Straus,+Michael

I am a debate parent, with a child at Mountain Brook High School.

By way of background, I am a lawyer whose practice has principally involved international disputes and transactions. I am thus used to dealing with broad policy questions as well as the application of broad policies to particular facts. I have no preferences in terms of debate styles or formats; but I am likely to ask for somewhat slower presentations. I will above all value the use of evidence and in particular more up-to-date evidence, so long as it comes from a credible source; I will also therefore be interested in counter-attacks on an opponent's use of evidence, either as to its relevance to the topic/position or to the accuracy with which it is presented or as to the reliability of the source. I will look especially favorably on debaters who sign-post well, i.e., tell me up front what you are going to say, then let me know along the way where you are (or think you are) and what you are addressing next. That will assure that I don't miss any of your points in the flow and give you proper credit for what you respond to and/or give your opponent proper demerits for what he or she fails to address.