the first affirmative » Lucy does some ‘splaining

Programming Notes

Ryan Ricard — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 18:08:00 +0000

Given that this right here is ostensibly a regularly updated journal on the subject of debate, and since the season of fall is quite nearly upon us, I figured I might address some infrequently asked questions and other miscellanea.

1. This year, my primary coaching responsibilities at Rosemount will be with the experienced Lincoln Douglas debaters. I'm making the change primarily out of organizational need and the chance to spend more of my "debate time" in at least relative proximity to my wife, but I'm also excited at the prospect of trying something new. Plus, have you seen the goddamn topic? Feel free to characterize this move as "going to the dark side" or "coming to jesus" or whatever, but either way I'll probably think you're kind of a dork.

2. Towards the end of last year I was planning on writing something more "retrospectivey" and "wrap-uppy" about the MDTA Cup, but I'm a doofus and never got around to it. I would like to continue the tradition this year, most likely without substantial changes to the rules, but with some process improvements.

3. I'll probably be posting semi-frequently again as the debate season winds up. Expect fewer articles in the style of "Long-form How To" and "Long-Winded Polemic" and more in the style of "Something Else," the details of which haven't really clarified to me yet.

4. Read This Thing. I was planning on writing an article on just this subject, but I think this turned out much better than mine would have anyway. Tip of the hat to Aracelis Biel.

5. While you are at it, Read This Thing Too. A very engaging back-and-forth between Mark Oppenheimer, author of a memoir of his days in parliametary debate (and yes, it's that Mark Oppenheimer) and Michael Horowitz, 2000 NDT Champ and professor at Penn.

6. I'm working on a debate-related thing that may be of interest. More on that in a few weeks.

Let’s Make a site for Debate Q&A

Ryan Ricard — Thu, 17 Jun 2010 00:58:00 +0000

So Area 51 is officially publicized now, so it's time to get a campaign for a Debate Q&A site underway.

Wait, what the heck is Area 51? Actually, there are a lot of sites here with a lot of names, let me explain.

So, start with Stack Overflow, which is a site that programmers use to ask questions and get answers. It's awesome. The moment it came out, I thought "wow, we need one'a these for debaters!"

Some time in the future, the same company launched Stack Exchange, on which you could pay money to get your own hosted Q&A site.

Eventually, they changed directions and decided to offer new sites for free as long as there was a viable community to support it. They're calling this "Stack Exchange 2.0" and set up a new site for proposals called Area 51

My proposal on Area 51 for a Debate Q&A site is Right Here.

Why do I think we need a Debate Q&A site? Well, we debaters have plenty of online places to hang out and argue (as we are wont to do), but we don't have any place to get questions answered. And we have plenty of questions! New coaches and debaters have questions! Experienced coaches and debaters have questions! High school debate people have questions about college debate! And vice versa! Lots of people have answers to these questions, but there's no place to go to get one's questions answered. We ought to change that.

Here's how:

Proposals on Area 51 go through three different phases before they become a real site:

Right now the debate proposal is in the Definition phase. We need to decide what a Q&A site about debate looks like. I've got some ideas, but I need your input!

When we get enough highly-voted examples of on- and off-topic questions, we'll move to the Commitment phase, during which we'll need people to step up and commit to making the site a success. These brave pioneers are basically saying "Yes, I will help start this site with a thriving community of experts with insightful questions and smart answers!"

With enough committed individuals, we move to the Beta phase, with a live site to fill with questions and answers. Here is where we'll work out the kinks and show the world how useful a debate Q&A site can be.

If it all works out, we'll move to a fully-fledged Stack Exchange site, which (hopefully) can turn into the place to get one's questions answered about debate.

My goal through all this is to make it just a teensy tiny little bit easier to learn debate, or to coach debate, or to start a debate team. If you think I'm on to something, please Sign up!

The Official Debate Knowledge Exchange proposal

Ryan Ricard — Thu, 10 Jun 2010 19:03:00 +0000

StackExchange has opened up their official proposal site, so if you are reading this, you should head on over to my proposal and do the following:

Follow the proposal. Yes, you need to log in, but the site uses OpenID so you don't even need to make a new username/password to do so.

Submit some sample questions, good examples of what is on- and off-topic for a debate Q&A site

Vote on sample questions, so we can refine the "vision" for the site

I already made my pitch for why I think this would be an excellent resource for the community, but I'll add this little bit. If you are an experienced debater or coach, think of how many times you've been asked the same set of questions by a new user or coach. Wouldn't it be nice if you could send them to a helpful website instead?

My Proposal for a new Debate knowledge exchange

Ryan Ricard — Sun, 18 Apr 2010 14:30:00 +0000

So I've mentioned before that I'm a computer programmer by day. One of my favorite resources for making my job easier is called Stack Overflow. It's a site where programmers can ask questions for other programmers. Go click around there for a while. You probably won't understand some of the jargon, but notice how the question-and-answer format encourages meaningful information exchange. You get great answers to newbie questions, and you get great answers to difficult questions. As users ask good questions and provide good answers, they get "reputation points" that allow them some additional privileges on the site, making the community largely self-policing. The best part is, many of these awesome answers end up at the top of Google searches, making the entire internet a better place.

I think that it'd be awesome to have a site like this for debaters. The constant influx of new debaters and coaches means that the community always has plenty of questions, and right now those answers are scattered around the internet and often buried under flamewars, off-topic discussion, and misinformation. (Ever tried reading the wikipedia page on policy debate?). If we had a place where "experts" in the community could easily exchange information, it might be just a little bit easier to learn debate or start a debate team.

And what do you know? The creators of Stack Overflow are starting a new project to open up their software to other communities who would like a knowledge exchange site. I've typed up a proposal for a debate knowledge exchange, but we'll only get the blessing of Stack Exchange if we show that there is existing community support for this idea.

So, if you think that my proposal is a decent idea, that a knowledge exchange for debaters could make the internet a better place, I might suggest you do the following:

Go to my Proposal and vote it up. (you'll have to sign up for an account, but it's pretty painless and you won't get spammed)

Even better, comment on it, add some reasons that it might work or challenges it might face

Tell your friends.

Clash of the Titans

Ryan Ricard — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 16:17:00 +0000

Not a whole lot of time to write lately, but I stumbled on this the other day, and it deserves mention.

William F. Buckley might not be a well-known name in the debate world, but he's an incredibly important figure in conservative political thought in the United States. He founded the National Review, and did more than anyone else in his era to promote the theories of laissez faire capitalism and American primacy. If you've read cards from Khalilzad, Krauthammer, Kagan, Boot, or any Free Trade Good/Growth Good disad, you've encountered the influence of Buckley.

Equally important, but diametrically opposed, is Noam Chomsky. Longtime critic of US foreign policy, he's written dozens of books on the subject and has been cited more than any other author in discussion of US intervention abroad. He's been read directly plenty of times in debate rounds, and his influence extends through the Militarism K, Threat Construction, Statism, and Hege Bad debates pervasively. All this while holding down a "day job" as a Linguistics professor at MIT.

These two people may have had more influence over the american intellectual right and left, respectively, than any other over the past half-century. And what do you know? They met on live television in 1969 on Buckley's program Firing Line. Turns out that most of the interview is on Youtube. EDIT: Found the whole thing! And embeddable to boot.

The subject at hand is the Vietnam war, but both men touch on some essential themes of US Foreign policy debates (cost/benefits of intervention, preventing terrorism, the role of rhetoric and representation) that continue to be relevant today. This is the Hegemony debate that we've been having for decades. Really this should be required viewing for all policy debaters before next year. You might want to keep a tab to Wikipedia open while watching it, as Chomsky and Buckley both use a strong command of history and contemporary events to make their case.

MDTA Cup Results

Ryan Ricard — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 17:16:43 +0000

So the results of the MDTA Cup have been posted. Huge congrats to the winners, who are well deserving. Since I'm well aware the extent of our community's data addiction, I figured I'd offer some behind-the-scenes info on the cup.

A quick caveat: my data still has some errors (mostly transposed codes like EF -> FE). The winners in each event were double-checked, but please comment if you spot any inconsistencies.

First of all, the Final Top 10 (or so) in each division:

Policy Teams
1. Wayzata - Miranda Ehrlich and Meghna Sohoni (15)
2. Sibley - Danny Bernick and Anna Koelsch (13)
3. Bloomington - Devin Long and Tom Zimmer (12)
4. Bloomington - Ali Goodrum & Gracie Kroner (11)
4. Wayzata - Krishnan Ramanujan and Dru Svoboda (11)
6. Wayzata - Luke Plutowski and Johanni Thunstrom (8)
6. Wayzata - Alex Aronovich and Carlee Nelson (8)
6. Eagan - Annie Martin and Kyra Stephenson (8)
6. Sibley - Brian LaBounty & Tome Welle (8)
6. Wayzata - Mariah Donnelly & Devon Manley (8)

Policy Scools
1. Wayzata 46
2. Edina 32
3. Bloomington 30
4. Sibley 27
5. Eagan 26

LD Debaters
1. Coon Rapids - Robyn Sellman (26)
2. Robbinsdale Cooper - Chyenne Thibodo (18)
3. Apple Valley - Jon Slater (17)
4. Lakeville South - Dylan Slinger (15)
5. St. Louis Park - Catherine Tarsney (14)
5. Lakeville North - Jayant Tripathy (14)
7. Eagan - Kunal Patel (12)
8. BSM - Bennett Kenzie (11)
8. Forest Lake - Kyle McCleary (11)
10. Eagan - Michelle Wagner (10)

LD Schools
1. Coon Rapids 35
2. Apple Valley 28
2. Eagan 28
4. Lakeville North 27
5. Robbinsdale Cooper 24
5. Lakeville South 24
5. St. Louis Park 24

Public Forum Teams
1. Eagan - Rachel Markon & Iaan Reynolds (22)
2. Eagan - Haben Ghebregergish and Weronika Janczuk (14)
3. Eagan - Anne Beck & Matthew Burian (12)
3. Eastview - Bryan Larson & Anthony Stagner (12)
5. Lakeville North - Karen Zhou & Steven Elliot (10)
6. Eastview - Sneha Somani & Michelle McGuire (8)
7. Blake - Mike Graham & Mik Kaminski (7)
8. Eagan - Miles Norman and Emily Dallager (6)
8. Anoka - Sam Hughes & Lucia Martin (6)
8. Blake - Taylor Briggs & Sarah Carthen Watson (6)

Public Forum Schools
1. Eagan 42
2. Eastview 27
3. SPA 20
4. Forest Lake 19
5. Apple Valley 18

Classic Teams
1. MPA - Greta Stacy & Eric Baudry (9)
2. Eastview - C. Chang & L. Ramroop (7)
3. Eastview - Mark Besonen & Kristine Hiedeman (5)
3. Eastview - A. Balaji & P. Kelly (5)
4. Eastview - Raghav Julakanti & Paige Kelly (4)
4. Eastview - Katie Baldwin & Caitlin Moran (4)
4. MPA - Wood & Naravane (4)
4. Rochester Century - Taylor Williams & Courtney White (4)
4. South St. Paul - J. Nelson & B. Olson (4)
4. Southwest - Maddie Jacobs & Aswar Rahman (4)

Classic Schools
1. Eastview 18
2. MPA 14
3. Stillwater 10
4. South St. Paul 7
5. Rochester Century 6

Overall Schools
1. Eagan 96
2. Apple Valley 46
2. Wayzata 46
2. Eastview 46
2. Edina 46

Yep, that's right, a 4-way tie for 2nd place in the overall school race.

I'd also like to take a look at all the Champions and how they got there.

Policy Champs - Wayzata ES (Ehrlich and Sohoni)
Participant, Blake
4th Place, Bloomington
Champion, Concordia
8th Place, Highland Park
Quarterfinalist, Hopkins
Participant, Lakeville South
Quarterfinalist, U of M

LD Champ - Coon Rapids RS (Robyn Sellman)
Champion, Andover
Double-Octafinalist, Minneapple
Champion, Blaine
Participant, Blake
Champion, Coon Rapids
Finalist, Cooper
Top 8, Forest Lake
3rd Place, Lakeville South
State Participant (Made it to Semis actually, but qualifying is what got her another cup point)
Champion, U of M

PF Champs - Eagan MR (Maarkon and Reynolds)
Quarterfinalist, Minneapple
Finalist, Blake
Champion, Coon Rapids
Champion, Lakeville South
Champion, Man West II
Champion, U of M

Classic Champs - MPA BS (Baudry and Stacy)
2nd Place, Eastview
5th Place, Forest Lake
Champion, Roseville
3rd Place, St. Francis

Some other random superlatives worth mentioning:

Melissa Diamond is the only debater to earn points with 4 different partners (Balhs, Holder, Poteryakin, Mujir)

Maddie Johnson and Caitlin Moran from Eastview both earned points in 3 different events (Classic, LD, PF)

Depending on how you count, the Wayzata policy squad had 13 different students contribute toward their school award. This is despite the fact that only 2 teams can contribute points on any given weekend. Quite a collective accomplishment.

MDTA Cup Results

Ryan Ricard — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 21:44:00 +0000

MDTA Cup Results

Ryan Ricard — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 21:44:00 +0000

Ryan’s Guide to the Blake Tournament

Ryan Ricard — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 18:01:00 +0000

Since this year will mark my 8th consecutive visit to the John Edie Holiday Debate Tournament, AKA Blake, I've decided to compile my experience into a quick guide for debaters who might be new to the tournament. It's a great tournament (one of the reasons that I've gone back so many times), but the venue offers some interesting challenges that you should be aware of. Really, I see teams make the same mistakes every year, so here are some tips at avoiding them.

Tip the first: Dress Warm
You'd think this would go without saying, but experience shows that it does not. This tournament is in Minnesota, in December. The weather forecast can include cold, rain, snow, fog, sleet, ice, and/or "cold enough to freeze da balls offa' pool table." Prepare accordingly.

Tip the second: How to get to the Hyatt without renting a car

One of the advantages of the Blake tournament is that you can fly in and not incur the additional expense of car rental. Here's how to rock Blake using public transit:

You will be flying into the MSP airport, either the Lindbergh or Humphrey terminal depending on which airline. The directions are the same from both terminals, but make note of which you are in so you don't mess it up on the return trip.

Once you land and secure your baggage, follow the signs to the light rail station or ask a friendly gate agent "Where do I go to catch the light rail?"

Ride the Hiawatha Light Rail Northbound (to Downtown Minneapolis). The fare will cost you about 2 bucks.

Get off at the Nicollet Mall station. Welcome to Minneapolis!

You are now about 3/4 of a mile from the hotel. You can cover the remaining distance in one of three ways: (a)Walk. It's not that far. (b) Take a bus down Nicollet. The 25, 18, or 17 will bring you right to the hotel. Your train ticket is also a bus transfer! (c)Travel the "series of tubes" that we call the Skyway. You'll walk farther but stay warmer

Tip the third: how to debate in hotel rooms
Yes, that's right, the entire tournament takes place in the hotel. Of course, some of these debates are in "conference room" type areas, but you are pretty much guaranteed to have at least one debate in a plain vanilla hotel room. This might be new to you, so allow me some suggestions:

The tournament provides a small table for each team. You'll have enough space to prepare, but if you are the kind of team who makes a goddamn mess every round, you are going to have problems.

You'll also have less space to spread out your tubs, so make sure that your evidence is arranged in some logical fashion. This is good advice for every tournament, but space constraints heighten the need for organization.

The rooms each have a bathroom. Feel free to enjoy this convenience, but know that attempting to take a shower or "twosie" is considered highly uncouth

If you've never been to a business-class hotel before, remember that you are going to a magical world where everyone else pays in monopoly money except you. Bring the essentials (water bottle, toiletries, snack items) so you don't have to pay an arm and a leg for them

The Elevator will take forever. Do not make any unnecessary trips on the elevator. After your debate, it is best to wait in your room for your coach to call/text you and tell you where to move next.

Tip the fourth: Eat good food

The Hyatt is in a pretty good location food-wise in Minneapolis. Here are some recommendations:

In the hotel, you've got an overpriced, but not terrible sports bar (Spikes), a pretty decent cafe that will be closed most of the weekend, and a couple fancy restaurants. The Oceanaire is amazing, I've never been to Taxxi.

Around the hotel, you've also got:

A Chipotle on Nicollet between 11th and 10th

Brit's Pub, one block from the Hotel on Nicollet. Some amazing British/Pub Food. Gets very busy Friday/Saturday evening.

India House, located just south of the hotel at 1400 Nicolett. I live by the other India House location and it is delicious

Eat Street, further down Nicollet, home to many fine ethnic restaurants.
Masa. I've never been, but this review is making me hungry just reading it

Pizza Luce. It's where God calls when he wants pizza

One additional warning: Some years, debates haven't finished friday night until after 10, which puts some teams in a pickle with regards to Minnesota's rather draconian liquor laws, which don't allow underaged folk in a "bar" past 10. Basically, if your plan for Friday is Brit's or Spike's, you might want to arrange a plan B of going to Chipotle or ordering from Luce.

Hope all of your have a wonderful time debating in the City of Lakes.

Tech Tip: Offline Access to Case Lists and Judge Philosophies

Ryan Ricard — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 16:41:00 +0000

The Problem
You are going to a tournament where there will be no WiFi access, but you want to be able to access the NDCA Caselist wiki or the Judge Philosophies Wiki.

The Solution
You can download a snapshot of the wiki using a Firefox extension called DownThemAll. Basically, DownThemAll's basic function is to take a list of links, and download, uh, them all. It's a very flexible program, so I'll take you through the basic setup to download the wiki

Install firefox, if you haven't already
Using Firefox, install DownThemAll from their website. You might need to click "Yes" to authorize the site to install an extension

Navigate to the NDCA Caselist wiki, or any page you want to grab all the links from

In firefox, go to Tools > DownThemAllTools > DownThemAll...

Check "All Files" under filters, and then uncheck files that aren't Case List pages (reduces strain on the server)

In "Save Files In", point it to where you want the case list files to be. Each page will be saved to a seperate file, so you probably want to make a new folder

In Renaming Mask, type
```
*text*.*ext*
```
exactly as you see it.

Click "Start!" A new window pops open with the download progress. It will take a few minutes, depending on your internet connection

You get a bunch of html files in the "save in" directory. Double-click or drag-and-drop to open in a web browser. You'll lose the styling, but all the info should be there

This is what the DownThemAll window looks like:

Notes

This will put more strain on the NDCA server than normal usage, so to be a good citizen you should have one representative from your team download the files, and then distribute them amongst the team as a zip file

DownThemAll will ask you what you want to do with duplicate names, which you'll get if you run the process again in the same directory. For this, it's probably best to "overwrite"