hi im kai! I did 4 years of debate in hs for Kamiak and im currently a senior studying computer science at university of Washington with a specializations in algorithms and ai! my debate background is that i did policy in hs and qualled to the toc and stuff. i also have coached policy, ld, and pufo since graduating.
my pronouns are he/him or they/them i really have no preference.
add me to the email chain: daikaile13@gmail.com
NOTE: I have not judged debate for like 2 years, so please talk to me like i know legitimately nothing about the topic
policy paradigm
tldr – read whatever you want, im good with anything. I ran args from queer asian poetics to hard right policy affs so just argue well :)
some tips and things about me:
- more flow oriented and im fine with speed
- i don’t think debaters have to be nice, but please don’t be obnoxiously rude.
- i tend to nod my head to things that i am responding well to or if i’m confused it will probably be visible so looking up from the flow or computer occasionally could help u!
- i dont know much about this topic so pls avoid too jargon-y words!
- also it takes me afew seconds to adjust to spreading sometimes so if you could start your speech just a bit slower and then amp up in like 5 second to full speed that would help me a lot thnx!
 
topicality – because i’m not super familiar with the topic if you go for t I would appreciate you slowing down at parts so i can really digest the arguments. in general, im not the perfect judge for t but if you win it you win it
- for aff – the aff doesn’t win reasonability without a counter interpretation, however I think leaning on reasonability is usually the right move
- for neg – a good t debate should (1) have comparative impact calculus on the standards debate and (2) probably have a caselist. I do not think im the best judge to go for contrived t violations infront of because I tend to lean aff in those debates but also if you do impact calc right then it shouldn’t be small bc ur standards have massive implications for the topic.

kritiks – where im most comfortable and have the most experience. but like a lot of k judges, I actually find myself voting against the k because teams tend to just throw out jargon words or find 6 different ways to make a “structural antagonism” link.
- the neg should contextualize the link to the aff, have external impacts for them, and explain why each one turns case and is a reason for competition. the link specificity is what makes k debate persuasive so take advantage of that. that being said, you need to win either an alt that resolves the links or a framework question that resolves your offense while nullifying the aff’s normative mode of politics.
- the aff should probably challenge the alt with both theory and substance, hedge back against self serving framework args, and answer the k contextually with the affirmative (as in don’t let your aff get lost in the muddle of ontology questions, keep it relevant and central to the debate). please just have a coherent strategy like if you are reading a hard right aff, impact turn the k and leverage your aff’s huge impacts. if you are soft left, you might not wanna say heg good but rather go for the perm with link turns and alt solvency deficits as net benefits. regardless, make it obvious to me that you have thought out the kritik prior to the round and have developed a larger narrative as to why the aff is still a good idea.
- as for literature bases im probably most familiar with antiblackness, queer theory, asian id, deleuze, imperialism/set col, and embodiment args. I am fine with Baudrillard, bataille, and psycho debates, but I’ll probably need you to unpack them a little more in cross-x and make arguments past ~we are insurrection and our performance is transgressive~.
 
k affs – your aff should probably talk about the topic and should have a competing model of debate. if you are kritiking debate, i'll prob be more persuaded by framework but also if you win you win. embodiment framing? cool. semiotic insurrection? sure, why not. i myself did identity performance affs so I tend to like that avenue a bit better, but if you wanna do some white pomo stuff, and if you can explain high theory args in a way that is palatable and accessible to my feeble stem major brain then go for it! I will say that framing and impact calc is esp important in k aff v fw debates. the aff needs to explain to me why something like minority participation outweighs procedural fairness or how access controls the internal link to portable skills. the same goes for the neg, explain to me how your model of debate can encompass the aff’s offense or how procedural fairness is the only thing my ballot can solve in round. a lot of times in these debates it gets to the final rebuttals and both sides have just really not articulated why their thing is bigger and why it warrants a ballot which makes everybody in the room unhappy so pls try to do impact calc
- also, the neg should probably answer case, even if they aren’t “predictable” and you “don’t have well researched arguments”/ cards - you need to put ink on case because half the time just analytically breaking down how illogical the k aff’s method is can go a long way. I will say, however, I do think that the strat you go for should be tailored to the aff you’re hitting and it’s perceptually disappointing to watch an amazing k aff only to watch the neg stand up and read the most uninspired neg strat ever.
- i actually see myself voting for framework teams a lot because the aff really drops the ball and they let the debate no longer be about the 1ac but rather be about framework. please keep your aff alive and central in these type of debates - do things like extend the performance, explain why your FORM matters and why that warrants a ballot, etc.
- as for neg teams - i lean towards fairness being an internal link HOWEVER i will happily vote for it as an impact if you are winning it. i may be a more k leaning judge, but that also means i’m just as happy to reward well explained and framed arguments against them. but with that i will say - k affs some of the time can be unfair - so you should be too. read 6 off, 3 counterplans, make them go for condo and then go for t and say it outweighs. read their own cards back at them as piks and take advantage of the fact that they invited a debate that is ~unpredictable~. innovative strategies + warranted responses usually results in a win or at the very least much higher speaks
 
disads – I don’t think I really need to explain much for this one but here are some of my thoughts – disad should turn case somehow and links should be contextualized. ptx disads can be really great arguments and I will reward well researched and original takes on the political process of enacting the plan. that being said, I don’t fw riders disads. I do think there can be 0% risk of a disad, esp given than the internal links are already extrapolated lol. case specific disads are always a plus. also, framing rarely is enough by itself to answer the disad bc of turns case args but if you win aff framing with defense/offense on the disad then you are prob in a good place
 
counterplans – aff theory vs counterplans are underused and a necessary check against how abusive cps have become in debate. pics and process cps are probably abusive in truth but its debate so like if you win ur .01% better than the aff then im gonna pick you up no question. aff needs to win offense against the cp AND explain why that outweighs the net benefit.
 
theory – underutilized in policy and can be really interesting to watch, so here are some of my opinions.
- condo is probably good but anything over 3 is ridiculous
- id rather see you go for substance than theory in a round where you are ahead on both and ill reward your speaks for doing so
- reading a ton of conditional planks that fiat away any solvency deficits is probably bad and I encourage aff teams to beat on this with theory
 
case – do it please (esp the k teams out there). good case debate = good speaker points, and affs so often drop warrants in 1nc case answers that you should extend as conceded solvency arguments. and to the k teams, even reading links on case and contextualizing the argument to the specifics of the affs advocacy is enough for me. case turns are easily the sexiest arguments you can make infront of me so please do things like PLEASE read heg bad or china rise good esp when reading a k.
ld paradigm: I'm competent I swear but prefer progressive flavors of ld but I can evaluate traditional ld just fine