I have been a coach for four years and I have worked as a guidance counselor for 21 years and teach communication skills. I am looking for clarity and I want you to engage me with your speech. Please speak at a pace that allows me to keep up. I will put down my pen if I can't follow you. Please emphasize your points so I know that they are important and remember to pause on occasion so that I can take in your ideas.

Analysis is important. I appreciate a clear explanation of your position and I will be listening for how you support your position. Roadmaps are appreciated.

You can keep your own time, or I am happy to time and give you cues.

Be kind, be professional, and have fun!!

I’m a first year head coach. With my team, I’m largely focused on public address events but I also enjoy debate.

My professional background is in communications which influences my judging in any event. This means I’m looking for clarity and I want you to engage me with your speech. Please do not spread. I strongly prefer conversational cadence.

Analysis is important. I appreciate a clear explanation of your position, good organization with signposting, description of impacts and clash. I expect you to keep your own time.

Be professional. Be nice. Have fun.

Speech and Debate Assistant  coach for Palo Verde High School since 2015

Speed and Decorum:

Send me your case. My email is chriskj@nv.ccsd.net. I cannot overemphasize the necessity of doing this – it will help keep me focused and generally just make me happier. Using the file share feature on online platforms is also OK. (Let me know that you've sent me your case.)

Spreading…fine if you've given me the speech before the debate and follow it (or make it clear where you deviate). 

Please time your speeches and prep time. I may not keep accurate time of this since my attention is to the content of your speeches. Flex prep is fine if all debaters in the round agree.

Some debaters have asked me for "time signals" (like in extemp?) - this will result in my not taking notes. If you want this, be aware that I won't be taking notes and you'll risk me forgetting the content of your speeches.

Debate:

Arguments that are obviously racist, sexist, homophobic, transphobic, Islamophobic, anti-Semitic, etc. are not OK. (Read: you will lose if you run them.)

I do not prefer theory. I find it unnecessarily complicated and usually designed to make debate inaccessible (especially to those who are likely already crowded out of this forum in some other way). Please don't run it unless there you see literally NO OTHER WAY to respond to your opponent's arguments. Even then, I may not evaluate it the way you want or expect. 

You have an absolute obligation to articulate your arguments. Even if I’m familiar with the literature or whatever that you might be referencing I *try* to avoid filling in any gaps.

Signposting = GOOD! Flipping back and forth from AFF flow to NEG flow then back to AFF Flow to NEG Flow....BAD.... VERY, VERY, VERY BAD!

Tricks = no. Thanks.

Above all, strive to make sense. I do not prefer any “style” of debate or any particular kind of argument over another. Similarly, there isn’t much that is “off limits” (other than that which is listed above…pay attention to that). Regardless of what you run, if your case relies on me to connect the dots for you or if it is a literal mess of poorly cut and equally poorly organized evidence minus warrants, you probably be sad at the end of the round.

Background:
I debated on the Oregon circuit in LD and Parli. I am an open-minded judge and enjoy any type of argument.

Specifics:

- I'll mainly vote on the explicit voting arguments you make.
- Extend dropped arguments through to voters if you want me to vote on them!
- I'm alright with speed but will inevitably miss stuff if you get too fast! Absolutely make sure to slow down on tags.

Affiliation: Clackamas High School

Competitive experience: 2 years of NPDA (college parli), 1 year of CEDA (college policy)

Coaching/Judging experience: 6 years of NPDA coaching with 45-60 rounds judged per year, 10 years coaching high school policy

Pronouns: He/him

Post the order in the zoom chat ((especially when someone is afk) credit to Wichita BM and Gerrit Hansen for this one)

I’m into philosophy. It was my major for my decade-long undergrad, so that won’t change anytime soon.

I'm also a former law student focused on immigration, employment, and labor.

Although I have run topical affirmatives with a plan in the past, I have generally moved towards the critical as I have continued (From a Heg and Econ National Security Courts aff to Lovecraft performance and high theory).

In CEDA, I have gone for the Cap K with a Historical Materialism alt in every one of my 2NRs. This does not mean that I will automatically pick you up if you run it, but I will be familiar with most of the arguments and authors involved in that debate.

I have come to grips with the fact that I am not very good at evaluating Framework. This does NOT mean you shouldn't run it in front of me or go for it. I think Framework is a valuable debate to be had in most rounds and I encourage people to look at varying forms of this argument in debate. You should be aware, however, that I am not going to be able to fully appreciate the nuances of Framework arguments. It's really not you, it's me.

I hold a high regard for creativity in debate, both in strategy and style. In my mind, creativity is the reason debate is such a fantastic activity. I particularly like arguments that are novel, strange, or Weird.

I am also pretty expressive in round. If you notice me nodding my head or or making a face that suggests "Hey, that sounds reasonable" then that probably means I'm thinking that. If I look up in disgust or confusion, then that means I am probably experiencing one of those things.

All that being said, I am open to most any position or style so long as you can articulate why your arguments are preferable.

Also, feel free to find me outside of rounds and ask me about a round (please bring your flow or be specific about what went on in the round, I can only remember so much on demand) or about general arguments and strategies or whatever.

Clarity: I flow all speeches in the debate and I stick to that flow when making my decision. I will call clear if I can’t understand you. If you are still not understandable to me after I call clear twice, I will stop flowing what I cannot understand.

Clipping: If there is a challenge relating to clipping cards, it must be brought with video evidence. If a team has been shown to be clipping cards in my round; that team will receive a loss and the clipper will receive 0 speaker points for that round.

Email: forensicsresearchinstitute@gmail.com

This paradigm is in draft status.

I enjoy judging.

I prefer quality over quantity, so please avoid spread. It is also helpful when debaters tie the points you are making back to the aff or neg position being debated.

Choose your key words carefully. If "efficiency" is your key word, stick to it. It is okay to push your vocabulary, but be mindful of words you are using if they are central to your argument.

"Back then" are two words that add little value to historical references unless you can give a century. If you are talking about women's roles back then, do you mean before the 1900s or after? If you don't know the decade--which is fine, was it before or after women could vote, etc.? The same thing applies to racism. "Back then, when racism was a problem" is not a clear description. Do you mean slavery? Jim Crow era? George Floyd's death?

Scale is also helpful. What is the scale of the problem being debated? If the number of houseless people grows from 10,000 to 20,000 in a city, can you give a little perspective by saying whether you are talking about Los Angeles or Sherwood, Oregon?

Finally, I advise against talking down to a judge. I have not yet heard an argument that I simply didn't understand unless I couldn't hear it.

I admire your tenacity and persistence and will offer verbal comments when allowed if you would like them.

Best wishes to you in your debate rounds.

TLDR Version: I did CEDA/NDT policy debate in college. Do whatever you want.

Hello:

My name is Ben Dodds. I have been involved with speech and debate for 18 years. I did policy debate for four years in high school and two years of CEDA/NDT in college. When I transferred from Gonzaga to Oregon, the policy team was cut and I started doing Parli on the NPTE/NPDA circuit.

I coached the University of Oregon team for six seasons after I finished debating. I judged CEDA/NDT and NPTE/NPDA debates at that time.

As far as a judging paradigm is concerned, I think that this is your activity now, not mine. If you can convince me an argument is valid in any format I will listen. I have enjoyed deep and complex debates about process counterplans and politics DAs and performance Kritiks of all stripes. There have been excellent debates on everything in between. You can't go pro in debate, it ends, I want you to use the time you have here to make arguments you like.

The unifying trait of arguments that I enjoy is that YOU enjoy them. If you are passionate about an argument, know why it should matter to me and can tell me that, I am game for it.

I don't have a "default" mode for evaluating or weighing arguments. If arguments are not compared, I will just compare them myself in whatever mood I am in at that moment. This cannot go well for you. Debate is subjective, no matter how much we might tell ourselves it isn't, it is and always will be. If you create the weighing mechanism and debate about what is important, I'll use that. Without comparison, my decision will probably feel arbitrary to you and me. Debate is about processing, comparing, and contrasting ideas. If you don't compare and contrast, you are not debating.

I have one specific request. I have never been in a debate where one person (or team) made all good arguments and the other person (or team) made NO good arguments. I appreciate debates and debaters that take an honest approach to their opponent's argument quality as well as their own. I want to hear an honest assessment of which arguments you think are good and bad, should be weighed or not, and matter most at the end of the round. If you show me a rebuttalist that thinks every argument they made is perfect and everything the other team said is worthless, I'll show you a bad rebuttal. I want to hear you tell me "this is their BEST argument, we STILL win because..."

I would appreciate as many specific questions as you have before a debate. I will answer them all.

Be kind, civil, and professional. This is paramount. I will not tolerate a debate that devolves into rudeness, name-calling, or inappropriate behavior. 

I participated in Speech and Debate in High School. However, even with this, I am still a layperson when it comes to the specifics of debate. Communication ability is the most important aspect of any debate. If you do not have the ability to speak quickly, clearly, and effectively, then you are expected to slow down your arguments. It is better to have a few solid points rather than many hastily explained points.

If you have questions or concerns feel free to contact me, at any time, at dorlandb@tillamook.k12.or.us. 

UPDATE AS OF SEPTEMBER 1, 2022: Please be aware that as of February 24, 2022, the post-Cold War geopolitical/international security world underwent a monumental (and likely permanent) change. If you are going to make any arguments -- whether you're AFF or NEG, asserting internal links or existential impacts -- built around a conventional war in Europe; America's, NATO's, or Russia's propensities to escalate; the threshold between conventional and nuclear conflict; etc., please ensure that your evidence is up-to-date and timely (and, yes, that probably means written sometime after February 24, 2022) and/or please be prepared and able to explain logically and analytically how any older evidence/logic still applies in light of real-world developments in Central and Eastern Europe. Also be aware that if you read evidence (or make an argument) that fails to take account of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, I will almost certainly accept your opponent's analytical arguments -- provided they're logical and persuasive in post-February 24 terms -- as more valid than out-of-date evidence and pre-invasion academic theorizing. And your opponents should feel free to ask you, in CX, to explain how and why any pre-February 24 evidence/arguments are still applicable to the position you're advocating or negating. I'm not trying to be difficult, but the world of geopolitics and international security has been radically altered over the past six months. Also, be aware that I spent a large chunk of my 30-year diplomatic career working on NATO issues (including stints at NATO headquarters and on the NATO desk at the State Department). While I don't expect high school debaters to understand or appreciate every detail or nuance of how the Alliance functions on a day-to-day or issue-to-issue basis, please do your best to avoid completely mischaracterizing NATO decision-making or policy implementation.

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Note on Timekeeping: In all forms of debate I expect competitors to keep their own time (to include tracking prep time for both themselves and their opponents). Also, debaters should keep track of their opponent’s time (including prep). I will make an exception for novices at their first few tournaments, but otherwise time yourselves, please.

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After retiring from a three-decade career in the U.S. Foreign Service, I returned to high school debate as a (volunteer) coach and frequent judge in 2013. I'm no longer the head coach at Oak Hill School (as of June 2020), but I still provide some assistance (to South Eugene High School) and judge fairly regularly. Beyond that, I teach public policy and international affairs -- as adjunct faculty -- at the Univ. of Oregon.

CX Paradigm (you should read this even I'm judging you in a different debate format because it speaks to my overall approach): My judging style and philosophy has evolved significantly over the past decade. While I still consider myself more of a truth-over-tech/policymaking-paradigm judge, I don't believe -- as some would suggest -- that policymaker automatically equates with a simple utilitarian approach. Far from it. Essentially, I view the two teams as playing the role of competing actors within a government or other policymaking body, each trying to convince me to endorse their policy option. But I remain open to an alternative framework if one of the teams can convince me that that alternative framework should or best applies.

And while I have an inherent bias toward the realistic (particular as it involves global security issues such as nuclear weapons, NATO and Russia, and the nature and distribution of power and influence within the international state system), I'm fine with K debate. That said, although I know my Marx/Engels/Lenin pretty well from my academic training and Foreign Service experience in Moscow and the former Soviet bloc, if you want to run French post-modernist arguments -- or anything of that sort -- you'll need to explain it to me in terms I can understand and appreciate. And that may mean slowing down enough to make yourself more comprehensible and persuasive. I would also advise you against running any sort of performance AFF...I'll judge it if you run it, but it's as difficult for me to evaluate as Dramatic Interp. For better or worse, I still view the resolution as the starting point of any policy debate, and I still believe that an AFF case needs some version -- however abbreviated -- of a case and a plan. And case matters. A significant percentage of the AFF ballots I write end up noting that NEG essentially conceded case...that shouldn’t be the norm. (And, yes, on the other side of that I still very much believe that presumption lies with the NEG...and that going for it is a legit approach that can easily win a debate for NEG if AFF fails to meet its burdens.) Unless something is truly and grossly abusive, I am not particularly keen on RVIs or similar arguments for a behavior as opposed to a policy issue on the flow.

As for T, I am more than open to T arguments and will vote NEG on T if the AFF can't make a coherent topicality defense. But be aware that I have a very inclusive topicality threshold (to put it in 2014-15 oceans topic terms, if a case involved salt water I was ready to accept it as reasonable... provided the AFF made that argument).

I'm good with aggressive spreading, but recommend you slow down enough to allow me to hear and easily flow your tag lines and organizational structure; sign-posting may seem old-fashioned, but if you want me to flow your argument in the correct spot, intelligible sign-posting remains an important element in the process. Pet peeve addressed to 1NCs: LABEL YOUR ARGUMENTS, please. 'Next' is not a label. Off-case, tell me whether you're reading T, a DISAD, a CP, a K, or something else. Similarly, ‘case’ is not a label. Tell me where you want your argument flowed. It may seem 100% clear to you, but it may not be as clear to me (even if I have your speech within the email chain). Assuming there is an email chain, I expect to be part of it: eddinska@gmail.com.

Tag-team CX is fine, but recognize that if the debater who is the designated questioner or respondent is completely overwhelmed by their partner, both team members will likely receive reduced speaker points.

Lincoln-Douglas and Parli Paradigm: I'm pretty much tabula rasa in both these formats, happy to judge the debate as it's presented and debated. I will always be a flow judge (who values line-by-line clash as much as possible). But I'm generally more 'progressive' in judging LD and Parli than I am in judging Policy. Go figure. In both LD and Parli, I very much appreciate theory/framework arguments. I also think both LD and Parli debates benefit from explicit plans/advocacies, which thus opens up the NEG option of CPs/counter-advocacies. Ditto K debate in LD and Parli...go for it, provided you know what you're doing (and can present the K clearly and coherently). Basically, the more LD and Parli resemble Policy, the better.

Public Forum Paradigm: You should follow the rules, of course, but I'm comfortable with pushing the limits (in terms of advocacies and counter-advocacies and such)...that said, I'm open to the other team pushing back on PF rules/norms regarding plans and CPs and such (i.e., to debate the very theory of PF). In a more traditional PF round, I see framework as a key element; it's important to establish (and win) your framework (and then, having secured the framework, explain how and why it matters to your case). I will always evaluate the debate off my flow, so line-by-line clash and full coverage of the key issues are important. That means that what passes for spreading in PF is fine with me...you don't have much time for each speech, I know, so use what you have to the fullest. Again, PF is kinda/sorta Policy Lite, and I'll always prefer -- but not insist upon -- a more Policy-like approach.

I am new to judging, but I did debate all 4 years of high school. I am not familiar with any of the current topics, so please explain as much as necessary for me to understand all of your arguments.

Speed is fine as long as I can understand everything that you say. Even if I have your case, I don't want to have to read to understand all of your arguments, so keep it clear and understandable. You can run as many arguments as you want, as long as you can weigh them at the end of the round.

In general, I will prefer tech over truth. As said, I am not knowledgeable on the topics, so I will believe what you tell me unless it is refuted by the other team. If you drop arguments anywhere in the debate, I won't consider them as voters. Please extend all of the arguments that you think are important in each speech, even if they were unrefuted (and tell me that it wasn't refuted).

On evidence, I won't ask to see anything unless you call it out in-round. Make sure to tell me which piece of evidence to ask for so I can read it at the end.

Policy:

I am comfortable with most arguments except for K's. You can run a K, but you will need to do a LOT of explaining if you want me to really understand it and be able to vote on it. Otherwise, you can run pretty much any arguments which are allowed in the circuit.

LD:

Honestly, I don't understand values and criterions, so you'll need to do a lot of explaining for me to understand how to vote on it. Otherwise, you can run any arguments similar to policy.

PF:

I am most comfortable with PF out of all the forms of debate. I competed at the state and national level for two years, and came in third place at the Idaho State Debate tournament 2021. You can run pretty much any arguments here, as long as I can understand what you're saying. If you don't state a framework I'll assume that you are doing a cost benefit analysis. I don't like definitions in the beginning, just explain terms to me along the way. I am okay with paraphrasing evidence here, but be sure to represent the evidence correctly.

I have judged debate since 1988. I started programs in San Jose, San Francisco, and Portland. I have judged every form at the state and national level. I am pretty tabula rasa. In fact, one reason we brought Parli into the state of Oregon in 1997 was that we were looking for something less protocol driven and less linguistically incestuous. Policy and LD seemed to be exclusive to those who could master lingo. With Parli, we had a common knowledge street fight. So, I am open to your interpretation of how the round should be judged. Incorporate anything from your tool box: weighing mechanism, topicality challenge, counterplan, kritik, et al.

But, I still have to understand what you are saying and why. . .and so does your opponent. (Hey, now this guy seems like a communication judge. Eye roll.) I will not judge on debate tactic alone; I am not a Game Player . . . though I did play PacMan once in 1981.

Next, I am a teacher. This is an educational activity. Students should be working on transferrable skills--what are we doing in this debate chamber that we will use outside of the room in a classroom or a college campus or life? So, no speed. I will call "clear" to help you adapt to the room. And, while I am open to creative opposition to premises and other kritiks for the round, I won't abide by arguments that degrade a people or an individual. I was stunned when a debater once tried to argue that Internment was not that bad. I do not think they believed this in their heart; how could we have come to a spot in this educational event where this young person felt that this was a viable argument?

Let us have fun and walk out of the room with something to think about... and our limbs in tact! Con carino, Gonzo

Although I have judged multiple tournaments, I have never debated or actively coached or taught debate. I prefer you explain everything clearly and to the point. Prefer debaters write the resolution on the whiteboard (if available ) and their names who is in affirmation and who is in opposition along with order pf speakers.

1. No spreading (speak slowly)

2. Be articulate and speak clearly and loudly

3. Off-time road mapping is preferred

4. Keep track of your own time, and I will only consider what you said in your time.

Background and experience:

4 yrs of hs parli (Oregon state champ), 3 yrs of pofo (nats competitor), currently a collegiate debater doing Asian and European parli formats

Basic philosophy:

I judge on the flow. Run anything you want but give me warrants and keep it within the scope of the debate. If you tell me that dirt is pink it is until the other team tells me it's not. The only time I'll vote outside the flow is if a team seriously abuses their ground, argues outside of the scope of the resolution, or disrespects their opponents(academic value/mutual respect are always 1st priorities in debate for me).

I'm fine with definition debates so long as they're impactful and necessary. Please give me clear framework and actually use/refer back to the framework you set.

I tolerate kritiks and I'm fine with theory so long as they're situationally appropriate. I count on the speakers to clearly articulate, link, and walk through all of their arguments (don't depend on me knowing the K or the theory you're running... hold my hand through it). I prefer not to vote on Ks or T if I can avoid it, but if you run either I'll weigh it.

I love seeing direct clash and argument engagement in the flow... again, walk me through impacts, worldview comparisons, etc (make me care).

Speed:
I don't like spreading outside of policy. Feel free to go somewhat fast if necessary but keep in mind that anything that I don't hear/isn't understandable due to speed won't be reflected on the flow or the ballot. If you're going to speak fast, speak clearly. Also pls be considerate and try to be accomodating of your opponents if they have any requests around speed/slowing down.

Things I really, really like:

I will never not love good old fashioned case debate. I love creative cases and smart/gutsy strategies. Give me ads/disads, world view comparison, impact framing, links, and clash.

Well organized cases/referring back to taglines and contentions always makes the flow much easier to weigh. Roadmaps are great, clear framework is great, using framework past minute 1 of the debate is great, taglines are great, etc.

Don't disregard the importance of voter speeches, I think they can be so, so good if they're done well. They're a great opportunity to really drive home impacts, links, key points of clash, and tie into framework.

Quick update for online: I will try to keep my camera on so you can see my reactions, but if my internet is slowing down and hurting the connection, I’ll switch to audio only. For debaters, just follow the tournament rules about camera usage, it doesn’t matter to me and I want you to be comfortable and successful. I will say clear or find another way to communicate that to you if need be. If at all possible, do an email chain or file share (and include your analytics!!) so we can see your speech doc/cards in case technology gets garbled during one of your speeches (and because email chains are good anyway). We’re all learning and adjusting to this new format together, so just communicate about any issues and we’ll figure it out. Your technology quality, clothes, or any other elements that are out of your control are equity issues, and they will never have a negative impact on my decision.

TLDR I am absolutely willing to consider and vote on any clear and convincing argument that happens in the round, I want you to weigh impacts and layer the round for me explicitly, and I like it when you're funny and interesting and when you’re having fun and are interested in the debate. I want you to have the round that you want to have—I vote exclusively based on the flow.

If you care about bio: I’m a coach from Oregon (which has a very traditional circuit) but I also have a lot of experience judging and coaching progressive debate on the national circuit, so I can judge either type of round. I’ve qualified students in multiple events to TOC, NSDA Nats, NDCA, has many State Championship winners, and I’m the former President of the National Parliamentary Debate League. See below for the long version, and if you have specific questions that I don't already cover below, feel free to ask them before the round. I love debate, and I’m happy to get to judge your round!

Yes, I want to be on the email chain: elizahaas7(at)gmail(dot)com

Pronouns: she/her/hers. Feel free to share your pronouns before the round if you’re comfortable doing so.

General:

I vote on flow. I believe strongly that judges should be as non-interventionist as possible in their RFDs, so I will only flow arguments that you actually make in your debates; I won't intervene to draw connections or links for you or fill in an argument that I know from outside the round but that you don't cover or apply adequately. That’s for you to do as the debater--and on that note, if you want me to extend or turn something, tell me why I should, etc. This can be very brief, but it needs to be clear. I prefer depth over breadth. Super blippy arguments won't weigh heavily, as I want to see you develop, extend, and impact your arguments rather than just throw a bunch of crap at your opponent and hope something sticks. I love when you know your case and the topic lit well, since that often makes the difference. If you have the most amazing constructive in the world but then are unable to defend, explicate, and/or break it down well in CX and rebuttals, it will be pretty tough for you if your opponent capitalizes on your lack of knowledge/understanding even a little bit.

Arguments:

I’m pretty standard when it comes to types of argumentation. I've voted for just about every type of case; it's about what happens in round and I don’t think it’s my right as a judge to tell you how to debate. Any of the below defaults are easy to overcome if you run what you want to run, but run it well.

However, if you decide to let me default to my personal preferences, here they are. Feel free to ask me if there's something I don't cover or you're not sure how it would apply to a particular debate form, since they’re probably most targeted to circuit LD:

Have some balance between philosophy and policy (in LD) and between empirics and quality analytics (in every debate form). I like it when your arguments clash, not just your cards, so make sure to connect your cards to your theoretical arguments or the big picture in terms of the debate. I like to see debates about the actual topic (however you decide to interpret that topic in that round, and I do give a lot of leeway here) rather than generic theory debates that have only the most tenuous connections to the topic.

For theory or T debates, they should be clear, warranted, and hopefully interesting, otherwise I'm not a huge fan, although I get their strategic value. In my perfect world, theory debates would happen only when there is real abuse and/or when you can make interesting/unique theory arguments. Not at all a fan of bad, frivolous theory. No set position on RVIs; it depends on the round, but I do think they can be a good check on bad theory. All that being said, I have voted for theory... a lot, so don't be scared if it's your thing. It's just not usually my favorite thing.

Framework debates: I usually find framework debates really interesting (whether they’re couched as role of the ballot arguments, standards, V/C debates, burdens, etc.), especially if they’re called for in that specific round. Obviously, if you spend a lot of time in a round on framework, be sure to tie it back to FW when you impact out important points in rebuttals. I dislike long strings of shaky link chains that end up in nuclear war, especially if those are your only impacts. If the only impact to your argument is extinction with some super sketchy links/impact cards, I have a hard time buying that link chain over a well-articulated and nicely put together link chain that ends in a smaller, but more believable and realistically significant impact.

Parli (and PF) specific framework note: unless teams argue for a different weighing mechanism, I will default to net bens/CBA as the weighing mechanism in Parli and PF, since that’s usually how debaters are weighing the round. Tie your impacts back to your framework.

Ks can be awesome or terrible depending on how they're run. I'm very open to critical affs and ks on neg, as a general rule, but there is a gulf between good and bad critical positions. I tend to absolutely love (love, love) ones that are well-explained and not super broad--if there isn't a clear link to the resolution and/or a specific position your opponent takes, I’ll have a harder time buying it. Run your Ks if you know them well and if they really apply to the round (interact with your opponent's case/the res), not just if you think they'll confuse your opponent or because your teammate gave you a k to read that you don’t really understand. Please don't run your uber-generic Cap Ks with crappy or generic links/cards just because you can't think of something else to run. That makes me sad because it's a wasted opportunity for an awesome critical discussion. Alts should be clear; they matter. Of course for me, alts can be theoretical/discourse-based rather than policy-based or whatnot; they just need to be clear and compelling. When Ks are good, they're probably my favorite type of argument; when their links and/or alts are sketchy or nonexistant, I don't love them. Same basic comments apply for critical affs.

For funkier performance Ks/affs, narratives and the like, go for them if that's what you want to run. Just make sure 1) to tell me how they should work and be weighed in the round and 2) that your opponent has some way(s) to access your ROB. Ideally the 2nd part should be clear in the constructive, but you at least need to make it clear when they CX you about it. If not, I think that's a pretty obvious opportunity for your opponent to run theory on you.

I'm also totally good with judging a traditional LD/Parli/Policy/PF round if that's what you're good at--I do a lot of that at my local tournaments. If so, I'll look at internal consistency of argumentation more than I would in a progressive debate (esp. on the Neg side).

Style/Speed:

I'm fine with speed; it's poor enunciation or very quiet spreading that is tough. I'll ask you to clear if I need to. If I say "clear," "loud," or “slow” more than twice, it won't affect my decision, but it will affect your speaks. Just be really, really clear; I've never actually had to say "slow," but "clear" and "loud" have reared their ugly heads more than once. If you’re going very quickly on something that’s easy for me to understand, just make sure you have strong articulation. If you can, slow down on tags, card tags, tricky philosophy, and important analytics--at the very least, hammer them hard with vocal emphasis. My perfect speed would probably be an 8 or 9 out of 10 if you’re very clear. That being said, it can only help you to slow down for something you really need me to understand--please slow or repeat plan/CP text, role of the ballot, theory interp, or anything else that is just crazy important to make sure I get your exact wording, especially if I don't have your case in front of me.

Don’t spread another debater out of the round. Please. If your opponent is new to the circuit, please try to make a round they can engage in.

I love humor, fire, and a pretty high level of sassiness in a debate, but don’t go out of your way to be an absolutely ridiculous ass. If you make me chuckle, you'll get at least an extra half speaker point because I think it’s a real skill to be able to inject humor into serious situations and passionate disagreements.

I love CX (in LD and Policy)/CF (in PF) and good POIs (in Parli), so it bugs me when debaters use long-winded questions or answers as a tactic to waste time during CX or when they completely refuse to engage with questions or let their opponent answer any questions. On that note, I'm good with flex prep; keep CXing to your heart's desire--I'll start your prep time once the official CX period is over if you choose to keep it going. CX is binding, but you have to actually extend arguments or capitalize on errors/concessions from CX in later speeches for them to matter much.

If I'm judging you in Parli and you refuse to take any POIs, I'll probably suspect that it means you can't defend your case against questions. Everyone has "a lot to get through," so you should probably take some POIs.

Weird quirk: I usually flow card tags rather than author names the first time I hear them, so try to give me the tag instead of or in addition to the cite (especially the first few times the card comes up in CX/rebuttal speeches or when it's early in the resolution and I might not have heard that author much). It's just a quirk with the way I listen in rounds--I tend to only write the author's name after a few times hearing it but flow the card tag the first time since the argument often matters more in my flow as a judge than the name itself does. (So it's easiest for me to follow if, when you bring it up in later speeches or CX, you say "the Blahblah 16 card about yadda yadda yadda" rather than just "the Blahblah 16 card.") I'll still be able to follow you, but I find it on my flow quicker if I get the basic card tag/contents.

Final Approach to RFD:

I try to judge the round as the debaters want me to judge it. In terms of layering, unless you tell me to layer the debate in another way, I'll go with standard defaults: theory and T come first (no set preference on which, so tell me how I should layer them), then Ks, then other offs, then case--but case does matter! Like anything else for me, layering defaults can be easily overcome if you argue for another order in-round. Weigh impacts and the round for me, ideally explicitly tied to the winning or agreed-upon framework--don't leave it up to me or your opponent to weigh it for you. I never, ever want to intervene, so make sure to weigh so that I don't have to. Give me some voters if you have time, but don’t give me twelve of them. See above for details or ask questions before the round if you have something specific that I haven't covered. Have fun and go hard!

Weigh impacts.

Weigh impacts.

Additional note if I'm judging you in PF or Parli:

- PF: Please don't spend half of crossfire asking "Do you have a card for x?" Uggh. This is a super bad trend/habit I've noticed. That question won't gain you any offense; try a more targeted form of questioning specific warrants. I vote on flow, so try to do the work to cover both sides of the flow in your speeches, even though the PF times make that rough.

- Parli: Whether it’s Oregon- or California-style, you still need warrants for your claims; they'll just look a little different and less card-centric than they would in a prepared debate form. I'm not 100% tabula rasa in the sense that I won't weigh obviously untrue claims/warrants that you've pulled out of your butts if the other team responds to them at all. I think most judges are like that and not truly tab, but I think it's worth saying anyways. I'll try to remember to knock for protected time where that’s the rule, but you're ultimately in charge of timing that if it's open level. Bonus points if you run a good K that's not a cap K.

My primary judging criteria:

1. Clear presentation and better communication of the speech/debate topic with your audience.

2. Don't overshoot your allotted time by too much.

3. Loud enough to be understood and heard by all.

4. Don't go too fast in your speech delivery.

Experience:

* 4 years high school policy (national circuit & lay debate) at Pembroke Hill; 1 year college policy at UC Berkeley

* 2 years assistant coaching at Harker; 1-time lab leader at both the CNDI & SCUFI; ~5 years judging

Preferences:

Reflecting back on almost 15 years since I began with the activity, I feel like the strongest benefits of competitive debate are the development of research, persuasion, and advocacy skills.

I've both judged and participated in a wide variety of K & Policy debates, across the spectrum. No matter what kind of argument you want to make, you should run what you are best prepared to excel in.

Dropped arguments aside, and especially in the rebuttals, I've found that depth is more important than breadth. Often the difference between a close round and a decisive victory for one side is having a well-developed impact calculus and clear explanation of why your position is stronger, relying on detailed, comparative analysis.

When deciding on a strategy or which arguments to focus on, I place a high value on truth - gauged by the strength of your evidence and analysis. The truer your position is, the better positioned you will be to magnify or compensate for technical strengths or weaknesses.

The best debaters (29+ speaker points) are able to excel all of the above, while maintaining that delicate balance between "playing the game" at the highest level and exhibiting some awareness of the "bigger picture" of how these issues and your analysis are significant and ideally still make sense outside of the conventions of debate as well.

T/Framework:

The key in any framework or topicality debate, on either side, is to go beyond the buzzwords and really engage in comparative analysis on the central questions at stake.

What are the implications of allowing, or not allowing, a certain kind of argument? Or: prioritizing, or not prioritizing, a certain kind of impact?

Focus as much as you can on these core questions and the relevant impact calculus. Usually, I find that it is the internal links which are the weakest and most in need of development (i.e., why a particular approach to, for example, 'policymaking' or 'discourse' is important and does or doesn't access your impacts)(or: why an argument has or hasn't triggered a certain thresh-hold of limits/predictability that justifies including or excluding it in the debate).

Dis/advantages:

Internal links and impact calculus are generally the most important, and most neglected, aspects of these debates. I really think that the best arguments can be made here if you are able to take a step back and ask yourself whether your position as a whole truly makes sense and is plausible, even outside the conventions of debate. Is the position you are taking - as a whole - one that is really supported in the literature, or by a reasonable analysis? One rock-solid scenario with an air-tight link-chain and a real, serious, warranted impact will beat ten scraped-together scenarios with tenuous link-chains and implausible impacts any day in my book.

Policy v. K:

On either side of the debate, it's really important that you know what you are talking about. Failing to engage with the specifics of your opponents' arguments is the quickest way to lose this kind of debate. Defending the truth of your position and the value of your approach to the relevant issues is the baseline from which you can best defend or refute the validity of any kind of critical theory.

I have read a lot of critical literature and empirical political history, and place a high value on both practical concerns and philosophical depth. The best debaters should be able to take advantage of this on either end of the spectrum.

Speed and Evidence:

Clarity is VERY important, especially if you want good speaker points. Often there can be benefit found in slowing down a little - more time is generally lost to inefficient, irrelevant or repetitive rhetoric than a lack of raw speed.

If your evidence doesn't have strong warrants in it, it is vital that you are supplying additional analysis in your own speeches. The best evidence always goes beyond making basic assertions that are rhetorically specific enough to capitalize on in a round, and instead presents warranted arguments which you can summarize, lean on, or extrapolate and apply to defend the truth of your position.

This will be my second year judging debate. I value the flow, organization, and providing credible evidence/sources in support of your arguments. Talk clearly, slowly at a pace that the judges and your opponent can understand. This will help me in taking note of all your points. Make sure you stick to the time slots assigned to each round.

Good luck and happy debating!!

I am a lay judge, albeit one with experience judging debate at this point. I am familiar with basic debate terminology and structure, but I have never debated myself, so progressive debating is mostly beyond me.

DO NOT SPREAD. I have already told you I am a lay judge, so make sure you are not speaking too fast for me to understand the words that come out of your mouth. This is debate, not auctioneering.

Be civil to one another. I expect you to show respect to your opponent(s) and avoid any disparaging behavior or remarks.

I appreciate off-time (or on-time) road maps when you can provide them, as well as signposting along the way.

Pronouns: He/Him/His

Yes, put me on the email chain: ekruger.berlin@gmail.com

If you have any questions about my paradigm, please feel free to reach out to me.

Background:

I'm a Freshman at the University of Denver majoring in International Relations and German, with a minor in Economics. I graduated from Cleveland High School in 2021 and competed all four years, mostly in Policy and Public Forum.

The basics:

1. I expect debaters to uphold and promote respect throughout the entire round. I'm open to listen to pretty much anything in a debate round, but if it is clear you don't want respect to prevail in the room, I will drop you. Debate is an educational activity but respect is a prerequisite.

2. Please for the love of all that is holy, SIGNPOST. If I don't know where you are on the flow, then I cannot reasonably evaluate your arguments

3. Tech > Truth (duh)

4. Kick out of positions. I don't want to have to evaluate a million args going into the last speech.

5. Weigh impacts. Every Speech. Period.

6. Extend arguments.

7. I'm OK with spreading. HOWEVER, read the room. If you have a first year who clearly can't handle spreading, then DO NOT spread. I don't care if you have a speech doc. I don't care if its the "norm" in policy or LD or Parli. DO NOT do it. Also, always send a speech doc.

8. Your round, your rules, just tell me why to vote for you.

Public Forum

I did PF my senior year after years of policy so I have some preferences that may be out of the norm. But again, do whatever you want as long as it's not abusive, racist, homophobic, etc.

1. I REALLY hate the paraphrasing culture in PF. It would make my life and your opponents life easier if you cut cards the proper way (tag, author, date, highlight).

2. Spreading in PF is kinda dumb but I understand how short speeches are so go ahead.

3. No arguments are off limits (theory, k's, etc.) but NEVER on someone new to debate.

4. Too many teams drop the line-by-line in summary. Don't be that team. It makes it seem really abusive when your partner brings up that one thing second speaker said on the line-by-line in final focus. Also, it's so much more fun than big picture.

5. Please, please, please collapse onto your best argument. PF is too short to address 3 args in final focus.

6. Impact analysis throughout the debate is SO KEY. Tell me why your impact is more important but don't wait until final focus.

Policy

*Note: I have yet to judge or coach the 2021-2022 topic. Assume I have no background knowledge on literature, acronyms, etc.*

1. Go as fast as you want but I haven’t participated in/judged policy in many months so my ear for spreading is not up to date. Just send a speech doc and we'll have no problems (I will drop speaks for clipping cards/skipping over cards and not telling anyone in the round).

2. Kick, extend, be organized, don't drop arguments.

3. On K's: I was never a K debater, never wanted to be one, and hated every K debate I was a part of. That being said, I think they have their place in the debate space and I will vote for one. Feel free to run them but assume I won't have any background on the lit. So, explain everything very throughly and run at your own risk.

4. Another note on K's: Kicking the alt of a K and just going for the link and impact is genius and something I wish I had done more….. Alts are usually stupid so why not just run it as a DA? (I totally didn't steal that from my partner... thanks Daniel)

5. On T: Go for it. Some judges say it's a time suck, others say it's a core part of debate. I think its amazing, so run it.

Parli

1. I see parli as unprepared policy so look at my Policy paradigm

2. Any args go but don't get too fancy with it. Nothing wrong with a classic uniqueness, link, internal link, impact.

LD

1. I have 0 experience in LD but I'll evaluate the round like I would any other debate.

Hello! I am Deborah Kurtz from Portland, Oregon. I've been teaching English Language Arts at Mountainside High School in Beaverton for the last five years. Prior to teaching, I had a career developing training and marketing programs for large corporations, such as Intel and Petco.

I'm thrilled to be coaching and judging Speech and Debate this year. Clear, organized, and engaging communication is most important to me. When it comes to debate, I'm looking to see who can present the most organized and persuasive argument. Please focus on the issues to strengthen your positions; I'm not interested in getting into the weeds of debate theory. I'm interested in discussions that would educate and persuade everyday people. Most of all, be positive and respectful to your competitors.

yo what up

lejakenneth@gmail.com email me with questions or further feedback you would like! Always down to help anyone in the community.

I am Kenneth (he/they) I am the head spontaneous and parliamentary coach of Lincoln High School. I think also head of Speech/Interp? My man Ben Harrison works in the labs of Big Tournaments, and we all do the most we can for our students. I care about my students very much, but if you are reading about this then you probably care more about my experience than my love for them lol. I attended* college at Lewis and Clark and am studying both Philosophy and Rhetoric and Media Studies. I did parliamentary debate and some speeches in high school. In college I did college debate for a while, found it was awful and inaccessible, and switched to speech and did that for several years. I was nationally competitive in both, and it was a very enjoyable experience that I would encourage many to consider. Speech that is, not college debate ;) In my time I have debated in Parliamentary Debate for 3 years, Public Forum for one, NPDA for one. Speech events I have performed in are Impromptu for 6ish years, Extemp for 3 years, Prose like twice ever. Poetry for a year, Info for two, Persuade for two, After Dinner Speaking for two. In high school I never did nat quals, but won state in Parliamentary Debate my senior year. In college I nationally qualified and competed on a national level in NPDA one year, extemp three years, impromptu two, ADS two, Persuade one, Info one, Poetry one. My prose and poetrys are unanimously acknowledged as having never been good :) As you can probably tell I have done nearly every event or debate format so I am a jack of all trades sort, hence my love for teaching and coaching.

TLDR for events:

~Don't say thank you!!!!!! Number of thank yous I have heard since adding this to my paradigm: 123

It is far far preferred to end speeches with a powerful memorable line or thought. Thank yous ruin this completely and ruin the ending tone of a speech.

Debates:

Say you all deserve 30 speaks, it takes 8 seconds. I will give you 30 speaks. speaker points are bad and sexist, you know the drill.

1. Policy: Anything goes. Frivolous Ks run in bad faith will be dropped. Ks cannot be kicked, if you kick a K you are running it in bad faith. If this is confusing or you have questions, please ask me about them before the round.

2. LD: Ts okay. Ks probably not. Frivolous T/Ks, especially if kicked, will be dropped. If you are wanting to run a K ask me about them before the round so I can explain.

3. Parli: Ts okay within reason. Ks probably not. Frivolous T/Ks, especially if kicked, will be dropped. If you are wanting to run a K ask me about them before the round so I can explain.

4. Pofo: Run theory in pofo I dare you :) please don't actually. I also flow cx. Don't change how you approach cx, I just think if it is said it should have flow to refer to it.

5. BQD: I hate all philosophers. Logos is your friend, not ethos. Also don't be a sociopath and any morality arguments will probably be fine. This means you too LD.

6. Worlds: ...bruh

Speech events:

Ask yourself "why is this argument made in this event and not another".

7. Impromptu: You need to have a thesis, and all of your points need to independently prove your thesis. Impromptu is best when you use a complex range of material for examples with unique interpretations and arguments for why they support your thesis. Please do not ever use yourself as an example. If you do it once you won't rank first in the round and if you use more than one self inserted example you are bottom two.

8. Extemp: You need to have a thesis, and all of your points need to independently prove your thesis. Make an argument and convince me, easy as that. Also if you do not DIRECTLY answer the question you rank behind anyone that did, which can result in an auto last.

9. Informative: Your mission is to have an argument, or "point", that is conveyed uniquely through educating the audience about a specific thing that exists, and having some form of interpretation of what this information means and its impacts.

10. Oral Interp: This format is a little strange, but it is mostly the same as whichever style you decide to do (informative/ads/etc.) with some form of persuasion often incorporated.

11. After Dinner Speaking: Your mission is to have an argument, or "point", that is conveyed uniquely through humor with deeper thematic points and overall themes throughout your piece. I value substance of the argument heavily, so more laughs doesn't win a round in my mind, although no laughs is pretty detrimental. These laughs are mine though lol, I don't care what the audience thinks I'm the judge. This may seem rough but this helps prevents things like stacking rounds. Additionally, I don't always audibly laugh and can appreciate the art and skill of a speaker without audibly laughing. It is just the nature of the event and who I am. That being said, do not be afraid to give it your all, I appreciate the commitment and challenge of this event, so swing for the fences.

12. Poetry: Your mission is to have an argument, or "point", that is conveyed uniquely through complex and overlapping pieces of poetry. This is a set, not a single piece.

13. POI: Same as Poetry, except the material used is much more diverse in medium than just poetry. This is a set, not a single piece.

14. DI: Your mission is to have an argument, or "point", that is conveyed uniquely through depiction of character and character progression and story. If there is not a central character, or implied "common" character, your piece will be harmed significantly. I have seen sets for this, but the best DI's I recall have all been singular pieces.

15. DUO: Your mission is to have an argument, or "point", that is conveyed uniquely through the relationship between two people. Singular pieces way way preferred. It is harder to convey relationships if your characters keep changing. I have seen good sets, but I highly discourage it unless you absolutely know what you are doing.

Eventually I will write some manuscripts about each event individually and add them here. The thank you count will keep me coming back to this.

TL;DR: Don't be a dick, do whatever you want. I’ll evaluate the flow and I can hang.

Be respectful and don’t be racist, sexist, homophobic, etc. Off time orders are preferred, don’t thank me before you speak or shake my hand. I will evaluate the flow with very few caveats. Pronouns: he/him/his.

I did policy in high school and NPDA at the University of Oregon. My partner, Gabe, and I won the NPTE in 2022.

Preferences that matter for my decision

1. Debate is a game
2. Hard debate is good debate
3. Lying won't get you very far, interpreting the truth will
4. You will be auto dropped if you defend a bona fide Nazi
5. Terminal no solvency is a voting issue, but takeouts are rarely terminal
6. Nonfalsifiable arguments are probably in bad faith
7. I default to magnitude first sans weighing
8. Spirit of the interp is not real, write a better interp
9. I default to competing interps but do not default to theory is a priori
10. Topicality violations are not derived from solvency
11. Collapsing is always better than not collapsing
12. For the love of god extend the aff
13. For the love of god answer the aff

Preferences that matter but less for my decision

1. Theory is a cop out - if you're winning theory and substance go for substance
2. Condo is good, PICs are justifiable if there are multiple topical affs, CP theory is far from a losing strat
3. Perms are defense, collapsing to defense is suboptimal
4. Going for RVIs is usually cowardice, cowardice is suboptimal
5. Links of omission are weak
6. Psychoanalysis is grounded in at best tautologies and at worst transphobia, you can win it but please be cautious
7. Decolonization is not a metaphor
8. Kritiks are a byproduct of good, nuanced, and educated debate; the existence of ks is good for the activity
9. I have yet to hear a compelling flow-based 'spreading bad' argument
10. Anthropogenic climate change is real as are extinction risks
11. Science is a very useful ideology
12. Lit based alts are better than alts you made up

HS Parli specific:

Spread if you can, don't if you can't. I will protect, but call POOs when you think necessary.

Parli is not a "common knowledge" format simply because of limited prep. I will not vote on something "germane" to the topic over something "not germane" to the topic absent an argument on the flow. I evaluate what is germane to the debate; if an impact stems from the action of an advocacy or the resolution, it is probably germane.

CARD specific:

CARD is a format built around accessibility and subject matter education. I will base my RFD on who wins the flow and all preferences above apply, but it is my job to ensure that cordiality, access, and educational value are maintained. In practice, this means I will be extra cognizant of proven abuse/reasonability, power tagging, overt rudeness in cross-x, and smart use of the evidence packet. It’s still debate – don’t pull punches, but at least make sure everyone in the room is having a good time.

Any questions about either my paradigm or my decision email me at skydivingsimians@gmail.com

Please be respectful to opponents. If you talk fast, make sure you are understandable. I expect you to time yourself and each other. Good Luck!

I am a parent judge. My previous judging experience was online during COVID. Since I am new, it will be important to me that you speak at an understandable pace and explain your arguments clearly. I will also appreciate signposting, and I encourage you to be civil and respectful throughout the debate.

English Teacher (middle school) 30+ years. Philosophy Major. I value creativity, unique perspectives, honesty, and kindness. This is an opportunity to really learn to think and be exposed to many different perspectives! In the late 70's/80's I debated in Arizona--high school and at ASU. Policy debate was the only option and it was the beginning of spreading, when the speed of speaking became important for success. I follow Robert's Rules of Order and/or the event rules specified by tournament hosts to insure fairness and consistency: adhering to time limits, speaking routines, and questioning rules in debate. Have fun, learn, make friends, and do your best.

Real World Policy Maker

Teacher and Coach

speech and debate coach 47 years

Member of National Speech and Debate Association (NFL and NSDA) since I was 14.

My background is varied. I've worked in IT and I currently work as a software developer. In college, I studied psychology and political science.

Most of the points below apply for both speech and debate.

- For me, theory supported by evidence is always preferred to theory alone. If a theory does not appear to be based on a set of premises that justify the conclusion, I'll likely dismiss it, even if evidence which you provide supports part of the overall claim--the theory must first be logically sound.

- I'm a lateral thinker, so non-linear argumentation and storytelling is fine by me.

- For debate in particular, one thing I'll be looking for is some form of thesis statement that encompasses your argument. It would be best to lead with this statement, or I may misidentify the thesis. This is different from a roadmap. Whereas the roadmap acts as an outline for your speech, a thesis statement briefly summarizes the core or your argument.

- When reviewing research, I usually ask myself the following questions, so it will only help if these points are included when you cite your research:

1. "Did the research use proper sample size, and is the sampling method appropriate for the type of research?"

2. "Was the research replicated, producing the same results, or was it otherwise peer-reviewed?"

3. "Does the research prove cause, or is it simply demonstrating correlation?" This is the most important aspect of research, in my opinion.

- If I can see that the research neglected to account for confounding variables then the research is less meaningful to me.

- As far as delivery goes, I like to see good use of inflection to emphasize important points, but I am much more concerned with the content of your arguments.

- I find that ethos and logos arguments are typically more persuasive than pathos.

For debate: quality over quantity for arguments (I'm allergic to spreading). If it's too fast for me to follow, I can't tell if it's a solid argument, so it means nothing to me. I'm more interested in engaging your opponent's arguments rather than tossing out a lot in hopes that an argument gets dropped.

I'll also say that maintaining clash in a debate is important to me. I am very unsympathetic to positions (counterplans, for example) that seek to evade the central issue in a resolution. Exploring positions that may not be popular or agree with your own opinions strikes me as one of the most valuable parts of debate, and you will do much better with me arguing those positions forcefully rather than trying to reframe a debate in terms that are more "comfortable."

For speech events, you still have to say something that is coherent and intelligible, but I have found that speeches that naturally vary in pace and tone keep me engaged much better than those that do not.

FWIW, I'm a science and math prof in my regular life. While I never competed in debate, I run lots of them with my students!

All Debates:

Feel free to time yourself but my time counts!

I don't mind "Off Time Road Maps."

Looking for good organization with clear concise ideas supporting what you are trying to convey.

In LD and Public Forum; I don't like speed, this is not a sprint is a marathon of information make me understand.

Courtesy to Opponent (includes abusive behavior or interrupting the other team let them finish statement n questioning). In Parli when talking to your partner during presentation do it quietly not to interrupt the speaker.

In Parii my expectations have risen due to the use of internet. I am expecting good quality work and quoting of sources will be a must to support your contentions.

"Pretend I am dumb as a rock and educate me!"

My paradigms are few and fairly simple. This is partially for your own information as well as a way I can remind myself when asked in round.

1. I am a seasoned veteran in the space with competitive experience at the high school and college level. Roughly 5 years in total. I have been a full time judge for almost twice as long. So you can understand that I am able to understand most arguments and positions one may choose to run in a given round. With that in mind certain position pertaining to theory or K shells I would rather not see in events outside CX. If a parli round does involve a Counter plan or a T sheet of some kind, I can roll with it as long as it is well explained and reasonably fits in the scope of the resolution.

2. Given my experience you may think that I can keep up with speed. Mind you I can but it is not something I particularly care for. What I like to hear is well thought out and warranted points that best describe your position. I'd much rather see 2 fleshed out contentions rather than 5 blippy ones you hope to out-spread your opponents on. Along side this if (Pertaining to everything not Parli) if you have a card and you read it, explain what you just read or how it connects to the overall thesis of the contention/argument. Don't just read a study or a statistic and expect the judge to do the work for you.

3. In cases where a definition or the value criterion/weighing mechanism is a point of clash, I want to see good argumentation explaining why I need to prefer your side over the other. DO NOT assert that you are in the right for one shallow reason or another. Explain why the debate should be looked the lens you believe it should. On the same page, if you have a value you want considered, try to tie your case back to it. IE, when explaining the impacts of the case show or reference it is the more utilitarian or more just impact. You get the idea.

4. -LD can disregard- I believe partner-style debate to be exactly that, a partner/team sport. So if you wish to confer with your partner at any time at all during the course of the debate, fine. I encourage it. That being said, please be advised I only flow and focus on the words coming out of the currently timed speaker's mouth. Meaning if your partner says something to you or helps you answer a question during cross that is fine, but if the speaker does not audible say it, I will not care and likely disregard the comment. Therefore, make sure you and your partner are communicating effectively to make sure all cases notes are properly presented.

5. When is comes to question and answer periods (cross examination or questions in parli) REFRAIN from making any argumentative statements/questions. Any and all questions should be purely clerical in nature. Meaning, please limit your question to matters pertaining to explanation of statements made by the opposing side. If you want to ask about mechanics of a plan or to explain a point more, that is fine. Along the same line, please keep question periods civil. Do not step over your opponent until they have finished their answer. Lastly I do not flow during cross examination periods. If there was something brought up in those moments you want to be addressed, bring them to my attention during your time.

6. Simply put. BE. COURTEOUS. I cannot stress how much I despise overly hateful rhetoric, calling out the other team in a demeaning way, and just overall cockiness. Be kind, be conversational, be nice. No calling the other team racist, no blaming groups of people for current global crisises, no homophobia. Makes sense? It should.

7. -Parli only- With the dawn of internet prep I think it is more incumbent on the competitors to have some evidence. Now granted evidence does not win debates and I won't take a lack of evidence as a reason to prefer. That being said I expect more fleshed out contentions and hopefully a stronger debate. If you can provide evidence and leverage that as a voter cool. I really would like to hear at least one full citation from each side.

If you have anything more specific to ask in round, be my guest. I will answer straightforward and honestly.

I have been coaching and judging High School debate since 2003, though I have spent the better part of the last decade in tabrooms, so don't get to judge as much as I used to. :-)

If I had to classify myself, I would say that I am a pretty traditional judge. I am not a huge fan of Ks, because for the most part, I feel like people run Ks as bad DAs, and not a true Ks.

I cannot count the number of times I have had a student ask me "do you vote on [fill in the blank]"? It honestly depends. I have voted on a K, I have voted on T, I have voted on solvency, PICs, etc., but that doesn't mean I always will. There is no way for me to predict the arguments that are going into the round I am about to see. I can say that, in general, I will vote on almost anything if you make a good case for it! I want YOU to tell me what is the most important and tell me WHY. If you leave it up to me, that is a dangerous place to be.

Important things to keep in mind in every round.
1) If your taglines are not clear and slow enough for me to flow, I won't be able to flow them. If I can't flow it, I can't vote on it. I am fine if you want to speed through your cards, but I need to be able to follow your case.

2) I like to see clash within a debate. If there is no clash, then I have to decide what is most important. You need to tell me, and don't forget the WHY!

That leads me to...

3) I LOVE voting issues. They should clarify your view of the debate, and why you believe that you have won the round.

Debates are meant to be educational for all, clear to listeners, fair in competing content and skill, and charitable to the opposing side. As your judge, I want to see your side take seriously the responsibility to educate the room on the topic at hand, assuming little to no prior knowledge. Your judge approaches each topic with an open mind, so you should be filling my mind with exactly what you want me to add to my flow. Educating means speaking at a reasonable pace for understanding. Every person in the room should be able to follow your arguments clearly, the first time around (or, if applicable, through cross-examination). What this means is you are speaking slow enough, signposting often, stating links explicitly, and impacting your arguments. (Don't just tell me I should value safety, liberty, democracy, etc. Persuade why I should value it or why it matters.) Furthermore, if you sense your opponents are less experienced, knowledgeable, or prepared, leave them room to still engage in the debate and learn something. This means asking good questions and answering questions in a helpful manner. Finally, winning arguments take down the BEST argument from the opposing side, not the worst. Follow the philosophical principle of charity, assume best intent, be courteous, and practice empathy.

DON'T squirrel, run topicality unless absolutely necessary, fabricate evidence, talk over others, spread your case, drop arguments, use derogatory language, or engage in personal attacks.

DO prepare a strong case, speak well, practice mutual respect, read and think critically, and seek not only to win arguments but to understand other viewpoints.

I debated at Clackamas High School (2017-2021, Education-CJR)

Put me on the email chain: <I'll put it up once I'm judging actively again>

If you are rude/racist/anti-black/homophobic/ableist/sexist etc. I consider that a reason to vote against you. I will also vote you down if you do not read a trigger warning, if it's needed, before the round.

I went to the 2 week Gonzaga Debate Institute the summer before the Arms sales topic and had the great Dan Lingel and Judd Kimball as my lab leaders.

TLDR: Do what you want, I'm good with just about everything. Be clear and be nice. In the world of online debate, please speak about 80% of your highest speed when spreading because it does come across and mumbled at times.

Longer Breakdown

General background/Rundown: I don't have/have had one definite speaker, I have been/was every speaker pretty actively. I'm good with speed but being clear is very important. When moving from tagline to tagline you should have a word like "And" or number them; I hate it when judges don't catch what you're saying so just be nice and help me. The flow is everything to me so make it clean and easy for me.

High probability, low magnitude impacts are much more likely to convince me to vote for you.

Tech > Truth

In my time, I went from reading a stock STEM aff to an Antiblackness aff. Primarily went for Biopolitics, Afropessimism, Cap K in my years.

Specific Arguments

Affs: What's not to love about a good aff? I don't necessarily believe that affs have to be topical, but if you're gonna be "untopical" you should be able to answer the following questions:

A- what are you trying to do or accomplish by reading your aff?
B- why is your aff relevant to the discussion of the current resolution?

After that, win your model of debate is better and we will be cruisin'.

DAs: I admit, I did not go for these a lot. Does that mean I don't know how to evaluate or debate a DA? No. It just means I didn't go for the DA as much as I did other arguments. I think Aff teams underutilize straight turning the DA and Impact framing them out of existence and I think Neg teams fail to provide a clear story of the Disad at the Link and Internal Link level.

T/Theory: I default competing interps. Neg should prove a clear violation of a standard and a clear reason for me to vote the aff down. I also believe that T/Theory can be a RVI if it was run as a time suck. I have come to terms that I am probably not the best judge for Theory debates but I am trying to improve!

CP: I love a good CP. Win the solvency and your NB and I will love to judge one of these debates.

Conditionality: Now that we're getting into the multiple worlds realm, I usually err Neg on Condo Good unless, there are lots of worlds (IK there isn't really a brightline to what "lots of worlds" looks like. Let me think on this and I'll update this when I know better.) If you want judge kick, make it explicit in the 2NR. I default Drop the Arg.

Kritiks: This was my argument after my freshman year. I LOVE a good K round. I know my Marx pretty well. I read a Historical Materialism alternative for Cap while in high school.

Lit/Kritiks that I know pretty well or have read: Marx, Zizek, Kant, Lacan, Wilderson/Antiblackness, Baudrillard, Necropolitics, Nietzsche, Foucault, Agamben, Security, Ivory Tower, Set Col, Deleuze and Guattari (very superficial with DnG).

The 2NC should contextualize the links they read to the aff. If you want to go for the K, don't be shy about it. Own up to it and just do it. I am of the belief that a good K debater is also a good line by line debater (not saying I was the absolute best at this, but from what I've seen and done, this wins more than a messy debater). I don't have a preference between Roll of the Ballot args and Roll of the Judge args, but if you read both you should explain how they interact with each other.

I think K debate is the most mind changing type of debate that we have access to. Through my debate rounds and the rounds that I have seen (shout out to Oklahoma CL for this (George Lee and Rashid Campbell, they are on Youtube, go watch them)) I have been able to change my, and others, frame of viewing life for what I believe is the better.

Ways to get Extra Speaks

Just be nice.

I am a volunteer parent judge for three years. Please be respectful to your opponents and don't overuse jargon. Also, please speak clearly and at a pace at which your opponents and I can understand what you're saying. Please be concise with your speeches and don't try and make them longer than they need to be. Off-time road maps are also helpful, and I would appreciate you using them. It is easiest for me to vote for a team/debater when they have a clear speech and good rebuttals to attacks on their case.

About Me: I have been engaged with speech and debate since 1993. I competed in policy/standard debate, Lincoln-Douglas, and Congress. I now find myself as a parent, coach, and judge. I hold speech and debate as one of the most important activities youth participate in. I do not separate speech from debate, and this is important if you want to win my ballot. Debate, to me, is an exercise in logic and rhetoric. With that, here are the items I am looking for.

1. For value debates (e.g., LD, Oregon parli sometimes, most resolutions in congress, etc.) – I am more of a traditionist: to me a value debate is more about a clash of philosophical concepts and ways to look at the world. I do not like seeing policy in an LD debate or in value-based parli resolutions. I want to hear the why before we move to the how.

2. I like to see a solid framework. I want to hear clearly stated values. Tell me how I, as a judge, should weigh the round and why it matters. Definitions can make/break a round for me. If there is clash on a definition, I will track it, but I don’t want the whole round to be a definitions debate. That said, I am not a fan of esoteric mid-19th century definitions that totally change the entire meaning of a term. I am willing to entertain Ts here, but they best be good.

a. Public Forum – for Oregon tournaments, please refer to the OSAA handbook 13.2.8. Plans or counterplans are not permitted in this debate format. Do not present them.

b. Oregon Parli – you are allowed to use a dictionary. It is the one thing you are allowed to use, so please – USE IT!

3. The contentions need to flow through the framework and to the value. If the impact of a contention is massive, but it is never linked back to the framework and value, I will struggle to see how it fits into the winning criterion or weighing mechanism.

4. Value criterion and weighing mechanisms should allow either side to win the round. I will most likely not award a VC/WM that I determine to be abusive, but I need to hear clash on it. If the opponent accepts a blatantly abusive VC, then that is what I will use.

5. Please don't be lazy with how you use values or VC/WM.

6. Impact is really important. I want to hear you link the impact back to the value and how it adds weight.

7. Voters – this is where you need to finish the deal with me. Tell me why you won, walk me through it, and give it to me in simple terms. This is where you bring it all back and explain to my how the case provides the most weight to the value – you have to sell it.

8. I am flowing the round, and I will use the flow for aiding me in determining who won the round. That said, I like a round where I don’t have to flow. Give me a clear path/roadmap (no off-time roadmaps however), signpost as you move along, and don’t bounce all over the place. If I am having a hard time following your case/speech odds are my flow won’t match yours, and your flow notes aren’t going to be used to determine who won the round.

a. In public forum rounds, I shouldn’t have to flow. The format was designed to allow the average adult to walk on into the room, know nothing about debate, and be able to decide who won the round.

b. If an argument is dropped and properly identified as being dropped then in almost all circumstances that contention will flow to the opponent.

c. Rhetoric is often broken down into logos, pathos, and ethos. I want to be persuaded by the winning side, so keep in mind that I will be looking across the three. If a competitor is all evidence with little explanation or connection with the audience, then competitor will have a hard time persuading me. If it is all emotion without logic then it won’t go well. All the confidence in the world shouldn’t be the reason that a case wins.

d. Do not use logical fallacies. I will note on my flow when one is used, and if the opponent is able to identify the fallacy in a clear and concise way, the argument will most likely go to the opponent. Granted – if you call out your opponent for using a fallacy and you either are wrong or use the fallacy-fallacy, that won’t bode well.

10. I have yet to hear a competitor spread that is able to deliver on pathos or ethos. If I am handed a case where I may read along since the speaking will be screeching along at Mach 10, then I question the live nature of the event.

a. Note: yes, I can keep up with spreading and read along, but I should not have to. Again – I expect quality over quantity.

11. In most instances I am leery of Ts and Ks. May you use them with me? Yes, but they need to setup correctly and they ought to be relevant. I also take them seriously, so if you are arguing that your opponent is being abusive here and now, you have my attention. If the argument and/or accusation is generic and used simply as a tool to get a win, odds are you just lost the argument and potentially the round. Be careful with what you are saying – words matter in the real world.

12. I am not a tabula rasa judge. There is some common knowledge. Not everything leads to nuclear war (sorry, I just have a hard time with most, not all, nuclear war arguments). Please don’t ask me to suspend belief.

13. Be nice, and while this may seem obvious it isn’t always (note – I find that most debaters are very nice).

14. Avoid debate jargon. I don’t want to hear about how the aff dropped the negs NC1 during the 1AR, it doesn’t flow, blah blah blah. Go back to my points on rhetoric. Walk a non-S&D person through it.

I did not participate in speech or debate in high school.

I value organized and logical argumentation. Apply your argument, logic or theory to the facts of the topic.

I value the clear expression of ideas. The intent should be to communicate to your audience, not spray out as many arguments & points as you can. I do not do spread.

I value the targeted rebuttal of your opponents idea's.

I value respectful behavior. If I believe the intent of a question is merely to interrupt or knock your opponent of their stride and not a legitimate question, I will penalize such a question.

I do not want to hear debate about debate. Debate the resolution.

Carter Thomas (they/them)

I'm a college freshman with 4 years of experience in speech and debate, specializing in parli. I'm comfortable with jargon, and I will be able to track with you if you talk quickly (that said, I am personally opposed to spreading as a competitive strategy). I'm new to judging, but I am familiar with current debate theory trends and I have plenty of competition experience, so don't worry about losing me.

General:

I prefer truth over tech—please do not try and convince me of things that could easily be refuted by common sense. "Corporations do not have an inherent desire to generate wealth" is something I would accept if you back it up and it isn't refuted. "North Korea, an island nation in the North Sea, is lauded internationally for its philanthropy and pacifism" is not. We are here to learn from each other, and I will vote in accordance to this principle.

I'm alright with theory-heavy arguments, though I will prefer post-fiat impacts to pre-fiat ones in most settings. Especially when we're talking about policy, I'm more interested in the worlds described by the resolution and its interpretations than I am about the impacts of how you go about talking about them. Be very careful with the term "abusive"— unless your opponent is creating an obviously hostile environment I will probably not agree with its use. That isn't to say that I'll never accept pre-fiat impacts, but I'd prefer we wear our policymaker hats.

I typically prefer education over fairness. We're here to compete, but we're also here to learn.

In general, I want you to treat this like a real-world discussion of politics, ethics, science, economics, philosophy, or whatever else it happens to be.

Parli:

Since some tournaments allow internet usage, I know you'll use that to build your cases. When it comes to citing statistics in round, it definitely won't hurt you, but I'm not going to fault you if you don't—pure extemporaneous argumentation is a part of the Oregon parli meta that I believe makes it better than California and I'd prefer that we didn't get bogged down in the back-and-forth of asking for sources.

LD/PF/CX:

I don't have nearly as much experience with these, but my takes on theory still apply. I still prefer effective arguments to volumes of evidence, so bear that in mind.

Don't spread. It doesn't help anyone, and if I legitimately can't keep up with your speaking I will set my pen down and stare at you with contempt.

Kritiks:

It better be really good. There's situations in which it is justified to call out the assumptions that an argument is built on, especially in an environment where learning is our focus. But it needs to be clear that you're genuinely trying to advance our understanding, and not taking a cheap shot at your opponent.

Misc. remarks:

Remember that this is an academic space, and the dialogue should reflect that. If you would prefer to use more casual or informal language for effect, that is fine, but it shouldn't distract me from the topic at hand or sacrifice precision of meaning.

TL;DR:

I've done this before, don't worry about losing me. While winning is fun, we're here to learn by sharing ideas with each other. Make sure your presentation reflects that.

I am new to judging. I was in speech in high school, and in a discussion-based college involving philosophy and politics.

I am looking for direct communication on salient points without oversimplification. I appreciate slower speech, and attention to debate etiquette.

Since I'm new to judging, I'd appreciate no kritik or theory shells.

Background
I was a high school and college policy debater in the 1980's. I have taught policy debate for 21 years both in California and Oregon. I have coached several policy teams to nationals. I love this form of debate.
Paradigm
I am a real world policy maker judge, who is somewhat traditional. I look to see who advocates for most viable and beneficial policy. I am a recovering stock issues judge.
What Makes Me Smile
I like to see an organized flow, with lots of analysis connecting evidence to claims. I also like to see a fun spirited debate, where debaters are polite to one another and are in this activity to learn, not just to win.
Speed
I can flow a fast debate, but prefer communication over speed. I find that most policy debaters who spew, can't really handle the speed they are attempting and therefore lose their judge and opponents, ultimately rendering this communication event moot. However, if you must race through your arguments, at least be slow and clear on the tags. 
K's
I do not like Kritiks. I will listen to them and weigh them against other arguments on the flow, but overall am not a big fan. If you run a K, make sure to fully explain your philosophical position and don't run positions that will bite your K. 
T
I will vote on T if not used as a time suck. "If you run it, go for it, don't kick out of 4 T's in your last rebuttal."
Tag Team CX
I don't mind tag team cx; however, I award speaker points based on your ability to ask and answer questions, so if one partner is "tooling" another, then one of you will suffer point wise. I like to see that both partners are knowledgable about the topic and debate theory and get disgruntled when one partner will not allow the other partner a chance to answer any questions.
Flex Prep
What? Really? No!
Flashtime
I don't count flash time as prep time, unless it becomes ridiculous.

I am a former debater and IEer from 1999 to 2007 and then I coached collegiate speech and debate from 2007 to 2009. I am passionate about this activity and enjoy judging when I can. I have done almost any IE or debate event you can think of. I did 4 years of collegiate Parli debate with an additional 2 years of coaching the activity. In high school I did LD, Congress, and Ted Turner (now Public Forum) debate and a variety of different individual events.

Policy/Debate Paradigm - While I have never done Policy as a competitor, I can flow and follow almost any argument you want to make. I warn you of three things about me:

1) You need to explain the argument you are making or I am willing to ignore the argument. If you explain the argument and provide me with realistic impacts I am happy to vote on pretty much any argument you want to make. If your impacts are poorly developed or are overly dramatic (global destruction, millions dead, etc) I will probably give your position very little weight. I do not know what your cards say so take the time to explain your argument. I will usually make my decision by weighing the quality and likelihood of potential impacts. I was a plan/counter-plan/dis-ad/topicality debater myself, but I have voted plenty of times for well developed critical arguments as well.

2) If you flow me out of the round that is your problem, not mine. I have a lot of flowing experience, but am by no means the fastest. I have from time to time missed arguments because speakers have gone too fast. I will do my best to keep up, but you go too fast at your own risk. I am not saying you need to go slow, just be careful.

3) I really like to see people having fun in this activity. Be creative and be nice to one another. I know it is easy to get wrapped up in argumentation and become passionate about what you are arguing. Always remember that this is a game that is meant to be enjoyed by everyone. If you cross the line between being competitive and being a jerk, you will not find me to be very happy with your performance.

Have fun and good luck!!

Andrew Wilson

If you are a novice - please do not feel pressure to fill time just because you have run out of things to say. It is much better to end your speech early and leave time on the table than to fill time just for the sake of filling time by repeating arguments you or your partner has already read.

General debate: I judge primarily on the flow. If you're talking too fast that I can't write your arguments down, or if you are not properly sign posting to where I should write that argument, I might not be able to vote on it. I do not intervene. I sometimes write "consider this argument next time" on ballots, but I won't make links or impacts for you, you need to be explicitly clear.

I don't flow questioning periods - if you're trying to make a point, you need to so directly on the flow (with internal sign posting) and use your opponent's answer as the warrant for that argument.

I often do not vote in favor of Ks and would rather see those types of arguments structured as a DA if the K is on the resolution. The only exception to this general guideline is if one team is uniquely offensive in round and you're running the K against something specifically said or done by your opponent.

Parli: I judge parli from a policy perspective. This means that for a policy resolution ("given actor" should "given action) I like formal structure (plantext, CPs, DAs, solvency press, etc) and for a value resolution, it means that I want to know what are the real world consequences of voting in a certain way? For example, if you want me to vote that "liberty should be valued above safety" tell me what natural policies consequences will follow and the impacts of those.

LD: I rarely cast my ballot based on the framework debate alone. I put more weight on the contention level. In general, I have a strong preference in favor for traditional LD over progressive LD.

PF: I like to see your analysis in your evidence. Please do not just quote an author, but explain how what this author said relates to the argument in your specific case. I often ask to read evidence myself, so please have full articles available for context, with your specific source highlighted or indicated.

Pronouns: he/him/his

Affiliation: Cleveland High School

TOC Conflict Notice: I am judging for Oak Ridge in LD. Cleveland High School, the only other conflict I could have, does not have any entries in TOC LD, so Oak Ridge is my only conflict at the tournament.

TOC LD Topic: For those of you reading cases about Israel/Palestine, you should know that I am affiliated with J Street. I spend a lot of time researching, organizing, and doing advocacy work on solving the conflict through an anti-occupation lens. I will evaluate your round on the flow and will do my best to not let my personal biases get in the way, but I wanted to disclose this upfront for transparency.

Put me on the email chain!: dwitten3@gmail.com

Competitive Experience:

-2 years of experience in Policy Debate

-1.5 years of experience in Public Forum Debate

-0.5 years of experience in Parliamentary Debate

-Competed in Worlds Schools Debate at the 2020 and 2021 National Tournaments

Background: I am a sophomore at the University of Arizona pursuing a major in Political Science and a minor in Communication. I graduated from Cleveland High School in 2021 after competing on their speech and debate team for four years and serving as a captain for three years.

If you have any questions about anything in this paradigm, please do not hesitate to ask me! I am happy to clarify anything you want me to.

The Basics:

-PLEASE SIGNPOST YOUR ARGUMENTS! Tell me which argument you are on, tell me what you are responding to, and use numbered lists/some organizational structure to make it easier to follow.

-I am a flow judge. I will evaluate the round based on the flow and who wins their offense.

-I am a tech over truth judge.

-I will default to a framework of utilitarianism unless debaters propose a different framework.

-Theory is a priori. I will evaluate these arguments before all others.

-Kick out of positions and go for your strongest arguments.

-Weigh impacts throughout the round! Don’t save it all for the final speech!

-Extend your arguments, especially if they are dropped!

-You must tell me why your impacts outweigh -- impact framing is very important to me. Tell me why you win on magnitude, timeframe, or probability and why the one(s) you win on are most important. Additionally, quantify your impacts! It is much easier to evaluate a round where one team argues they can save 50,000 lives whereas the other team only saves 20,000 (you get the idea).

-I will evaluate progressive arguments (Ks, theory, etc.) in any debate format (yes, even PF). Just be sure they are well-developed and adapted to the form (ex: if you read a K on neg in PF don’t read an alt because counter-advocacies aren’t allowed. Simple alts like reject the aff are okay.) Make sure your theory shells have the correct structure (interpretation, violation, standards, voters, maybe framing) and that your K’s are also properly structured.

-I am okay with spreading in any debate event (you probably shouldn’t do it in Parli though), but if you are going to spread, send a speech doc and make sure it is in order so everyone can follow along. Remember that some debaters are not familiar with spreading, keep it fair for them!

-I view debate as a game with an educational net benefit. I also believe the point of debate is education.

-This is your round, I’m just here to evaluate it. I may have my opinions on debate and how it should work but I will let y’all do your thing and evaluate based on what happens.

Public Forum

-This is the debate form I did in my senior year and had the most success in.

-Paraphrasing evidence is okay, but I really prefer to hear direct quotes from cards. If a team asks for a card, don’t just send the link to the evidence. Send an actual cut card with the parts you referenced/read highlighted. Also, make sure it is cited!

-Try not to completely discard the flow in the summary speeches. It is okay to talk about big picture themes in the round, but you really should address the line-by-line, or I will count it as a drop of the other team’s arguments.

-In the final focus, you should explain why you win your strongest arguments, why the impact outweighs, and why you counter the other team’s offense. Try to boil the round down to the most important points while telling a story in this speech. Side note: you also probably shouldn’t be going for every position you started out with in your constructive.

LD

-I don’t have a ton of LD experience but I understand how the value/criterion debates work and I have general knowledge about the format.

-Be sure to prioritize the framework debate in LD as it is way more important than other forms, but don’t neglect winning offense on the flow.

-Explain your philosophy -- odds are I do not understand it. I am happy to evaluate it, but just explain it to me like I do not understand. This way we will all stay on the same page.

CX

-Go as fast as you want, just send a speech doc.

-Speech docs are so so so important!!! If you’re going to send a speech doc, please please please put things in order and keep it organized!!! The doc loses its value if you only read half of what is in it and jump around to different parts. Please do your best to avoid this. I will penalize speaks for this. This is really my only major debate pet peeve.

-Much like above, kick out of positions, win the flow, stay organized, don’t drop things.

-I am happy to evaluate K or non-topical affs, just explain everything. You are probably going to need a good T response, though.

-A note on T: It is a staple of the CX neg strategy and good to have in your toolbox, especially against affs you may not have much prepped out on. Use it. If you’re on neg, you must argue why I should evaluate T under competing interpretations and make sure you are winning your interpretation, standards, and voters.

-Another note on Ks: I am most familiar with cap K lit and loosely familiar with SetCol, Security, and Afropessimism/anti-Blackness lit. Whatever your lit is, please explain it and make sure you have a solid link. If you are going to read arguments about identity in rounds, please be respectful of all debaters and people in the round and beyond. Do it consciously with good intentions. Don’t leverage someone’s identity and experiences just to win a debate round. Think about this when you are prepping your cases.

-Kicking the alt of a K and just going for the link and impact is genius and something I wish I had done more…..

Parli

-I don’t have much to add here. Theory is okay, so are Ks. Contentions/ADVs/DVs/CPs are great, too. Parli is a lot of fun so just do your thing. I feel what I have written about other debate forms and at the top generally applies here.

I have a background in policy debate, so that means that I like structure and specific impacts. Other than that, I am pretty tabula rasa. Please tell me how you win this debate with discussions of burdens and weighing mechanisms. In Oregon Parliamentary, I am not a huge fan of Ks because I do not think you have enough time to prepare one properly, but I will vote on one if the opp links into it hard, like you can show me how they are specifically being sexist, racist, trans/homophobic, etc.

I am a non native English speaker, so I would not prefer very fast speech as it is difficult for me to fully understand the content.

I will make my judgement based on your organization and how clearly you present, how you use the argument, and do cross-examination, and how you present your evidences, not based on the sounds-right or sounds-wrong on the debate topic itself.

So please be well prepared, and well organized, and be calm and clearly present your points.

Good luck.

I've judged multiple Parli rounds including some rounds on the national circuit. I likeb analysis more than speed and breadth. Rebuttal speeches should articulate in simple term. The debaters should stay calm, even and respectful.

As a parent judge, I like to see your speeches being well-structured, with good logic and strong evidence to support your opinions. Your performance, such as your posture and tones will also be considered. Keep up your good work.