Katy ISD Novice Night 2
2022 — Katy, TX/US
Congress Paradigm List
All Paradigms: Show HideWords flow like a river, clear and true,
With a voice that echoes, and a message to pursue,
A battle of wits, a test of might
Give me a good debate, I'll judge you right
Quickly I’ll down, those who don’t speak
You are here to learn, so OPEN YOUR BEAK
Don’t be annoying, don’t be mean, Don’t be stupid. Just be good!
Wazza! If you are reading this, you are most likely about to get judged by me and if you are reading this as you are getting judged by me I salute you as a proud member of the procrastination nation. A little introduction about me, my name is Fadhil Lawal, I graduated from Seven Lakes High School in 2024 and I now attend Vanderbilt University. I competed mainly in Congressional Debate during my four-year career, however I did a little bit of PF, and a bit more of speech. Some of my notable achievements include winning Nationals (House), TOC, TFA, Emory, and Glenbrooks (2x). Here's how I judge.
PF - I judge content only, I will not evaluate theory and Ks etc. Stay topical.
Email: fadhillawal06@gmail.com
Coming from a Congressional Debate background, clarity in all aspects is the utmost priority for me when it comes to judging . First, clarity while speaking. I should not struggle to hear what you are saying because that takes away focus that I can be using to evaluate the round better. Please speak clearly. I am opposed to spreading because most of the time whenever it is done I end up not being able to distinguish the words competitors are saying, as a result I cannot properly evaluate you as a judge and that will negatively impact your performance given that I cannot hear your argument. You can speak fast, but you cannot spread. I will give you 3 warnings throughout the round concerning clarity. I will say "CLEAR" 3 and only 3 times. If you do not adjust I will try my best to evaluate your arguments but at that point I think I have done enough to try and help you to help yourself. Second, clarity while arguing. I am not opposed to jargon and know the majority of the PF ones but remember I did Congress, not PF, so travel at your own risk. The more high level the jargon is the higher the probability that I will not understand it, an example of this is an RVI. Additionally, keep argumentation clear and clean. Keep the debate organized so I can more easily evaluate it. Don't just drop cards on me, the analysis/warranting on those cards is also important so don't forget that. Provide an off the clock roadmap for rebuttals etc. AND follow them please, otherwise you make me even more lost than I would have been without it. I like rhetoric so do with that as you will. Extend your arguments, don't bring up new stuff when you're not supposed to and make more sense than your opponents. Last but not least,I read case, if I find evidence that is horribly cut you will be penalized for it and if I find that your case is a patchwork of cards that do not rlly contribute towards the argument that you are making you will also be penalized, don't try any sneaky doo doo and have a fun round!
TLDR: Speak clearly and assume I am a flay judge with a decent amount of argumentative experience.
Congress -
In General: I am a 50/50 judge. 50% content, 50% speaking. On content, I search up every piece of evidence I hear within a round. If I find that you are lying, you automatically will get a 9 and I will report you to the tournament. Congress is the only debate event where your competitors are trusting you as a competitor to debate in good faith. If you cannot uphold that trust, you do not deserve to advance nor compete in the rest of the tournament. Obama Mic Drop type ting. Additionally,
Sponsorships: Pop off. I love a good sponsorship. Give me and the rest of the round a good baseline for the debate. Make sure that you are hitting the meat of the debate in your speech, if you are not, you shall not rank highly as you have failed. I shouldn't have to learn about your bill from other people in the round, I should be learning that from you.
PO: Unless you knock the socks off of my feet, buy me Chick-fil-A, and propose to me, you will rank no higher than a 5 as a PO. I believe that at its core PO'ing is an unfair aspect of Congress that should be abolished. You are hitting a gavel on a table. I literally cannot rank you the same as someone who prepared for hours, paid attention during the round, and braved their nerves to speak in front of others. I can't. DO your job and you will get a 5.
speak good do good
Content:
I will evaluate the debate primarily on the basis of content. This means that I will be looking for debaters who have a deep understanding of the resolution, can present their arguments clearly and concisely, and can respond effectively to their opponents' arguments. I will also be looking for debaters who can use evidence effectively to support their claims.
Speaking:
While speaking is not as important to me as content, I will still evaluate debaters on their speaking skills. I will be looking for debaters who speak clearly and at a reasonable pace, and who are able to articulate their arguments in a way that is easy to understand. I will also be looking for debaters who are respectful of their opponents and the judges.
No theory, kritiks, etc.:
I will not be evaluating debaters on their ability to argue theory or kritiks. I believe that debates should be focused on the resolution at hand, and I do not want to encourage debaters to use technical arguments to avoid engaging with the substance of the topic.
No evidence manipulation, paraphrase:
I expect debaters to use evidence fairly and accurately. I will not tolerate evidence manipulation or paraphrase. If I find that a debater is manipulating or paraphrasing evidence, I will view this as a serious violation of the rules of debate.
My Background:
I have competed in Congressional Debate and Extemporaneous Speaking for 4 years, so I value delivery as well as simple argumentation.
Congress: I like confidence, delivery, vocal variation, and a simple logic chain that can be defended in questioning. I like new arguments at the beginning of the round, warrant-level refutation in the middle of the round, and pure blood bath refutation if you are giving the last speech with rhetoric as well. POs start as my 3, if you do extremely well you could get my 1, but if you do poorly your rank will reflect your work.
Extemp: Answer the question, have vocal variation, be funny, be fluent, be your best.
PF/ LD: I'm listening for simple easy to understand arguments. Don't make me do the work, it is your job to spoon-feed me the argument: the claim, warrant, link chain, and impact.
Anything Else: Treat me as a lay judge.
If you need to contact me in anyway my email is manaspathak11@gmail.com
Congress:
Congress isn't entirely one genre of speech and debate it's a culmination of just about every style. I don't lean toward favoring a lay debater or a flow debater. In this event, you're just trying to convince the judge to rank you whatever means you go about doing that is 100% up to you. However, if you're able to balance both the flow and lay appeal you're going to rank higher in my ballots than someone who's just good at one or the other.
For PO's: Run the round as smoothly and quickly as possible. I'll grade you on how well you can keep the round on track and avoid disruptions. The more the parli has to intervene(within reason, I won't fault you for asking for the specific rules of the tournament) the lower I'll rank you.
Local/TX Circuit: Please Clash
LD: I don’t have a preference on which style of LD you choose to do. Whether it’s modern or classic is fully up to you I will grade each style equally.
PF: I find PF strategy really interesting I’m more of a flow judge but I can ealso be influenced by the lay although not as strongly.