Hello, I'm Bennett! I have several years of experience in policy debate, so I've played the game. I consider myself open-minded, and do my best to come to a debate room to judge fairly and listen carefully. I do flow every round, and clash is very important in order to win my ballot. I would like to specify some things however:

File Share: My email is fractured so I would pref SpeechDrop, but if needed add bennettaddink52@gmail.com to the chain.

Topic Knowledge (23-24): Love this topic. I would say I'm pretty knowledgable, but I love learning new things so intrigue me! As this is Economic Policy, the squo is pretty fast-changing so contextual analysis is very important on this topic.

Philosophy- I treat debate as a space for education and the simulation of change. This space creates the future of our nation- producing knowledgable policy-makers, lawyers, activists, scholarly critics, and forward-thinking members of society. As a judge, I seek to make this activity welcoming and accessible. In other words, don't be toxic please! Prioritize being good humans over good debaters, if I feel like its a minor concern with this it won't affect my decision, but I will reflect that in speaker points.

DA's- I need a clear calculus and DA story in order to vote on a DA, if I don't understand the story by the end of the 1NR then its gonna be hard to win in the 2NR.

CP's- I need to be assured the CP adequately avoids the aff impacts in order to vote on it and it needs clear Net Benefits.

Topicality- I will typically not consider this a voting issue unless necessary. I default to competing interpretations but if you don't give me clear voters by the 2nr I typically won't vote on it.

Kritiks- I think the K debate is fun, and if it is run correctly flowed consistently I consider them voting issues. A few things here: I default to the policymaker framework, so in order to vote for a K I need a clear framework to do so. I have ran with Cap, SettCol, Empire, Neolib, and Security K's in the past, but am familiar with Identity K's (Race, Fem, Queerness, etc.).

Speed- I can typically tolerate high speed, but do not encourage it. As long as you are persuasive and logical. I will verbally say "clear" if it is too fast.

Complete disclaimer, I type kinda loud so if it gets unbearable let me know you won't hurt my feelings :)

Let me know if you need any kind of accommodations, i.e. dimmed lights, sit while speaking, etc. If there is a medical thing (like a sugar spike/drop) please let me know. Don't use your prep to resolve an issue such as that.

Any form of overt racism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, or any other biased discrimination is not tolerable and will result in your loss of my ballot and a referral to tournament staff. I trust debaters to not welcome this into this sacred space of education, so I hope not to see any problems of this kind.

If you have any questions feel free to ask before the round. Have fun and good luck!

PS: If you manage to make me laugh then I'll give you +1 speaker points. Love humor in debate!!!!

Any questions about feedback can be directed to bennettaddink52@gmail.com or 24benadd@kckps.org

bluevalleynorthch@gmail.com

add me to the email chain

she/her

bvn '24

notes:

feel free to ask me any questions!

-- Info --

email chain - austin.n.davis15@gmail.com

Lansing High School '23 / GMU '27

NDT qual x1

-- Truth over Tech -OR- Tech over Truth --

Tech >>>>>>>>>>Truth

-- DAs --

I don't have any specific preferences on what type of DA you choose to read. As long as you are taking time to clearly articulate a solid link/internal link chain story you'll be alright. Additionally, PLEASE impact out why your impact should be favored (i.e. why your ! o/w, how your ! means their impact can't be solved, etc). Once again no real preferences so do as you please.

-- CPs --

I mean, its a CP so I don't have any preferences besides, please don't read a CP-text w/o a solvency advocate. I'm just going to flow it as an analytic, so the Aff better punish them for this. Make sure you got a solid net-bene or I'm probably going to defer Aff on the perm pretty fast.

-- T -- policy v policy

Now I'll be real with you. I don't like topicality, I find those debates very boring. That doesn't mean I won't evaluate it, and if you are losing on T don't think I'm going to let that slide just cuz I don't like Topicality. With that being said, if you don't need to, please don't read T with me in the back. If its blatantly obvious, then go ahead. Regardless I won't tell you what to do, its your choice.

-- K --

I read afro-pess, afro-futurism, vampiric necropolitics, Taoism, queerness, cap, + ableism in HS. But by no means do I know everything about all of these topics, just enough so that I understand the language and general theory you will be arguing. So make sure you are taking the time to explain your theory, what it means for the round, and what my voting Neg is going to do to resolve or address these impacts. The most important part of the K debate is the link debate. Please try to have topic-specific links. Links of omission (the Aff doesn't mention X-thing so they exclude it) are not good links, but sometimes are all you have. So, if the Aff doesn't bring it up, then I'll give it to you but if they do, you better have a valid reason why you should get this link; but that'll be tough. Rejection alts are alts. MAKE SURE whether your impacts are physical or metaphysical that they are contextualized and impacted out in the round, this is where you will win SO MANY DEBATES. I am a lot more persuaded to vote for an alt that solves or mitigates the impacts of the Aff in some way. Lastly, I'm not gonna kick the alt for the team. If you don't want it, do it yourself.

sidenote: would love to see some KvK rounds :D

-- K Aff --

- have a strong TOP, winning this will keep you in almost every debate you have

- i'd prefer the aff have a topic link, without one, FW becomes very convincing. It doesn't mean I'll vote Neg on FW 100% of the time, but you'll need to really articulate why not having one is good. So, make it easier on me, urself, and your opponents, and jus have a topic link, so get creative. [example #1: Is the topic about nukes? (queerness) nuclear family bad, (anti-blackness) resolution is a nuclear bomb on black folks in the community, etc - example #2: Is the topic about the econ? (queerness) debate = libidinal econ = violent, (anti-blackness) black markets, etc.]

- Judge instruction!!! what is my role as the judge? why do you need the ballot? does the ballot resolve ur impacts? why is this round key? 2ARs, I need you to draw a clear path to aff ballot and tell me what tf u need me to do.

- You should know/understand your Aff, if you don't get it you prolly shouldn't read it.

-- Clash Debates / T-FW --

I'm going to vote for who T-FW. At the end of the debate, you need to be clearly explaining how your interp creates the best model of debate. I think limits and clash are very compelling impacts. Fairness isn't an impact, its a I/L (but if you win fairness is an ! that o/w the aff need for being, good for u, but it'll be an up hill battle).

if aff, make sure you are impact turning T to use the Aff to leverage offense on FW

Unasked for opinion: I think these debates can provide a much-needed discussion about the current state and future of this activity and what debate could and should look like. At the end of the day, we need to realize that debate is what we make it, and at the end of the round, rather than seeing each other as opposites due to debate style that instead we are all just people here who care about debate and want to grow. So, please stick together, and have fun in these debates, because these will be some of the most educational conversations you will have.

Goodluck!!!

Judge Paradigm: Steven Davis

• Retired teacher of 40 years, the past 15 years offering assistance at Washburn Rural High School, Topeka, Kansas
• “Yes” – old enough to be your grandparent (and then some maybe); and for those in the know, "Yes" -- I dodrive the school bussesthat get us from the school to tournaments, etc.
• I have re-developed -- for me -- a genuine enjoyment of judging in recent years, and I strive to be as fair as possible.
• I hope that my love for all things speech and debate has been evident throughout these so many decades of involvement with these activities.

FORENSICS: If possible, I PREFER PUBLIC ADDRESS EVENTS

I do enjoy listening to and evaluating speech rounds. More often than not, rounds are close and final rankings (especially when points are not awarded) do not show how close some rounds are.

When I finally resolve rounds, I place a premium on those that speak clearly, are organized, and convince me that they care about what they are talking about. In all Public Address events, speakers make choices and thus should "sell" those messages because they do care.

Extemp ...I expect to hear a very well organized speech, with clear analysis and, in the end, support for assertions made. The most important component of extemp is that the speaker provides his or her answer to the question posed. If no answer is clearly provided, and explained, I will not typically rank that speaker very high in the round. Additionally, I do listen for sources and appropriate citations. I am pretty sure I believe that the source — if quoted or paraphrased — provides you a basis for most (if not all) your internal conclusions. I don’t count sources per se, but I expect there to benumeroussources cited and incorporated into your assertions, analysis, and conclusions.

Oratory ...should be presented with some passion, you should really be selling me your message and there should be some semblance of speaking from the heart present. In some ways, I am a traditionalist and prefer the oratory that sets out to identify a problem and then offers me solutions for that problem. I understand that today a lot of oratory is “dramatic” in its presentational form, but this is often over-killed and does not impress me.

Informative ...should likewise be presented in a way that makes the audience truly believe you care about the topic selected. Organization is very important . . . and internal analysis and development is critical to ultimate success. If visual aids are a component of the speech, I need to be able to see them, and they should support the message. Visual aids for mere glitz do not always make the point the speaker desires, AND too many visuals actually get in the way of the good speech.

Impromptu ...a lot depends on the topic area and topic chosen. I do not believe that impromptu is stand up comedy, but do appreciate a speaker that can present his/her/their speech in a conversational manner during which the speaker is enjoying themselves. Not to be forgotten, the better organized speech will be highly regarded by this evaluator.

In all of the above events, I do believe that movement must be natural and supportive of the speech. Movement offers needed transitional support, and too much movement really hurts the overall effort. Additionally, I believe that too many gestures do more harm than good in that they just distract from the message. Use gestures to reinforce your message AND make them as natural and spontaneous as possible. Finally, your delivery needs to be clearly presented so that you are heard AND understood. As is sometimes difficult for the debater to understand, in the Public Address events "Speed TRULY Kills" . . . and conversational styles more often prevail than not.

I hope that each entry in a speech event enjoys his/her/their presentations. "Fun" may not be the exact word I am looking for, but you can truly tell when the speaker is in the communicative zone . . . and not just going through the motions.

ONE ADDITIONAL NOTE:

Although, "Yes," I prefer judging Public Address events . . . but when asked to evaluate interp or acting events, I will strive to do my very best. It is not that I can't, it is just that I prefer the speech events.

Thus, REGARDING JUDGING Interp Rounds:

I have worked with interp students over the years. Fortunately, I have always been in a situation where there was a unique interp coach available as well.

When asked what I would like in interp . . . I think it comes down to the following:

1. I look for a piece that is presented in an interesting manner. The content needs to flow and the cutting needs to make sense.
2. I look for consistency of characters. Are they believable? Are they relatively easy to follow throughout the presentation.
3. I look for a presentation where the combination of facial expressions, gestures, and vocal development blends together to provide believable characters.
4. I am not opposed to movement, but I prefer that the presentation be confined to a limited area. In a sense, I still believe that except for Duo, these are INTERPRETATION events, and the primary presentation should be focused and confined to a small area in front of one's audience.
5. A note about PRO/POE/POI. After judging at nationals last two years ago, I had an epiphany. This really regards the use of your notebook as a prop. I still hope that the notebook is somehow incorporated to suggest you are "reading" material, but I also understand and accept the notebook as a potential prop to be used during your performance.
6. In the end, I believe I know what I like, and I will rank student performances accordingly; and when the situation presents itself, I will try to explain why I ranked students as I did. Please understand that I know with 100% accuracy that my views and another judge’s views may not coincide. And that is OK by me! It is, in part, the reason why we have multiple judges in a round.
7. AND in situations where we rank performances without any other type of evaluation (like points), I hope that all competitors understand that the section will no doubt have numerous very, very good performances, yet I have no option to give a tie, I must rank top to bottom. This is the way it is! I can only promise performers that I will try to do my very best in making my final ranking decisions.

Good luck! The best to you in your future forensic endeavors! I truly hope you enjoy yourself during your presentation!

nargissuleman3@gmail.com

debating at KU '27

TLDR: I will understand most everything that you read, so my advice to you would just be to read what you are comfortable with. My background is primarily critical, more specifically cap, anti-blackness, afropess, logistics, militarism, setcol/imperialism, etc. i would say i would understand most literature but i still have a high threshold for explanation. I love seeing people having fun, learning and being comfortable in debate, so please dont ruin that for other people.tech > truth

read what you want and i will most likely understand it

fw

the most compelling impact to me is clash, and limits/predictability as an internal link. these arguments are especially compelling to me if you explicitly tell me why your interpretation gives access for the aff or a version of the aff to function (tva!). when i say tva i do not mean to just read your tva block about why tvas are good, but rather giving me a set list of plan texts or something like that, or else i have a very high threshold for tva solvency cuz like...what is it lol.

for the aff, i think that the impact turn is the best way to get my ballot on the fw debate. yes i will vote on the c/i but as i watch/do more debates, the impact turn is just way more offensive and strategic for the aff. i think a strategic argument you should be making while arguing the impact turn is that "impacts" like clash and ground and blah are all internal links to a bigger impact whether that be debatability or education or whatever, and how you impact turn the entirety of it. not only does it make it easier for you to make strategic arguments in the rest of the debate post-2AC, but its also more efficient.

k - affs

these should probably be in the direction of the topic, at least in some way. apart from that, i would say that i am largely familiar with most literature that is being read rn. i appreciate contextualization. if you claim that the aff has spill-up, i wanna know what that looks like and how my ballot causes or leads to any of those spill-up claims. if you are arguing that this debate is about "this debate", then why is the proximity framing preferable. if you can contextualize what your method looks like, and how it operates with examples/how its actively operating in the round, i am much more likely to vote for you.

i think that presumption, and ballot key arguments are very persuasive for me. i'm really compelled by teams that are like "whats the threshold for method solvency" , "what does the ballot solve/why do you need the ballot", etc. the method is where the aff collapses most of the time, take advantage of that.

k v k

i think these debates are fun to judge and i appreciate the increasing creativity in these rounds. arguing which method is best to solve for [insert aff impact] in a linear manner is super compelling to me, especially when cross-applications are made from the presumption page on case. i think that aff does get a perm, and that perms are both intrinsically better in debate, and also just make the most sense. i wouldn't say that i grant this to the aff automatically, and if the fw stuff on the k includes reasons why the aff doesnt get a perm and that is really contested by the aff, then.... tech > truth i guess.

random thoughts

• i didnt think i had to say this, but do not defend israel as a good hegemonic power or in any capacity in front of me.
• clarity over speed. i can understand spreading at your top speed, but why u clipping and breathing like u boutta pass out
• i think open cx is good, but i really hate when someone is speaking over their partner and it just becomes awkward.
• i would probably say condo is good most of the time
• include a soccer reference and i will boost your speaks by .2-.3 depending on much i smile

have fun!