RESOLVED: The minimum wage should be substantially increased.
Join Intra-IU Fall 2015: YOU! Yes, YOU can debate the ethical, social, political, cultural, and philisophical issues around the American Minimum Wage!!!
Place: SPEA Undergraduate Lounge (First Floor near the exit towards 10th street)
Time: Sunday November 8th. Noon - 5:00 PM
Tournament Evidence Packet: Click Here!
The Indiana University Debate Team cordially invites all interested Indiana University undergraduate students to participate in the fourth annual Intra-IU Debate Tournament. On Sunday November 8th from 12:00 PM - 5:00 PM we will host our annual one day debate tournament to crown our Indiana University "champion" campus debater. The topic will be Resolved: The minimum wage should be substantially increased. The debate tournament is a great way to hone your public speaking, argumentation and listening skills all while meeting new people with a passion for argument across the campus.
We are once again partnering with the College of Arts and Sciences Themester on "@Work: The Nature of Labor on a Changing Planet" Students who participate will be eligible to win Indiana University gear purchased from the IU bookstore, bragging rights, and DINNER on us!
Do You Need Prior Experience?
NO! Whether you competed in forensics in high school or you have never watched a debate, this competition is a great place for you to improve on as well as show off your analytical argumentation and public speaking skills. The tournament is a perfect opportunity for you to engage in a fun debate environment with a small amount of time commitment. The Indiana University Debate Team will provide research, teaching sessions, and talking points for all teams to use as well as instructions on how to compete successfully at the tournament. All we need to complete the picture is YOU!
What is the Cost?
The cost to competitors is FREE. The tournament is an IU Debate service for undergraduate students on campus. The College of Arts and Sciences, The School of Public and Environmental Affairs, and the Office of Vice Provost of Undergraduate Affairs have provided support and funding for this important event in recognition that debate is a platform with widespread educational benefits. We will provide the space, food/drink, judging and awards at no cost to you.
The winning team, runner-up, and top speaking competitors will receive prizes purchased from the IU Memorial Union Gift Store.
Registration! Registration!! Registration!!! Registration!!!!
To register, fill out this Google form (LINK). If you have a partner, please make sure that they register as well. We would highly suggest that partners attend work sessions together. If you do not have a partner, we will assign one to you as soon as one becomes available. Typically half of the partnerships in this tournament are individuals who signed up who are then combined. It's a great way to meet a new friend!
If you have questions, please send an email to IUDebateTournament@gmail.com, subject-line should include "Intra-IU" in it.
The Deadling for Registration is Wednesday November 4th.
The Resolution: Resolved:The minimum wage should be substantially increased.
Why choose the minimum wage as the debate topic? Good question. Labor in a capitalist economy plays an integral part to society and the daily living being for most American workers. Today nearly two million US workers are employed at or possibly below the minimum wage. The minimum wage has ripple effects beyond the bottom. Evidence exists that min. wage increases could also mean higher wages for those workers (maybe even grad students) who are above the minimum now. Can we say that the current federal and state minimum wages are high enough? 40-hour a week minimum wage workers at $7.25 an hour are projected to bring in $15,080 annually. With the federal poverty line near $12,000 for an individual, it is highly debatable whether this can sustain a life of quaility for an individual or a family bread winner.
Of course the controversy is not one sided. When employee and worker costs go up arguments against minimum wage increases are a dime a dozen. Overcorrection could The cost of business may increase along with inflation and loss of future job creation. Students who attend the Intra-IU debate tournament will need to be able to defend veganism as well as have a strategy against veganism. You will debate "both sides" of the resolution. This means you will need to understandthe ethical, environmental, economic, and health related landscapes that surround the meat and animal product industries. Furthermore, if you are opposed to defending meat eating but believe that veganism is too restrictive, the resolution allows negatives to argue for vegetarian diets, or other permutations of diets that contain meat or animal byproduct.
Most importantly--regardless of your personal politics and eating habits, participating students will have to experience the thoughts and arguments of someone they may not agree with. 
Evidence
The IU Debate team will put together organized researched talking points for the tournament. The evidence is in a Dropbox account folder. This evidence should be viewed as a primer for the main arguments that will likely be made by students arguing over a topic dealing with an American minimum wage. Students are not limited to this evidence and they are encouraged to do more research to defend what they believe is the "best" perspective/argument on the topic.
Linked evidence will be located here! (Link will be live on October 9th)
Round Format
1st Affirmative Constructive Speech 5 Minutes
Cross examination 1 ½ Minutes
1st Negative 5 Minutes
Cross examination 1 ½ Minutes
2nd Affirmative Constructive 5 Minutes
Cross Examination 1 ½ Minutes
2nd Negative Constructive 5 Minutes
Cross Examination 1 ½ Minutes
Final Affirmative Rebuttal 3 Minutes
Final Negative Rebuttal 3 Minutes
Prep time: 3 Minutes
Round Debate Time:
35 Minutes + Decision = 45 Minutes
Tournament Schedule
November 8th, Sunday Location SPEA Undergraduate Lounge [Email updates will be sent out to all registered students]
12:00 PM: Welcome, Registration and Snacks
12:30 PM Round 1
1:40 PM Round 2
2:45 PM Round 3
3:50 PM Finals and Awards
What to do from now to the tournament
- Register via the google form link above.
- You should plan to attend one or more of the practice sessions so you are confident and comfortable with the material and format.
- Scan the debate team provided research material, use it to create core speeches against likely opponent arguments. Do more research if you wish to expand the arguments out even further. Our material is a primer, not the "end" of the discussion!