Missouri Novice and JV Season Championship
2021 — NSDA Campus, MO/US
IE's Paradigm List
All Paradigms: Show HideTHS '22
Currently attending Wichita State University where I am kinda sorta on the debate team!
I did debate throughout middle and high school, mainly LD and policy, as well as a few speech events. I understand policy debate well; K debates are still a struggle, but I promise I am learning! LD was fun for me, I enjoy judging it and have a solid understanding of the way things go, but I really appreciate feisty LD debaters :)
Above all: be a good person, don't cheat (clipping, recording w/o consent, etc.), and say good words well!
Hello!
My name is Ava Autrey (they/them!) and I am a freshman at William Jewell College. I have done just about every event in the book. I am a 2x National Qualifier in HI and a national finalist in Poetry.
I also am a parli debater, but have had experience in all forms. i don’t know this years topic,
I don't like speed reading. I like attacking and delinking arguments.
I am a license attorney, graduated from UMKC, and practicing employment law. also graduated in 2020 with a Bachelors of Science in Political Science from Missouri State University. I emphasized in International Relations, minored in Philosophy and graduated with distinction in Public Affairs.
I did Model United Nations throughout high school and college, and although I myself did not participate in debate in high school or college, I have judged tournaments around the country since early 2020, which would likely classify me as a lay judge. That being said, I likely have a stronger understanding of law, policy, and IR than most lay people.
When it comes to speech style, I strongly dislike spreading. (That's the lay judge in me). I understand its value in terms of debate strategy, but ultimately, it's unrealistic to communicate in that way, and makes it really hard for me to judge arguments I can barely understand. I value real, yet flawed, arguments much more than arguments made so fast that your opponent cannot follow.
I typically will not disclose unless I am required to by tab.
Overall, this is a learning experience for everyone, including me, and I hope all competitors can be respectful and understanding of their colleagues regardless of who they are, what their technology capabilities are, etc.
I primarily did Lincoln Douglas debate in High School, including qualifying for Nationals. I am currently a lawyer. I will flow the debate, and consider it important for debaters to address and carry their arguments to the end of the debate. I also expect arguments to be logical, and supported by evidence or support.
Speech/Debate Experience - Director of Debate at Liberty Sr. HS in Liberty, MO. Debated policy debate in high school and have been coaching now for 7 years. I can follow above average speed (it's your responsibility to signpost/be clear) but I acknowledge this is a communication activity and see more value in quality of argumentation as opposed to quantity of arguments. I will be flowing but don’t expect me to do the work for you in extensions or weighing. Your speeches are the priority when determining what to evaluate.
In order to weigh something on the flow, you need to include warrants with your claims. You can tell me to vote on something but if I don't have a clear (and well extended) reason to accompany it, I will look elsewhere for a claim that does have a warrant included. A complete argument should include claim, warrant, impact. Extend warrants with authors - sure, they dropped Smith '22, but why does Smith '22 matter to the round? is a question you should be answering on every extension. Each side should identify and impact calculate the offense in the round as early as they are able. Do not expect me to do the work for you or to be as well versed on the topic as you, it is better to assume I do not know a term than to jump straight in and leave the judge behind.
I typically lean more towards traditional debate in that it presents topic specific education and clash. However, kritikal arguments are fine so long as the thesis of the argument is clear and the clash is evident. Case debate is my preferred style of argumentation and if the K can provide a good link story into the affirmative world. Alternatives of do nothing in general are boring. That's not to say that they can't win a round (Solvency takeouts alone function in a similar manner) but I always wonder how much more creative the alt debate could be beyond "stay in the squo".
Prep Time: If someone is not speaking, someone is running prep time. Per the event rules there are speeches, cross-ex and prep. Especially now that high school prep is 8 minutes instead of the original 5... please don't attempt to steal prep. It is your responsibility to exchange evidence efficiently (if online, establish an email chain before the round if you think you'll need it). I will not stop prep if you "say stop prep, I want to request evidence from my opponent's". Take care of that during cross-ex or email speeches before you speak. There are time constraints in debate for a reason, abide by them, don't try to bend around them. Additionally "flex prep" is not real.
Prep and email chains- I realize that the wifi is sometimes out of your control. I'm okay with stopping prep when the email has been sent but that is also under the understanding that you also stop prepping. If you're partner is preflowing the upcoming speech doc, or you are still working then prep should still be running as by definition -- you are preparing. The other team, the same. You should be refreshing your email and that's it.
OPEN CROSS - This will lower your speaker points automatically. The event is designed to demonstrate the expertise, skill and speaking quality of each speaker. Since speaker points are given to each debater and not a team as a whole, open cross weakens individual speaking points.
Parent judge - very lay judge. do not go fast and make sure you read at a pace that is appropriate for online debate.
for speech:
for debate: I do not know the topic well, so overviews and over explaining everything would be great.
No k's, or any crazy Cp's
no sexist, homophobic or racist things are tolerated.
This is my email address so that evidence can be shared in-round if needed- fosterm22@smithville.k12.mo.us
National Qualifier in IX
In the past, I seem to have had a small commitment issue with picking a type of debate, so I have done all the main types (LD, CX, PF).
Some general things
1. I don't like rudeness and tend to look more favorably upon those who are respectful to their opponents, the general rules of debate, etc.
2. Don't lie about evidence or what your opponents have said throughout the round- I will know. Honestly, lying could lose the round for you.
3. I don't care how fast you talk as long as I can understand you.
I am a mix between a flow and a lay judge, I'll be flowing the round (obviously), but I'll also take emotional appeals/arguments into account. Obviously, evidence will always take precedence over pure assertions. Weighing is also a big deal for me, as is topicality (Once again obviously this might not apply to every resolution/type of debate, so take this with a grain of salt).
I have been a junior high or high school English Language Arts teacher for 24 years.
I prefer debaters not to use spreading. If I can't understand you, it will make it difficult for me to understand your position during the debate.
Hello!
Debate:
I'm most familiar with Lincoln Douglas and Public Forum, but I'm always looking for a few things:
Speed & Speaking- I don't care about how fast you can talk. I care about how clear your words are, and that you add some personality to your debating. Debate shouldn't have to be clinical, you can actually show that you enjoy what you do. But, if you do want to spread a little bit, I personally don't mind. Just be aware that I'm not an incredibly high flow judge.
Presentation- I don't stand at all for rude debaters. Respect is important if you want to be a successful debater: controlling a cross or a round in general isn't about being rude or demanding, it's confidence. There's a fine line.
(LD) Value & Value Criterion- This is the key to a Lincoln Douglas case. If a side can genuinely prove that they can win the Value-VC debate, I will almost always flow to their side. The value is supposed to be the foundation of all your arguments in a Lincoln Douglas case, so you should be able to uphold this throughout the round and convince the judge of it's importance.
Speech/Interp: My speech/interp experience is consistent across all events.
The things I care most about when judging interp comes from 1) passion, 2) characterization, 3) content, 4) clarity, and 5) originality
1) I need to see performers who genuinely radiate passion for their event. Even if you don't feel like it can be felt, judges can feel when a performer is bored with their piece. Especially this year, keeping your judges attention comes from liking what you do! Have fun with it!
2) Strong characterization- whether it be in a variety of unique and consistent HI characters, a strong and well developed DI character, or even just having great personality interwoven into a speaking event: show some personality!
3) Compelling content is important. A piece with an interesting story, developed arcs, and clear organization definitely gives you extra quality points!
4) Being a clear performer is really important. The words you say can only have power if you're a clear speaker to begin with.
5) Seeing overdone topics, cliche selections and more are all just a make it or break it element of judging. Being unique is a way to really stand out in the round.
Below are my paradigms sorted by event.
Best of luck!
General:
-
Spreading is okay as long as your opponents and I can understand you.
-
If possible, I’d like a copy of your case(s), but it is not required by any means. This will just be for my own reference to follow along in the round, and I will return it/delete it at the end of the round if requested (this will not impact my decision at all. If you are unable to provide a copy, that is perfectly fine!).
-
For debate, please state an outline before your speech, so that I can know how many pages I need for flow.
-
I will keep time, as should the competitors. I can give time signals if requested.
Policy:
Anything not listed here is pretty much free game. Do as you please, but back it up with evidence and be respectful.
-
I'm okay with Kritiks, but make the connection to the resolution extremely clear using evidence. If it is not clear, or if the connection is weak, I will disregard it.
Example: Using this year's resolution, "The United States federal government should substantially increase its protection of water resources in the United States,” you can run a feminism Kritik, but if you have no cards with information on how feminism impacts water resources in the US, I will disregard it. The evidence needs to directly establish a correlation. Implications make a weak case. It needs to be clearly stated.
-
No game theory. I won’t dock points for it, but it won't be considered in my deciding the ballot.
-
I will hear out Topicality, but again, it needs to be boldly stated, with your points crystal clear. You need to provide evidence. I will not weigh topicality heavier than other voters, nor will it be the sole reason for a vote.
-
Disadvantages hold the same weight as Advantages in regards to voters.
Public Forum:
Anything not listed here is pretty much free game. Do as you please, but back it up with evidence and be respectful.
-
I prefer arguments over style. I do not mind the way you debate the topic, but I will weigh the arguments made more than style in my vote.
-
Any argument that you would like considered as a voter needs to be extended to the rebuttal/ summary speech(es).
-
I will vote on arguments raised in crossfire only if they are extended to the rebuttal/summary speech(es).
-
I weigh analytics and evidence equally, but you cannot have one without the other. If you have analytics, but weak evidence, I will not vote on it, vice versa.
Lincoln- Douglas:
Anything not listed here is pretty much free game. Do as you please, but back it up with evidence and be respectful.
-
You can read Kritiks, or Counterplans, but make sure you stick to the general structure of LD otherwise.
I am a lay parent judge. I value the following:
- Understanding of the core issue;
- relevancy of evidences and sources; common sense arguements
- overall delivery/presentation, including your manners to your opponents;
Competed:
2011-15 – Lawrence Free State, KS, Policy (Space, Transportation, Latin America, Oceans)
2015-17 – JCCC, KS, NDT/CEDA (Military Presence, Climate Change); NFA-LD (Bioprospecting, Southern Command)
2017-20 – Missouri State University, MO, NDT/CEDA (Healthcare, Exec Authority, Space); NFA-LD (Policing, Cybersecurity)
Coached:
2016-17 – Lawrence High School, KS, (China Engagement)
2017-19 – Olathe West High School, KS, (Education, Immigration)
2019-22– Truman High School, MO, (Arm Sales, CJR, Water)
2020-Present– Missouri State University, MO, (MDT Withdrawal, Anti-Trust, Rights/Duties, Nukes); NFA-LD (Climate, Endless Wars)
2022-23- Truman State University, MO, NFA-LD (Elections)
2022-2024 - The Pembroke Hill School, MO, (NATO, Economic Inequality)
2024-Present - Lawrence Free State, KS (IP Law)
Always add:
phopsdebate@gmail.com
Also add IF AND ONLY IF at a NDT/CEDA TOURNAMENT: debatedocs@googlegroups.com
If I walk out of the room (or go off-camera), please send the email and I will return very quickly.
Email chains are STRONGLY preferred. Email chains should be labeled correctly.
*Name of Tournament * *Division* *Round #* *Aff Team* vs *Neg Team*
tl;dr:
You do you; I'll flow whatever happens. I tend to like policy arguments more than Kritical arguments. I cannot type fast and flow on paper as a result. Please give me pen time on T, Theory, and long o/v's etc. Do not be a jerk. Debaters work hard, and I try to work as hard as I can while judging. Debaters should debate slower than they typically do.
Evidence Quality X Quantity > Quality > Quantity. Argument Tech + Truth > Tech > Truth. Quals > No Quals.
I try to generate a list of my random thoughts and issues I saw with each speech in the debate. It is not meant to be rude. It is how I think through comments. If I have not said anything about something it likely means I thought it was good.
Speaker Points:
If you can prove to me you have updated your wiki for the round I am judging before I submit the ballot I will give you the highest speaker points allowed by the tournament. An updated wiki means: 1. A complete round report. 2. Cites for all 1NC off case positions/ the 1AC, and 3. uploaded open source all of the documents you read in the debate inclusive of analytics. If I become aware that you later delete, modify, or otherwise disclose less information after I have submitted my ballot, any future debate in which I judge you will result in the lowest possible speaker points at the tournament.
Online debates:
In "fast" online debates, I found it exceptionally hard to flow those with poor internet connections or bad mics. I also found it a little harder even with ideal mic and internet setups. I think it's reasonable for debates in which a debater(s) is having these issues for everyone in the debate to debate at an appropriate speed for everyone to engage.
Clarity is more important in a digital format than ever before. I feel like it would behoove everyone to be 10% slower than usual. Make sure you have a differentiation between your tag voice and your card body voice.
It would be super cool if everyone put their remaining prep in the chat.
I am super pro the Cams on Mics muted approach in debates. Obvious exceptions for poor internet quality.
People should get in the groove of always sending marked docs post speeches and sending a doc of all relevant cards after the debate.
Disads:
I enjoy politics debates. Reasons why the Disad outweighs and turns the aff, are cool. People should use the squo solves the aff trick with election DA's more.
Counter Plans:
I generally think negatives can and should get to do more. CP's test the intrinsic-ness of the advantages to the plan text. Affirmatives should get better at writing and figuring out plan key warrants. Bad CP's lose because they are bad. It seems legit that 2NC's get UQ and adv cp's to answer 2AC thumpers and add-ons. People should do this more.
Judge kicking the cp seems intuitive to me. Infinite condo seems good, real-world, etc. Non-Condo theory arguments are almost always a reason to reject the argument and not the team. I still expect that the 2AC makes theory arguments and that the neg answers them sufficiently. I think in an evenly matched and debated debate most CP theory arguments go neg.
I am often not a very good judge for CP's that require you to read the definition of "Should" when answering the permutation. Even more so for CP's that compete using internal net benefits. I understand how others think about these arguments, but I am often unimpressed with the quality of the evidence and cards read. Re: CIL CP - come on now.
Kritiks on the Negative:
I like policy debate personally, but that should 0% stop you from doing your thing. I think I like K debates much better than my brain will let me type here. Often, I end up telling teams they should have gone for the K or voted for it. I think this is typically because of affirmative teams’ inability to effectively answer critical arguments
Links of omission are not links. Rejecting the aff is not an alternative, that is what I do when I agree to endorse the alternative. Explain to me what happens to change the world when I endorse your alternative. The aff should probably be allowed to weigh the aff against the K. I think arguments centered on procedural fairness and iterative testing of ideas are compelling. Clash debates with solid defense to the affirmative are significantly more fun to adjudicate than framework debates. Floating pics are probably bad. I think life has value and preserving more of it is probably good.
Kritical Affirmatives vs Framework:
I think the affirmative should be in the direction of the resolution. Reading fw, cap, and the ballot pik against these affs is a good place to be as a policy team. I think topic literacy is important. I think there are more often than not ways to read a topical USfg action and read similar offensive positions. I am increasingly convinced that debate is a game that ultimately inoculates advocacy skills for post-debate use. I generally think that having a procedurally fair and somewhat bounded discussion about a pre-announced, and democratically selected topic helps facilitate that discussion.
Case Debates:
Debates in which the negative engages all parts of the affirmative are significantly more fun to judge than those that do not.
Affirmatives with "soft-left" advantages are often poorly written. You have the worst of both worlds of K and Policy debate. Your policy action means your aff is almost certainly solvable by an advantage CP. Your kritical offense still has to contend with the extinction o/w debate without the benefit of framework arguments. It is even harder to explain when the aff has one "policy" extinction advantage and one "kritical" advantage. Which one of these framing arguments comes first? I have no idea. I have yet to hear a compelling argument as to why these types of affirmative should exist. Negative teams that exploit these problems will be rewarded.
Topicality/procedurals:
Short blippy procedurals are almost always only a reason to reject the arg and not the team. T (along with all procedurals) is never an RVI.
I am uninterested in making objective assessments about events that took place outside of/before the debate round that I was not present for. I am not qualified nor empowered to adjudicate debates concerning the moral behavior of debaters beyond the scope of the debate.
Things that are bad, but people continually do:
Have "framing" debates that consist of reading Util good/bad, Prob 1st/not 1st etc. Back and forth at each other and never making arguments about why one position is better than another. I feel like I am often forced to intervene in these debates, and I do not want to do that.
Saying something sexist/homophobic/racist/ableist/transphobic - it will probably make you lose the debate at the worst or tank your speaks at the least.
Steal prep.
Send docs without the analytics you already typed. This does not actually help you. I sometimes like to read along. Some non-neurotypical individuals benefit dramatically by this practice. It wastes your prep, no matter how cool the macro you have programmed is.
Use the wiki for your benefit and not post your own stuff.
Refusing to disclose.
Reading the 1AC off paper when computers are accessible to you. Please just send the doc in the chain.
Doing/saying mean things to your partner or your opponents.
Unnecessarily cursing to be cool.
Some random thoughts I had at the end of my first year judging NDT/CEDA:
1. I love debate. I think it is the best thing that has happened to a lot of people. I spend a lot of my time trying to figure out how to get more people to do it. People should be nicer to others.
2. I was worse at debate than I thought I was. I should have spent WAY more time thinking about impact calc and engaging the other teams’ arguments.
3. I have REALLY bad handwriting and was never clear enough when speaking. People should slow down and be clearer. (Part of this might be because of online debate.)
4. Most debates I’ve judged are really hard to decide. I go to decision time often. I’m trying my best to decide debates in the finite time I have. The number of times Adrienne Brovero has come to my Zoom room is too many. I’m sorry.
5. I type a lot of random thoughts I had during debates and after. I really try to make a clear distinction between the RFD and the advice parts of the post-round. It bothered me a lot when I was a debater that people didn’t do this.
6. I thought this before, but it has become clearer to me that it is not what you do, it is what you justify. Debaters really should be able to say nearly anything they’d like in a debate. It is the opposing team’s job to say you’re wrong. My preferences are above, and I do my best to ignore them. Although I do think it is impossible for that to truly occur.
Disclosure thoughts:
I took this from Chris Roberds who said it much more elegantly than myself.
I have a VERY low threshold on this argument. Having schools disclose their arguments pre-round is important if the activity is going to grow/sustain itself. Having coached almost exclusively at small, underfunded, or new schools, I can say that disclosure (specifically disclosure on the wiki if you are a paperless debater) is a game changer. It allows small schools to compete and makes the activity more inclusive. There are a few specific ways that this influences how ballots will be given from me:
1) I will err negative on the impact level of "disclosure theory" arguments in the debate. If you're reading an aff that was broken at a previous tournament, on a previous day, or by another debater on your team, and it is not on the wiki (assuming you have access to a laptop and the tournament provides wifi), you will likely lose if this theory is read. There are two ways for the aff to "we meet" this in the 2ac - either disclose on the wiki ahead of time or post the full copy of the 1ac in the wiki as a part of your speech. Obviously, some grace will be extended when wifi isn't available or due to other extenuating circumstances. However, arguments like "it's just too much work," "I don't like disclosure," etc. won't get you a ballot.
2) The neg still needs to engage in the rest of the debate. Read other off-case positions and use their "no link" argument as a reason that disclosure is important. Read case cards and when they say they don't apply or they aren't specific enough, use that as a reason for me to see in-round problems. This is not a "cheap shot" win. You are not going to "out-tech" your opponent on disclosure theory. To me, this is a question of truth. Along that line, I probably won't vote on this argument in novice, especially if the aff is reading something that a varsity debater also reads.
3) If you realize your opponent's aff is not on the wiki, you should make every possible attempt before the round to ask them about the aff, see if they will put it on the wiki, etc. Emailing them so you have timestamped evidence of this is a good choice. I understand that, sometimes, one teammate puts all the cases for a squad on the wiki and they may have just put it under a different name. To me, that's a sufficient example of transparency (at least the first time it happens). If the aff says it's a new aff, that means (to me) that the plan text and/ or advantages are different enough that a previous strategy cut against the aff would be irrelevant. This would mean that if you completely change the agent of the plan text or have them do a different action it is new; adding a word like "substantially" or "enforcement through normal means" is not. Likewise, adding a new "econ collapse causes war" card is not different enough; changing from a Russia advantage to a China, kritikal, climate change, etc. type of advantage is. Even if it is new, if you are still reading some of the same solvency cards, I think it is better to disclose your previous versions of the aff at a minimum.
4) At tournaments that don't have wifi, this should be handled by the affirmative handing over a copy of their plan text and relevant 1AC advantages etc. before the round. If thats a local tournament, that means as soon as you get to the room and find your opponent.
5) If you or your opponent honestly comes from a circuit that does not use the wiki (e.g. some UDLs, some local circuits, etc.), I will likely give some leeway. However, a great use of post-round time while I am making a decision is to talk to the opponent about how to upload on the wiki. If the argument is in the round due to a lack of disclosure and the teams make honest efforts to get things on the wiki while I'm finishing up my decision, I'm likely to bump speaks for all 4 speakers by .2 or .5 depending on how the tournament speaks go.
6) There are obviously different "levels" of disclosure that can occur. Many of them are described above as exceptions to a rule. Zero disclosure is always a low-threshold argument for me in nearly every case other than the exceptions above.
That said, I am also willing to vote on "insufficient disclosure" in a few circumstances.
A. If you are in the open/varsity division of NDT-CEDA, NFA-LD, or TOC Policy your wiki should look like this or something very close to it. Full disclosure of information and availability of arguments means everyone is tested at the highest level. Arguments about why the other team does not sufficiently disclose will be welcomed. Your wiki should also look like this if making this argument.
B. If you are in the open/varsity division of NDT-CEDA, NFA-LD, or TOC Policy. Debaters should go to the room immediately after pairings are released to disclose what the aff will be. With obvious exceptions for a short time to consult coaches or if tech problems prevent it. Nothing is worse than being in a high-stress/high-level round and the other team waiting until right before the debate to come to disclose. This is not a cool move. If you are unable to come to the room, you should be checking the wiki for your opponent's email and sending them a message to disclose the aff/past 2NR's or sending your coach/a different debater to do so on your behalf.
C. When an affirmative team discloses what the aff is, they get a few minutes to change minor details (tagline changes, impact card swaps, maybe even an impact scenario). This is double true if there is a judge change. This amount of time varies by how much prep the tournament actually gives. With only 10 minutes between pairings and start time, the aff probably only get 30 seconds to say "ope, actually...." This probably expands to a few minutes when given 30 minutes of prep. Teams certainly shouldn't be given the opportunity to make drastic changes to the aff plan text, advantages etc. a long while after disclosing.
PFD addendum for NSDA 2024
I am incredibly concerned about the quality of the evidence read in debates and the lack of sharing of evidence read.
Teams who send evidence in a single document that they intend to read in their speech and quickly send an addendum document with all evidence selected mid speech will be rewarded greatly.
I will ask each team to send every piece of evidence read by both teams in ALL speeches.
I am easily persuaded that not sending evidence read in a speech with speech prior to the start of the speech is a violation of evidence sharing rules.
be swag.
policy is not swag.
K’s in LD=not swag
progressive stuff be careful, or no swag.
Following flow, determines swag.
Ik LD and PF, not Policy.
the quicker you speak the less I write down
i don’t know policy lingo
SO basically keep it traditional, and you'll achieve swag.
Name
Charles Palmer
Current institutional affiliation
Lincoln College Preparatory Academy, Kansas City, MO
Current role at institution
Head Debate Coach
Previous institutional affiliations and role
Foreign Language Academy - Head Debate Coach
Debating experience
High School Competitor and Head Coach
What do you view your role as the judge in the debate? (Possible answers may include: referee, policymaker, tabula rasa, stock issues, capable of effectuating change or educator). Please elaborate
I’m of the tabula rasa mindset. I accept all arguments and opponents should be prepared to clash with whatever is brought up in a debate round. I will vote for affirmative cases that have no plan or are not necessarily topical on its face if the negative team fails to win their arguments against these types of cases. It should be the ultimate goal of each team to be the most persuasive. My favorite debates are those with great clash and passionate speech. I have no issues with performance teams, but what they say will hold more weight than how they say it.
I will say that I tend to roll my eyes at most claims of 'abuse'. If you're going to claim that another team is abusive, there better be some real validity to it. Don't claim that you didn't have time to prepare for an Aff case that's been on open evidence since the beginning of the season. Additionally, racist, sexist, homophobic, or any other hateful types of comments or arguments will not be tolerated.
I do not count flash time or road maps against prep and debaters should keep their own time. I don’t expect debaters to share evidence with me, unless I request it for the purposes of determining validity or making a final decision, but the debaters should absolutely share evidence with one another. I will only consider arguments that are made from each debater and/ or read in evidence. Open cross-ex is fine, as long as both teams agree to it. Some speed is okay, but make sure I can understand your argument and include me on the speech drop or email chain.
My normal speaker point range is 20-30. I consider not only clarity and how well a debater speaks, but also how persuasive they are and the organization of their thoughts. It is on the debater to be clear from the beginning.
Most of my experience is with policy, but I do have some LD and PF experience. Persuade me.
Hi there,
I am very familiar with this policy topic, therefore I will be able to follow along just fine and already understand the background of the topic.
If there is an email chain please include me in it:
iskate1516@gmail.com
Speed
(Virtual) - I am okay with some speed, but due to the nature of video chatting the audio is horrible. I'd rather have quality over quantity.
- If I can't understand you due to your speed, I won't stop you. I just won't flow it. Meaning at the end of the round if it's not on my flow then I'm not going to consider it.
- Do not feel the need to spread or talk faster if you are not comfortable with it.
Stock Issues
- I'm not a fan of when people run inherency as an argument unless there is a major dispute
- In solvency, if you have a weak solvency argument I will most likely give that to the neg, but only if they catch it
- Solvency turns are a thing and they're fun if ran correctly.
- Make sure you have a strong link card, have noticed with this topic, the link cards are weak
DA's
- Turns are fun for impacts, but you can't us say that you're turning it. Read me a card, and give me and under view of why that's possible.
- I don't like extinction arguments for impact, if you're going to run that then you need a strong internal link
- DA's are important in my voting decision
- Long link chains are weaker DA'S
- At the end of the round you should be going for the DA that you believe has the most value to the round, do not run the entire neg case.
Topicality
- I do not like T on substantial
- T is fun, but don't run it if you don't plan on going for that in the neg rebuttal
- If you don't bring it up in all of your speech, then I will flow it as a dropped
- T isn't a voter for me, in most cases
- There is on T that I will 95% of the time vote on, but not a lot of people run it. Or if they do run it, it is not used in the correct context.
CP's
- A lot of people don't have all the components for a CP which discourages me from voting on the CP the aff also has to catch the improper set up. The aff has to bring that up though.
- CP must solve better, give me your interpretation of why you solve better
- I like cp's but it must be ran correctly
Abusive arg
- I don't like abusive arguments, they're very whiny.
- They're a time waster, spend your time on better args
- You don't need to bring it to my attention that they brought up a new arg in the rebuttals. I flow speeches. I will write on their ballot that I didn't flow that argument.
- I was once a novice debater too, and novice 2A's are very notorious for bringing up new args in the 2AR
Other policy related notes
- K's do not belong on the novice circuit especially in Missouri
- Impact calc should be ran
- If there are tech issues on my end I will stop you and pause the time, as it is fair to judge everyone the same - if the other team can't hear you I would like for them to say something
- Don't steal prep, I time everyone and everything.
- I read evidence , if your card says something completely different than what the other wrote, that will be on the ballot
- Dates are relevant but at the same time it's not the biggest thing in the world to me. However if your entire case is from '14 then I'll probably mention it. But don't spend your time arguing dates.
- The purpose of cx if for clash and clarification - if you run vagueness on their plan or whatever it may be - I will probably not swing that argument your way.
PuF and LD
- I am more familiar with LD than PuF
- In LD hold up your criterion and value
- At the end of the round I don't want to have to go back and go through all my flow to see which side should win it should be obvious by the last 2 speeches
PLEASE READ THIS
If you're being rude in any shape way or form, you will get last in the round. In cx I'm okay with interrupting but don't be rude. Don't say anything offensive. If I feel that you're being sexist, racist, or disrespectful, I will write it on your ballot for your coach to see.
Chris Rothgeb
Parkview High School, Springfield, MO
Head Coach
I currently coach the following events: Policy, LD, Public Forum, Congress, Interp (HI, DI, Duo, POI, Storytelling, Prose, Poetry, Duet Acting), USX, IX, OO, Info, Radio Speaking.
Former Assistant and Head Coach at Jefferson City High School, Jefferson City, MO
I debated Policy, LD, and PF in High School. I debated Policy for 2 semesters in college at Missouri State University. I have also judged NFA LD and College Policy/CEDA/NDT.
Policy Debate (below)
In high school and in college, I almost always gave the 1AR.
Role as the judge - I tend to not define what judge I am in a single term. Basically, whatever you present, I will listen to and evaluate that.
Flash Time - When someone is flashing evidence, NO ONE IS PREPPING!! I will count off your own prep time if you are prepping while someone is flashing.
Please provide me with the documents that you flash/email over. This makes my life a little easier and I can be a better judge for you.
If you are unclear, I will yell for you to be clearer. If you continue to be unclear, I will dock speaker points.
I will read evidence if I believe that it is important. Sometimes I do, and sometimes I do not. I will only read the un-underlined portion of evidence if it is brought up in the round and I believe it to be important to decide the outcome of the round. I don't usually do this though.
Topicality - I have voted on T in the past, but that does not mean I like it. If the aff is being blatantly untopical, then T is clearly going to matter. If there is no offense from either side, I will discard T. Make it count.
Theory - Theory debates are so tricky. I was never really exposed to theory until college and it still confuses me today. If you decide to go this route, make it count and explain it well. You do not have to dumb it down, but you need to explain it.
Kritiks - Again, I never debated K in high school. It just wasn't a thing in my circuit. I only did K debates in college because my partners wanted to. I never understood them which made it difficult to convey to the judge. This is important to know. If you do not fully understand your K position, then you cannot explain it that well to me. This presents a problem when it comes down to me making an evaluation of the round. The other thing I find with most K debates is that no one ever tells me the "why" component - or the Impacts. The theory behind the K may be super interesting, but what is the actual application to the round? If you cannot explain this, odds are I will have a hard time making the K matter in my decision.
AFF duties - You must read a plan in the 1AC. This is non-negotiable to me. Waiting until after the 1AC to read a plan is abusive and we just wasted 16 minutes of good speaking time.
Performance debates - I have only ever seen 1 performance debate in my entire career. I didn't vote for it. Not because it wasn't effective, but because they couldn't defend it. Keep that in mind.
Speed - I am "okay" with speed. Most people seem to think that if they read it fast enough, that counts. This is incorrect. If I cannot perceive your words, then I cannot digest the information that you are presenting. BE CLEAR!! Just because you can speak fast, does not mean that I can digest it that fast. I need to be able to understand what is going on in the round in order to make the most accurate decision after the round. On the standard 1-to-9 scale from the NSDA (with 1 being slow and conversational and 9 being rapid and fast), I would go with a 5. If you are speaking and I am not flowing, you are going too fast. I will tell you to be clear, but I will NOT tell you to slow down.
In-round K - I put Language K and Speed K here. Unless the other team is ACTUALLY being abusive, then this should NOT happen. Again, I need impacts.
Abuse - Potential abuse is not a reason to vote someone down. If you feel you were actually at a disadvantage in the round caused by the other team cheating, or what-not, then show that to me.
TL;DR - Impact your arguments.
Have fun with the debate! This is supposed to be fun! So enjoy it! A bad attitude is so easy to see for a judge and it makes me not have fun either. Then we are all sitting there with bad attitudes for an hour and a half. No one wants that.
I really enjoy case and DA debates the best. Impact analysis is always fun to judge. I will listen to all of your arguments - that I can promise you. But you need to make it count.
World Schools (below)
Summer 2022 is my first time judging WSD. All I ask is to be respectful towards each other with POI. Turning down too many points will lose some speaker points. Be sure to carry your arguments from the first speech all the way through (unless you are strategically kicking out of arguments). Make sure you are keeping the big picture in mind. This is a holistic debate -be holistic.
LD and PF: Although I have been coaching for many years, in terms of debate, I still consider myself a lay judge (with judging experience). I am open to different (non-traditional) arguments as long as they are explained well and related to the resolution. I believe we are debating the resolution, not trying to fix society, at least not during this competition round. (I have faith that many of you will do that as you continue through life!)
In terms of speed, to me it's not speed it's clarity. If you are going 90 miles per hour and have to constantly repeat yourself because you trip over words, maybe going 55 is better. If I can’t understand you, I can’t follow, flow, or judge effectively.
Congress: As a scorer, I look for good speeches with good evidence and analysis, but also continuous participation. I believe Congress is an overall package, including activity with questioning, motions, and amendments. PO's should be able to move the chamber along smoothly, and fairly. However, they must also recognize that sometimes this may be a new experience for someone in the chamber, and be sure that everyone understands how the PO is maneuvering the chambers, not just assume that it's just standard operating procedure for everyone. Be good to each other and you will often stand out from the competition.
I am now the head coach for Lansing HS in Kansas. Previously, I was the head coach and director of debate and forensics at Truman High School in Missouri. I was a policy debater in high school. I have taught at debate and speech camps and I frequently judge policy debate, LD, PF, and speech.
EMAIL CHAIN: willarddebate@gmail
Things I like for you to do: send an email effectively and efficiently, speak clearly, and respond to arguments. Communicate TO THE judge.
GIVE THE ORDER AT THE BEGINNING OF THE SPEECH.
I flow on paper. Be clear when you are switching args.
The aff should be topical. The aff needs an offensive justification for their vision of the topic. I find the arguments for why the aff should be topical to be better than the arguments against it. (Read: I rarely vote on T. Running T? Go all in.) If you are reading an aff that is not topical, you are much more likely to win my ballot on arguments about why your model of debate is good than you are on random impact turns to T.
Evidence matters. I read evidence and it factors into my decision.
Clarity matters. If you have dramatic tone changes between tag and card, where you can barely be heard when reading the text of evidence, you will get lower points from me and you should stop doing that. If I can't understand the argument, it doesn't count. There is no difference between being incoherent and clipping.
The link matters. I typically care a great deal about the link. When in competition, you should spend more time answering the link than reading impact defense.
I am fine with K debate on either side of the the resolution, although I prefer the K debate to be rooted in the substance of the resolution.; however, I will listen to why non-topical versions of the aff are justified. Methodology should inform FW and give substance to FW args beyond excluding only other positions. Links should clearly identify how the other team's mindset/position/advocacy perpetuates the squo. An alternative that could solve the issues identified in the K should be included with solvency that identifies and explains pragmatic change. K debaters must demonstrate their understanding and purpose of their K lit. Moreover, if you would like for me to vote for the K, it should be the main argument in the round.