District 7

[gragerts at georgetown.edu]

>It's happened to GW for four consecutive years (as i am aware) and GW 
>hasn't been represented in the tab room. 

Actually, the last two rounds almost everyone is debating in a pull up 
round.  There's not that many teams, many teams have already debated 
each other, and many schools have 2 teams in the tournament.  
Furthermore, your school had even predicted that you would be debating 
the gtown teams based on numbers of wins and all the other constraints 
listed above.  

More importantly, teams that were "represented" in the tab room got 
equally "screwed."  Catholic was pulled up twice to debate the 
undefeated team.  


It doesn't make any sense why more than one person needs to be in the 
tab room or why pairings are not done by computer - it only allows for 
too much presumption questioning people's integrity - why make it that 
difficult? 

Agreed.  Although two people is probably best to check the other and 
speed things up.  This would also put more capable bodies in the 
judging pool.  It seems silly that when the tournament is desperate for 
judges to begin with that several goods one are in the tab room, and 
having coaches there cuts directly away from coaching time.

>Unless of course - there IS a reason - it just seems to be about 
>personal >politics lately down in The district. Additionally, there is 
>NO reason >why a team who has reached their ballots needs to hit a 
>team who only >needs one or two more ballots - they should hit a team 
>who is already >out and let the other "potential bid" teams duke it 
>out. 


You are going to have a very hard time answering Parcher's argument 
that it's only fair for you to debate the undefeated team because the 
REASON those other teams are in your bracket is because they've already 
lost two ballots to that team.  It's clearly not fair if team A and 
team B have each lost 4 ballots, but team two of team A's ballots were 
taken by the top team at the tournament, while team B only lost ballots 
from more mediocre teams.

I think the pullups based on opposition records makes a lot of sense.


>(i could be wrong of course - and it could all have been a nasty 
>coincidence you know - for four years in a row. 

For four years in a row, the tournament has faced the SAME problems it 
does now that most district tournaments face, as explained above.  And 
when there is one team in a tournament that goes undefeated, it 
uniquely skews the bracket.  


Sarah Gragert
Gtown