The Newark Invitational 2023
2023 — Newark, NJ/US
LD NOV Paradigm List
All Paradigms: Show HideHi! I'm Mattew (not a typo) Anazco, and I'm a freshman at Cornell University. I did debate at Staples High School in Westport, CT, where I did 2 years of traditional Lincoln-Douglas for a local league program before coming to Harrison High School, New York. I was not an active member of Harrison's team, but I'm familiar with the fundamentals of debate.
I want to see rounds with genuine clash and arguments with warrants that are fleshed out. I want to see clear reasons you link to a framework on both sides - otherwise, I won't have a clear way to evaluate the round. Please give voting issues, and don't use debate jargon or spread! I will do my best to evaluate the round based on what you tell me. Be sure to extend the warrants for your cards, not just the names. Real world examples and statistics are helpful.
if you post-round me and be mean to me i will cry on the spot
I love debate!!!!
for email chains: zooark038@gmail.com
My name is Tasneem (she/her), I am a 4th year debater with experience in both PF and LD. email: tyghadiali@gmail.com
First, have fun! Debate is for learning and meant to be enjoyable! I would love it if you read creative and interesting arguments. Don't stress!
I want CLEAR arguments. If you can't explain it in your own words, don't read it.
Most important to me is comparison: you must tell why your evidence outweighs the opponent's!! Write my RFD in your last speech. For novices, I like hearing
- worlds comparison: weigh the aff world to the neg world and what happens in each
- a list of voters highlighting key issues of the round / why you win this round
- good signposting
- good rhetoric and speech skills
- demonstrating deep topic knowledge -> this is really important to me, make sure you know your case in & out
I will vote off the flow. Please warrant, extend your full link story and impact, and weigh.
I do not flow cross but I listen. If something important happens in cross, tell me in your next speech and I'll flow it. Prep can be cross, but cross is never prep.
Please be respectful! Give trigger warnings when appropriate, don’t be condescending towards debaters who are clearly less experienced, and anything sexist, racist, homophobic, transphobic, etc. will be an auto loss.
Any speed is fine with me as long as you enunciate and your opponent can understand you. But, if I can’t flow the speech, I will probably dock speaker points.
Extend your contentions/arguments with warrants and collapse to a few arguments in later speeches so you can better develop them.
Feel free to ask questions after the round, I love answering them.
My name is Hannah(she/her) and I’m a 4th year LD debater at Lexington High School. I compete on the local and national circuit.
email: guohannah67@gmail.com
Novice:
-Please be respectful! Give trigger warnings when appropriate, don’t be condescending towards debaters who are clearly less experienced, and anything sexist, racist, homophobic, transphobic, etc. will likely be an auto loss.
-Any speed is fine with me as long as you enunciate and your opponent can understand you. I will also give reminders but if I can’t flow the speech, I will dock speaker points. Try to signpost often so I can keep track of your arguments.
**If you cannot understand the opponent because of speed, you may tell them to slow down during the speech.
-Spend time on the framework debate! I will usually evaluate it first.
-Make sure to weigh your impacts and explain why one is more important than the other.
-Extend your contentions/arguments with warrants and collapse to a few arguments in later speeches so you can better develop them.
-Remember to give voters in your final speeches and tell me why you’re winning the round.
-Have fun!
hi! I'm Sonali (she/they)
Harrison High School '21, Cornell University '25
for speech docs: sonali.nicola@gmail.com & harrison.debate.team@gmail.com (use both pls)
free palestine also I hate util
tl;dr pref me high if u read Ks/performance/trad and strike me if ur strat is theory & tricks
Accommodations & Accessibility
accessibility is very important to me! please tell me & ur opponent any accommodations u may need before the round. it's a good idea to share these in writing in case there is an accessibility issue in round that u want to make an arg about, but expressing them verbally is also great. PLEASE slow and clear ur opponent as many times as u need. please disclose any content areas u don't feel comfortable discussing before round (to me & ur opponent) and give content warnings
also just in general, the nicer and more accommodating u are, the better speaks you'll get. that doesn't mean let ur opponent walk all over u, but it does mean try to genuinely answer their questions & be kind. I love sass but there is a difference between being sassy and being mean :/
general notes
I graduated 3 years ago and don't coach so tournaments are my only exposure to the topic (read: idk nuances of the topic). I'm fine w speed as long as you're clear (I will slow & clear you as much as I need - I have a processing disorder). also, record your speeches for online debate (also not a bad idea to record them for in-person tbh)
stolen from Rebecca Anderson's paradigm: please stop spreading against lay opponents. It does not make me want to vote for you. probably a low-point win at best so it is not in your best interest [edited for grammar]
- if u can't beat a lay opponent without spreading, u prob don't deserve to win
I pay attention to cx but don't flow it - very important for establishing links, violations, etc. I think if ur going to read any K or shell, you need to ask Qs in cx to solidify/get more links
I prob won't know the nuances of the topic so make sure to explain ur empirics and how ur theory of power functions in relation to the topic
I read mostly Ks and performance in high school so that's what I'm familiar with. I read a lot of disability (Sick Woman Theory, Spoon Theory), gender rights, and racial equity args
I don't care if ur topical or not
I love trad debate! this is my second favorite type of debate after K/Performance.
I guess I'm fine judging LARPy stuff. I do hate util & extinction scenarios but I'll vote on it if there is literally no other option (please don't make me vote on extinction). there are just so many good arguments against util & Singer was a eugenicist. LARP debates are some of the most uninspiring debates I've ever had and ur speaks prob won't be amazing if the round is j LARP
if I didn't learn anything about phil & high theory from four years of debate I promise you I will not learn about it from a 40-minute round. would not recommend reading phil & high theory in front of me. also, the majority of phil authors have expressly racist/sexist/homophobic views/their theories justify abuse of minorities, which I do not think belong in debate. I am very persuaded by reps Ks against phil authors.
the burden of proof is on u to explain ur theory to me I'm not gonna do research to understand u
don't read tricks & friv theory in front of me xoxo
I'm like 70% truth & 30% tech
- ur not gonna convince me the sky is green and I won't vote on it
- but following the structure of a T shell makes my life easier in terms of flowing and deciding
disclosure is prob good unless u have a good reason to not disclose. using the wiki is good unless u have a good reason not to use the wiki
Framework:
I love framework debates (NOT T-FW)! I think it's weird when the neg debater reads a FW and then doesn't engage w the aff's FW in the NC. don't do this in front of me - ur better off j conceding to the aff's FW and spending more time on different args
I also think it's a major missed opportunity to not spend a good amount of time in ur rebuttals extending ur FW and explaining 1. why ur winning FW and 2. why ur opponent has no offense under ur FW. if ur opponent is winning four neg offs that don't link to ur FW and ur winning FW, idc about the neg offs. spend time on that in ur speeches for good speaks
Specifics on Theory:
I will always prefer issues that would normally read as theory to be read as a K (with a drop the debater implication/alternative) because I have always been better at flowing and understanding Ks better than theory. but I know this is unpopular so I won't hold this against u if u don't do this.
if u are reading theory, make sure to read paradigm issues (seems obvious but you'd be surprised). I generally think reasonability and RVIs good unless u tell me otherwise. I don't think fairness exists, and I don't think debate is a game. I'd prefer if u impacted the shell to accessibility (I think that is the most important thing in debate, with education as a close second). I guess I'd vote on fairness if both sides agree that fairness is the end goal of the shell tho
stolen from Hertzig's paradigm: I don't view theory the way I view other arguments on the flow. I will usually not vote for theory that's clearly unnecessary/frivolous, even if you're winning the line-by-line on it. I will vote for theory that is actually justified (as in, you can show that you couldn't have engaged without it). [edited for grammar]
a note on how I judge:
I always loved affirming when I debated. I love when aff debaters just go for the aff against a bunch of neg offs and use the args in the aff to take out the neg's offense. it shows that ur aff is really well written and thought-out and also shows that u know what ur case says and how to use it. if u can do this well, ur speaks will reflect how happy I am :)
ON THE OTHER SIDE don't do this if ur neg. there is no point in reading an NC and then using the same args u j read against the AC - it's a waste of time. diversify ur args
in conclusion pref me high if u read Ks/performance/trad and strike me if ur strat is theory & tricks
Hi, I don't really have any preferences.
My email is sumayah.orphelia@gmail.com if you make an email chain.
Good luck!
Policy Debate
It is the responsibility of the debater to look at the paradigm before the start of each round and ask any clarifying questions. I will evaluate the round under the assumption it has been read regardless if you did it or not. I will not check to see if you read my paradigm, nor will I give warnings of any kind on anything related to my paradigm. If you don't abide by it you will reap what you sow I am tired of debaters ignoring it, and myself in a debate round my patience has officially run out.
1. I hate spreading slow down if you want me to flow your arguments if it is not on my flow, it is not a part of the round. It doesn't matter how well it is explained or extended. At best, depending on the speech, it will be a new argument or analytical argument and will be evaluated from then forth as such. I do want to be part of the email chain, my email is thehitman.310@gmail.com, note that just because I am part of the email chain does not mean I flow everything I read. I only flow what I hear so make sure I can hear your arguments. Beware I will be following along to make sure no one is cutting cards and I will call out teams for cutting cards so be sure to do things correctly. I will drop cards before the team and continued cutting will result in me stopping the round and contacting tab. Additionally, I will not yell clear, and I will not give time signals except to inform you your time is up. I find doing this splits my attention in a way that is unfair to the debater and often distracts debaters when called out. You will have my undivided attention.
2. I hate theory and have only voted on it once (current as of 4/12/22). In particular, I do not like disclosure theory and think it's a bogus argument, as I come from a time when there was no debate wiki; as a result, I am highly biased against this argument and don't advise running it in my round. Also, regardless of the argument, I prefer they be related to the topic. I am just as interested in the topic as I expect debaters to be. On that note, I am willing to listen to just about anything as long as they are well articulated and explained(See 3). I have heard some pretty wild arguments so anything new will be fun to hear. Know in order for me to vote on an argument, there needs to be an impact on it, and I need to know how we arrive at the impact. But I want to know more than A + B = C, I need to know the story of how we arrive at your impact and why they matter. I will not simply vote on a dropped argument unless there is no other way to vote and I need to make a decision, I consider this Judge intervention, and I hate doing this. You, as a debater, should be telling me how to vote I will have to deduct speaker points if I have to do any work for you. Keep this in mind during your rebuttals.
3. At the beginning of each round, I am a blank slate; think of me like a 6 or 7-year-old. Explain arguments to me as such. I only evaluate things said in a round; my own personal knowledge and opinion will not affect me. For example, if someone in a round says the sky is purple, reads evidence the sky is purple, and it goes uncontested, then the sky is purple. I believe this is important because I consider anything else judge's intervention which I am highly opposed to and, again, will result in a speaker point deduction. That being said, I default to a standard policy-making framework at the beginning of each round unless I am told otherwise. This also applies in the context of evidence, your interpretation of the evidence is law unless challenged. Once challenged, I will read the evidence and make a decision based on my understanding of the evidence and how it was challenged, this may result in my decision on an argument flipping, the evidence being disregarded, and/or the ballot being flipped.
4. Be aware I do keep track of Speech times, and Prep, and go solely by my timer. My timer counts down and will only stop when you say stop prep. Once you say "Stop prep" I expect you to be ready to send the file. I do not want to hear I need to copy arguments to a file to send as a part of an email chain. I will run prep for that. It should not take long to send a prepared file through the email chain, and I will wait until all participants receive the file before allowing the following speech to start but do not think you can abuse this I will restart prep if it takes an abnormal amount of time. Also extremely important to note I will not stop my timer for any reason once speech has started for any reason outside of extreme circumstances, and technical difficulties do not count. If you choose to stop your timer to resolve your issue before resuming, know that my time has not stopped and your speech time is being consumed. Also, aside from using your phone as a timer, I expect all debaters to not be on their phones during the round (this includes in between speeches and during prep). I think it is disrespectful to debate as an activity and to your opponent(s), and will deduct speaker points for it. Keeping that in mind, I will not evaluate any argument read off a phone, especially if you have a laptop in the round.
5. In JV and VCX, Cross-X is closed, period. NCX, I will only allow it if you ask. If you don't, it is closed. If you decide to have an open CX anyway, I will deduct speaker points.
6. Last but not least, be respectful to me and to each other, and I would appreciate a good show of sportsmanship at the beginning and end of each round. Any disrespect will result in a speaker point deduction on a per-incident basis. Continued disrespect will result in notifying tournament staff and lower-than-average speaker points. Although I do not expect it will go that far.
E-Debate:
A. Cameras must be on at all times. I will not flow teams with cameras off. Do not be surprised if you lose because I did not flow it you have been warned. I will not be lenient with this as I have been in the past.
B. Prep time will be run until speeches are received in the email chain. DO NOT assume you control the time as mentioned above. I am keeping time and will go by my timer. I WILL start the speech timer if you end prep AND THEN send the speech. I have zero tolerance for this, as teams consistently abuse this to steal prep. You should know how to send an email; it should not take long. If you are having genuine technical issues, let me know as the tournament has Tech Time, I can run that timer instead, otherwise, I will run speech time. DO NOT make light of this I am tired of being ignored as if I am not a part of a debate round.
C. Make sure I'm ready this should be common sense, but for some reason, I have to mention it. If you start a speech before I am ready, I will miss some arguments on my flow, and I will be highly annoyed. Your speaker points will reflect this, and you may lose the round as a result if it was a key argument that I did not flow.
D. Also, spreading on camera is a terrible idea, and I highly advise against it from a technical perspective and my general disdain for spreading. E-Debates are tricky enough with varying devices, internet speeds, and audio equipment affecting the quality of the stream, spreading in my experience is exceptionally disadvantageous, do so at your own risk.
E. REMINDER, I Control speech and prep timers, and speeches DO NOT stop because you are reading the wrong speech or can't find where you are at on a document; once the timer has started, it stays running until speech time is over. I do not know why I have to mention this, but recent judging experiences have told me it must be mentioned.
Lincoln-Douglas
I am very new to judging Lincoln-Douglas Debates. As such, I am relying on the debater to frame the debate for me, particularly in the rebuttal. Arguments should always be responsive to what your opponent is saying if you wish to win them. Explain how your arguments interact, and your line of argumentation means that line of argumentation weighs in your favor. In general, I think all arguments should be filtered through the lens of your values and criterion. That work must be done by the debater, not the judge. Additionally if what you say matches what is on my flow the chances of you winning are high.
I want to be on an email change, I ike to follow along as evidence is being read. My email is thehitman.310@gmail.com
Particularly in rebuttals make sure you are filtering aregumens through Value, Criterion and FW.
Hi, I'm Nora! I debated LD for Bronx Science for 4 years (graduated this year) and am now at the university of vermont
pronouns: she/her
email: sissenichn@bxscience.edu
TLDR: tech>truth, read whatever works for you, be respectful
My senior year was mostly focused on teaching JVers and I have not thought much about debate since graduating so keep this in mind and if you're a super technical/fast debater, I may not be the judge for you. You should prioritize explaining and implicating every argument you want me to evaluate both for my understanding and for general good debating.
I read a lot of stuff throughout my debate career but mainly Ks and Phil so I'm most interested in and comfortable w evaluating those.
Speed: Please go around 2/3rds (or less) of top speed. It is not in your interest to go faster than that!! I have not listened to spreading in a while and I was never great at understanding top speed spreading anyway. If I have to say slow more than 3x I will start docking speaks.
I'll evaluate everything to the best of my ability but my ability to give you more educational comments/resolve the round clearly will probably decline as I get more unfamiliar with what you're reading.
Don't steal prep - sending the doc is not prep, but compiling it is.
Feel free to ask me any questions you may have!
Shortcut:
1 - common Ks, phil, trad
2-3 - T, Theory, LARP, performance, denser phil
4 - frivolous theory, high theory Ks
Tricks - NOPE! no. strike me pls. I will not evaluate
----
Trad - I am actually so down to judge a traditional round! Just make sure you and your opponent have agreed in advance of the round (you should talk to them when pairings come out, not right before the round starts!)
Phil - I read/am familiar w: kant, util, alienation, hobbes, rawls. I love a good fw debate! I've probably either debated or have surface level knowledge of stuff that's not listed above, but don't depend on that prior knowledge in round (this applies to Ks as well)
Ks - I read/am most familiar w: setcol, cap, security, pessimistic args. I have limited understanding of psycho, baudrillard, deleuze. You need to be explaining your theory of power really well. I will be impressed by tangible/creative explanations and examples, especially for more ambiguous alts/methods. If you decide to read high theory you need to be especially sure to explain it well.
LARP - Go for it I guess. I have no strong feelings here. I am not the best judge for a dense larp round, especially larp v larp. I'm probably not up to date on the topic lit/jargon. WEIGH plssss
T/theory - This knowledge was quickest to leave my brain once I stopped doing debate. If you want me to evaluate it well, slow down, explain and implicate clearly, collapse and keep the debate neat please!
performance/non T affs - I am not super familiar w these but I will still evaluate. Just explain why you're non T. Fair warning I am prob well swayed by a good tva/ssd arg against a non-T aff -- but the keyword there is good.
I will be much more impressed by debaters that prioritize interesting, substantive engagement over a strategy that relies on concessions of blippy args.
---------------this was from when I only judged novices but a lot of it applies regardless of division:---------------
overall:
- Be respectful! There is 0 tolerance for behavior that is racist/sexist/ableist, etc.
- Beyond that, please don't be rude to your opponent. These are often people you'll be debating against or alongside for most of your debate career -- cultivating a friendly and chill debate community is cool! That being said -- don't let that stop you from being assertive [I esp love to see novices commanding the space, and knowing how to find the balance is part of becoming a good debater]
- I'm familiar with both trad and progressive LD
- if you have questions OR if something happens, etc and you need to contact me, please email
- I don't care if you sit/stand etc -- do what makes you most comfortable
- If you have someone spectating they need to ask permission of your opponent too, not just me!! (and if you're debating remember that if you are not comfortable w someone spectating you can always say no!)
biggest reminders for novice rounds:
- voters! tell me why you're winning the round in your final speeches-- you should make it clear
- please weigh your impacts
- signpost! tell me when you're responding to your opponent's framework or contentions, extending your arguments, etc
- in over half of the novice (LD) rounds I've judged, the debate is won/lost on framework. I evaluate framework first so it's really difficult for me to evaluate the round if there is little to no time spent on the FW debate. If you and your opponent have different frameworks, spend some time on framework pls
Senior LD debater at Lexington High School
Add me to the email chain: mahadsohail@gmail.com
Tech over truth, here's a quick pref:
-
Theory
-
K
-
Phil
-
Larp
-
Tricks
I’m open to evaluating any arguments as long as they have a warrant, including arguments that change the order I should evaluate the debate.
Theory: I’ve debated a lot of theory and enjoy judging theory debates. I don’t default to any paradigm issues/voters so make sure to warrant relevant paradigm issues. I will evaluate frivolous theory and don’t mind judging it. I consider theory as the highest layer but I’m more than open to arguments that say otherwise (k first, form v content etc.).
K: I’m best at evaluating Dysfluency, Psychoanalysis, Pess, Semiocap, and anything similar. I’m open to any K’s or K affs as long as they are clearly explained. If you’re missing parts of your thesis or theory of power I will be less inclined to vote off of it, especially if it's just a mix of buzzwords.
Phill: Needs to be explained and TJF’s are fine. I’m good with Kant, Hegel, Virtue ethics, and Util.
Larp: Larps fine just make sure to weigh between impacts and under framework. Make method cards implications clear
Tricks: I’m not good at evaluating tricks debates but if it's clear I will do my best to evaluate it.
Novices/Trad: Feel free to debate however you like. Remember that framing is the highest level. Make sure you weigh all your arguments under your own framework and don’t forget to attack your opponent's framing. Using CX effectively will increase your speaks and will likely help you win the round. Judges aren’t allowed to evaluate CX so make sure you make CX-dependent arguments are brough up in your speech. Also, time yourselves.
Most importantly have fun!