Biggest Little City Classic
2017 — Reno, NV/US
LD Judges Paradigm List
All Paradigms: Show HideLogistics…
1) Let's use Speechdrop.net for evidence sharing. If you are the first person to the room, please set it up and put the code on the board so we can all get the evidence.
2) If, for some reason, we can't use speechdrop, let's use email. I want to be on the email chain. mrjared@gmail.com
3) If there is no email chain, I’m going to want to get the docs on a flash drive ahead of the speech.
4) Prep stops when you have a) uploaded the doc to speechdrop b) hit send on the email, or c) pulled the flash drive out. Putting your doc together, saving your doc, etc... are all prep. Also, when prep ends, STOP PREPPING. Don't tell me to stop prep and then tell me all you have to do is save the doc and then upload it. This may impact your speaker points.
5) Get your docs in order!! If I need to, I WILL call for a corrected speech doc at the end of your speech. I would prefer a doc that only includes the cards you read, in the order you read them. If you need to skip a couple of cards and you clearly indicate which ones, we should be fine. If you find yourself marking a lot of cards (cut the card there!), you definitely should be prepared to provide a doc that indicates where you marked the cards. I don’t want your overly ambitious version of the doc; that is no use to me.
** Evidence sharing should NOT be complicated. Figure it out before the round starts. Use Speechdrop.net, a flash drive, email, viewing computer, or paper, but figure it out ahead of time and don’t argue about it. **
I have been coaching and judging debate for many years now. I started competing in 1995. I've been coaching LD debate for the last 10 years, prior to that I was a CEDA/NDT coach and that is the event I competed in. My basic philosophy is that it is the burden of the debaters to compare their arguments and explain why they are winning. I will evaluate the debate based on your criteria as best I can. I can be persuaded to evaluate the debate in any number of ways, provided you support your arguments clearly. You can win my ballot with whatever. I don’t have to agree with your argument, I don’t have to be moved by your argument, I don’t even have to be interested in your argument, I can still vote for you if you win. I DO need to understand you. Certain arguments are very easy for me to understand, I’m familiar with them, I enjoy them, I will be able to provide you with nuanced and expert advice on how to improve those arguments…other arguments will confuse and frustrate me and require you to do more work if you want me to vote on them. It’s up to you. I’ll tell you more about the particulars below, but it is very important that you understand – I believe that debate is about making COMPARATIVE ARGUMENTS! It is YOUR job to do comparisons, not mine. You can make a bunch of arguments, all the arguments you want, if YOU do not apply them and make the comparisons to the other team, I will almost certainly not do this for you. If neither team does this work and you leave me to figure it out, that’s on you.
The rules have changed for LD, however, that does not change my paradigm. The important change to the rules says this - "judges are also encouraged to develop a decision-making paradigm for adjudicatingcompetitive debate and provide that paradigm to students prior to the debate."
The paradigm I'm providing here should not be understood to contradict "the official decision making
paradigm of NFA-LD" provided in the rules.
Topicality is a voting issue. If the negative wins that the affirmative is not topical, I will vote neg. My preference is to use the least punitive measure allowed by the rules to resolve any procedural/theory violations...in other words, my default is to reject the argument, not the team. In some instances that won't make sense, so I'll end up voting on it. Topicality is a voting issue. This is VERY clear. If the negative wins that the affirmative is not topical, I vote neg. I don’t need “abuse” proven or otherwise. Not all of the rules are this clearly spelled out, so you'll need to make arguments. Speed is subjective. I prefer a faster rate (I can flow all of you, for the most part, pretty easily) of delivery but will adjudicate debates about this.
Attempts to embarrass, humiliate, intimidate, shame, or otherwise treat your opponents or judges poorly will not be a winning strategy in front of me. If you can’t find it within yourself to listen while I explain my decision and deal with it like an adult (win or lose), then neither of us will benefit from having me in the room. I’m pretty comfortable with most critical arguments, but the literature base is not always in my wheelhouse, so you’ll need to explain. Particularly if you are reading anything to do with psychoanalysis (D&G is possibly my least favorite, but Agamben is up there too). Cheap shot RVI’s are not particularly persuasive either, but you shouldn't ignore them.
I flow on my laptop generally so if i am not making eye contact, i do apologize. If you would like me to look at your evidence specifically, my email is daniel.armbrust1337@gmail.com or you can use speechdrop.net to make a room specifically for the round.
COWARDICE IS A VOTING ISSUE.
TL;DR- I don't care what you read, just give me a reason to vote for you.
DISCLAIMER- AN important note before you keep reading, discussion of mental health is important, but I have discovered that in the past few years I cannot really handle those discussions very well in debate. Please avoid those arguments as much as possible for my sake. IF the topic asks you to run arguments discussing mental health, that cannot be avoided and is fine. I appreciate a warning in advance if you plan on running arguments discussing mental health. Thank you!
Section 1: General Info
I debated for the University of Nevada from 2012-2017. My final year I was 8th speaker at the NPDA and 2nd seed out of prelims. As a debater I ran anything from spec to high theory criticisms. The only argument I refused to read because I think it is cheating unless you can use cards is Delay Counterplans. That being said I have voted for a disgusting number of Delay counterplans. Run what you want, I don't really care as long as you give me a reason to vote for you.
Section 2: Specific Questions
SPEED ADDENDUM: I understand speed very well and often used it personally as a very efficient tool. That being said, I am continuously swayed by arguments about equity from teams that have difficulty with accessing the round due to speed. While I am often influenced, I still evaluate those arguments through the lens that the debater gives me.
1. Speaker points
As of right now I range from approximately 26-30. I think speaker points are arbitrary and often tend to be higher if you know the people in the room so I usually trend higher in order to off balance my inherent bias.
2. How do you approach critically framed arguments? can affs run critical arguments? Can critical arguments be "contradictory" with other neg positions?
Let me put it like this, in the last two years of debate, I ran a K every neg round I could. In the 2015-16 season I only had 3 rounds the entire year that did not involve a criticism. I think critically framed arguments are not only good but on occasion necessary. For affs, its a bit of a different story, Framework I think is a convincing argument in some situations but leaves a bad taste in others. FOR ALL CRITICISMS AFF OR NEG, all i really need is a thesis of some kind (I haven't read a bunch of different authors so I need something to like understand) and a reason to vote for you.
3. Performance arguments
Some of the best affs I have ever seen were performance based. Shout out to Quintin Brown (from Washburn if you don't know him) for reading some of the best and most persuasive performance arguments I have ever seen. Just be prepared to answer Framework.
4. Topicality- For the aff, to avoid T, all you have to do is be topical. I prefer nuanced and educational T debates, not just throw away debates that are really there as a time suck. I am almost never persuaded by an RVI. AND if you decide to go for an RVI, it better be the ENTIRE PMR. For T to be persuasive, it needs an interp, violation, standards, voters.
5. Counterplans- Pics good or bad? should opp identify the status of CP? perms-- text comp ok? functional comp?
uhh, PICs are good as long as they are able to be theoretically defended. Theory against CPs is something I did as an MG all the time, it just might not be a great strat if there is an easy DA against the CP. I think that most people should run CPs that functionally competitive unless you have a REALLY good reason why your text comp needs to happen in this instance (for example a word PIC that changes the word run with a reason why that specific word is bad). Just clarify the status when you read it.
6. Is it acceptable for teams to share their flowed arguments with each other during the round?
Dont care.
7. How do you weight arguments when they are not explicitly weighed by the debaters or when weighing claims are diametrically opposed how do you compare abstract impacts against concrete impacts?
If i have to do this, I will be angry with you. You do the weighing and it will not be a problem.
I competed in Parli and LD for four years at University of the Pacific and have lived in Stockton longer. Now that thats said here's the rest
NEG:
Disads: My favorite type of debate to watch is a Disad vs. Case debate. So I like them, is what I’m getting at there. I am not against any type of Disads being run in front of me. Albeit, if you chose to run a Politics DA, what helps to make Politics more compelling is if you include a specific reason X Plan Text of the AFF would cause a reaction to the specific BILL/Proposal your D/A is about. In other words, please don’t say “Repub backlash because yeah!” raising thumbs like Fonzie. As is true with all else, the more hyper-intrinsic/nuanced to the topic--the better.
CPs: Sure, they’re a useful thing, so run it if you want. Conditional CPs are perfectly fine, I believe they do make more sense for Policy debate. Unconditional CPs make more sense for Parli Debate. So, I won’t disregard Condo-Bad theory, on face. I will be viewing both as you characterize them.
Theory: Proven abuse is more compelling, to me, than potential. I might actually be light weight vexed to have to sit and listen to potentially being abused in some hypothetical round in the future, for 17 minutes. That aside, I am not a fan of someone running multiple (3+) theory positions to me in one LOC. If you run any form of Vagueness, just make sure the link to what is vague and the link to what offense you lose, subsequently--is clear.
K: Like I said above--make sure the thesis of the K is clear. So, perhaps, chose to slow down in the portion of the K that has a thesis. Parli is not Policy, I can’t check your arguments afterward, so clarity is the most important item here. And if you're running a K from an old backfile that some person on your team wrote 5 years ago--don't run it.
BOTH:
Performance: naw
Critical Affirmatives: Just establish the link between your literature and the resolution’s topic. I’m not saying you have to be topical. You don’t. I’m asking you to briefly describe why your K is relevant to this topic.
Impact Calc: Timeframe > Magnitude > Probability is the default way I will frame impacts in the rounds. If you don’t like that, then do impac calc in the LOR/PMR and tell me the 1) The frame 2) Why that frame is important (given the context of that round’s arguments.)
Speed: Blaze it. That being said, don’t be rude to new debaters, allow them to engage...Like really, though, the debate won't be about the content. It'll be one team saying "I'm really good at my speed." The other team will say "dang that was fast!" Then the fast team says "Yeah I know, and we win." That's boring, don't do that. I'll doc speaker points.
Background
I have been involved in competitive debate since 1996, when I started competing at Durango High School in Southern Colorado. I have been coaching debate events since 2001, when I started coaching Policy and LD for Rocky Mountain High School in Northern Colorado--and I have continued to coach debate (primarily NPDA and BP) through my time in Graduate School and at my current school.
In college, I competed for Colorado State University, and then worked at California State University, Long Beach and Southern Illinois University, Carbondale coaching debate and striving to secure some very expensive pieces of paper. Since 2013, I have been working as a Professor at The College of Idaho--where our team has primarily competed in BP and NPDA. My scholarly pursuits are generally queer in nature--and my published work has engaged with pedagogy, settler colonialism, media and digital activism, and international networks of queer conviviality. I characterize my work and educational labor in connection with interdisciplinary frameworks, critical/cultural studies, performance studies, critical race theory, queer theory, process philosophy, activism, theories of affirmation, and failure. While I like to believe I am becoming new, every day. When pushed toward position, I usually articulate myself as: a temporarily able bodied, white, neurodivergent, male-and-masculine ascribed, homosexical genderqueer of fairly fluid class status (though, with the recent elimination of around $236,000 in student loans, the fluidity there feels like it might be firming up--Jello style [but with less horse hoof]). I currently live in Boise, ID--in violation of the unratified Treaty of Fort Boise, signed in 1864.
Debate Things
It has been well over a decade since I have judged a collegiate policy debate round, and even then, it was only at small, regional tournaments. I do have a lot of respect for Policy debate, and I can credit a Towson team for introducing me to Octavia Butler, and changing my life through the power of the livestream.
I like to assume that people are doing the best that they can, given the circumstances of their lives at the moment, and I strongly believe that the purpose of education is to grow and change. Debate is one of the coolest ways, I have found in my life, to practice learning in public. I will strive to take the best notes that I can about the discussions and points of contention that are raised in your debates, and I will try to evaluate them in relation to the totality of the arguments made in the debate.
One important thing to note: given that the majority of my time in debate has been dedicated to impromptu forms of debate, that emphasize the evidence of experience and example, over the authoritative declarations of the credentialed elite--I anticipate that my approach to evidence might be different than the approach that you may typically encounter. For me, reading is a highly engaged process and interpretation is a (if not the) key element. Since my own understanding of written material tends to change and evolve as I read and re-read, I will place a premium on how evidence is contextualized, compared, and contrasted in your debates. I have a strong core belief that debate is a live performance, and as such, contains elements of ephemerality and affect that are crucial distinguishing factors that demarcate a debate round from a written forum. If I find myself in a situation in which I am being asked to read and re-read speech documents, I don't know if I am really truly being asked to adjudicate a debate, which I tend to approach as a live and living entity. For this reason, I often find myself skeptical of doing much more than quickly checking written material, to confirm or challenge my recollection of moments in a debate that I observed. Trying to "read the script" of a performance is a radically different thing than evaluating a performance, and I understand the role of the debate judge as the open-minded observer/adjudicator of a challenging, engaging, interesting performance of embodied, intellectual conflict. I am not "a trained mortician of the mind," which is a line that has stuck with me from McClaren's Schooling as Ritual Performance,and thus, I will not painstakingly dissect and re-construct your debate based on its written record.
At the end of a debate, I generally find myself asking who has told me a more persuasive story about a better world: the affirmative or the negative. I value both the heft of the logic, and the clarity (as well as the affect) of the explanation. Inscribed on my flesh, on the lower inside of my right arm, directly above an artists rendering of Paul Klee's Angelus Novus, is a quote from Gilles Deleuze, pulled from his short essay about Walt Whitman--"Nature is not a form, but rather the process of establishing relations." I would encourage any who debate in front of me to do the work necessary to establish relations between the evidence of your argument, and the evidence of your opponents. I care more about how you articulate those interactions, than any interactions I might be able to form on my own, reading the material that has been "read into" the debate.
I'm a former debater for the University of Nevada and Santa Rosa Junior College.
Important information:
-You can run any type of argument in front of me. That being said, please explain how I should evaluate the round.
-I'm hard of hearing in two different ways. If you speak a bit louder than normal and give a bit of a pause before taglines I shouldn't have any trouble following you. I'll call clear or slow as appropriate.
-I haven't been around debate much lately. If you're fast you're likely faster than I can flow these days.
That's about all I've got for you at the moment. This will probably be updated after every round as I remember things I'm particular about in debate. Please ask questions before round if you've got 'em.
In terms of experience, I debated through high school and college in parli. I will listen and vote for any type of argument, and while I may have preferences, I will always prefer you to run a position that makes sense and is well constructed than an arg you think I would want to hear and/or vote for. Procedurals are a good debate tool: I don't need proven abuse, articulated is fine, but I do need clear (preferably non-shifting) violations and "believable" standards and voters. I do prefer policy debates, however, I am always up to vote for a criticism, I will just be looking for a strong framework and "real" links. I probably won't be familiar with the literature, so make your point clear. I am okay with speed, if I do fall behind you'll see it on my face so just watch for that. Other than that, just be courteous and make smart args.
Last updated 10/21/18 8:27 am
IPDA -
While the guidelines below apply to my approach to IPDA, I will not be strictly a "flow judge." I'll take a more holistic approach in my evaluation. This is a public speaking event, so I'll be more of an "audience member," and less of a panopticon than in other forms of debate.
Discretionary information about me: I love classic motorcycles, Marvel comics, Mario Kart 64, and podcasts. I grew up in Florida and I've been sorted into house Slytherin.
PARLI AND LD -
I view debate as an educational rhetoric game. I try not to intervene if the debate meets two vital *principles:
1. By default, I will do my best to enforce the published rules of any event I’m judging - based on my interpretation/understanding of them. I’m open to different interpretations, but less so to arguments that “rules are bad.” If you volunteer to compete in an activity for a prize (the ballot), you’ve committed to follow the rules as the first qualification to receive the prize. As far as I can tell, that’s the only way to keep any competitive activity fair. I’m unlikely to bend on my commitment to rule adherence as I see it as a gateway to competitive equity.
2. By default, I will do my best to perpetuate a culture of inclusivity and access in forensics. There may be times it seems like excluding your opponent is the easiest way to my ballot; That will never be the case.
If you’re unclear on these points, please ask.
* These are not personal rules, but rather strongly-held biases. Unless a violation is egregious, and/or in the absence of an argument in-round, I am reluctant to intervene.
My preferences:
I like it when debaters are considerate and bring good will and good humor.
Ultimately, I’m down for whatever you want to do. If you have specific theory questions, ask me before the round.
Speaker points:
While I understand their utility, I find them very shadowy and subjective. I'm open to arguments in-round about what criteria I should use to determine speaker points. In order to not be so much of a statistical outlier among the judge pool, I keep speaks within the 25-30 range. My feeling is that I'm on the high-end of the distribution (I give more 29s than 26s).
My limitations:
I believe I’m familiar with most of the norms of college-level debate, but I have some weaknesses. I have some difficulty flowing top-speed arguments with high-level accuracy. If you're unsure what my threshold is, look for visual cues or ask. Speed at your own risk. I did about 5 years of Parli, so if you’ve been doing policy since fifth grade you probably know some jargon and theory that I don’t. As Sean Thai puts it, "Don't try to understand my non-verbals, because I don't understand them." Linguistically, I’m more fluent in English than I am in Debate. The only "philosopher" I know decently well is Foucault.
Amendment 1 - Rebuttals: I will protect against new arguments in rebuttals in scale with my level of certainty that they're new. Where applicable, please make it easy for me by calling Point of Order when you think an argument is new.
Bonus points for weird stuff that's not abusive or exclusive.
(Reviewed Jan. 2024) Quick Read (NPDA/NPTE):
TL;DR- I evaluate arguments which means I expect claims to be warranted and evidence to support the claim be true and reasonable. I think you are entitled to read whatever arguments you choose and I am confident in my ability to keep up intellectually with what you are trying to do, and if I cannot then I will admit why I was confused at the end. Beyond that, CTRL+F is your friend and whatever is (not) covered below I am happy to discuss my thoughts and how it can help you win the ballot.
Most debates I watch these days in parliamentary debate discuss structural and/or systemic violence both on the AFF and NEG. The second most common thing I see is theory of some sort. The best debates I see discuss these issues across the debate (i.e.- how does access to the debate implicate the way folks in the round acknowledge and interrogate structural and/or systemic violence). Debates that often end in frustration tend to silo arguments and retreat from counter-arguments in favor of concessions.
I think the AFF should defend a topical advocacy. This does not mean I believe the AFF MUST role play or defend the state structure of the status quo. I believe being creative in how we imagine what state structures can become can allow us to engage in what Native Hawaiian scholar Manulani Aluli Meyer refers to as the radical remembering of the future. Structures of oppression exist differently across cultures and eras if at all. To me this means that the current political and economic system is anything but natural and inevitable and as such I think there are excellent justifications (although many in debate may end up half-measures) for why the AFF can be topical AND critically interrogate current political and economic systems.
I think NEG advocacies in parli should be unconditional as the concept of testing the AFF and what it means to do so is altered by the structure of parli debate. Theory and advocacies are distinct as theory is a debate about what the system should look like and advocacies are defensable changes to the status quo. Theory is distinct from T as theory is about how to debate and T is about the words in teh topic. If the NEG provides an advocacy and maintains that advocacy through to the end of the debate, then presumption flips to the AFF as the burden of proof has shifted. Kritik, performance, T, theory, framework, Disads/CP to non-topical AFFs, and Disads/CP to topical AFFs are all open to the NEG. However, I think that the opportunity to indict the AFF in the LOC is often overlooked and many NEG teams allow the AFF infinite offense by conceding case warrants and relying on implied clash.
I think that parli debate is a unique format that allows meaningful engagement. While the things above are beliefs I have about the burdens of the AFF and NEG, the only thing you MUST DO is defend a world view at the end of the debate and if you want to win, you ought be comparative in your impact analysis. Although everything above is essentially how I think you should debate, I recognize that you make choices on how YOU want to debate and I am interested in those choices and why YOU make them. If you have any questions, I have a lot more below and also am happy to answer any questions at sfarias@pacific.edu.
PARLIAMENTARY DEBATE SPECIFIC PHILOSOPHY
TLDR Version: I am okay with whatever you choose to read in the debate, I care more about your justifications and what you as the debaters decide in round. In terms of theory I generally have a medium threshold for voting T/Spec except CONDO Bad, in which case the threshold is lower. However, clever theory is great and generic CONDO Bad is meh. CPs/Alts are generally good ideas because I believe affirmatives usually have a high propensity to solve harms in the world and permutations are not advocacies. Finally, pet peeve but I rule on points of order when I can. I generally think it is educational and important for the LOR/PMR strategy to know if I think an argument is new or not. I protect the block as well, but if you call a point of order I will always have an answer (not well taken/well taken/under consideration) so please do not just call it and then agree its automatically under consideration.
Section 1: General Information-
While I thoroughly enjoy in-depth critical and/or hegemony debates, ultimately, the arguments you want to make are the arguments I expect you to defend and WEIGH. I often find myself less compelled by nuclear war these days when the topic is about education, a singular SCOTUS decision, immigration, etc. BE RESOURCEFUL WITH YOUR IMPACTS- ethnic conflict, mass exodus, refugee camps, poverty, and many more things could all occur as a result of/in a world without the plan. I think debaters would be much better served trying to win my ballot with topically intuitive impact scenarios rather than racing to nuclear war, ESPECIALLY BECAUSE PROBABILTY MEANS MORE THAN MERELY CONCEDING AN ARGUMENT/LINK CHAIN.
I do my best to keep up with the debate and flow every argument. However, I also will not stress if your 5 uniqueness blips don’t ALL get on my flow. I am unafraid to miss them and just say “I didn’t get that”. So please do your best to use words like “because” followed by a strong logical basis for your claim and I will do my best to follow every argument. Also, if you stress your tag I will be able to follow your warrants more too.
Section 2: Specific Arguments
“The K”- I do not mind critical affirmatives but be prepared to defend topicality/framework with more than just generic links back to the K. Moreover, I feel that this can even be avoided if the affirmative team simply frames the critical arguments they are going to make while still offering, at the very least, the resolution as a policy text for the opposition. On the negatiave, I think that K’s without alternatives are just non-unique disads. I think that reject and embrace are not alternatives in and of themselves, I must reject or embrace something and then you must explain how that solves.
In terms of ballot claims, I do not believe the ballot has any role other than to determine a winner and a loser. I would rather be provided a role that I should perform as the adjudicator and a method for performing that role. This should also jive with your framework arguments. Whoever wins a discussion of my role in the debate and how I should perform that role will be ahead on Framework.
For performance based arguments, please explain to me how to evaluate the performance and how I should vote and what voting for it means or I am likely to intervene in a way you are unhappy with. Please also provide a space for your competitors to engage/advocate with you. If they ask you to stop your position because arguments/rhetoric have turned the space explicitly violent then all folks should take it as a moment to reorient their engagement. I am not unabashed to vote against you if you do not.
I believe you should be able to read your argument, but not at the expense of others’ engagement with the activity. I will consider your narrative or performance actually read even if you stop or at the least shorten and synthesize it. Finally, I also consider all speech acts as performative so please justify this SPECIFIC performance.
Topicality/Theory- I believe T is about definitions and not interpretations, but not everybody feels the same way. This means that all topicality is competing definitions and a question of what debate we should be having and why that debate is better or worse than the debate offered by the AFF. As a result, while I have a hard time voting against an AFF who is winning that the plan meets a definition that is good in some way (my understanding of reasonability), if the negative has a better definition that would operate better in terms of ground or limits, then I will vote on T.
In terms of other theory, I evaluate theory based on interpretations and I think more specific and precise interpretations are better. Contextualized arguments to parli are best. I also think theory is generally just a good strategic idea. However, I will only do what you tell me to do: i.e.- reject the argument v. reject the team. I also do not vote for theory immediately even if your position (read: multiple conditional advocacies, a conditional advocacy, usage of the f-word) is a position I generally agree with. You will have to go for the argument, answer the other teams responses, and outweigh their theoretical justifications by prioritizing the arguments. Yes, I have a lower threshold on conditionality than most other judges, but I do not reject you just because you are conditional. The other team must do the things above to win.
Counter Advocacies- Best strategy, IMHO, for any neg team. It is the best way to force an affirmative to defend their case. ALTs, PICs, Consult, Conditions, etc. whatever you want to run I am okay with so long as you defend the solvency of your advocacy. Theory can even be a counter advocacy if you choose to articulate it as such. You should do your best to not link to your own advocacy as in my mind, it makes the impacts of your argument inevitable.
With regard to permutations, if you go for the perm in the PMR, it must be as a reason the ALT/CP alone is insufficient and should be rejected as an offensive voting position in the context of a disad that does not link to the CP. I do not believe that every link is a disad to the permutation, you must prove it as such in the context of the permutation. Finally, CP perms are not advocacies- it is merely to demonstrate the ability for both plans to happen at the same time, and then the government team should offer reasons the perm would resolve the disads or be better than the CP uniquely. K perms can be advocacies, particularly if the ALT is a floating PIC, but it needs to be explained, with a text, how the permutation solves the residual links in both instances as well.
Evaluating rounds- I evaluate rounds as I would when I was a PMR. That means to me that I first look to see if the affirmative has lost a position that should lose them the round (T’s and Specs). Then I look for counter advocacies and weigh competing advocacies (K’s and Alts or CP’s and Disads). Finally, I look to see if the affirmative has won their case and if the impacts of the case outweigh the off case. If you are really asking how I weigh after the explanation in the general information, then you more than likely have a specific impact calculus you want to know how I would consider. Feel free to ask me direct questions before the round or at any other time during the tournament. I do not mind clarifying. Also, if you want to email me, feel free (sfarias@pacific.edu). If you have any questions about this or anything I did not mention, feel free to ask me any time. Thanks.
LD SPECIFIC PHILOSOPHY
Section 1 – General Information
Experience: Rounds this year: >50 between LD and Parli. 8 years competitive experience (4 years high school, 4 years collegiate NPDA/NPTE and 2 years LD) 12 years coaching experience (2 Grad years NPDA/NPTE and LD at Pacific and 3 years NPDA/NPTE at Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, 7 years A/DOF years NPDA/NPTE and LD at Pacific)
General Info: I am okay with whatever you choose to read in the debate because I care more about your justifications and what you as the debaters decide in round. I think the AFF should find a way to be topical, but if you are not I then I am sure you will be ready to defend why you choose not to be. I think the NEG is entitled to read whatever they like but should answer the AC and should collapse in the NR. Failing to do one or both of these things means I am much less likely to vote for your strategy because of the primacy of the AFF and/or an inability to develop depth of argument in the NR.
As an academic familiar with critical theory across a host of topics (race, gender, "the state", etc.) feel free to read whatever you like on the AFF or NEG but I expect you to explain its application, not merely rely on the word salad that some of this evidence can use. I understand what is in the salad but you should be describing it with nuance and not expecting me to do that for you. The same is true for standards on theory, permutation arguments, solvency differentials to the CP, or the link story of an advantage or disad. I am willing to vote on any theory position that pertains to the topic (T) or how debates should happen (all other theory). This includes Inherency, or any stock issue, or rules based contestation.
In terms of impacts, I often find myself less compelled by nuclear war, or other black swan events, and would appreciate if you were more resourceful with impacts on your advantage/disad. I think probability means more than just a blipped or conceded link. The link arguments must be compared with the arguments of your opponents.
Last--I do not think you need evidence for everything in the debate. Feel free to make intuitive arguments about the world and the way things operate. I do think its good if you have evidence for 80-90% of your arguments. I will also say that evidence on issues where it is usually lacking (like voters on theory or RVIs) will be weighted heavily if the only response back is "that's silly"
Section 2 – Specific Inquiries
1. How do you adjudicate speed? What do you feel your responsibilities are regarding speed?
I can handle top speed and am not frustrated by debaters who choose to speak at a conversational rate. With that said, I believe the issue of speed is a rules based issue open for debate like any other rule of the event. If you cannot handle a debater’s lack of clarity you will say “clear” (I will if I have to) and if you cannot handle a debater’s excessive speed, I expect you to say “speed.” In general, I will wait for you to step in and say something before I do. Finally, I believe the rules are draconian and ridiculously panoptic, as you are supposedly allowed to “report” me to the tournament. If you want me to protect you, you should make that known through a position or rules violation debated effectively.
2. Are there any arguments you would prefer not to hear or any arguments that you don’t find yourself voting for very often?
I will not tolerate homophobia, racism, sexism, transphobia, disablism, or any other form of social injustice. This means that arguments that blatantly legitimize offensive policies and positions should be avoided. I do not anticipate this being an issue and rarely (meaning only twice ever) has this been a direct problem for me as a judge. Still, I will do my best to ensure the round is as accessible as possible for every competitor. Please do the same. Anything else is up to you. I will vote on anything I simply expect it to be compared to the alternative world/framing of the aff or neg.
3. General Approach to Evaluating Rounds:
Evaluating rounds- I evaluate rounds sequentially against the Affirmative. This means I first look to see if the affirmative has lost a position that should lose them the round (T’s and Specs). Then I look for counter advocacies and weigh competing advocacies (K’s and Alts or CP’s and Disads). Finally, I look to see if the affirmative has won their case and if the impacts of the case outweigh the off case. I do not assume I am a policy maker. Instead I will believe myself to be an intellectual who votes for the best worldview that is most likely achievable at the end of the debate.
4. Whether or not you believe topicality should be a voting issue
Yes, it is because the rules say so. I will listen to reasons to ignore the rules, but I think T and generally all theory arguments are voting issues.
5. Does the negative have to demonstrate ground loss in order for you to vote negative on topicality?
Generally yes, but I will vote on reasons the negative has a better definition for the resolution. To win that debate there should be a comparison of the debate being had and the debate that the competitors could be having.
6. Do you have a close understanding of NFA rules/Have you read the NFA rules in the last 6 months
Yes
7. How strictly you as a judge enforce NFA LD rules?
I only enforce them if a position is won that says I should enforce them. I will not arbitrarily enforce a rule without it being made an issue.
8. Does the negative need to win a disadvantage in order for you to vote negative?
No. I am more likely to vote if the negative wins offense. But terminal case defense that goes conceded or is more explanatory to the aff will win my ballot too.
9. What is your policy on dropped arguments?
You should do your best not to drop arguments. If you do, I will weigh them the way I am told to weigh them. So if it is a conceded blipped response with no warrant, I do not think that is an answer but instead a comparison of the quality of the argument. Also, new warrants after a blip I believe can and should be responded to.
10. Are you familiar with Kritiks (or critiques) and do you see them as a valid negative strategy in NFA-LD?
My background is in critical theory, so yes and yes they are valid negative strats.
Feel free to ask me direct questions before the round or at any other time during the tournament. I do not mind clarifying. Also, if you want to email me, feel free (sfarias@pacific.edu). If you have any questions about this or anything I did not mention, feel free to ask me any time. Thanks!
Overall, it's your round.
I did a year of LD and 3.5 years of Parliamentary Debate at the University of Nevada, Reno. I am fairly familiar with most types of arguments. I am open to hearing all that you have.
A few notes:
1. On the K, while I know most of the basic philosophies, please explain your K.
2. I am partial to T. Run it well.
if you have questions please ask before round.
UPDATED: 1/13/2021
Ryan Guy
Modesto Junior College
Video Recording: I always have a webcam with me. If you would like me to record your round and send it to you, check with your opponent(s) first, then ask me. I'll only do it if both teams want it, and default to uploading files as unlisted YouTube links and only sharing them with you on my ballot (I'll leave a short URL that will work once I am done uploading... typically 4n6URL.com/XXXX). This way no one ever has to bug me about getting video files.
Me:
- I was a NPDA debater at Humboldt State in the mid 2000s
- I've coached Parli, NFA-LD, IPDA and a little bit of BP, and CEDA since 2008.
- I teach courses in argumentation, debate, public speaking, etc
The Basics:
- In NFA-LD please post arguments you have run on the case list (https://nfald.paperlessdebate.com/)
- Use speechdrop.net to share files in NFA-LD and Policy debate rounds
- NOTE: If you are paper only you should have a copy for me and your opponent. Otherwise you will need to debate at a slower conversational pace so I can flow all your arguments. (I'm fine with faster evidence reading if I have a copy or you share it digitally).
- I'm fine with the a little bit of speed in NFA-LD and Parli but keep it reasonable or I might miss something.
- Procedurals / theory are fine but articulate the abuse
- I prefer policy-making to K debate. You should probably not run most Ks in front of me.
- I default to net-benefits criteria unless you tell me otherwise
- Please tell me why you think you are winning in your last speech
General Approach to Judging:
I really enjoy good clash in the round. I like it when debaters directly engage with each other's arguments (with politeness and respect). From there you need to make your case to me. What arguments stand and what am I really voting on. If at the end of the round I'm looking at a mess of untouched abandoned arguments I'm going to be disappointed.
Organization is very important to me. Please road-map (OFF TIME) and tell me where you are going. I can deal with you bouncing around if necessary but please let me know where we are headed and where we are at. Unique tag-lines help too. As a rule I do not time road maps.
I like to see humor and wit in rounds. This does not mean you can/should be nasty or mean to each other. Avoid personal attacks unless there is clearly a spirit of joking goodwill surrounding them. If someone gets nasty with you, stay classy and trust me to punish them for it with speaks.
If the tournament prefers that we not give oral critiques before the ballot has been turned in I won't. If that is not the case I will as long as we are running on schedule. I'm always happy to discuss the round at some other time during the tournament.
Kritiques: I'm probably not the judge you want to run most K's in front of. In most formats of debate I don't think you can unpack the lit and discussion to do it well. If you wish to run Kritical arguments I'll attempt to evaluate them as fairly as I would any other argument in the round.I have not read every author out there and you should not assume anyone in the round has. Make sure you thoroughly explain your argument. Educate us as you debate. You should probably go slower with these types of positions as they may be new to me, and i'm very unlikely to comprehend a fast kritik.
I will also mention that I'm not a fan of this memorizing evidence / cards thing in parli. If you don't understand a critical / philosophical standpoint enough to explain it in your own words, then you might not want to run it in front of me.
Weighing: Please tell me why you are winning. Point to the impact level of the debate. Tell me where to look on my flow. I like overviews and clear voters in the rebuttals. The ink on my flow (or pixels if I'm in a laptop mood) is your evidence. Why did you debate better in this round? Do some impact calculus and show me why you won.
Speed: Keep it reasonable. In parli speed tends to be a mistake, but you can go a bit faster than conversational with me if you want. That being said; make sure you are clear, organized and are still making good persuasive arguments. If you cant do that and go fast, slow down. If someone calls clear ...please do so. If someone asks you to slow down please do so. Badly done speed can lead to me missing something on the flow. I'm pretty good if I'm on my laptop, but it is your bad if I miss it because you were going faster than you were effectively able to.
Online Tournaments: Speed and web based debate does not work. Slow down or everyone will miss stuff.
Speed in NFA-LD: I get that there is the speed is antithetical to nfa-ld debate line in the bylaws. I also know that almost everyone ignores it. If you are speaking at a rate a trained debater and judge can comprehend I think you meet the spirit of the rule. If speed becomes a problem in the round just call clear or "slow." That said if you use "clear" or "slow" to be abusive and then go fast and unclear I might punish you in speaks. I'll also listen and vote on theory in regards to speed, but I will NEVER stop a round for speed reasons in any form of debate. If you think the other team should lose for going fast you will have to make that argument.
If you do not flash me the evidence or give me a printed copy, then you need to speak at a slow conversational rate, so I can confirm you are reading what is in the cards. If you want to read evidence a bit faster...send me you stuff. I'm happy to return it OR delete it at the end of the round, but I need it while you are debating.
Safety:I believe that debate is an important educational activity. I think it teaches folks to speak truth to power and trains folks to be good citizens and advocates for change. As a judge I never want to be a limiting factor on your speech. That said the classroom and state / federal laws put some requirements on us in terms of making sure that the educational space is safe. If I ever feel the physical well-being of the people in the round are being threatened, I am inclined to stop the round and bring it to the tournament director.
NFA-LD SPECIFIC THINGS:
Files: I would like debaters to use www.speechdrop.net for file exchange. It is faster and eats up less prep. If for some reason that is not possible, I would like to be on the email chain: ryanguy@gmail.com. If there is not an email chain I would like the speech docs on a flashdrive before the speech. I tend to feel paper only debate hurts education and fairness in the round. I also worry it is ableist practice as some debaters struggle with text that can't be resized and searched. If you only use paper I would like a copy for the entire round so I may read along with you. If you can't provide a copy of your evidence digitally or on paper, you will need to slow down and speak at a slow conversational pace so I can flow everything you say.
Disclosure:'m a fan of the caselist. I think it makes for good debate. If you are not breaking a brand new aff it better be up there. If it is not I am more likely to vote on "accessibility" and "predictably" standards in T. Here is the case-list as of 2019. Get your stuff on it: https://nfald.paperlessdebate.com/If your opponent is anti-case list you should run a wiki spec / disclosure theory against them. I think that teams who chose to not disclose their affirmatives are abusive to teams who do.
LD with no cards:It might not be a rule, but I think it is abusive and bad for LD debate. I might even vote on theory that articulates that.
Specifics:
Speaker Points:Other than a couple off the wall occurrences my range tends to fall in the 26-30 range. If you do the things in my General Approach to Judging section, your speaks will be higher.
Topicality:AFF, make an effort to be topical. I'm not super amused by squirrely cases. Ill vote on T in all its varieties. Just make sure you have all the components. I prefer articulated abuse, but will vote on potential abuse if you don't answer it well. I'm unlikely to vote on an RVI. In general I enjoy a good procedural debate but also love rounds were we get to talk about the issues. That said if you are going for a procedural argument...you should probably really go for it in the end or move on to your other arguments.
IPDA:
In IPDA I prefer that you signpost your arguments and follow a logical structure for advantages, disadvantages, contentions, Counter-contentions etc. If it is a policy resolution you should probably fiat a plan action and argue why implementing it would be net-beneficial. I think it is generally abusive for the affirmative to not FIAT a plan in the 1AC if it is a resolution of policy. Please note the official IPDA textbook says the following about resolutions of policy "With a policy resolution, the affirmative must specify a plan that they will advocate during the debate. The plan of action should consist of at least four elements: agent, mandates, enforcement, and funding." (pg 134)(2016). International Public Debate Association Textbook (1st edition). Kendall Hunt Publishing.)
You get 30 minutes prep, you should cite sources and provide me with evidence. Arguments supported with evidence and good logic are more likely to get my ballot. I will vote on procedural arguments and other debate theory if it is run well in IPDA, but you should try to explain it a bit more conversationally than you would in other forms of debate. Try to use a little less jargon here. I flow IPDA just like I would any other form of debate. Please respond to each other and try not to drop arguments. A debate without clash is boring.
At its heart IPDA is a form of debate meant to be understood by non-debate audiences and skilled debater audiences alike.Argumentation theory exists under this framework, but certain strategies like critical affirmatives, spreading, and complicated theory positions are probably better situated in other forms of debate.
Evan Haynes
My Background
I debated for 3 years at City College of San Francisco and 3 years at University of the Pacific in Parliamentary and LD debate. I graduated in 2016, and coached for one year at UOP.
General Comments
I evaluate debates through comparative impact calculus, and I am open to whatever framework you believe the debate should be evaluated through. I think all speech acts are performance, and I am open to any type or structure of argument. I think you should run arguments you believe in or believe are the best strategy, not what you think I would like. However, when it comes to impacts, I prefer topically intuitive impact scenarios with well warranted explanation, even if they are much smaller in magnitude, to large impact scenarios that are relatively unexplained. Equity and compassion are paramount for me. I don’t believe more advanced teams should use speed or lack of clarity to prevent a substantive debate from occurring with less experienced teams.
Critical Aff’s/Performance
I enjoy many critical affirmatives, but if the Aff does not defend the topic, I become more easily persuaded by negative argumentation that the affirmative has limited the capacity for an educational and fair discussion to take place. Personalized performances can be transformative, but they can also be very difficult to judge in a competitive context.
Negative Strategies
I am most persuaded by deep and well warranted negative strategies that are topic specific. This can be the DA/CP or the K. Conditional CP’s are fine, but I am equally open to reasons why condo is abusive.
Experience Debating:
- High School Parli Debate in NorCal (2010-2014)
- NPTE/NPDA (2014-2017)
Experience Judging & Coaching:
- 5 years of judging and coaching high school Parli Debate
- 2 years of judging NPTE/NPDA/NFA-LD
Critical AFF
- I have voted on Critical AFFs before but it's pretty rare
- If you do not clearly link into the case to show you are being topical, it becomes very difficult for me to vote for you
K
- If you just state your role of the ballot and do not give me a reason to prefer, there is high probability I will not use your role of the ballot
- If your ALT is very abstract, please tell me what it means in the real world or how it functions
Perms
· I don’t like to vote for the AFF because on perms. I feel like I am weaseling out of a real decision by voting on the perm when the debate is very competitive
· It comes down to who really owns it. If you are a good NEG and preemptively make your plan is mutually exclusive, you should be fine
· If you’re going to run “perm, do the plan and CP excluding for the mutually exclusive parts”, please tell me what the mutually exclusive parts are
Spreading
- I will not guarantee I will get everything on the flow. Depending on how fast and how well you enunciate I will miss 10%-20% of what you say on my flow
Misc.
- I appreciate strong link stories that are probable. If you give me vague link story with strong magnitude that’s cool but I have an internal bias that values probability over magnitude. Not saying you can't persuade me in round to value magnitude over probability, but if no one says anything my internal bias will be the default setting
Prepping outside of prep time and being disorganized is not okay.
Basic Overview:
I believe it's your burden to tell me how and WHY (very important part) I should vote. If you give me a reason to vote on an RVI, and it goes dropped (I have a very low threshold for beating an RVI), and you go for that warranted RVI in your last speech... I will vote for it, regardless of how icky it feels. If neither team does the work to tell me how and why I vote, and I have to do a lot of work for you, don't be mad if that vote doesn't swing your way.
On LD rules:
For the sake of consistency, you have to tell me if something is in the rules if you want me to vote on it. So if you're going for "that type of counterplan isn't allowed in LD," then you obviously (and inherently) tell me that it's in the rules. The same thing goes for T... I don't NEED other voters, but you do have to tell me it's the rules. Also, I guess you can tell me the rules are bad, but you have to warrant it well.
Speed is also addressed in the rules, but I think that "conversational rate" is an arbitrary term. I'm fine with speed but I prefer that you annunciate. If your speed costs you your clarity, then slow down.
On Theory:
Absent you telling me, I defer to competing interps and potential abuse. That's just how I see debate, and is how I find myself evaluating rounds where no one tells me how to vote but the round clearly comes down to theory.
On Stock Issues:
It's technically in the rules that you have to have these stock issues, so if you're going for "no inherency" or "no propensity to solve" all you really have to do is cite the rules. Refer to my take on the rules.
On the K:
I'm comfortable with critical arguments. I often find that the Alt isn't explained well, and it's a pretty important part of the K because absent the Alt, your K is a nonunique DA. I still think you can claim K turns case absent the Alt, but of course that can be refuted back and forth so it's better to try to win your alt.
On 1AR/1NR/ Theory:
I never see it debated well because of time constraints in LD but sure, I'm open to it. If you're going for it in the 2AR, I imagine you'd really have to go for it.
I debated for Nevada for a year and a half, ending in the fall of 2014 to focus on my degree coursework in biochemistry. Since then, I have been away from college debate. At my peak as a debater, I was a lower-level open debater in parli and a middle-level open debater in ld. I preferred case debate when I competed. Please keep in mind that I have been away for a while and probably am not as good with speed as I once was.
I update this google doc way more than I do my tabroom account (the last update was from 2015 - yikes!):
I competed in NPDA for 4 years and read everything from procedurals to policy to kritiks and don't have a preference for any particular style over the other. It's your debate so do what you do best. I'd rather see you read my least favorite argument well than read my favorite argument terribly.
Procedurals: Love em, all types. Conventional, unconventional. Don’t care. The only procedurals I don’t like are ones that are run poorly. I am bias in the condo debate though. I don’t believe in condo bad, but I’ll still listen to it and if you win the position, I’ll vote for it. It is just harder to win that position in front of me. However, I do think multi-condo is bad so I have a lower threshold for voting on that shell. Other than those two debates, I don’t have solidified opinions.
Kritiks: It is your job to explain literature in a concise and understandable way. Don’t read kritiks that you can’t explain, because I won’t make the explanation for you. I thoroughly enjoy kritikal debate, but not when a team runs a convoluted position that no one in the room understands. I think that is sloppy debate designed to collect cheap wins, and it will reflect in your speaks. With that being said, feel free to read any kritik in front of me as long as it is actually an argument and not a jumbled mess of bullshit.
Policy: I love a good CP/DA debate against a solid policy aff, and I think throwing critical arguments into policy positions is fun to do and watch. I really enjoy solid case debate and think it is sorely lacking in debate right now. So if you can make case debate great again, you’ll get higher speaks.
If you have specific questions, feel free to hmu on facebook or around the tournament.
My favorite debates are ones in which the affirmative defends a fiatted plan text defending the resolution and the negative defends the status quo or a competitive policy option. You are of course open to approach the resolution in whatever way you wish as long as you justify it but you should support/be germane to the topic. Non-topical or anti-topical affs will be hard sells in front of me.
I’m compelled by terminal defense but I am more likely to vote one way or another if I have some risk of offensive.
Speed/spreading should never be used as a tool of exclusion so while I think speed bad arguments tend to be silly if you are asked to slow down you should or I’ll be pretty open to them. I will also add a note that I have been out of the activity for 2 years now and I have not kept up listening to speed. I’m confident that I can keep up but please don’t sacrifice clarity in the name of speed.
I view topicality as a search for the best interpretation of the topic and whether or not the affirmative meets that, it’s up to the debaters to tell me which standards are the most important and why I should prefer them. That being said I don’t think that abuse is necessary for me to vote but it certainly can be a compelling reason. T is always apriori voter unless I hear a compelling reason why it shouldn’t be and RVI’s are not the way to convince me. I’ll vote for theory arguments as long as they are justified, generally condo is probably a good thing but multiple conditional advocacies are probably bad for debate.
Impact prioritization is the most important thing to do in rebuttal speeches, tell me where you want me to vote and why it matters. I’ve seen many times where the rebuttal will tell me that they have won an argument and expect me to contextualize how it plays into the debate. You are free to roll the dice and see if I agree with you absent instruction.
I debated for Chabot College, coached for Long Beach State and am now ADOF at Chabot College. Most of my experience is in NFA-LD, but I have also participated in/judged/coached some parli. Although I do have debate experience, I have been living in the world of IEs, so it's wise to treat me more like an IE critic than a debate one. I definitely prefer to hear discussion about the topic at hand over a critical case, but will vote on any argument (T’s, CP’s, K’s, etc.) that is reasoned out, impacted, and persuasive. Especially if you run a critical argument, as this was not my forte, make sure you clearly explain everything about it and why it is more important for us to accept your kritik and reject discussion of the resolution. It is up to you as the debater to impact everything out for me and tell me why I should be voting for you over the other team.
I’m not a huge fan of speed in either LD or parli. While you don’t have to speak at a “conversational” pace, if I can’t keep up with you, your arguments won’t end up on my flow. I want to be able to hear and process your arguments so that I can determine a winner. Tags and impact calculus are going to be the most important things to hit, and you can speed up a bit during evidence.
I don’t mind if you communicate with your partner during a round, but the current speaker must say the argument in order for it to end up on my flow. The current speaker should be the one doing most of the speaking during their turn. No ventriloquism.
Any transferring of files in LD (via Speechdrop, email, flash drive, etc.) should happen during prep time.
Above all, keep things civil and have fun!
The short of it is I am a policymaker who evaluates impacts first and foremost, but I still expect the debate to have good warrants/evidence for justification of arguments. If you compare impacts through a nuanced calculus your odds are much higher for picking up my ballot. I tend to vote for the team who makes me do less work.
TOPICALITY/PROCEDURAL
Theory is fine, but only under certain circumstances (mainly when it is egregious abuse). Topicality should have a DEFINITION otherwise its a glorified specification argument. I don't typically enjoy an 8 minute MO on T. Though, I have a much lower threshold when it comes to questions of conditionality.
KRITIKS/CRITICAL AFFS:
I will listen to your kritik, but only if it has specific application (IE specific links) to the topic. Same goes for the affirmative. YOU MUST HAVE A TOPICAL PLAN TEXT! If you decide to reject the resolution in front of me odds are you will not win. I also believe that the negative is entitled to ONE alternative advocacy.
PERFORMANCE
I believe that all debate is a performance via speak act, but if you want further clarification refer to CRITICAL AFFS section.
A2 K AFF
Framework, framework, framework.
DISADS
I am a big fan of the uniqueness debate. That being said, you should be controlling the UQ to the DA, case turn, impact claim etc. if you want to win my ballot. Same goes for the affirmative in terms of their advantages. Negative DAs should have a clear link to the plan. Each portion of the DA should have clear tags, claim warrant and evidence.
COUNTER PLANS
I believe counter plans should be unconditional. They should also be competitive (functionally and textually). Besides that, I am willing to listen to CP theory, and am down for whatever in terms of this debate. I do think that CPs are a great strategy.
RATE OF DELIVERY
I flow on a laptop, so I can keep up pretty well. Though, diction/articulation are more important to me than rate of delivery.
If you have any specific questions just ask before the debate.
37th year in the activity; lawyer and elected official these days…
Issues:
-I vote for things that I don't like, the debate is yours to make what you will. That does not mean I have no opinions.
-T: compare evidence and impact T like a DA.
-Things I am unlikely to vote for: ticky-tacky debate; Inherency, "speed kills", claims without warrants, poorly debated T violations, "multiple perms bad".
Read a topical plan----------------------X--------------------say anything
Tech-----------------x-------------------------Truth
Usually some risk---------x---------------------------------Zero Risk
Conditionality Good--------------------X----------------------Conditionality Bad
States CP Good------X------------------------------------States CP Bad
Process CPs------------------X------------------------Ew Process CPs
Competing off immediacy/certainty---------------x---------------------------No
Politics DAs are a thing-------------------x-----------------------Good Politics DAs are a thing
Reasonability-----------------------------------x-------Competing Interps
Limits-----------------x-------------------------Aff Ground
Read every card----------x--------------------------------Read no cards
Lots of evidence--------------------------------------x----Lots of good evidence
Judge Kick---------------------x---------------------Stuck with the CP
Reject the Team--------------X----------------------------Reject the Arg
CPs need cards--------------------------------------x----Smart CPs can be cardless
Competition is based off the plan----x--------------------------------------Neg gets to define the plan
Fiat solves circumvention---------------x---------------------------Trump's President
K alts need to do something-------------------------------X-----------but you're asking the wrong question
K links about the plan---------------X---------------------------K links about a broad worldview
Have fun and be kind.
TL;DR: Run what you want, be nice, and have fun. I don't like the notion that you have to cater to what the judge wants to win the round. You should be doing what you want and enjoy. Debate is fun; enjoy the round! But if you say something racist/sexist/homophobic/problematic I will not hesitate to call you out on it. But most importantly have fun. :)
Long Version: I've been doing debate for a hot minute, and boy do I love it. One thing that I quickly learned in college is that debate is more than just an activity, but it's a space where I could have a voice, uninterrupted for the duration of the round. I ran a lot of critical race theory arguments (anti-blackness and Islamophobia were the main ones) and it was a way for me to talk about issues that I faced on the daily. Debate quickly became my space to exist un-apologetically. That's why I think that catering to what the judge wants to see in a round is problematic. The debate round is yours; do whatever you want. If you want to have a traditional round, go for it. If you want to toss the topic in the trash and talk about Star Wars for the round, power to you. I will judge the round however you tell me to.
That being said, you do have to tell me how to judge the round, because at the end of it there is a winner. If you don't tell me a framework or weighing mechanism, I will just weigh the impacts on both sides and make my decision accordingly. Everything is up for debate, though, and it is up to you all to tell me what to do. Ideally your rebuttals should be writing my RFD for me.
On top of that, I won't be doing any work for you, because I don't like judge intervention. If you half bake an argument, I'll weigh it accordingly. If you say "my partner will get to it" and they don't get to it, it doesn't exist. I'll end up making my decision based on the arguments in the round.
I try not be, but I'm a pretty interactive judge. You will know pretty easily, based on my body language, if I like/understand your argument. I make a lot of faces. I can't help it. :)
Other details that might interest you:
- I don't care about speed. Go as fast or as slow as you want; I'll keep up.
- I am a heavy flow judge. Make sure you slow down on tag lines and authors so I can get it down. If you have an important argument; a ROUND WINNING ARGUMENT or something, emphasize it, repeat it, throw a paper at me with the argument; just make sure you make it clear.
- I love Star Wars. Like, a lot. If you make references in your speeches you'll make me the happiest judge in the world. - I don't care about tag-teaming in CX, and I don't time flashing. But I will if y'all take too long.
- I also don't time. If I need to I will, but I assume everyone can time themselves. And yes you can use your phone as a timer.
- I'm pretty sure you're just skimming this whole paradigm, or just read the TL;DR, so If you are actually reading this whole thing, show me a picture of your pet or a meme and I'll give you extra speaker points.
- BE NICE TO EACH OTHER. A debate round is, by nature, already hostile. Feel free to be sassy, humorous, or sarcastic; as long as you're not mean to each other. I am a huge proponent of just being nice in the round; it makes it a better experience for everyone involved. If you're rude/mean/condescending/an overall jerk, I have no problem docking speaker points.
- I also talk too much. If you already haven't figured that out from this novel of a paradigm. Don't be afraid to tell me to shut up!
- If you see me outside of rounds, don't hesitate to come talk and ask questions! I'll be more than happy to talk to you about your round and help you get ready for the next one.
- I won't turn down food. Do what you want with that information :)
- If you have questions, I'll probably give you a book to read to get more information than you wanted. If you have books for me, PLEASE give me the titles. :)
Like I said, the round is yours. Be as outlandish (or inlandish?) as you want. I'm just here for the ride. :)
Important note: If you say/are racist/homophobic/sexist/problematic things, I will not hesitate to call you out on it. It's 2020; there is no reason for that. If you have to think about if something you would say would be problematic, it probably is. If it's an accident, I'll help explain and educate. I believe that self-reflection is very important; try and learn and grow from the things you learn.
If you have any specific questions about my paradigm, or anything else, please ask. I'll probably give you a longer answer than you want. :)
I like clear arguments and good, solid, logical thought processes. I try my very best to leave my biases out of the round and will likely vote on just what happens in the round. I will not vote on issues not presented by the students. I appreciate good delivery, the use of wit, and well mannered competitors. I like all forms of argumentation as long as they are presented clearly, warranted and supported logically. I expect courtesy and respect from and for all in the round (competitors, gallery, etc).
In NPDA, it is not okay to speak loudly to your teammate while the other team has the floor, nor is it okay to speak for your teammate.
I appreciate stock issues, organization, and impact calculus. I favor articulated abuse for T arguments. K's are fine.
Brief history: though I did not compete as a student in debate, I've been judging NPDA for about five years. The 2018-2019 academic year is my second year judging LD.
I used to debate with UNR.
Speed is fine, K's are fine, Theory is fine. I'm willing to vote on theory if you actually win the sheet and have good voters. Kritiks need to have a very clear Perspective. If I don't think everyone in the round understands what the K is about, I'm less inclined to give you any leeway on the substantive arguments. Make sure your PMR and LOR are weighing impacts, a good rebuttal writes my ballot for me. I also think its important to be courteous to your opponents, so if I think you're rude or deliberately spreading out a less experienced team you might win the round but you'll get bad speaks from me.
Please ask if you have any specific questions!