Tuesday, June 25, 2013

NFL-WSDC Five Nation Round Robin, Birmingham, Alabama June 2013

Round One Impromptu
THW ban unpaid internships.

Round 2 Prepared
THBT the creation of the Eurozone has done more harm than good.
BACKGROUND: The Eurozone is a currency union consisting of European Union member states that have adopted the Euro as their common currency. Eurozone monetary policy is administered by the European Central Bank.

Round 3 Impromptu
THBT nationalism is a virtue

Round 4 Prepared
THBT China and the USA will NOT be allies in the 21st Century.

Round 5 Impromptu
THBT doctors should never lie to their patients, even for their own good.

Final Prepared
THBT the use of attack drones outside of declared wars should be a war crime.

The contest was a joint projct of the World Debate Institute http://debate.uvm.edu/debateblog/wdi/Welcome.html
and the National Forensic League
http://www.nationalforensicleague.org/
with the support of Tom Rollins.

Friday, June 14, 2013

1st BFSU Debate Challenge, Beijing, China, 29 April-1 May 2013

Motions for 1st Beijing Foreign Studies University Debate Challenge (1st BDC) 2013

Adjudication Core: 
CA: Loke (SAID); DCAs: Daryl (Ateneo), Joshua (Harvard Law/SolBridge), Nicholas (Melbourne); Advisor: TJ (ABAC)

Round 1:
Info Slide: Socialization meaning the way something is generally accepted and presented/taught in society.

THBT the socialization of the Menstrual Cycle (e.g. hygiene, PMS) is oppressive to women

Round 2:
THW not allow the police to carry and use guns

Round 3:
THBT governments should cut welfare (financial aid) for individuals that smoke, drink, or gamble

Round 4:
TH regrets the sexualization of hospitality businesses. (i.e. Airlines, hotels, etc.)

Round 5:
THW mandate corporal punishment for perpetrators of violent crimes

Round 6:
Info Slide: fully autonomous weapons, also known as "killer robots", would be able to select and engage targets without human intervention. Fully autonomous weapons do not exist yet, but they are being developed by several countries and precursors to fully autonomous wearpon have already been deployed by high-tech militaries. Some experts predict that fully autonomous weapons could be operational in 20 to 30 years. --Human Right Watch

THW ban "killer robots"

Quarter Finals
THW give two votes to stay-at-home mothers

Semi Finals
THBT the state's strategy of under-valuation of currencies does more harm than good

Grand Finals
TH should fear immortality
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Bristol Open, Bristol, England, June 8 2013

Bristol Open, Bristol, England, June 8 2013
  1. R1: THW prosecute attempted murder and murder as the same crime
  2. R2: THBT the disappearance of marriage from society will be more beneficial for LGBT individuals than their inclusion in it
  3. R3: THBT the USA should fund Private Military Companies (PMCs) to fight the war on drugs in Mexico
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Deutschsprachige Debattiermeisterschaft, Munchen, Germany, May 30 - June 2 2013

Deutschsprachige Debattiermeisterschaft, Munchen, Germany, May 30 - June 2 2013 
  1. R1: Should bullfighting be forbidden?
  2. R2: Should teams be excluded from sports matches when one of their team members has taken doping?
  3. R3: Seed companies seek out strong-yielding plants and sterilise the seeds. The plants cannot produce fertile seeds and the companies protect their license rights.Motion: Should plant sterilisation be banned?
  4. R4: Assume the technical possibility of a manned flight to Mars, without the possibility to survive there on a long-term basis, or to return: Should we send a manned spacecraft to Mars?
  5. R5: Germany has about 1.3 million so-called Austocker: employees whose work salaries lie below the poverty level and who therefore receive additional unemployment benefits from the state (Kombilohn) Motion: Should we abolish adding to wages until the income reaches the poverty line?
  6. R6: After a civil war, should the ethnic groups involved be separated, even through forced resettlement?
  7. Octofinal: Should commuter allowances be abolished?
  8. Quarterfinal: Servicemen and women are equal before the law in the Armed Forces. In practice, women are not used on the frontline (as special commandos for example). Motion: should women be employed in the frontline?
  9. Semi final: Should prisoners on hungerstrike be forcefed?
  10. Final: When the Bundestag votes on matters of conscience, the members can vote without party discipline. Should the People decide on matters of conscience instead of the Parliament?
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History Tournament, Marburg, Germany, May 27 2013 (translated)

History Tournament, Marburg, Germany, May 27 2013 (translated)
  1. R1: TH is Martin Luther. THW not publish the Theses
  2. R2: During WWII: THBT the Western Allies should under no circumstances cooperate with Stalin
  3. R3: In the middle of the 19th century: THW stop export of food products from Ireland until the Great Famine ends
  4. Final: TH is Gandhi. THW declare war on the English occupation
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Belgrade Open, Belgrade, Serbia, May 17-19 2013

Belgrade Open, Belgrade, Serbia, May 17-19
  1. R1: THBT Djokar Tsarnev, the Boston Marathon bomber, should be given the death penalty
  2. R2: THW take the children of Roma who live traditional lifestyles into state care
  1. R3: THW reverse austerity measures in Europe
  2. R4: THW allow voters to dismiss their government during its term through citizen initiated referenda
  3. R5: THBT EU should offer Middle Eastern and North Africon states membership in exchange for successful democratic transformation
  4. Semi: Additive manufacturing or 3D printing is the process of making a three-dimensional solid object of almost any shape from a downloadable design. Currently, they can be used to create shoes, electronic devises, guns and even houses. In future, their uses are likely to grow. Motion: THW ban the sale of 3D printers to households
  5. Final: THW replace the national sport teams of Ex-Yugoslavian republics with new unified teams
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Kalliope Debattoernooi, Groningen, Netherlands, May 11-12 2013 (translated)

Kalliope Debattoernooi, Groningen, Netherlands, May 11-12 (translated)
  1. R1: THW make membership of a political party mandatory
  1. R2: TH celebrates (approves of) the existence of religion
  2. R3: THW pay male teachers in primary school more than female teachers
  3. R4: TH regrets the founding of the state of Israel
  4. R5: THW ban media from publishing graphic depictions of terrorist attacks
  5. Semi: THW ban private companies from choosing political positions and promoting them
  6. Final: THW make fathers responsible for children, in financial and other terms, only if they have given explicit permission for their birth

Stockholm IV, Stockholm, Sweden, May 10-12 2013

Stockholm IV, Stockholm, Sweden, May 10-12
  1. R1: THW completely abolish all subsidies and preferential treatment to the farming industry in the EU
  2. R2: You are a poor 19-year old woman living in a former Soviet state. You have little education, no obvious career prospects, and few opportunities for economic advancement in your own country. THW register as a mail order bride
  3. R3: TH, which is the EU, would sue any individual who speaks untrue of or defames the European Union
  4. R4: TH as Israel would immediately intervene in Syria
  5. R5: THBT billionaires have a moral obligation to donate their money to the US government instead of charities
  6. Semi: You are Arnold Schwarzenegger, You are presented a script in which you are asked to portray a SS Nazi Officer who is presented in a positive humane light. THW take on the role
  7. Final: THBT the EU should adopt the formation of a constitutional anti-theistic atheist society as one of its declared goals (Infoslides: The current stated goal of the european union, as stipulated in the treaty of rome, is an "ever closer union" Anti-theistic atheism society is a society that while still allowing religions to exist,more than just being secular actively seeks to eliminate religion from state institutions, laws and actively promotes atheism to the general public
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Zeit Debatte Aachen, Aachen, Germany, May 10-12 2013 (translated)

Zeit Debatte Aachen, Aachen, Germany, May 10-12 2013 (translated)
  1. R1: THW make organ donations after death mandatory
  2. R2: THW not export any weapons out of the EU
  3. R3: THW replace the three-tiered education system with one common high school (with infoslide)
  4. R4: THW check all Doctorate theses of living persons for plagiarism
  5. R5: THW welcome a UK exit out of the EU
  6. Semi: THW ban alternative medicine
  7. Final: THW not have introduced a common European currency
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Oxford Women’s Open, Oxford, England, May 10-11 2013

Oxford Women’s Open, Oxford, England, May 10-11
  1. R1: THW ban religious preachers in the public sphere
  2. R2: THBT the USA should give South Korea independent control of a nuclear arsenal
  3. R3: TH, as a professional female athlete, would not pose in a sexualised manner for magazines and commercials
  4. R4: In areas where hostage taking is a tactic, THW require soldiers to kill squad mates who are about to be captured
  5. R5: THW subsidise art that glorifies the working class
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Kyiv Open, Kiev, Ukraine, May 4-5 2013

Kyiv Open, Kiev, Ukraine, May 4-5
  1. R1: THBT racial profiling is a legitimate tool in fighting crime
  2. R2: THW prohibit the military from embedding journalists
  3. R3: THBT all state funding of the art should be allocated to artists through a random and equal lottery
  4. R4: THW introduce a statute of limitation on murder
  5. R5: THB the US should unilaterally intervene in Syria
  6. Semi: THBT police force should have quotas of proportional representation of races
  7. Final: THW forgive the group of young people who blew up a monument of Stalin in Ukraine.

Cambridge Invitational, Cambridge, England, April 28 2013

Cambridge Invitational, Cambridge, England, April 28
  1. R1: THW prosecute (in western courts) anyone who buys people out of slavery in the developing world
  2. R2: THB that the Church of England should not allow the singing of Jerusalem in its services
  3. R3: THW require that all marginal increases in funding for healthcare technology be spent on whatever NICE believes most cost effectively maximises Quality Adjusted Life Years.
  4. Final: THW create: 1) an obligation on western powers to militarily intervene in conflicts where chemical weapons are being used (regardless of UN approval), and 2) a right if major humanitarian organisations to sue governments for failure to fulfil this obligation

Split Open, Split, Croatia, April 26-28 2013

Split Open, Split, Croatia, April 26-28
  1. R1: In cases of politically motivated terrorist attacks, THW ban the press from disclosing any information regarding the name, background or the political motivation of the attackers
  2. R2: You are a single woman in her twenties. Sleeping with your boss would probably significantly advance your career. THW do it.
  3. R3: THW force elected politicians and their families to use only public health and education services.
  4. R4: THBT any form conscription is a war crime
  5. R5: THB Croatia should stop all special treatment of the Catholic religion.
  6. Final: Assuming the existence of the Biblical God, THW never praise him
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Jacobs Open, Bremen, Germany, April 26-28 2013

Jacobs Open, Bremen, Germany, April 26-28
  1. R1: THW remove all "sin taxes"
  2. R2: TH, as US President, would grant Chinese Christian refugees asylum
  3. R3: THBT Governments should fund and public display of art which viscerally portrays the suffering of victims created by state policies/actions (eg war, failure to go to war, poverty at home and abroad)
  4. R4: THW only allow election campaigns to be funded by a fixed budget provided by the state
  5. R5: TH, as the gay community, regrets the rise of Grindr in western liberal democracies
  6. Semi: In the event of a terrorist attack by radical Islamists, THW fabricate evidence (which wouldn't be found out to be untrue) that the attack was committed by someone from the dominant (religious/ethnic) group in that society
  7. Final: TH, as 2 atheist parents, raising their child in a homogeneous religious rural community (e.g. in Texas) would raise their child to be religious
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