Policy debater at Bellarmine

Ryan Mills Note: I understand the basics of LD, just debate as you normally would

Also, my views are firmly aligned with Andrew Wen

Big Child enslavement guy

Go slow and be clear. Don’t be rude or super uptight, especially in cross.

Make sure you weigh and tell me clearly which VIs/Stock Issues are winning you the debate.

Have fun!

I'm open to bribes.

Don't spread

framing in the 2ar is good - there should be concrete explanation of why ur harms are better and why i should prefer ur harms over tje da or wtv the 2nr is. judge instruction and telling me which arguments rly matter is valued.

i am not open to bribes..

Sun Tzu - “The opportunity of defeating the enemy is provided by the enemy himself.”

"No weapon formed against you will prevail, and you will refute every tongue that accuses you" - Isaiah 54:17

Hello! I'm Aidan, a current speech and debater for Bellarmine College Prep (class of '26!)-- I'm happy to be your judge (:

Add me to the email chain: aidan.okyar@gmail.com

You can email me there or at aidan.okyar26@bcp.org if you have any questions about decisions.

I've done S&D for ~5 years: I did LD in MS but now do Policy and Extemp in HS.

Generally, in round, please be respectful, clear, and overall just enjoy your experience!

Now, onto more specifics:

Debate:

I will be judging at primarily parent-judged or lay tournaments – as such, I've written my paradigm to match that:

Generally, be a good speaker-- be clear, etc. I will time you and will stop flowing when time ends. In any sort of cross-examination, crossfire, POI, etc-- don't be a jerk!

Speaks: Be a good debater AND speaker-- make good arguments AND have good delivery-- one or the other is okay, but most times, only debaters who do both excellently will get high speaks from me. CX matters here too!

Follow general etiquette please. Any sort of homophobia/racism/etc = lowest possible speaks+L. As tabroom reminds me right above where I write this paradigm, "in other words, be mature, and good people."

General tips:

• I take CX seriously and into account! Use them to undermine your opponents' arguments!
• Be clear and clash with arguments
• Frame and impact out the round

Policy:

I love the realism of stock issue debate!! Keep it like that. Some notes:

1. delivery matters! don't just stare at your paper/computer and speak to it-- look at me (i won't bite, i swear)! be clear and persuade me-- that's the point of the debate in my opinion.
2. Give me burdens for stock issues/how each team can win the round/what the aff/neg burden is, etc.
3. be concrete-- don't get bogged down in hypotheticals or vague exchanges-- cite evidence and be direct
4. CLASH!! so often, as my amazing coaches always say, debates are like "two ships passing in the night" (don't make them like that)
5. PLEASE EXTEND WARRANTS AND IMPACTS-- it's not enough to just say that "x argument is dropped" or "x argument is true" but you need to tell me why and what that means for the round.
6. do some impact calculus. Why should I prioritize your impacts over your opponents? What does the plan causing some economic damage mean? Contextualize and compare.
7. Use CX to undermine your opponent's arguments-- you should be setting up your questions in cx and try to have a strategy of what you want to get out of it. Don't just scattershot a bunch of random questions and hope they trip up.
8. collapse in your 2nr/2ar: the negative strategy should be ironed out by this point in the debate, and only the core arguments should be extended-- on the other hand, the affirmative should be able to extend a coherent story which tells me exactly why a policy is needed, how it will work, and its effects.
9. have fun! too often we get stuck in the "extracurricular" or "college activity" aspect of debate-- have fun debating about the topic.

Speech:

Extemp:
I do extemp right now at the HS level, and I'm versed with the event's workings. Will be timing & will give you time signals from 5 down if I can-- please time yourself in case I ever fly off the rails. I care about both delivery and content, but generally, if you can hook me into your speech do it however you want-- be funny or serious-- whatever you can do for your speech. Some asks: have full cites with publication and specific date, have a clear answer to your question (e.g: if it's a "how...?" question-- outline what you would do, etc) and be CLEAR with your analysis-- make it unique and specific. Make sure you summarize your speech quickly but well in your conclusion.

Impromptu:
I love listening to good impromptus! Some tips: I will be skeptical on your "personal stories" because I can't validate those, a good intro related to the topic is always good, please make sure to relate your subpoints to your topic after every point. Be funny, be serious, do whatever you need to do-- I'm just here to listen, and I'm open to anything.

I know speech and debate can be difficult-- you got this! Just remember what I've said for your event(s) and have fun above everything else :D

Good luck!!

Lay:

Don't call me judge

Frame well and respond to warrants in lbl (CLASH) and you'll get good speaks

Circuit:

My views are aligned with Rafael Pierry