Marist Scrimmage Series 2
2020 — Online, GA/US
Public Forum Paradigm List
All Paradigms: Show HideDebaters:
Please speak up and speak SLOWLY.
Organize your arguments and be sure to explain how your argument is more feasible than your opponent's.
Speak SLOWLY.
Give me a good reason to vote for you by successfully proving that your opponent's argument is not practical.
Please watch your speed. If you're going to read fast, it makes it harder for me to flow, so I just won't do it.
Don't assume I know what a K is, I don't. It's important for you to know this so that you can properly present your K position to me. If you don't understand your K position and explain it well to me, I won't weigh it in my decision.
Please don't yell.
Once again, SPEAK SLOWLY.
Short-pre-round version: Speech and Debate coach at Calhoun High School (Georgia). Former high school policy debater in the mid 1980s. Since re-entry into the activity via UTNIF in 2018, I have worked hard to learn innovations in debate since my time in high school. My paradigm is still evolving. Even though I am willing to listen to anything, debaters must have clash and explanation. - following Toulmin (Claim, Warrant, Explanation). I flow, so I expect you to signpost, label, and explain.
Longer, working on prefs, version: If you think from visual clues that I am not getting the argument, I am probably not.
I expect to receive an email chain for 1A and 1N at deguirek@calhounschools.org
My team: I coach on the national and regional (Georgia) circuit. My team has transitioned from a policy only team to an LD only team. Now, the team writes most of their own arguments, but my varsity teams run a lot of Ks. Understand that just because my team runs an argument doesn't mean that I like it, or that I will understand it without your thorough explanation of the argument.
Likes/dislikes: I teach debate because I love debate, the community, and the education it provides. I try to be extremely objective and vote for teams because I think their arguments won, never because of rep or outside (or inside the round) influences. In fact, I tend to react badly if I believe a team or coach is trying to exert undue influence. Post-round I will give you as clear a critique as I possibly can and will answer respectful and honest questions from the debaters. I expect a team I drop (and their coaches) to be unhappy, but no matter what, please be nice to your opponents, your partner, your coaches, and your judge.
LARPing: I can deal with LARPing as long as I can follow it. If you spread through the analytics or don't signpost or don't weigh the args, don't expect me to vote for it.
Weirdness:I do not like performance-based actions of any kind. No challenging opponents to any kind of physical altercations, especially tortilla fights (don't ask.)
My email: deguirek@calhounschools.org
TL;DR: Speed is fine, tech> truth, send a speech doc, read cut cards, disclosure is good, paraphrasing is bad.
Background
I currently coach a few teams and worked at a debate camp this past summer for a month so I like to think I am above the level of a washed second-year-out.
I debated public forum at Marist for 4 years (2019-2023). Competed in lots of rounds on the national circuit and went to TOC my junior and senior year.
I expect there to be an email chain sent up for evidence exchange every round. My email is:
General Paradigm
Outside of issues of ethics I don’t believe it is my role to tell you how to debate the round. However, it is your responsibility to tell me how you wish me to judge the round. Debate is an inherently comparative activity which means that it is your obligation as a debater to provide me with a frame of reference for how my decision should be made. Weighing is paramount. Unless both teams use the same form of weighing, you should probably be answering the meta question about why your type of weighing is preferable. For example, why does it matter that your impact is bigger if there one is more likely? You need to win offense to access your weighing, but I have never written “you weighed too much” as a reason for a losing ballot.
Big debates aren’t usually better debates. You only need to have one good path to the ballot to win the round. Condensing the round will almost always be to your benefit. Rebuttal is your chance to throw everything against the wall and see what sticks. The back half is where you need to make strategic decisions about how to win the round. The speech times shrink, so your speeches should as well.
All offenses you plan on going for along with turns must be front-lined in second rebuttal. That being said, defense is not sticky. Given that summary must mirror final that doesn't make structural sense. If a team kicks out by extending a delink, it is typically safe to assume the remaining defense on the argument is conceded. Often, defensive concessions can be taken advantage of elsewhere on the flow. You all need to be taking time to think about the round as a whole and consider how arguments interact with each other at both a practical and technical level.
Yes, I can flow speed. Debate is competitive, so you don’t need to slow down for your opponent. What you do need to do is be clear. Poor clarity is not a reason for me to flow off the doc. If you are a team that is inexperienced with speed and hit a team that goes fast, the best solution is not to try spreading for the first time in a round. Take some time to think about their arguments and try to condense the debate. Quality will always overwhelm quality. Debating smarter usually bests debating faster.
Evidence
I strongly prefer full cut cards and no paraphrasing when introducing evidence. If you don't do this, you will probably lose the theory debate.
Call out bad evidence practices! If I am on a panel where theory is not an option you can still make general arguments about rejecting the argument that I will be partial to.
Compare evidence and author quality. Teams don’t do this enough and it can give a major lef up in the round.
If you want me to call for a card, you should tell me in speech. You also need to tell me why it matters.
I prefer author qualifications be included in the citation. This wasn't a belief I held as a debater but is something I have come into believing as a coach. I think author qualifications allow the debate to be more educational as it facilities better evidence comparison.
Verbal citations are a must and need to include author name and publication year. Otherwise it is plagiarism.
Progressive
Theory
If this is a Nat Circuit Tournament and a team is not disclosing or paraphrasing you should probably read theory :)
If you include author qualifications for ALL of your evidence and your opponent doesn't, I think this could be a situation where theory is justified and persuasive.
I default to compete interps and think rvis are largely regressive unless the shell is frivolous
If you disclose round reports may be beneficial, if not then I think they are a waste of time
Not a fan of trigger warnings unless an argument is actually graphic. My threshold for what it takes to be considered graphic has never been met thus far in debates I have either competed in or judged. Gabe Rusk’s paradigm has a long excerpt on why trigger warnings are likely bad that is worth a read and corroborates most of my admittedly less educated views.
Ks
Time constraints make Ks hard in PF, but I can’t say I don’t like a good K debate. Just make sure you understand the literature you read.
Win the K on the flow and you will be good, but don’t presume I have knowledge on the more unorthodox positions. Basically just extend and weight effectively and you are fine
If you hit a non-topical K and don’t read topicality I will be disappointed. I am not biased either way but think it makes for a good debate
If you are reading an argument that talks about changing the debate space, please don't have an opt-out form, it is counter-intuitive, and potentially terminal defense on your method if you are willing to not debate an argument that aims to change the space
Speaker Points
I’ll start at a 28.5 and adjust based on a mixture of style and strategy.
Have fun, you should never not enjoy a round.
she/her | add me to the email chain: ellykang@mit.edu
competed in nat cir public forum for 4 years at marist
general notes
tech > truth
please preflow before the round
i will always prefer better comparatively weighed arguments
love weighing introduced earlier (especially in rebuttal!)
warranted analytics > unwarranted evidence
can handle speed but will clear you if i can't understand + you should be slowing down on taglines, send speech docs in the email chain if you spread
if you do paraphrase, please at least have cut cards. if evidence is called for and sent in the email chain, it should be sent in cut card format. if you don't have a cut card for key evidence, your speaks and the argument will be dropped.
won't evaluate arguments in cross unless they're made in speeches
rebuttal
must frontline in second rebuttal (at the very minimum, frontline what you collapse on and every offensive argument)
implicate your responses and tell me why they matter in context of the round
summary + final
defense isn't sticky
collapse in the back half. for anything you collapse on, extend every part of the argument (uniqueness, link, internal link, impact)
back half should be consistent. everything in final needs to be in summary or i won't evaluate it
progressive argumentation
i do believe reading cut cards and open source disclosure are good norms, but reading those shells is not an auto win. you have to win the shell for me to vote off it
i don't like friv theory that doesn't actually contribute education or fairness to debate + probably won't evaluate it. i consider friv anything that isn't disclosure, paraphrasing, or content warning theory. but note i have a fairly high threshold for what requires a content warning
have judged kritiks several times, but not the most familiar with them. if you read one, i'll do my best to evaluate
other notes
i give speaks solely based on strategic decisions in round
if you are any kind of -ist in round, i will immediately drop you with the lowest speaks i can give
if you have any questions you can always ask! feel free to email me if there are any others after the round
I am a four-year varsity debater.
Here are some guidelines for the round:
- I expect everything in the final focus to be in the summary.
- Second speaking teams must respond to the first rebuttal.
- First speaking teams must extend defense in the first summary.
- I don't flow crossfire.
- Competitors are responsible for upholding the time intervals for each speech and cross during the debate and to time their prep time (I will keep time as well).
- If there is an email chain to exchange evidence, please include my email (keeganleary23@marist.com).
She/Her
Marist '22 | Northeastern '26
Debated for 5 years on the national circuit
Include me on email chains nahasmaggie@gmail.com
I'd say I'm a fairly typical flow judge. Extend and weigh your arguments clearly. No new arguments in final focus. Make sure you are signposting in your speeches. I'm fine with some speed, but please don't spread. Please don't read me framework unless you actually plan to weigh under that framework. The second speaking team should absolutely be frontlining in rebuttal. That being said, the first speaking team does not automatically gain access to all unfrontlined responses during first summary. I want to see your arguments being extended fully, meaning extend whatever links/internal links/warrants/impacts/frontlines/etc. that you're going for. If you just tell me to extend your *enter last name* card, it will probably mean literally nothing to me, so focus on the actual arguments. I will always prefer cut cards over paraphrasing. I generally think paraphrasing is bad and disclosure is good for the activity. Stealing prep is really annoying and so is taking excessive time to produce called cards. If something important happens in cross, tell me about it in a speech, otherwise, it won't be on my flow and probably won't affect my decision.
The reason I love debate is because it is inclusive and educational. If anything happens in the round which goes against these values, I will dock your speaker points.
s/o Anthony Ovadje for the paradigm template :)
I did PF for four years at Marist School.
General Stuff
Weigh and warrant arguments.
Tech > Truth
Add me to the email chain: vance.sydneym@gmail.com
Evidence
If you don't cut cards, strike me. I won't drop you if you paraphrase, but you must have cards available if called for and it will hurt your speaker points. I usually won't call for cards myself, but if your evidence is terribly misconstrued, I won't evaluate it and will tank your speaks.
2nd Half
2nd rebuttal must frontline defense and turns
Summary and FF must extend all parts of an argument if you want me to vote off of it
Speed
I'm fine with speed, but clarity is always more important
Theory/Kritiks
I have basically no experience with K lit, but I'm open to hearing K/soft left arguments. A lot more warranting and explanation needs to be done if you are running this argument in front of me.
I'll usually vote for paraphrasing and disclosure theory unless it's handled atrociously. If your opponents do something terrible in round, I'll also evaluate some sort of shell explaining why its unfair.
Other
Have fun! Debate is really competitive and intense at times, but you will make rounds better for you, your opponents, and judges if you actually seem to be enjoying yourself.
If you have any questions you can ask me in round or just email me.
Thanks Anthony Ovadje for this paradigm.
I'm a second year out who debated at Marist. I've done four years of public forum.
General Stuff
Weigh and warrant arguments.
Tech > Truth
Add me to the email chain: laurynwalker21@gmail.com
Evidence
Teams should read cut cards. I won't drop you if you paraphrase, but it'll hurt your speaker points, and will vote on theory. I won't call for cards unless a team tells me to do so, or if a round comes down to strict evidence. Please be efficient with card exchange, it should not take longer than 3 minutes.
2nd Half
2nd rebuttal should at least frontline turns
Summary and FF should mirror each other
Speed
I'm okay with speed not the best, but if you go fast make sure you are clear. If you are unclear I might miss something.
Theory/Ks
I have very little experience with K lit(mostly cap and race), so I'm open to hearing K/soft left arguments, but just know I may not be the best judge for Ks.
I'll vote on paraphrasing and disclosure theory and other theory if something egregious occurs in round. I won't vote off something dumb like 'shoe theory.'
Other
Please do not read arguments like death good or nuke war good in front of me. I think these arguments are stupid and show a blatant disregard for people dying.
Other than that have fun! Debate is really competitive and intense at times, but you will make rounds better for you, your opponents, and judges if you actually seem to be enjoying yourself.
If you have any questions you can ask me in round or just email me.