Johndawg+vs.+Maekki+-+Michael+Steffan

I know it's not very fun being a maverick...yeah, it really isn't. BUT - here are some good things to consider for your next debate
 * John**

- As the affirmative, you have to prioritize your case offense. you can use your case arguments to help your chances of winning other flows - more often than not your 1AC contains cards to answer neg positions. Best way to learn your cards is by highlighting them. Find the warrants for the tag(claim). the more you work with your 1ac, the more you'll learn it.

-In cross x, try not to ask questions in an open-ended manner - it gives the other debater the opportunity to "win" the question

-Good job on the politics flow - you caught all of the drops - however in noticing that their answers were weak on this flow, you spent far too much time on it, given that the 1ar is already so time-constrained.

-moral imperatives only matter in a world where you win the advantage (in this case, the i-law adv...)

-I'm telling all the debaters in this round to work on speed. work on efficiency. do your speed drills.

Your 1NR on china was sufficient - you read the right cards and put a good amount of pressure on the 1ar, but you need to be sure to make sure you do more than only read cards. being able to weave in your own analysis of the aff evidence in addition to adding your own cards will make your position much stronger. You dropped some impact defense (china has no effect on us interests) that while not damning, hurts your ability to win the flow.
 * Meagan**

One problem with reading a lot of cards on one flow is that you ended up neglecting the politics flow - and this is where the 2ac had its best answers. one problem I had when I was debating was giving 1NRs that were too "top-heavy", meaning lots of cards/args on your first flow or two, and not enough time to cover the rest of the flows. It's a bigger problem for 2ac/2ncs, but it still has a detrimental effect.

-I'm telling all the debaters in this round to work on speed. work on efficiency. do your speed drills.

One thing you can do to help fill in your speeches, especially your 2nr, with substance, is to summarize them. tell the story of each flow. Obviously, since this is the first round of camp, your familiarity with the evidence might be less. BUT! This is also day 3 of camp. It may seem like a lot of work, but really try and read your evidence a couple times. highlight it, underline it, write the warrants in the margins of the paper...whatever you can do to teach yourself the neg cards. it will dramatically improve your 2NR substance. You're performing a lot of what needs to be done in the 2nr, but you need to tie it together and tell stories - knowing your ev will help.
 * Nikki**

Also, seize the opportunities afforded you by 1AR drops - china wasn't a strong flow for the 1ar, but politics was. You undercovered the flow you could win (china) and undercovered the flow you couldn't win (politics).

-I'm telling all the debaters in this round to work on speed. work on efficiency. do your speed drills.