During the National tournament in Dallas this year I tweeted something that seemed to have garnered some anger and animosity towards me. Some of these people who were/are apparently mad at me have since rescinded their public opinions. Since I seem to get a lot of flak for my thoughts and opinions, I figured that I would lay them out on here so that the entire forensic community can have their own thoughts and opinions on this matter. What I am to write about is not in any wa

Recently, I've had the honor of working with some incredible performers from every circuit imaginable in our fantastic speech world. From New Jersey to Seattle, Iowa to North Carolina, Massachusetts, Missouri and Colorado, I've seen performers who prove exactly why the National Speech and Debate Association (formerly the NFL) showcases some of the most diverse styles in the country. In being able to pursue the amazing opportunity to coach students from all around the country,

Every team has its own set of rules, customs, and traditions. I respect that. I love seeing teams continue on with the ritual of years' past. I like the sense of pride in the program, the school, and the activity that these traditions allow the competitors to connect to. However, over the course of the last two years, I've been thinking about some things that I feel are commonly seen as "Unspoken Rules". I want to vent about a few of these and hopefully we can start to clean

Last night I finally went to watch Les Mis. I want to write about this for a bit before I get into my point. The movie, from the very first scene, had my emotions on strings. I'm not afraid to admit that this adaptation made me tear up more than I ever could have expected. As all the storylines started to unfold, the more and more brilliant I realized the acting was. All that said, it was really Anne Hathaway who really blew me away. (Sidenote: If she doesn't get nominated an

Christmas Note: I'd like to take this special time to express my feelings about 3P and this community. Being a coach for a program (or in my case- 2, plus 3P, plus other commitments) can become more arduous as the years start to pile up. If, in my 20's, I am already starting to sound like an old man at the end of his wits, imagine what my future students will get from me 20 years down the road. (It's a scary thought!) Over the last 12+ months, I have had the pleasure of helpi

When summer started out, I was feeling very excited of things to come in the following season. One of the things I was most excited for was finally getting to attend The Glenbrooks tournament. In all my years in this activity, this tournament has been one of the looming holes of my career. First, I'll start by saying a HUGE shout out to the people running the show, and particularly the hands that make it happen behind the scenes. It was very well run and the most punctual tou

Over the last several days I've received over 15 books through the mail so that I may assist some students in cutting lit for their respective interp events. A few hours a day I make time to sit down and enjoy my reading material. Sometimes it's a great read, other times it's not. After getting through a few books, I began to wonder why I change up my style of cutting for every script. In light of this, I have created some basic rules for myself to follow. Every person has a