The Meadows Invitational
2021 — NSDA Campus, NV/US
Novice JV LD Paradigm List
All Paradigms: Show HideSarah Botsch-McGuinn
email: sbotschmcguinn@gmail.com
Director of Speech & Debate-Cypress Bay HS (2022-present)
Director of Speech and Debate-Cooper City HS (2018-2022)
Director of Speech and Debate-American Heritage Palm Beach (2017-2018)
Director of Forensics-Notre Dame San Jose (2009-2017)
Head Debate Coach-Notre Dame San Jose (2008-2009)
General:
I’ve been a debate coach for the past 16 years, and Director of Forensics for 9 at NDSJ, one year as Director at American Heritage, 4 years at Cooper City HS and now at Cypress Bay High School. I primarily coached Parliamentary Debate from 2008-2017, including circuit Parli debate. I've been involved in National Circuit LD pretty extensively over the last 8 years, but have judged all forms of debate at all levels from local south Florida and northern CA to national circuit.
First and foremost, I only ever judge what is presented to me in rounds. I do not extend arguments for you and I do not bring in my own bias. I am a flow judge, and I will flow the entire debate, no matter the speed, though I do appreciate being able to clearly understand all your points. I consider myself to be a gamemaker in my general philosophy, so I see debate as game. That doesn't mean that there aren't real world impacts off debate (and I tend to be convinced by 'this will impact outside the round' type of arguments). **I don't vote on defense. It's important but you won't win on a defensive answer.**
While I do appreciate fresh approaches to resolution analysis, I’m not an “anything goes” judge. I believe there should be an element of fair ground in debate-debates without clash, debates with extra topicality, etc will almost certainly see me voting against whoever tries to do so if the other side even makes an attempt at arguing it (that said, if you can’t adequately defend your right to a fair debate, I’m not going to do it for you. Don’t let a team walk all over you!). Basically, I love theoretical arguments, and feel free to run them, just make sure they have a proper shell+. *Note: when I see clear abuse in round I have a very low threshold for voting on theory. Keep that in mind-if you try to skew your opponent out of the round, I WILL vote you down if they bring it up.*
I also want to emphasize that I'm an educator first and foremost. I believe in the educational value of debate and it's ability to create critical thinkers.
+Theory shell should at minimum have: Interpretation, Violation, Standards and Voters.
Speaks:
Since quality of argument wins for me 100% of the time, I’m not afraid of the low point win. I don’t expect this to enter into the rounds much at an elite tournament where everyone is at the highest level of speaking style, but just as an emphasis that I will absolutely not vote for a team just because they SOUND better. I tend to stick to 26-29+ point range on a 30 scale, with average/low speakers getting 26s, decent speakers getting 27s, good 28s, excellent 29s, and 30 being reserved for best I’ve seen all day. I will punish rudeness/lying in speaks though, so if you’re rude or lie a lot, expect to see a 25 or less. Additionally, shouting louder doesn’t make your point any better, I can usually hear just fine.
If I gave you less than 25, you probably really made me angry. If you are racist, homophobic, xenophobic, misogynistic, ableist etc I will punish you in speaks. You have been warned. I will kill your speaks if you deliberately misgender or are otherwise harmful in round. I am not going to perpetuate hate culture in debate spaces.
Speed:
I have no problem with speed, but please email me your case if you are spreading. I will call 'clear' once if you are going too fast, and put down my pen/stop typing if I can't follow. It's only happened a couple times, so you must be REALLY fast for me to give up.
PLEASE SIGN POST AND TAG, ESPECIALLY IF I'M FLOWING ON MY LAPTOP. IF I MISS WHERE AN ARGUMENT GOES BECAUSE YOU DIDN'T TAG IT, THAT'S YOUR FAULT NOT MINE.
A prioris:
Please explain why your argument is a-priori before I will consent to consider it as such. Generally I am only willing to entertain framework arguments as a-priori, but who knows, I've been surprised before.
Theory:
Theory is great, as I mentioned above, run theory all day long with me, though I am going to need to see rule violations and make sure you have a well structured shell. I should not see theory arguments after the 1AR in LD or after the MG speech in Parli. I also don't want to see theory arguments given a ten second speed/cursory explanation, when it's clear you're just trying to suck up time. My threshold is high for RVIs, but if you can show how your opponent is just sucking time, I'm open to this. Also open to condo-bad arguments on CPs/Ks, though that doesn't mean you'll automatically win on this.
Disclosure theory: I'm unlikely to vote on this if your opponent isn't reading something very strange. I think education and disclosure is good but that doesn't mean I think someone should automatically lose for not. Keep this in mind. PLEASE I DONT WANT TO HEAR DISCLOSURE LITERALLY READ ANYTHING ELSE IM BEGGING YOU.
Most other theory I evaluate in round. I don't tend to go for blippy theory arguments though!
Critical arguments:
I love the K, give me the K, again, just be structured. I don't need the whole history of the philosopher, but I haven't read everything ever, so please be very clear and give me a decent background to the argument before you start throwing impacts off it. Also, here's where I mention that impacts are VITAL to me, and I want to see terminal impacts.
I prefer to see clash of ROB/ROJ/Frameworks in K rounds. If you are going to run a K aff either make it topical or disclose so we can have a productive round. Please.
Presumption:
In general I default to competing interp. If for some reason we have gotten to the point of terribad debate, I presume Neg (Aff has burden to prove the resolution/affirm. Failure to do so is Neg win. God please don't make me do this :( )
Weighing:
I like very clear weighing in rebuttals. Give me voting issues and compare worlds, tell me why I should prefer or how you outweigh, etc. Please. I go into how I evaluate particular impacts below.
I like clear voting issues! Just because I’m flowing doesn’t mean I don’t appreciate you crystallizing and honing in on your main points of offense.
I prefer voter speeches follow a: Main points of offense-->impact calc--->world comp model. If you just do impact calc I'll be happy with it, but I like looking on my voter sheet for what you feel you're winning on. It helps me more quickly organize my ideas.
Impacts:
I put a lot of emphasis on impacts in my decisions. The team with bigger/more terminal, etc impacts generally walks away with my vote, so go to town. This goes doubly true for framework or critical arguments. Why is this destroying debate as we know it? Why is this ___ and that's horrible? Translation: I tend to weigh magnitude heaviest in round, but if you can prove pretty big probable impacts over very low probability extinction impacts I'll likely go that direction.
You should be able to articulate how your contentions support your position/value/whatever. That should go without saying, but you would be very surprised. I don't vote on blips, even if we all know what you're saying is true. So please warrant your claims and have a clear link story. This goes doubly true for critical positions or theory.
Preferences for arguments:
If you want to know what I like to see in round, here are my preferences in order:
K debate
LARP
Theory
Phil
Traditional
Tricks
This doesn't mean I won't vote for a tricks case but I will be much sadder doing it.
This is my 4th time judging a Lincoln-Douglas debate but I still consider myself a lay judge.If you speak clearly and at a conversational pace, I will be able to follow your speeches and understand your arguments. Debaters should time their own speeches. I will time also and keep track of prep time.
I will make my decisions based on the arguments made in the debate. For Novice LD, I will not consider counterplans, framework arguments, or topicality arguments.
Heyy, Im Murphy!!
Please put me in the email chain murphy6047@gmail.com
I graduated from centennial high school and have debated for my whole high school career. I have qualified and debated at TFA state (late out-rounds), UIL regionals, and placed at high competing tournaments.
TLDR- Please give me a coherent argument to evaluate
What I like
I love debates that have a lot of genuine clash, I can just about flow anything so please go wild with whatever you want to do. I am not a super technical debater so you may need to adjust for me. Please make it clear what your winning or losing on!! I do not and will not intervene on the debate YOU need to make it clear what your winning!! I also have done very little topic literature besides the generic information. So please make sure that your case is clear and coherent so that it will make it easier for me to understand.
What I wont vote for
I will not vote for frivolous theory, I personally believe that it is a bad norm for debate and will not vote for it. On the other hand if their is a clear sign of abusiveness i have no problem evaluating theory in the round. I am also not super informed on high theory so please make sure to reexplain some things for me. Other than that I will flow any arguments!!
K's
I love K's and I will vote on them. I am most aware of antiblackness and afropess literature, and will vote you down if you are white reading it. I am fine with K affs and non topical k's as long as you justify why they are important.
Off case positions
Fine with flowing them and love to hear them!! Just make sure that you make the tags are easy for me to understand.
Any questions you have please dont be afraid to ask me in round!! (I had to make this quick)
I am a Varsity Lincoln Douglas Debater from Las Vegas. I enjoy judging debates and love hearing new arguments from different perspectives.
I don't love stupid theory arguments or K's but will hear them out if you want to run it
I personally do not mind considering abstract arguments as long as you can provide warrants and reasonable explanations. Maintaining a nice flow in your speeches and following your "road maps" would make it easier for me to flow your speeches.
I also appreciate good humor or any creativity in your speeches.
Please talk clearly, I don't mind if debaters spread but if I cannot understand what you're saying, then your points will not be recorded.
I will give extra speaker points if you bring me an iced caramel macchiato
My email is andrewlvds@gmail.com
Lauren Larson - LaurenNicoleLarson@Gmail.com she/her/they/them
-My decisions revolve around the quality of your line by line debate structure and responsiveness. Roadmaps are appreciated.
-Feel free to run theory, but I need to be convinced you’re applying it with intellectual honesty.
-I prefer LD rounds to be focused on winning the V/VC debate, but please stay responsive to your opponent.
-I "can handle" your "speed" and I will call "clearer" if you are unclear.
-I have competed at SNFI and UCLA debate camps in addition to debating for The Meadows. I tend to think like a policy debater that much prefers LD.
Have fun! :)
Hey! I'm Leighton Liu. I am a varsity debater for The Meadows School.
I expect both debaters to be polite and respectful to each other and have a clean fair debate.
Other than that, I will listen to most arguments as long as the evidence and explanation is sufficient. Please do not run theory.
Put me in the email chain, my email is ll856@icloud.com
email:
About Me: I am a former Open Debater at Cal State Fullerton. I had 3 years ~ debating in college and experience as a coach at CSUF. I have vast judging and coaching experience at the High School level. I spent a lot of my Career running mostly critiques including Settler Colonial K's, Afropessimism K's, Baudrillard K's, performance K's, as well as experience running Framework.
Aside from that my cases usually involved futurisms and storytelling.
Coaches: Toya Green, Romin Rajan, Lee Thach.
Me as a judge real talk: I can understand spreading, and I'm as good as anyone at getting this down. But Imma be honest, it is hard for me to stay organized. I joined debate in college, no high school experience.
In other words, framing is super important for me. Clarity is important to me, because I want to understand how you think we/you/ I should think, view and participate in the community, in this round, at this tournament, etc. Is debate a game? is the game good? why or why not? I'd like these question answered either implicitly or explicitly. I don't inherently work with the perception that debate is (just) a "game", but if given a good argument as to why I should take on that perspective (in this round, all the time, etc) I'll take on that perspective. I prefer not to feel like a worker in the debate factory who needs to take notes and produce a ballot, but idk maybe I should function in that way-just tell me why that's true.
Evidence Reading: I will read your cards if you urge me to look at them, or if they are contested during the round. Otherwise, I am assuming they say what you tell me they say. IF you don't mention the evidence outside of the 1ac/1nc, they most likely wont stay in the forefront of my mind during the debate. This means reading the evidence will a clear voice will give you an advantage with me, because I will most likely understand the evidence better.
Impact: Proximity and likelihood> magnitude and time frame
MISC:
Clipping Cards is an auto DQ.
I really don't care what you do as far as tag teaming, changing format, playing music, using stands, seating placement, etc. Do you, just don't make the debate go longer than it needs to. Also feel free to talk to me before, after and during prep in rounds. I generally enjoy talking about debate and like helping young peeps. Just chit chat and such.
Policy- I think that a straight up policy plan is dope. MY biggest concern is the debaters ability to explain numbers to me. ITs hard for me to do the calculations and understand why specific stats are important and win you the debate. I am pretty line by line when it comes to a policy debate. Id say with me, focus on some impact calc because thats usually where my attention is mostly at. Liklihood and proximity are more important than severity, magnitude. Time-Frame is iffy but doable.
FW- Honestly, framework is pretty cool. I think its become kind of a meme at this point about my annoyance with whiney FW debaters, so make sure you are being real with your critique. Framework says that there is a structure which needs to be followed for this activity to run efficiently. This assumes that the game of debate is good, so explain why the game is good, or why your specific version of the game is good. When you run framework you are saying that the other team is debating in a way that lessens/nullifies the benefits of debate. That is a big claim, so treat it as such. If you are just using it strategically- more power to you buuuuuuut, it makes you hella less persuasive if thats how you are coming off. Also, Fairness is not inherently a terminal impact, lol. At least mention debate is a game and tell me why the games good.
K- I love k's, but they get hella sloppy. With k's, i need to know that you are solving your impacts. seems basic but im shocked at how often debaters dont explain how their "self abolishment" solves antiblackness. Acknowledging that there is a problem isn't a solution, or plan or anything. It's just a diagnosis. I need a prescription. HAving said that, Im pretty open minded when it comes to different strats. The more weird the more fun for me.
I'm way more truth than tech.
TL;DR Primarily a Trad coach who also enjoys K's, Tricks, and Theory. I'm fine with LARP but at least run interesting arguments.
Bio: I've coached LD since 2013, and competed since 2009. I've coached students to stage at the NSDA national tournament, and had a lot of local success in Ohio. I'm the director of LD curriculum at Triumph Debate which I co-founded.
I strive to be a tab judge, and am pretty much always tech over truth.
Email: m.slencsak@gmail.com - Please put me on email chains. Please.
Sidenote: I judge every weekend in the season, but Ohio doesn’t use Tabroom so it doesn’t show up :( I've probably judged an additional 400+ local rounds
If you cite sources you need to follow evidence standards (this is mostly an issue in Ohio). In my opinion paraphrasing in unacceptable in both LD and PF.
Debate camp is for trying out new arguments and debate styles. Just have fun with it.
Conflicts:
Liberty HS (OH)
Triumph Teams
General
- Please provide me with a clear way to evaluate the round. If you don't I won't be happy when I try to figure out who won.
- Rounds should be accessible to your opponent. This means that you should, of course, use inclusionary language, correct pronouns, content warnings if necessary, etc. but also means that you should not spread complex Ks or tricks or anything otherwise unnecessarily high level against novices, lay debaters, etc. If you do this I will be supremely annoyed and you will be very unhappy with your speaks. What is the point of winning a debate round if your opponent never has a chance to compete? (more on this in the trad v. circuit section)
- If we're online please just always send speech docs.
- I'm probably not watching the video, so don't stress about that.
- I have ADHD and can lose focus easily. Please try to make sure you're engaging and feel free to yell into a mic, or do something in round if you feel as if I've zoned out.
Public Forum
- Warrants and Links are more important to me than impacts. I'd rather your argument make sense and have some probability of happening, rather than end in extinction. Of course, I still expect good impact calc.
- Impact calc is important. Explain why your impacts are more important than your opponents. This is especially important given the lack of frameworks in PF
- Try to present you case in a way I would actually want to hear it, were I not forced to be judging the round. Be interesting, use unique arguments, vary your rate and volume of speech, etc. Do something to differentiate yourself from everyone else at the tournament.
- If you're circuit or plan on reading prog, I have a very low tolerance for prog in PF. Theory is fine to fight abuse, Topical K's are fine, T is probably necessary at many points in PF.
Circuit
- I primarily coach, and exclusively competed in traditional LD. Please keep this in mind. It's not that I don't understand circuit or can't flow spreading, I just don't have as much experience here as I do with Trad debate.
- Phil: I enjoy this. Just try to keep the debate accessible and make sure you're explaining things well.
- LARP/ Policy: Not my favorite rounds to judge, but feel free to do it, I won't hold it against you. Provide clear weighing mechanisms (and use them to weigh). I prefer more interesting arguments to generic ones.
- Tricks: Go for it
- K's: I prefer it if we keep things vaguely topical, but you do you.
- Theory & T: I weirdly enjoy theory debates when it's done well. T is fine with me as long as it's not to out there.
Traditional
Framework is the lens through which I'll evaluate the round. That means to win the round you need to show how you best achieve whichever framework won the round.
Values - Are a waste of time and should just refer to some sort of generic good concept.
Philosophy - I'm cool with anything from a philosophy standpoint and enjoy seeing interesting takes on the topic. Personal Preferences are Hobbes, Kant, and Rawls, and I'm not a fan of libertarianism. I'll still evaluate everything fairly though.
“They do not achieve their fw” is not a response to the fw. “My fw is a prerequisite” is almost never explained and I usually cannot figure out a single reason why it matters or is true.
If what you really want is the util debate, then just run util. Traditional debaters do this thing where they’re like “my framework is rights” but it’s clearly just util.
Trad vs Prog
I believe some of the best education in debate comes out of traditional vs progressive rounds, that said, it is largely based on how the progressive debaters acts towards the trad debater.
Trad debaters - Don't whine about progressive debate being bad, don't read spreading bad shells that a teammate gave you, don't read K's bad, etc. Engage with the arguments and refute them, and you'll be fine.
Prog debaters - It is your job to keep this debate accessible. This means doing things like accepting your opponent won't read a counter interp, but if they engaged with the theory argument just going with it. This means politely explaining the K in cx (both substance of the K, and how K's operate in general). As long as you're polite, and make the round accessible and fair, we won't have any issues. Feel free to ask for guidance before the round if you have ANY questions on this.
I borrowed parts of this paradigm from Eva Lamberson. Thank you Eva.
Thank you for reading this paradigm, I will award references to horses with a very small bump in speaks as a reward for actually reading my paradigm.
Hello!
I'm Ailsa, and I am a Junior at San Mateo HS - currently in my 2nd year of debate
email: jjshenw@gmail.com
please ask if your opponent and I are ready before each speech
please remember to extend!
Make sure to weigh/explain why your arguments matter. Winning a bunch of short individual arguments mean nothing if you don't explain why they matter or why they matter more than your opponents. if you win one argument and your opponent wins 6, but you flesh your 1 arg out and explain why its more important than the other 6, i will most likely vote for you.
if you aren't able to explain your arguments and it becomes clear you just stole them from a varsity teammate i'll probably get upset and drop your speaks. i seriously need to be able to understand your arguments and if there is no explanation/the explanation is vastly different from what was in the constructive i'm probably not gonna be able to vote for u
please be kind to each other, eg don't make morally repugnant arguments (like racism good), don't scoff or make fun of your opponents, don't steal prep or speech time, etc. The line between aggression and rudeness is difficult / tricky at times, but please make an active effort to distinguish, and apologize if necessary.
plz no value debates, justice=morality, just debate the criterion. also don't feel the need to have a framework debate "just cause". if you have similar frameworks, or your contentions fall under your opponents, don't worry abt the fwk too much
Take care, and have fun!! :) Debate can be nerve wrecking, but the round will be over before you know it, so just debate, make the most of it, and no need for extra stress!
—Updated for Glenbrooks 2022—
Background - current assistant PF coach at Blake, former LD coach at Brentwood (CA). Most familiar w/ progressive, policy-esque arguments, style, and norms, but won’t dock you for wanting a more traditional PF round.
Non-negotiables - be kind to those you are debating and to me (this looks a lot of ways: respectful cross, being nice to novices, not outspreading a local team at a circuit tournament, not stealing prep, etc.) and treat the round and arguments read with respect. Debate may be a game, but the implications of that game manifest in the real world.
- I am indifferent to having an email chain, and will call for ev as needed to make my decision.
- If we are going to have an email chain, THE TEAM SPEAKING FIRST should set it up before the round, and all docs should be sent immediately prior to the start of each speech.
- if we are going to do ev sharing on an email, put me on the chain: ktotz001@gmail.com
My internal speaks scale:
- Below 25 - something offensive or very very bad happened (please do not make me do this!)
- 25-27.5 - didn’t use all time strategically (varsity only), distracted from important parts of the debate, didn’t add anything new or relevant
- 27.5-29 - v good, some strategic comments, very few presentational issues, decent structuring
- 29-30 - wouldn’t be shocked to see you in outrounds, very few strategic notes, amazing structure, gives me distinct weighing and routes to the ballot.
Mostly, I feel that a debate is a debate is a debate and will evaluate any args presented to me on the flow. The rest are varying degrees of preferences I’ve developed, most are negotiable.
Speed - completely fine w/ most top speeds in PF, will clear for clarity and slow for speed TWICE before it impacts speaks.
- I do ask that you DON’T completely spread out your opponents and that you make speech docs available if going significantly faster than your opponents.
Summary split - I STRONGLY prefer that anything in final is included in summary. I give a little more lenience in PF than in other events on pulling from rebuttal, but ABSOLUTELY no brand new arguments in final focuses please!
Case turns - yes good! The more specific/contextualized to the opp’s case the better!
- I very strongly believe that advocating for inexcusable things (oppression of any form, extinction, dehumanization, etc.) is grounds to completely tank speaks (and possibly auto-loss). You shouldn’t advocate for bad things just bc you think you are a good enough debater to defend them.
- There’s a gray area of turns that I consider permissible, but as a test of competition. For example, climate change good is permissible as a way to make an opp going all in on climate change impacts sweat, but I would prefer very much to not vote exclusively on cc good bc I don’t believe it’s a valid claim supported by the bulk of the literature. While I typically vote tech over truth, voting for arguments I know aren’t true (but aren’t explicitly morally abhorrent) will always leave a bad taste in my mouth.
T/Theory - I have voted on theory in PF in the past and am likely to in the future. I need distinct paradigm issues/voters and a super compelling violation story to vote solely on theory.
*** I have a higher threshold for voting on t/theory than most PF judges - I think this is because I tend to prefer reasonability to competing interpretations sans in-round argumentation for competing interps and a very material way that one team has made this round irreparably unfair/uneducational/inaccessible.***
- norms I think are good - disclosure (prefer open source, but all kinds are good), ev ethics consistent w/ the NSDA event rules (means cut cards for paraphrased cases in PF), nearly anything related to accessibility and representation in debate
- gray-area norms - tw/cw (very good norm and should be provided before speech time with a way to opt out (especially for graphic descriptions of violence), but there is a difference between being genuinely triggered and unable to debate specific topics and just being uncomfortable. It's not my job to discern what is 'genuinely' triggering to you specifically, but it is your job as a debater to be respectful to your opponents at all times); IVIs/RVIs (probably needed to check friv theory, but will only vote on them very contextually)
- norms I think are bad - paraphrasing!! (especially without complete citations), running theory on a violation that doesn’t substantively impact the round, weaponization of theory to exclude teams/discussions from debate
K’s - good for debate and some of the best rounds I’ve had the honor to see in the past. Very hard to do well in LD, exceptionally hard to do well in PF due to time constraints, unfortunately. But, if you want to have a K debate, I am happy to judge it!!
- A prerequisite to advocating for any one critical theory of power is to understand and internalize that theory of power to the best of your ability - this means please don’t try to argue a K haphazardly just for laughs - doing so is a particularly gross form of privilege.
- most key part of the k is either the theory of power discussion or the ballot key discussion - both need to be very well developed throughout the debate.
- in all events but PF, the solvency of the alt is key. In PF, bc of the lack of plans, the framing/ballot key discourse replaces, but functions similarly to, the solvency of the alt.
- Most familiar with - various ontological theories (pessimistic, optimistic, nihilistic, etc.), most iterations of cap and neolib
- Somewhat familiar with - securitization, settler-colonialism, and IR K’s
- Least familiar with - higher-level, post-modern theories (looking specifically at Lacan here)
Background: PF @ Mountain House High School '19, Economics @ UC Berkeley '22, Berkeley Law '26. This is my 5th year judging.
THREE ABSOLUTE ESSENTIALS BEFORE YOU READ THE REST OF MY PARADIGM:
Due to the fast paced nature of debate nowadays and potential technical difficulties with online tournaments, I would really appreciate if you could send me the doc you're reading off of before each speech to my email write2zaid@gmail.com. If you can use Speech Drop, that's even better.
Preflow before the round. When you walk into the room you should be ready to start ASAP.
I will NOT entertain postrounding from coaches. This is absolutely embarrassing and if it is egregious I will report you to tab. Postrounding from competitors must be respectful and brief.
JUDGING PREFERENCES:
I am a former PF debater and I still think like one. That means I highly value simple, coherent argumentation that is articulated at at least a somewhat conversational speed.
In my view, debate is an activity that at the end of the day is supposed to help you be able to persuade the average person into agreeing with your viewpoints and ideas. I really dislike how debate nowadays, especially LD, has become completely gamified and is completely detached from real life. Because of this, I am not partial to spread, questionable link chains that we both know won’t happen, theory (unless there is actual abuse) or whatever debate meta is in vogue. I care more about facts and logic than anything else. You are better served thinking me of a good lay judge than a standard circuit judge. NOTE: I also am strongly skeptical of K AFFs and will almost always vote NEG if they run topicality.
That doesn’t mean I do not judge on the merits of arguments or their meaning, but how you present them certainly matters to me because my attention level is at or slightly above the average person (my brain is broken because of chronic internet and social media usage, so keep that in mind).
I will say tech over truth, but truth can make everyone’s life easier. The less truth there is, the more work you have to do to convince me. And when it’s very close, I’m probably going to default to my own biases (subconscious or not), so it’s in your best interest to err on the side of reality. This means that you should make arguments with historical and empirical context in mind, which as a college educated person, I’m pretty familiar with and can sus out things that are not really applicable in real life. But if you run something wild and for whatever reason your opponent does not address those arguments as I have just described, I will grant you the argument.
You should weigh, give me good impact calculus (probability, magnitude, scope, timeframe, etc), and most importantly, TELL ME HOW TO VOTE AND WHY! Do not trust me to understand things between the lines.
More points that I agree with from my friend Vishnu's paradigm:
"I do not view debate as a game, I view it almost like math class or science class as it carries tremendous educational value. There are a lot of inequities in debate and treating it like a game deepens those inequities.
Other than this, have fun, crack jokes, reference anecdotes and be creative.
There is honestly almost 0 real world application to most progressive argumentation, it bars accessibility to this event and enriches already rich schools.
Basically: debate like it's trad LD."
SPEAKER POINT SCALE
Was too lazy to make my own so I stole from the 2020 Yale Tournament. I will use this if the tournament does not provide me with one:
29.5 to 30.0 - WOW; You should win this tournament
29.1 to 29.4 - NICE!; You should be in Late Elims
28.8 to 29.0 - GOOD!; You should be in Elim Rounds
28.3 to 28.7 - OK!; You could or couldn't break
27.8 to 28.2 - MEH; You are struggling a little
27.3 to 27.7 - OUCH; You are struggling a lot
27.0 to 27.2 - UM; You have a lot of learning to do
below 27/lowest speaks possible - OH MY; You did something very bad or very wrong
Hi,
I'm Symphony Wang, a Senior Varsity Lincoln Douglas Debater from Las Vegas. I enjoy judging debates and love hearing new arguments from different perspectives. I personally do not mind considering abstract arguments as long as you can provide warrants and reasonable explanations. Maintaining a nice flow in your speeches and following your "road maps" would make it easier for me, and I would enjoy your speeches more. Finally, please keep in mind that we are a respective community, treat your opponents, and judges how you want to be treated!
Please talk clearly, I don't mind if debaters spread but if I cannot understand what you're saying, then your points will not be recorded.
Stay enthusiastic and have fun! :)
My name is Zi Wang (Zee).
I'm a parent judge. I'd prefer traditional debates over progressive and normally don't vote on tricks, Ks, theory, etc. Please don't go too fast and make your arguments clear. Make sure that you weigh and give clear voters.
Tech>Truth
Email: ziwangdebate@gmail.com
University of Chicago Law School c/o 2024
Emory University c/o 2021
Edina HS c/o 2017
Put me on the email chain: maggie.edina@gmail.com
**Water Updates**
I haven’t judged any water debates since camp, please keep this in mind.
**LD Updates**
I don't like frivolous theory arguments or philosophy with no application to the debate.
If you're going to posit overarching principles for deciding the debate, you need to apply it to the round.
**Online Debate Updates**
I will keep my camera on during speeches and CX unless I have wifi issues. If I have to turn my camera off to preserve my wifi connection, I apologize in advance.
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I don't have any strong predispositions about how you should debate and will evaluate whichever arguments you choose present to me. That being said, please tell me how I should evaluate arguments in the final rebuttals so I'm not left to figure things out on my own and read cards without any instruction.
I will reward in-depth research, clash, and evidence comparison. I care about evidence quality and will probably ask you for a card doc after the debate is over.
T-USFG
I generally believe that the aff should defend hypothetical USFG action. Debate is a valuable communicative activity and fiat is a good mechanism for generating clash.
I believe that fairness is an impact. If you are aff, please connect the dots between your offense on t and how you solve it via your method or your aff.
I place a high burden on the affirmative proving an internal link to their impacts on case - if you are negative, please make arguments about this, it is so frustrating to watch neg teams just auto grant the aff solvency.
If you read a planless aff, I am more likely to vote for you if your aff is in the direction of the topic and has clear, impacted reasons why topical action is impossible in the context of your advocacy. I also like clever counter-interpretations on topicality that retain some limits but have an external impact related to your aff.
Topicality
*** CJR UPDATE - the topic is huge and so I sympathize with 2Ns going for T, I will vote for t-enact = congress if you debate it well. ***
If you’re looking for a sign not to go for T-subs in front of me, this is it.
Please don't subject me to a shallow topicality debate. If you would like to go for this argument, do a lot of impact calculus in the 2NR/2AR. It is essential to compare evidence in topicality debates, if you do not I will be forced to make a decision based on how I interpret the evidence myself.
If you are a 2N trying to go for T, consider where your ev comes from and what it says. Is it an arbitrary defense of whatever word you are suggesting the aff violates? Is your evidence only tangentially related to the topic? Does it provide a good metric for predictable limits? If the answer is no, I most likely will not be persuaded. I will not vote for limits for the sake of limits unless the aff drops T.
Theory
Conditionality is probably good, that doesn't mean I cannot be compelled otherwise.
Other CP theory stuff is open for debate, probably only a reason to reject the team.
Ks
If you decide to go for a K in front of me, please explain the relationship between your K and the outcome of the plan. Please explain why links apply to the permutation, not just the aff.
If your entire arg boils down to a k of fiat and your only impact is ressentiment, consider not preffing me.
random
i dislike when teams ask for a marked doc and then it results in 10 minutes of time between preparing the marked doc and the team receiving the marked doc. please don't be this team.
Have fun...
... but don't be a bad person, I will give you low speaker points and will be persuaded by arguments to vote against you if you are