Policy round

I will enjoy it to the fullest, seeing as I do home school policy debate. It will be in the format of the speech I usually give during a debate round. "Judge" refers to any person who votes on this round. Affirmative Definitions USAID: USAID is an acronym for the United States Agency for International Development. Criterion: As the Affirmative team, we would like to propose the criterion for the round as “Net Benefits”. What’s a criterion? It’s basically the standard that we believe is best to judge by. So what’s Net Benefits? Essentially, the team who provides the most benefit should win the round. Harms 1. Dehumanization A) over 700,000 orphans CLIFFORD J. LEVY, May 7th, 2010, . http://www.nytimes.com... Russia has more orphans now, 700,000, than at the end of World War II, when an estimated 25 million Soviet citizens were killed. B) Russia’s orphan system fails Deborah Mumm (Debbie Mumm is a parent to 5 children, 2 of which were adopted from Russia. She is an Adoption Coach who gives talks on the plight of orphans. She runs a local Adoptive Parent Support group and one online at . http://www.everythingforadoption.com... as well. For more information on the International Adoption process you can register for the Adoption Highway newsletter at . http://www.adoptionhighway.com...), October 24th, 2007, "What Becomes of Orphans in Other Countries? ," . http://goarticles.com... Russia has over 700,000 orphans with only about 25% of them housed. By age 15 or 16 a Russian orphan will age-out of the orphanage system. They are sent back into the streets with about $30 and nothing else. Of course, due to poor conditions in the orphanages many of these kids run away long before they age out. More than half of these kids end up in jail or prostitution. A Russian orphan will have his passport stamped 'Orphan'. People do not want to hire orphans and do not want them marrying their children. They are considered outcasts. Many boys will join the military but because of their orphan status will get the most dangerous jobs. Only one out of 10 orphans will make it to their 21st birthday. Most can't get jobs and the cycle of orphans continues. 2. HIV/AIDS is prevalent César Chelala( is the foreign correspondent for the Middle East Times International (Australia). He is a co-winner of an Overseas Press Club of America award for an article on human rights)( Dr. César Chelala is an international public health consultant and the author of “AIDS: A Modern Epidemic,” a publication of the Pan American Health Organization. ) July 23, 2010 . http://www.thewip.net... Russia has one of the world’s most serious epidemics of injection drug-use, according to the World Health Organization (WHO) and UNAIDS. It is estimated that Russia has two million injecting drug users (IDUs), 60-70% of whom have HIV-related illnesses. In the past decade, the number of HIV-infected people has increased from an estimated 100,000 to over one million. It is clear that Russia has a beyond major problem with HIV/AIDS. Inherency 1. FA has a high chance of being eliminated Samuel Worthington (is the President and CEO of InterAction, the largest alliance of U. S. -based international nongovernmental organisations. ), February 14th, 2011, "US foreign aid benefits recipients – and the donor," . http://www.guardian.co.uk... This new pressure point on the foreign aid budget comes as the administration is trying to reform the US development agency. To implement those reforms will need investment, not turning off the spigot. If a group of more conservative Republicans get their way, they will eliminate federal funding for the US Agency for International Development (USAID). 2. Russia is not addressing the core issue about HIV. Russia’s HIV is increasing César Chelala July 23, 2010 The Russian authorities have come under strong, widespread criticism for their policies aimed at dealing with the IDU/HIV epidemic. Education to control drug abuse has focused primarily on the promotion of drug abstinence. That approach has created obstacles to effective addiction treatment and HIV prevention. 3. Russian government is not successful with orphans CLIFFORD J. LEVY, May 7th, 2010, In recent years, the Russian government has repeatedly pledged to bolster efforts to help families stay together, to increase the number of children who are adopted and to expand foster care. But it has not had notable success. We propose the following plan to help solve the problems stated above. Plan Mandate 1: The US will supply $1billion per year to USAID to be used for aid to Russia. Funding: The $1billion will be taken from ethanol subsidies Enforcement: Enforcement will be carried out by the Government Accountability Office. The Affirmative team reserves the right to clarify this plan as needed throughout the round. Advantages 1. Humanization USAID's Assistance to Russian Orphans program has reached over 80,000 vulnerable children in Russia, reuniting more than 12,000 with families 80,000 children were helped by USAID just in 2008, with about 60 million dollars. By increasing foreign assistance by this amount, we can make a major impact on even more children. 2. HIV/AIDS combatted USAID 2009, USAID, 2009, “Russia: Health,” . http://russia.usaid.gov... “USAID's HIV/AIDS program focuses on reducing the rapid growth of the epidemic in Russia by increasing access to best practices in HIV prevention, care and treatment. USAID projects are raising awareness about and helping prevent transmission of the disease among at-risk populations, especially injecting drug users and vulnerable youth. This plan helps work on the rampant HIV/AIDS epidemic. Granted, it won’t solve every single case of it, but it will take necessary steps forward. The last two advantages have been about Russia. But what’s in it for you? That leads us to our third advantage. 3. National Security Foreign Aid is important for National Security Steve Rothman (Congressman Steve Rothman (D-NJ) is in his eighth term in the U. S. House of Representatives. He serves on the House Appropriations Subcommittees on Defense; and State and Foreign Operations, which appropriate all spending for the United States military and foreign aid respectively. ), February 18th, 2011, "Foreign Aid Cuts Jeopardize U. S. National Security," . http://www.algemeiner.com... But we can never forget that in meeting Congress’ first priority – keeping America safe – there is no better value than the one percent of the U. S. budget that is spent on foreign aid and diplomacy. . .. a poll commissioned in 2010 by the U. S. Global Leadership Coalition concluded, “nearly 90 percent of active duty and retired military officers agree the tools of diplomacy and development are critical to achieving U. S. national security objectives and a strong military alone is not enough to protect America. ” 90 percent of military officers agree! That is definitely credible. So, why vote for this case? Why would you, as the judge, want to enact the plan? For National Security, and to save thousands of lives. By voting Affirmative, you would save thousands of lives from HIV/AIDS, and thousands of orphans from life-eating poverty, while at the same time increasing our security, without creating any debt. Huh? Yes. In the status quo, this $ is being spent on Ethanol subsidies. With this plan, this money is diverted to be a better cause. I am now ready for Cross-Examination (if needed). Sorry for any formatting errors.