Marshall Amaya

USC ' 23

Please add me to the email chain! maamaya@usc.edu

If you ask me before the round about an email chain, that might be indicative of a problem.

TLDR: This is cliche, but do what you want as long as you do it well.

- I have no concrete preference on which style of argumentation you choose to use-- this is ultimately your performance/scene. However, I'd prefer a better debate on an area I'm less educated on than a lesser debate over fields I'm more familiar with. Details of this are later in the paradigm.

- Tech over truth, logic over tech.

- All argumentation needs warrants in order to be evaluated-- the threshold for this lowers if unanswered, but still avail.

- I value narrative/coherence- solid analytical warrants and explanation of your impact scenario is essential to being convincing. A relatively small disad argued well is more convincing than a poorly explained nuke war scenario.

Here are some more specific points.

Traditional affs:

1. Aside from a two-tournament spree where I read Bifo, I solely went for traditional affs throughout my career. I think theres some unique benefits from traditional policy argumentation-- oftentimes nuanced K debates evolve into the negative having one-side expertise of complex theories that aren't communicated well, which ultimately evades clash.

2. I found case in the 2AC underutilized a lot. This doesn't mean in any degree to focus entirely or disproportionately on case in the 2AC, but a concise and strategic overview/line-by-line can make the block a lot more difficult and be more strategic than it seems. A strategic 2AC can set up the quinessential lying youre about to do in the 2AR

Non-traditional affs:

1. Go for it. I think this style of argumentation can enliven the debate space in a lot of ways if done well.

2. Be cognizant that this is not the realm I am familiar with. I may not be up to date with hyper-specific terminology, acronyms, etc. A few extra seconds to make yourself more comprehensive and understandable may do you well.

3. You should have some tie to the topic. This is obviously a fundamental question and I am open to being swayed either way, but that is my initial perspective.

4. FW

- Aff perspective:

1. A lot of fw argumentations on the negative tend to be repetitive cliches, this should influence you to be crafty with how you go for impact scenarios. The possibilities here are endless, utilize that.

2. This isnt particularly insightful, but offense is key in these types of debates.

- Neg perspective

1. The quality of debate impact tends to be more persuasive than the "this creates solutions to real world problems" arguments. The idea here should be no link the aff's offense, then go for an external impact.

2. Treat the debate as a functional external impact to a no-plan link rather than them just being "unfair."

K:

1. A lot of my perspectives on this aspect of debate were already addressed above.

2. I am probably not your judge if your gameplan is to give a 5-minute overview at the top of the 2NC, do the link and impact debate, then have the 1NR take the perm and framework.

3. Focus on clash typically via the link debate-- I think this is where critical debate gets a little messy, but if done well this can make the K debate lethal.

4. I won't cower in fear of getting 3NR'd because I didn't fully comprehend your verbose theory

5. After typing this I am realizing this boils down to: be good at kritiks if you debate them. This isnt insightful lmao

DA:

1. I like it when theyre intrinsic and hyper-specific

2. Uniqueness typically controls the link debate

3. People tend to undercover case-turns

4. Detailed explanations of link turns case are mf brutal theyre sick, big ups to you if you do this

CP:

1. You should probably have a solvency advocate.

2. You should probably quantify and impact out solvency deficits

3. Well researched CPs and PICs are some of the most interesting and substantive debates out there

4. If you have any specific questions here feel free to ask.

T:

1. A good T debate can be fun and engaging, one of my favorite types to listen to.

2. Im agnostic about CI/reasonability-- I err aff a tad on reasonability if the violation is perspectively unsubstantial.

3. Rather than solely focusing on what certain authors think words mean, focus on how your interpretation produces a better topic base and educational future for the debate world.

4. If you go for we meet, it needs to be 100%. If it's 90%, a better strategy might be evaluating how the uncertainty of if you meet or not makes your interpretation preferable.

Speaks:

I used to be really anal retentive about speaks, but by the end of my career I really couldn't have cared less.

This is the format I hope to follow! (Inflates/deflates to the tournament.)

>29.5: top 5 of the tournament.

29.1-29.5: speaker award, minor criticisms.

28.7-29.1: should realistically clear.

28.2-28.7: average.

<28.2: something happened, or you are in the wrong division.

Again, let me know if you have any questions!

If you show me a fully completed application to USC I'll give you 29+

So I'm pretty easy going when it comes to my judging preferences. I would generally call my self a tab judge, but that isnt always possible. Historically I would say I lean towards more critical arguements. I think I just lean towards more high probability lower magnitude impacts, not that I wont vote on high magnitude lower probability impacts just need to do more work on it. I will vote on any form of aff(policy, k, etc) but I will also vote on framework on those affs. I have a semi higher threshold on t but i will still vote on it. If your aff or k has any in depth literature to it, dont assume I know it make sure to take a little bit more time to make sure its understood

I know I dont have a ton to my paradigm but if you have any questions feel free to email me at: tlabriola36@gmail.com

Max McGougan

Saint George's School '17
maxmcgougan@gmail.com

Top level
1. Familiar with policy debate. I am a bit more of a stickler for clarity, but especially online, I understand how it can be difficult. I'll make sure to communicate (likely multiple times) if I need you to slow down.

2. Don't assume my familiarity with the topic, especially earlier in the tournament.

3. Argue what you want. If you are convincing, I'll vote for you. Although I'd like to say I'm "tab", I do have some argumentative preferences. These aren't concrete, but may give you insight into what I prefer.

Arguments

4. I value narrative/coherence of an argument very highly - if you have a relatively small disad but convincingly argue it, 9 times out of 10 I'll prefer it to a shoddily-built affirmative w/nuke war. Don't take this as license to phone-in some risk cards and hope I vote for it. What I mean is that pointing out the "obvious" flaws of some argument is sometimes enough - don't get too tunnel visioned.


6. I need to edit my stance on kritik's to reflect my real preferences. Most kritiks appear to be cheating, make it impossible for the aff to debate, have nebulous links and alts, and rarely answers to permutations that extend beyond links are da's. Answers to framework gesture at "epistemology" and assume those are the magic words to end the debate. I don't enjoy judging these rounds and find that very frequently the neg is using Ks to avoid clash and attribute positions to the aff in bad faith.

Now, if this doesn't apply to you, or you're a great "K debater" in an outround with me as a judge, or even if you have read and understand the aff and think you have a good K, ignore it. I've voted on lots of Ks, and I'm always going to vote on who does the better job debating. I don't have a vendetta against Ks, I just think the way they are typically employed is silly and most of the discussion so surface level that I just tune out.

7. I like topicality. Agnostic on reasonability/CI - my position is probably C/I, with some degree of just erring aff if I think the violation is unsubstantial. I'd prefer you not get tied down in the reasonability/CI debate. In the absence of technical drops, I'll defer to what I just said. Standards work is good and debaters seem to do a lot of that, but try to make it clear early in the speech what you're interp is and how they violate - I don't have a lot of topic experience so slowing down and explaining this is so useful for me.


8. Counterplans should be competitive, and I have incredibly low standards for the aff to beat counterplans that compete off of should or steal the aff. However, I side fairly negative with PIC's, CP's that have solvency advocates that distinguish from aff, and other predictable CP's that steal most of the aff but at least have some theoretical justification for their existence. I enjoy and reward creative, well though out counterplans.
General

Reading long prewritten blocks is very suspicious (especially in K, T, or DA impacts). If you are here, you may as well use your time to debate!


Debate should generally be fun. Be respectful of your opponents, and enjoy the opportunity to debate!

Hi, I’m Chris! I debated 4 years of high school in the North Idaho, Spokane area for Coeur d’Alene High School and have been judging since. Below are some of my general preferences followed by argument specifics.

General Stuff: TL;DR

· ABOVE ALL ELSE do what you think is the best strategical option for you to win the round. This has obvious limits, but you should already know that. I would much rather see a debate where everyone is confident and having fun rather than 4 people struggling to fit perfectly to my paradigm.

· Yes, please put me in the email chain if you are using one: chrisward135@live.com

· Please be able to tell the story of whatever it is you are arguing. My job is not to connect the dots for you.

· Ultimately, I will vote on just about anything provided it is properly impacted, has good warrants, etc. I like to think I’m a pretty easy going person so as long as you win the argument, I’ll vote for you. It’s that simple.

· Organization is something extremely important to me. Please make it clear to me which piece of paper your argument is going on or when you are moving on to a different piece of paper. If you don’t, it might get put on the wrong piece of paper which could determine the outcome of the round.

· If you give me a great line-by-line, you have a substantially greater chance of picking up my ballot.

· Tech and truth both matter to me. You should not be sacrificing one for the other.

· Speed is fine, but please please please do not sacrifice quality for speed. This means I want you to slow down on things like tags, overviews, and rebuttals.

· Please be considerate of one another during the round. This saves us from having uncomfortable conversations and from you losing speaker points during the round.

· I am more than willing to answer any questions you may have about decorum specific arguments, etc. before the round begins.

Case Debate:

I love case debate, please tell me why the impacts of the aff outweigh whatever the negative team has to say. I think case debate has become something less utilized by teams because the aff can sometimes get too “in the weeds” with the 10 off the 1nc reads to get to their own arguments. But yeah, please tell me how awesome the 1ac you probably spent hours creating is.

Disads:

Love these too. I’m totally fine with disads of every topic (the more specific/contextual to the aff, the better). The politics disad was one of my personal favorites to go for, so I encourage you to go for these arguments. One good piece of evidence will go much further with me than the 1nc reading 6 generic link cards.

Counter Plans:

CP’s are fantastic! I am of the belief that the negative should be able to use CP’s and/or kritiks as methods of testing the aff from multiple angles. Like disads, the more specific/contextual the argument is to the aff, the better. That isn’t meant to say that I’ll object to a well-argued states or courts CP as long as you tell me why the CP is a good test of competiveness to the aff, along with proving why the inevitable perm is not mutually exclusive.

Additionally, I need the aff to do more work than just saying “perm do both” and moving on. Actually answer the argument and explain things to me. I too often just have those three words or whatever the verbiage the perm is on my flow with nothing else so please don’t do this.

Kritiks: What you’re probably here for

If I’m keeping it 100 with you, I was not a big K debater, however I did tend to run them the more I debated. THIS DOES NOT MEAN I DON’T WANT YOU TO RUN THESE IN FRONT OF ME! Many rounds I have judged have had excellent and nuanced K debating so if that’s your jam, then go for it. I consider myself fairly competent in some of the literature out there however, this is not a free pass to use a bunch of big philosophy words in hopes of winning my ballot. Spoiler Alert: this decreases your chances of doing that

Like everyone else, please do not assume I know who your author is or what their philosophy entails, because I’m telling you right now I don’t. I teach high school government and I don't have as much time to up to date on every hip new author out there, so please put in the work if you are going to make the argument.

You will pick up my ballot if you have: specific links to the aff, don’t read a lazy generic alt, extend the impact to the K, and actually explain your argument in a digestible way. You should give me an idea what the world of the K looks like and/or what happens post round if you choose to make that argument.

DO NOT just tell me that your answers to the aff were “in the overview”. This is not an actual argument and I generally do not flow overviews to the same extent I flow other arguments. It is not to your advantage to read an extremely long overview with me in the back of the room. I will become generally more disinterested the longer the overview is so make it quick (1-1.5 min maybe). You’re better off just responding to the other team via a line-by-line anyway. Additionally, single card K’s in the 1nc are not arguments. Do not waste my time with these.

K’s I am competent in: Capitalism, Security, Neoliberalism, Colonialism, Set Col, Fem IR, Nietzsche, Baudrillard, etc.

K’s that will need more explanation: D&G, Batille, Anti-Blackness, Afropessimism, Agamben, etc.

Floating PIK’s are a conflicting area for me. I will tell you after the round that it may not have been the best strategic choice because my aff threshold isn’t all that high for it, but if the aff says nothing then there’s nothing I can do. That being said, this really isn’t that difficult to flesh out so this should not happen too often I hope.

Topicality/Framework:

T debates are fun! My threshold for T however is pretty high so if this is your endgame, I better hear more than a simple extension of voting issues and violations in rebuttals. As a result, I need you to impact T if you’re going for it and you feel the aff are being a bunch of dirty cheaters. I generally default to competing interpretations but have been persuaded otherwise during the round.

Theory:

Theory was another of my favorites to go for in rounds. As many others have likely told you, I prefer that you slow down during theory debates. Your argument becomes 1000% less persuasive when you vomit it out at 300 wpm. My threshold for this is similar to topicality so you will need to do the work and tell me why the ballot matters for your side and/or how this will effect behavior in future rounds. I really need you to sell me this argument if you want me to vote on it.

K Affs/Performance:

I don't have much experience with performance-based arguments however, I will still do my best to evaluate the arguments to the best of my ability. I have had increasing experience with K Affs though (I'm pretty comfortable with these). I don't really have any predispositions to any of these arguments so run them. I enjoy listening and learning.

Couple things to keep in mind with me in the back of the room: I still like hearing some form of advocacy statement in a K Aff even if it means making it up in cx or something. If I don't know what the aff does, I'm not voting for it. You should also slow down when it comes to tag lines. Your paragraph-long tag doesn't mean anything to me if I can't understand what you're saying.

Most importantly, have fun! At the end of the day, we do this because we enjoy it. Even when judging, I learn something new at every tournament I go to, and you should too. That's what debate is all about win or lose. At the end of the day, it is all part of the game we play :]