Routzhan,+Damon

I competed in LD Debate for 3 years in High School. I now attend Oxford College of Emory University and am probably going to major in Biology and philosophy.

I don't vote for liars whether you mean it or not. If you use something, have enough time spent on researching what you are actually talking about. Also, on the topic of college... I am in college, thus, I don't write cases anymore. This means that I am probably not SUPER familiar with the topic. If you plan on running super critical cases or any case that would require extreme knowledge of the case, you are at a disadvantage. You need to be thorough in your explanation and slow down on confusing parts (see one of the bullets below for an elaboration).

//** House Rules: **//
 * Speed is fine. When I debated, I loved to speed read. However, everyone’s threshold is different. Mine is probably different than yours, so if I say you are going too fast, slow down. Also, be aware that if you are reading off cases, crazy kritiks, or anything that is hard for someone that does NOT debate this topic to understand… SLOW DOWN. I will not assume what I heard you said and I will not vote on things that I do not understand. Also, Please tell me when you plan on spreading. I naturally flow with paper, but if you spread I would much rather use my laptop for my benefit and yours.
 * Theory and Kritik are fine. BEWARE: I come from a state that is less progressive, so if you use the two, completely explain it. If I don’t understand it, I won’t vote on it.
 * I try to be as non-invasive when voting as possible. However, if you said something completely ridiculous, I will not dumb myself down to vote on you. I judge without bias, but not without any common sense.
 * PLEASE have a value. I understand that "policy-esque" type of debating rid the value; however, still realize this is not policy. It is really hard for me to evaluate something that is philosophical without grounding it in anything. If you think your opponent has a value that is more suited to your own case, I will not penalize you for using your opponents value and dropping your own; however, note that your opponent has been given a longer time to explain to me why they uphold their own, so do so at your own risk.
 * I do not impact for you. I weigh what you tell me to weigh and what not to weigh (so long as it makes sense), so do not assume I will do an impact calculus for you.
 * Do not be rude. I don’t care if you curse, scream, whatever. Just know that you are dressed in a suit for a reason. Use sense and civility to determine what you are doing.
 * I will not entertain any arguments that are off topic or rooted in something that doesn’t matter. Do not run nihilism (or any other case that requires no specific topical research) and say the topic doesn’t matter. In my opinion, these cases are a joke. When my friends showed me these cases, I laughed. HARD. Thus, if you run one, I will probably laugh at you. Clearly, there are presuppositions that have to be agreed upon for a debate topic to be released and our existence is one of them.
 * My paradigm is long. I tried being thorough, however, if there are any ambiguities or anything that needs clarified, please feel free to ask, I probably forgot a lot.
 * ** DO NOT PRE-FLOW WHEN YOU GET IN HERE. YOUR PRE-FLOWS NEED TO BE DONE BEFORE YOU GET IN HERE. I WILL NOT LET YOU HOLD EVERYTHING UP FOR YOUR LACK OF PREP. **
 * Lastly, I will probably disclose (unless it is blatantly frowned upon at a tournament). Feel free to ask me why I voted the way I did—just be civil. Please remember that in a debate, someone HAS to lose. Sorry about it.

If you have additional questions after the round, email me. DRoutzh@Emory.Edu