Help with a Debate Project for My Sister

Damn straight I did! (Sorry though, sometimes I just get so exited about "Discredit Shaw Time".)

Well, if she has to argue for capitalism, I'd suggest she use this quote, which I'm sure we've all heard: "Democracy is the worst form of government; except for all of the rest." Even though it is about democracy, you get the picture. Everything else may sound good, but capitalist societies are currently some of the strongest and most stable countries on the planet (for the most part).

Well you seem to do it all the time. You just seem like an all around angry and hateful person.

Nonsense. I'm a wonderful human being.

Look at the countries that are doing well in capitalism europe, america parts of asia and most of the countries that were ruled by them are third world nations. Capitalism favors those countries that were already dominent powers in the world but how meny of the latin american and african nations were able to become great nations through capitalism

A

And I'm sure you are, so stop being angry, dammit!

P.J. O'Rourke said this quote in his book "Eat the Rich" but replaced democracy with capitalism, so she has her ethos right there.

I did policy debate for four years, forensics for four years, JUCO debate for one year, and am getting on the KU debate team in the Spring. Despite this, I've never heard of Canadian debate and I have no idea how it works. I assume it's closer to policy than to PFD, but for all kinds of debate the most important things, far more important than argument, are these:

1. Self-confidence
Don't ever pretend for even a second that you're wrong about anything, ever. Even when you blatantly are. Scratch that, especially when you blatantly are. It throws your opponents for a loop and as long as you can throw at least some kind of evidence behind your statement, you're good. And don't underestimate the power of overt lies. If you state them as fact, they are very likely to be accepted as fact.

2. Appearance
Look nice. This doesn't just mean clothing, hair, etc. (which are indeed very important), but also your lexicon, your syntax, and most importantly your inflection. When you are debating you are the literal presentation of an idea. As such, you need to create an image of yourself and (assuming you have a partner, as most debate does) your partner that says to the judge/audience, "Even if you don't like me, I'm right." It's oftentimes better to avoid being liked by a judge or audience because if they like you they might try to pre-empt bias by purposefully viewing you negatively. Someone who they don't like, on the other hand, is someone who, despite their contemptability, did an excellent job.

No matter how terrible your argument is, as long as you present it and yourself well, you'll win.

I really appreciate all of your help, ^_^ and thanks for your tips Kalalification because I get extremely nervous at debates, so it should really help and the debate style we're doing is Cross Examination and I think after the Capitalism debates we have two impromptu and if you have any tips for that that would be awesome!

Well, cross-ex is just one component of policy debates here, so I'm not familiar with the one you're talking about. However, general cross-ex advice:

When you are cross-examining an opponent

1. Ask questions you know the answer to
The goal of cross-examination is to point out flaws in your opponents' argument, and to make yourself look competent in comparison. Those with procedural preferences like to use cross-ex as a means to clarify their opponents' arguments, but the primary purpose is to get them to say things that make them look bad.

2. If your opponent is unable to answer a question, move on
People get slammed all the time for being 'bitchy' in cross-ex. So while it is important to make your opponent look foolish, it's also important to maintain a professional image. Bring up their inability to respond in a speech, or at a later time.

3. Retain control of your CX
Don't let your opponent answer overly long or turn a question back on you. It's your cross-examination and you have the authority to control the dialogue that goes on in that exchange. Again, avoiding rudeness is important, but you can cut someone short on their response by saying, "Thank you," or "Okay, that's what I wanted to know." If your opponent tries to ask you a question during CX, you should avoid responding and remind them that they're the ones being cross-examined.

When you are being cross-examined

1. Don't let your opponent trap you
Seeing as how the goal of CX is to get your opponent to give an answer that you knew they would give, it can be tricky to avoid entrapping yourself when being questioned. People will always try to get you to respond in a way that's favorable to them, so the best counter is to do something unexpected. Most people try to force their opponents into yes/no responses, but if you are faced with such a question and don't want to give that answer, just say something along the lines of, "I don't think a simple yes or no can adequately answer your question."

2. If you don't know the answer to something, don't panic
Throughout any debate, by far the most important thing is to remain self-confident. Even when you're faced with a question you don't know the answer to, you should act as if you do. If it's a question of simple fact, then just say that you'll bring it up after looking over your evidence. If it's a question of argument, you have more leeway. Try to imagine not just what the literal meaning of your answer is, but how the judge/audience and your opponents are going to view what you say, because they will be framing their responses accordingly. I find that it's useful to put yourself in their shoes and think about what your own response to your statements would be.

Kal, are you going to be a lawyer or something?

Although I'm supposed to give reasons against capitalism, I'll give you some reasons for capitalism.
1) The economic boom of the 80's in the USA.
2)The economic boom of the 40's and the end of the Great Depression in the USA.
3)The rise of great profitable companies like Apple.
4)The economic boom in West Germany after World War 2.

Here are some reasons against your opponent.
1)The Five Year Plan's use of forced labor.
2) The lack of consumer goods in Russia.
3)Nationalizing industry and agriculture in Russia.
4) Collectivization and the problems with it.

Hopefully these help you with your debate.

I don't know how Apple can be used as a good example as it is a very large abuser of labour laws and human rights.

Well labour and human rights issues are present in capitalism so issues like these could happen.

Use Apple as an idea of how capitalism fails it abuses human rights so they can can maximize profits.

Can you explain to me these human rights issues to me please. I said these issues are present in capitalism and could happen even today.

The factories where Apple products are made do not provide safety equipment to any of the workers. Many workers are poisoned and are just fired and left to die. They also do not provide services to the employees that live at these factories in dorms where 21 people share an apartment meant for four, many have committed suicide. They also break Chinese labour laws which are hard to break, even after a 50% pay raise they are still paid under the minimum wage and they work too much unpaid overtime. The money that you paid for that iPad 9 dollars goes to the hundreds of people that made the device in these terrible conditions the rest is profit.

I came up with this in a quick google search:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/apple/7330986/Apple-admits-using-child-labour.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Criticism_of_Apple_Inc.#Labor_practices

Edit: Ninja'ed

If you want information about Apple try this organization: SACOM.

At one point I was.