Basic Downloads

Are you new to speech and debate? The following downloads are for you. They contain introductions to various events that the Monument Membership explores. These downloads are updated every summer to prepare for the new year of competition.

Your Basic Downloads Source Material for Season 22:

File Name	S21-Policy-NCFCA-24-NEG-Kosovo.docx
File Size	210.84 KB
Date added	January 25, 2021
Category	Archived
Tags	Debate, NCFCA, Policy, Season 21
Author	Vance Trefethen

Kosovo is (was) a province in what used to be the country of Yugoslavia. (People from there are known as “Kosovars.”) It is now a self-declared, though not officially recognized by everyone, independent country. It is recognized by about half the member nations of the UN, but its independence is officially disputed by Serbia, from which it departed. When Yugoslavia broke up and blew up in the 1990s, it was the scene of fierce ethnic conflict. Outside intervention and separation from Serbia got things calmed down. It is well on its way to recovery from the war of the ‘90s. Its economy is growing and it is trying to integrate into Europe more generally. This plan will have the EU grant 90-day visa-free travel for Kosovars to they can easily travel in and out of the EU for short visits (tourism, business trips, etc.). A visa is a formal document granting permission to visit the country that you would have to obtain in advance and apply for at a foreign embassy within your home country. You stick it into your passport and show it upon arrival at the destination country. Visas cost money and take time and paperwork to apply for, so traveling “visa free” is a benefit to tourism and trade. Visa-free travel is typically done for many other advanced countries where there is little risk of the visitors illegally staying and becoming a burden to society. For example, a US citizen can travel to France and enter without a visa for a stay up to 90 days, probably because there’s not a big influx of Americans at risk of trying to illegally immigrate or commit terrorism in France, so they don’t need to have a lot of pre-screening for American tourists. But Kosovo as of now is not on the visa-free list for entry into the EU, and this plan would put it on that list. Understand that this visa reform has nothing to do with immigration, because the Kosovars coming into the EU would only be able to stay for 90 days and could not settle in the EU nor apply for work. It’s only useful for tourism and short business trips, not for resettlement and immigration. Unless, that is, the Kosovars use the visas just to get into the EU and then illegally stay longer or start illegally applying for jobs.

Download Your Preseason Documents, too:

You may still access Season 21 downloads here.

All Season 22 Basic Downloads will be updated by August 31, 2021. They will remain available through Season 22.

Easy Entry to the World of Speech and Debate

All Members have access to the digital copy of Easy Entry to the World of Speech and Debate by Chris Jeub. Download it below or order a hard copy.

Season 22 Release Schedule

Monument releases content all year long, from one national tournament to another, in what we call "seasons." We are entering Season 22 (2021-2022). For a list of all Member downloads for Season 21, click here. The following is the general release schedule for Season 22:

End of Season 21 - Officially archived on June 28, 2021. The new Season 22 releases begin July 5, 2021.
July-August - The first Monument Monday releases July 5, 2021. Basic informational material will continue through the summer (e.g. summaries, resolutional articles, etc.).
August 30, 2021 - End of the Pre-season, beginning of the official year of Monument Speech and Debate.
~~Christmas~~ Thanksgiving 2021 (we finished early!) - All foundational downloads are complete! Summaries of all releases are now available.
Through March 2022 - BONUS material released to members on a more as-needed basis using our Coaching Request Form.
April-June, 2022 - Qualifier and Nationals Preparation work is arranged...and Monument Members will be prepared to win!

Season 22 Debate Resolutions

Resolutions for Season 22 are posted here as they are announced by various speech and debate leagues.

Policy (all season):
- NCFCA: "Resolved: The United States Federal Government should significantly reform its policies regarding convicted prisoners under federal jurisdiction."
- NSDA: "Resolved: The United States federal government should substantially increase its protection of water resources in the United States."
- NSDA Vote for Season 23 (Due December 15, 2021):
  - OPTION 1 – GLOBAL CLIMATE CHANGE – Resolved: The United States federal government should substantially increase its support of multilateral greenhouse gas emission reduction regimes.
  - OPTION 2 – GLOBAL GEO-POLITICAL CRISIS: EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES – Resolved: The United States federal government should substantially increase its security cooperation with the North Atlantic Treaty Organization in one or more of the following areas: artificial intelligence, biotechnology, cybersecurity.
- Stoa: "Resolved: The United States Federal Government should substantially reform the use of Artificial Intelligence technology."
Lincoln-Douglas:
- NCFCA (all season): "Resolved: In the context of innovation, the proactionary principle ought to be valued above the precautionary principle."
- NSDA releases six resolutions through the year:
  - Sept/Oct Novice: "Resolved: Civil disobedience in a democracy is morally justified."
  - Sept/Oct Varsity: "Resolved: The member nations of the World Trade Organization ought to reduce intellectual property protections for medicines."
  - Nov/Dec: "Resolved: A just government ought to recognize an unconditional right of workers to strike."
  - Jan/Feb: "Resolved: The appropriation of outer space by private entities is unjust."
  - Next release is due February 1, 2022.
- Stoa (all season): "Resolved: In the field of biomedical engineering, restraint ought to be prioritized over scientific advancement."
Other Formats:
- Big Questions Debate (all season): "Resolved: On balance, societies benefit from religious belief and practice."
- Public Forum for Sept/Oct: "Resolved: The North Atlantic Treaty Organization should substantially increase its defense commitments to the Baltic states."
- Public Forum for Nov/Dec: "Resolved: Increased United States federal regulation of cryptocurrency transactions and/or assets will produce more benefits than harms."
- Public Forum for January: "Resolved: The United States federal government should legalize all illicit drugs."
- Public Forum's next release is due January 1, 2022.

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