1st and 2nd Year National Championships at Woodward Academy
2023 — Atlanta, GA/US
Public Forum Paradigm List
All Paradigms: Show HideHi I'm Naina (she/her) and I've debated in PF for Lake Highland for 5 years!
Please add me to the email chain: nainataraaggarwal@gmail.com
Here's my paradigm:
- First and foremost, please do your part to make debate a safe, educational environment. Don't be racist, sexist, homophobic, Islamophobic, ableist, or exclusionary or discriminatory in any way. If you are, I will drop you
- I can handle speed but please don't spread. I will stop flowing if you are going too fast
- Signpost
- Collapse on one argument. Extend links, warrants, and impacts. Don't just say "extend Smith '21", tell me what Smith says and why it's important
- Warrants are SO SO important to me. Don't just assert that something is true, tell me WHY it's true
- Make sure everything you want me to vote on is in summary AND final focus
- Second rebuttal must frontline turns and defense on the contention/argument you are going for
- WEIGH WEIGH WEIGH. Tell me why I need to prefer your impact over your opponent's impact
- Don't run theory or ks - I'm not comfortable with them. However, if there is an actual abuse in the round, please point it out
- If you want me to vote on a turn, please impact and weigh it
- I don't flow cross. If you want me to vote on something that happened in cross, bring it up in the next speech
- Please be kind to your opponents! Everyone involved will get so much more out of this activity if we all treat each other with respect!
- Try to have fun! I know it can be difficult, but at the end of the day this is just a debate round. Your intelligence or worth is not dictated by your success at tournaments. In addition, regardless of your records at tournaments, you are learning and growing just through the time you put into preparing topics. You are doing great!
Please let me know what I can do to make the round a safe space. If you have any questions, feel free to reach out!
Former debater (hs policy and college NDT/CEDA...decades ago) and current parent of a PF debater.
I flow. Good with normative jargon. I care about the line-by-line. Number your arguments and signpost--I like a clean flow. I can handle spreading, I'll call "clear" if unable to keep up. If a shell or the arg is a tad squirrelly be deliberate so I don't miss warrants. If this is a fast-paced, high-stakes Varsity round...I’m not going to be up on the latest literature--so Ks will carry a risk of losing me, and none of us want that! Fancy srategies and theory are cool but slow down the explanations—connect dots for me. If it isn’t my making sense, my face will tell you. Please make it make sense :) I'm going to be best judging a normative round--but I'll listen to any argument you want to make.
Little things I’ve noticed about my preferences in PF (but like any tech judge, I work hard to evaluate the debate based on the round not my preferences)
- I’m a fan of case disclosure--in the hopes it will create a little more ev rigor in PF. My biggest surprise in PF is how little ev is read and scrutinized...but ultimately case disclosure is up to the debaters, not me!
- Housekeeping to cut down on time for ev exchange: start ev chain before round; Include me on the email chain. Make sure your opponents and I get the card doc (if applicable) prior to starting your speech. Card docs should cut full paragraphs, and include highlighting.
- If you offer a framework in your case, lean into it…, meaning it should match your impact/weighing or else it becomes a tad tedious for me.
- I would love to hear more comparative link weighing in PF.
A little FAQ for first/second years:
- I don’t flow Cx. It is binding. But you need to bring it up in your speech to get it in flow. And you don’t have to face me during CX, you can face your opposing team.
- Collapsing is good, if second final focus brings up new arguments, don’t panic. I’m not flowing it.
- Frontline in the second rebuttal. If you don’t, I’ll most likely buy the other team’s argument that it’s conceded.
- Good warranting and implications raises speaks.
I'm pretty laid back...have fun...sit, stand, go barefoot I don't care. Be clear before you'e clever, but be clever.Bring your best strategy, argue it well and have fun. And you do you...I'll flex as best I can!
Procedural Stuff
Call me Blake or BD instead of Judge, I don't like feeling old
Email chain: blako925@gmail.com
Please also add: jchsdebatedocs@gmail.com
Add both emails, title the chain Tournament Rd # Your Team vs. Other Team ex) Harvard Round 4 Johns Creek XY vs. Northview AM.
1AC should be sent at round start or if I'm late (sorry in advance), as soon as I walk in the room
If you go to the bathroom or fill your waterbottle before your own speech, I'll dock 1 speaker point
Stealing prep = heavily docked speaks. If you want to engage your partner in small talk, just speak normally so everyone knows you're not stealing prep, don't whisper. Eyes should not be wandering on your laptop and hands should not be typing/writing. You can be on your phone.
Clipping is auto-loss and I assign lowest possible speaks. Ethics violation claims = round stoppage, I will decide round on the spot using provided evidence of said violation
Topic Knowledge
I HAVE ZERO TOPIC KNOWLEDGE.
I HAVE ZERO TOPIC KNOWLEDGE
I HAVE ZERO TOPIC KNOWLEDGE
I HAVE ZERO TOPIC KNOWLEDGE
I HAVE ZERO TOPIC KNOWLEDGE
I debated in high school, didn’t debate in college, have never worked at any camp. I currently work an office job. Any and all acronyms should be explained to me. Specific solvency mechanisms should be explained to me. Tricky process CPs should be explained to me. Many K jargon words that I have heard such as ressentiment, fugitivity, or subjectivity should be explained to me.
Spreading
I WRITE SLOW AND MY HAND CRAMPS EASILY. PLEASE SLOW DOWN DURING REBUTTALS
My ears have become un-attuned to debate spreading. Please go 50% speed at the start of your speech before ramping up. I don’t care how fast or unclear you are on the body of cards b/c it is my belief that you will extend that body text in an intelligent manner later on. However, if you spread tags as if you are spreading the body of a card, I will not flow them. If you read analytics as if you are spreading the body of a card, I will not flow them. If I do not flow an argument, you’re not going to win on it. If you are in novice this probably doesn't apply to you.
While judges must do their best to flow debates and adjudicate in an objective matter that rewards the better debater, there is a certain level of debater responsibility to spread at a reasonable speed and clear manner. Judge adaptation is an inevitable skill debaters must learn.
In front of me, adaption should be spreading speed. If you are saying words faster than how fast I can move my pen, I will say SLOW DOWN. If you do not comply, it is your prerogative, and you can roll the dice on whether or not I will write your argument down. I get that your current speed may be OK with NDT finalists or coaches with 20+ years of experience, but I am not those people. Adapt or lose.
No Plan Text & Framework
I am OK with any affirmative whether it be policy, critical, or performance. The problem is that the 2AC often has huge case overviews that are sped through that do not explain to me very well what the aff harms are and how the advocacy statement (or whatever mechanism) solves them. Furthermore, here are some facts about my experience in framework:
- I was the 1N in high school, so I never had to take framework other than reading the 1NC shell since my partner took in the 2NC and 2NR.
- I can count the number of times I debated plan-less affs on one hand.
- As of me updating this paradigm on 01/28/2023 I have judged roughly 15 framework rounds (maybe less).
All the above make framework functionally a coin toss for either side. My understanding of framework is predicated off of what standards you access and if the terminal impacts to those standards prove if your model of debate is better for the world. If you win impact turns against the neg FW interpretation, then you don't need a C/I, but you have to win that the debate is about potential ballot solvency or some other evaluation method. If the neg wins that the round is about proving a better model of debate, then an inherent lack of a C/I means I vote for the better interp no matter how terrible it is. The comparison in my mind is that a teacher asked to choose the better essay submitted by two students must choose Student A if Student B doesn't turn in anything no matter how terrible or offensive Student A's essay is.
Tech vs. Truth
I used to like arguments such as “F & G in federal government aren't capitalized T” or “Period at the end of the plan text or the sentence keeps going T” b/c I felt like these arguments were objectively true. As I continue to judge I think I have moved into a state where I will allow pretty much any argument no matter how much “truth” there is backing it especially since some truth arguments such as the aforementioned ones are pretty troll themselves. There is still my job to provide a safe space for the activity which means I am obligated to vote down morally offensive arguments such as racism good or sexism good. However, I am now more inclined to vote on things like “Warming isn’t real” or “The Earth is flat” with enough warrants. After all, who am I to say that status quo warming isn’t just attributable to heating and cooling cycles of the Earth, and that all satellite imagery of the Earth is faked and that strong gravitational pulls cause us to be redirected back onto flat Earth when we attempt to circle the “globe”. If these arguments are so terrible and untrue, then it really shouldn’t take much effort to disprove them.
Reading Evidence
I err on the side of intervening as little as possible, so I don’t read usually read evidence. Don't ask me for a doc or send me anything afterwards. The only time I ever look at ev is if I am prompted to do so during speech time.
This will reward teams that do the better technical debating on dropped/poorly answered scenarios even if they are substantiated by terrible evidence. So if you read a poorly written federalism DA that has no real uniqueness or even specific link to the aff, but is dropped and extended competently, yes, I will vote for without even glancing at your ev.
That being said, this will also reward teams that realize your ADV/DA/Whatever ev is terrible and point it out. If your T interp is from No Quals Alex, blog writer for ChristianMingle.com, and the other team points it out, you're probably not winning the bigger internal link to legal precision.
Case
I love case debate. Negatives who actually read all of the aff evidence in order to create a heavy case press with rehighlightings, indicts, CX applications, and well backed UQ/Link/Impact frontlines are always refreshing watch. Do this well in front of me and you will for sure be rewarded.
By the 2AR I should know what exactly the plan does and how it can solve the advantages. This obviously doesn't have to be a major component of the 1AR given time constraint, but I think there should at least some explanation in the 2AR. If I don't have at least some idea of what the plan text does and what it does to access the 1AC impacts, then I honestly have no problem voting on presumption that doing nothing is better than doing the aff.
Disads
Similar to above, I think that DA's have to be fully explained with uniqueness, link, and impact. Absent any of these things I will often have serious doubts regarding the cohesive stance that the DA is taking.
Topicality
Don't make debate meta-arguments like "Peninsula XY read this at Glenbrooks so obviously its core of the topic" or "every camp put out this aff so it's predictable". These types of arguments mean nothing to me since I don't know any teams, any camp activities, any tournaments, any coaches, performance of teams at X tournament, etc.
One small annoyance I have at teams that debate in front of me is that they don't debate T like a DA. You need to win what standards you access, how they link into your terminal impacts like education or fairness, and why your chosen impact outweighs the opposing teams.
Counterplan
I have no inherent bias against any counterplan. If a CP has a mechanism that is potentially abusive (international fiat, 50 state fiat, PICs bad) then I just see this as offense for the aff, not an inherent reason why the team or CP should immediately be voted down.
I heavily detest this new meta of "perm shotgunning" at the top of each CP in the 2AC. It is basically unflowable. See "Spreading" above. Do this and I will unironically give you a 28 maximum. Spread the perms between cards or other longer analytical arguments. That or actually include substance behind the perm such as an explanation of the function of the permutation, how it dodges the net benefit, if it has any additional NB, etc.
I think 2NR explanation of what exactly the CP does is important. A good 2N will explain why their CP accesses the internal links or solvency mechanisms of the 1AC, or if you don't, why the CP is able to access the advantages better than the original 1AC methods. Absent that I am highly skeptical of broad "CP solves 100% of case" claims and the aff should punish with specific solvency deficits.
A problem I have been seeing is that affirmatives will read solvency deficits against CP's but not impacting the solvency deficits vs. the net benefit. If the CP doesn't solve ADV 1 then you need to win that ADV 1 outweighs the net benefit.
Judge kick is not my default mindset, neg has say I have to judge kick and also justify why this is OK.
Kritiks
I don't know any K literature other than maybe some security or capitalism stuff. I feel a lot of K overviews include fancy schmancy words that mean nothing to me. If you're gonna go for a K with some nuance, then you're going to need to spend the effort explaining it to me like I am 10 years old.
Theory
If the neg reads more than 1 CP + 1 K you should consider pulling the trigger on conditionality.
I default to competing interpretations unless otherwise told.
Define dispositionality for me if this is going to be part of the interp.
Extra Points
To promote flowing, you can show me your flows at the end of a round and earn up to 1.0 speaker points if they are good. To discourage everyone bombarding me with flows, you can also lose up to a full speaker point if your flows suck.
If you're running an email chain, please add me: Andrewgollner@gmail.com
he/him
About me: I debated one year of PF and three years of policy at Sequoyah High, and I debated three year of college policy at the University of Georgia. I was a 2N that generally runs policy offcase positions but, especially earlier in my debate career, I ran many critical positions. I'll try to be expressive during the round so that you can discern how I am receiving your arguments.
Judge Preferences: On a personal level, please be kind to your opponents. I dislike it when a team is unnecessarily rude or unsportsmanlike. I am completely willing to discuss my decision about a round in between rounds, so please ask me if you want me to clarify my decision or would like advice. You can email me any questions you have.
FOR PF/LD:
I am primarily a policy judge. This means
- I am more comfortable with a faster pace. While I don't like the idea of spreading in PF and LD I can handle a faster pace.
2. I am decently technical. If an argument is dropped point it out, make sure I can draw a clean line through your speeches.
3. I am less used to theory backgrounds in your form of debate, slow down and explain these.
4. Ask me any specific questions you have.
FOR POLICY:
I recognize that my role is to serve as a neutral arbiter without predispositions towards certain arguments, but as this goal is elusive the following are my gut reactions to positions. I strive to ensure that any position (within reason, obviously not obscene or offensive) is a possible path to victory in front of myself.
CP: I love a well written CP which is tailored to your opponent's solvency advocate and that can be clearly explained and is substantiated by credible evidence. If your CP is supported by 1AC solvency evidence, I will be very impressed. Generic CPs are fine, I've read a ton of them, but the more you can at least explain your CP in the context of the affirmative's advantages the more likely you are to solve for their impact scenarios.
DA: Make sure to give a quick overview of the story during the neg block to clarify the intricacies of your position. If, instead of vaguely tagline making a turns case arg like "climate turns econ, resource shortages", you either read and later extend a piece of evidence or spend 10 to 15 seconds analytically creating a story of how climate change exasperates resource shortages and causes mass migrations which strain nation's financial systems, then I will lend far more risk to the disadvantage turning the case. Obviously the same goes for Aff turns the DA. I will also weigh smart analytical arguments on the disad if the negative fails to contest it properly. I'm also very persuaded when teams contest the warrants of their opponents evidence or point out flaws within their opponents evidence, whether it's a hidden contradiction or an unqualified author.
T: I've rarely gone for topicality but I have become increasingly cognizant of incidents in which I likely should have. My gut reaction is that competing interpretations can be a race to the bottom, but I have personally seen many affirmatives which stray far enough from the topic to warrant a debate centered over the resolution in that instance.
K: I used to run Ks pretty frequently in high school but I run them far less frequently now. I'm likely not deep in your literature base so be sure to explain your position and your link story clearly.
FW: My gut feeling is that debate is a game and that it should be fair, but I have seen many rounds where the affirmative team has done an excellent job of comparing the pedagogy of both models and won that their model is key for X type of education or accessibility there of. However, I am persuaded that a TVA only needs to provide reasonable inroads to the affirmatives research without necessarily having to actually solve for all of the affirmative. I do find the response that negs would only read DAs and ignore/"outweigh" the case to be effective - try to add some nuance to this question of why negs would or wouldn't still need to grapple with the case.
Non-traditional Aff: I've always run affs with USFG plan texts, but that doesn't mean that these positions are non-starters. I will be much more receptive to your affirmative if it is intricately tied to the topic area, even if it does refuse to engage the resolution itself for whichever reasons you provide.
Theory: I generally think 2 condo is good, more than that and things start to get a bit iffy.
Most importantly, please be kind to your opponents and have a good time.
I'm a tech judge who prefers normal/slightly fast speaking tempo. Make sure to extend in summary and final focus and to always signpost.
LASA 21, Northwestern 25
Put me on the email chain: monicaelise.mej@gmail.com
I debated for 5 years at LASA debate and was coached by Yao Yao Chen and Mason Marriott-Voss. My thoughts on debate are very similar to theirs. I qualified to the TOC and the last year I debated was 2019-2020.
TLDR:
I am fine with basically everything, don't over adapt and do what you do best. I value argument explanation, so please take the time to explain your arguments. This also tends to make me more truth>tech than other judges. I am fine with speed. Don't say stuff that's racist/sexist/homophobic/ableist etc. (but also don't accuse the other team of doing this if they didn't.)
Theory
I lean aff on condo, but in general for condo to be viable for the aff I would like for the aff team to spend more time on it and actually respond to the negatives arguments. In general this is true for theory and everything else. I will probably not vote for you if you aren't responding to your opponents arguments and just reading blocks, but this tends to come up the most in theory debates. I lean neg on agent CPs, Advantage CPs, PICs out of the plan, and anything with aff specific solvency advocates. I tend to lean aff on process CPs, kicking planks, and CPs with no solvency advocate. I am ok with 2NC CPs if there is a reasonable explanation for them. I would like to see more teams be creative with theory; ie use it to justify a perm or as a reason the counterplan doesn't solve rather than just going for reject the team.
Topicality
I don't like evaluating T debates so please only go for T if there is an actual violation and you have a good interp and vision for the topic. This is the argument that I need y'all to explain the most, because it is very topic specific and I will probably not have the context of camp debates and thoughts that y'all do. This is where I think y'all should be doing the most clash and indepth answering the other teams arguments so that I know what is going on.
Policy Affs
I prefer judging affs that have solvency advocates and scenarios that actually relate to each other. The more specific your advantage and solvency advocate the more happy I am. I also wish the neg would take more advantage of how awful many policy affs are and how little their cards say. A good case debate can take out most risk of the aff for me and make it very easy for the neg to win.
Counterplans
I enjoy specific case specific counterplans more than generic counterplans. If you have to run a generic counterplan please at least contextualize to the aff in your explanation. You should have a solvency advocate. I am not a fan of process cps with an internal net benefit. That goes doubly for delay counterplans.
Disads
Disads also require more explanation than debaters often give them. I would really appreicate if more people would spend their time spinning their evidence, especially their link because I know its hard to have aff specific link cards. I also think its often important for the neg to set up multiple links and then chose the best ones in the late debate because it makes it much harder for the aff. I am not the biggest fan for Rider DAs but everything else is fine. Affs should compare how contrived the da is in comparison to aff scenarios.
Kritiks
I am not super familiar with K literature, so I will need you to explain your k. I also think that a K should have specific links to the aff. Similar to the disad section I don't really care if your card is answering the aff but you need to explain how the aff links based on what your link card says. I am harder to convince on structural arguments, but if you put in effort to explain them and apply it to the aff I'll vote for them. I think the best links are to the core ideas of the aff, either being the action of the plan or the core reps of the aff. I am generally skeptical about whether the alt does anything so please explain the more material implementation of the alt. I also think more aff teams should call out alts that are clearly utopian.
Kritikal Affs
Similar to what I said about Ks, I am probably not going to know what your aff is about. I have very limited knowledge on K literature and that is even more true for K affs. Your evidence should defend the same thing and be related to each other, I am going to be even more confused if your evidence is from a dozen different arguments and doesn't clearly connect. You really need to take the time to explain your aff and contextualize it to the topic (this will help you on the framework debate). The neg should try to engage the aff, I get it if you can't if you've never seen anything like it before, but you at least need to engage with the content of the aff at some point in the debate even if it is on framework. I will probably be very lost in K v K debates, but I will do my best just make sure to have very good explanations and don't rely on me having any prior knowledge.
Framework
I am not a huge fan of the fairness impact. I don't think that it can't be used convincingly, but I have yet to hear an explanation that doesn't just feel like two teams reading fairness blocks against each other. I think clash/research impacts on framework tend to be the best, but I am pretty open to anything. I think you should do impact analysis on them though. You should be specific about the ground you have lost, what the TVA is, and how the aff's content could exist in debate in another form. Also please respond to the aff's arguments and disads. The worst and most frustrating Framework debates are when teams just read blocks against each other.
I am a lay judge and I do not have previous tournament judging experience.
Please send your speech doc to srini_kovi@yahoo.com as it will help me follow along.
I am familiar with some of the norms of PF debate, as my daughter has been debating for the last 2 years.
Be respectful to your teammate, opponents and judge, especially in crossfire and let them talk; Do not interrupt them.
I would like to see strong evidence that supports the argument directly.
Any new arguments in final focus will not be considered. Bring them up earlier in the round so that your opponents can respond.
Comparatively weigh; make it clear for me why your argument is more important.
I will be taking notes on the debate.
I am ok with collapsing, but make sure to re-explain the argument.
Speaker Points:
<26.5: Rarely given and only when very poor OR offensive.
26.5-28.9: Average. Most people will get somewhere in this range
29-30: Amazing!
I debated PF and LD for The Lovett School in Atlanta, GA where I did both local and national circuit tournaments.
A few notes on how I tend to judge rounds:
Crossfire is important, but I expect any major concessions to be followed up on and extended in your next speech. If you think a concession from crossfire may become important later, you should summarize + extend it as soon as possible.
I'm ok with debaters being a little bit technical, but I don't want to see a policy round. In PF, I believe debaters should try to argue such that they could understood by someone with little to no debate experience. That being said, I will be flowing the round and using it heavily to evaluate who won- just don't spread or use a ton of debate-specific lingo. In PF, you need to be able to understand the argument and explain it in simple terms.
I will not run prep time for evidence exchange unless it's clearly being abused for extra prep time (in which case I will inform you that I am now running prep for everything). This goes both ways- if I feel that either side is being shady in their evidence practices, I will heavily deduct speaker points and become a lot more sympathetic to arguments that I should vote that side down because of their shadiness. However, I don't like voting for procedural arguments (I much prefer to see teams win the old-fashioned way unless absolutely necessary)
WEIGH. YOUR. ARGUMENTS. It's extremely important that you're giving me concrete reasons to vote for your side by comparing your impacts to your opponents'. It's nice to see in the earlier speeches, but it's absolutely essential in final focus. If neither side can give me a clear path to the ballot (or an obviously better path to the ballot), then I will most likely vote with my gut (i.e. vote on which side I felt argued better overall / evaluate the round more holistically)
For LD:
I'm fine with pretty much anything, but I may struggle with flowing + following your argument if you spread too fast (since I haven't been active in debate for a while). However, feel free to run K's, theory, or whatever you want.
I do prefer to see debates with more framework + philosophical debate. I believe it's core to LD as an activity, and I will look more favorably on arguments with well-developed philosophical positions (both when evaluating the round and when I'm giving out speaker points)
I am a lay judge with no prior judging experience.
Please be respectful to each other.
Create a strong narrative for your side. Additionally please weigh your arguments and compare them to the other side so I have a clear voting decision.
Don't extend through ink and continuously support and re-explain your argument. Don't just say extend X card and not explain it. Give it warranting and reason on why I should consider this.
Please speak at a conversational speed.
Thank you for reading :)
I think that debate should be safe and welcoming for everybody. If you prevent this, I do not want to judge you, and you will not want to be judged by me. This is very important, so I’ve put it first.
LASA 21, Emory 25. I coach for Pine Crest.
He/Him. poedebatedocs@gmail.com
I primarily judge policy debates, but I also understand LD to some extent and have been an instructor at an LD camp. I am familiar with PF as well, but to a lesser extent.
(bad disclosure = bad speaker points)
NOTE FOR ONLINE DEBATE
Fix the microphone echo issues. They're incredibly annoying.
TLDR
Do what you'd like and don't over-adapt. I'm fine with both policy and K strats, but I'd rather hear a specific strategy than generics. I think research is the most important part of debate. I try to be tech>truth but I'm skeptical of garbage arguments. Speed is fine if you're clear. Have good disclosure. Don't say stuff that's racist/sexist/homophobic/ableist etc. (but also don't accuse the other team of doing this if they didn't.)
Theory
If the abuse is egregious I'll totally vote on it. 2-3 condo worlds usually seems ok, but it's easier for the aff to win this debate with more worlds. Well researched strategies and specific solvency advocates help the neg win theory.
Lean neg: most agent CPs, advantage CPs, PICs out of something in the plan, CPs recut from aff ev, basically anything with an aff-specific solvency advocate.
Lean aff: generic process CPs, kicking planks, 2NC CPs, CPs with no solvency advocate, CPs that only compete textually.
Topicality
Not a huge fan! I think about T in a more truth>tech way than I do other arguments. Have specific case lists, examples of ground loss, and a qualified interp that's somewhat contextual to the topic. "More affs bad" isn't good enough.
Policy Affs
Have an actual solvency advocate. I prefer specific impact scenarios like "these countries go to war" over something like "democracy solves everything!" Neg teams should do case debate. Generic framing frustrates me.
Counterplans
Case-specific CPs > generics. Big fan of advantage CPs. If your CP steals the aff to get a contrived internal net benefit, it's an uphill battle to beat the perm. 1NC needs a solvency advocate.
Disads
Good spin and story > dumping 50 cards and hoping I'll sort them out. I prefer DAs based on the outcome of the plan rather than the process, but I'm more down for politics DAs based on stuff like political capital than I am for bad Rider DAs. 0% risk is possible.
Kritiks
Have specific links and explain how the K implicates the aff. Generic state bad or cruel optimism links aren't persuasive. I've got a high bar for structural arguments, but if you do a good job I'll vote on it. Answer examples.
I lean toward thinking the neg should have links to the plan or the 1AC's core ideas (which could include reps, but might not include "your author defended stuff we don't like in an unhighlighted part of the card.") I start the debate assuming the aff gets the plan but you can change my mind.
Tell me what the alt does and give examples if you can. Alts that do something material > alts that think really hard.
Kritikal Affs
Explain what your aff does and why it matters. It should be about the topic, not just a previous year's aff with one topic-adjacent card. You should defend something and be stuck defending it. It's hard to win that your performance actually did something unless your evidence is fantastic.
Neg teams should try to engage with the content of the aff, but I get it if you can't. I'm often persuaded by presumption. K v K debates are awesome, but only if both sides know what's going on.
Framework
Clash/Research > "fairness because fairness." I enjoy creative styles of framework like "T - talk about the topic at all." Tell me the ground you lost, why it's good, etc. Explain the types of debates that would happen in the world of the TVA if you want to go for it.
please add me to the email chain: rroberts5604@gmail.com
1. be nice and respectful :)
2. read anything you want (as long as it doesn't violate number 1)
I'm fairly certain I set the record for the number of bids with different partners in one year
Will vote on anything, absolutely do not care, just do it well!
Here are some defaults that are overcome by breathing 1 word on them:
- No judge kick (Im just some guy, not a "logical policymaker")
- Inserting rehighlightings is fine
- I will not read your evidence (unless you make arguments about evidence quality, they are contested, and I have no way of resolving it without seeing who is objectively correct)
- Presumption goes in the direction that makes sense (If 0 risk of aff offense in squo, vote neg, if 0 risk of neg offense with CP, vote aff. Again, not a "logical policymaker")
- Absent impact calculus, I will vote for whomever I think accesses a higher relative risk of offense (I think this maximizes the likelihood I am voting for the side that did the better debating, while not subjectively determining what that better debating is)
- Aff theory outweighs negative Ks (I think FW meaning Ks are at the same level is a very reasonable argument, but you have to make the argument)
Other stuff:
Personal callouts, in-round discrimination, and evidence (un)ethics are all bad and will not be evaluated offense-defense but rather based on my own subjective understandings of things
Hi I'm Franny (she/her) and I've debated in PF for Lake Highland for 5 years
Please add me to the email chain: yongfr@lhprep.org
I look to weighing for what offense to look to first.
extend and read warrants.
Don't be mean, racist, homophobic, sexist, islamophobic, exclusionary.
If you run prog, run it well or I won't evaluate.
No identity K's, I'm not comfortable voting on them.
If you have any questions feel free to ask.
IF YOU PLAY NEWJEANS I WILL GIVE 30 SPEAKS