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Chicago Debates High School City Championship

2024 — Chicago, IL/US

Judge Paradigm List

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Sophia Franco Solorio Academy High School

Last changed on Sat March 9, 2024 at 1:58 AM CDT

I competed for Solorio (policy) for 4 years and am back to debating for Illinois State University (LD+IPDA).

Add me to the email chain: flowerfranco444@gmail.com

Arguments and preferences-

I love k debate. Was I a K debater? No, Conor Cameron wouldn't let me be one. Live out my dreams for me.

Cap- Is probably the root cause to every issue. That doesn't mean I'm always going to vote for it. If you read this you need to have a very specfic alt. Movements and revolutions is way to vague and gets you no where in the round.

Also, I am a product of Conor so I believe that cap is sustainable. Do what you will with this information.

CPs- Love them, they should be in every 1nc. Consult and process CPs aren't the most persuasive but I'm not against them. I prefer agent CPs and advantage CPs. In terms of answering- don't read a billion perms, perm do both is fine unless you explain the other perms in detail.

T- Hate it<3. Kidding, I only hate it if you use it as a time skew. Only read T if you intend on going for it OR are literally put at a disadvantage in the round/aff is untopical. Education> fairness. Debate is an educational activity, if you're not learning, wyd?

Theory-I don't love it<3but its fine if it makes sense. I will not give you a cheap win for it.

K-I was a K debater in my past life. I like K's but explain them!!! Don't just use old blocks and random K lingo that doesn't actually say anything. If you believe in your K, chances are I will too. With that being said, be intentional with what's in your 1nc.

Performance- If you have music playing in the background, explain why it's there. The more I see performance rounds the more I love it. It is so different from traditional debate and I think it is refreshing.

DAs-Should be in every 1nc. Disad turns case>>>>>>

K affs-Not totally experienced in them, willing to listen and learn. If it makes sense to the topic- go for it! If its a K aff that is around every year, try to connect it to the topic as much as possible because I'm less likely to vote for it.

If ur rude in round, ew+u lose+ur automatically ugly.

Ebun Adesida Northside College Preparatory None

Mawuli Agbefe Jones College Prep

Last changed on Mon January 8, 2024 at 3:53 AM CDT

DONT RUN ENACT EXCLUDES courts in front of me. It’s wrong and absurd. What would a topic excluding the Supreme Court look like on criminal justice topic. The resolution says USFG. Supreme Court part of USFG.

put me on the Email chain. Silvermdc1@gmail.com

IN MOST ROunds I’m not reading every card on the doc because it’s a communicative activity. I’ve learned that often some peoples explanation of their evidence doesn’t line up with what the text says. In a situation where I’m on a panel where the other judges are reading the cards I too will as well.

while you’re speaking I prefer you turn your camera on. Understand if you don’t have bandwidth to support it.

I evaluate disease based/ pandemic based impacts much more seriously now due to ongoing effects of COVID 19. I still believe that debate is a game, educational one however I want to fully acknowledge the serious situation of where we are in our country with policing. I’m sure we can have debates while being tactful and understanding for some folks the issue can be personal.

I'll shake your hand if it's like your last round of high school debate and I so happen to judge it. It's weird to me when a kid tries to shake my hand after a round though. I did it when I was debating and didn't realize how odd it was. Oops.

It's likely that I'll laugh some don't take it personally I laugh all the time and I'm not making fun of you. I'm a human being and have lots of beliefs and feelings about debate but I'm persuadable. I don't flow Cross X obviously but sometimes questions and or answers end up impacting my perception of the round.

Arguments that I like hearing

I love the politics disadvantage, I like strategic counterplans. relevant case arguments, specfic d/as to plans.

Non-traditional AFFs or teams.

I'll listen to K affs or teams that don't affirm the resolution. Honestly though it's not my cup of tea. Over the years debate has been changing and I guess I've changed in some ways with it.

Other stuff

NEW Counterplans in the 2NC I'm not cool with unless the 2AC reads an add on.

SPeaker points
I evaluate how well you answered your opponents arguments, ETHOs, persuasiveness, Humor, STRATEGIC DECISIONS. There are times when one team is clearly more dominant or one student is a superior speaker. That's GREAT!! I'm not going to reward you with speaker points for walloping a weaker team. You're not going to be penalized either but it's clear when you have a challenge and when you just get an easy draw in round.

IF I HAVE NEVER MET YOU BEFORE DON'T EMAIL ME ASKING FOR EVIDENCE FROM ROUNDS I JUDGED

ARGUMENTs I'd rather not hear.
SPARK
WIPEOUT

SCHLAG

Schopenhauer

Arguments I find offensive and refuse to flow
RACISM GOOD
PATRIARCHY GOOD

If we're talking about paradigm I view debate as a game. It's an educational game but a game still. I think most rules are debateable. I think speech times are consistent and not a breakable rule, ad-hominem attacks are not acceptable.

Even if your're not friends with your debate partner treat them respect and please no bickering with them.

I'd prefer if people do an e-mail stream instead of flashing or other methods of sharing evidence.

KRITIKS

I'll listen to your criticism. Few things. I think there needs to be a coherent link story with the affirmative, words or scholarship the affirtmative said in cross-x. Your K will not be a viable strategy in front of me without a link story. It's a very tough hill to win a K in front of me without an Alternative. Debaters have done it before but it's been less than 5 times.

Explain and analyze what the alternative does.
Who does it
How does a world compare post alternative to pre-alternative?

NEgative Framework
Should interpt various words in the resolution
Have clear brightline about why your view of debate is best for education
Address proper forums for critical arguments people make
Have voting issues that explain why your vision of debate is desirable.
I prioritize role of the ballot issues.

PERFORMANCE/POEMS/ Interpretive
I'll entertain it I guess, I'm probaly not the most recceptive though. Explain how you want me to fairly evaluate these concerns. Also consider what type of ground you're leaving your opponent without making them go for reprehensible args like: Patriarchy Good or racism good.

Counterplans
Need to have a solvency advocate
A text
Literature
Can be topical in my mind
Net benefit or D/A to prefer CP to aff

Needs to be some breathing room between Counterplan and plan. PICS are fine however I don't think it's legit to jack someone elses aff and making a minute difference there isn't lit for.
Legitimate Competition

A reason the permutation can't work besides theory arguments.

Theory

DON'T JUST READ THEORY BLOCKS AGAINST Each other. Respond in a line by line fashion to opponents theory args. Dropped arguments are conceded arguments obviously. In a close debate don't assume because you have a blippy quick theory argument it's neccessarily going to win you a debate in front of me if you didn't invest much time in it.

Rebuttals
1. Engage with opponents evidence and arguments.
2. Make contextual differences.
3. Humor is fine but don't try to be funny if you're not.
4. Clarity is preferred over speed. Not telling you to go slow but if I can't coherently understand what you're saying we have a problem. Like if you're unclear or slurr a bunch of words while you're spreading.
5. HAVE FUN! Getting trophies and winning tournaments is cool but I'm more concerned what kind of person you're in the process of becoming. Winning isn't everything.

Topicality

Don't trivialize T. Burden is on the affirmative to prove they are topical. I'll listen to reasonablity or competing Interpretations framework. I don't believe in one more than other and can be persuaded either way. Standards by which to evaluate and voting issues are nice things to have in addition to an Interpretation.

Arguments I like on T that I find have been lost to the wayside.

Reasons to prefer source of dictionary, information about changing language norms and meaning, the usage of the word in soceity currently.

Grammar analysis pertaining to the resolution.

Framers Intent/ Resolution planning arguments

Voting issues you think someone who thinks debate is an educational game would like to hear.

Disadvantages

Link Story that is specific to AFFIRMATIVE.

Impacts that would make a worse world than aff.

Author qualifications matter to me, Sources of your evidence matter to me. How well you're able to explain your claims matter to me. Evidentiary comparison to your opponents authors are saying.

General stylistics things

Some kind of labelling for arguments like numbers or letters before the tags is preferrable. If you have questions feel free to e-mail me. silvermdc1@gmail.com

Jocelyn Aguirre Hire None

Hafsa Amin Northside College Preparatory

Logan Angone Chicago High School for Agricultural Sciences None

Tatiana Argueta Lincoln Park High School

Chime Asonye Whitney M. Young Magnet High School

Taniyah Banks Kenwood Academy

Daniel Bender Lake View High School None

Aasiyah Bhaiji Northside College Preparatory

Last changed on Fri April 19, 2024 at 9:40 AM CDT

UPDATE FOR TOC 2024

a.bhaijidebate(at)gmail.com

gbsdebatelovesdocs(at)gmail.com

**please add both emails to the chain!**

Aasiyah (ah-see-yuh) Bhaiji (by-jee)

any pronouns (pls don't call me judge)

Debated for GBS 2016-2019, qualified to the TOC my third year and was awarded the JW Patterson Fellowship as a member of the graduating class of 2020. I do not debate in college.

I’ve judged around 30 debates on the fiscal redistribution topic. Most of my work related to debate is with Chicago Debates, where I help to build and maintain programs.

SHORT VERSION

"Do your thing, so long as you enjoy the thing you do. My favorite debates to watch are between debaters who demonstrate a nuanced understanding of their literature bases and seem to enjoy the scholarship they choose to engage in...I think judging is a privilege."-Maddie Pieropan.

I flow as much as my fingers will allow me. Slow down on the important parts and always remember clarity should be prioritized over speed.

LONG VERSION

Debate as an activity loses all value when debaters do not consider that there has to be a reason why a team deserves the ballot. I try my hardest to stick to my flow and rely heavily on judge instruction as to how I will write my ballot. YOU DO NOT WANT ME TO CONNECT THE DOTS FOR YOU.

I appreciate debaters who are passionate, excited, and well-prepared. The best debaters I’ve witnessed throughout the years have been the ones who show kindness and respect towards their partners and opponents. I am not a fan of teams that openly mock, belittle, and disrespect the people they are debating.

Clarity is key and seems to be a lost art. I mostly flow by ear and will not catch what you are saying if you blast through your analytics. Please slow down and do not start at 100% speed at the top of your speech.

Planless Affirmatives

I like planless affirmatives, but you absolutely need to defend the choices and explanations you give in early cross-exes. I need to know what your version of debate looks like, and I am finding that most teams aren’t willing to defend a solid interpretation, which makes it hard for me to vote for them.

Please stick to an interpretation once you’ve read it. Clash debates with affs that are centered around the resolution are fun, and I find myself in the back of those debates most of the time.

CPs

I do not default to judge kick; you have to give me instructions. What does it mean to sufficiently frame something? I am so serious. I have been asking this question for what seems like forever now.

I miss advantage counterplans, and I am a less-than-ideal judge for Process CPs (I'm not saying I won’t vote for them, it might do you well to spend a couple more seconds on process cps good in the block).

Solvency advocates are good but not always necessary.

DAs

Zero risk of the DA is super real; sometimes you might not even need a card for it!

DAs as case turns will inevitably end up on the same flow, so please just tell me where to flow things earlier on in the debate.

Biiig fan of 'em.

“Kritiks that rely entirely on winning through framework tricks are miserable. If I am not skeptical of the aff's ability to solve their internal links or the alt's ability to solve them, then I am unlikely to vote negative.”-AJ Byrne

If you cannot explain your alternative using a vocabulary a 7th grader can understand, you are likely using language and debate jargon that I find counterintuitive and, quite frankly, boring.

Why are we putting this as the first off? I will most likely miss the interpretation if you are speeding through it.

Fairness is an internal link, clash is good and I personally think that more teams should be going for portable skills.

I am not good for “our interpretation is better for small schools”.

Other things:

If I could implement the no more than 5 off rule, I would.Obviously against new affirmatives, the circumstances are different, but I firmly believe that everything in the 1NC should be a viable option for the 2NR.
DISCLOSURE IS GOOD!I will try my hardest to be in the room for when it happens and I am not afraid to check teams wikis to see their disclosure practices. If you post round docs and show before I give you my decision, you will be rewarded.
I am super expressive, and you will be able to tell if I am vibing with whatever you are saying. I do have a very prominent RBF. Don’t take it personally; it means I am trying to get everything down.
Fine with tag-team but have found myself becoming frustrated when one debater from a team dominates all of cx. I do think that all debaters should speak at some point during cross-ex.
CX as prep is only justified when there is a new aff or if you are maverick.
The 1AC should be sent out at the scheduled round start time, the only exception is if the tournament is behind schedule and Tab has alerted everyone of the timing change.

More things I have thought about in regards to debate but aren’t wholly necessary to pre-round prep.

There is a difference between speaking up and yelling, I do not do well with debaters talking over their partners.
STOP HIDING ASPEC ON YOUR FLOWS, say it with your CHEST.
I LOVE good case debating, and I get sad when the block treats it as an afterthought.
I had no idea teams gained the ability to remember every single thing their opponent said. FLOW! PLEASE!
Why are we reading the tier 3 argument against planless affirmatives.... let's start using our critical thinking skills
Rehighlighting evidence is a lost art. Bring it back for 2024
Clipping is bad, don't do it. I will clear you twice, and after that, I will stop flowing. If there is a recording of you clipping, it's an auto loss and a talk with your coach
I flow straight down (primarily because of sloppy line-by-line); the more organized your speeches are, the happier I am.
DRINK WATER
I do not care if you put a single card in the body of the email chain.
Have fun and let the games begin!

Rowan Boyle Jones College Prep

Derrick Devante' Braswell Hire

Zachary Brown Hire None

Helena Burgueño Hire None

Natalee Burkat Jones College Prep

Last changed on Tue January 9, 2024 at 10:41 AM CDT

Hi, I'm Natalee.

She/They pronouns

Currently a college student so if I'm remote in my dorm apologies in advance (I prefer in-person WAY more but I'm at UIUC so what can I do)

ADD ME TO YOUR EMAIL CHAINS PLEASE: nataleemburkat@gmail.com

I don't really care what you run as long as you know about what you're talking about and can debate successfully. (I have no preferences and am comfortable with most if not all policy debate arguments)

Remember confidence is key, so if you think you suck just fake it til you make it. I promise you, you will do just fine :)

BE NICE TO EACH OTHER!!- I will not hesitate to give you a 25 if you are rude to your fellow debaters and/or me. ALSO, Debate should be educational and a safe space for any and all students, so any hateful and discriminatory language will not be tolerated and will result in a 25, an automatic loss, and a report to your coach in speaker notes or in person if I know them.

I'm more of a tech judge, so when it comes to arguments, if the debate is close I will tend to rule on who dropped the least amount of arguments (for aff it'd be dropping case+off, and for neg it'd be dropping case)

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE use all your time. Especially if it's the 1/2NC and 2AC, there is always something you could be adding to your argument/addressing to fill up time.

Also, don't hesitate to ask me any questions-- I am always happy to help at any time >:)

By the way, I will always time you, BUT I would massively prefer if you also timed yourselves as I am terrible at giving 5,3,1 warnings, and then you can pace yourself accordingly: so it's a win-win for both of us :)

DEAR JV/VARSITY: PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE STOP SAYING "# OFF" TELL ME WHICH OFF (K,T,ETC)

If you really feel like knowing my personal thoughts on specific argument types you can take a look here, but don't let my opinions stop you from running what you like running:

(take this with a huge "old-person" grain of salt because I was a 2017-2019 debater and that cemented my opinions significantly)

K affs- Back in my day (you will hear this a lot), K affs were a joke and you'd run them strictly for funsies. K affs of today's age deal with more important topics, so I always enjoy listening to them. HOWEVER, I will not vote on a K aff if you stray far from your base argument. K affs are about committing to the bit--- if you don't bring up the point of your K aff in every speech, you're not going to win. Also, my opinion on K affs is they don't really mesh well in the Policy format, so to be voter they must be done with the utmost strategy to not get bombarded by T for 2 hours and lose. Also, you will not be getting phenomenal feedback on K aff structure because I was strictly policy back in my day and I feel like my opinions on structure are probably outdated and unhelpful unless you have a policy aff.

Ts- A good T or two are fun to run as a neg, however, if you drop everything and go strictly T in the end (disregard if you're neg against a K aff), I will not vote for you. Ts are the weakest neg argument in my opinion because it's just an "Ummm actually" arg and there isn't much depth to it to be a significant voter.

Counterplans (CPs)- I love a good counterplan. It is arguably my favorite neg argument type. If you have a good counterplan you are golden in my eyes, as I feel like logically this makes the most sense to do as a neg. In recent years, CPs have kind of fallen off and people are using Ks as a replacement--- don't use a K like a CP, get a good CP and run it and I'll be overjoyed and you'll probably win, assuming the rest of your argument is sound.

Every other argument I have no strong negative or positive thoughts on.

Issues I constantly see in JV and Varsity:

Aff:

Remember you are the aff, don't let the neg's arguments run the debate, and make sure you are always putting the aff at number one importance and impact calc that with whatever neg throws at you.
Don't drop your own arguments and make sure to pay attention to EVERYTHING the neg says and address it. This sounds like common sense, but it is not.
Something that annoys me: make sure your Solvency has a dedicated Solvency section. I'm an oldie and this new structure throws me off every time I judge and you'll hear me complain about it in feedback every time. Make my life easier and just get a dedicated section so I know for sure you solve.
Make sure to utilize your 2AC well--- the 1NC is probably going to pull whatever they can pull, if something doesn't make sense in regards to your aff, read some answers if you have time, but if not just be like "This doesn't apply" and explain why and I'll give it to you. Valid neg args should always be the main focus of your off section.

Neg:

Treat neg like a stock portfolio--- diversify your arguments, the more the merrier. Overwhelming the aff is the best strategy as neg, because the more time you waste for them the less time they have for their arguments and will probably drop more, which results in a win for you.
Controversial opinion: debate (specifically Policy debate) is a game. As a neg, I encourage you to have as many arguments as possible even if they don't make sense in the 1NC to overwhelm the aff. As long as you have some sound arguments, throw in whatever you want.
Never concede an argument until the end. Keep aff on their toes, even if that won't be your end argument. I recommend keeping your discard argument in smaller and smaller doses so you can get the important stuff read and then concede it in the 2NR to waste the optimal amount of aff time.
Impact calc is your bestie--- if the aff is more harmful than helpful and you have valid arguments to back that up, as long as you push this argument, you will win.

Both sides:

Pay attention to clash. If you are only focused on your argument and not the other teams, it'll be a bad debate and no one will be happy. You always want to directly counter and extend the previous 2 speeches as a rule of thumb. (For example: I'm the 2NC so I'm going to pull my arguments against the 2AC with respect to our extensions of the 1NC and make sure everything is addressed from both flows.)
Stay on track--- the amount of times when a minor argument gets turned in the whole debate appalls me. If you are making arguments, that are not strategic, that don't make sense to link to the aff, don't make them. The 1AC sets the precedent, if the rest of the debate strays, it is not an effective or good debate.
The most important one: quality > quantity. When we get to rebuttals, I often get bombarded with hundreds of random statements about the debate at hand. If those are stand-alone statements, I won't consider them voter. You need to say them, and then apply them to the debate, because arguments are useless without depth. Think about the ICE paragraph structure and apply it to every rebuttal you make.
If you are switching between analytics and cards, announce it. It's much more helpful because it signals to everyone when they need to intently listen, as there's no doc to help with comprehension. That being said, if you do read anything that is not sent in a written and readable format, make sure it is clear and concise, especially the important parts. If I don't hear it, it didn't happen--- so make sure the important parts are extremely clear and distinct.

alex burkman Hire

Last changed on Sat April 6, 2024 at 10:09 AM CDT

pls time ur own speeches and prep pls pls pls

she/they

niles north 25

ADD BOTH EMAILS PLEASE:

alebur3@nilesk12.org

nilesnorthnb@gmail.com

----

call me "alex", not "judge" pls!

tech>truth

clarity>speed

FOR ONLINE: i would strongly prefer if cameras were on, but no worries if not

DONT

isms (racism/sexism/etc)
steal prep
take forever for the email chain (its j a pet peeve of mine pls i understand tech stuggles but pls try and be efficent when sending out stuff)

time your own speeches (i probs am not and it is the debater not judges responsibility anyway)
FLOW.
be respectful!
give a roadmap/signpost ("i am going to be responding to what my opponents said" is NOT a real roadmap!)
keep the debate intresting! debates are long, attention spans are short, have some ethos and confidence, it will go a long way! (esp for speaks...)
impact calc. <3
pretend im not flowing, if your opponent dropped something, tell me (but u should be flowin!)
line by line in rebuttal speeches
judge instruction in the 2NR/2AR goes a LONG way, it helps yall, helps me, tell me how i should write my ballot

MISC:

- i have learned i have very prominent facial reactions, if i look confused i probs am, etc

- be nice, have fun, novice year is all about learning feel free to ask questions after the round :)

- im cool with tag-teaming in CX, but please don't talk over/down to ur partner. if that happens, I will probs dock speaks. there is no reason to be rude in CX, it's obnoxious and embarrassing!

- please overexplain rather than underexplain args- assume i know nothing, overexplain everything

+ 0.1 speaks if you make me laugh or make a FUNNY joke about: anybody from Niles North, New Trier, Lane Tech, GBN, Maine East, or Cali Stoga

+ 0.1 speaks if you show me flows after the round

LASTLYYYY: have fun! debate is all about education and getting better, so don't get too stressed, it is truly never that serious and feel free to email any questions after the round :))))

Simon Burstein Lane Tech College Prep H.S.

AJ Byrne Hire

Last changed on Wed April 24, 2024 at 6:48 AM CDT

ajbyrne1018(at)gmail.com

New Trier ‘16

Northwestern '19

Hierarchy of how I want you to refer to me: "AJ">>>> "Mr. Byrne" >>>>>>>>>>"My Dude" >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>"Judge"

Background: I debated at New Trier for four years (2x TOC qualifier) and then at Northwestern for three years. I coached for New Trier from 2016-2019. Back coaching for New Trier for fiscal redistribution topic. In the “real world” I am a pursuing my MEd in School Counseling from Loyola University Chicago.

I have judged 80+ debates on the Fiscal Redistribution Topic

Judging is one of my favorite things to do. 99 out of 100 times I would rather be judging than have a round off.

I value debaters that show enthusiasm, passion, and respect for the game. I am eager to reward preparation, good research, and debaters WHO DO NOT FLOW OFF THE SPEECH DOC. I have nothing but contempt for debaters who disrespect the game, their opponents, or (most importantly) their partners.

Debate is a communication activity. I am not flowing off the speech doc and will not reward a lack of clarity or debaters who think it is a good idea to go 100% speed through their analytic blocks. I will be very lenient for teams that are on the opposing end of such practices.

Planless is fine but you absolutely need to defend that choice. I think that my voting record is slightly neg leaning but that is because I do not think aff teams go for enough offense or they struggle to explain what debate looks like under their interpretation.

I am not voting for any argument regarding your interp being “good for small schools”

Default is no judge kick – I need specific 2NR instruction for me to do that for you. “Sufficiency framing” is not the same as judge kick.

Process CPs are fine (except Conditions I mean c’mon). Probably neg on most theory questions but also not going to let the neg get away with murder just because they are neg. The less generic and more germane to the topic the CP is, the better the neg is. If you are thinking about reading commissions or an advantage CP, I think you should probably read the advantage CP.

Zero risk of the DA is real, zero risking a DA without needing to read evidence is possible.

Plan Popular is not an argument that link turns an agenda DA.

Kritiks are rad. Kritiks that rely entirely on winning through framework tricks are miserable. If I am not skeptical of the aff's ability to solve their internal links or the alt's ability to solve them then I am unlikely to vote negative.

Other things:

Tag-team CX is fine but also sometimes very frustrating to evaluate. If I think someone is not adequately participating in CX, their points will suffer greatly.

Only Mavs and Neg teams debating new affs get to use CX as prep time. If a team wants to use CX as prep time under any other circumstances, the opposing team will be able to read additional evidence during this time.

CX begins at the first question asked, even if that question is something like “What card did you stop at?” (The only exception is “are you ready for cx?”)

Debates need to start on time, please!

More Debate Thoughts

These aren’t intended to be relevant to your pre-round prep. Just some opinions after spending 4 years away from the activity and then judging over 70 fiscal redistribution debates.

Please stop starting your speech at 100% speed. It guarantees that I am going to be unable to flow you for the first 10-15 seconds.
To go off that, why is it considered common practice to have T as the first off in the 1NC? That basically guarantees that I won’t be able to flow an entire offcase position and that doesn’t seem good.
Debaters that try to go fast as possible tend to end up being very slow. Your debate speaking voice should be your regular speaking voice, but faster.
I usually flow on paper, so I take a second to flip between flows. This usually means in every 2AC I miss roughly six perms on the CP because it has become common practice to just dump all the perms at the top of the block instead of the MUCH BETTER practice of spreading them throughout your block.
Seriously, please slow down.
I don’t care if you highlight in purple. Standard highlighting and consistent formatting are a BARE MINIMUM for a speech doc. Otherwise I will assume that you did not prep well for the tournament.
If it can be demonstrated from your wiki that you suck at disclosing I will spend a significant amount of my decision making fun of you. People who suck at disclosure are bad and should feel bad.
From the 2AC onwards, if you are speaking from a computer and not even referencing your flow, you are not debating the right way.
If the 1AC isn’t ready to start at start time, a puppy dies.
Anybody who uses the term “Speaks” to describe speaker points should have more respect for themselves.
Thinking about making it my policy that if I think you are stealing prep, I just give you a 26 without telling you.
Why does nobody read add-ons anymore?
I am pretty sick of <2 minutes of the block being spent on the case pages.
Tournament days are less grueling than they used to be but that has been in spite of debaters best efforts to be as slow as possible. Filling up the debate with dead time means less decision time which is only bad for you. As a wise man once said: “Keep ‘er movin”

Kailey Cabrera Hire

Conor Cameron Solorio Academy High School

Last changed on Wed January 3, 2024 at 1:09 PM CDT

Conor Cameron
ccameron3@cps.edu
he/him/his
Coach, Solorio, 2012 - present

TLDR: Better for CP / DA / impact turn debates

I'll do my best to evaluate arguments as made. When the way I make sense of a debate differs from the way debaters make sense of a debate, here seem to be some common sources of the disparity:

1) I'm pretty ingrained in the offense defense model. This means that even if the NB is dumb, if the aff cannot generate a solvency deficit against the CP, and the aff has no offense against the DA, I am highly likely to vote negative.

Some notes: a) I do not think a solvency deficit needs to be carded; b) more difficult, but I could envision voting on analytic offense against a DA, c) I'm willing to vote on zero risk of the DA, but we'd both benefit from you taking a moment to explain why the offense-defense model is inapplicable in the debate at hand

2) I still think I have a relatively high bar for voting negative on topicality; however, I've tried to begin evaluating this debate more from an offense-defense perspective. In my mind, this means that if the affirmative does not meet the negative's interpretation, and does not have its own counterinterpretation, it is essentially arguing that any affirmative is topical and is conceding a 100% link to the limits disadvantage. I'm highly likely to vote negative in such a debate.

General argument notes:
3) I'm probably more sympathetic to cheaty process counterplans than most.

4) While I may complain, I do vote on the standard canon of negative kritiks. Things like cap, security, standard topic kritiks, etc. are fine. Extra explanation (examples, stories, analogies, etc.) is always appreciated, all the more so the further from my comfort zone you venture.

5) FW vs K Affs: I lean negative. However, I judge few of these debates. Both teams would benefit from accepting that I know very little here, slowing down, speaking clearly, and over-explaining (depth, not repetition) things you assume most judges know.

Other notes
6) I judge because:
a) I still really enjoy debate.
b) Judging is an opportunity to continue to develop my understanding of debate.
c) I am covering my students' judge commitment so that they too can benefit from this activity.

7) Quick reference
Policy---X------------------------------------------K

Tech-----------------------------X-----------------Truth

Read no cards-------X----------------------------Read all the cards

Conditionality good--X----------------------------Conditionality bad

States CP good----X------------------------------States CP bad

Politics DA is a thing-----X------------------------Politics DA not a thing

UQ matters most----------------------X----------Link matters most

Limits----------------------------------X------------Aff ground

Presumption---------------------------------X-----Never votes on presumption

Longer ev--------X---------------------------------More ev

CX about impacts----------------------------X----CX about links and solvency

Denise Carmona Thomas Kelly College Prep

Last changed on Mon April 15, 2024 at 10:41 AM CDT

Den (She/They)

Email:
• For chain, please use crossxnight@gmail.com
• For personal inquiries, contact at dnisecarmna@gmail.com

Background:
• Community Coach @Kelly College Prep (Chicago, IL)
• 4 years of High School Policy Debate experience
• Judging Nat Circuit & UDL Tournaments since '19

Topic Comment(s)

Round Counter: 76

4/4 -- Let's have some fun. Except if you run the Death K. Then perish. Joking aside, run anything you deem fit. This is cities, you should never give your opponents mercy because best believe I never got any. ????

Overview:

I'm experienced with both lay/circuit styles of policy debate. Nevertheless, I default towards a tech over truth style of judging unless said otherwise in-round. In terms of judging preferences, I have none. As evidenced by my judging record, I'm primarily preffed by k-oriented teams. I have judged k v k rounds. I have judged k v fw rounds. k v heg good. Judging these rounds have led me to think of debate in a broader capacity. Despite set preferences, I'm capable of being in back of the room judging stock issues debate.

Overall, I'll do my best to judge rounds fairly. I wholeheartedly appreciate the opportunity to judge. It allows me to better educate myself and teach my students on topic trends and/or strategy innovation.

Chicago/UDL: To answer a common question I get... I judge a multitude number of debates (~40) a year. The debaters I've coached win top speakers & break at locals. My proudest achievement is one of my debaters winning the City Championships! Therefore, I'm confident I'm qualified to judge your round. If you ever have any questions about your rounds, please CC: your coach and reach me at dcarmona16@cps.edu since I'm a school district employee.

What I enjoy:

Disadvantages-- Specific links to affirmatives recommended but generics are fine as long as it's still applicable. In terms of the politics disadvantage, evidence recency takes priority. However, how politicians act > what politicians verbally express. Uniqueness overwhelms the Link is a strong argument.

Kritiks-- Always have specific links to the affirmative. Links predicated off the topic itself doesn't lead to any meaningful educational debate specific to the case being ran. However, that doesn't mean I won't vote for Links of omission if the opposing team fails to answer them. If your strategy entails going for the links as impact turns to the affirmative, tell me explicitly to judge kick the alternative. If the negative has to win that the plan is a bad idea, don't let the alternative weigh the kritik down.

Counterplans-- CP debate is pretty awesome. Multiplank Counterplans are good. Planks that are supported by 1AC authors are even better. I don't have a disdain towards process counterplans. If your counterplan is not carded/supported by evidence in the 1NC, those rounds shape to be an uphill battle for the negative.

Topicality-- For the negative to win Topicality, they must [1] provide a model that best adheres to the topic, [2] exclaim why the affirmative fails to meet that model, [3] flesh out why the negative's model of debate is preferable, [4] evaluating the flow through competing interpretations is best. For the affirmative to beat Topicality, they must [1] explain why they meet the negative's model and/or [2] provide a counter-model that's better for the topic, which leads to [3] more educational and fair debates moving forward. [4] Frame the debate through reasonability.

T-USFG-- Prefer the debate to be framed similar to topicality (better model of debate). However, teams going for the impact turn(s) are welcome to do so. Affirmative teams running an advocacy statement tend to go for "the negative's model of debate is inherently worse, therefore by default the judge should vote for the affirmative's model". Definitely, the best approach when 1ACs are built to counter FW by embedding claims on the game of debate and how to best approach the topic. However, I have seen my fair share of critical affirmative's that.. could be read on any other topic. Negative teams, emphasize switch side debate. Provide TVA(s) under your model of debate. Explain the affirmative's burden and the negative's role in this game. Convince me that the negative should be the one reading all these different theory of powers against teams defending a policy. If they break structural rules such as going over speech time, call it out. Procedural fairness leads to better education. Don't rely too heavily on portable skills, I typically buy claims that people rarely become policymakers after this activity.. I'm a graphic designer for reference.

***If your arguments are descriptive in its explicit/graphic content, please provide a trigger warning pre-round. Let's avoid going to tab at all costs and/or having a procedural ran on you. I will stop the round if the other team deems the environment as uncomfortable.

Hall of Famers---

Rats: Kelly Lin, Lisa Gao, Ramon Rodriguez

Learned From: Armando Camargo, Juan Chavez, Jocelyn Aguirre, Leobardo Ramos, Scott Dodsworth

Gregory Caswell Amundsen None

Gregorio Chavez Pritzker College Prep

Juan Gerardo Chavez Thomas Kelly College Prep

Last changed on Fri March 15, 2024 at 10:07 AM CDT

Debate Experience:I am a former CDL debater; previously, I was on the Kelly High school debate team in the south side of chicago.

Usual ROB: I usually will flow whatever is presented in front of me in regards to the framework debate.

Summary: I'm primarily a k debater My favourite ks are security or anything language based. Of course a clear link must be articulated in order for me to vote for any negative strategy. I'm also a fan of satire arguments, so show me what you got.

Da: No i don't believe in 100% type arguments; if they were 100% they would have already happened. With that in mind, I will most likely vote for the team that gives me the better link and or link story/ No-link. We live in an ambiguous world, so as long as you prove that it is possible ill give you leverage

T: Topicality/ theory debates are probably one of the most important things that I will be most strict on. For me education and critical thinking are the biggest impacts in round. On T, IF there is a clear violation of the resolution within the plan text, as long as you extend the standards I'll probably vote for you.

k:Depending on the k, if im judging you always go for the k. Enough said. Although if i would vote for the k or not is depended on your framework. Doing good line by line on framework is essential for my vote here.

cp: Counterplans to me are usually a waste of time. But again answer all theory debates/ flows and prove some solvency and ill have no problem voting for you

Speaks: Speaks for me isn't on how fast you can go because that's Bs. You need to be organized, articulative,and convincing. Do all these and i have no problem giving high speaks. But keep in mind, you can be all organized/articulative all you want, i have no problem giving a low point win.

prep: Tell me your taking prep, ill time, we are all happy. If i fail to take time, we are all human we all forget, then ill go with whatever time is given to me first. No I'm not one of those, "take prep for flashing" judges. I've had those and im not gonna be it. Take too long though and we will negotiate.

Remember to me debates a game. Above all else its about education and critical thinking.

Steven Cheng Hire None

Jon Cohen William Howard Taft High School None

Abigail Cozariuc William Howard Taft High School None

Lily Craelius Hire

Jose Cruz Hire

Keya Debnath Hire None

Kylin Decker Hire None

Amor Delarosa Pritzker College Prep None

Robert Edwards Phoenix Military Academy None

Kaylan Faraj Northside College Preparatory

Chris Gentry Hire

Last changed on Thu March 21, 2024 at 7:46 AM CDT

Name Chris Gentry

Previous institutional affiliations and role

Appalachian State Debator 4 years, double member parli, experience coaching and judging PF. Policy, Parli

Add me to your email chain chris.gentry.e@Gmail.com

Former Coach Hubbard High School

Former Coach Harker Middle School

Current Chicago Debates Program Manager - 2 years

High school and college debater – graduated college in last 5 years

1.Clarity > speed:Clarity helps everyone, I am happy to listen to you spreading and will happily get most of it, just slow down on the tags so I know where we are if I get lost.

2.Neg positions: Overwhelmingly the biggest issue I see in debate is students poorly linking neg positions. cool your impact scenario is great but your link is weak so I struggle to care.

3. Cross x Don't be rude in cross-x. If your opponent is not answering your questions well in cross-x either they are trying to be obnoxious or you are not asking good questions. Too often, it's the latter.

What is your normal range for speaker points and why? What can earn extra speaker points for a debater? What can cost speaker points for a debater, even if they win the debate?

I give 27.5-30 points, 27.5 being for poor speech, less than 27.5 for abuse. You can lose points for demonstrated abuse in round or poor treatment of partner or opposition. You can gain points through good responses and effective response strategy

Do you say clearer out loud if a debater is unclear? Is there a limit to the number of times you will say clearer if you do? Do you use other non-verbal cues to signal a lack of clarity?

I will say clearer or louder 3 times.

Do you find yourself reading a lot of evidence after the debate?

Not a ton, mostly to confirm accuracy and understanding

Do you evaluate the un-underlined parts of the evidence even if the debaters do not make that an argument?

No, I need the argument to be made for why a thing matters, how it matters, and what it is that matters. I will only read the underlined parts of the evidence if I doubt validity

If you read evidence after a debate, why do you tend to find yourself reading the evidence?

To ensure proper decisions and to confirm accuracy if any cards feel like they are incredible.

What are your predispositions or views on the following:

Topicality.

As long as it is clear and warranted especially on ground loss. I need the impacts to be fully leveled out, and I need there to be solid arguments for fairness impacts.

Theory for the aff versus counterplans and/or kritiks

I definitely prefer critical arguments that are resolution specific versus the generic kritik, however I am fine with the generic kritik as long as you tie it well to your argument and the resolution being debated. I will vote on perm and theory if presented well. That said, I really like critical arguments when they’re not generic and the ideas are clearly articulated. Explain your ideas instead of just throwing terms around. Sure, I may know what the terms mean, but I need to know how you are using them to determine the functionality of the argument. I also think it’s important to not only tell me the importance of (or need for) the interrogation or deconstruction the criticism engages in, but also why should we engage with THIS specific interrogation/deconstruction and what, if anything, it seeks to solve, resolve, change, etc. In other words, don’t drop or omit solvency of the criticism.

Affirmative’s need to read a plan in order to win on the aff:

They don’t need to read a plan but they do need an advocacy that is different than the SQ

Performance teams that use elements other than spoken word (such as songs, dance, poetry, silence) to support their arguments

I find performance-based arguments to struggle on solvency. I find the nature of debate to sometimes be constricting to performance. I am not saying I won't vote for it, I just need you to explain why your performance produces in-round solvency in opposition to the performance of debating/criticizing or advocating for policies

I do think "performance" as critical metaphor can have access to rhetorical solvency, but it's harder for me to access literal solvency. So while I am not biased towards projects or performances so long as they are grounded in some context that is in round, I think they can still be interesting and get a ballot.

What types of debates do you enjoy the most and why?

I enjoy good K v K debates

I enjoy unique critical debates

I also have a large background in policy both in real life and in deate and am happy to handle policy args too

Jake Griffin Lincoln Park High School

Jonah Halloran Northside College Preparatory

Joyce Harduvel Kenwood Academy

Last changed on Sat March 9, 2024 at 6:01 AM CDT

Former UC Lab debater and current Kenwood Academy coach (16-present)

jharduvel [at] cps [dot] edu

The most important things that you can do to get my ballot are:

Strategic overviews that explain how to resolve the key issue(s) of the debate
Comparative warrant analysis
Well-impacted arguments throughout

I strongly prefer to resolve the debate based on the flow rather than by reading your evidence and believe that you should do that explanatory work for me.

I will vote on whatever arguments that you wish to make. I'm more familiar with critical literature so if you're planning for a tech-y policy debate, be ready to explain your arguments thoroughly and do some storytelling in your overview.

Slow down enough on analytics that they are clearly flowable. I believe that there is a threshold you need to meet for me to vote for any given argument. Blippy extensions are going to give me significant pause and even if something is conceded, I need more than "They dropped condo and it's a voting issue for fairness and education!" to vote on it.

Topicality and theory: These debates should include clash, comparative analysis, and impacts just like any other part of the debate.

Kritiks: I prefer when debaters are specific on the link and alternative debates, and when they go for arguments like the K turns case or is a DA to case instead of vague impacts.

Counterplans: I am sympathetic to aff theory arguments against PICs, consult CPs, and process CPs. On the permutation debate, I tend to lean neg and assume risk of a link to the net benefit (unless I am told otherwise, of course).

Speaker Points: I reward line-by-line, comparative impact calculus, clash, creative argumentation, explanation of warrants, and smart analytics. I will deduct speaker points for oppressive language or arguments, rudeness, being purposefully evasive in cross-ex, excessive interruptions of your partner, and ethical violations. Clipping cards or refusing to provide the other team with access to your cards are serious violations, and I will deduct speaker points accordingly whether the other team points these issues out or not.

Matthew Harms Hire

Last changed on Tue February 13, 2024 at 7:55 AM CDT

Matt Harms (he/him), Chicago, IL
mattharms@gmail.com — Add me to the email chain, please.

I was a former policy debater in Illinois in the early 2000s (Pontiac Township High School), attended SDI for policy debate camp, and competed four years in NFA-LD and parli in college (Truman State University). I was a typical 2A/1N and MG/LO debater in those formats. 2022 was my first time back judging competitive debate since NPDA college nationals around 2008/2009. I currently work in early-stage biotechnology/cancer drug development and my college/grad school background is in economics, finance, and corporate strategy.

Judging framework:

I am pretty tabula rasa. Everything is up for debate, including the rules underpinning the activity itself. Tell me the order in which I should evaluate arguments, including K, topicality, case debate, counterplans, DAs and more. The round is ultimately yours.
I tend to evaluate rounds through a net benefits lens unless told otherwise. More than anything, especially in the 2NR/2AR, solve the round for me. Weigh out your individual wins/losses throughout the debate and why you net out in the end as the winner. I love nothing more than people who can objectively identify their losses and then weigh those against their wins.
Give me line-by-line clash in a debate. Do the work for me. Make my flowing easy for me.

My individual preferences are below, but these are just that—preferences. The round is ultimately yours; debate how you would like.

Speed: Back in the old days, we certainly went fast but my pen (or now my laptop) is not as fast as it once was. Please slow down on your tags, cites, plan text, and warrants/analytics at least. If I can't comprehend what you're saying, I'll give two audible "CLEARs" and then just stop flowing the speech if it's still too fast after that. If the debate is by Zoom, please dial back the speed a bit more and over-enunciate.

Links: The number one type of debate I love is one that utilizes strong evidence-based links in DAs/Ks/CPs to the case and topic. Good debate lives or dies on the quality of your link debate in my experience.

Topicality: I generally dislike T debate unless it's pretty clear abuse that can be demonstrated.

Kritiks: Have at it, but the theory underpinning them should make sense to explain, link to the debate round at hand, and have a clear way to evaluate them all within the confines of the debate round. You MUST utilize real world examples in a theory-heavy debate to help an old-timer like me be able to conceptualize how the theory truly would unfold in a real world setting. Otherwise, it's just theory vs. theory and that's tough for someone who may not be as grounded in the K material as you all have been.

K vs K: I sometimes struggle with debates like these, unless it is 100% crystal clear how they each link to one another. Do not assume I have an in-depth background in the theory. A flurry of "isms" back-and-forth is a difficult debate for me to digest and judge for you. Do the work for me. If that's how the round unfolds, I will do my best to sort through the theory, so clarity of message and an explanation of the theory is critical for me to vote your way.

Performance: Same stance as kritiks, it has to make sense for the topic and the round at hand. You must explain why the performance is key to solving the case or topic.

Counterplans: I love 'em. PICs are up for debate within the round. If the neg runs a PIC, the aff can't just shout that it's not allowed. Explain the abuse, explain the unfairness, explain why it matters. I find myself voting aff quite frequently on perm debates, recently. I find arguments about sequencing plan/CP actions interesting and the impact that has on case/offcase net benefits.

Speaker points: Short of something crazy happening, I tend to be 27-30.

After the round: I prefer to give immediate feedback and disclose my vote, unless the tournament guidelines say otherwise. I rarely ask for or review evidence after the round unless a team calls into question the validity of the evidence.

Any other questions, please ask me before the round. More than anything, make friends and have fun.

Daniel Heylin Goode STEM Academy

Jonathan Horowitz Hire

Last changed on Tue April 9, 2024 at 10:47 AM CDT

Hi. I debated at Glenbrook North HS in Northbrook for 4 years, 1.5 in policy and 2.5 in LD. I was the LD coach at Loyola Blakefield HS in Baltimore for 3 years followed by being the debate coach for Chicagoland Jewish HS in Deerfield, IL, New Trier HS in Winnetka/Northfield, IL, Bronx Science, Beacon HS in Manhattan, the director of debate at Mamaroneck HS in Mamaroneck, NY and currently the director of debate at South Shore International College Prep in Chicago. I've also worked at multiple debate camps and have been a private coach for multiple debaters. Trust me, I've seen it all.

Last updated 4/9/24. Changed some words and added my judge kick stance.

I'm fine being on email chains but I'm not posting my email publicly. Just ask before the round.

General stuff:

I will vote on any argument, in any weighing mechanism provided. I do not discriminate, I'm find with speed (though sometimes my flowing can be bad), fine with theory, fine with kritiks, whatever you want to do. It's your round, not mine have fun with it.

-Extensions are key! Every extension needs to have the word extend/pull through the flow/or similar wording attached to it. Then it needs to have a warrant for what is being extended, finally the extension needs an impact back to the weighing calculus. If that is the value/value criterion mechanism then it needs to impact back to the VC that is being used for the round. If that is some other mechanism, it needs to be impacted to that weighing mechanism (theory means voters I guess). That weighing mechanism and the warrants for the mechanism should be extended (In a v/vc model the vc should be extended along with the argument). If these things are not done then the arguments will not be evaluated in the same depth and I might not give you credit, or as much credit, for an argument that you may have clearly won on the flow. I guess in simpler terms I have a high threshold for extensions. Also, when extending please extend along with the warrant please compare your arguments to other arguments. The best extensions are not just argument extensions but have comparative weighing along with the arguments.

-Evidence is not inherently preferable for analytics absent some argument for why I should prefer that specific piece of evidence over a generic analytic. Debaters are smart and well researched on the topic (usually) and so should be able to have a command of what is going on equal to/greater than a lot of experts. Trust yourself and talk about why you are correct instead of some rando newspaper writer who has probably done less research than what goes into the typical 1AC.

- WEIGH! One of the things I'm almost always unsure of after a round is which argument to evaluate first. Do I look to the Disad, the spike, the contention 1? Most debate rounds involve multiple arguments that could "come first" and people telling me the order in which to evaluate arguments and which arguments are more important makes my life easier. It also means you'll be more likely to win because the argument that you're saying is most important/comes first is probably also the one that you're winning the most. WEIGH! Seriously WEIGH!

On Non-T affs:

You ought pretend to be topical. Topicality means different things to different people and I think that the topic and what topicality means can change in debate and in different debates. However, the aff should claim that they are talking about the topic. What the topic means to you and how it functions might be different than the "traditional" method and that's fine! How you make that claim or whether that claim is true can be (and should be!) contested in the round.

- Other thing: It has become very clear since 10/7/23 that settler-colonialism justifies mass atrocities. I will vote against it much as I vote against people who say or uphold racist/sexist/homophobic or other harmful ideologies.

- Feel free to come up to me at any tournament and ask me questions about anything, I can't guarantee you a great answer but I can guarantee that I will try to respond.

LD Paradigm:

Things I've noticed about my preferences for debate: (This is just a list of things I like, none of these are necessary to win a round but they do affect my judging)

- I tend to prefer debaters who debated similarly to how I debated. What does this mean? I debated in an old school national circuit LD style. On the aff that meant a very broad criterion with mutually exclusive contentions that I tried to kick out of as much as possible (usually at the end of the 2AR, I had one contention and maybe framework). On the neg, it meant a short NC, no more than 2 minutes, with extensive analytical responses to the aff. While it might not help you win the round, debate has changed a lot, it will help your speaker points.

- I like a 2AR that isn't on the flow. What does this mean? The 2AR should be more of a story speech that merely references the flow. A lot of weighing/crystallizing or time on voting issues.

-I like even/if stories. They tend to make the round clearer and make my life easier.

-LD debaters need to stop saying "we" when referring to themselves. You are a singular human being and not one half of a partnership. If you say "we" while referring to yourself you will lose 0.1 speaker points. I will also interrupt your speeches to ask "who is we?" Be prepared.

-I'm a leftist politically. Property rights arguments and other capitalist arguments are not particularly persuasive to me and I don't like hearing them. That doesn't mean I won't vote on them, it just means if you have something else it's probably a good idea to run it.

-I presume coinflip. That means if I can't find any offense or way to vote I will flip a coin to decide the round. I have done this quite a few times and never want to do it again but I'm not afraid to do it and if I think your round warrants it, a coinflip will happen. (That said the only times I've done it has been in rounds where there have been on offense by either side so as long as offense exists I will not flip a coin).

-I like philosophy, I am a philosophy major. That said I'm not good at flowing it, especially when spread at the beginning of the speech. So if you do read philosophy slow down a little bit so that I can catch your arguments.

-Going off that last point, my major is in continental philosophy; which means I take classes on all those critical authors you've wanted to use in rounds. Kritiks are wonderful! If you know what are you talking about, please run them in front of me. Ks do not need an alt, though it is preferable. Make sure to understand the interactions between your position and the position of what your opponent is running.

- Please start the AC/NC with I affirm/I negate. It doesn't take away from your word economy and it gives me a second to "catch up" and get used to your spreading/debating voice so that I don't miss your first argument. You don't need to re-state the resolution though, that's unnecessary.

-Something most debaters forget is that as a judge I do not look to see what you are reading while you are reading it. I don't read the cards on the email chain until after the round. Therefore, be more specific in signposting then off the Martin card 1..2..3 etc. Don't just say Martin, say what Martin said as well, because I might not have gotten the author name Martin but I got the argument they made. Also, be clear about where Martin is on the flow. If Martin is a contention 1 card, say that she is in contention 1. Virtual/Computer debate note: I do ask to be on the email chain but I don't read the cards on the chain until after the round so this still applies.

- Policy style arguments have started to come more and more into LD and people like running them in front of me. That's fine, I really like them. However, if you are running them you also take on policy-style burdens. For example, if you read a plan then you have to fulfill the 4 criteria of the HITS (if you don't know what that is, you shouldn't be running a plan. Also, considering the last person to lose on significance was Tom Durkin in the 1978 NDT, significance doesn't matter anymore). Most importantly, is that policy has a status quo whereas LD does not. That means that you need to orally give me the dates of evidence! If you're running a DA I need to know that the uniqueness is actually unique, if it's a plan that the inherency is actually inherent etc. Evidence without dates on it means that I won't give you credit for uniqueness or inherency claims that you need in the debate round. If your opponent points out that you didn't read those dates then I will give zero credit for any uniqueness/inherency claim and assume that your evidence is from 1784 and take away any offense that is based off of that plan/DA (I will also give said opponent at least a 29). So make sure to tell me those dates!

- I've recently read A LOT of social movement theory and have also been actively been involved in crafting strategy for a social movement. This has made me significantly more wary of most kritik alternatives. Kritik alts either make no sense, are not realistic, would never be adopted by wide ranging social movements, or are actively harmful to spreading social movements. It won't change how I vote, if the alt is won, but it does mean that common sense arguments against K alts will be considered more important. But if you look at my earlier stuff from Ks you'll see that I don't even think an alt needs to be read, so, you know, think about that risk.

- A priori/pre-standards arguments/other tricky-esque nibs. If you are losing everything else on the flow I need a reason to uniquely prefer your 3 sentences over the rest of the flow. If that does not happen I will find it very hard to vote for you over somebody else who is winning the rest of the round. Not that I won't evaluate the argument at all it will just be weighed against the rest of the round and if someone else is winning the rest of the round I will vote for the person winning the majority of the round. In simpler words if you go for an a priori, go for it hard. I'm not going to buy it simply because it is dropped.

- Metaethics. Basically, meta-ethics cannot be used as a "magic wand" to get out of framework debate. You still need to provide an ethic to meet your meta-ethic. Just saying my meta-ethical util comes before your ethical deont haha! is not enough. Language might be indeterminate but that doesn't mean we default to util (or deont) unless it's justified.

Since everybody asks me about how I evaluate theory here it is:

I don't mind theory, I will vote on it and I will vote on it in cases where I think no actual abuse has occurred or even times where the argument itself is patently non-abusive. But before you rush to pull out your three theory shells, I really don't like voting on it. Moreover, of all the decisions where people have argued with me after the round, 2/3 of them are because of theory. My paradigm seems to be different than other judges so I would say run theory at your risk. Now of course you're asking why is my paradigm different? Simple because I don't default to a monolithic competing interpretations framework, you don't need a counter-interp/RVI/etc. to win theory (though it is helpful and in a case of offense vs. no offense I'm going to default to offense). I'm not as technical on theory as other judges, simply saying my argument is not abusive, drop the argument not the debater, or even talking about reasonability will probably be enough to convince me to not vote on theory. In other words, I default to reasonability, though will be persuaded otherwise. Also, in a round between two equal theory debaters or even a round where both debaters have competent theory blocks, theory turns into a crapshoot (which, by the way, is most theory rounds) so while I will do my best to sort through it that doesn't mean my decision won't be somewhat random.

Also, I guess most LD judges don't evaluate theory this way so I should point this out. If you only go for theory in the NR/2NR or 2AR then the affirmative/negative does not need a RVI to win the theory debate because the only offense at the end of the round is on theory which means that I am merely evaluating who did the better theory debating and not worrying about substance at all. The RVI only comes into play if there is a contestation of substance AND theory at the end of the debate.

Policy Paradigm:

I will vote on any argument, in any weighing mechanism provided. My main philosophy is it's your round not mine so do what you want. I think a lot of how I judge policy is probably transferred from LD so look there for good stuff. One caveat to that, if there is something that seems very specific to LD (like saying "we" for example) do not bring that into a policy context.

Obviously I have some caveats for that:

First and foremost is that LD is most of what I've debated and coached. Though policy kids have this outdated version of what LD is, there is now every argument in policy in LD also with extra stuff too! I am fine with speed etc. Don't worry about that but I'm still a LDer at heart so be prepared. I've been mostly coaching policy since 2018 or so meaning that I've caught on to a lot more of the nuances of policy debate. At this point I coach more policy than LD so this is changing.

The other important take away is that social conventions of what you can and cannot do in LD and policy are slightly different. For example, RVIs in LD are not joke arguments but made in almost any theory round (though I don't like RVIs in policy). LD does not have the concept of overviews in the same way as policy and what is considered "line by line" is very different. I've been able to figure out most of these biases but occasionally I'll mess up. Just be aware.

I default to reasonability on T and theory issues.

I don't know why this has become a thing but apparently people don't say AND or NEXT after finishing cards in the 1AC or 1NC. You still need to do that so that I know when to flow.

I just learned what this term means but apparently I judge kick if that matters to you (and I think I'm understanding the term correctly)

Utilitarianism is moral philosophy that evaluates the morality of actions based on the consequences. This means that small scale/structural violence impacts are utilitarian because we care about the consequence of structural violence. Stop saying these arguments are not utilitarian or answering them as if they are not utilitarian. They are.

Cyrus Jackson King College Prep

ivette juarez Pritzker College Prep

Eli Kay-Oliphant Hire None

Samuel Klingher Hire None

Halley Lane Hire None

Sarah Lasken Lincoln Park High School

Last changed on Thu January 18, 2024 at 7:47 AM CDT

Name: Sarah Lasken

Experience: I was not a debater in high school or college, but I have been the coach for the Lincoln Park debate team for the past 2.5 school years.

Email: slasken1@cps.edu

General Thoughts:

Clarity: Clear communication is essential. I understand the drive to spread as fast as possible, however if I can’t hear your arguments or warrants I can’t vote on them. Also, consider that I am not a trained debater myself, so I wasn't trained through that experience to process a vast amount of information at a rapid pace. Please speak very clearly. Furthermore, please provide clear signposting to help me follow your arguments. Number your contentions and make it evident when you're moving between them or responding to your opponent's points. Speak slowly and clearly when you are providing your tags/citing the source.
Neg positions: Whether you use a DA, CP, or K my top priority is you must explain HOW your argument links to the Aff/Resolution. Explain how the plan causes the DA, HOW EXACTLY the CP solves the problems of the resolution better than the aff, and how the K links to the aff. If you don't explain the link to the case and how you get to the impact, it doesn't matter if you're winning impact calculus.
Framework/Topicality: I appreciate a well-argued topicality Neg because I do fundamentally believe that debate should relate to the resolution; however this is NOT a hard fast rule. I can definitely be persuaded by a strong K Aff that presents warrants for why there are fundamental flaws in the philosophy presumed under the resolution. I just need those flaws to be very clear.
K affs: The relevance of the K Aff must be clear and the team must present the real-world implications of the aff. How does it address significant societal issues and why is it relevant in the context of this debate and this resolution?
Performance affs: I often do not find performance affs persuasive because I find them to be outside the bounds and purpose of debate. That doesn’t mean I have never been persuaded by a strong performance aff, however it required clear verbal explanation of the relevancy of the performance

Other Considerations:

-I expect debaters to keep track of their own prep time.

-I may ask you to slow down (multiple times) if I am unable to parse your words/argument.

Gianna Ledesma Lincoln Park High School

Briajia Levi King College Prep

Last changed on Wed January 24, 2024 at 1:55 PM CDT

Email: Briajia.l@gmail.com

Bri (She/her)

Policy/LD rounds

Background- Debated policy for 6 years. LD/Policy judge over 6 years.

Speed

Spreading is fine, please be sure to slow down on the tagline and when quoting evidence so I can properly flow the arguments in the round. I also recommend that debaters share the files before each speech just in case I miss anything on flows during the speeches. I also do not recommend fully spreading in the rebuttal rounds. At the end of the day, just try to be as clear as you are able to.

Adjudicating rounds

I am very traditional when it comes to policy debate and my judging style is very straight forward. If you are Aff please convince me how the Aff solves for its impacts. Be very cautious to extend solvency and impacts throughout the round. I would also recommended an overview at the beginning of the second affirmative speech.

Neg team should be careful not to be abusive and run frivolous off case arguments only as a time advantage. When there is multiple off case arguments in a round, the neg needs to let me know what they want me to vote on. Make sure all off case arguments have the components needed to win, a dis ad needs a strong link and impact and a counter-plan needs to have a net benefit for me to vote on it.

Kritik Rounds

I am open to non traditional Affs but are very hesitant to vote on them if they are not ran properly or explained in a way that I am able to understand. I think it is very important for the team to explain to me why running non traditional Aff is a better move than policy. Other than that I am open to all arguments and case types, as long as I have something to vote on at the end of the round. I really enjoy fun and creative K affs. I am very big on solvency and even though an Aff may not be policy it still needs to solve in some way. Please run what you like, it just needs to be clear. I have heard K affs for the first time that have completely changed my perspective on judging/debate. If you feel confident in your K aff then please run it. I always keep an open mind.

Neg teams that run Ks need to do a good job at explaining the K, also if there is an alt , you must convince me how the world of the alt solves and there needs to be very clear explanation. In other words, the alt needs to make sense. I do not recommend running a K that you do not fully understand, it will likely cause you to lose the round.

Assigning Speaks

I assign speech based on the clarity of the debaters in the round and the overall quality of the speeches from each debater. Debaters who are more convincing and strategic are more likely to get higher speaker points.

I sometimes doc speaker points if debaters are rude to each other in cross ex, there is nothing wrong with being aggressive or strategic in cross x but it needs to have a purpose. Let's have fun and be respectful.

Kritiks I like to hear: Afropess/antiblackness, settler colonialism, Security, Cap K, Anarchy, Disability K, Black Fem

FYI-(Please do not send me emails outside or after a tournament, Judges are only allowed to have contact with debaters during a round/tournament.) it’s fine to ask questions after a round on clarification or how to improve but please don’t post round me, especially coaches! Please be respectful. Decisions are final and I’ve already submitted the ballot before giving feedback per tournament rules.

Andrew Lisec Goode STEM Academy None

Zucie M Lopez Solorio Academy High School

Francisco Lopez Zavala Thomas Kelly College Prep

Last changed on Tue February 6, 2024 at 10:53 AM CDT

Overview:

I debated at Thomas Kelly College Preparatory High School for three years (2016, 2017, and 2019). I ran mainly policy arguments with the occasional K Aff. I later did Model Illinois Government in College (2019-2023) in which the debate style simulated the Illinois General Assembly. I like POLICY and POLICY DRIVEN SOLUTIONS. Debate tests your argumentative skills and ability to understand complex solutions while providing some sort of conclusion at the end, whether that is maintaining the status quo or creating a new system. I am not the biggest fan of K Affs, but run what you want and explain both how and why this approach is better than the status quo.

My email for the chain:francisco.lopez.4419@gmail.com

Specifics:

Affs:

I prefer a policy-driven approach for the conclusion of a debate. I like seeing the different arguments being made as to the downsides and benefits of various literature-based solutions to the various complex issues facing society. There is NO ONE SIZE FITS ALL solution to even the smallest of impacts, but explain to me why your approach is better than the rest. If you want to change my ROB from a policy-focused one to anything else, then make it an issue and explain why this is necessary for the debate round. If you running a K AFF then just walk me through it, make it simple, and seem realistic as a solution.

Neg:

DA:

Prove the link, make it as strong as steel. Impact CALC it to outweigh the AFF and I'm sold.

Not a huge fan of this but will vote on it if all other arguments are even or stale. Explain why their interpretation is bad and why this is as important as a voting issue for it to be the deciding factor of deciding who wins/loses the round. Being on topic matters, but walk me through how they are untopical and why this is so important to the debate round. If you can't prove the Violation then I'm not sold.

CP's:

I enjoy policy driven CPs. Different actors, funding mechanisms, etc. But focus on SOLVENCY MECHANISM and OUTCOMES. What is the net benefit, why does this matter enough to go with the CP instead of the original AFF, why is PERM good/bad/impossible, and how do you solve better?

K's:

Not the biggest fan of K debates but I can be convinced.

Most familiar with Capitalism, Neo-Liberalism, and Antiblackness K's. PERFORMANCE K's are great, but make the SOLVENCY MECHANISM shine. Make the K seem more realistic, more desirable, and more effective in addressing the real-world issues under the year's topic/AFF.

Other Thoughts:

- Impact calc is very important, but tie this with the solvency mechanism. Why is your important more than your opponents, and why is the solvency mechanism good/bad?

- I'll vote on anything just walk me through it and get me across that finish line.

- Be respectful of time, each other, and the literature. You all know your stuff, show it while recognizing we're all human debate machines.

I think running 10 cards can be better than 1000, explain the arguments and walk me through the issue and solution the whole round. Make me care about the debate round and want to come running 999 miles to deliver my ballot in your favor.

Samantha Malone Hire None

Raman Mazhankou Hire

Devon McSager Kenwood Academy

Last changed on Wed March 20, 2024 at 12:46 PM CDT

Debate Experience
I've never debated

Coaching Experience
Kenwood Academy- Chicago, IL 2014-present
*My main focus is coaching and supporting the novices (and ordering the bus). If you're planning to run a strategy far outside something that a generic novice would be able to understand I likely won't either... (okay, maybe that is cutting myself a little short- but truthfully ...)

drmcbride@cps.edu

I try to enter the debate as neutral and open as possible. I want to hear clash and a good demonstration of understanding from the AFF and NEG (if you're reading a card you should understand and be able to explain it - especially in R speeches. basically "why is this argument or evidence important". I find I give slightly more leniency to the negative in terms of understanding especially for novice debaters, but, Affs you chose the case so you should know and understand your own cards and plan.

Good signposting is so important to me and really helps me to flow arguments and not waste time trying to figure out which flow you've moved on to.

I'm always looking for good impact calc and a good solid explanation of why your team wins over the other. "they dropped x-y&z" often isn't good enough for me- why were those arguments essential for them to win and without them they have now in your interpretation lost the round.

I'm okay with spreading as long as I can understand what you're saying. don't just assume because you sent out the cards that you can blur all of your words together. If I can't confidently flow it then I wont and it wont be part of my decision. For novice debaters it is often helpful to slow down for the tags. sign posting and a clear roadmap are also essential to a well organized debate. (it might not be normal but I love when debaters give the name of their offs in the 1NC- just helps me stay organized).

K- I enjoy K debates as long as the NEG really understands their advocacy and their alt. If you can't explain it you likely can't defend it well.

DA- cool.

CP- also cool. nothing big to note here. (I'm a little boring and I like a CP to be paired with a clear DA)

please run your own timer

Racism, bigotry, homo/transphobia, antisemitism, Islamophobia, or hatred towards a group is never acceptable and I will give the win to the other team almost automatically.

Be respectful and assume best intent from your opponents.

Adrian Medina Thomas Kelly College Prep

Linda Meharenna Hire None

Daniel Melero Solorio Academy High School

Jasmine Mendez Goode STEM Academy

Last changed on Sat April 6, 2024 at 5:21 AM EDT

Jasmine K. Mendez

Jkmendez2401@gmail.com

Former Solorio Debater (Solorio '19)

Current Sarah E. Goode Debate Coach

@RCC/NatCir:I will not vote on something I do not understand by the end of the round. If you are going for an argument, you should be able to explain it adequetly. This goes for K's, CP's, Da's, and Affirmatives.Tell the story.

@k-aff teams:I have a very low threshold for the negative framework debate against a K-Aff. It is your responsibility as the team that chose to read a K-Aff to prove why this round is key, what my role as the judge is in your literature, and (especially) what your mechanism is. If you do not do that work and expect me to do it for you then I will err the side of the neg on framework.

** Forewarning: RUN K'S AT YOUR OWN RISK* My understanding of K's isn't the best and my understanding of framework is just as great which means that you need to be able to make a lot of things both clear for me and structured--> being able to have great clash on specific arguments in the K and being able to explain why it means that I prefer your arguments or vote for you or evaluate your arguments first is much appreciated.

Generally: Truth over tech. I am good with speed but prefer articulation and analysis of arguments more than I prefer a card dump in speeches. In terms of arguments, DA's and CP are probably the best things in front of me; however, I was once a Fem debater for 2 years and dabble in the Cap K. That said, make sure that you are able to explain the link and alternative to me! T should be 5 minutes in the last rebuttal if you're going for it and must be articulated well, give me a clear reason as to why allowing this specific aff is dangerous to debate as a whole.

Affirmatives: Saying that I am not great with planless affirmatives would be an understatement. I usually will vote for topicality against such affirmatives than I would vote against it.

Disadvantages: I tend to understand politics DA's well. DA's with weak or ridiculous I/L can be hard for me to evaluate but I will tend to gravitate more towards the link debate. It is your burden to prove the magnitude and likeliness of the DA, "I will not assign zero OR 100% weight to an advantage or a disadvantage" (CBC, 19)

CP: It is your burden to prove that a CP is theoretically illegitimate. When debating counterplan theory, both sides must have an interpretation of what a negative can and can't do. Conditionality is also difficult to win unless in round abuse can be proven.

Topicality: If the negative is able to effectively construct a strong limits story with a specific caselist and terminal impact work. I'm less inclined to vote on aff "education" standards because I do believe that simply reading the aff as a counterplan or some topical version of the aff can resolve that. In the final rebuttals (specifically the 2AR) I will never be persuaded by the "come on judge" but rather prefer a substantiated explanation as to why their counter-interp is good for debate.

Kritiks: I will vote on the K when the neg wins that the impact to the k outweighs and/or turns the case or when the neg wins some framework interp that mitigates aff offense. I will lean towards the aff on framework unless a neg framework standard that isn't solved by weighing the impacts to the links vs. plan.

Michelle Mowery Brooks College Preparatory Academy HS None

Vanessa Ginikanwa Obi Hire

Last changed on Thu October 5, 2023 at 10:15 AM CDT

JUDGES INFORMATION SHEET

Name Vanessa Obi

City Kansas City State KS

1) Did you debate in high school? X Yes ☐ No

Number of years 5

2) Did you debate in college? ☐ Yes X No

3) How many elimination rounds have you judged on this topic? 0

4) How many preliminary rounds have you judged on this topic? 7

5) List tournaments where you have judged this year: Red/Maroon and Blue/Silver

6) Please choose the following that applies to your judging criteria:

C I. Which best describes your priorities in judging debates?

a. Communicative skills are more important than the resolution of substantive issues.

b. Resolution of substantive issues is more important than communication skills.

c. Communication skills and resolution of substantive issues are of roughly equal importance.

E II. Which best prescribes your paradigm or approach to judging debate?

a. Skills emphasis (Who does the “better job of debating”)

b. Stock issues emphasis

c. Policymaker emphasis

d. Hypothesis testing emphasis

e. Tabula rasa (judge adopts perspective according to standards in the round)

f. Other

E III. What speed or rate of presentation do you prefer?

a. Slow and deliberate – conversational pace, speed discouraged.

b. Moderate contest rate (e.g. – extemp) faster speed discouraged.

c. Fairly rapid delivery acceptable so long as the presentation is clearly enunciated-very rapid speed discouraged.

d. Very rapid delivery preferred.

e. No preference regarding speed.

D IV. Counterplans are:

a. Never acceptable

b. Rarely acceptable, and only if specifically justified by substantive plan mandates.

c. Acceptable if justified, and if consistent with other elements of the negative approach.

d. Acceptable even if inconsistent with other elements of the negative.

C V. Topicality is:

a. Very important in my decision; I consider it a paramount issue.

b. Fairly important; roughly on par with other major issues in the round.

c. Rarely important; violation of topicality must be fairly blatant to win my ballot.

d. Almost never or never important to my decision-making process.

A VI. I find generic disadvantages:

a. Reprehensible; I prefer specific real-world arguments.

b. Acceptable if specific links are clearly analyzed.

c. Generally acceptable.

C VII. I find kritiks:

a. Reprehensible; I prefer specific real-world arguments.

b. Acceptable if specific links are clearly analyzed.

c. Always acceptable, I love Ks!

Sonny Patel Hire

Last changed on Fri February 9, 2024 at 1:23 PM CDT

UPDATED FOR THE THE GLENBROOKS 2023

uclabdb8@gmail.com

***history***
- Director of Programs, Chicago Debates 2023-current
- Head Coach, Policy - University of Chicago Laboratory Schools 2015-2023
- Assistant Coach, PF - Fremd HS 2015-2022
- Tournament of Champions 2022, 2021, 2018, 2016
- Harvard Debate Council Summer Workshop - guest lecturer, lab leader
- UIowa 2002-2006
- Maine East (Wayne Tang gharana) 1999-2002

***brief***
- i view the speech act as an act and an art. debate is foremost a communicative activity. i want to be compelled.
- i go back and forth on kritik/performance affs versus framework which is supported by my voting record
- i enjoy k v k or policy v k debates. however i end up with more judging experience in policy v policy rounds because we're in the north shore
- academic creativity & originality will be rewarded
- clarity matters. pen time on overviews matters. i flow by ear and on paper, including your cards' warrants and cites. people have told me my flows are beautiful
- tag team cx is okay as long as its not dominating
- don't vape in my round, it makes me feel like an enabler
- i have acute hearing and want to keep it that way. kindly be considerate of your music volume. i will ask you to turn it down if it's painful or prevents me from hearing debate dialogue

**background**
identify as subaltern, he/they pronouns are fine. my academic background is medicine. i now spend my time developing programming for Chicago's urban debate league. you may be counseled on tobacco cessation.

**how to win my ballot**
*entertain me.* connect with me. teach me something. be creative. its impossible for me to be completely objective, but i try to be fair in the way i adjudicate the round.

**approach**
as tim 'the man' alderete said, "all judges lie." with that in mind...
i get bored- which is why i reward creativity in research and argumentation. if you cut something clever, you want me in the back of the room. i appreciate the speech as an act and an art. i prefer debates with good clash than 2 disparate topics. while i personally believe in debate pedagogy, i'll let you convince me it's elitist, marginalizing, broken, or racist. in determining why i should value debate (intrinsically or extrinsically) i will enter the room tabula rasa. if you put me in a box, i'll stay there. i wish i could adhere to a paradigmatic mantra like 'tech over truth.' but i've noticed that i lean towards truth in debates where both teams are reading lit from same branch of theory or where the opponent has won an overarching claim on the nature of the debate (framing, framework, theory, etc). my speaker point range is 27-30. Above 28.3-4 being what i think is 'satisfactory' for your division (3-3), 28.7 & above means I think you belong in elims. Do not abuse the 2nr.

**virtual debate**
if you do not see me on camera then assume i am not there. please go a touch slower on analytics if you expect me to flow them well. if anyone's connection is shaky, please include analytics in what you send if possible.

**novices**
Congrats! you're slowly sinking into a strange yet fascinating vortex called policy debate. it will change your life, hopefully for the better. focus on the line by line and impact analysis. if you're confused, ask instead of apologize. this year is about exploring. i'm here to judge and help :)

***ARGUMENT SPECIFIC***

**topicality/framework**
this topic has a wealth of amazing definitions and i'm always up for a scrappy limits debate. debaters should be able to defend why their departure from (Classic mode) Policy is preferable. while i don't enter the round presuming plan texts are necessary for a topical discussion, i do enjoy being swayed one way or the other on what's needed for a topical discussion (or if one is valuable at all). overall, its an interesting direction students have taken Policy. the best form of framework debate is one where both teams rise to the meta-level concerns behind our values in fairness, prepared clash, education, revolutionary potential/impotence, etc. as a debater (in the bronze age) i used to be a HUGE T & spec hack, so much love for the arg. nowadays though, the these debates tend to get messy. flow organization will be rewarded: number your args, sign post through the line-by-line, slow down to give me a little pen time. i tend to vote on analysis with specificity and ingenuity.

**kritiks, etc.**
i enjoy performance, original poetry & spoken word, musical, moments of sovereignty, etc. i find most "high theory," identity politics, and other social theory debates enjoyable. i dont mind how you choose to organize k speeches/overviews so long as there is some way you organize thoughts on my flow. 'long k overviews' can be (though seldom are) beautiful. i appreciate a developed analysis. more specific the better, examples and analogies go a long way in you accelerating my understanding. i default to empiricism/historical analysis as competitive warranting unless you frame the debate otherwise. i understand that the time constraint of debate can prevent debaters from fully unpacking a kritik. if i am unfamiliar with the argument you are making, i will prioritize your explanation. i may also read your evidence and google-educate myself. this is a good thing and a bad thing, and i think its important you know that asterisk. i try to live in the world of your kritik/ k aff. absent a discussion of conditional advocacy, i will get very confused if you make arguments elsewhere in the debate that contradict the principles of your criticism (eg if you are arguing a deleuzian critique of static identity and also read a misgendering/misidentifying voter).

**spec, ethics challenges, theory**
PLEASE DO NOT HIDE YOUR ASPEC VIOLATIONS. if the argument is important i prefer you invite the clash than evade it.

i have no way to fairly judge arguments that implicate your opponent's behavior before the round, unless i've witnessed it myself or you are able to provide objective evidence (eg screenshots, etc.). debate is a competitive environment so i have to take accusations with a degree of skepticism. i think the trend to turn debate into a kangaroo court, or use the ballot as a tool to ostracize members from the community speaks to the student/coach's tooling of authority at tournaments as well as the necessity for pain in their notion of justice. i do have an obligation to keep the round safe. my starting point (and feel free to convince me otherwise) is that it's not my job to screen entries if they should be able to participate in tournaments - that's up to tab and is a prior question to the round. a really good podcast that speaks to this topic in detail is invisibilia: the callout.

i'm finally hearing more presumption debates, which i really enjoy. i more often find theory compelling when contextualized to why there's a specific reason to object to the argument (e.g. why the way this specific perm operates is abusive/sets a bad precedent). i always prefer the clash to be developed earlier in the debate than vomiting blocks at each other. as someone who used to go for theory, i think there's an elegant way to trap someone. and it same stipulations apply- if you want me to vote for it, make sure i'm able to clearly hear and distinguish your subpoints.

**disads/cps/case**
i always enjoy creative or case specific PICs. if you're going to make a severance perm, i want to know what is being severed and not so late breaking that the negative doesn't have a chance to refute. i like to hear story-weaving in the overview. i do vote on theory - see above. i also enjoy an in depth case clash, case turn debate. i do not have a deep understanding on the procedural intricacies of our legal system or policymaking and i may internet-educate myself on your ev during your round.

**work experience/education you can ask me about**
- medical school, medicine
- clinical research/trials
- biology, physiology, gross anatomy, & pathophysiology are courses i've taught
- nicotine/substance cessation
- chicago
- udl
- coaching debate!

**PoFo - (modified from Tim Freehan's poignant paradigm):**

I have NOT judged the PF national circuit pretty much ever. The good news is that I am not biased against or unwilling to vote on any particular style. Chances are I have heard some version of your meta level of argumentation and know how it interacts with the round. The bad news is if you want to complain about a style of debate in which you are unfamiliar, you had better convince me why with, you know, impacts and stuff. Do not try and cite an unspoken rule about debate in your part of the country.

Because of my background in Policy, I tend to look at debate as competitive research or full-contact social studies. Even though the Pro is not advocating a Plan and the Con is not reading Disadvantages, to me the round comes down to whether the Pro has a greater possible benefit than the potential implications it might cause. Both sides should frame the round in terms impact calculus and or feasibility. Framework, philosophical, moral arguments are great, though I need instruction in how you want me to evaluate that against tangible impacts.

Evidence quality is very important.

I will vote with what's on what is on the flow only. I enter the round tabula rasa, i try to check my personal opinions at the door as best as i can. I may mock you for it, but I won’t vote against you for it. No paraphrasing. Quote the author, date and the exact words. Quals are even better but you don’t have to read them unless pressed. Have the website handy. Research is critical.

Speed? Meh. You cannot possibly go fast enough for me to not be able to follow you. However, that does not mean I want to hear you go fast. You can be quick and very persuasive. You don't need to spread.

Defense is nice but is not enough. You must create offense in order to win. There is no “presumption” on the Con.

I am a fan of “Kritik” arguments in PF! I do think that Philosophical Debates have a place. Using your Framework as a reason to defend your scholarship is a wise move. You can attack your opponents scholarship. Racism, sexism, heterocentrism, will not be tolerated between debaters. I have heard and will tolerate some amount of racism towards me and you can be assured I'll use it as a teaching moment.

I reward debaters who think outside the box.

I do not reward debaters who cry foul when hearing an argument that falls outside traditional parameters of PF Debate. But if its abusive, tell me why instead of just saying “not fair.”

Statistics are nice, to a point. But I feel that judges/debaters overvalue them. Some of the best impacts involve higher values that cannot be quantified. A good example would be something like Structural Violence.

While Truth outweighs, technical concessions on key arguments can and will be evaluated. Dropping offense means the argument gets 100% weight.

The goal of the Con is to disprove the value of the Resolution. If the Pro cannot defend the whole resolution (agent, totality, etc.) then the Con gets some leeway.

I care about substance more than style. It never fails that I give 1-2 low point wins at a tournament. Just because your tie is nice and you sound pretty, doesn’t mean you win. I vote on argument quality and technical debating. The rest is for lay judging.

Relax. Have fun.

Isaiah Pinzino Brooks College Preparatory Academy HS None

Carlie Pritt William Howard Taft High School None

Russell Purajarik Jones College Prep

Sabrina Qian Whitney M. Young Magnet High School

Last changed on Fri January 12, 2024 at 12:29 PM EDT

Whitney Young '26

Add me to the email chain: bqian@cps.edu

Be respectful - if you are being racist, sexist, homophobic, etc. or if you are being unncessarily mean to your opponents or your partner, your speaks drop to an auto 25.

General Things:

Time your own speeches and prep. I'll do my best to time everything, but I don't want to be asked to time for you.

Give a roadmap of your arguments for every speech except the 1AC. If you give a roadmap, FOLLOW IT. Don't try to surprise the other team by going out of order -- it doesn't help and only makes my job harder.

Signpost before every tag or distinguish the way you say your tags -- makes your roadmap easier to follow.

You can tag team but try not to take over.

FLOW, FLOW, FLOW! Please don't make me judge another round where there is absolutely no clash on anything.

If you have extra time in your 1AC, don't give an underview if you are running a basic policy aff.

Note on blocks: Blocks are great and prepping blocks for your rebuttals are great, but if you read some blocks that have hardly any application in round and don't respond to your opponents, they don't help you. Try to do line-by-line instead in that case.

Write my ballot for me. Judges are lazy -- tell me exactly what I should be voting on in your 2AR/2NR.

Arguments:

I mostly don't have a preference on arguments -- I'm willing to listen to anything.

Tech ------------X-----------------Truth

Clarity -----X----------------------Speed

Presumption: I don't really vote on it. Please don't make me vote on it....

DAs: If you aren't running a K, you should definitely be running a DA for policy affs. Those case turns 90% of the time are not enough. Tell the full story of your DA and explain why it outweighs.

CP: Do not forget your net benefit and impact it out. (cue Vishal and Tanmay) Explain your solvency advocate. I'm mostly okay with condo, but respond to any CP turns.

Topicality: Go ahead. In fact, I'm still waiting for that 5 minutes (or 3.5 min) of T in the 2NR. (For middle school, yea.. I get why aff teams say they're predictable since core files, but aff, that can't be your only argument. If neg extends all parts of T well, I'm willing to vote on it even for MS.)

Kritiks: I love hearing Ks, and I will definitely vote on them if you explain it well. If you happen to be running some high theory argument, give an overview and explain it to some degree. I'm willing to learn about your K, but allow me to process what you're saying.

If you ever just want to read A through Z spec, I'll be pretty amused ngl. 99% won't vote on it, but you know, will make me a bit entertained.

K-Affs: I am willing to vote on K-Affs, but explain your framework well. I don't mind listening to framework debates, but I would enjoy judging a K v K debate.

Theory: Perf con, condo, "bla blah" CP bad args are kinda mid, but I'll vote on it if you do them well. Same goes with "bla blah" fiat bad. This, however, does not mean that I won't vote for them if you drop them.

Kevin Ramirez Solorio Academy High School

Danny Resner Pritzker College Prep

Ramon Rodriguez Walter Payton College Prep

Last changed on Fri March 8, 2024 at 11:00 AM CDT

Put me on the email chain -- rrodebate@gmail.com

General Notes:

• Fiscal Redistribution topic -- Judged a decent amount by now.
• I will tend to follow the speech doc but I only write what I hear. Slow down on analytics please. And please sign-post!!
• Default tech over truth, unless told otherwise in-round.
• Can vote neg on presumption.
• CX is binding if you say it's binding.
• Only saying "they dropped x argument" is not an extension to said argument.
• Clarity > speed (obviously, but some of you...). (Note: I've recently made the transition from flowing on paper to laptop and I am significantly slower, so keep that in mind if you decide to spread analytics).
• Any intentional racist/sexist/homophobic/etc comments = 25, and I will vote you down.
• Feel free to ask me about any arguments pre-round that aren't on my paradigm.

Specific Arguments:

DAs - Specific links/internal links > generic links (if it's still applicable to the AFF it's fine).
Weigh the impacts please.

T - If they don't meet your interpretation explain why I should consider your interp over theirs. Please flesh out your standards.

CPs - CPs should solve enough, have a net benefit, and preferably carded, please. Otherwise I will probably vote on the perm.
Multi-planks are good if you say they're good (and vice versa). PICs/PIKs are good if you say they're good (and vice versa). Delay CPs are good if you say they're good (and vice versa). I think you get the gist.

Ks - Love specific links to the AFF, but Link of Omission is fine if not answered properly. The links should be properly fleshed out by the 2NR.
I'd say at the very least I have a basic (and I mean BASIC) understanding of some common K's (Cap, SetCol, AB, etc). I'm not that great with high theory stuff like Baudrillard but if you really want to read it don't let that discourage you from doing so. That being said, please explain your stuff instead of just using K jargon.
Specific alts > vague alts, but that doesn't mean I won't vote for it. Judge kick is debatable.

Theory - I can vote on theory but I wouldn't recommend going for it unless there is clear in-round abuse. Similar to the T, flesh out the standards and impacts. Two condo is good, Three+ can be sus. New AFFs bad is generally bad argument in my opinion (with the exception of tournaments that have AFF's preffed and rules around that). Can vote on perf-con. Aspec is funny. Disclosure theory -- eh.

K AFFs - Always incorporate all of your AFF throughout the debate. PLEASE be thorough on your solvency mechanisms.
Explain thoroughly how your permutation works when answering a K. Would prefer if you provide a role for the Neg/ a way for the Neg to engage with the AFF if they ask rather than saying "that's not our job." ROJ/ROB flesh out your standards so that I know why I should prefer your interpretation. Would prefer if you explain the jargon you use as much as possible because I may not know the words you're using. Reading a generic advocacy/K AFF that can be used in literally any other resolution is not necessarily my favorite and can be an issue if brought up by the NEG in the T/FW debate. I prefer when K AFFs teams get more creative with their advocacy statement and solvency mechanisms.
For the NEG:
I can vote on T-USFG/FW (preferably with a TVA(s)). The TVA does not have to be perfect. I also value SSD a lot as well, so please read it! Additional note: going for portable skills is a bit of an uphill battle for me, I tend to buy arguments that we won't end up being policy makers after this activity anyways. In general, just explain why your model of debate is better than theirs and you should be good.
I can also vote on CPs that solve and/or DAs/Ks that link.

Fiscal Redistribution Topic Thoughts:

Just thoughts I've had while judging this topic:

• Neg ground is trash.
• Cap K :D
• SetCol can cook!!!!!
• Firm believer that Single Payer is not topical.
• This Governmentality K is.... interesting........
• Degrowth job guarantees -- ._. say that again.

Ray Salazar Hancock College Prep None

Lainey Schrag Chicago Bulls College Prep

Annika Sengupta Walter Payton College Prep

Shahiedah Shabazz Hire None

Dev Shah Hire

Last changed on Thu April 4, 2024 at 2:21 PM CDT

T/L:

Niles North

Dev—he/him

Add both: nilesnorthsp@gmail.com and nilesnorthdocs@gmail.com(please name the email chains and documents appropriately)

This paradigm is designed for novices so if you aren't a novice just read Ariel Gabay or Hana Bisevac’s paradigm. I agree with almost all of the things on there and I haven’t judged enough times to have concrete opinions or a good paradigm so take a look at those for a better paradigm from great debaters.

(Novices only) I will give you +.1 or +.2 speaks for making a joke about someone from NN if it’s funny

(Novices only) +.1 speaks if you show me your flows

Most important thing in novice year: Ask questions. Novice year is all about learning and having fun. Try your best to use all your speech time. I know debate can be stressful but just try your best to give a full speech instead of giving up.

Tech > Truth

Ultimately I don’t think I am a very biased judge and I will vote on literally anything if it is debated well(not as familiar with Ks so explain them a lot more. I am fine voting for them but don't understand them as well).

Open cross is fine with me but don't take over your partner's cx completely.

Do these:

Time everything(your speech, other team’s speeches, prep, cx)

Flow—it’s one of the best things you can do

Line by line. It makes flowing and following the debate a lot easier for everyone.

Signpost(tell me what argument you are responding to) and give roadmaps

Put me on email chain without me having to ask and get started on time

Try and tell me what to do(judge instruction) in the last rebuttals so I can minimize judge intervention.

Don’t be racist, sexist, homophobic, etc. Will result in L and lowest speaks possible. Debate should be a positive activity so be respectful to everyone.

Don’t steal prep—some judges freak out if you do this so don’t do it. Only prep when the timer is running.

Give an impact to your arguments in the debate round(like not extinction but more like if we win this argument, they have no solvency, no link, etc.). For example: give me an impact on a solvency deficit. Why does it matter if other countries say no or if it takes longer to do a plan)

Storytelling

Also do impact calc(probability, magnitude, timeframe)

Be clear. I don’t want to have to clear you but I will have to for your own good because I need to be able to hear the arguments.

Don't read a K aff novices.

Most theory is a reason to reject the argument(except condo) but spend 5 minutes on theory in the 2ar/2nr if you are going for it and I could be swayed.

Everything else is mostly up to you. Have fun and be confident!

Tarun Shah Lane Tech College Prep H.S.

Claire Shank Northside College Preparatory

Last changed on Sat March 9, 2024 at 9:13 AM CDT

she/her

northside college prep '24- 1N/2A

claireshankdebate@gmail.com

cmshank@cps.edu for chicago kids

Critical Debate Takes

I like when 1NCs are off the flow- evidence is for the weak and if you read evidence in the 1NC your speaks are capped at a 27.
2AR lies are 2AR TRUTHS. The smartest debaters will change their aff in the 2AR. This is the only way to check back against neg terrorism.
read warming good and you instantly win. specifically, please read the "quebec secession" scenario or "the ice age is approaching". These arguments are capital T true.
please post round my decision. if you call me "stupid woman" i will be compelled and go to tab to change your decision.

Top line

If you're racist, sexist, homophobic, ableist, or bigoted you will be voted down and given the lowest speaks possible idc.
tech> truth
PLEASE DO NOT READ DEATH GOOD
Frame the round for me in rebuttals- explain why i should vote for you and why you're winning the round
Arguments need to be warranted out- if they drop something explain why it matters
impact analysis impact analysis impact analysis

CPs

A smartly crafted advantage CP is one of the best arguments in debate
I like process CPs but they have to have some relation to the topic for me to buy that an intrinsic perm doesn't solve. If you write a creative perm i will be happy.

DAs

DAs are awesome yay just explain the link stories and do a ton of impact calc against the case

T is cool people just don't do it right- answer each other's arguments and do impact calc. I need an explanation of your interp, why they dont meet it, and the impact of their model.

I like Ks but I'm not super well versed in high theory stuff- if you're reading baudrillard, deleuze, etc, you're going to have to be really specific. If you don't know what you're talking about, don't read the K. I love myself some fem IR, Cap , antiblackness, set col, all the basic stuff. It's super important to explain your K's story and links should be articulated and used as offense.
I'm probably not the best k aff judge but u do u. I like FW and cap v. k aff debates a lot.

Theory

I'm good for theory debates- esp ones like condo, PICs bad, perm theory, etc. However, it's super important to explain impacts and interps. If theory is your strategy, you have to go all in on it in final rebuttals for me to vote on it. I'm also going to be hard to convince that stuff like agent CPs, multiplank CPs or utopian fiat are abusive unless they are completely dropped.

taylor swift reference i boost ur speaks

BE NICE AND HAVE FUN!!

Daniel Sheill Hire None

Max Steinmann Amundsen None

Ahmoni Stephenson Hire None

Wayne Tang Northside College Preparatory

Put me on the email chain (WayneTang@aol.com). (my debaters made me do this, I generally don't read evidence in round)

General Background:
Former HS debater in the stone ages (1980s) HS coach for over many years at Maine East (1992-2016) and now at Northside College Prep (2016 to present). I coach on the north shore of Chicago. I typically attend and judge around 15-18 tournaments a season and generally see a decent percentage of high level debates. However, I am not a professional teacher/debate coach, I am a patent attorney in my real (non-debate) life and thus do not learn anything about the topic (other than institutes are overpriced) over the summer. I like to think I make up for that by being a quick study and through coaching and judging past topics, knowing many recycled arguments.

DISADS AND ADVANTAGES
Intelligent story telling with good evidence and analysis is something I like to hear. I generally will vote for teams that have better comparative impact analysis (i.e. they take into account their opponents’ arguments in their analysis). It is a hard road, but I think it is possible to reduce risk to zero or close enough to it based on defensive arguments.

TOPICALITY
I vote on T relatively frequently over the years. I believe it is the negative burden to establish the plan is not topical. Case lists and arguments on what various interpretations would allow/not allow are very important. I have found that the limits/predictability/ground debate has been more persuasive to me, although I will consider other standards debates. Obviously, it is also important how such standards operate once a team convinces me of their standard. I will also look at why T should be voting issue. I will not automatically vote negative if there is no counter-interpretation extended, although usually this is a pretty deep hole for the aff. to dig out of. For example, if the aff. has no counter-interpretation but the neg interpretation is proven to be unworkable i.e. no cases are topical then I would probably vote aff. As with most issues, in depth analysis and explanation on a few arguments will outweigh many 3 word tag lines.

COUNTERPLANS
Case specific CPs are preferable that integrate well (i.e., do not flatly contradict) with other negative positions. Clever wording of CPs to solve the Aff and use Aff solvency sources are also something I give the neg. credit for. It is an uphill battle for the Aff on theory unless the CP/strategy centered around the CP does something really abusive. The aff has the burden of telling me how a permutation proves the CP non-competitive.

KRITIKS
Not a fan, but I have voted on them numerous times (despite what many in the high school community may believe). I will never be better than mediocre at evaluating these arguments because unlike law, politics, history and trashy novels, I don’t read philosophy for entertainment nor have any interest in it. Further (sorry to my past assistants who have chosen this as their academic career), I consider most of the writers in this field to be sorely needing a dose of the real world (I was an engineer in undergrad, I guess I have been brainwashed in techno-strategic discourse/liking solutions that actually accomplish something). In order to win, the negative must establish a clear story about 1) what the K is; 2) how it links; 3) what the impact is at either the policy level or: 4) pre-fiat (to the extent it exists) outweighs policy arguments or other affirmative impacts. Don’t just assume I will vote to reject their evil discourse, advocacy, lack of ontology, support of biopolitics, etc. Without an explanation I will assume a K is a very bad non-unique Disad in the policy realm. As such it will probably receive very little weight if challenged by the aff. You must be able to distill long boring philosophical cards read at hyperspeed to an explanation that I can comprehend. I have no fear of saying I don’t understand what the heck you are saying and I will absolutely not vote for issues I don’t understand. (I don’t have to impress anyone with my intelligence or lack thereof and in any case am probably incapable of it) If you make me read said cards with no explanation, I will almost guarantee that I will not understand the five syllable (often foreign) philosophical words in the card and you will go down in flames. I do appreciate, if not require specific analysis on the link and impact to either the aff. plan, rhetoric, evidence or assumptions depending on what floats your boat. In other words, if you can make specific applications (in contrast to they use the state vote negative), or better yet, read specific critical evidence to the substance of the affirmative, I will be much more likely to vote for you.

PERFORMANCE BASED ARGUMENTS
Also not a fan, but I have voted on these arguments in the past. I am generally not highly preferred by teams that run such arguments, so I don't see enough of these types of debates to be an expert. However, for whatever reason, I get to judge some high level performance teams each year and have some background in such arguments from these rounds. I will try to evaluate the arguments in such rounds and will not hesitate to vote against framework if the team advocating non-traditional debate wins sufficient warrants why I should reject the policy/topic framework. However, if a team engages the non-traditional positions, the team advocating such positions need to answer any such arguments in order to win. In other words, I will evaluate these debates like I try to evaluate any other issues, I will see what arguments clash and evaluate that clash, rewarding a team that can frame issues, compare and explain impacts. I have spent 20 plus years coaching a relatively resource deprived school trying to compete against very well resourced debate schools, so I am not unsympathetic to arguments based on inequities in policy debates. On the other hand I have also spent 20 plus years involved in non-debate activities and am not entirely convinced that the strategies urged by non-traditional debates work. Take both points for whatever you think they are worth in such debates.

POINTS

In varsity debate, I believe you have to minimally be able to clash with the other teams arguments, if you can’t do this, you won’t get over a 27.5. Anything between 28.8 and 29.2 means you are probably among the top 5% of debaters I have seen. I will check my points periodically against tournament averages and have adjusted upward in the past to stay within community norms. I think that if you are in the middle my points are pretty consistent. Unfortunately for those who are consistently in the top 5% of many tournaments, I have judged a lot of the best high school debaters over the years and it is difficult to impress me (e.g., above a 29). Michael Klinger, Stephen Weil, Ellis Allen, Matt Fisher and Stephanie Spies didn’t get 30s from me (and they were among my favorites of all time), so don’t feel bad if you don’t either.

OTHER STUFF
I dislike evaluating theory debates but if you make me I will do it and complain a lot about it later. No real predispositions on theory other than I would prefer to avoid dealing with it.

Tag team is fine as long as you don’t start taking over cross-ex.

I do not count general tech screw ups as prep time and quite frankly am not really a fascist about this kind of thing as some other judges, just don’t abuse my leniency on this.

Speed is fine (this is of course a danger sign because no one would admit that they can’t handle speed). If you are going too fast or are unclear, I will let you know. Ignore such warnings at your own peril, like with Kritiks, I am singularly unafraid to admit I didn’t get an answer and therefore will not vote on it.

I will read evidence if it is challenged by a team. Otherwise, if you say a piece of evidence says X and the other team doesn’t say anything, I probably won’t call for it and assume it says X. However, in the unfortunate (but fairly frequent) occurrence where both teams just read cards, I will call for cards and use my arbitrary and capricious analytical skills to piece together what I, in my paranoid delusional (and probably medicated) state, perceive is going on.

I generally will vote on anything that is set forth on the round. Don’t be deterred from going for an argument because I am laughing at it, reading the newspaper, checking espn.com on my laptop, throwing something at you etc. Debate is a game and judges must often vote for arguments they find ludicrous, however, I can and will still make fun of the argument. I will, and have, voted on many arguments I think are squarely in the realm of lunacy i.e. [INSERT LETTER] spec, rights malthus, Sun-Ra, the quotations and acronyms counterplan (OK I didn’t vote on either, even I have my limits), scaler collapse (twice), world government etc. (the likelihood of winning such arguments, however, is a separate matter). I will not hesitate to vote against teams for socially unacceptable behavior i.e. evidence fabrication, racist or sexist slurs etc., thankfully I have had to do that less than double digits time in my 35+ years of judging.

Annie Tong Northside College Preparatory

Max Joseph Tozer William Howard Taft High School

Last changed on Sat January 13, 2024 at 2:18 AM CDT

General about me: I debated CDL and a couple of invitationals for 3 years at Taft, acting as captain my third year, my email is maxtoaster@gmail.com . I'm a graduate of Lake Forest College with degrees in philosophy and psychology, and any pronouns are fine.

Please add me to the email chain if you chose to have one, and feel free to email me with any questions. I love debate and all the different strategies people employ, so I'm open to any arguments as long as you're having fun and aren't being a jerk to the other team, or running racist/sexist/homophobic/etc... arguments. And feel free to call me Max, not "judge" or "Mx. Tozer" or anything like that. I enter the round as a policy maker, and defaulting to reasonability, and continue to operate as such unless told to behave otherwise in round.

Disclaimer: I'll run down my beliefs about specific arguments here, but don't change your preferred strategy to pander to what you think I'd like after reading my paradigm. In my eyes all strategic approaches to a debate are valid, and I want you to argue the way that you're best at and will enjoy the most. I vote for the team that does the better debating, I won't vote against a team for running an argument I don't like or anything like that.

Case- case debate is fine and good, but as a tip, please don't forget to look at your opponents sources and dates. Aff, please do some storytelling. I'll put more weight on your harms if you tell me how we get there. K-affs are fine but I'd advise not running them if you are a novice, stick to what you understand.

FW- I LOVE myself some framework debate and will take them seriously into consideration when making my decision on the round, ROB's are great if you want to have one, anything that makes my job easier. That said, I recognize that framework can be used as a tool for silencing, and advise teams to be ready to defend their framework if their opponents bring this up.

DA's - All DA's have 100% likelihood unless I am told otherwise. DA's that don't have extinction impacts are refreshing and nice. It's in no way necessary, but I will give you and your partner +.2 speaks out of gratitude for mixing things up a bit if you run a DA with non-extinction impacts.

Theory - Awesome cool and great, but if you want me to take this seriously spend time on it in your rebuttals.

CP's - CP's are one of the most useful tools in debate, very strong, often short, and have a great potential for tying your arguments together. Because Cp's are SO good, I do believe they can get abusive, and I will vote on condo or other theory arguments if argued well. I'm not a big fan of PIC's, and the Cp's solvency should be competitive with the aff. The CP should solve better, if I think the aff and the cp both solve the same impacts equally well, I'll vote aff.

K - my favorite off case in debate, feel free to get as creative as you want with them. That said, the most important part of a K is the link. BE SPECIFIC why the aff links to your K, if you have an aff specific link read it, if you need to read a general link, elaborate on it in your own words regarding the specifics of the aff. Try to stick to K's you understand, and clearly explain your alt. nothing wrong with using a cp as a policy example of an alt.

T - I will vote on T, but you should tell me why I should vote on T in round. Explain to me how your opponent's aff specifically violates your voters, and explain the impact your voters have on the round/why they should be voters. 5 minutes on T in the 2nr isn't a bad idea if you want me to vote on it.

Other -

-I flow your speech, not your cards. Spreading is fine, but clarity is key, it's not my job to look over all your cards to figure out what you're saying if I can't understand you.

- Tech over truth 90% of the time, if something exceptionally absurd is claimed by one team, I will give the other the benefit of the doubt, but you should be fine.

- Don't be afraid to have a sense of humor. Debates are long, straining, and often repetitive, everyone in the round would be happy to have the formalities be broken for the sake of a joke.

- Speaker points: I try to stick to this scale - http://collegedebateratings.weebly.com/points-scale.html but I will add or subtract some points based on sportsmanship. Insulting your opponents isn't okay, don't do it.

Kevin Trant Whitney M. Young Magnet High School

Last changed on Sat March 9, 2024 at 5:02 AM CDT

When it comes to K versus policy, I prefer K debates. I went to graduate school for philosophy and have coached debate in CPS for 8 years, but was never a debater. As a result I am probably considerably less technical than other judges and just want to see good argumentation. I personally think this happens when we have a clear understanding of our epistemology.

I would much prefer to judge a round where there is a lot of clash on the flow and indicts on the other team's evidence than a round in which a team overwhelms the other team with lots of advantages or CPs. K debates can be equally bad for education when they involve half-understood ideas of So, if you're running a K or K Aff, please avoid relying solely on philosophical jargon. I think the best debaters are the ones who combine their technical of knowledge of debate with common sense and some semblance of rhetorical skill.

Counterplans are fine. If you run them be sure you can clearly articulate how the plan links to the net benefit.

I'm ok with speed, but I prefer debaters who slow down on analytics and theory arguments. Getting your arguments out in the 1AC/1NC should sound different from explaining why the perm fails or explaining why topicality should be a voter.

I think storytelling is important. I want you to be able to explain to me why you are winning the debate. I have two reasons for believing this: 1. I think this is an essential thinking and communication skill, 2. If you throw spaghetti at the wall and ask me to interpret it, I'm afraid that I won't interpret it correctly. Don't leave the round up to my interpretation; write my ballot for me.

I like a nice, tight DA with a carefully explained link story. Sometimes Ptix DAs get a little wild, but as long as you can sell the story, I'm willing to go along with it as a convention of debate, but would probably be sympathetic to an aff team that highlights the probability of the link chain or the quality of the evidence.

At heart I'm just an English teacher, so I will give an extra .1 spear poi if you cite some poetry in your rebuttal speech (in context) .2 if I really like the poem.

Tag team is fine; however, I think the speaker should be the one primarily responsible for answering. I don't want to see one partner dominating.

Kjtrant@cps.edu

Johnathan Trinh Lane Tech College Prep H.S.

Last changed on Sat April 6, 2024 at 10:55 AM EDT

Johnathan Trinh (He/Him/His) Update 4/3/2024 trinhjohnathan@gmail.com

I debated 3 years at Ogden 2 for the highschool team and then 3 years at Lane at the varsity level. When I debated i primarily ran Identity Based Affirmatives such as model minority,latinx body politics,queer theory, and fem. As Neg I ran either an identity K such as the ones listed above or cap plus policy.

Important to note this is my first tournament on this topic furthermore i was primarily a K debater in highschool meaning I would appreciate in policy heavy rounds for you to spend more time explaining how your evidence,plan,da’s etc plays out in the round and interacts with each other. This also mean if there is assumed knowledge from this topic that you think that i would know assume that I do not know it and spell it out for me. I would like to be in the email chain i’ll read the evidence to brush up on my knowledge but i will not weigh any information not said in the speech in my calculus.

Furthermore, just because i was a k debater does not mean i do not know how policy debates play out i employed a variety of strategies in my debate career and understand the intricacies of a strictly policy debate. Do not read a K infront of me simply because I am a K judge I will be judging you stricter because I was a K debater and I understand these arguments better.

Voting wise I have a large threshold for T/Framework arguments I believe it is on the negative team to prove without a shadow of a doubt that the affirmative plan is untopical/unfair meaning if you are going for T do alot of work in explaining why the Aff is untopical and it’s impacts on the round/debate as a whole. This doesn’t mean i will not vote on it but if you are going for T in the 2NR I expect the entire or at least a vast majority of the 2NR doing work on T again this is my first tournament on the topic so you would have to do more work on then usual in front of me. I have spent most of my debate career doing framework debates and it’s were much of my debate experience is in so do your work on both sides if that’s what the debate boils down too.

I’m sure there is something i’ve missed but I’ve been out of the game for a bit so please feel free to ask if you have any other questions!

Will Vote On

Everything as long as its impacted out.

K Affs as long as you prove what the aff does.

Will Not Vote On

Anything that is Racist, Sexist, and or makes anybody in the round noticeably uncomfortable.

Experiment with your args as a debater and a judge the same old same old args get boring if you bring something new you will be complimented with speaks.

LINE BY LINEI love line by line.

Warrant out your arguments.

Connect your cross-ex to your speech if you pressure them hold them to it.

Don't

Yell at each other.

Expect me to read your cards.

Be rude to me or any other debaters.

Read a K infornt of me to win with no experience with it while it doesn't mean you can't break new args but please be practiced or knowledgeable.

MOST IMPORTANT

HAVE FUN AND BE NICE.

Arjun Vellayappan Hire

Last changed on Fri April 5, 2024 at 11:34 AM CDT

Arjun Vellayappan
Lexington 2011
Northwestern 2015

You should go for what you are good at despite any of the preferences I may list below. At the end of the day, I will vote for the team that did the better debating on any issue although you may get better speaker points if you continue reading.

Important point to note: I know very little about the topic and it's development so please take time to avoid topic jargon and try to avoid using abbreviations until you explain their original meaning. This also implicates T mostly because I won't really know specific trends in the community so try to spend extra time painting that picture if you think it's important to winning your argument.

Evidence comparison, whether it is using qualifications or warrants, is extremely important for resolving important questions in debates and for preventing judge intervention when calling for cards. I’m pretty new to judging so I imagine I’ll be reading a decent amount of evidence, but comparison will be important for framing how I read your cards.

Be respectful of your opponent, partner and judge. Don’t cheat in any fashion, clip cards, cut cards out of context, etc.

Argument Issues

Topicality – It is a voting issue. I don’t think there needs to be demonstrated “in-round abuse” as long as the negative is providing a strong limits argument that frames how the topic would be different. I think affirmatives currently under-utilize reasonability and that it should be in almost every T 2AR. I was not a big fan of T debates in high school but that was mostly because they lacked comparative impact calculus of which standards matter more (eg. What matters more: education or limits?). If you can do that, I’m a fine judge for T.

Theory – I usually think theory arguments are reasons to reject the practice, not the team but can definitely be persuaded otherwise if the arguments are presented well. I also tend to default to conditionality meaning that the status quo is always an option for the negative unless this issue is contested in the round.

CPs – I lean slightly aff on most CP theory questions (mandates/outcomes, consult, etc) but can be persuaded otherwise. I'm more OK with conditionality than I am with "cheating" CPs but obviously it depends on the specific situation.

Kritiks – I’m fine with most K debates but I’m probably not the best judge for you if you generally roll with super-generic K’s and don’t interact with the aff very well. That being said, I understand the literature for the most part and am fine voting quickly on a dropped framework or floating PIK argument. I find that most K debates are won by specific and more detailed negative analysis combined with some "K tricks", so if you’re aff make sure you have a robust defense of what you're saying and you answer things like “method comes first” or “turns case” if you want to win my ballot.

Performance – I think you need to defend a topical plan or at least relate to the topic and be ready to defeat framework because that type of argument is persuasive to me against aff’s that blatantly avoid the topic. I probably have somewhat of a bias against these types of arguments because I generally think topic-centric debate is awesome and educational but obviously will decide based on the arguments put in front of me rather than my predispositions.

Naomi Victoria Hire None

Jairo Villalobos-Hernandez Von Steuben

Last changed on Sat February 24, 2024 at 1:34 PM CDT

I prefer Jairo (pronounced hi-roe) over judge, but im fine with either

He/They

jairovillalobos94@gmail.com

2A/1N for Solorio 19-23

Not debating at Northwestern 23-27

Assistant Coach at Von Steuben 24-Present

Background+Top level stuff

I debated both in nat circ and udl (Chicago Debate League) tournaments during high school. Went to camp during my freshie and soph (virtual) years, so if any questions then I am more than willing to answer.

For the current high school topic, assume I know very little---the only experience I have with it is from the other times i've judged/helped coach teams at tourneys

Tech>Truth---Doesnt mean you dont have to contextualize/explain what them dropping something means for the round, you still have to explain and make clear what the argument is for me to evaluate it in your favor

Better for policy---didn't do K debate, but don't let that stop you from running what you want///i'll vote for anything if you are winning it

No specific way to assign speaks, just be nice, speak pretty, explain things well, and youll do alright

I feel like I can be a pretty visual person with my face, so if I approve or disapprove of something then you will be able to tell(nodding head for good, scrunching my face for not so good, you get the gist)

Anything that promotes violence, discrimination, or hate is an immediate L, lowest speaks possible, and a report to tab

Specifics

In case you are wondering about in depth thoughts on arguments:

DAs

I really like disads and I think they are a staple of what neg args should be in debate. For every disad, paint me a story of how the disad actually happens if the plan were to pass, from the UQ up to the moment of the impact(big red button is pressed, oceans rise and we get 2012 IRL, the environment collapses, etc.)

For the neg---should always be in a 1nc. For later speeches, if running DA by itself, tell me why it turns the case and do impact calc. If running as a net benefit, tell me exactly how the cp avoids the DA. Avoid generic links as much as possible; if generic link is called out then I am much much less to weigh the DA as highly as the aff
For the aff---the best strat to go for is straight turn imo. If done well , then you have forced the neg into an awkard position and you are fully in control of that flow. Honestly if the neg fumbles the straight turn answers too then I am all for a pure straight turn 2ar. If not possible, then the main canon of arguments work, just prove why case outweighs

CTs

I LOVE case turns. These debates can get messy tho, so for both sides make sure to 1. keep the story clean and concise 2. try to organize LBL as much as possible

Neg---If you wanna go for a CT, then you have to make sure to tell me all throughout the debate how the aff links and how the impact outweighs. Personally, I dont mind it if you sandbag in the block, so go crazy with impacts if you have them, just make sure to answer all the aff args they present cus even once concession can take out the whole ct for me
Aff---For most of the CTs run, theres a high likelihood you link. It might just be me, but if its clear the aff links, then I just want to see you bite the bullet and tell me why that linking is good(i.e, if you increase growth then do growth good, if heg then heg good, so on, and give me specifics as to why its good). Obviously, this doesn't mean you can just disregard their impacts, so make sure to also answer or group the impacts they had. If they sandbag in the block, then crossapplying is your friend

CPs

CPs are really interesting because theyre either really good or really mid. In general, Agent/Process cps are legit, I find consult cps boring, and if your cp has more than like 5 planks then don't even run it(even you know its abusive). Also, sufficiency framing is iffy---if your cp doesnt solve the impact of the aff, then why even run it

Neg---THE CP HAS TO BE A REASON TO REJECT THE AFF, PLEASEEEEEEE. That means even if the cp is plan plus, I still wont vote for it. You need to prove to me in the 2nr 2 things: First, you are able to access the plan and solve for the impacts through your cp, and second, doing the plan alone is bad/doing the cp would solve for discrepancies with the plan alone. That being said, you ALWAYS need a net benefit, whether it be internal or external, and explain how the CP avoids that
Aff---Personally, I like seeing shifty perms being run and exploited like crazy if conceded. By shifty, I dont mean different wordings of the cp text so dont do that, but shifty as in like "do plan and have agency do x instead". In general, POSTAL works great with cps so just stick to that and youll be good

T has sucked these past few topics cus everything is so untopical but borderline topical. That being said, don't just run T as a strat skew cus that just wastes flow and could be used for more substantive off. However, still good to always have T on both sides in case of anything

Neg---I feel like T is really underappreciated against smaller affs. If you are able to call out a team effectively on how theyre untopical, then keep it going all throughout the round and call out if their counterinterps are generic, if they severely underlimit, and so on. T can get very messy though, so unless you have a really good feeling about T, dont run it because I know we dont wanna argue over definitions for 2 hours
Aff---If you know you're borderline topical, you better have a damn good counterinterp. Apart from that, main canon of arguments work in front of me

Ks are really interesting but far from my specialty(I had to debate under a hard right policy coach for 4 years, dont blame me). With that tho, I am really only interested/know more of the main canon of neg ks, so stuff like cap, security, afropess, queer. fem, etc. If your k is high theory, then dont pref me(I dont wanna hear about baudrillard for 2 hours)

Neg---In front of me, you link you lose is valid ONLY IF you win framework(run it as like a da in a way). I really dont buy many alts of the ks as realistic, so if you know your alt isnt that amazing and the aff is calling you out on it, just drop it and resort to talking about how they make matters worse and why I need to evaluate the K more than I do the aff. However, if you run some generic links against the aff, then I am much much less likely to weigh it that highly if they call out the generality
Aff---Ima be straight and to the point in what I like to see v ks- first strat, call out why the alt fails and why its probably unrealistic/doesnt solve. Second, if they kick the alt, go for case outweighs and specifically why case outweighs, so if you need util then run it in the 2ac, or impact d then also run it in the 2ac, and hell you can even do case turns k to take out the impacts. For all of that to work though, you NEED to win and stay on top of framework, so keep framework on top of the k flow in every speech. Perms are pretty weak v ks, so still read them but dont depend on them for the 2ar

K affs

In all honesty, I am not in tune with k affs like that, so I am not the best judge to run these in front of. However, if it is your main strategy, then you should run what you are most comfortable with

Neg---Unless you would also run Cap against them, you should just run FW. I buy FW the most against k affs, just stay on top of their answers to your arguments and you should be alright
Aff---For a k aff to stick in front of me, I need a clear explanation why running the k aff solves for your impacts and why this round is specifically necessary. I need a role of the ballot from the get go(2ac fs, 1ac preempt maybe even) and for this to be explained in depth in the later parts of the round. In a similar fashion, I need an explanation of why running on the neg cant solve, and you need to explain to me how the alt looks like in action

Theory

Most theory is really a wash for me. The only one I will vote for is condo, but that also depends on the round and how many conditional off are run

Misc. Stuff

I like jokes---if you make me laugh then i'll give you +.1-.2 speaks---specifically, joke about Conor Cameron or Victoria Yonter(and if it flies), i'll give +.3

Samantha Walsh Northside College Preparatory

Kinsey Weisenberger Northside College Preparatory

Last changed on Fri January 5, 2024 at 7:30 AM CDT

kinseydebates@gmail.com

Hey Jake (LEE)
I made one phone call
I got the same house as you
Same cars, too
It's really not that hard
Oh hey, by the way, welcome to the top little brother
Feels good, huh?
But let's not forget how you got here
(YAH-YEET)

Little brother Jakey try to roast me? (what?)
Little brother standing on his own two feet?
(not for long)
I'm a dog, you're a puppy, call you Kong
Let's talk about your garbage that you call a song
It should be every other day, just some strong advice
I made you famous once, it's about to happen twice
Yeah, you on Disney, but who helped you read all your lines (that's me)
Don't forget boy, you were my shadow on Vine
Now you got a few subscribers, and you think that you're the shiz
I'll admit, you got money, you got bars, you got chicks
But you're a d***
You ain't thankful for your fans, it's kinda funny
Do your investors know Team 10 ain't making any money?
See, it starts with the talent, but it's hard when you got none
I think you kinda salty 'cause I'm the favorite son
I'm a maverick, you're a sidekick, yeah I brought you to LA
If there's one thing you should know
You don't frick with the Logang

Hold up, Ima throw up
Looking at your face you don't know what it means to glow up
Trying to dance and acting class
It's doing nothing now you try to rap
(come on, hold up)
Catch the flow, you can't, oh no
Maybe Team 10's got it
I mean, that's how you grow
But you still can't sell out any shows
No, you still can't find some matching clothes
(YAH-YEET)

You're just killing the vibe, fact
You ain't doing it right, double fact
Trying to play ball with the dogs
You don't know what you've done you just ruined your life, yeah
You're just killing the vibe, yeah
You ain't doing it right, yeah
Trying to play ball with the dogs
You don't know what you've done you just ruined your life, yeah

What happened, Jake?
Man, we used to love each other
After all, we came from the same mother
Biologically, you know that makes us brothers
So much negativity, it really makes me wonder (why?)
I feel like you just need a maverick shirt
(Link in description!)
When you insult me Jakey, it really hurts
Sometimes I wish my real brother was Dirk
(Disney!)
But now I gotta go and put you in the dirt

Yo, wait what?
hold up, hold up
Why'd the music stop?

Uh Oh! That's Alissa Violet
Used to be your chick
Now she in the Logang
And you know she on my, team!

Those cars ain't yours man
That shiz was just floated
Gun tattooed on your leg
'Cause she knew you weren't loaded

I act movies that your fans watch with their baby sitters
I thought you were my boy, guess I have a baby sister
You're tryna, be a model shoulda, kept nells visser
Go make another video, 'bout who's the better kisser

Is it called Team 10, cuz you take 10 percent of your friends? (That's fucked up, Jake)
When the contract dies, so does their carrer it ends? (That's also a fact)
Are you mad just 'cause you couldn't sign the Dolans? (They're smarter than you)
So you had to replace them with some spanish twins? (haha WEAK !!)

It's every day bro, do you give up at night?
We 24/7 man, you picked the wrong fight
I'm a savage
You are average
I'm a beast
I'm going wild
This song will be the death of you
I'm 'bout to be an only child!

Janine Widman Amundsen None

Ezekiel James Wilson-Porter Hire

Last changed on Fri April 5, 2024 at 6:15 AM CDT

Please put me on the chain(please have an email chain): zekesdocs@gmail.com and mehsdebate@gmail.com

Background

Ezekiel Wilson-Porter (He/HIM)(2N/1A), don't call me judge i'm a sophomore.

Maine East '26 (Blue Demons :])

Debated at:

Maine East High School (2023-Present)

Niles North High School (2022-2023)

TLDR

Debate should be a safe space for everyone and I will do my best to ensure that is true, please don't do any of the isms (sexism, racism, homophobia). If you ever feel unsafe in round please tell me. I will do my best to give an impartial ballot at the end of the round.

Non-argument Things

Speaks:

Everyone starts at 28 it goes up depending on your behavior during the round:

Good clear speaking
**Bring me food before the round +.2 speaks
*Make a joke that I laugh out loud at +.1 speaks
Make a joke about your varsity or someone else's varsity in the greater Chicago Area +.1 speaks

Ethics:

Clipping and other ethics violations (per tournament rules) are an auto L

Argument Things

T/L:

Please give a roadmap, "off the flow is not a roadmap."

Please do impact calculus. if I have two impacts at the end of the debate I need a framework of how I should evaluate them. This determines rounds.

Don't just read blocks your varsity gave you if you don't understand them.

Tech > Truth. Truth is subjective so the only objective way to objectively adjudicate a round is tech. If something isn't "truth" then just disprove it.

Time your speeches and prep.

2AR and 2NR judge instruction is super important, tell me how to write my ballot.

Affirmative:

A strong team will have a strong 1AC and extend and defend the content of the 1AC throughout the debate without shifting.

Kritikal Affirmative:

Im good for K AFFs. However, I do slightly lean towards framework. Don't run a KAFF if you are a novice.

T/Topicality:

Explain why your interpretation is better for the debate space and/or this debate, give a case-list for affs that meet and don't meet.

Counterplans/CPs(Not Cee-Pee)

Judge kick if you tell me too. Extend the perm debate, it's always fun. Cardless Counterplans are fine. Kritikal Counterplans are also always fun.

K/Kritiks:

This is what iv'e done for the majority of my time debating, if your a K team or wanting to do some kritikal argument i'm good for it. Don't assume that I will know [X K Argument].

Card Links > Advantage Links > Plan Links > Topic Area Links > Topic Links

DA/Disadvantage:

It's a DA there's not much to say, they're cool. Big fan of a good politics DA especially with the election coming up.

Theory:

I love theory, go wild. Hiding Aspec and other theory arguments is not good practice if you plan on going for it.

Stream Cowboy Carter <3

Shavon Womack Hire None

Peter Xu Northside College Preparatory

Catherine Yackee Brooks College Preparatory Academy HS None

jessica yeats Hire

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Chicago Debates High School City Championship

2024 — Chicago, IL/US

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