mardi 10 juillet 2007
Second day of finals
The good news: Andrew has finally extracted his pen from the Bermuda Triangle that is the boys' room. Caroline did not fall down the stairs today, despite there being rather a lot of them at our venue. Sean B. almost got a vegetarian meal today. Sean S. got to use the term "cleavages" in a debate. Kierstin seamlessly added 30-second markers into her timekeeping.
Also, we won our quarter-final against South Africa (This house would privatize public utilities). We had a very close (3-2) debate against Singapore on the topic "This house would partition Iraq". That means that we placed fourth overall, a finish that we are very happy with. Plus this means that instead of preparing for the final motion tonight, we can go out for dinner and go see some of the Seoul sights we haven't yet had a chance to. First on our list: a very tall tower with an excellent view of Seoul.
This has been a long and amazing journey, and we would like to thank all of you who have coached us, encouraged us, and put up with all of those "Guess what I just read in the Economist" conversations along the way.
lundi 9 juillet 2007
On to quarters!
After a tough fight versus Slovenia, Canada took the win 2-1; we were proposition for the motion "This house would force organizations to appoint more women to senior positions." Tomorrow morning we're up against no.16 South Africa, who defeated the top seeded Ireland in their octofinal.
The other quarterfinals are Australia/Singapore, Scotland/Hong Kong, and Pakistan/England.
dimanche 8 juillet 2007
On to Octos
Above are photos of the two PowerPoint slides announcing our position in the break. We, as you might have guessed, broke 9th. It's Slovenia for us in tomorrow's octos. We may even get on Slovenian TV, as Slovenian journalists are filming a documentary of Team Slovenia's experience. We'll let you know of the results as soon as we can tomorrow, but for now I must sign off to get much-needed intelligence rest.
vendredi 6 juillet 2007
Good News or Bad News First?
Well, except in debate we would call this a false dichotomy. There is in fact a third option; we could give you no news at all. While this would be the best option based on today's results, that really would make this blog rather pointless.
This morning we faced off against Estonia, winning the round 3-0. In the afternoon impromptu match, we were proposition for the motion "This house would legalize all drugs." After a rather confusing and difficult round, we took the loss 2-1 against the Netherlands.
Of the 17 rounds, only four prop teams took the victory, and there were several other surprise results as well, with USA defeating Pakistan and Israel beating England.
The battle continues Sunday, after a break for the DMZ tomorrow, with matches against Malaysia and Singapore.
jeudi 5 juillet 2007
Team Canada Report
I personally would like to congratulate Andrew Rusk and Stephine Dick for their historic accord reached today, that will see them debate partners next year. Photographic evidence to follow. Also tomorrow is a very important day as Venezuela has its independence day, we wish them a happy time, and hope their country prospers with unity and prosperity.
Day 2
Round Three This House would make Holocaust denial a crime: 2-1 loss against Scotland (but, according to one judge, we outstyled them)
Round Four This House would not have governments place limits on the areas which scientists may research: 3-0 win against Slovakia
mercredi 4 juillet 2007
Results the Low Down
Round One- Development Aid opposition against Korea
results: 2-1 Canada
Round Two THW ban the use of models under a healthy weight Prop.
Result 3-0 Canada
Two Wins, 5 ballots. We are starting with a bang. Ya Basta!
sean b
mardi 3 juillet 2007
Happy forever tour of Seoul
Changing of the guards at a traditional palace with a traditional Dunkin' Doughnuts as backdrop
A protest at City Hall, reportedly regarding rules against street vending
Lunch. We have no idea what this was, but it was tasty.
2002 FIFA World Cup Stadium
So that's how one refers to citizens of Seoul.
Team Canada took a highly educational and entertaining tour of Seoul today, including stops at City Hall, the World Cup stadium, and World Cup Park, which used to be a pile of garbage (remind you of anything, Saskatchewanians?). There was also high sociability, as we had an opportunity to get to know Teams Ireland, Australia, South Africa, Philippines, Scotland, Indonesia and many other better. We went out for fried chicken tonight, a daring feat given that we had forgotten our phrase books back at the hotel. Never fear, loyal fans, all turned out delicious. Must run, however, and finish prepping in Bunker 3.0 for tomorrow's debates, our first of the tournament. !Ya basta!
dimanche 1 juillet 2007
Finally here
We're in Seoul now, and unfortunately no longer have time to write elaborate picture blogs. Seeing that we're actually doing things of interest now, however, we don't really need to make up story lines and rely on trick photography to make what we're doing seem more exciting.
We registered today and received the draw. It is as follows:
July 4
Round One THW make the development of clean industry a condition for receiving non-emergency aid Opposition versus South Korea
Round Two Impromptu Proposition versus Germany
July 5
Round Three THW make Holocaust denial a crime Prop versus Scotland
Round Four Impromptu Opp versus Slovakia
July 6
Round Four THS the withdrawal of American troops from military bases in Asia Opp versus Estonia
Round Five Impromptu Prop versus the Netherlands
July 8
Round Six THBT free trade harms the developing world Prop versus Malaysia
Round Seven Impromtpu Opp versus Singapore
We've been having an excellent time training here over the past few days, but have had several brushes with death. Apparently it is completely acceptable to drive and park on the sidewalk here. Above are pictures of other things we have been doing.
vendredi 29 juin 2007
San Fran
The Marathon day of travel has begun, and after a 12 hour flight we will be at our destination, where we can, if the gods are willing take the world by storm. On another completely unrelated note the weather forecast for Korea is rain and thunder.
jeudi 28 juin 2007
The End of the Beginning
Dear Diary,
It is 9:19pm and our flight to
On a more serious note, our time in
The last two blog entries have been incredibly hilarious and witty. In fact, several times throughout the week we’ve considered burning the cases (we came rather close when we had the barbeque) and going into trick photography or photojournalism. Unfortunately, due to the hour of the evening, this blog will not be hilarious or witty, but will rather be a series of pictures reminiscing throughout the week. It is our hope that through our pictures you can take a quick ride on the rollercoaster we can debate. Enjoy!
mercredi 27 juin 2007
En Route to the Bunker
Step One: Penetrate the security perimeter. Official entrances do not exist; such unnecessary infrastructure would only serve to reveal our location to the Australians. Climbing the four-meter fence assists in developing the bicep muscles necessary for the countless points-of-information to be exchanged in the following ten hours. Endurance is key.
Step Two: Proceed along the first path you see. This may or may not take you in the right direction, it really depends on where the first path you see leads. A true Canadian would know the way. Avoid leaving any trail to ensure you can't be tracked. DO NOT chase the geese. Even if they are looking at you.
Step Three: cross any rivers, streams, gorges, thickets, or oceans you may come across. (Bridges not provided). Ensure that no team members are left behind. Even the little ones that may be difficult to spot.
Step Four: climb through the hills, dodging the thorns and branches, in an upward direction. Whenever possible, photograph the journey; you never know when they'll come in handy for an overly hyperbolic blog post. Again, ensure no members are lost. It's hard enough for four people to eat all that pastry.
Step Five: climb through a forest as you ascend the hill towards the Team Canada Bunker. Once again, remaining alive remains a key priority. One false step and you'll be falling faster than the GDP of Latin America following the adoption of Import Substitution Industrialization. Remember: those pastries won't eat themselves.
Step Six: arrive at the bunker. DO NOT turn on any lights... it really ruins the effect. Discussion and debate occur behind locked and bolted doors. Windows remain shut in fear of exposing our secret tactics. Photography is strictly limited beyond the use of officially sanctioned cameras.
Step Seven: pack up for the night. Ensure to take all secret documents and keep them under close surveillance at all times. Doors are locked and windows bolted shut. Shower, sleep, eat and repeat. One more day before Team Canada is set to take Korea by storm.
mardi 26 juin 2007
A day in the glamorous life of Canada's National Debate Team
0742: Sean S. wakes up. Coffee.
0745: Mr. Poirier transports the team to our bunker
0800-0815: Breakfast. Pastries.
0815-1000: Argue.
1000-1002: Eat more pastries.
1002-1200: Debate top-secret things.
1200-1215: Eat more pastries. Lunch food is also available but really who eats that when you could eat pastry?
1215-1230: Crosswalk lessons for Sean S. and Kierstin. Lesson one: pedestrians have the right of way
1230-1245: Frisbee golf. Debate is all about cross-training.
1245-1500: More arguing. And eating pastry.
1500-1501: Receive wisdom from our Great Leader.
1501-1700: Go back to what we were doing. Eat more pastry.
1700-1730: Giggle fit induced by overload of pastry and discussion of world politics. Jokes about what Uzbekistan does to its protesters are very popular.
1730-1745: Frustration.
1745-1800: Blissful ignorance.
1800-1815: Self-explanatory
1815-1816: Andrew gets charcoal on his nose.
1816-1900: Attempt to light the charcoals in a hibashi (for the uninitiated, a small barbeque). Look carefully and you can see Caroline's bio notes ablaze.
1900-1915: Eat burgers and cookies. Sadly, no pastry available at this time.
1915-2015: Contemplate our upcoming pillage of the World Schools Debating Tournament.
2015-way too late: Sit in front of a computer until our cases fix themselves. Or update our blog to avoid doing so.