District V Speech and Debate DISTRICT Tournament
2022 — Pocatello, ID/US
Congress Paradigm List
All Paradigms: Show HideI am new to this speech and debate world, as I never participated in high school. I am proudly a "mom" judge, and do my best to be fair and constructive in my comments and decisions. I enjoy learning and developing more as a judge during each tournament.
I have judged a few speech competitions and a congress competition. Although, I may lack experience, I am able to follow along with debates, even if you are speaking fast. I pay particular attention to evidence for your claims. I am a stickler for recent and unbiased evidence. I like to have a clear summary of your analysis of why you should win the final rebuttal. Above all, I expect respect for each other. I will drop you points if I see or hear any rudeness or disrespect to your team or the other team.
I love to judge because I learn so much from listening to your individual viewpoints. Enjoy what you're doing, be kind to others, and good luck!
What I look for during debates:
- Strong framework -at the least have definitions and a weighing mechanism for the round.
- Clash - don't just ignore your opponents case.
- Evidence to back up argumentation.
- Articulate your point -you can go as fast as you want as long as I can understand you.
- Cross ex questions/answers will not factor into my decision unless they are brought up during speeches.
- Be civil.
- Persuade me
What I dislike:
- Attacking your opponent as a person or otherwise acting like a jerk.
What I look for during speeches:
- Strong framework
- Evidence
- Articulation
- Engagement with your audience
- Wow factor
I've been judging for more than 12 years now. I've been helping to coach for more than 3 years. I competed in speech and debate in high school. I know how to do all of the events.
Policy: I very much dislike when the debate goes off into theory arguments for policy. Most of the time they aren't even actual arguments that have been fully formed with all the necessary attributes. Those arguments will be crossed out on my flow. If you can't fully form the argument and have all the parts to it then why should I care to have it as a voting issue? I don't mind reasonable speed. If you breathe anywhere where there isn't punctuation then I will completely cross that card/argument from my flow. That is my biggest annoyance with speed. I lean very strongly towards Policy maker but I'm a stock coms judge. I will always weigh the arguments with stock issues more heavily than I will the other issues. Topicality will be weighed over it when it's actually reasonable. I want a clear shift of policy with the Aff case. IF YOU SAY THEY DIDN'T ADDRESS AN ISSUE THAT THEY DEFINITELY HAVE I WILL VOTE YOU DOWN FOR WHINING, INCOMPETENT FLOWING, AND BEING ANNOYING!
LD: I very much love the Value and Criterion debate. I love traditional debate. I HATE progressive debate you lose a lot of the skills you would normally learn and gain weak skills instead. Give me clear reasons why we should weight the round off of your Value. Both logic and evidence based arguments have their place in this debate. Make sure you use them accordingly. I will drop the entire argument you're making if you breathe where there isn't any punctuation. I'm fine with reasonable speed. IF YOU SAY THEY DIDN'T ADDRESS AN ISSUE THAT THEY DEFINITELY HAVE I WILL VOTE YOU DOWN FOR WHINING, INCOMPETENT FLOWING, AND BEING ANNOYING!
SPEECH:
So, I WILL NOT, emphasis on the NOT, judge a piece that has, or should have, a trigger warning in it. I will leave the round immediately if someone tries to run one in my round. Pieces can be very good without getting to the point where there needs to be a trigger warning. I will not judge those garbage pieces. Increase your quality of speeches by getting rid of those.
I'm a coms judge mainly, so I appreciate a steady talking pace because I'm not conditioned yet to listen and process all of what the speaker says at faster paces. Other than that, I expect good volume, eye contact, body language, etc. When it comes to the arguments I dislike, I am not a fan of end of the world scenario arguments/extreme escalation arguments. I understand that some things could lead to that given the situation in the world today, so if those arguments are reasonably made, I expect a good link to that extreme escalation happening.
I would have to say I stand behind what I believe in - what I believe is true. If the speaker(s) can prove to me with well, thoughtful words - supported by evidence - I will agree with what is being presented. I can't agree, nor support a side that does not communicate what they mean.