Damus Hollywood Invitational
2021 — NSDA Campus, CA/US
Novice LD Paradigm List
All Paradigms: Show HideHi! My name is Ananda Mayuri (she/her)
My paradigm is similar to Michael Finnessey.
If you have any questions email me at amritackk@gmail.com.
Hi guys! :)
Just a little about myself, my name is Amy. I'm a varsity LD debater and IE participant.
Something that's going to be really important to me during the debate is organization and developing your arguments. Basically, all I want is for you guys to give a roadmap before your speech and try to expand on your arguments and weigh their impacts. If you want more clarity on what I just said, feel free to ask me before we start. :)
I do enjoy listening to any type of argument, so feel free to run whatever. I love hearing counterplans. I absolutely hate theory arguments, so the likelihood of me ever voting on just the theory arg is extremely unlikely. Unless you're running a really stupid PIC or Kritik, I'm fine with those.
Also I'm not going to be super strict about time or poor Internet connection. I completely understand if anyone's having any issues. I also trust that you guys can time each other so I won't be personally timing your speeches or anything.
Email: ayc11414@icloud.com
**Less than 5 debates judged on this policy topic so no acronyms without explanation first plz**
Policy Paradigm (LD at bottom)
Currently head coach of Whitefish Bay High School in Whitefish Bay, Wisconsin since September 2022
Graduated HS in 2014, policy debater from 2010-2014 (2N/1A) with some national circuit outround/bid round experience.
Assistant coached LD and Policy at:
Central Valley HS (Spokane, WA 2014-2016)
Capitol HS (Boise, ID 2016-2017)
Former co-head coach at Homestead High School in Mequon, Wisconsin (2017-2020)
--Yes, I want to be on the email chain. Blerickson95@gmail.com
--Overall, I am not the brightest bulb in the tanning bed, and I vote for the team that quite literally makes the most sense to me. I am not afraid to take the easy way out if I am given warranted reasons why I should. The harder you make it for me, the more work you make me do, the less likely you are to get my ballot, and I think that makes sense and is fair.
--For the love, please time yourselves.
--Your speaks will increase if you don't spend at ton of time at the beginning of cross ex asking what cards were and weren't read :) (I like flowing!)
--Maybe I am just old and grumpy but, do not wear your headphones in round, at any time, once the debate starts. Not in one ear only, not because "you'e just the 1N", not because you are the 2A and don't want to listen to the 1AC. I think it's rude, pompous, and just plain obnoxious. No debater in the world is too important to listen to a full debate. It is so disrespectful to the other team, the judge, and everyone who took time to be at that debate. Ugh. I hate it so much. Headphones on during a debate are an auto 27 or lower. That's all :) *Obviously this does not carry through for online debate!
Quick version
Generally good for:
--DA-case debates
--Cheater counterplan debates
--Politics/elections debates
Not as good for:
--Heavy K debates
--Any type of death good argument (I think death is bad, and we should try to avoid it)
--Baudrillard
--Any strategy that is largely based off of debate being inherently bad/irredeemable
Online debate things:
--I would prefer if the person speaking had their camera on, but I am obviously understanding if that cannot happen.
--I keep my camera on for the debate but I turn it off during prep to go sit on my couch and hold my dog. So, please make sure, before you start your speech, I am back on the camera. If I am not and you start, that would be no good.
Longer version
General
--I, for the most part, love this activity, and respect anyone who takes the time and effort to participate. This activity is rigorous, and good for you for even being here. I welcome questions before and after the round. I realize some people won't agree with my decision, and I welcome questions as to how I came to my conclusion. However, what I don't welcome, is blatant disrespect because you disagree with my decision. Slamming your things, muttering rude things under your breath, or screaming at me, won't make me email tab begging to change my ballot. In fact, it will make me really not like you.
--I flow on paper, so I need pen time. I understand and follow the debate better this way, but that also means I am not writing everything down verbatim, so if you have arguments you think are important, sit on them.
--I am very expressive. I have tried to have a better poker face, but I simply cannot do it. You should be able to tell if I am unhappy or not.
--Don't be racist, sexist, ableist, homophobic, transphobic, etc. You will lose immediately and receive the lowest speaker points I am allowed to give u
--Prep ends when you’re done prepping and begin flashing/emailing (I can tell if you’re flashing/emailing or prepping, if I see you prepping off prep time, I’ll start your speech time)
--If you clip and it's recorded, you lose. It needs to be recorded.
--I will not evaluate things that happened outside of the debate.
Topic Thoughts
Very few judged on this topic. Plz don't use acronyms without explaining them first.
K debate
--The role of the judge is to decide who did the best debating. The role of the ballot is to tell Tabroom who won.
--Fiat isn't real and that's fine.
--This is my area of less familiarity. Although I have fairly frequently found myself in the back of clash of civ debates, I am less familiar with critical arguments. IR K's such as cap, security, gender, etc. I do not have a problem understanding. I have a harder time understanding high theory, philosophy debates. Pleeease do not assume I have read your author. Do not let this dissuade you from reading your bread and butter K arguments in front of me, just know I need more explanation. I think in good debates this can even just be done in a cross ex.
--I need a reason why the aff is bad. I often find myself voting on the perm because I do not know why the aff is specifically bad for causes more bad things to happen. I am not saying this can't be done, it definitely can be done, and should be.
--I am not here to change how you debate, but it would be disingenuous for me to say my experiences in debate have not affected how I am used to and comfortable evaluating debates. That being said, I tend to think speech times are good, and an hour and a half of discussion is not as good. If we are going to throw speech times out the window, I need to know what the structure is for the remainder of the debate. I.e. when we are done, how I should evaluate arguments in this new format, etc. If there is no structure, I need to know why not having a structure for the debate is good. I do my very best to not intervene, and if the debate devolves into a discussion, the only time I will intervene is to say when time is up for the round. It would be GREAT if that was done for me by one of the teams. I try to talk in debate rounds *literally* as little as possible but I also do not want to make the tournament run behind.
--I have evaluated many framework debates, but I think I am about even voting for and against it. That being said, I think predictable limits are my point of most persuasion. But do what u do.
K affs
--I need to know what the aff does. I just do.
--I do not necessarily need you to defend hypothetical USfg action, but I really appreciate topic relevance.
Theory
Anything is legitimate until you prove to me that it’s not. If you drop these things, you lose*: Conditionality, ASPEC. Flow! Don't just follow the speech doc! Ask what reasons are to reject the team in cx!
*I think sometimes cross applications are sufficient. Or aff outweighs arguments for critical affs. It literally just depends how the debate shakes out, but I would just try to answer them explicitly the first time.
I think fairness can be an internal link or an impact depending on how you spin it. Tell me how you want me to view and evaluate fairness.
Topicality
I have recently realized that I take a little more than the average person to vote on T. I default to competing interpretations unless told otherwise. T isn’t an RVI. Slow down on T debates plz.
For me to vote on topicality, I need: a topical version of the aff (doesn't need to solve the aff, it just needs to show an alternate, topical version of the discussion), a list of topical aff's under your interpretation, a list of what you were deprived of in the debate because of the aff's untopicality OR a reason why I should vote on potential abuse.
Counterplans
I’m a big fan. Counterplans should be competitive and have a solvency advocate, in my perfect world. But hey, I am becoming more and more okay with counterplans that do not have a solvency advocate for some reason.
The more specific, the better. Sufficiency arguments are persuasive to me. I need to know HOW the counterplan solves every portion of the aff, don’t just assert that it does. Process, conditions, delay, consult, advantage etc. I’m fine with; like I said, anything is legitimate unless proved otherwise. I really like smart pics/word pics.
My mantra has always been, if you ain't cheatin' you ain't tryin'. Cheating counterplans can get the job done and if there is no theoretical objection to reject the argument, you may be in trouble. That being said, compelling reasons why that specific cheating counterplan is bad can sometimes convince me to reject the argument. Again, it's ~debatable~
*The only counterplan I think is silly and likely won't vote for is a PIC out of the ballot. Never got it, never will, likely will always think it's silly.
Aff: Solvency deficits need to be impacted. But WHY is the federal government key? Also, I would really like if permutations were more than just "Do both" at the end of the debate, but if the neg never presses you on what this means, I will likely give the aff a lot of leeway throughout the debate on what that means/how it functions. This is important--negative teams are deciding what the permutation is and how it functions for the aff and it is just destroying the aff. Tell me what your perm means and how it functions, if you let the neg do it for you I can bet it won't turn out well for you.
I am hearing a lot of "perm shields the link to the net benefit so it solves". WHY. FOR THE LOVE OF GOD WHY. HOW. WHY AND HOW. I am begging you to give me some sort of permutation explanation.
That being said, “Protect the 2nr” is a persuasive phrase to me in situations that call for it. I will kick the counterplan for the negative, if it's conditional, unless I am given a reason not to by the aff.
Disadvantages
A disadvantage has: uniqueness, a link, an internal link, and an impact. 2 card disads make me sad and I am immediately skeptical of them.
Disad-case debates are my favorite. What I was told as a novice still applies today: tell me the story of your disad. How does the link/internal link chain work to achieve the impact, etc. Disad overviews are important (cards in overviews are cool too); turns case arguments are basically necessary to my ballot. Tell me how your impact relates to the aff.
Case
Engage the case! Do case debate!
LD Paradigm
I debated at two LD tournaments in high school: Nat quals and NFL (now NSDA?) nationals my junior year. I coached LD for 3 years before coming to Homestead. I have coached/judged very traditional, value-criterion LD debate, and I have also coached/judged progressive LD debate. I am truly fine with either. For more progressive LD debate, my policy paradigm applies. A couple caveats:
--T or theory is not an RVI. I realize the time skew in LD debate. T or theory is not an RVI. I will vote on theory, just not silly ones.
--Shorter speeches than in policy, so I think a bunch of short off-case positions are less preferable than less, more in-depth off-case positions. But do what u need to do.
--Tricks? nah
--Meta-theory? nah
--Cutting evidence from debate blogs? nah
--In-depth, educational debates about the topic? Yeah!!!
Have fun!! :)
I do parli!
add me to the chain smhpoppy@gmail.com, tech>truth, i'm down for anything, ask me in round if you have questions. so:
respect your opponents, pronouns, preferred labels/lack of them, all that jazz. That said, be as aggressive as you want! I lean towards letting ethics debates and stuff to play out in round, but if you're getting uncomfortable or if there's just something you don't feel like having to justify just let me know!
if you ask me to gut check nothing will happen. Don’t rely on reasonability; spell out your competing interps and impacts. I'm tabula rasa so the rest of this paradigm is just my defaults
Speed: cool, but if you can't do it well, like. please don't. If you do spread, have a case drop ready for me to access. i'd honestly prefer even one solid contention over a series of cards, but it won't affect my ballot.
K/Theory: Love! I default theory>kritik=case, but obviously subject to change if you argue to evaluate tech differently. I will consider anything and everything and will likewise happily drop arguments if the other team points out frivolity/bigotry. and go for the fun alts! solvency arguments against "reject res" are gonna convince me pretty easily. i will not disclose what lit base i'm most familiar with because if you're not able to eli5 it, i'll assume your opponents won't be able to understand either. If and only if you check in with your opponents before round and confirm they're familiar with what you're running will I vote for not clearly explained Ks.
Signpost.
i don’t care what your strat is, give me a clear path to the ballot. Ngl idc about case i'm probably voting on this. I will judge however competitors tell me to and i will and have judged IErs who just ran their speeches during round instead of debating the res. it is genuinely up to you how you want the round to go. I also take tabula rasa very literally! if someone says something like "vote aff because aff is the coolest team in round," i need some sort of response on the flow, even if it's just "neg cooler than aff" bc otherwise i will buy whatever i hear.
i wont accept new arguments if i notice, but its on you to call the other team out and to tell me what to judgekick, etc.
speaks start 27.5, but go ahead with speaks theory! Swearing won't drop your speaks, jokes will raise em, if you make jokes at the expense of a minority i will in good faith assume you're part of it. if ur reading this far add a mention of tax fraud, cats (2019), or baguettes in your speech and i'll raise. I don't care about clothes, but if you wear a halloween costume or smth i'll add a couple points
tldr: do literally anything as long as you do it well, you dont have to be polite but be kind, and whatever i say in this paradigm doesn't matter as long as you say so.
I have completed the cultural competency credential and I am ready to deploy the skills in debate rounds. Remember, your words have power.
Please uphold positivity in the round. I give speaks from 20-30 but I will almost never give 30 speaks. If you are perfect you deserve a 30 but I have almost never seen anyone deserving of a 30.
I think that the best debaters are those who effectively utilize ethos, pathos, and logos in their speeches.
Good luck!
progressive arguments - read at your own risk
Dougherty Valley '22
Did LD and Policy - went to camp a couple of times.
he/him
Add me to email chain (tmishra@berkeley.edu)
if you're short on time, just read this top section:
Tech>Truth, but it’s easier to win more truthful arguments.
Arguments need Claim, Warrant, Impact
Flashing Analytics is a big bonus on speaks
in prelims - 5 mins prep for LD, 10 for policy
email chain should be set up before round starts
- paradigm agrees exactly with Savit Bhat
Misc:
- defaults: comparative worlds (LD), no judge kick, competing interps, no rvi, drop the debater on T and condo and disclosure theory and DTA on all other theory, fairness and education are voters, everything other than fairness and education is not a voter
-clipping if you do catch clipping, do not make clipping an argument in the debate - stake the round and show me the recording.
- ev ethics - any misrepresentation of evidence (stopping in the middle of a paragraph, if the article concludes the opposite way after the card ends, mis-cited) is an automatic L even if not called out. if your link is dead but the article can be procured through a different method you won't lose.
- i expect evidence to have cites/qualifications and not be bracketed unless offensive language. read theory
- i read a lot of ev, the quality of the warrant is the quality of the argument.
Disadvantages:
- WEIGH!
- ptx da are my fav
- 2NR/2AR impact calc not new
- concede defense to kick
- answer the straight turn plz
Counterplans:
- main 2nr strat for me was going for a topic da with a smart, creative cp
- start the solvency debate in the 1NC (card or analytic), not the 2AC
- err neg/drop the argument on 1AR theory is persuasive in LD
Kritiks (on the negative):
- good k debates are cool but rare - consequently good k debates with explanation and knowledge of your argument will get extremely inflated speaks and bad k debates meant to take your opponent by surprise or rack up easy wins with blocks will get extremely deflated speaks.
- the more the negative wins their link the easier it is for them to win Framework
- filter alt solvency through Framework
- LD only: Link walls must be in the 1NC.
- new links resulting from the 1AR fine in LD, anything else isn't
- extensions of 'ontology' and similar broad claims need to be much more robust than you think they do. you can't just say the buzzwords "natal alienation" or "gratuitous violence" or "metaphysics" without telling me 1) what they are and 2) how they implicate progress.
- i will vote for warranted K "tricks"
-short ov, do contextualization on case page (links, k trix, etc.)
- particularity vs Ks is good and Ks should either link turn or impact turn this and overinvest time on this argument
Kritiks (on the affirmative):
- T-USFG/Framework - aff teams can easily out-tech neg teams but i ideologically lean slightly neg. Don't care which internal link/impact you choose: fairness, skills, testing, etc. as long as they have an actual impact
- try to answer the case even if you go for T
- you get a perm, probably not the best for K v K though
- go for presumption if the 1AC is just an impact turn to Framework
Theory/Topicality:
- went for T a decent amount of times
- weighing is essential
- evidence comparison is underutilized
- RVIs are bad but don't drop them
- if a 1AC theory underview has more than yes/no theory, competing interps/reasonability, dtd/dta, voters you lose speaks
- Interpretations are models of debate, and definitions are the warrants for why those models are predictable - standards should be filtered through predictability
- "semantics first" is not persuasive, precision as an internal link is persuasive
Phil/FW typa debates
- if your cards and rebuttals do a good job of explaining the syllogism and reasons to prefer(they usually don't), you'll be fine.
- tricks: If there's a clear claim, warrant, and implication to an argument when it is first introduced, then I will flow and evaluate it like any other argument.
- "we defend the aff as a general principle" is a topicality issue about implementation.
- general confidence vs modesty bores me - contextualize (with cards) !
- didn't read many NC but im familiar w/ Kant, Hobbes, etc.
Speaks:
CX matters, -0.1 speaks if you shift around your order multiple times when giving it or if you don't label your flows in the 1nc ("next off" is insufficient).
- CX not binding
Hello!
I competed in Public Forum debate for three years so I would consider myself more of a tech judge than a lay judge. I am ok with speed as long I can understand you clearly. Please tell me where on the flow you are during your speeches so I know what are you are talking about/responding to. Please also keep track of your time.
I am a traditional judge who is pretty comfortable with a lot of what you could run including a lot of progressive arguments( ie. disads, kritiks, and counterplans) but I am not that comfortable with spreading. If you decide to spread I might miss something and won't consider it. The one progressive argument that I am not that familar with is theory so you can run it but you need to explain it really well. Overall though if you can explain and defend your argument well I can follow it.
he/him/they/them
For college debate, use this email: debatecsuf@gmail.com
CSUF 22
Coach @ Harvard Westlake
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S Tier - LARP, Plan v K
A tier - Clash of Civs
B tier - K v K, Theory debates
C tier - Phil
D tier - Trix
F tier - Meme/troll
I did policy debate for 4 years at Downtown Magnets (shout out LAMDL) and 4 years at Cal State Fullerton. I debated mostly truthy performance debates and one-off K strats in high school and debated the K in a very technical way in college. Currently coach flex teams in LD.
I would say my debate influences are Jared Burke, Shanara Reid-Brinkley, Jonathan Meza, Anthony Joseph, Travis Cochran, Toya Green, and Scotty P.
TLDR: I will vote for anything, as long as it's impacted out. The list of preferences is based on my comfort with the argument. Fine with speech drop or email chain.
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General
I think debate is a game that can have heavy implications on life and influence a lot of things
Tech > Truth, unless the Tech is violent (racism good, sexism good, etc.)
Good for all speeds, but clarity is a must
I default my prioritization to theory, T, and then substance. This can be changed if argued
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Theory
Disclosure is probably good, can vote on the impact turn though
Yes competing interps, lean no RVIs, DTD
Shells need an interp, violation, standards, voter
Reasonability OK but explain why you are reasonable
Need a good abuse story/how does my ballot set norms? Why does my ballot matter? How does this implicate future debates?
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LARP
Conditionality is good but can be persuaded on abuse
Absurd internal link chains should be questioned
Default util
No zero-risk
Uniqueness controls the link
Impact turns are good
Perms are tests of competition, not new advocacies
Yes judge kick
New evidence in NR as long as it's a logical extension of the NC. I'm okay with the 2AR doing this as well to check back, but it may not be strategic.
Will read evidence if told to do so
Quality ev > Card dump of bad ev
CPs need to compete on a functional and textual level
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K
I have a reading background in several critical literature bases. I am most read in anti-capitalist theory, afro pessimism, fugitive black studies, settler colonialism, and Baudrillard. For the sake of the debate, assume I know nothing and explain your K.
Winning theory of power important
Perm solves the link of omission
Specific link > state bad link
Contextualized link > state bad link
Affs should weigh the aff vs. the K, negs should tell me why this isn't possible OR deal with affs impacts.
Extinction outweighs debate probably good here
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K Affs
I appreciate affirmatives that are in the direction of the topic. Affs that don't defend any portion of the resolution need a heavy defense of doing so
I try not to have a leaning into T-FW debates, but I find myself often voting negative. Similar to Theory/T, I would love to hear about the affirmative's model of debate compared to the negative's. Impact turns to their model are awesome but there is a higher bar if I don't know what your model is.
Read a TVA -- Answer the TVA
Fairness is an impact. Clash is important. Education matters
KvK debates are super interesting, but I hate when they become the Oppression Olympics. Perms are encouraged. Links of omission are not. Contextualize links to the affirmative and clearly tell me how to evaluate the round.
Presumption isn't gone for enough in these debates
Lean yes on perms in KvK/method debates
Performances should be used offensively. I will flow your poems/videos/whatever, just have a defense of it and utilize it to win
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Phil
I think phil AC/NCs are interesting
I prefer LARP but I'm open to it
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Tricks
Tricks were not a thing in policy debate, so I'm not the best judge for this
Do not hide tricks
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Speaker Points
Pretty much summed up here
If you make a joke about Jared Burke, +.1 speaker point