maybe he'd like debating?

Today and tomorrow I'll be starting my day by judging college debates held on campus. About 200 two-person teams are in town for the annual event. Though I never debated on an official team, organized debate, or "The Activity," as it is sometimes called within the group, is quite a spectacle to behold, and one that I would be proud to see PC take up.

When I arrived this morning for the 8 am round, I noticed a couple things that make The Activity seem different. First off, the smokers. Elite debaters work hard, really hard, which sometimes requires not sleeping much, hence, nicotine addictions are abundant. The same can be said for caffeine and taurine-laced speed drinks, which are so popular that Red Bull sometimes sets up camp at tournaments and gives out free samples. No doubt, this is a compliment to college debaters, on the logic that if they drink Red Bull, so will other kids on university campuses. Why? Because so many debaters are such good students. Nike has been known to give free shoes to the best playground basketball players, too. The second thing I noticed was groups of three and four huddled together, discussing .... well, I don't know. These were coaches with their teams and gigantic tubs of evidence, doing last second preparation. I quickly realized that I should act like I wasn't paying attention to these huddles because I could have easily been an opposing coach eavesdropping for a competitive advantage. Which I wasn't.

Obviously smoking cigarettes and chugging energy drinks are not good reasons for any kid to debate. Nor do they typify the whole group. What does is caring about major public issues, and the willingness to devote serious amounts of time to researching those issues and to travel to as many as fifteen tournaments a year for the debates. Each debate lasts about two hours, and each team is in eight debates per tournament. Do the math. It's downright demanding to debate at the university level, just as demanding as any Division I sport is. These kids defy all your stereotypes that college students are lazy and apathetic, if ever that was true. The debates have to be tightly organized and the best teams are usually those who have not only the evidence to win, but the ability to speak convincingly, clearly, and with passion. It's not easy.

This year the national topic is a timely one: namely, should the United States step up constructive engagement in the Middle East? The possible angles for arguing either side are almost endless, and the good that can come out of researching and participating in The Activity equally infinite. PC could do so much worse than spend his weekends as these 400 students are.

At the end of two hours this morning I had learned a little about Iran (less than I'd have liked) and a little more about something called "critical cartography." My head was spinning but my decision was made: it was Fordham over George Mason by a hair.