Allen,+Gordon

Background: I debated for Analy High School (CA) in LD and Parli on the local circuit, and have experience with national circuit LD. I attended NSD '09 and CCPDI '10. I never got a bid and only broke once at a national circuit tournament, but was successful at lay invitationals, California's state tournament, and Nationals.

Short version: Speed is fine, but a) Cal is my first tournament this year, b) I'm not familiar with the topic lit, and c) I never had a high threshold for speed anyway, so plan accordingly (I will say "slower" or "clear" if I need to, but only once). Theory is fine - I default to competing interpretations but that goes out the window as soon as anyone makes an argument about it. Slow down during analytics and tags. I have no problem calling for evidence. Flexprep is good. Discoursive impacts are fine as long as they're well warranted. I do not mind giving out 30s, especially if you can accomplish depth and good coverage while speaking well - although in general, points follow good strategy rather than good presentation. As far as the substantive debate goes, I am happy to vote on whatever framework/criterion/winning mechanism you provide, as long as there is one and you win it.

Debate is an opportunity for meaningful discussion about important topics. If you prevent this from occurring, your speaks will suffer (although that's NOT to say that the 'important topic' must be the resolution).

Some ways to lose points in front of me: 1. When there's a visible disparity in skill and you're clearly more experienced, excluding the newer debater through speed or jargon. 2. Being mean/rude. 3. Sucking at cross-ex

Some ways to win points in front of me: 1. When you're clearly more experienced, being helpful/encouraging/not an asshole 2. Thinking on your feet, making clever responses to unusual arguments/positions, being good at more than just reading quickly 3. Being funny

This is not as thorough as I would like so feel free to ask questions prior to the round.

Good luck! Have fun with it, and try to accomplish something valuable with your time.