How to Respond to Every Argument, Ever
It was 10:30 pm at NITOC 2016, and I was about to give the last speech of the last out round of the day. I had almost everything prepared. Almost. The problem was, Neg had run an argument that I just...
View ArticleParli: Throwaway PMRs
Time for some new theory. Only a couple weeks ago, I was doing some Parliamentary debate. We were Opposition, and the debate had come down to the mass of historical examples on our side vs. the...
View ArticleBurden of Proof: What It Really Means
Burdens. Love them or hate them, you can’t escape them. Whether it’s a Negative team arguing you don’t have enough evidence or an Affirmative team arguing that the resolution only requires one...
View ArticleThe Triangle of Debate
Quite a few sports have been suggested as the real “gentleman’s sport.” Golf, tennis, fencing, motorsports…these have all held the title. There is one sport, however, that supersedes all of these....
View ArticleBurdens, Part 2: Burden Scope Application
In my last post, I talked about the different types of burden scopes for different resolutions. In this post, I intend to address how to identify the different burden scopes you see in debate...
View Article7 Generic Counterplans You Need to Be Writing
When it comes to preparation for negative, one problem often arises: you don’t know what cases are going to pop up. Whether this is the first tournament of the year, halfway through the season, or...
View ArticleMoot Court 101
…I wish you would’ve spent a little more time responding to their solvency argument… GOV team spent a lot of time defending but completely ignored the crux… I didn’t really fully understand how your...
View ArticleResponding To Generic Counterplans
Counterplans. I can’t think of a more divisive issue in policy debate. Recently, Joshua decided to brave these controversial waters, writing an article about some of the major generic counterplans you...
View ArticleAlt-Actor Counterplans: Another View, Part 1
Editor’s Note: There are a variety of views on the issue of Alt-Actor Counterplans. Check out some of our other posts dealing with counterplans for more information. Wouldn’t it be nice if we could...
View ArticleAlt-Actor Counterplans: Part 2
This post is a continuation of last week’s discussion on Alternate Actor Counterplans. Read Part 1 here. You can also find differing views on Counterplan theory here. Why not just “no fiating the...
View ArticleParli Pro Tip: The Use of Studies
There are a lot of things you shouldn’t do in Parli. Point of Ordering an opponent nineteen times is one. Counterplanning to build the Death Star is another. And so is running burdens for a metaphor...
View ArticleRevisiting Nuclear War, Part 1
Earlier this year, I ventured back out into the forbidding lands of public school policy debate, to help judge. Once again, I was sorely let down by what I saw. In all of the rounds I watched, there...
View ArticleRevisiting Nuclear War, Part Two
Nuclear war usually appears in debate rounds about as often as Hitler: with absurd frequency. In this post, Harrison finishes discussing another technique for responding to nuclear disadvantages. Read...
View Article3 Ways to Win Your Definition Debate
Preemptive warfare. Nationalism. Globalism. The United States. Transportation policy. If you’re debating in NCFCA or Stoa this year, your resolution is centered on one of these terms. This season, I’ve...
View ArticlePart 1 of 2 on Deontological Ethics: an Introduction to Divine Command Theory
Stoa has released their prospective resolutions for the 2018/2019 debate season! You can check them out here, and be sure to stay tuned for the Ethos Voting Guide (coming soon). In the meantime, take a...
View ArticleEthics Bowl: The First Speech
Our designated MC (master of ceremonies) begins the first speech. “It’s unusual to find issues on which so many different groups, ranging from far-right candidate Marine Le Pen to PETA to Belgian...
View ArticleHow To Beat A Case With No Prep
This is, hands down, the topic that I cover most as a coach. Every debater, new or experienced, has been in this situation. Listening to the first affirmative speaker (or PRO or GOV or PROP), and...
View ArticleGoing Neg: How To Win On Inherency
This is the first post from one of our new team members, sixth-year debater Toby Rivas. Keep an eye out for more practical strategy tips from him coming soon! Debaters have lots of silly...
View ArticlePractical Principles: The Bad Precedent Disadvantage, Part 1
There’s a common misconception that, in TP, moral arguments and pragmatic arguments don’t mix. That’s false. This article is about the Bad Precedent DA—one of the main ways you can couple your...
View ArticleThe Stock Issues, Revisited
In mid-2017, I wrote an article describing what the stock issues are and why they are useful. I still recommend that article for a basic introduction into the stock issues, but since then, I have...
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