end up dropping every argument in the round, my ballot and RFD will get flukey. Flukey as in I technically don't have any material anymore to construct a decision. This can go one of two ways and I've alternated between both of these approaches depending on how the round goes.

1) I relax a little bit on the flow and take non-terminalized arguments and "risk of advocacy" to make a ballot as in "this team was closer to making my ballot so they get the win"; or

2) Presumption, in which I generally will defer to SQUO unless told otherwise although this is not a guarantee or promise.

Therefore: teams, if you want me to do something specific within my ballot construction, argue for it. If you think (1) is better for you, then say I should do that and tell me why. If you think (2) is better, then give me a presumption argument telling me which way to presume.

LD:

If you're traditional, read the PF paradigm and:

If you are traditional please do not misrepresent philosophies. This is an area I am not tab. at all. If you say Kantian ethics justifies murder I will not weigh it. More progressive philosophies are less subject to this as I haven't studied critical theories as much as I have the basics of moral frameworks. I am very receptive to hearing post-structuralism and post-colonial arguments like if you want to run Baudrillard, CyberFem, Afropess, or something -- I will be more tech on those.

If you are progressive:

I am competent with progressive debate but you should keep in mind adaptation to a PF judge. I would rather have a progressive debate than a bad traditional one (read: please don't let the round have me concluding that PF is a more intellectual form of debate than LD).

I have no predisposition towards PICs. If you want me to drop because PICs are "abusive", you must argue that in round.

If you are running something super LD-y you should be watching my reactions to make sure I understand and explain more if needed, e.g. trix/tricks.

Some things, e.g. performance/performative args/Ks, you will need to clearly explain the path to my ballot and what the role of the ballot in relation to the advocacy is in the round. This includes a hesitancy to vote on theory - you will need to have it be explained as clearly as possible for me to vote on it - if it gets muddied where I don't understand why the theory is being ran I'm liable to not vote on it...

In general with Progressive LD is something where "I will get it and be able to follow along until I suddenly reach a point where I don't". In most rounds I've seen that go progressive I don't have any issues.

I wish I could give you like those rankings of what arguments I prefer like other LD judges, but in my experience, I don't really care as long as its argued well so that I can understand it.

Speaker Points:

I assign speaks in what I assume is a non-traditional (and harsh) way. I will not evaluate speaks based on your speaking ability or performance. Speaks for me are purely reflective of how I assess your technicality in debating relative to a varsity debater championing a tournament. Because of this, I will almost never assign a low point win; if you are technically better on the flow you most likely won the round (unless its a "good at everything but impact calc" vs "average enough to be able to win on strong calc" thing). I do not adjust speaks based on tier of debate I am judging. I do not refrain from giving lower speaks in fear of 4-2 screws. I view 30-25 as an A-F scale. I start from a position that 27 is an average debater who is making various errors in terms of addressing arguments and who is missing a lot of what I think could have been argued. Here is how I think the breakdown goes:

PF: 25-25.9 wow you really did some egregiously bad in the round or have missed so much of the fundamentals of debate that if I were teaching a class I would flunk you. 26-26.9 you missed a lot, you could have done something that was on the flow the opposite of what you should have done. You most likely are missing a lot of components of winning the ballot based on the flow. This is a 'D', my way of saying you aren't at the level of debate you are competing in. 27-27.9 is most likely the most common place for me to put speaks. You did things right enough to consider this an okay debate but I still desired a lot more to come out of it. 28-28.9 is the best I can give to a debater that neither stuns me nor shows something beyond normal technicality. In LD: I will almost never give above a 29/29.5 to someone who isn't running progressive arguments. In PF: above 29.5 means I think you are destined to reach far into elims and should be a contender to win the tournament. If your opponent is a 26.0 and you perform at a 28.5 because you couldn't express the technicality for a 29< due to a lack of substance to wrestle with that is a tough break (and perhaps the biggest flaw with my speaks standards -- but I would rather assign speaks this way [as that scenario is mitigated by power matching] to be as unbiased as possible -- away from any unconscious affects towards things you can't control regarding how you actually speak and sound to me).

Good way to get good speaks with me? Surprise me by doing something on the flow I wouldn't think of or don't see coming. Here is an example of something from a round that blew my socks off: A team got up for their rebuttal (2nd speaking) and read delinks/dewarrants to their own case, then full sent a bunch of turns on the opposing case. On the flow it made perfect sense and was a level of technicality I hadn't seen performed before. They even responded to theory challenging the abusiveness of the tactic. This was a team that was in deep eliminations at a national circuit tournament. It is the kind of of debate on the flow that affords above a 30.

Congress:

This is congressional debate, not mock congress or congressional speaking. Clash is the most important thing to this; without clash, congress isn't debate.

Know where you are in the round. On the topic of clash, nothing is more boring than a rehashed point on the 7th cycle of debate on a bill. Yes I get you want to speak but please follow the life-cycle of debate on a bill. If we're past the first two cycles, I want refutation, if we're getting late into the cycles I want to hear some crystallization.

By all means please caucus and plan motions together for efficiency, but don't exclude people from this activity because a select number of you have clout from the national circuit or camps.

Questions show if you are truly in tune with the debate or not. Asking questions isn't just more speaking time or to show your activity for the ballot. It's about leadership and continuing the clash. Questions are truly an extension of your speech and they will count toward your placement on the top 6 ranking.

For POs: Be quick and efficient. Your job is to get the most debate done in the fixed time we have. If you are fuddling around because you can't remember the process for an amendment that is a problem. Your charisma and leadership of the chamber are important to your efficiency. Don't expect a top 4 ranking just for POing. You earn that top 6 by virtue of how well you do as a PO.

General

I did Speech & Debate on the Arizona circuit in high school, which was about 3 years ago now! I competed in Congress nationally, and also competed frequently in PF, Extemp, and Oratory at local tournaments. Currently, I'm a third year studying Neuroscience at UChicago. I'll be taking notes/flowing/doing my best to give you the best feedback possible! Given the online format, please know that I won't be holding any technological issues against you, provided that they aren't extremely disruptive to your participation in the event. Another thing to remember about online debate is that it's much harder to hide your facial expressions from either me or your fellow competitors, so please make sure to be respectful, professional, and supportive of your fellow competitors.

Congress

For Congress, I value speech content and organization the most (especially since the online format makes it more difficult to place a lot of value on pure presentation). Signposting is a great way to give an organized speech! After the very first speech on a bill, every speech should have some level of refutation and clash. This is Congressional Debate, so I expect the chamber to have an actual discussion about the bills and this should be reflected in your speeches, especially if they're later on the debate. With this in mind, be sure to bring up new points in your speeches, or at the very least expound upon the points former speakers have made with new evidence. Asking questions is also a great way to show engagement in the round - but for direct cross make sure you stay respectful.

Public Forum

I will be flowing the entire round except for cross-fires, though I will be paying attention. If you want something from cross-fire to weigh in the round, bring it up in a speech and I'll flow it. I really value organization and the clarity of your warrants and impacts; please, please, please signpost! I expect constructives to be clear and well-researched, focusing only on your own arguments. The rebuttals should be organized, and go line-by-line down your opponents' case and refute it. All of this refutation has to be extended through summary and final focus. Don't bring up new arguments in final focus because I won't be weighing them. Final Focus is the time to weigh impacts and give me some kind of analysis about what really happens in the aff world vs the neg world. In general, you can assume I don't know much about the topic, and I'll be a blank slate regardless - don't make me weigh arguments for you! For citing sources, make sure you actually give some explanation of the card if you're extending it and don't just say "extend the Schwartz card" or something. Finally, please be respectful, especially in cross-fire. I want the round to be fun for everyone, and the best way to make sure that happens is to come prepared to debate but do so with kindness and respect for your opponents.

Excited to meet you all soon!

- Shayna

I am a former competitor from Arizona, where I competed in just about every type of event. I competed nationally in Congress and Extemp, and at the state level, I competed in Public Forum, Lincoln Douglas, Extemp, Impromptu, Congress, etc. I am now a Junior Economics Major at Duke University looking to enter into civil service/politics.

So now that you know who I am, here's what you need to know for the round:

I am an experienced debater/judge so I am fine with speed/jargon but with online judging, it may be easier to keep a moderate pace. If you are going too fast, I will ask/signal you to slow down.

I will flow the entire round, so line by line/down the flow rebuttals/extensions are great.

You will probably both know more about the round's evidence/topic than me, so when reading include the tag/thesis of your card NOT JUST NAME AND DATE. Rebuttal and debate occur with ideas and warrants not just saying "extend Chung '12" or "Johnson '07 refutes", so you should always include what the card says and why it matters too.

When concluding, impact and weigh the round for me, you're TELLING me how to vote so it should be clear what you want and why I should vote for your side.

Think that should cover the general debate stuff, if you have any questions please ask before the round starts!!!

Best of luck!

LD Specifics:

I will vote on anything if warranted well.

I have solid experience and knowledge of the most popular LD authors and Progressive Debate style.

You are welcome to go into kritiks/plans/theory etc. and I will weigh and judge them just like any other round, but you need to warrant and impact all of it well in order to win the ballot. If you run progressive/technical arguments without a strong framework/foundations, I will usually be stuck voting for the opposition.

Internet/Case sharing depends on tournament rules and the consent/support of both debaters. If you want to send each other cases or evidence feel free to do so, just please make it quick.

I think of debate as an art of argument. The arguments that are formed by sound research, are well structured and conveyed clearly. I have judged congressional debate a few times in the last few years, big questions debate once but a lot of Public Forum and Lincoln Douglas debates. I have also judged almost all speech events. I enjoy all forms of speech and debate. I look for well researched, well structured arguments delivered clearly. I understand that students might need to go a little faster than the normal conversational pace but I hope it is not too fast. I also pay special attention to cross examination. This is a great opportunity to challenge your opponents arguments respectfully. I don't appreciate when a speaker does not give the other speaker a chance to question or launches into a big speech in response to a question. This results in monopolizing the time and talking over each other. Good luck to the teams!

Former PF debater in high school. Strongly prefer you avoid theory or Ks.

Small note--I do my best to record source/author names, but it helps me if you can mention an extremely brief description of the card along with the name if you bring it up in later speeches. (e.g. if you cite a card from Jones in your constructive, then the first time you bring it up in a later speech, try to say something like the "Jones card on insurance coverage rates" or something like that.

For PF,

Speak clearly enough for me to understand you on the online format!

I would appreciate it if the arguments made were responsive to each other- clash is great@Q

I will not flow your cross ex periods

Please tell me what I am voting on and why I am voting on it! Extend those clearly thru the round.

Please be patient with me as I am new to the online judging format :)

I'm a current law student but am a former high school debate competitor and collegiate speech competitor. I have the greatest amount of coaching and judging in experience in LD but have judged PF for the last five years.

I keep a detailed flow of the round and ask that warrants be extended on key arguments you extend throughout the debate.

Please be respectful in crossfire/cx.

I find rounds work best when debaters also time themselves and cross time their opponents.

In order to reduce the likelihood of any technical issues, I ask that you take necessary precautions (e.g. quitting programs not needed on your computer, testing your WiFi connection, etc.).

Please feel free to ask if you have any specific questions before the round starts so we begin on time. Thank you, and good luck!

Public Forum:

I flow the rounds and judge based on your speeches not cross fire. I review notes, contentions that flow from beginning to end. Please make sure to have definitions and framework. Framework is very important to your case. Make sure you are clear in your contentions and arguments. If I cannot understand you or you are talking too fast, I miss things and it can be a problem. You are there to convince me why your team wins-explain the impacts and weighing, FRAMEWORK and explain the reason for decision. Pretend I do not know anything about the topic. Be respectful of your opponents and let them talk during cross fire. You should be able to provide your cards, evidence quickly. You should be organized and have them quickly to provide competitor if asked. I will reject any extinction impacts. I will look at climate change and increasing threat of war, but the huge numbers used will not be counted. I do like when teams collapse to one or two best contentions and not the laundry list. Give me the impacts, weighing and why you win.

LD

LD is a speech form of debate and I need to understand your case and reasoning. Spreading is very common today, but it does not mean you are an excellent debater, logical or can convince someone to your side of the argument. You need to convince me, your contentions, framework and the reasons why you won the round. I will flow the rounds and judge based on your speeches not cross fire. I review notes, contentions that flow from beginning to end. Please make sure to have definitions, values and criterion. Make sure you are clear in your contentions, definitions and arguments. If I cannot understand you or you are talking too fast, I miss things and it can be a problem for you. You are there to convince me why you win-explain the impacts, logic, reasoning explain the reason for decision. Pretend I do not know anything about the topic. Debate the resolution and topic. Some LD topics are more like PF but keep to the resolution. Plans and counterplans need to fit the resolution and debaters need to keep to the resolution.

Congress:

Make sure to advance the debate and there are differences betwen first, middle and ending speeches. Do not use debate lingo as please affirm is not done in Congressional debate. Do not use computers and read your notes. Make sure you have credible sources and know your topic. Be able to debate both sides of the topic. Two good/great speeches are better than 3 average/poor speeches so in other words, less can be more. I want you to particpate but quality is very important. You are there to persuade the members.

IE:

Impromptu: Biggest ranking is did you answer the question or prompt. Do you understand what is being asked. Make sure you are organized, confident and always each reason/point relates to the prompt.

Extemporaneous. Use good sources of material. Economic would be The Economist, Wall Street Journal, The Financial Times. New York Times is better than Arizona Republic but make sure you have good credible research. The topics are very advanced and in many cases specific so answer the question. You are to use persuation and logic, with your sources to convince me the answer-keep to the question.

PF

PLEASE SIGNPOST - tell me where you are during your speech

Extend the full argument and explain it - don't just tell me to "extend [card name]" or "extend [contention]"

Please weigh - tell me which impact is more important and why

BE NICE - I'll drop you if you're rude/disrespectful to your opponents

let me know if you have questions.

LD

I have gotten very dumb in my old age (22) so please take it easy on me and debate slowly and as clearly as possible. I am very familiar with PF but am new to judging LD.

Hello, I am Thelma and I am a student at the University of Arizona

For PF,

Speak clearly enough for me to understand you on the online format!

I would appreciate it if the arguments made were responsive to each other- clash is great@Q

I will not flow your cross ex periods

Please tell me what I am voting on and why I am voting on it! Extend those clearly thru the round.

Please be patient with me as I am new to the online judging format :)

I require extensive statistics and proof of credentials to accept and effectively compare an argument. I have several years of experience as a PF competitor and judge.

To put it short and sweet, I am an experienced debater. I did four years of mainly PF, Congressional Debate, and Extemp in high school, but I watched a lot of Policy and LD in my free time. While I am experienced, I expect informative argumentation for debate. Do not throw arguments at me and expect I have any background knowledge on the topic, because I believe debate should be about informing everything about the topic. It's being debated on for a reason. In terms of what I flow, I will flow everything in the round including any CX. I am also comfortable with high speed so spreading doesn't matter to me. Other than that, anything is fine with me. Just be respectful to each other and let's have a fun round.

I am a lay judge but I have judged for several years. This is my paradigm.

1) Please speak at a reasonable rate because I am flowing. If you speak too fast I may not follow your argument.

2) Please number your contentions and your opponent's contentions when referring to them.

3) Please be sportsmanlike in round and during cross

4) In cross you should not respond to your opponents response; save it for the round

5) It is OK to ask for cards off time but please do not drag it out. Have your cards ready.

6) Good debate has clash. Please tell me what the decision points are and why you should win it. You need to be able to clearly state your opponent's case and why your case is better. Don't just keep stating your case. Make the clash obvious. This will make it easier for me to vote for you, as long as your argument is solid.

7) Please include impact. Otherwise I will have to and you may not like the result

8) If a claim seems outlandish, I may ask for the card

Good Luck!

I am a lay judge with only around 10 debates under my belt.

I am looking for how clearly/logically you present your case with special emphasis on how well you can counter your opponent's points.

All the best.

The topic and summary should be slowly and clearly articulated .

TL;DR

I know stuff.

Bio (Completely Irrelevant)

I competed in PF for four years at Hamilton High School (2014-2018). In my senior year I was the captain of the team. I competed a lot on the AZ local circuit, and won/placed at a bunch of tournaments. I also competed a bit on the national circuit (broke boi couldn't afford all the plane tickets in HS), and have dabbled in Policy and Big Questions debate. Finally, I've also competed in the International Public Policy forum and achieved global Top 16 alongside my team. Today, I'm a student studying Computer Science and Physics at ASU.

Speed/Speaking

1. I can comprehend up to 275 words per minute, but my most accurate flowing happens at about 225 words per minute and under. Be smart about your word economy. If you can say it slower and make the same goddamn point just as effectively, do that. Do not sacrifice clarity for "speed" (I say "speed" because when you're messing up so much because you're trying to go faster than you're meant to, your effective speed is actually super slow.) Do not use the Gish gallop, this will annoy me severely.

2. I reserve the right to yell "CLEAR" at any point in the round; if I do, that means something with your speaking isn't working for me and it needs to be fixed; it could be speed, volume, enunciation, slurring, etc. I don't do this to be a jerk, I do it because I actually want to hear what you have to say. However, don't rely on my yelling of "CLEAR" as an absolute metric though, because you might just not be egregious enough for me to say it. If I look confuzzled or like I'm not understanding what's going on, that is likely the case.

3. There are a myriad of references you can make that will bump up your speaker points if they are eloquently incorporated into your speech: PewDiePie, Speedcubing, Lil Uzi Vert, Playboi Carti, Future, Juice WRLD, Eminem, Deadpool, Mr. Robot, or Avatar (NOT the blue aliens one). Saying "Subscribe to PewDiePie" at the end of the speech is no longer novel to me, and I won't count it.

Cross-Ex

0. As a general rule, cross is for you, not me.

1. I will not judge on what is said in cross-ex. If something important happens, please bring it back up in a speech so I can put it on the flow. (I do actually listen though - even if I'm walking around, eating, etc. - unless it's mind-numbing, which happens fairly frequently).

2. Cross-ex can be used to clarify and understand your opponents case, I don't frown on that. Don't be afraid to ask why; at best, their reasoning will be moronic and easy to dismantle, and at worst, we all learn something.

3. Don't go back and forth and waste time during cross. (But depth is awesome and absolutely necessary, don't misconstrue the two).

4. I don't see "my partner will answer this in speech" as a weakness if it's because the idea takes a bit to explain or if you already know your partner will expound on an idea you briefly mention, but I might still smile at it, because it's memey. But if it's a question that you should be able to answer, then that's probably a problem.

5. When someone asks for an explanation of a warrant, "we have a card for that" is not an appropriate answer. This is also true for the round in general, not just CX. ACTUALLY EXPLAIN THINGS; if the answer wouldn't have been satisfying for you then it's likely not satisfying for me either. A card is not a warrant in and of itself.

6. Standing or sitting, don't care. Do a handstand if you want.

7. First speaking team gets the first question, no need to ask, just get into it.

8. Towards the end of cross, y'all can reserve the right to end it if there's nothing to talk about, and just prep instead during that time (for a MAX of thirty seconds) (especially GCX).

Timing

1. Please time yourself. I basically always forget, so please keep track of yourselves and each other (that goes for speech AND prep).

2. If you need to verbally let me know your opponent is going over time, that's fine (just give them like 4 seconds of grace period). You can avoid all of the ambiguity by just using a timer that actually goes off at the end of the speech too.

Etiquette

1. Try to get to the round on time (I will too). If you need time in the room to get your stuff together, or pre-flow, I'm totally cool with that, I just don't want to accidentally tell Tabroom you don't exist (same reason I'll try to be there on time). But again, s*** happens, so I'm gonna try not to be annoying about time, as much as possible.

2. I like Aff on my left, Neg on my right. The world will not end if this is not true, however.

3. I’m not uptight; I like a chill vibe in rounds. I like judging rounds where everyone's actually having fun (especially me). Good jokes are great, bad jokes are colossal failures. (If you can make your opponents' argument seem so ridiculous that it's funny, you're probably being quite convincing). I encourage being savage, but in a tasteful-ish manner. Being savage is not the same as being petulant.

4. You can swear, I don’t care. Actually, I'll probably like it, especially if it helps with your rhetorical efficacy.

5. I’d rather not shake hands. Shaking hands with me won’t magically help or hurt your chances of winning, but it could get either of us sick.

Debate-y Stuff

1. Signpost everything, for the love of music, video games, Netflix, pets, and parents. I literally don’t know where to put stuff if you don’t signpost (and then I won't write anything, and it'll be your fault).

a. If you're refuting an argument, tell me what specifically you are responding to, and what happens to offense as a result.

b. If you're frontlining a response, tell me exactly which responses your frontline applies to, and what I need to extend as a result of this frontline.

2. Structure responses in a systematic manner, at the least. I really prefer numbered responses in rebuttals and I like numbered frontlines in the summaries and second rebuttals (this makes it easier to reference which response we're talking about at any point).

3. Please extend arguments throughout both Summ/FF speeches consistently, I will straight up cross off stuff on my flow that is not clearly extended. However, you don't have to yell "extend" before everything you extend (because that’s annoying), just contextualize the argument and why I should extend it.

4. If you’re not frontlining, you will probably auto-lose the round, because I want to watch an actual debate.

5. I like to have a roadmap before speeches, but it should NOT be flowery. For example: “framework, aff case, neg case.” If you’re doing something weird though, let me know. In most cases, I just want to know which side of the flow we're starting on.

6. There’s no reason to "extend" your own case in rebuttal if "time permits" if you’re the first speaking team. I don’t get why debaters do this, but it’s a waste, and I WILL drop speaker points for this.

7. 2nd rebuttal should address the 1st rebuttal.

8. 1st summary should address the 2nd rebuttal.

9. I’m cool with overviews.

a. If an overview applies to an argument specifically, remind me of the overview and cross apply it.

b. Your overview shouldn’t just be another contention though, that’s not the point.

10. If you read a definition, actually make it useful for your case. "But bro, they didn't have a definition, so you have to use ours" is not an argument.

11. Frameworks can be as important as you make them.

a. If your frameworks agree, just stop mentioning it, I’ll use it.

b. Weighing really helps to solidify a ballot, and a carded weighing analysis can really help with that. Also, you NEED to tell me how to weigh unlike things; it's easy to say $200 million is more than $170 million, but we all know this is rarely how debate functions. If you don't convince me of a way to adjudicate the round, I don't know what the hell to do.

c. "But bro, they didn't have a framework, so you have to use ours" is not an argument.

12. ALL offense must be in summary.

a. The first summary does not need to include defense unless this defense has been frontlined already.

b. However, turns must be in summary, otherwise they will end up only being terminal defense. (Otherwise it's abusive, the other team needs to know what you're going for).

13. I hate key voters, they obfuscate the round for me. Instead keep it on the flow, tell me why the arguments that are left actually allow you to win (essentially line-by-line, but don't think saying card names aimlessly is going to mean anything, so don't card dump).

14. I GREATLY encourage collapsing. Kick an argument and instead show me why the one you go for is enough for the win. (You can’t kick an argument with a turn on it and expect things to be okay for you though, obviously.)

15. Please verbally label turns explicitly. It really helps me to see how you get offense on your opponent’s case. (Like actually say the word "turn" or something very similar).

16. Don’t give me a specific advocacy of the Aff (akin to a Policy plan).

17. Don’t give me a random alt on the Neg.

18. Please don’t strawman, make sure you respond to the actual arguments your opponents are making. That's the number one way to get me to tune out quickly.

19. K's might not be the best idea because I default to post-fiat impacts. The only way you'll win with a K is if you actually convince ME I should go pre-fiat or your K solves in a post-fiat analysis.

20. I don't flow card names for the most part, so make sure to tell me what the card says.

21. I love creative, innovative, eye-opening, deep arguments that come from another angle. I hate stupid, nonsensical arguments that disguise themselves as novel when they're not. Running one of those will get you yeeted. Logic actually matters, people. (This isn't to say I'm not tabula rasa, I really am very close. The point I'm making is that my threshold for refuting inherently ridiculous arguments is inherently lower than those that actually make sense, so you're handicapping yourself severely within the context of the round by running something we all know is dumb. For example, if the Aff tells me that "elephants are purple" and the Neg responds with "no," I will consider that an effective response. Remember, in the words of Carl Sagan, "Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence" and if you're giving me less-than-extraordinary evidence, you're screwed, because your opponents are probably smarter than your "argument").

Please feel free to ask me questions about my paradigm and the way I judge before the round. If you want to know how you're doing in a round, look at me, chances are that'll give you some information because my face can be very telling. I might ask for cards after the round if I feel like something is sketch or it has been made an issue in the round. I will almost always disclose, and I will provide a detailed verbal RFD, which often includes a significant degree of roasting. You can ask me questions after the round about anything, but don't argue with me, because I will submit my ballot before I disclose. Good luck.

Hi, I am a parent judge. I understand that since I am parent, I am not as qualified a professional judge, so feel free to strike me. With that said, I do have quite a bit of experience judging have judged several national circuit debates and late elimination rounds at nationals.

Overall, I really appreciate if you go slow and really explain your arguments. For me, while sounding pretty is good, I will look at who is winning the merit of the argument and throughout the round who most consistently rebuts and actually analyses the arguments better on a technical sense.

Crossfire is also important as well as other regular lay norms.

Your reasoning should be plausible with credible evidence that is able to sway the audience, considering the classical modes of persuasion. Articulate your words clearly, follow what you say, thereby connecting with the audience. Furthermore, if a case is made and not countered/refuted, then it will be deemed as true in the round.

Speak slow, no spreading.

In rebuttal provide offensive arguments against your opponent. Do not just simply state your case again.

Extend your arguments.

Any arguments after time (over the 10 second grace period) will NOT be taken into consideration.

Hi, my name is Vaidya Kolar. I am a lay judge. Please speak at a moderate pace and absolutely no spreading.

I will always try to flow, but it is difficult for me to not miss everything you say. Thus, I require a full speech doc for constructive sent to me by email because I cannot always follow the constructive speech properly. Any additional cards called between teams must also be sent through an email chain with me in it. Also, if you have a rebuttal speech doc as well send that to me too via email. My email is vaidya.kolar@gmail.com.

I won't flow crossfire unless you bring it up in another speech.

I have a judged a few times before but I am still very new. Clarity is most important to me so make your arguments understandable and don't go too fast. I will do my best to evaluate the round and the team that seems most prepared and defends their points best will win.

Please use all of your speaking time. Organization is key in every speech. I will not be paying attention to cross ex but if something important is mentioned, bring it up in the next speech. If you do not mention an argument in your summary I will not consider it when weighing the round. I would prefer to see every speech started with roadmaps or frontline. For a recap on me: In high school, I competed in speech and debate for three years. I primarily competed in Public Forum and World Schools debate and dabbled in Extemp. I have played the role of both second and first speakers in PF and in both roles I prefer to see great crystallization and consistency. I have competed on the national level twice and every time I believe the strongest debates I have seen are those that remain mature and do not begin to get hostile, despite how difficult it can be. Other than that I would say I am quite a Flow/Lei judge

Almost all my debate judging has been in PF, so please understand I am not familiar with jargon or terms for other debate disciplines. Also, please speak slowly and clearly enough so that I can understand you. Be kind and civil with your opponents. Thank you!

I have competed in PF, LD, and BQ debate in high school. I prefer articulation and clear diction if you want to speak faster. Otherwise, it is encouraged that you speak at a normal pace. I understand if the case is long and needs to cover all the arguments, but I have to understand an argument in order to judge on it. I do flow rather quickly, so I am able to keep up with most debate styles.

Public Forum:

1. For PF, make sure all the arguments are very clear. To ensure this speak at a normal pace, and if you wish to speak quickly to cover a longer case, then it must articulate well. Otherwise, it will be incoherent. I will only be able to tell you to adjust the pace after a speech is finished. (I don't want to interrupt.)

2. For the argument content, make sure it is logical and evidence based. All main points must be concise. When it comes to voting, most rounds are very close, so in the Summary and Final Focus make sure to reinforce in the clearest way your main points and how they resolve the clash.

3. I do want to see a focus on where the two opposing cases clash. Focusing too much on framework and warrants does take away from reinforcing your argument's actual content. If you wish to use frameworks, you must compelling argue why yours is to be upheld. If the opposing team has a framework and you do not, then try to offer a counter framework. Also, do not bring in any new arguments during cross examination or in the last two speeches. Use the rebuttal to your advantage, and really use crossfire to cover ground. Using questions effectively to set up a rebuttal can help you succeed in a round.

4. I judge on a team's ability to refute arguments and uphold theirs.

5. Regarding the sharing of cards and evidence, you should be able to retrieve the source very quickly off-time. Once you have the card and are going to review it, your prep time starts. I don't abide excessive time wasted looking around for cards that you can't produce; if you can't find it quickly, then I do not consider that argument. Conversely, asking to see copies of every single card is likewise problematic and delays the round. Use prudence for which pieces of evidence you need to see from your opponents. Obviously, your arguments must cite evidence, but the exchanging of cards does not have a reserved time slot. Therefore, no wasting time.

1. If debating and using references, please fully define your source.

2. Speak slowly and clearly. I am looking for content, not the volume of information.

3. Clearly tie your premise from the beginning throughout your presentation. Wrap up your presentation with your premise and how it is supported.

4. No spreading.

5. I am a lay judge. I have judged for three years, but I am not a journeyman judge yet.

I have judged in a few events before. Don't spread because you will loose my attention for sure. I have to be able to clearly hear you and understand your argument. Try to avoid talking over other person. You should be able to convince me with your arguments. I care more about persuasion and confidence vs. facts. If you use an acronym, at least explain it once. I am a bullet point person. So in this case, I would love to see Signpost. It will convey your points to me much more clearly.

Public Forum:

- While speaking fast in Public Forum is uncommon, I am fine with any speed that an individual wishes to speak at as long as they are articulate and comprehensible. However, do not speak to the point that neither I nor your opponents can understand you.

- I am for all types of arguments as long as there is evidence backing up claims and contentions. If there is no evidence to back up the claim and your opponent has evidence proving their claim, I will be inclined to lean towards the side that presents evidence backing up their claims. However, if a team makes a claim that is supported by flawed or outrageous evidence, it will not be necessary to offer evidence to counter their claim. This only applies if an argument is very obviously false or supported by faulty evidence.

- I flow the entire round except cross-fire. If there is a point or argument that comes to light during cross-fire that you believe benefits your case/argument, bring it up in your speech. It is very important that you state it in your speech and explain why it favors your side, otherwise if it is not brought up in your speech, it will not be accounted for in the final disclosure.

- I am able to understand most/all jargon, so terminology should not be a limiting factor when creating arguments and refutations.

- When making an argument, you must show its impact/the magnitude of its impact. I do not blindly flow every argument that is presented and then never refuted if it is not part of the main debate. If you wish for an argument/contention to benefit your side, make sure to continually reference/support it throughout the debate and argue its impact. However, do not bring up non-refuted contentions/arguments, which not even your own side brought up since the first speech, in the Final Focus as I will not flow these arguments. The reason for this is that these arguments did not receive any debate nor were they even considered a substantial enough piece of the argument for any side to bring up. Thus, I will only flow contentions that receive debate and are referenced throughout the round.

- There must be clash. If two teams go through a round without ever addressing the other team's arguments/contentions, then I will have basically nothing to evaluate the round on. While I doubt this will happen often, I do wish to make a point that each team must address their opponent's arguments. The best way to win my vote is to outweigh your opponent in the magnitude of your impacts. If you can prove that your impacts have a greater benefit/magnitude than your opponents, then you will most likely win the round.

I believe in reasonable argumentation. Points will be awarded to the student based on the nature of the argument, how well the argument is stated, and whether the argument is reasonable.

Please speak in a conversational tone throughout your arguments.

Public Forum

TL;DR: Flow judge; line-by-line, but warrants are important. No spreading. Weigh. Stay away from progressive-style arguments.

Experience: I competed in PF from 2016-2020 (and some LD) at Phoenix Country Day School. I currently study politics, rights, and development at NYU.

General Philosophy

I am a flow judge. Tech over truth and line-by-line, but warranting is important. I vote for contested but well-warranted, well-explained arguments over shallow, blippy extensions of dropped arguments every time. If say you are a 'fast,' 'technical' debater and do not make any comprehensive arguments, you will have to adapt to pick up my ballot.

I firmly believe that Public Forum should be accessible to all levels of debate experience, and I am less inclined to see arguments that serve to exclude the general public amicably. Generally, I'd much rather see well-paced debate with clear depth over high-speed debate with wide breadth.

Speed: Slow rounds > fast rounds; If you plan on spreading... don't.

Structure:

- Second rebuttal must answer turns made in first rebuttal; I prefer that second rebuttal answers defense.

- First summary only has to extend defense if it is front-lined in second rebuttal.

- If your rebuttal "overview" is a hidden contention I will not evaluate it.

Weighing: Must be warranted. Give me reasons why to prefer your mechanisms; this is done best when comparative and specific to opponent's offense (don't weigh on probability; I view probability as deriving from strength of warrants).

Evidence: I deplore evidence abuse. If you deliberately misconstrue the words or arguments of your sources, I will drop you. I will call for cards if I have good reason to suspect evidence abuse or if your opponents tell me to.

Crossfire: You will not win off of crossfire, but if you get a digression/warrant explanation and extend it into speeches, I will flow it. I promise that you won't embarrass yourself with simple clarifying questions; debate is much better when everyone knows wth is going on. Grand is unequivocally stupid; don't compromise your chance at winning/speaks by getting all frustrated, I'm probably ignoring the content anyways.

Speaks: Are a reflection of politeness, oral/rhetorical proficiency, and organization (signposting/numbering). If you demonstrate support for or knowledge about the Phoenix Suns you get +0.5.

Techy/Progressive Arguments: As a PF debater, I do not expect you to be educated on the specific formats of technical arguments. Such an expectation reeks of privilege; accessibility is the rule. I expect any argument you make to me to be conceptually understandable by a moderately educated adult with no debate experience.

- If you run a Plan, Counterplan, Kritik, or frivolous Theory, I will become annoyed and drop you.

- Arguments with critical and/or pre-fiat impacts not in K format can be ok, just make sure to give your opponents a meaningful route to the ballot.

- Theory: If your opponent introduces significantly abusive arguments/tactics, I will evaluate traditional or simple fairness arguments. No to speaker-point/disclosure theory.

Other:

- I will intervene, stop the round, and tank your speaks if something egregious or offensive occurs (ad hominem, racism, ablism, islamaphobia, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, etc.). Your coach will also get an unpleasant email.

- I prefer a chill, relaxed, and informal vibe in rounds. Have fun!

I am a parent judge! That being said I have judged countless rounds on the Nat circuit and local circuit for 5+ years.

A few things I prefer:

Keep speed and clarity in mind when debating.

For any complicated economic argument please provide actual warranting when you are extending it.

Collapse and do weighing on the argument you want me to vote on, I won't do it for you.

Debate is about having fun so don't let the round get too heated.

Signpost, Signpost, Signpost

I usually won't question your evidence myself, so if you find bad evidence on your opponents side bring it up in round and in a speech as a response.

Defense is not sticky; make sure to extend it in summary if you are going for it

Frontline in second rebuttal, second summary is way to late in the round for your first time frontlining.

Comparative weighing wins rounds

Background: PF for 4 years in HS

Any speed is fine so long as you speak clearly. Make sure you signpost in your speeches.

I'll vote based off how well you warrant your arguments (ie. extending is extending your link not just telling me to extend it) as well as how well you weigh them. Anything important that happens in crossfire should be mentioned in a speech.

Rounds are better if everyone is mature. If you're rude or you argue for something problematic, I will drop you.

I have some experience as a parent judge! I enjoy debate sessions and am looking forward to a good debate.

Parent Judge. Have judged before. Speak slowly and clearly.

I was a policy debater for four years in high school and four years in college at Arizona State University. I debated at the NDT in 1988 and 1989, and broke in 1989.

I don't have strong opinions what arguments should or should not be made. I'm fine with critiques, framework, theory and performance but also like "traditional" (plan, solvency, topicality and disad) debates. My verbal paradigm when I'm asked is that I have probably seen it all and have voted for it at some point. I am fine with speed and will take a flash of the speeches to get a better idea of the evidence as it is being presented. My RFD's are based on in-round arguments. I've been a volunteer coach and judge since about 2008 and in that time have judged multiple debates on each year's policy topic. I also judge Lincoln Douglas with the same paradigm.

I am a retired corporate lawyer and federal prosecutor with extensive litigation experience, and I am currently a volunteer coach for both mock trial and debate. I debated in both High School (Glendora CA) and college (Emory U in Atlanta GA). I prefer clarity, solid reasoning and courteous, civil direct clash on contentions. I am not a fan of speed reading, and prefer artful persuasion. I'll try to flow the debate but rely upon speakers to signpost their major contentions and highlight differences from their opponents.

I am a parent judge who is new to debate.

Please speak slowly and make sure to tell me what to vote on.

Hello random debater. I'm Kyle Soni and I debated PF for 4 years at BASIS Scottsdale. I'm currently a student at Northwestern University studying science stuff, specifically physics.

I don't have too many specific requirements, and I don't expect you to ADAPT to me fully (especially if I'm on a panel). I'll do my best to vote off the flow, but I'm kinda a braindead 18 year-old so I won't be perfect. Here's some things I like to see though:

Standard Stuff

Weighing: I was a second speaker when I debated, so PLEASE WEIGH YOUR ARGUMENTS. It's rare that you can convince your judge that your opponents have no valid offense, so if you start weighing from the first rebuttal speech, it gives me a framework to evaluate your arguments. If you don't weigh your links and impacts and don't respond to your opponents weighing mechanisms, you cannot complain about a "judge screw."

Second Half: The first half of debate round is usually boring and confusing, so I will only vote off arguments that are in BOTH summary and final focus. If you try and throw something in during Final Focus, I will not consider it. Also, I greatly prefer it if you collapse on 1 or 2 arguments/warrants. Otherwise, the debate goes way too fast for any understandable interactions between the two sides. If you drop one of your own arguments, I won't hold it against you (unless it got turned).

Fun Cross-Fires: Cross was always super boring to me, so if you make interesting analogies or weird weighing mechanisms, I'll be much happier. Also, if something important happens, bring it up in speech (if you don't already know to do this).

Like the heading suggests, this is all pretty standard, but I will be strict with it. You can't slip in a nuclear war impact in final focus that "is technically implied from the links your partner said in summary"

Evidence

I know reading cut cards is gaining traction, but I don't really care if you still paraphrase. That being said, I will not tolerate bad evidence ethics (like any judge). If you discover your opponent misrepresented something, tell me to call for it. If I agree with you at the end of the round, I will drop any argument related to that card. If a team does this with 3 or more cards, I'll just drop them completely.

I prefer if you show me cut cards as well, and highlight the important areas.

Theory

I don't really like theory and have little to no experience with it. If you run theory and your opponents go up and say "We have no experience with Theory so this is not fair" I will immediately vote for your opponents. The only ways I will vote off theory is if your opponents don't interact with it at all.

I realize there are some abusive arguments (like counterplans), so if your opponents use one of these, just make the abusiveness one of your responses. If your explanation is good, I will drop them for being abusive.

Speaking

Speed: I'm ok with speed because I talk pretty fast, but I don't really like spreading. You should know how to talk to a lay judge anyways, so I would prefer if you just use that style. I won't lose sleep over missing something you said if you're talking at 800 wpm.

Speaker Points: These are probably the dumbest part of debate. I'll give 29-29.5 by default, 30 if you're really good or really funny. If you're racist, sexist, etc. or anything overtly rude, I'll give you 25.

Conclusion

Like I said earlier, I'm a braindead 18-year old, so this paradigm probably sucks. If you have any questions/clarifications, PLEASE ASK ME. This not only helps you, but also tells me what I need to add. I'll disclose if you want me to, and I'm always open to questions after round as well (but I won't change my decision).

TL;DR: Debate good, debate fair, me happy.

I have been debating and doing IE's as a competitor and judge since the 1970's with a long break in the 90's and 2000's while working in the private sector. I have been coaching a team that does primarily Oregon-style parli and Public Forum debate, but I did NDT and CEDA as a college competitor and understand all formats.

I judge as a policy maker looking for justification to adopt the resolution, and will accept well-justified arguments on both substance (the issues of the resolution) and procedure (framework, theory). In policy rounds I have a bias against affirmative K's, because I believe the Aff prima facie burden requires that I be given a reason to adopt the resolution by the end of the first Aff constructive in order to give the Aff the ballot. Arguments founded in social justice approaches are fine as long as they lead to a justification for adopting the resolution and changing the status quo.

I can handle speed but remember I'm not seeing your documentation--a warrant read 600 words a minute at the pitch of a piece of lawn equipment might as well not be read from the judge's seat. You flash each other, but not me, so make sure I understand why your evidence supports your argument. I won't debate for you, and I don't flow cross-ex/crossfire. If you want me to consider an argument, introduce it during one of your speeches. In formats other than policy, particularly in Public Forum, I expect a slower rate and more emphasis on persuasion with your argumentation as befits the purpose of those other formats. In LD, I expect arguments to be grounded in values, not "imitation policy."

I will automatically drop any debater who engages in ad hominem attacks--arguments may be claimed to have, for example, racist impacts, but if you call your opponents "racists," you lose--we have too much of that in the contemporary world now, and we are trying to teach you better approaches to argument and critical thinking.

Above all else, I like good argumentation, clash, and respectful conduct. No personal attacks, no snark. Humor welcome. Let's have some fun.

I am a lay judge

What that specifically entails:

1. No spreading, no blippy arguments, no theory/K's, etc. Moreover, I put a huge emphasis on presentation skills and the ability to speak well/slow/confidently.

2. I need very very very clear warranting, clear link chains, and clear impact analysis. Assume that I am not super well versed in the topic so explain everything.

3. Absolutely no technical terms as there is a high chance I do not know what they mean. This, once again, emphasizes the need to explain everything.

Hello, I am Venkataramana Suggula.

In short, you can call me Rama

I have only participated at as a judge for about 3 years in several competitions(Speech and Debate), yet I assure you that I do my best to help debaters out. All I request is that the kids should feel free to speak at an average pace, clearly, and properly. Moreover, I won't flow too much, only if I need to remember something to tell later or on any important points. Also, please be sure to give logical and valid claims or pieces of evidence because there is nothing more that throws me off when someone does this. However, feel free to ask me for advice, tips, and any other sorts of feedback, for I am open.

This is my third year judging as a parent judge. I don’t have many rules. Just make sure you interact with each others arguments. In addition make sure you are kind and respectful to your opponents.

Hello, my name is Ninad Tambe.

Few things to keep in mind:

- I have basic topic knowledge but I would appreciate really clear arguments so that I know at the end of the round without a doubt who I should vote for.

- I can't understand speed, so if anybody goes too fast for me, I reserve the right to shout "CLEAR" or stop taking notes. If you see my pen go up or you see me stop writing, that should be a cue that you're going too fast for me and you've lost me.

- Please don't be rude or overly aggressive, especially in cross - I want to see reasonable and calm crossfires, not the two speakers shouting at each other.

- I appreciate humor, and if you can make me laugh (NOT at the expense of your opponents) I'll award extra speaks.

- If you cannot prove to me why the impact of your case is more important than the opponents', I will have to decide myself.

Good luck to everyone!

Hi I am Miranda Vega. I competed in PF debate, Congress, info, and various interp events in high school, and now I am the assistant coach for ACPHS. This will be my 4th year judging debate, so I am looking forward to it! I will disclose quickly after the round if time permits; however, I will not disclose if the tournament directors explicitly tell me not to, or if one of the competitors are not comfortable with it. I do try and provide really extensive feedback within the ballots but for some reason if I forget to finish it or it cuts off please email me @ mirandakathleenvega@gmail.com you put in a lot of time and effort and you deserve your feedback.

(ASU Congress scroll all the way to the bottom)

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Here is some general paradigms I have:

Spreading: I think this is an educational activity; therefore, I do not like any sneaky tactics that give you an unfair advantage, like talking at the speed of light. For this reason, I HATE SPREADING, I think this makes debate inaccessible for the general person, and forces your opponent to also spread so they can respond to all of your points. This is especially true for debate formats like PF and BQ, as they are meant for lay judges. DONT SPREAD IN PF AND BQ. If you spread in PF or BQ two things will happen. Generally I will be very annoyed and hate judging the round, and I will not get very much down on the flow which will more likely than not lead to you losing the round. At a certain point I just stop flowing, and as a tech judge you are probably going to get the L. If you are going to spread in LD and CX, that is fine. HOWEVER, you should only be spreading the card text and I should still be able to understand what you are saying. If you are mumbling and I don't know what you are saying then I am not going to understand the evidence being read. You need to slow down on the Contention Names, card names, tags, warrants, and analytics. Spreading anything that isn't card text will ultimately end up with me not really flowing and you, most likely, losing the round. Debate is an oral argument so I should be able to hear and understand what you are saying. That is why if you are going to spread you only spread card text. Anything else I won't get on the Flow

Evidence Violations:If I catch you committing an evidence violation I will automatically drop you and cite that as the reason for the loss. Evidence violations are getting worse on the circuit and I believe it is no longer enough to just drop the argument. So make sure your card says what is says and don't misconstrue the evidence. This also includes debater math. You can't just mush two stats together and call it a day.

Cross examination/fire: I never flow this. I am typically writing in the ballot during this time; however, I am still paying a bit of attention to make sure you guys are being respectful to each other. If I notice it is getting out of hand I will give a warning to the person being disrespectful, and if it happens again then I will drop debater. If something completely and horribly disrespectful happens in round (racism, sexism, xenophobia, ableism), I will just drop debater. This is also a period for you to clarify things, not do another rebuttal. CX no tag teaming. The reason I say this is that 1). It was never originally meant to be that way anyway 2) that is time that your partner can be prepping. No tag teaming.

Tech>truth: you still have to tell me that your opponents dropped something I am not just going to automatically flow that through. Also, if you run something really far fetched you can, but the second your opponent calls it out as such I am less likely to buy it.

No sticky defense: if you drop an argument it is conceded in the round. That doesn't mean I am just going to automatically flow it to the opposing team. They still have to extend in every speech that it is conceded. If you pick up a dropped argument, I will not weigh it at the end of the round. Generally, when you do that you are wasting time that you can be telling me why you should win the round.

Signpost:Please please please signpost! Telling me you are responding to the first contention isn't enough. Tell me "On their C2, "specific warrant", we have "number" of responses". Or for progressives tell me what part of the progressive you are going to attach. If you are responding to a DISAD tell me if you are responding to uniqueness, external link, impact or internal link. Please be as organized and specific as possible. If you are going to address an argument as a whole TELL ME THAT, and tell me why that should be enough.

Weigh: Tell me why you win! Please weigh for me! If I have to do this you may not like the outcome. Also, it is not enough to tell me "I outweigh therefore I win". How do you outweigh? Are you outweighing on magnitude, scope, timeframe???

Extensions:You MUST extend in every speech. However, just saying EXTEND is not an extension. You need to analytically interact with your opponent's responses and tell me why I should buy your argument over theirs.

Everybody should time their own prep: I am timing speeches and cross. There is no 10 second grace period, I don't know where everyone got this rule from, but it doesn't exist. I stop flowing at the end of the time regardless if you keep speaking.

STAND FOR ALL SPEECHES AND CX PLEASE (exception GCF in PF)

If aff doesn't win enough offense or impacts for me to weigh that offense I presume negation.

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PUBLIC FORUM

The paradigms mentioned above are pretty much it.

If no framework is mentioned my default is a cost-benefit analysis.

The team that wins my ballot will tell me why their impacts outweigh the others.

NO PROGRESSIVE ARGUMENTS. I can't believe that I have to say this, but this is a lay friendly debate format. There is also not enough time to properly run and respond to them. I will drop the argument if it is run. Please just don't I will be so annoyed. If that is something you love to do then join LD or CX, but no progressives in PF.

I don't take prep time for calling and reading cards. That being said. If a card is called and it cant be located within 2 min it is dropped. It should be already cut and easily found. If there is a tech issue that is different. That being said. If you are reading the card don't take an eternity either.

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POLICY DEBATE

Refer to the general paradigms I listed above.

You can put me on the email chain with my email, but know that I am only flowing what I hear you say. You can spread but ONLY CARD TEXT. You need to slow down on your tags, warrants, impacts etc and for your analysis for why I should extend your argument further in the round. I am NOT going to yell clear, so if you see me stop flowing you need to slow down otherwise you are most likely going to lose the round.

Run whatever you want, just make sure that what ever you are running is formatted correctly.

SIGNPOST SIGNPOST SIGNPOST PLEASE I BEG OF YOU For some reason policy people don't sign post enough. If you are reading responses to a disad or the plan you should tell me what parts you are responding to so for example this is what I am expecting:

"Onto the [BLANK] Disadvantage. First onto uniqueness, we have [#] of responses. 1) response response response 2) response response response. Then onto the external link we have [#] of responses" That is what I am expecting when I say signpost.

Any other questions please ask me!

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LINCOLN DOUGLAS

I think I have judged LD on a circuit only a few times. I judge my LD kids all the time, and judge Policy now on the circuit regularly.

Like I said no spreading but card text. If there is an email chain put me on it, just know that I am only flowing what I hear.

The way I will judge the round is whoever wins under the winning framework. So just because you don't win your framework doesn't mean you can't win the debate. If you can still prove to me that you solve for the standard better than your opponent I will vote for you. That being said I understand that sometimes your arguments may be mutually exclusive from your opponents.

Since I judge policy so often I am fine with progressives run whatever! I am cool with K's, performance K's if you want (just make sure your K's are well linked), any plans or CPs I am cool with.

If you have any other questions please let me know!

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CONGRESS

For the love of all that is holy, this is Congress not debate. Do not use debate jargon. Dont say drop, extend, my opponent, vote aff.... this is Congress you say "pass this bill" or "fail this bill", "my fellow representative/senator" etc...

PLEASE TAKE YOUR SPLITS BEFORE THE ROUND! My biggest pet peeve judging Congress is when y'all agree on a docket, and there is no first aff or neg. And you have to take a bunch of 1 minute recesses. Those are also a pet peeve.

I really do not like rehash, at a certain point in the cycle you need to start doing rebuttal speeches and if you are all the way at the end of the cycle then do a crystallization speech.

Try not to rely heavily on your legal pad.

The more you sound like a Congress person the better you will rank. Rhetoric is your best friend.

I will rank PO pretty high if you do a good job. I won't rank PO in the top 6 though if there are A LOT of precedence and recency errors.

This is what I watch out for

Volume of words does not mean much if provable facts/cards are not presented

Speak slowly and clearly - Absolutely no spreading

Flow your points all the way through

Make sure you address each point you claim, with good evidence, and also why it matters.

What you wear does not really matter, just keep it appropriate to decency

Your video background does not matter, just don't have any inappropriate posters, etc.

Be respectful. Disrespect will ensure your loss (Racial, sexist, cutting people off, etc.)

BE VERY WELL PREPARED! Confidence and grasp of the topic MATTERS!

Judges multitask, listening to you and taking notes....so Please do not have so many points where you can hardly catch your breath. That ensures that Ive missed 50% of your points.

I am the Scott Woods who teaches and coaches at BASIS Scottsdale in Arizona. There are others. For instance, I am not the slam poet Scott Woods (although I enjoy his work), so if you try a slam poetry case because you think that your judge is a pretty famous slam poet, you will probably be disappointed by the ballot.

About me: I teach middle school English and high school speech and debate. I competed in interp and platform events in college. I'm a Scoutmaster, a Republican, and I go to church regularly. Many people who know me don't believe that I am as conservative as I think I am.

I want the debate round to be for the benefit of the debaters. I have been coaching and judging debate for several years, mostly in PF, but some LD. I also judge policy rounds occasionally. I've judged at the TOC four times and at NSDA Nationals three times. When I judge on a panel, my decision is often different from the majority, possibly because my judging skills are so refined and subtle, or maybe for other reasons that escape me.

I think of debate as an educational game that should be fun, challenging, and life changing for the good. I don't like sneaky approaches to debate, tricks, or unsporting behavior. I especially don't like anything that attempts to achieve an unfair advantage over an opponent. Among the behaviors I don't like to see are spreading, because it seeks to gain a time advantage by squeezing more content in the given time, forcing one's opponent either to spread or to be disadvantaged, because it makes debate into a ridiculous exercise (and I consider making good things appear ridiculous in order to achieve personal gain to be bad form), and because it is aesthetically unpleasant (and I consider intentional ugliness inflicted on others to be bad form). Also, if you spread I won't flow as much, won't understand as much, and won't believe you as much. If both teams spread, then I'll just have to guess at who won, which is very likely something that you don't want me to do. Please speak in a clear, persuasive voice at a reasonable public debate speed, and be sure to point out when the other side is spreading, show the harms, then show why they should lose on that. I'll probably buy it.

If your debate strategy includes using tactics that have the effect of giving you an unfair advantage over your opponent, your chances of winning will go down. Your arguments should give you the advantage, not your sneaky approach, your hidden claims, your abusive framework, or your tricky wording. Again, call out your opponent's sneakiness. This is especially fun and elegant in an LD round when your opponent values morality, justice, fairness, etc., and you call them out for violating standards of morality, justice, or fairness.

I prefer clear, well-reasoned arguments that are logically valid and well supported by warrants and evidence. I also value impacts. Show me magnitude and probability. I will evaluate these by taking on the stance of an intelligent person who is well educated, open minded, and not a fool. If you read a card but don't put it into the context of a clear argument, then I won't care about it. You have to use evidence to support your warranted arguments. Your cards are your evidence. I hear many LDers giving lengthy quotes of dense philosophy, without contextualizing the quoted speech. I would much prefer that you summarize the entire argument of the philosopher clearly, briefly, and accurately, rather than quoting some paragraph that seems to support your interpretation. I almost never buy appeals to authority. If you say that Philosopher X says Y, therefore Y is true, I will probably not believe you. Feel free to call your opponent on this.

Since I think that debate is a worthwhile activity that can positively shape the character of youth, I value having fun and being nice. I don't want to spend an hour or so with people who are being mean to each other. Let's have fun and enjoy the round.

I won't leave my knowledge, training, or prejudices at the door, mainly because I can't (if I were truly tabula rasa, I would be an infant or an imbecile). Instead, I'll try to be aware of them and limit the impact of my own opinions or knowledge on the debate. If you don't make the argument, I will try not to make it for you. You must do all the work in the debate. I will, however, apply my knowledge of effective argumentation and the "reasonable person" test to the arguments in the debate. If you give me a weighing method and a clear path to signing the ballot for you, your chances of winning the round go up. Please understand that I will fail to leave behind my biases, assumptions, prejudices, etc. This is a feature of being human. We can't control the processes of our thought very well, and we are largely unaware of what guides and controls our thinking. Your job as a debater is to make these biases, assumptions, and prejudices irrelevant against the overwhelming power of your arguments. Good luck.

Please understand that I will likely be judging you after having taught children all day or having traveled a long distance and slept poorly. I will probably not be at my best. This is true for many of your judges. You should consider taking this into account when you write your cases and make your arguments. After you lose a round that you think you should have won, don't complain about the stupid judge. Instead, consider what you could have done differently to compensate for that judge not being at his or her cognitive best. That's your responsibility. I don't want to think during a round. Thinking is hard. It's not my job. I often disappoint debaters when I am required to think. Your job is to pre-think the round for me, better than your opponent does. The team that does this best will win.

It's up to the round to decide on the framework. If your framework is abusive or unreasonable, I'll drop it and favor your opponent's analysis, especially if your opponent calls it out as such. I prefer realistic frameworks that generously look at the resolution as though the debate were really a public forum (even in LD) for discussing an important issue. I also prefer realistic arguments that are accessible to the public.

It bothers me when debaters don't know their case because someone else wrote it, they haven't researched the topic, or they are just using the cards that came with the briefs without trying to understand the bigger picture. This become a problem when debaters misinterpret cards or philosophers they don't understand. If your opponent calls you on your card and disputes what it means, then I will call for the card at the end of the debate and make my own judgment. I don't want to do this for a number of reasons, mainly because I don't want to do the work that you should be doing. That being said, I know a lot about many subjects, so if I think that you are misinterpreting a card, I may call for it, even if your opponent has not called you out on it. I don't like to do this, but I also don't like misinterpreted or false cards to affect a round, and I don't expect high school students to have comprehensive knowledge of the world. If I think that your card was misinterpreted, then I will drop the argument it supports.

Please do the work for me. Make it easy for me to decide who wins. Tell the story of the round. Be organized on the flow in your rebuttals.

If your opponent calls for a card, they may continue to prep while you search for it, without that time counting against their prep. This is the procedure at the TOC, which I particularly like because it encourages teams to provide their opponents with the cards they ask for in a timely manner. If you don't have the card, and the context surrounding it, then I will drop the argument that is supported by the card. If your card clearly says something other than what you say it does, I will very likely vote for the other side. Please don't misrepresent your evidence.

Regarding policy debate: Every round that I have judged in policy debate has come down to judge adaptation. Whoever adapts best to my limitations as a judge (see above) will likely win the round (or, if you prefer, my ballot). My recommendation is that policy debaters should have two cases: one that they normally run and another that they write for judge adaptation. Debaters should also practice adaptation whenever they can, making sure that their arguments are comprehensible (at a minimum) and convincing (this should be the target) to normal, educated people.

I am a chemistry teacher, I am a lay judge, this is my first time judging, I would like you to speak slowly and clearly so I can understand you. I am not familiar with theories or K’s. Please do not use jargon that I am probably unfamiliar with.

I am a parent judge new to the national circuit. I'd like to see debaters debate in a civil and professional manner demonstrating sound logical reasoning while building a strong case. Please pay attention to your warrants, link chains, and questions you may ask during crossfires. Please speak clearly and do not spread or speak too fast, so I can fully understand you. Please do not use too many technical jargon but treat me as someone who had minimal knowledge on the topic, so please explain your logic and convince me fully why I should vote for you. I am looking forward to seeing you in rounds. I wish you all the best!

Short Paradigm:

-I flow

-Tech>Truth

-4 years of PF at American Heritage School, 3 TOC quals

Long Paradigm:

Arguments:

-I'll vote on literally anything that makes sense and isn't blatantly offensive. That includes progressive arguments (Theory/Ks) or counterintuitive substantive arguments (nuclear war good/economic development bad).

-I'll vote on presumption even if you don't tell me to as long as neither team has any offense. I default neg on presumption, but I'm open to arguments regarding defaulting alternatively.

Extensions:

-Defense isn't sticky; I'm not evaluating anything that's not in final.

-Second rebuttal has to respond to all offense; otherwise, it's conceded (I will let some things slide if you're in novice).

-No progressive off-case positions in the second rebuttal unless the other team violates in first rebuttal; DAs are fine.

-First summary doesn't need to extend defense that the second rebuttal concedes. It can go straight to the final.

Speed:

-I can comfortably flow anything ~300 WPM without a speech doc assuming you're clear

-You can spread against anyone even if they are not ok with it but

a. If they are novices, you have to warn them before the round. If they say "speed" and you don't slow down I'll stop flowing.

b. If you have factors preventing you from following speed outside of your control (i.e., a disability), then tell your opponents or me about it (I'll keep this anonymous) and make sure that no one spreads.

c. I'll be receptive to theoretical arguments assuming they are properly structured.

Weighing:

-If it's not comparative, don't bother making it

-If it's fake (i.e., we outweigh on probability because we have a link and they drop defense), don't bother making it

-If you aren't winning your argument, don't bother making it

-If the first final has new weighing, I allow new weighing in the second final; otherwise, don't bother making it

Evidence:

-I will never drop a team for misconstruing evidence, only the argument

-I will only evaluate an evidence dispute if you tell me to call for something AND explain what's wrong with the evidence

Progressive Argumentation:

-Slow down for these, and ideally, I want a speech doc regardless

-I can and will comfortably evaluate theory (T, Disclosure, Paraphrasing, Spec, Condo good/bad, etc.)

-I'm open to more nuanced (DAs on shells, comparing forms of disclosure, etc.) or silly (shoe theory/30 speaks theory) theoretical arguments

-If you read theory or Ks in paragraph form I will disregard your arguments.

-I will vote on tricks (spikes/NIBs/skep triggers/paradoxes)

-I will vote on a K but

a. I have no familiarity with your authors

b. I don't have enough experience to be comfortably evaluating K debates (as in I might screw you and you'll be sad)

Prefs:

-I like sarcastic debaters that make fun of their opponents and their opponents' args. Don't make them too upset though.

-Postrounding is good for debate. If my decision upsets you, feel free to question it and me as a judge. You (or your coach) can be as rude, condescending, and aggressive when post rounding if you're feeling like it, and I won't hold that against you.

- I encourage teams to pursue unconventional strategies like responding to the first constructive in the second constructive. Or reading arguments that take out all offense on both sides and then telling me to vote on presumption.

-Speaks are arbitrary so let me know if you're in a bubble and need high speaks to break

-If your offtime roadmap is too long, then I'll be upset.