Epitaph of Man

Insidious maw, twisting and corrupting
All within its dusty reach.
As seconds slither by,
minutes vanish on the fetid breeze
waiting, waiting, waiting
forever.

Under huddle of cold comfort
Blankets pile high as futile bulwarks
Against creeping tendrils of frigid air.
Simple barriers of the familiar
Become cloth prisons
a holding cell
within
Me.

Time’s damned visage stares in perpetuity
Boring steadily through the mind,
embedded in the skull.
Sanity lies in oblivion,
The null æther beckons.
“Come hither.” It says,
whispering soft lullabies:
simple nothings
which taste
so sweet.


Cold in body and mind,
Embittered of man’s promises,
I wait for empty sleep
to overtake me
and grant me
peace.

For the good of one,
I must deceive another.
For the good of another,
I must betray one.

“Because of man’s lies, so must I lie here.”
So say these words:
An epitaph to man.
His resting place
In a cold, dark world.

And so I sleep,
An eternity in a night.
“And let the world know
that here, man lies forever.”
Good night.

Entering College Forensics

Woo! That aside, I'm starting to settle into the land of college debate for now.
We meet weekly (from 6 pm to 8pm, blargh), and our first tournament is either in November or December.

My first impression: College debate is far more systemically ruthless. Apparently a standard tactic for the Negation (or opposition, since there is no negation any more...) is to refute the Affirmation (or Proposition, for the same reason)'s case in the first speech, and to hold off on the counter-case until the second speech.

Now, this may not sound completely evil, but realize that this forces the Affirmation (I refuse to become the Prop. and Opp.) to refute an entire case in their rebuttal. And this is accepted as being standard fare. Bah. Whatever happened to debate being about communication and sharing of ideas? I, for one, refuse to degrade myself with these tactics. I hold myself to be an ethical debater, and I will not compromise myself for material gain.

Besides that, I'm going to be doing an oratory on the American Dream. I'll talk more about that when I finish writing it.

Finally, apparently we get food stipends for tournaments. Woot!

LD Sept. - Oct. 2008 Topic: Woot!

Resolved: It is morally permissible to kill one innocent person to save the lives of more innocent people.

Yeah. Freaking awesome topic, and I don't get to do it. Beh. This is perhaps one of the most distilled 'value' topics I've ever seen. Why the NFL didn't use it for NatQuals or Nationals is completely beyond me. There is no crack for policy or statistics to enter. There is no odd loophole such as "Justice" to frame it oddly. It is just "morally permissible".

Even though I don't actually compete with this topic, I'll post various bits about it to help any new or seasoned LDers to victory.

First of all is a breakdown of the topic and some first-look musings as to potential problems or ideas.

1. "Morally permissible": This is the big frame which the entire round hangs upon. Key things to remember is that this is not justice, or legal, or constitutional. This is 'permissible'. Is it allowed within your moral framework, and why is your framework best?

2. Utilitarianism: There's more to it, but that's effectively what it is. It ought to be straightforward, but there'll always be some ex-CXer with a bone to pick who will attempt to screw this topic up by defining everything to hell and back.
Remember, definitions are like salt. Use them wisely and to taste. Don't let your opponent define your case for you. You don't need a strict definition of what and how the killing will be. LD is about abstractions and values. Don't muddle a topic this good with statistics and plans.


Ideas:

Aff: Pretty much, you have the default easy ground. It isn't the high ground, but it's going to be many debaters' strongest cases. I'm not going to give away some secret case idea, (that goes to my team), but pretty standard and pretty strong cases will come off of utility and practicality. Don't use hypothetical examples. Judges are like tigers. Poke them with knives, and you'll get your arm mauled off by an angry tiger.
As an Aff, answer me this: Why is murder morally acceptable because you feel you have a good reason? Murder is the killing of an innocent person. Why is it acceptable?

Neg: You've got the fun part. You're going to have to delve deeply into Deontological systems to figure this one out. Remember, don't let your opponent use flashy examples. Latch onto the inherent value of a person. If the Aff tries to bring up the dirty bomb scenerio or some sort, ask where the bright line is. If they bring up the value of a certain person (family, politicians, and the like) figure out the subjectivity of human value.


Anyways, I'll post more later. I'm tired.

Nationals Results

The results are in, and I got 34 points in 5 speeches, and we were on base 4.
Da Goose got 35, but he was in a different chamber. It's nice to know that we were virtually tied, given his godliness in public speaking.

I think the barrier was about 40-41, as that's where some people who broke were at. It was top 8, so it wasn't a strict point scale.

Oh well. That's how life goes I guess.

Fireworks, on the Fourth of July

Fireworks, on the Fourth of July

Every year, the birth of our nation is celebrated:

In barbeques and cookouts,

In parties and gatherings,

In professional sports and amateur war.

By day we feast and play in the sun,

By night we talk and watch false suns rise.

Time to watch fireworks

On the Fourth of July.

Friends and family

Old and new

Gather round the flames.

Games are played, and stories are told,

All in subtle order.

Clockwork soldiers long past,

drum an ethereal tattoo.

Pounding beats thump, thump, thumping

On the horizon.

War’s refrain rattles listener’s skulls,

Stirring withered moral fibres for one glorious night.

Thump, thump, thump go fireworks

On the Fourth of July.

But something else stirs this eternal night:

A friend’s return

The tugging of emotions long buried.

Smoldering lust and flickering affection

Once thought extinguished,

Now roar into life once more.

Time, however, has damped this flame

Keeping it contained

Before it could erupt.

There shall be no harsh words tonight,

No fireworks on the Fourth of July.

A glimmer,

A jiggle,

A squeal of glee,

And a shared memory.

Nothing happens

When friends are only friends,

And love is only temporary.

Always the nice guy,

Never her nice guy.

Late nights of talking,

Memories of impaired judgment

Produce hope that perhaps potential still lies within.

Drawing closer,

Bodices warming more than each other,

A furtive pet,

Quick moments,

And slow embraces

All combine to kindle hope

That one day there will be

Real fireworks

On the Fourth of July.