Theory Master Toolbox (INCOMPLETE)
Theory Master Toolbox (INCOMPLETE)
**THEORY FRAMEWORK**.............................................................................................27
DROP THE DEBATER [SHORT].................................................................................................................28
DROP THE DEBATER [GAME THEORY]....................................................................................................28
A2 Dropping the argument still deters....................................................................................30
DROP THE ARGUMENT............................................................................................................................31
A2 Deterrence.......................................................................................................................... 32
METATHEORY COMES FIRST..................................................................................................................34
METATHEORY DOESN’T COME FIRST.....................................................................................................35
A2 Skews judge’s evaluation.................................................................................................. 36
A2 Better norms....................................................................................................................... 37
COMPETING INTERPRETATIONS............................................................................................................38
REASONABILITY GOOD...........................................................................................................................39
Prefer reasonability – education/general reasons..................................................................40
Prefer reasonability – fairness reasons.................................................................................. 41
A2 Reasonability is arbitrary................................................................................................... 42
A2 Reasonability creates a race to the bottom..................................................................... 43
A2 Reasonability doesn’t set the best norms.........................................................................44
A2 Reasonability collapses into competing interps...............................................................45
A2 Risk of abuse...................................................................................................................... 46
A2 Competing Interps dump.................................................................................................... 47
RVI GOOD [AFF]....................................................................................................................................... 48
General..................................................................................................................................... 49
A2 You can run theory on me too so it’s reciprocal...............................................................50
A2 Don’t punish me for being fair............................................................................................51
INDEX
THE VALUE CRITERION
THEORY MASTER TOOLBOX
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**KRITIKS**..................................................................................................................137
KRITIKS NEED AN ALT..........................................................................................................................138
KRITIK ALTS CANNOT BE REJECTION.................................................................................................139
KRITIKS NEED AN ALT TEXT................................................................................................................140
A2 CX checks......................................................................................................................... 142
KRITIKS CANNOT HAVE PRE-FIAT AND POST-FIAT IMPACTS.............................................................143
KRITIKS MUST SPECIFY A PLAUSIBLE IMPLEMENTATION.................................................................144
Frontlines............................................................................................................................... 147
1AR ALTS GOOD.................................................................................................................................... 149
PRE-FIAT ALTS BAD...............................................................................................................................150
**TRUTH-TESTING POSITIONS**.................................................................................152
MULTIPLE A PRIORIS BAD.....................................................................................................................153
ONE A PRIORI BAD.................................................................................................................................154
CONTINGENT STANDARDS BAD............................................................................................................155
CONTRADICTIONS BAD.........................................................................................................................156
EVALUATIVE INDICTS OF OWN FRAMEWORK BAD..............................................................................157
NIBS GOOD.............................................................................................................................................159
NIBS BAD............................................................................................................................................... 161
A2 You can run NIBs too....................................................................................................... 162
A2 Theory is also a NIB......................................................................................................... 163
A2 NIBs are real world.......................................................................................................... 164
SKEPTICISM BAD [EDUCATION – GENERAL]........................................................................................165
SKEPTICISM BAD [FAIRNESS – GENERAL]...........................................................................................166
SKEPTICISM BAD [TRIGGERS]..............................................................................................................168
SKEPTICISM BAD [UNDER A FRAMEWORK]..........................................................................................170
A2 I meets.............................................................................................................................. 171
A2 Skep is not a NIB.............................................................................................................. 172
A2 You can run it too............................................................................................................. 173
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THE VALUE CRITERION
THEORY MASTER TOOLBOX
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**AFF**..........................................................................................................................222
PRESUME AFF........................................................................................................................................223
RVIS........................................................................................................................................................224
COMPARATIVE WORLDS........................................................................................................................225
REASONABLE AFF INTERPS..................................................................................................................226
NEG MUST DEFEND SQUO.....................................................................................................................227
NEG MUST DEFEND CONVERSE............................................................................................................228
NEG MUST NOT DEFEND CONVERSE....................................................................................................229
NO NEG COUNTERPLANS......................................................................................................................230
NO REZ K’S............................................................................................................................................ 231
AFF ETHICAL FRAMEWORK CHOICE.....................................................................................................232
ROLEPLAYING GOOD.............................................................................................................................233
REASONABILITY....................................................................................................................................234
CX CHECKS............................................................................................................................................235
**NEG**.........................................................................................................................236
SPIKES OVERVIEW................................................................................................................................237
A2 CX CHECKS.......................................................................................................................................238
A2 RVI.................................................................................................................................................... 239
PRESUME NEG - STRUCTURAL.............................................................................................................240
PRESUME NEG - SUBSTANTIVE............................................................................................................241
A2 AFF TIME SKEW................................................................................................................................242
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THEORY MASTER TOOLBOX
**VOTERS**
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DEEP LEARNING
Tom Lombardo [Professor Emeritus, Director of Center for Future Consciousness] – Ethical Character
Development and Personal and Academic Excellence. 2011. Center for Future Consciousness.
Accessed through the Wisdom Page. “Deep learning involves… associated with wisdom (Bransford,
Brown, and Cocking, 2000; Lombardo, 2006c).”
Deep learning involves getting the big picture—a synthesized and comprehensive
understanding of a domain of study, rather than simple surface learning of a set of
disconnected facts. Whereas surface learning never penetrates to the core ideas of a
learner, deep learning penetrates and affects the learner’s fundamental values and beliefs. Deep learning
involves [through] conceptual re-organization; in surface learning nothing of importance in the learner’s mind changes. Deep
learning is carried into the future and affect[ing]s decisions and problem solving; deep learning transfers from the
original learning situation to new situations. Surface learning is the opposite—it doesn’t transfer. Deep learning empowers the individual.
Deep learning is achieved through thinking about the subject matter; surface learning involves rote memorization. In fact, deep learning means that a person
can think about the new ideas learned and can think with these ideas— [so] the new knowledge becomes operational; it is
active and useable knowledge. Surface learning is inert, floating on the surface of the mind, and a person’s thinking processes and problem
solving do not incorporate the new knowledge. Hence, deep learning creates practical knowledge —
knowledge that can be used—whereas surface learning is the accumulation of trivia. Deep learning also
connects with self-awareness, reflection, and meta-cognition: when individuals engage in deep learning, they think about their own thinking processes and
beliefs. Surface learning occurs without self-reflection. Finally, deep learning is usually associated with an intrinsic motivation to learn
and the associated emotional affect is positive. Surface learning is extrinsically motivated (e.g., to pass a test) and the associated emotional affect is
frequently negative, involving anxiety, fear, and stress. Deep learning is an active and exhilarating process; surface learning is more passive and often felt as
mere drudgery. All these qualities of deep learning apply to the type of knowledge associated with wisdom (Bransford, Brown, and Cocking, 2000; Lombardo,
2006c).
The evaluation of these arguments is the same as the evaluation of any other theory
voter. I am just contextualizing what type of education is most valuable.
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EDUCATION [GENERIC]
1. The only lasting benefit from debate is education. It is the reason why many
people join the event, so assuring it isn’t destroyed is key.
2. Schools are funded by educational programs, so it is only logical that the event
stays educational.
3. Education is inherently important to debate because it gives debaters skills
that can be utilized outside of rounds. Strait and Wallace explain,
L. Paul Strait (George Mason University) and Brett Wallace (George Washington University). “The Scope of Negative
Fiat and the Logic of Decision Making.” WFU Debater’s Research Guide.2007.
Education is the most important thing any debater will receive from the
activity. Regardless of rounds won or lost, knowledge gained from years of
researching and arguing about different issues will give individuals a great
deal of information. Debate also educates students about how to properly
construct arguments, how to speak in public, how to analyze arguments and
quickly think of substantive responses, all of which are tools that can be
applied in any aspect of life outside of debate. The more debaters who think they can win
rounds by avoiding the topic, the less educational value received in each round and in the activity as a whole.
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**THEORY FRAMEWORK**
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Game theory models show that punishment creates a fairer game overall, especially
when replicated.
H. Brandt, C. Hauert, and K. Sigmund. "Punishment and Reputation in Spatial Public Goods Games." Proceedings of the Royal
Society of London - Biological Sciences. 2003. 270 (1099-1104).
The previous scenarios assumed players operating under full anonymity. However, in more realistic scenarios relating to higher organisms and in particular to
humans, players may accumulate information about their environment and specifically about potential future interaction partners. Similar to the conditioning of
behaviour of his fellows in other interactions. In particular, [A] cooperator who knows he is matched with
two non-punishers could be tempted to take advantage of the situation by temporarily switching to defection
without having to fear punishment. In that sense, all players carry some sort of
reputation reflecting their strategic character. Through observations of third-party interactions and gossip, a
player’s reputation may become known to others. Therefore, we assume that, with a probability m, a cooperator learns about the punishing behaviour of its co-
players and at the same time succumbs to the temptation when faced with two non-punishers. In well-mixed populations with random encounters, reputation
can promote and stabilize the social strategy G1 (Sigmund et al. 2001; Hauert et al. 2003). A complementary case occurs if, with a probability n,
defectors who learn that they are up against [will be] punishe[d]rs are sufficiently intimidated and
cooperate. We shall not consider this effect here, because it turns out to be less important. For m > 0, interactions between G1 and G4 are no longer
neutral. Indeed, G4 performs worse because any G1 or G4 player matched with two G4 players will occasionally defect and this lowers the overall score of G4
players. Reputation preserves the bistability introduced by punishment and further increases the range of r feasible for cooperation by slightly lowering the
threshold to rc < 1.25 (see figure 3). As before, the paradoxical G2 strategy quickly vanishes and, for r in the vicinity of rc, the time evolution sensitively depends
on the initial configuration, i.e. on the presence of a sufficiently large G1 cluster. Actually, the value of rc is essentially determined by the performance of G1
against G3 . Reputation strengthens the position of G1 because these players now occasionally refrain from cooperation when matched with two G3s. In
social strategy G1 and reduces the mild players to a small minority, so that invading defectors are reliably punished
and quickly eliminated.
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THE VALUE CRITERION
THEORY MASTER TOOLBOX
Short version: If I win offensive reasons for why I’m winning theory I should win the
round - not because I’m following the rules but rather that a) I’m advancing the best
interpretation for debate and b) I was forced to waste my time engaging the theory
debate instead of defending my offense. Theory cannot be a no risk issue for
debaters or they would simply run it to waste their opponent’s time and always have
a structural advantage in that they could not lose on it. The structure of competing
interpretations necessarily demands that theory be a time suck, even if they didn’t
intend it.
Shell:
A. Interpretation: If debaters run theory and I meet the interpretation or gain offense
on theory then I should win the round.
B. I meet.
C. Standards.
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**POLICY ARGUMENTS**
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B. I meet.
C. Standards:
The current political tides are shifting towards state rights. It is more realistic to
consider policy implementation through the lens of individual state implementation
rather than federal implementation. The United Press International illustrates this
with the example of the Supreme Court,
UPI - 2011,
Supreme Court Sets New Federalism Boundary, June 16
http://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2011/06/16/Supreme-Court-sets-new-federalism-
boundary/UPI-45321308241642/?spt=hs&or=tn
The U.S. Supreme Court Thursday ruled unanimously a defendant can use state
sovereignty to challenge a federal conviction when it involves her own rights .
When Carol Anne Bond, of the Philadelphia area, found out her close friend was pregnant by Bond's boyfriend, she began harassing the woman, court records
say. The other woman suffered a minor burn when Bond put caustic substances on objects the woman was likely to touch. Bond was indicted under a federal
law that bans "knowing possession or use, for non-peaceful purposes, of a chemical that 'can cause death, temporary incapacitation or permanent harm to
humans'" -- part of a federal act implementing a chemical weapons treaty ratified by the United States." A federal judge refused Bond's motion to dismiss the
federal charges on the grounds that the statute exceeded Congress' constitutional authority. Bond entered a "conditional" guilty plea, reserving the right to
Supreme Court, in
appeal.A federal appeals court in Philadelphia rejected Bond's 10th Amendment claim, saying she had no standing. But the
measure interferes with the powers reserved to states. ... (A lawyer appointed to defend the law, once
the administration withdrew) contends that for Bond to argue the national government has interfered with
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2. Turn ground:
Multi-state fiat increases aff turn ground by providing the aff with fifty unique places
to turn. Each state would implement the policy individually so there would be greater
opportunities to generate offense. Federal government fiat is uniform and does not
provide these opportunities. This is key to fairness because my interpretation
provides the aff with a huge opportunity to counter-act the aff time disadvantage and
gain new sources of offense to win. Turn ground is also key to education because
debating about all of the different problems with state implementation of policies
forces us to consider how we can participate in state politics and if state
implementation vs. federal implementation is preferable.
**TRUTH-TESTING POSITIONS**
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NIBS BAD
A. Interpretation: Both debaters may only derive offense that proves the truth or
falsity of resolution from a sufficient standard that they advocate or their opponents’
standard. A standard is defined as an ethical theory that can speak to the truth and
falsity of all normative statements without the use of an external decision calculus.
This means no necessary but insufficient burdens.
B. Violation:
C. Standards:
1. Resolvability: Multiple NIBs make the debate irresolvable. If each debater wins
one, you can’t compare the two and they are both a priori reasons to vote, so
there is no link to a decision calculus. Truth is not a decision calculus unless
discussed within a framework, since statements can’t be “a priori” true or false
in a vacuum. Resolvability is the strongest impact back to fairness because
without it, there IS no way to make a decision.
3. [A2 Skep] Ground: To beat his arg, I need 100% defense since there’s no way to
turn “morality doesn’t exist” in a way that would a priori affirm. He’ll always
have a risk of offense since all I can do is play defense, he’ll ALWAYS win.
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1. [Explain how the interp is specific to substantive offense and why that solves]
2. Arguing for RVIs on theory solves whereas nothing solves against substantive
NIBs since I can’t change the rules of logic to make it no longer insufficient.
3. It’s not my fault. Theory is self-inflicted since they’re the ones being abusive.
4. Theory is evaluated prior to substance, so it doesn’t have to function in the
same way.
5. Theory is reciprocal since both sides have the burden to be fair.
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THEORY MASTER TOOLBOX
1. The only NIBs that are real world are normative NIBs like deontological and
constitutional constraints. However, these are not unfair because they’re turn-
able insofar as they are normative [you can link turn them or impact turn them].
You can’t turn skep into an offensive reason to vote for you. Non-normative
NIBs like the existence of morality are unfair because of this AND are not real
world because we don't presuppose any metaphysical reality to morality [or
justice, or numbers, etc.] in the real world.
2. In the real world, those concerns are still out-weighable. For example, we can
say that we have to violate a constitutional right to prevent nuclear war. The
way his/her NIB is being articulated isn’t real world because he/she phrases it
as not weighable.
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A. Interpretation: Both debaters must concede that some actions are objectively
normatively preferable to others except in cases of presumption.
OR
A. Interpretation: If the aff concedes that some actions are objectively normatively
preferable to others except in cases of presumption, the neg must concede the same.
OR
A. Interpretation: Debaters may not run skepticism if the implication is that nothing is
morally preferable to anything else.
B. Violation:
C. Standards:
1. Strategy skew:
a. Aff offense doesn’t interact because it’s a generic indict independent of specific
arguments I make that functions externally to the framework, forcing a 1AR
restart. Thus, neg has a 13/7 advantage and it’s a no risk issue so I can’t even
strategically use what little time I have left. Skep is also functionally a pic out
of the resolution’s evaluative term, which kills my strat because there are _
words in the resolution that I have to defend whereas I can’t pic out of his
advocacy, giving him a _ to 1 advantage. Just getting rid of the argument
exacerbates the abuse by incentivizing the neg to sit down on substance when
I’ve already lost time. Other impacts don’t matter if I can’t engage in arguments
in the first place because my arguments would be less developed simply as a
function of a lack of time.
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