DESTIN DEBATER KNOWS WHEN TO HOLD HIS TONGUE: NWF State College student wins first place in forensics tournament

Thomas Wyrick of Destin said that while his debate chops recently earned him a first-place trophy, he’s learned to keep his skilled tongue to himself when not in competition.

“I’ve learned not to bring up topics like politics or religion for debate among people I don’t know very well,” said Wyrick, who recently won first place in the Lincoln-Douglas debate at the 10th Annual Star Invitational Forensics Tournament in Jacksonville. “It’s just a way to lose professional and other potential long-term relationships.”

But the Northwest Florida State College student is not afraid to state his case with politicians. Wyrick said he’s passionate about politics and pays close attention to the news. When he hears about things he thinks will have a negative impact on the country, he speaks out. Wyrick said he sends e-mails to local and state legislators whenever he can.

“I very seldom get a response, and when I do you can tell it’s an automated response,” Wyrick said. “But we are government by the people for the people, so people have to participate.”

While he said his interest in politics started early, Wyrick is fairly new to organized forensics. This is only his third semester on the college forensics team, competing in an event that Coach Cecil Scalf said takes a lot of work if you want to do well.

“You need to prepare weeks in advance to be successful,” Scalf said. “While most debaters keep their research on laptops now, some still show up with big boxes full of papers to show how much they’ve done and intimidate you.”

The Lincoln-Douglas debate is a two-person policy debate modeled after the famous Lincoln-Douglas debates of 1858. Debaters are given a resolution in advance and must do extensive research, coming up with as much evidence as possible.

Wyrick said debate comes pretty naturally for him, but he still had a lot to learn when he joined the team. He said his first competition was brutal, and the judges did not hold back.

“They were like, what are you doing and do you even know what a persuasive speech is,” Wyrick said. “I wanted to cry after I read their comments, but you can’t get better unless you keep trying.”

And Wyrick’s work paid off at his most recent competition. His resolution was about how the federal government can improve transportation infrastructure. His argument for socializing power and building a network of nuclear power plants won the debate.

While the topic didn’t interest him, Wyrick said he always thoroughly enjoys the debating.

“I’ve always been the type that likes to hear myself talk,” Wyrick said. “And I think debate builds a lot of skill sets you don’t learn in college. It teaches you to think on your toes, and the rhetorical skills you learn benefit you everywhere.”