Meidl,+Michael


 * (11 November 2012)**
 * Background:** I debated in LD for one season at Brookfield East High School, in Wisconsin. I am now in my second year of occasional judging, and have judged both LD and PF rounds. Currently pursuing a B.S. Mathematics and Computer Science with a Minor in Philosophy at DePaul University.


 * Disclaimer:** Allow me to be short and sweet. I am not a professional judge. I have only experienced a small part of the vast number of debate styles and cases. For instance, I have read plenty about K's, but have yet to see one in a round. This does not mean that you should choose not run your Kritik, Triple-Salchow, or whatever other crazy case name you have come up with. BUT when you do run with these esoteric sorts of things, be very aware that I am not a 20-year TOC/Circuit coach, and that you should pay special attention to thorough explanation in words that make sense. I think that this goes without saying. Please don't prove me wrong.

Also, PLEASE do not speed through your case. You know exactly what I'm talking about. If you go too fast, I will miss the finer points of what you have said, maybe even the whole thing. It will mess everything up. I will let you know if you speak too quickly, but obviously I can't do this until you've finished your speech, and at that point the damage is probably done.


 * Paradigm:** My goal in any round is to be unbiased and rational. There is no winner until the end of the last speech.

I do pay close attention to the value debate in a round. If you present a V/VC in your case, it is something that needs to be advocated throughout your arguments. The flow will be assessed primarily by how your impacts fit into the prevailing value (if any) for the debate. I rarely feel that the value debate is a toss-up in any round. You need to be just as persuasive, if not more, in telling me how I ought to weigh what you have said.

That being said, impacting your arguments is super-important. The more clearly you can connect your contention to the value and tell me why it matters, the more favorably I will look at it when making a decision.

Finally, I like it very much when debaters can roadmap before speeches, and signpost throughout them. You like it when your opponent does this, and judges love it even more.