How to Debate

Disadvantages

Selecting disadvantages
to run
Be strategic in selecting thema few
things to remember
Dont run multiple disadvantages with the
same terminal impact
Try and find a DA with an impact that turns
the case
Running a DA because its new usually is
a bad reason to run it.

Know the Disadvantage

Read it
Highlight it
Practice read it
Write the key warrants of each card in
the margins

Overviews
Should be prewritten and ready to go before the
round starts
Overview components
-Short description of the DA story
-Probability analysis
-Timeframe analysis
-Magnitude analysis
-How does the DA turn the case?

Organization when extending

the disadvantage
Always signpost where your going on the flow. Heres an example,
off the 2AC # 1 first, second, ect This makes the debate easy
to flow for the judge, and a clean debate means less change for
judge error.
Dont be the debater who says, heres some impact extensions,
randomly in the middle of the flow.
Divide the DA into its three natural components: uniqueness, link,
and impact.
Try and read extensions to each component of the DA in a specific
section of the flow. For example, you could read all your
uniqueness extensions while answering the first non unique
argument the 2AC makes.
You dont want to spread link arguments all over the flow, because
it confuses the judge and your opponents, and will only lead to a
sloppy debate, thats hard for the judge to analyze.

Read the 2AC Evidence

Why not? You have the time to do it,
especially if you are the 1NR.
Judges likes smart arguments kritiking
your opponents evidence. It shows that
you have brains.
Evidence quality is frequently not the
best, so dont let your opponents get
away with it.

Read New Scenarios

If possible, you should always be reading
new link and impact scenarios in the
negative block.
Why?
-Improves your chances of winning the
DA.
-Puts a ton of pressure on the 1AR

How to handle the

impact/link turn debate
If the 2AC just impact/link turns the DA, make
them pay for this misguided decision.
-Spend 7-10 minutes on the DA in the block. This
is a prime opportunity to functionally end the
debate, so do it.
-Read their evidence and kritik it
-Extend your evidence
-Play some defense against the turns
-Read more impact scenarios
-Make sure the 2AC read uniqueness for their link
turn

Kicking out of a DAWhy?

Eliminates a cheap way for the Affirmative
to win
Going for all the disadvantages in the block
means none will be extended well. Depth
is better than breath.
Makes it clear to the judge that the DA is
now out of the round
Good debaters do thisso you should too

How to kick out of a DA

Firstidentify if the 2AC reads any add on advantages. You
always need to answer add on advantages, even if you are
kicking the DA. This is a common mistake.
Secondif the 2AC reads non unique evidence, extend it to
kick out of the DA. Exampleextend the 2AC #1that
congressional spending is high now.
Thirdif the 2AC reads no link arguments, extend it to kick out
of the DA.
Forthif the 2AC reads no impact argumentsextend it to
kick out of the DA. Takes out the terminal impact to any turns.
Fifthif the 2AC just impact or link turns the DAyou cant
really kick out of the DA. Instead, you should take the time
necessary to make them pay for it.

Answering Disadvantages
read it
Yes, read their evidence for the DA.
Frequently it wont be the best evidence
ever.
Maybe their evidence is over tagged as
well
Point out missing internal links

Answering Disadvantages
have a frontline
Pre round preparation can save a lot of
pain and mistakes. You should compose
your 2AC frontlines before the rounda
few reasons.
-reduces prep time usage
-reduces your stress level
-usually produces better frontlines than
on the fly

Answering Disadvantages
being strategic in the 1AC
If you have good intelligence on what your
opponents like to runthen prepare your
1AC accordingly.
-This means reading advantages that solve
for the DA impact
-This means reading pre-empts to the DA
in the 1AC.
-This means reading some type of moral
obligation advantage in the 1AC.

Answering Disadvantages
Generic Impact Takeouts
You dont have to have specific answers to every
impact out theregoing generic can work and
save time.
U.S. economy isnt key to the world economy
U.S. economy is resilient
Recessions dont cause wars
Declines in hegemony dont cause wars
Great power wars wont happen
Deterrence checks any risk of nuclear conflict
This strategy works better with small affirmatives.

Answering Disadvantages
Using Impact Calculus
Moral obligation to solve for AIDS,
womens rights, disease, outweighs the
DA impact
Judge shouldnt evaluate low probability
impacts
Affirmative shouldnt be held responsible
for the actions of intervening actors

Answering Disadvantages
Diversity is good
Make a diverse set of arguments in the
2AC. Read non uniques, no links, no
impact, turns, case outweighs, ect
Have a mix of cards and smart analytical
arguments in the 2AC frontline

Answering Disadvantages
using uniqueness to take out
impacts
Its easy to have uniqueness to take out
generic impacts, like U.S. hegemony low
now or U.S. economy in the tank now, or
U.S. is losing the WOT now.
Might even want to place some in the
1AC if time allows.

Answering Disadvantages
case outweighs
You should always make case outweighs
analysis on the DA. If you win that the case
outweighs the DA, then you could be losing the
DA 100% but it doesnt matter. Thats a good
place to be in. Consists of three things
FirstMagnitudethe case impacts are larger
than the DA impacts. Its all about the body count.
SecondTimeframethe case impacts come
before the DA impacts. Quicker is sicker.
ThirdProbabilitythe case impacts are more
likely to occur than the DA impacts.

Answering Disadvantages
Dont just impact or link turn!
It may seem tempting to do sobut 99%
of the time its the wrong way to go. Why?
Its a numbers game. You probably have
around 2 minutes to answer the DA in the
2AC, while your opponents have 13
minutes in the block to answer it. If the
negative is smart, theyll put out so many
answers that the 1AR cant catch up.

Answering Disadvantages
More key information
Uniqueness overwhelms the linkuniqueness
evidence is so good that theres no way the
plan can overcome it
In cross examinationfocus on one area of the
DA to destroy and take out. Dont forget to then
make these arguments in the 2AC.
Read your best answers first. Time is always
short in the 2AC, and you might not have time
to get beyond your first six answers. Ive seen
this happen way too often.