I did debate for 3 years in high school, and this is my second year judging. I'm pretty much a tabula rasa judge. Although I only did CX for one year, I have a pretty good understanding of the different types of arguments to be made. I don't have any hate against arguments like Kritiks or theory debates, and I especially enjoy debates about the rules of the round. However, please only run these kinds of arguments if you're comfortable with every aspect and can easily explain and impact them out. Just make sure that you tell me where to vote and why I should be voting there. I would rather have you make the decision for me instead of having to look back through the flow and weigh your impacts on my own.

I'm alright with speed, but if your speaking is too fast for me I'll simply say "clear." If you fail to slow down and I still can't understand you I'll stop flowing. At the very least slow down on tag lines. 

Tag-team CX is allowed.

I won't run prep time for flashing.

Don't be jerks to each other. 

Also just make sure to have fun and enjoy yourselves. 

I'm a pretty lax tab judge. I did policy for three years in high school, and I am currently a Parli debater at the University of North Dakota (GO SIOUX), so I've been around the block and I'll hear out any argument. Though when I say that, you had better warrant those damn arguments, or I'm gonna pull out my hair. And your gonna lose speaks, or worse, the round. Kritiks are fine, don't assume I know all the literature, and don't assume that I have any ideological biases towards any of the literature. You're gonna have to do the legwork on impacting and weighing all the non-quantifiable impacts, if you do you will probably win me over.  I do have a soft spot in my heart for T args, and most framework for that matter, just make sure you can showcase abuse, or I'm probably not gonna be persuaded to vote for you. If you can make me care about or enjoy the round, you're gonna get higher speaks, so defintely plan on referencing Fetty Wap at least three times ;^)

No road maps in expos! 

Arguments should be delivered slowly with emphasis on communication delivery. Arguments may be grouped in order to address all of them. A few well-developed arguments prove more persuasive than a larger quantity of arguments. Rebuttals should provide voters to address the important issues advanced in constructive speeches. Debaters should time themselves so they can stay in the allotted time. Clash should be done civilly, please never attack your opponent. Remember it is your job to convince me to be on your side. Evidence should be cited, arguments/evidence should extend the v/c, and signpost – make it easy for me to follow. Let me know you are going off case - be sure your very clear in your delivery - slow down and make sure I'm understanding your case.

I debated for four years in high school.

I'm pretty much tabula rasa but there are a few trends/arguments I'm not particularly fond of.

I don't know much about this topic and I haven't judged that many debates on it. Please explain acronyms or anything idiosyncratic to this topic.

If you have any specific questions on anything, please send me an email: camdenclark2012 [at] gmail During tournaments I'll try to keep checking this to respond and am more than happy to answer.

More expanded:

Topicality/Framework

TL;DR: Default aff on T, Framework is fine to run in front of me.

I tend to default to aff on topicality claims on reasonability. I don't like time-suck topicality arguments. That being said, on this topic, I have heard some very interesting T arguments that seemed valid. Use your discretion.

I really like hearing framework on K [affs], I think it's a very interesting debate. I'm tabula rasa on framework--I have no preference for either the offense or defense (I say this because I hear a lot of judges don't like hearing framework; you're fine to run it in front of me.

Kritiks

TL;DR: EXPLAIN YOUR LITERATURE, HAVE A COHERENT LINK STORY

I enjoy kritiks, feel free to run them in front of me. Like all other arguments, it will be very apparent if you don't know what you are talking about. If your K has somewhat obscure literature, please do a good explanation of what the literature says and how it relates to the debate or I will have a tough time evaluating the arguments.

Same goes with K/identity affs. You should have a good reason to not run a plan text and explain that well.

One other thing: if you have a long overview tell me in the roadmap so I can flow it on a different piece of paper.

Politics/DAs

TL;DR: I don't like these one-off answers to politics/DAs

Fiat solves the link is not a compelling answer to politics unless explained very well.

Intrinsicness arguments are compelling if explained but 2 seconds in the 2AC will not get my vote. This is especially true if the 1AR stands up and says "THEY DROPPED THE INTRINSICNESS ARGUMENT, WE WIN. MOVING ON..."

Counterplans

TL;DR I will have a hard time being convinced that condo is always bad, consult/process counterplans are probably abusive.

Running one conditional CP and one conditional K is probably not abusive and you'll have an uphill battle convincing me otherwise. If there are a significant number of conditional arguments I could be convinced that is abusive.

Consult and obscure process counterplans are probably abusive. You better have really convincing arguments otherwise on this issue if you want to run these types of arguments. Perm do the counterplan is rarely severance on these types of arguments--you'll have to explain this well.

Other in-round stuff

Don't lie, it's obvious.

I don't take prep for flashing nor do I care about tag-team in CX.

I don't care how you dress.

Don't be a jerk. You are all really smart students and you should act professional!

Thanks and good luck!

I consider myself a traditionalist. Lincoln-Douglas debate was created for a reason. The intent of debate is to facilitate communication, therefore use of speed should not be the emphasis in this activity. A good litmus test is the following...would Abraham Lincoln have used spread during his debate with Stephen Douglas? No? Then you probably shouldn't either. Exchange of ideas, discussion of which value is superior, respect and civility should be of paramount importance. Analysis and organization is extremely important. The debater in front of me should explain why their analysis is superior and why their value defeats the opposition.

As I noted above, the intent of debate is to facilitate communication. Speakers need to remember, and this is extremely important, that communication is not only about speaking, but it is also about listening. I have seen it happen more times than I can count, that your opponent will give you information to flip against them in the round, and that flip is not utilized. The tough part is identifying that information. Do not be constrained by what is obvious, meaning do not be afraid to ask "what if". Lateral thinking therefore, is incredibly important to consider.

Further, I consider myself a pragmatist. Originally, Lincoln-Douglas debate was designed as a values-oriented platform. This has evolved into a policy-values hybrid so while I will look at a round from a purely values perspective, the values and values criteria have become more of a means/end assertion. The use of real world links and impacts should support your decision. If you are able to demonstrate why your real world analysis/evidence supports your values/values criteria and you set that parameter up front, I will strongly consider that as a voter. I would however note the following:: the links to your impacts are absolutely critical to establish in the round. Off time roadmaps are also important. Organization is absolutely critical. It is your responsibility to tell me where you are on the flow.

Impact calculus is one of the major concepts I will weigh in your round. That is an incredibly huge point to remember where I am concerned as a judge. However, it is important to consider the nature of the impact. This is where the aforementioned links come into play. Of further note, since LD has become a hybrid, I buy off on solvency being an issue as a means to justify the resolution. Those of you who have had me before as a judge know why that statement alone can determine an entire round. In short, back to the point on the "what if" issue I broached earlier, that would be a very good place to start.

I also look at framework. If you are going to run something out of the norm...i.e. counterplan, Rights Malthus, general breakdown of society, etc., you need to make sure your links are airtight, otherwise I will not consider your impact. The two would operate separate of each other if there is no link.

I started my involvement in LD in 1982, I also debated policy from 1980 to 1982, competed in speech from 1980 to 1984, and competed at the college level in the CEDA format in 1985 and from 1988 to 1990, and have been judging since 2014 in the Spokane, WA area. I also judged policy in the Chicago, IL area in the early 1990"s.

In terms of the January/February 2024 LD topic on reducing military presence in the West Asia/North Africa region, I have very unique experience and perspective. I am retired military, retiring in 2014 and having served 4 years active duty in the Navy and 16 years in the Washington Army National Guard including a one year deployment to Iraq from 2005 to 2006 in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. I saw first hand the effect of what many of you may try to argue. I also attended many briefings from subject matter experts prior to going in country, including geopolitical/economic briefings, etc. I do consider myself a bit more well versed than many judges in this field based on my personal experience. In short, examine your argumentation and analysis carefully. The bigger picture is a major area of focus and as the semester progresses, you will begin to see adjustments based on the feedback you are getting.

A couple of administrative notes. Eye contact is really important if for no other reason, to see how much time you have left. One of my biggest pet peeves is cutting off your opponent during CX. I have no problem annotating that you did so on your ballot so your coach can discuss the matter with you after the tournament. Civility and decorum are important, and I can surmise several of you have had this happen to you. I also do not have a problem with you timing yourself or sharing evidence, provided it does not detract from the overall use of time in the round.

Finally, it is extremely important to remember....this activity can be fun and it will help you in ways you can't even imagine later down the road. Everyone at this tournament, whether they are coaches, judges, your peers, etc...started as a novice. Bad rounds happen. They are a part of the landscape that is debate. This teaches an important life lesson. How do you bounce back from adversity? How do you apply what you have learned to make things better next time?

Remember that the case/argumentation you start off with at the beginning of the semester, will not be what you end up with at the end, provided you do a self assessment at the end of each round. Ask yourself what was supposed to happen. What did happen? What three things went well for you. What three things happened to you that are opportunities for improvement. If you are consistently applying these criteria, and using your coaches/opponents/peers as resources, by default your weaknesses will get shored up. Incidentally, this is a really good life skill as well and can be applied in the real world. Good luck to you going forward!

I have done policy debate for 4 years in high school and coached policy debate for the last 5-6 years. I am now an attorney with my own private law practice but still love coming back and helping the community. I am fine with speed just make sure you are clear and I like when teams go *slightly* (doesnt have to be much) slower on the tags so I can make sure I get everything down on the flow.

Argument preference honestly none but I am always a sucker for a good framework debate. I guess in all honesty I tend to lean more policy maker. Not by preference since I am fine with Kritiks but I want to know what my ballot actually does. The role of the ballot should be more than a 10 second blurb.

I am not as well versed in philosophy as I should be. So don't assume I know what the terminology is BUT I am willing to learn.

T is fine but potential abuse is hard for me to vote on. I usually see T as a gateway issue.

Generic Link DA's: Honestly in the 1NC is fine because I know teams have strats and I get that but I really like a good specific link story to come out in the block or be able to explain it to me.

Impacts: Obviously I am all about impact calc at the end for policy debates and roll of the ballot arguments in K debates.

Email Chain: lukegordon57@gmail.com

I debated at Coeur d’Alene High school for 3 years and Gonzaga University for 4 years.

My email is mdrjohnson26@gmail.com

I haven’t been heavily involved in debate for a few years as I was working abroad.

Essentially, do whatever you want and I’ll do my best. I try my absolute hardest to pay 100% attention while a debate is happening. This means that I try to make eye contact, listen attentively, and catch all of the arguments the best I can. This also means, however, that I flow on paper. As such, please give me some pen time especially if you have a really important argument you want to get across. **This is 10x more true for theory arguments/T debates - you must slow down.

Also, I really hate interrupting a debate. I don’t yell clear, please just…be clear?

Updates as of Kentucky

1. Line by line is important to me - I understand we're on a time crunch, but I have to know what you're answering. Numbers are great, use them consistently.

2. I like research - I love this aspect of the activity a lot. That said, I think that the way a lot of teams highlight cards is odd. I'm naturally more skeptical of a piece of evidence if you've made 1 sentence from 15 lines of text by highlighting a few words. I also really don't like the size 2 font on cards.

3. Compare your cards! I think every debate I've watched in recent memory could have been improved if no one said "their card is really bad". I'm more persuaded if you first tell me what makes your evidence so persuasive and why the opponent's evidence can't meet that threshold.

4. That said, CX needs to extend beyond just evidence. Asking "where in you card does it say 'x'" for 3 minutes isn't persuasive to me.

5. There is no clarification period. If you are asking a question, that is CX.

Decorum
I don’t like obnoxious people. I have a pretty good sense of humor and I know when being funny crosses a line. I’m also not persuaded when debaters tell others to do harm to themselves or others. It won’t necessarily cost you the debate (unless I’m instructed otherwise) but I will tell you now; it’s a waste of breath that will probably lose you speaker points. I also do not enjoy debates where debaters don't defend the things they have said/read. If you read Irigaray, you have to defend Irigaray. If you try to weasel out of it, I'm either going to think you a) are unprepared/don't understand your evidence b) are a weasel c) are an unprepared weasel.

Theory
I lean neg, but everything is open to debate. This was never my favorite kind of debate and it is definitely not my strength. I don’t consider most things reasons to reject the team unless you tell me and give a good reason. I tend to lean negative on conditionality.

Topicality
Love it. Read it, but be honest with yourself. You and I know both know that T – Sub isn’t the best argument ever, but I’ve won on it and voted on it, so here we are. An important note: I find it easier to vote for/against T when I know what exactly a debate round looks like on average. What are the affs? Are they winnable? What are the DAs? Are they winnable?

Counterplans
Love them. If you’re going to have a super long, complicated text, please read it slowly. I try to write it down the best I can. If you have a lot of planks, you should probably have solvency cards for all the planks.

DAs
Love these too.

Ks
Go for them if they’re your thing. I was a philosophy student, but the K lit most kids read was never my jam. I like a specific link story and I would like to know how the alt solves or why, if it doesn’t, I still shouldn’t vote aff. Something that often confuses me about K debates is that I don’t know what to do with the things I am told, so please impact things clearly and let me know what to do with the information you provide.
I’m not a big fan of the dead-on-the-inside stuff as it all sounds like gobbledygook to me, but if it’s your thing and you want to shine, shine on, friend. I’ll do my best.

K Affs
The more about the topic they are, the happier I am. That said, I don’t hate things that have nothing to do with the topic. Just explain the aff well and try to be as clear as possible. I will say, if all of your cards have paragraph-long tags, it will be harder for me to flow.

Please don’t hesitate to ask me questions before/after the debate. I really love debate and want everyone to do well and get better.

Important Update

**Clarification questions about the speech doc are CX time**

E-mail: loganmcroberts@gmail.com

I debated at Lake City High School and Gonzaga University.

Topicality - I have a pretty high threshold for voting on T compared to most judges. Most T debates are muddled, incomprehensible or spread through to the point where important details aren't/can't be flowed.

DA/CPs - Generic DA/Counterplan strats are effective but boring as hell even if they can be round-winners. Overviews on DAs shouldn't be explicative - they should be comparative analysis that doesn't fit well answering 2AC arguments.

CP Theory - I think that counterplans should be functionally and textually competitive. Anything else is probably plan plus. Competing off of certainty is obnoxious. Conditionality is fine and there's a large threshold for me voting Aff on it. Judge kick is an entirely different discussion and I probably consider is illegitimate.

Kritiks - Ks should be competitive with the aff as well (floating PIKs are absurd). Cool metaphors and punch-lines are creative and sometimes funny but they're not arguments. You shouldn't assume I'll know what you're talking about but I would say I'm familiar enough with most lit bases to follow. Affs reading FW against Ks isn't convincing alone - just beat Ks on substance since most (policy) affs are impact turns to it anyways, so utilize it. As per fiat being illusory - this argument is silly in relation to how it gets utilized. I think a critic can imagine any of the possible worlds presented to them by either team and weigh them inside their head which means saying fiat is illusory doesn't mean that aff goes away. Whether we should use consequential, epistemological, or ontological questions as justifications for which world the critic has imagined is better than the other is what the debate is about.

T and Framework - Genuinely, I think debate is a space that for some, is a game, and for others is something more (even if I can't understand either of them). T is not genocide. Some groups are purposefully excluded from certain spaces and those are important topics and discussions, but that doesn't mean it's a reason, on its own to win a ballot. Topicality isn't the same as "institutions potentially good" (i.e. T versus Framework). Framework framed as institutions are good/salvageable is a distinct argument.

K affs vs. K debate - these debates are the most difficult to judge mainly because I don't think there's much competition. Arguments like, "the permutation is the link" make literally no sense. Links of omission probably aren't links of commission (even if I think it's catchy). Being able to solve the aff and still establish competition in these debates is pretty difficult.

I am a traditional LD judge. A Value and Criterion centered debate is what I’m looking for. Progressive styling will be allowed as long as you verify with your opponent pre-round. The flow matters; explain why your arguements mean more to the round as it’s happening.

Montana is a traditional debate style. Therefore, your speed and K's will likely not be effective with me. I prefer real arguments on the topic to theories and games. I generally default to stock issues and policy making so keeping things grounded in real world is key. The topic is given for a reason and I want to hear arguments and plans about the topic.

Decorum matters. Do not treat the debate space as a place to act unprofessionally and attack your opponents just because they say something you don't like. If you claim debate is abusive and then proceed to degrade and abuse your opponents you will lose. I won't vote for K's on words, pronouns, etc.

I will listen to your style and do my best to adapt and be open minded but things that are far off topic, too rooted in just philosophy with no real world impacts will likely not work. If you cannot explain your arguments or your K in your own words dont run it. Speed is only effective so long as you are clear and understandable. If I cant understand the argument it doesnt get flowed. I dont have the evidence in front of me so spread at your own risk. Remember debate is about effective communication more than anything.

Overall, clash is key. Respond to your opponents arguments. Debate the arguments and stay grounded in reality. You can claim all the terminal impacts you want but logic and analysis are likely to shoot those links down with empiric/uniqueness alone.

The most important thing is clarity and communication skills. I look for strong evidence with a strong link to your contentions. I like analytical analysis to go with your evidence. I do not like critical arguments or any jargon. Please be respectful and enjoy your round. 

Did three years of policy debate for CHS, and some college PUFO in Ohio. Also did ADS, Edcom, IR, Panel, Extemp, and am familiar with the rules for the rest of them.

Policy Paradigm:

In general-

If you argue something well, I'm going to give it to you. My theory threshold is pretty high. I don't award speaker points based off of who is most polite. If your debate style is more, ah, confrontational, thats completely alright, as long as it doesn't look like bullying. If you are going to be condescending, please don't be wrong. Things like stealing prep or standing right next to someone while they are speaking to be intimidating is gross, and I will call you out on it with zero hesitation.

T-

I was a 2ac, which means reasonability is a plausible argument for me. I will only drop a team on T if you put the time in. If you go for T, you will need to actually do standard comparison rather than just reading the shell. Also not a huge fan of fairness as a voter. Again, the standard debate will need to be good for me to drop somebody on it.

Cp's-

I'm cool with conditionality. Not a large chance I'm going to drop a team on it unless its an extreme case. That being said, please for the love of god don't drop condo because then I will have to vote somebody down on condo and that will make me an existentialy less happy person. As far as perm's go, I think they are a completely valid test of competitiveness. Multiple perms are ok, but please dont just rattle them off and be shady about it. I'm ashamed to say this but once I definitely read 6 timeframe perms and than made a huge deal about the neg dropping one of them, and the judge dropped me and called me a douchebag, and rightfully so. What I'm saying is, I will notice and call you out on it if you do something like that. Topical cps are fine, actor cps are gross but again, my theory threshold is usually high unless you can have a demonstratable in-round abuse story. 

Da's-

Do your thing. Timeframe on terror impacts is BS. Heg is always a fun debate. I will make it rain speaker points on you if you run the Beef DA.

K's-

OK. So I was a k debater. I love k's. However, the two things I hate most in this world are the Oakland Raiders and poorly run critiques. I ran a lot of weird stuff, so I'm familiar with a lot of authors and most critiques, so I will know if you are misrepresenting your authors. I have run or cut: Baudrillard, Cap, Nietszche/Schmitt/Schop, PostCol, Fem, Statism, Security, Hillman (I love him as much as I secretly love war), Foucault, Agamben, Racism and have run some of these on the affirmative as well as the negative. Also am fine with performance, as long as the aff's framework argument clearly lays out a reasonable amount of ground for the negative. 

Framework-

Framework is absolutely huge for me. First, I love Roland Bleiker on framework. Secondly, if your anti-k framework shell includes evidence from Ruth Shively or Richard Rorty, and the answering team points out that both of those individuals are so pro critique it is physically painful and any card tagged otherwise is taking them wildly out of context, I will probably break out in applause during the speech. Feel free to ask me about this in person.

Former K debaters often lean towards the K on FW, especially folks who have run K affs. I am not one of those people. I honestly like the framework debate more than the k debate. If your interperetation is that K's shouldnt be allowed in debate, that is of course going to be a hard sell; however, if you actually explain why your standards create a better debate space (education-wise or for other reasons) , than I have no problem throwing the k flow away. IF YOU READ NO OTHER PART OF MY PARADIGM READ THIS: as a K debater, your absolute first priority, before even becoming familiar with the k you're running, is to understand why you should be allowed to critique. If you don't want to put the time in on framework, you should stop being lazy, go cut those uniqeness updates your coach keeps getting on you about, and just run politics, a counterplan, and t every round like everybody else does.

IE Paradigm:

I was a debater first and a IE-er second, so my tastes are pretty unrefined. I like funny speeches or interesting ones. Nothing else I say here will be at all enlightening or helpful. 

I did high school debate for 3 years. I did nearly every form of debate except LD. I have qualified for nationals twice and broke at the NFL tournament. I also was a City Councilman. I am by no means a lay judge, however I believe debates are won on the merits of the arguments. Evidence and facts matter. I have done and judges most forms of the debate.

Treat your opponent with respect, you will not win any points from me by belittling them.

As far as speed goes, I'd say if your max speed is 100 miles per hour, go 60 miles per hour for me, I want to flow your arguments and if you rush them I may not get them all. Quality over quantity.

Do not drop your contentions, or your opponents, I will flow them as dropped and they can decide the ballot for me.

I am not very familiar with the K but open to hearing a K case and can and will vote on it if the case is made.

The flow is important, do not drop contentions or arguments or I will flow to your opponent as a drop and a won argument. Give me voting issues.

Enjoy your time debating, its about learning, not winning.

If you are in a rush please skim the bolded text for what is relevant to you, the not-bold text that follow is just the longer clarifying explanation for those that might want more details.

wasmith7899@gmail.com is my contact email for any other questions or if you need to add me to a potential link chain

Competed and learned all debate styles in high school.
Competed at NFL(now known as NSDA) Nationals in Congressional Speaking.

Was a high school assistant coach for 3 years. (Currently an unaffiliated judge)
Currently pursuing Bachelor degrees in: Communication, Early Childhood Development, and Psychology.

I do not flow cross-examination period. Meaning only the words spoken in a speech are noted on paper for my decision of the winner. I do listen though so, if you want a notable answer marked in my decision bring it up in your speech so it is on my flow(otherwise it 'didn't happen').

Speed - is no problem. If online I need camera on while spreading though- I have a much harder time keeping up with a case if I cannot read your lips while you're talking if you cannot have your camera on for any reason please slow down your speaking slightly and make sure to emphasize your tags. Standard SpReading rules: Slow for Tagline, Author, Date of evidence. Sign post occasionally. I will say "Clear" if I no long understand you.
I strongly encourage you time yourself. I keep silent Official Time unless told otherwise- but I am not very good at providing time signals while I am also flowing. . If you run out of time I allow approx 4 second grace periods to finish your sentence before I'll have to cut you off. If I am verbally cutting you off you have already gone over time and I will only flow 2-3 more words after the cut off. No new thoughts after time has elapsed. In questioning periods if time runs out with a question unanswered I would prefer a brief answer, but allow the debater to decline and move onto prep for the next speech if they so wish.
If you make personal attacks on your opponent's character, your speaker points will suffer significantly. It is rare but occassionally if you are too rude and lacking in decorum you can loose a round from that alone. (We all make mistakes, malicious intent vs a slip up is very obvious.)

I believe it is your debate round so you, the debater, determine the direction of the debate. I will listen to any type or style of arguments you want to run, simply explain why that is the most important thing to be looked towards in the round. I say I will listen but that does not mean you win just because your argument is unique. Whoever wins is whoever best explains and supports their claims, and refutes your opponents claims.

Tabula Rasa as much as I can be- knowing i have my own biases and experience that I try to leave at the door but isn't entirely possible. Primarily with emphasis on Flow. I weigh what you present and unless you are clearly and blatantly perpetuating obvious falsehoods I simply look at the facts presented on my flow, if something isn't on my flow it didn't happen in the debate.
Every claim needs a warrant and justification of relevance.
I will leave my political opinions at the door and do not reference them. I don't care what party the current acting president or house leader is, you will refer to them by the office they hold and no other. Don't assume that because you think I believe something personally that I will need less supporting evidence for your claims.

In Public-Forum the round is generally yours to do with as you please.
Courtesy to your opponents is vital. Being as 4 people can get very heated on topics quite easily I will not put up with disrespectful, rude, or threatening behavior in anyway. PF Cross-fire is the most common place in the debate sphere I consider if a team should loose on decorum, remember you are still talking to other humans that have to go back to their lives after this round ends, loosing civility is not worth maybe winning a round and if I'm judging you probably wouldn't end up winning anyways.
I love Voters at the end please- it helps show what you as debaters believe to be most important in that round.
If no RA, framework, or definitions are provided by either side I will loosely judge the round assuming the most common Webster definitions of terms and utilize a Cost-Benefit Analysis approach of who most accurately addressed and supported their claims in relevance to resolution question and demand, but student defined frameworks(within reason obviously) are my first preference weighing mechanism for the round.

In Lincoln-Douglas I have a slight preferential bias towards more traditional style and format. I will absolutely still listen to progressive styles, you must simply continue to warrant and justify all claims.
I think values and morality ultimately are the core of LD and debates of value are vital to a good LD debate.
I try to use the Value and and Value-Criterion as my first tool of weighing the round. I would really like to see how the value and value-criterion are supported by the rest of the following points of your cause. Ideally an LD debate does not devolve to just stating one side has a better value than their opponents, and should just win Becuase that value is "better." Instead I like to see V and VC incorporated throughout the flow and relating to your contentions. Tell me how your value is achieved in your world through what you have presented in your case and how you are doing that better or the values you are achieving will have more impact than the evidence and values the opposite side presents. If you get near the end of the debate and aren't sure how to conclude, impact calculus is one of my favorite formats for finishing out a speakers speech to get my onto the same page of what you think was most important in the round today.
If you opt to utilize a Standard instead then you must explicitly explain why you chose a Standard over a Value and Value-Criterion and the relevancy of that, all other incorporation into the debate applies the same as what I want to see for V and VC.
If you are running progressive: your evidence needs to be relevant, if I could read your case in 2 months on a different resolution and nothing would need to change then your case will have much less ground to stand on in my eyes.

In Congress I am a seasoned Parlimentarian, I've held Parli as multiple state level tournaments in both Idaho and Washington, I look to Roberts rules and NSDA standards. I prefer that POs use audible time signals such as knocking or make a timer accessible and easy to see for the speaker. The more you can effectively manage the room and keep things in order without me having to interfere the more successful I will perceive the PO job you did.

In Policy I have the least experience. I have not dealt with Policy style debate much in quite a few years so I am not especially up to date.
I can listen to spreading but I have been hearing LD spreading primarily so consider slowing down a titch - especially on taglines.
Please do not do Performative Affs. I think they are very cool but often, for me, lead to just having more trouble tracking the debate thus harming you in the long run.
Don't expect me to just know your cards and arguments. You have to explain and justify your arguments. If you just say a tag and move on then you aren't willing to work for my vote and likely won't receive it.
I know most concepts within policy but am very lacking on the jargon that coincide so quickly throwing out a lot of jargon specific to this debate types will lose me.

Update for 2021-2022 season: I have not worked on this year's topic, so please be as thorough as you can. I have some familiarity with the resolution based on my law school coursework in antitrust law, including antitrust law in the context of mergers and acquisitions.

My argument experience is still the same in terms of having more experience with policy arguments/plan-based debate, but as mentioned below, this is just a disclaimer about my background, rather than a preference for any type of argument. I will do my best to evaluate your arguments no matter the style, and I am happy to answer questions before the round if there is something specific you'd like to ask about. I've also noticed that I find framing the ballot even more useful for me as someone who has been out of the activity for a little bit, particularly in the final speeches- i.e. explaining what you think you are winning, why it matters, why your evidence is good and theirs is bad, etc.

Background
- Debated for 4 years at Gonzaga University, current law student at Georgetown
- Assistant coach for Gonzaga University

Overview
- My experience is nearly exclusively in policy-based debate. That does not mean that I’m unwilling to listen to other styles of argumentation, it just means that I require an extra level of explanation if that's not your argument style.
- I do not want to reconstruct the debate and arbitrarily make a decision based on whose evidence is better- I think you should do that work in the debate, and I will do my part by working hard to listen and evaluate what you have to say.
- I think it is much more important to be clear than fast. I'm more likely to reward a 4-off strategy than a 9-off strategy.
- I think negative teams get a logical but not contradictory amount of conditional advocacies.

Being Aff
- I'm not persuaded that many things are reasons to reject a team, but I'm perfectly willing to make a cheating counterplan go away if you have a strongly developed theoretical objection
- I am a huge fan of case debate, and am strongly opposed to 2As that fly through case arguments
- The phrase “try or die” is not compelling to me, I prefer engaged impact comparison

Being Neg
Framework
- I am more persuaded by substantive reasons about why progress in the direction of the resolution is possible and desirable than I am by purely theoretical arguments, but a combination of both is worthwhile in establishing a link to your violation
- I'm typically confused about what it means for the aff to be a prerequisite to the resolution. I find offense related to the negative's interpretation far more persuasive than trying to find some balance between defending the resolution and not defending the resolution
- Topical versions of the aff don't have to be perfect to be worthwhile arguments

Topicality
- I think topicality has become a non-starter for many judges as long as the aff is close enough; I don't feel that way and will not be disgruntled listening to a T debate if that's a part of your strategy against a particular aff
- I default to competing interpretations but can be persuaded by a thoroughly explained reasonability argument
- Evidence comparison is important to me; predictability is not the only litmus test for the desirability of a given definition
Counterplans
- I think there should be a solvency advocate that agrees with the counterplan text
- I am willing to evaluate the status quo if the 2NR establishes a judge choice argument- if the 2NR does not make this argument, I think the 2AR ought to make clear that the negative is stuck with the counterplan
- I will reward smart, case specific counterplans more than I will generic agent/process counterplans
- I think the following counterplans are more objectionable than others: consult counterplans, condition counterplans, and anything else that could be characterized as “plan plus.” This doesn't mean I don't want to listen to these counterplans, I was a 2N for my whole debating life so I'm comfortable with whatever you want to do. This is just a disclaimer that I tend to find these theory arguments more persuasive than other judges might.
Disads
- Impact comparison matters very much to me but not at the expense of the rest of the DA- if entire pieces of the DA are missing and I'm confused about something, I'm not likely to fill in the gaps for you
- I'm not a fan of a proliferation of 2AC arguments with no warrant or explanation, but I also think bad DAs deserve plenty of logical indicts and I think that defensive arguments can be enough to beat a bad argument
Kritiks
- Of my limited experience with critical argumentative strategies, I have the most familiarity with gender and critiques of capitalism
- The impact debate should focus on contextualizing your evidence to the aff’s advantages or mechanism
- I will be sympathetic to a conditionality argument if your kritik explicitly contradicts one or more of your other off-case positions
- I am not persuaded by arbitrary or self-serving "role of the ballot" arguments. I would prefer a clear explanation of how to compare your arguments against the affirmatives

I will evaluate the debate that you want to have to the best of my ability. If you have questions, feel free to ask before the round or email me: paigespraker@gmail.com.