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UMKC SDI 2008 Topicality – nuclear power
B. Violation. The plan increases incentives for nuclear power in the United States.
C. Standards.
1. Field context: our interpretation is derived from US Code. This establishes the
best real world application and, because it comes from the authority on the subject
of energy in the United States, it provides the necessary predictability to determine
the parameters for a topical plan. Any other interpretation would be arbitrary,
skewing the potential for good debate.
2. Limits: Restricting the resolution from oil, natural gas, coal or nuclear power
incentives limits affirmative cases to a fair standard. Prefer smaller limits so debate
can be deeper and negatives can effectively research the topic. Other interpretations
would justify an explosion of the topic – the result would be a new-affirmative of the
week, every week, destroying debate.
1. Fairness: without a fair topic, debate becomes a rigged game, ruining pedagogy
and the nature of the competition.
2. Jurisdiction: The judge only has the authority to answer the resolution question.
Proving an alternative policy is a good idea would not warrant and “affirmative”
ballot.
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UMKC SDI 2008 Topicality – nuclear power
Interpretation extensions
Alternative energy means not fossil fuels or nuclear. There are plenty of energy
options from which to choose, proving that our interpretation is not over-limiting.
The University of Utah, No date given, “Alternative Energy Sources”
http://home.utah.edu/~ptt25660/tran.html
Energy is the ability to do work. While energy surrounds us in all aspects of life, the ability to harness it and use it for constructive
ends as enconomically as possible is the challenge before mankind. Alternative energy refers to energy sources which
are not based on the burning of fossil fuels or the splitting of atoms. The renewed interest in this field of
study comes from the undesirable effects of pollution (as witnessed today) both from burning fossil fuels and
from nuclear waste byproducts. Fortunately there are many means of harnessing energy which have less
damaging impacts on our environment. Here are some possible alternatives: Solar, Wind Power,
Geothermal, Tides, and Hydroelectric
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UMKC SDI 2008 Topicality – nuclear power
We-meet the counter interpretation. Nuclear power does not use fossil fuels.
Reasons to prefer.
a. Ground: our interpretation locks in negative ground against the most commonly
used forms of energy (fossil fuels). An interpretation that says traditional energy is
energy that harms the environment means the affirmative could give incentives to
anything that moves away from harming the environment so the negative would
have to be prepared to defend energy that is not even being used yet. This is a bad,
unpredictable literature base that makes it impossible for the negative to debate the
case