Bruce Rogers Speech and Debate Tournament at HCHS
2017 — Warner Robins, GA/US
Varsity Lincoln Douglas Paradigm List
All Paradigms: Show HideI was very involved with debate during high school and did some judging during college, but this was many years ago. I got back into debate 3 years ago and I am now the new coach for a high school team. I am open to all forms of arguments, but have limited ability to follow full spreading and the more complex national circuit type argumentation. In final speeches, tell me why you have won the round.
I based my decisions on the overall effectiveness of the debater. I usually determine effectiveness by the quality of the arguments made. Quality arguments are those that state a coherent claim that is clearly linked to the resolution at hand. Further, the claim is supported by quality evidence and quality warrants with analysis and commentary. In a very close debate, I will also consider backing, response to rebuttal, and other aspects of good argument. I find the Toulmin model of argumentation to be a persuasive model of argumentation. I favor logical appeals over appeals of ethos and pathos. However, in PF and LD, I will give weight to appeals of ethos and pathos when the argument is well-made. I will consider appeals of ethos when determining the credibility of evidence used to support a claim. I will discount the importance of a claim in which the evidence supporting the claim is shown by the opponent to be faulty because of the qualifications of the author, the context of the evidence, or other qualitative factors in the evidence. I like for contestants in debate to clash with the other contestant and explain to me when they choose not to clash for strategic reasons so that I can understand their reasoning and prioritization of their arguments. I try really hard to let the contestants tell me what is important in the round, and I try not to let my personal reflections on logic or political views influence my decisions unless the debaters provide little more than superlatives for me to base my decision on. I do not enjoy spreading and find that I loose track of the depth of arguments being made. If my flow is shallow for one side but deep for another, I may give a decision to the side with the deeper argument is the impact of that argument is sufficient when compared with any arguments on the flow that were dropped by that team. In other words, I prefer quality over quantity. When both teams give high quality arguments with clash and have similar impacts, I may base a decision on the overall clarity and effectiveness of the speaker. But, I generally reward quality of argument much more than quality of speaking. I will punish a speaker who does not conduct themselves professionally during a round, as I feel this is detrimental to the educational quality and purpose of the contest.
With respect to topicality and other issues outside of debate on the resolution, I will give weight to those issues when supported. I will decide them much like I would any other claim. I will not grant a round based on topicality or a like voting issue if stated without warrants backing them, as I feel this would be making a decision based upon my own opinion. I feel the debaters should be rewarded for explaining their reasoning for arguments, and I look harder at arguments that are more than just the statement of a claim without more.
I am as close to "tabula rasa" as possible... I will not interject my knowledge or opinions into the round, but that means it has to actually be stated in the round. I appreciate a line-by-line debate, but a dropped argument isn't necessarily a slam-dunk win without a compelling summary or weighing of the round. Give me voters, give me a reason to vote for you in your final speeches.
I was a policy debater 20+ years ago, and I currently coach at Warner Robins High School. In the past few years, I have judged all levels of LD and PF. I judge debate or IEs depending on our team's judging needs per tournament. I can follow speed if you are clear, and I appreciate an enunciated or emphasized tag or argument. I'm too pragmatic to enjoy philosophy - I can follow it, and I will vote on it, but you need to make sure to explain why I should vote on it.
I'll keep the official time for the round, but I love to hear competitors say they'll keep their own time.
One last thing, be nice to one another... I won't necessarily vote on your behavior or sportsmanship with your opponent, but poor attitudes and lack of respect for others can have a negative impact on your speaker points.
Good luck!
I am a former high school debater that has dabbled in everything. I’ve been judging for the past six years and have judged everything, but policy. I recently graduated with a degree in Anthropology, with a focus on cultural anthropology. I’m a pretty typical PF judge and will vote for the team with the most compelling argument, however, I do like a solid framework. As far as cross goes, I don’t care if you sit or stand—whatever is most comfortable for you works for me. I don’t like when you address me during cross because I feel like you should be focused on your opponents instead. My BIGGIE is DO NOT SPREAD. If you are going too fast, I will not flow the round and drop you. This is PF, not policy. I have an extensive speech background and will be pretty merciless when it comes to speaker points. Other than that, remember to be respectful during the debate. Things can get pretty heated sometimes, but that is no excuse for rudeness. If you say things during the round that that are sexist, racist, homophobic, etc., I will drop you immediately. Let’s be kind to one another and remember to have fun! I look forward to hearing some good debates!
I've been debating since I was in high school and am familiar with most forms of debate. Specifically, I've competed in PF and NPDA. With that being said, I'm open to literally any style of debate. I really like critical theory and alternative interpretations of the resolution, but I'm good with traditional too. The most I really ask of you all as debaters, is to make your cases clear to me. Other than that, have fun, be safe, and don't be mean.
Add me to the email chain: colin.cozad@gmail.com
Gulliver Prep ‘16
Emory University ‘20
Top Level
Do whatever style of debate you prefer most. Early in my college career I ran affirmatives about policies to end gendered and queer violence. I later transitioned to no-plan text affirmatives based on critical race and gender theory. The majority of my 2NR's were some form of the black nihilism critique. The best way to get to my ballot is to create a cohesive argument in the 2NR or 2AR about why you won the debate. I reward debaters who do good argument interaction and pick up on things as they develop in-round.
Ks and Critical Affs
Provide me with a framework for evaluating the debate, I will adopt the lens that the debaters ask me too and if both teams offer different lenses I will consider the impacts and education of each to make my decision. I believe that education is the biggest impact in framework debates. I naturally view debate as a game with consequences that inform the ways we navigate the real world.
Ld paradigm-
email: avery.eddy54@gmail.com add me to the email chain yo
Style: I debate LD at Houston County and have qualified for both state and nationals in the activity. I'm comfortable with any style of debate you want to run. On one hand- I do understand the necessity to uphold the "integrity" of the activity through holding it to its roots in traditional debate. On the other- I am a progressive debater by coaching and personally enjoy a good progressive round. I have debated on both the national and lay circuits.
Kritik: I love k's- but I expect them to be run well (except anthro bc duh I'm human anf idc ab animals lol) . I wil ask for your lit at the end of the round if it sounds "fishy" or like you don't know what you're talking about. The advantage of the K is the engagement of dominating ideas and structures. It is not a way to cheat the round.
Theory: I will vote on theory- once again, if run well
RVI's are weird but I buy them occasionally. Be cautious.
Plans and CPs: plans and counterplans need a clear advocacy. Ambiguity is bad but if the other team doesn't say that I'll still vote for you. Moral of the story- ask the status of the cp if it seems nebulous and run a t shell OR if you are the one with the nebulous plan/cp... don't do that. I'll be v sad.
Standing: No standing prefs. Tbh I sit for speeches if the judge will let me so I really couldn't care less where or if you stand, sit, lay etc as long as you aren't standing, sitting, or laying on my laptop or flow.
Tech>truth but I will buy reasonability in most cases where it is reasonable as long as you or the other team brings it up
speed: I spread. That can either hurt or help you b/c I know how it should sound. Slow down for tags and authors. Always ask the other team if they can handle speed, if they say no, slow down. I will say clead exactly 3 times, after that I doc speaker points and stop flowing. If you spread- you should flash. If you email chain, add me. If you share a speech doc make sure you state what is not read and what is- anything else is cheating plain and simple.
Speaker points: Because female and minority debaters have been emprically proven to lose points at for aggressive debate- I will add speaker points for your aggression. Don't attack each other. Don't be rude. Attack your arguments. Scream, yell, Alex Jones your way through it. Show me the side of your speaking that prejudice takes away from you. Reclaim your aggression in this round.
Debated for Hamilton High School. 2A for 3 years, 1A for 1 year
Housekeeping things
-Include me on the email chain: fanafu@gmail.com
-I won’t disclose until the room is put back in order.
TL;DR
Please explain your acronyms as I haven't judged many rounds on this topic.
Quality > Quantity. It's your debate, debate what you want (also means read args that you're comfortable on).
Love K's of any kind.
T/FW is alright, just make sure to impact everything.
DA/CPs are chill if they're specific.
Be understandable, do clash for me, do the work for me, esp. in last two speeches.
I listen to CX (even if it looks like I don't) and it is binding.
Flashing isn't prep, but excessive amounts of flashing might come off as stealing prep so be wary.
Debate well, don't be mean, don't be offensive, respect each other.
Speaker Points
20: you did something extremely offensive/disrespectful/hostile
27.5-28.4: mediocre; prob not breaking
28.5-28.9: good; maybe breaking 4-2
29-29.4: very good; prob breaking
29.5-30: excellent; top speaker quality
CX Specific Paradigm
Affirmatives--Any style or way you want to present your affirmative is fine with me, just be sure you can justify it. Admittedly, I am not well versed with performance-based aff, so please explain to me what your performance means in and out of the round. Affirmatives should at least talk about the topic and anti-topical affs are definitely not legit.
*new thing. I find myself increasingly less enjoying big-stick policy affs, mainly because the debates tend to be just overly fast and blippy. If you ARE planning on running those kinds of affs, then i would highly suggest making good extrapolations of internal link chains and impact probability analysis.
Case-- I usually go by the offense/defense paradigm here even though it's probably not realistic. I just find it easier to evaluate debates this way sans a very robust analysis of impact defense in the 2nr. Try not to contradict here; however, if you can contextualize your arguments well to the affirmative a case debate is very impressive to see. Try to avoid making this debate "not my [insert some author]" and actually have a contextualized debate here. Line by line analysis as opposed to long generic overviews are preferred.
Counterplans--You must have a good analysis of how you resolve the net benefit of the CP if you're going for it. Neg must explain how they are competitive and should be preferred over the affirmative. Evidence should be good and actually say what you want it to say if you want me to vote for you. Theory is often insufficient unless entirely dropped. Also I default to reject the arg on CP theory, unless specifically spun to be reject the team.
Disads-- Most DA’s are chill. They probably all have very tenuous link chains that can be exploited. So exploit them. Impact comparison is also very important. Tell me why I should care. For ptx specifically, don’t speed through it. Intrinsicness is probably true, but you still have to argue the theoretical implications for me to evaluate it.
Kritik--This is where I spent most my debate career. I think K's are good as long as you can explain them well. If you are personally passionate about an argument, and it shows, your speaker points will likely be higher (this goes for affirmatives as well). I tend to think arguments about identity in debate are important, and play an important part in effecting the community. That being said most of my experience is with the "high theory" side of K's. Regardless of what kind of critical argument you read, I will NOT do the work for you. Tell me what your K is, why it matters, and why I should vote for you. If your only link in the 2NR is a state bad link, then you're prob not on the winning side. K's should not be a sketchy attempt to dodge clash, find a way to clash with your opponent and make the debate productive for everyone. I won't kick the alt for you. Most other K tricks, while cheap shots, are acceptable.
Also the question of perms is always an issue in a K vs. K debate. Someone please tell me what the perm means in the round or tell me why a method vs. method debate doesn't get a permutation.
T/FW--I treat framework debates like I would any topicality debate. Be sure to impact out anything you go for otherwise I'll probably prefer their impacts. Reverse voting issues are dumb, but I'll still vote for them if done well. If against a non-traditional affirmative try to provide an interpretation where they could still raise there issue, and not out right exclude them. It will be an uphill battle if you come in with the "non-traditional affirmative are wrong" mindset. Otherwise treat T/FW like a DA, I want to see how they link, what that does, why that's bad, and why I should care.
Theory--Theory is often not enough for me to vote for you unless there is a serious violation or the other team just dropped it. Give me examples of how they violate and how that is effecting you. I have a high threshold for these arguments; however, am more often convinced by the "drop the argument, not the team" plea for theory.
Also for Condo specifically, I will probably not vote on it unless there's some serious abuse and it's well extrapolated in the 2AR.
Other stuff
- Flashing is not prep
- please clash
- jokes are cool
- caring about your arguments is cool
- don't be mean
- don't exclude people
- don't discriminate against people
- have fun
- be chill
- If you can make a joke about your existential dread, Malhar Patel, Tanzil Chowdhury, Nikpreet Singh, or Quinn Zapata, then you’ll get an extra .5 speaker point.
LD Paradigm
Defend your ethics and position with good references to evidence and impact comparisons, and I'll be pretty satisfied. If you have any specific questions, just ask me before round.
If, for some reason, you're treating this as a one-man policy debate, then read my CX paradigm above.
Hey, my name is Sam! I debated on the GA circuit for 3 years and nationally for 2 (2014-2017), breaking even my senior year at ToC and Nationals. Since then, I have judged and coached for several programs. Weigh your arguments and their terminal impacts against your opponent's arguments and impacts in summary/final focus. Second-half cohesion is important, make sure the summary and final focus work well together. I will not vote off of anything that fails to be extended from speech-to-speech. I can follow most speeds you're used to, but please do your best to speak clearly. Be polite to each other and enjoy the learning experience: D.B.A.A!
I did public forum debate on the national circuit during my time in high school. I hate the evidence debate, clearly your evidence says one thing and your opponents says another so don't spend your time talking about it. Debate is supposed to be educational, so tell me logically why your evidence makes more sense than your opponents. Avoid getting too heated in crossfire cause I will zone you out if you start yelling.
I would say that I'm pretty open about what kinds of arguments I will listen to so I'll just give some likes and dislikes to make debating in front of me easier.
Likes:
Clear links and impacts. I have seen high level debates where people have a lot of great stuff but it's either out of nowhere or I'm not told what to do with it. Have a weighing mech or something similar and then use it.
Arguments that would make sense outside of debate. I'm not necessarily opposed to fiat, but I think a lot of people get really into debate-world and forget that reality is still relevant. I'm okay with fiat being used, but I'll definitely consider probability weighing if it's brought up. That being said, if you're running something like...ironically or as a parody I'm not necessarily opposed. I've run Ks that the whole point was aliens=capitalism. Just tell me what it means.
If you have a plantext, perm text, or any kind of text like that, and you give the other team a copy, make me one too. It just makes my life easier.
Weigh things at the end of the round. Don't make me do it, please or you might not like my result.
Dislikes:
Spreading. I can listen to speed--I've debate 8 years. But I have never seen a single round where it was necessary. Most spreaders tend to say the same 3 arguments 5 ways, so just only have 3 good arguments. If your strat is to spread out the other team by making 15 blipped arguments and then expanding on the 3 that were dropped just be better at defending 3 good arguments. I won't vote you down on this, but I might miss something you say and I'll definitely dock speaks.
Anything homophobic/racist/sexist ect. If someone tells you their pronouns use them. If you think you'll throw a debater of color off by saying something racist, don't. If it's offensive enough I might just vote you down on that even if you won on your flow. In the same vein, I'm not the kind of judge who will vote up edgy stuff like "genocide good actually".
Theory arguments that seem false on face: I'm not opposed to theory arguments. Some of them have changed my mind actually. But if you run a T on every word of the resolution, my bar to clear for kicking them is gonna be pretty low. Basically any version of "run 14 time sucks instead of being good at defending my arguments" is gonna be annoying to me. In the same vein, multi condo bad is something I'll vote on pretty easily if brought up. One or two kickable arguments is one thing, but again, 14 arguments you kick in the neg block is something I'll definitely buy the neg team saying isn't really fair for them.
In general, the type of argument doesn't matter as a matter of personal preference, so much as that both teams are given the ability to debate. The person with better arguments will usually win in front of me, not the person who came up with some off the wall strat to not have to debate.
Rowland Hall ’15
Emory University ’19
**updated January 2019** I'm largely unfamiliar with this topic which means I need more of an explanation for terms and acronyms.
Quick version- I debated for four years in high school and I debate in college at Emory. I have a large background in different positions. In high school I was very policy, in college I have killjoy/fem rage on the neg and on the aff sometimes. I have a large background in K literature. I'll try really hard to put aside and pre-concieved notions and just judge the debate. I put T/K stuff on top since I think that's where most people go first. Also, I like clash debates and really can go either way depending on the arguments made so if you envision yourself in some of those, I'd be a good judge.
I like an aggressive debater, but don't speak over people. Don't be rude. I take issues of sexual assault, gender, and racism in debate very seriously. I am someone that you can speak to about it, in and out of round, and who will punish people in a round for making light of or perpetuating any of those things.
Framework (T usfg)- I think sometimes it's strategic, and we definitely read it against Aff's we think are particularly hard to get a link to. I actually love a good framework debate on both sides. Be techy, innovative and thoughtful. I think that fairness is an impact if properly explained, and I think limits are good and it is possible for the usfg to do good things. It will be hard to convince me that every single action the usfg takes is bad, but I am very sympathetic, especially now, to descriptions of why non traditional policy movements are better equipped than the president for making social change. I think that the arguments about why it might be unethical to defend the resolution because of Trump are compelling but should be explained thoroughly. You need to answer things like social death on the framework page to win the general premise that usfg form of debate is good, so watch out for that. The best sort of arguments for the affirmative are about why the form of debate is exclusionary, why traditional rules are exclusive to certain populations.
K aff’s- I think it's probably best to be "somehow" related to the topic. I think that it's easiest to win the framework debate when you explain why your non-traditional affirmative provides an important understanding of the topic that policies can't access. I have read an aff sometimes with very little relationship to the topic and understand why it's compelling and important to sometimes do. Explain to me what I am voting for, why it is important, and especially explain to me why the traditional model of debate doesn't leave space for your theory/performance. I am open to debates about the debate space in general, about problems with people and attitudes in debate, and kritiks of the mode and type of debate we do.
K’s- I like the K. Like I said above, I've done a lot of identity/performance stuff this year. That being said, that doesn't mean that I automatically vote for it. You have to contextualize the k to the aff. If you are going to read a usfg link or "link of omission" I think that it's important to show why the absence of what you are talking about in the 1AC implicates their policy. I don’t need a massive impact overview to know why imperialism is bad, most everything in your 4 min overview can be applied to the flow. Be organized. The worst part about a 1 off debate is that it is so messy and frustrating for everyone involved. If you need to split the k up in the block that's cool, just be clear about it. You need to talk about case if you want to win. For the aff, utilize your impacts. It’s going to be pretty hard to convince me that the aff can’t weigh their impacts at all, so weigh them. Extinction is still a pretty big deal to me, so the neg needs to describe why I should assign something like extinction less weight in comparison to structural violence claims. Permutations are important but explain them. When you know you are hitting a K team, tailor your 1AC to them. You aren’t going to need your heg impact. Focus on systemic ones that might solve the impacts of the k. Defend your method.
DA’s- Impact calc is obviously important. There is zero risk of a link or impact. I've done a lot of work on the politics DA in the past but I'm really not going to appreciate a Trump good DA-- please don't read that in front of me. On the aff, I’m a fan of a robust 2AC with link turns or impact turns. Think about it strategically. I will reward a well thought out politics 2ac with good speaker points.
CP’s- I think most of them are legitimate. Read what you like. As a 2a I liked reading a few add ons and a lot of theory in the 2ac.
Topicality- I'm not a great judge for topicality. I don't like arbitrarily limiting the topic. I understand that sometimes it’s what you’ve got to do. I default to reasonability usually.
Theory- it's fine. Slow down please if you want me to vote for you. condo probably good.
camila.rosa.reed-guevara@emory.edu if you have questions and please put me on the email chain.
I competed in AZ policy (2A/1N)
I'm a pretty open judge, willing to listen to any kind of argument. I like K's, but I also like policy arguments, so go for whatever you are most comfortable with. Please make sure, however, to clearly impact out whatever you are going for.
I am familiar with a small to fair amount of k lit; however, assume that I have no prior knowledge of your critical argument when you explain it to me. I will not vote on an unclear k.
General
- I like crossex, so I will listen to it.
- I don't count flashing as prep, but don't take too long.
- I understand not flashing analytics over, but do not expect me to be able to accurately flow minutes of analytical arguments spread like cards
- spreading is fine, but don't be unclear. Also, I would like to have speech docs flashed to me as well.
- speaker points:
<27: not too good
27-27.9: mediocre
28-28.9: good
29-29.4: very good
29.5-30: excellent