Austin High School junior Jason Baskin was named the best of the best at the Lincoln-Douglas debates in the 2001 State Debate Tournament held this past weekend in Minneapolis.

Friday, January 26, 2001

Austin High School junior Jason Baskin was named the best of the best at the Lincoln-Douglas debates in the 2001 State Debate Tournament held this past weekend in Minneapolis.

"It didn’t hit me right away," said Baskin of his reaction to winning. "Now, a few days later, it feels really good."

Baskin emerged as a champion after two days and nine rounds of debate, focusing on value. In particular, Baskin debated affirmative and negative positions on the subject of the immorality of countries possessing nuclear weapons. In the final round, Baskin took the negative stance, saying that "governments have a moral obligation to protect its citizens." He argued that the value, therefore, was national security.

This particular topic, Baskin said, was presented to him two months ago. He practiced daily with the Austin High School debate team and spent anywhere from one to two hours per night researching the topic.

Baskin won the championship round 5-2 against Benilde St. Margaret’s Liz Letak. He won his semifinal debate 3-2 against Adriane Chung of Apple Valley, and Letak won her semifinal round 3-2 against Kelsey Olson of Apple Valley. It was the second tournament appearance for both Baskin and Letak.