SEATTLE U IV MOTIONS SATURDAY SUNDAY

 

 

FINALS: Justice Philosophy

 

Debates relating to the various facets of justice, theory, and doctrine. Envision rounds around due process, both procedural and substantive, retribution, restorative, distributive, etc.

 

 

1.    THS citizen vigilantism.

 

 

2.    In a world in which it is possible to guarantee the wellbeing of every person on Earth by torturing one person, THBT it is ethical to torture that innocent person.

 

 

3.    INFO SLIDE: A victim veto is a proposed right for crime victims to reject plea bargains that they believe are too lenient or harsh. The proposal is based on the idea that victims should be given more influence in the criminal justice system.

 

THS victim vetoes.

 

 

4.    THBT humans are incapable of creating a just society.

 

 

5.    THW allow defendants sentenced to life in prison without parole the right to be executed instead.

 

 

SEMI-FINALS: International Relations and the Global South

 

Debates relating to the development of global policy, economics, and conflict as they pertain to the Global South.

 

 

1.    INFO SLIDE: The Sahel region is a region in Africa consisting of Senegal, Gambia, Mauritania, Guinea, Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, Chad, Cameroon, and Nigeria dominated by French colonial-hungover control. Over the past 3 years--backed by Russia--several successful and unsuccessful military coups swept the region, ousting French forces and rule.

 

 

This house supports the Sahel region's increased alignment with Russia.

 

 

2.             TH, as a developing nation in the global south, would prioritize economic development over climate change mitigation.

 

 

3.             INFO: There are two types of statehood recognition in international law. De Jure Recognition means one state or the world community legally accepts another state or government. In the UN this acceptance validates a state or government under international law, permitting that the state absolute rights and obligations against other states. In contrast De Facto Recognition acknowledges a state or government exists, but it does not give it any legal standing or rights.

 

 

TH, as the United Nations, would give de jure recognition to the de facto states that have emerged from dysfunctional governments.

 

 

4.             This house prefers the movement of Venezuelan migrants to South and Central American nations over North American nations.

 

 

5.             This house believes that the Global South should prioritize relations with China over the United States.

 

 

Quarter-Finals: Child Rights

 

Debates relating to the extent, scope, and cultural significance of the rights of children/minors.

 

 

1.    This house would mandate an advocate to represent children during civil custody disputes.

 

 

2.             This house would legalize child labor.

 

 

3.             INFO SLIDE: Australia has recently banned anyone under the age of 16 from creating an account on social media. This law will be enforced by social media companies, who must verify the age of users in order to stay in compliance with Australian law. Those under 16 will still be permitted to view content on social media that does not require account registration, such as YouTube.

 

 

TH, as the US, would implement the Australian policy.

 

 

4.             This house supports the abolishment of juvenile detention facilities.

 

 

5.             This house would require prospective parents to obtain a parenting license prior to having children.

 

 

 

ROUND 5: Global Mineral Industry

 

Debates relating to balancing environmental protection, economic development, labor rights, and state sovereignty.

 

1.    THBT climate activists should advocate on behalf of the development of clean technology rather than increasing regulation of the fossil fuel industry.

 

 

2.             THBT the extraction of rare earth minerals should be limited to state control.

 

 

3.             INFO SLIDE: The Lobito Corridor is a Biden Administration project that would link Angola with Zambia and the Democratic Republic of Congo, nations rich with the minerals used to make batteries for smartphones and electric vehicles.

 

THW end construction of the Lobito Corridor.

 

 

4.             TH, as the United States Federal Government, would prioritize environmental protection over mineral acquisition in their domestic mining operations.

 

 

5.             TH supports developing nations forming resource cartels to control the supply and pricing of raw materials. (e.g., "OPEC for minerals")

 

 

 

ROUND 4: Sports

 

Debates relating sports and esports; specifically equity, sports economy, and safety practices.

 

1 This house would ban children under 18 from participating in high-contact sports like American football, boxing, and mixed martial arts.

 

2 This house, as an athlete, would not participate in sporting events hosted by nations with poor human rights records.

 

3 INFO SLIDE: Since 2021, Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund has invested over 6 billion dollars into sports. This includes over 1.5 billion dollars spent on hosting events, over 1 billion in starting LIV Golf to compete with the PGA, over 1 billion in esports expenditure, and a number of other investments.

 

This house regrets Saudi Arabia's foray into sports.

 

4

INFO SLIDE: Online sports betting apps like FanDuel and DraftKings are gamified sports betting platforms that can be easily accessed and utilized without the same oversight as the casino industry. 

 

This house would ban online sports betting. 

 

5 INFO SLIDE: The Enhanced Games are an Olympic-style competition where athletes can take performance-enhancing drugs. At the Enhanced Games, the “couple of hundred” competitors will be able to take performance-enhancing substances at their discretion (such as, anabolic steroids, growth hormones, or testosterone replacement therapy etc.)

 

This house supports introduction of Enhanced Games.

 

 

ROUND 3: Tourism

 

Debates relating to dark tourism, tourism regulation or to the connections between tourism and gentrification; tourism and environmental impacts; and tourism and cultural preservation.

 

 

1 INFO SLIDE: Dark tourism involves travelling to places historically associated with death and tragedy including but not limited to war zones, disaster areas and sites of massacre or assassination. (Examples of places subject to dark tourism are the Cambodian Killing Fields or Nazi Concentration Camps).

 

THR the rise of “dark tourism.”

 

 

2 As a developing nation, this house would move away from tourism as a driver for economic growth.

 

 

3 This house supports the rise of anti-tourist policies.

 

 

4 This house would require visitors to demonstrate cultural competency before entering the country.

 

 

5 INFO SLIDE: Voluntourism is the merging of volunteering and tourism. Individuals travel to other countries through external organizations to perform charity work as well as learn about and explore the country they travel to.

 

This house regrets the voluntourism industry.

 

ROUND 2: Food

 

Debates relating to food sovereignty, food deserts, SNAP, plant-based diets, packaging/advertising.

 

 

1 TH, as the United States Federal Government, would mandate that all meat product packaging include vivid depictions of the animal's living conditions and demise.

 

 

2 This house believes that animal rights activists should prioritize legislative reforms over influencing individual eating habits.

 

 

3 This house regrets plant-based diets.

 

 

4 This house would nationalize grocery stores.

 

 

5 INFO SLIDE: Food sovereignty is the right of peoples to healthy and culturally appropriate food produced through ecologically sound and sustainable methods. Industrial agriculture is the form of modern farming that uses machinery, synthetic fertilizers and pesticides, and other practices to maximize productivity, scale, and profitability in the production of livestock, poultry, fish, and crops.

 

 This house believes that countries should prioritize food sovereignty over an industrialized model of agriculture.

 

ROUND 1: Democracy and Technology

 

Debates relating to the intersection between existing/emerging technologies and the democratic order. IE; the intersection between democracy and social media, surveillance, and other emerging technologies.

 

 

 

1.                INFO SLIDE: Managed democracy means that all elections and voting is AI assisted. Each voting person is surveyed by the AI about their beliefs, desires, opinions and then helps them vote for the right people by doing it for them. This house supports Managed Democracy.

 

 

 

2.             This house regrets Social Media's influence on democratic outcomes.

 

 

 

3.             This house believes that online anonymity does more harm than good for democracy.

 

 

 

4.             This house would suspend social media operations in the US during presidential election years (eg 2024, 2028, 2032, etc)

 

 

 

5.             This house believes that civic education should prioritize digital literacy over technical ability.