Tournament:  | Round:  | Opponent:  | Judge:
The United States Federal Government should establish a matching funds program to promote the use of thorium as a nuclear fuel.

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USFG isn’t committed to back thorium as a nuclear fuel source in the status quo 

Halper, SmartPlanet Contributing Editor, 6-26-12

(Mark, “U.S. partners with China on new nuclear,” accessed 8-19-12, http://www.smartplanet.com/blog/intelligent-energy/us-partners-with-china-on-new-nuclear/17037)

While China has declared an … to the technology.

There’s no government or private sector interest in thorium at the moment

Hargraves and Moir, Expert in Energy Policy at Dartmouth College and Nuclear Engineer at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, 10

(Ralph and Robert, “Liquid fluoride thorium reactors: an old idea in nuclear power gets reexamined,” American Scientist, July/August 2010, accessed 8-21-12, p. Academic One File)

There are two major … practical potential of this fuel.

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A federal matching funds program solves for the development of thorium as a nuclear fuel

Martin, Pike Research Editorial Director, 12

(Richard, Super Fuel: Thorium, the Green Energy Source for the Future, page 232)

While a new Manhattan Project is … $10 billion a year. 

Licensing reform is vital to development of thorium as a nuclear fuel

Martin, Pike Research Editorial Director, 12

(Richard, Super Fuel: Thorium, the Green Energy Source for the Future, page 235)

These are ambitious goals. What, …begin submitting applications.  

Tournament:  | Round:  | Opponent:  | Judge:
Chinese and Indian development of thorium is inevitable—lack of corresponding U.S. thorium development dooms the economy, international leadership efforts and military strength

Martin, Pike Research Editorial Director, 12

(Richard, Super Fuel: Thorium, the Green Energy Source for the Future, page 237-239)

They are right about one thing: the … we once held in our hands.

U.S. hegemony is vital to preventing great power war and decreasing overall levels of conflict and violence globally

Kagan, Brookings Institute Senior Fellow, 12

(Robert, The World America Made, page 48-51)

We now know this judgment, which …. hegemonies by force.

The timeframe is quick—perception of loss of U.S. hegemony instantly starts to unravel the liberal world order

Kagan, Brookings Institute Senior Fellow, 12

(Robert, The World America Made, page 139)

What has made the United States …. make other arrangements

. 

Hegemony solves nuke war and extinction-multipolarity is inevitable but absolute US power smoothes the transition and is empirically correlated to perpetual great-power peace

Barnett, Naval War College Warfare Analysis and Research Department professor, 2011

(Thomas, “The New Rules: Leadership Fatigue Puts U.S., and Globalization, at Crossroads”, 3-7, http://www.worldpoliticsreview.com/articles/8099/the-new-rules-leadership-fatigue-puts-u-s-and-globalization-at-crossroads, DOA: 10-9-11, ldg)

Let me be more blunt: As the guardian of … embedded in the geometry to come.

U.S. hegemonic decline causes global great-power war, collapses trade and spreads economic nationalism and protectionism

Zhang et al., Carnegie Endowment researcher, 2011

(Yuhan, “America’s decline: A harbinger of conflict and rivalry”, 1-22, http://www.eastasiaforum.org/2011/01/22/americas-decline-a-harbinger-of-conflict-and-rivalry/, DOA: 9-21-11, ldg)

This does not necessarily mean that the US …inevitably be devoid of unrivalled US primacy.

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Lack of U.S. development of thorium as a nuclear fuel dooms U.S. economic competitiveness

Martin, Pike Research Editorial Director, 2-1-11

(Richard, “China Takes Lead in Race for Clean Nuclear Power,” Wired Magazine, accessed 8-19-12, http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2011/02/china-thorium-power/)

China has officially announced it will … stated the Wen Hui Bao report.

U.S. leadership in clean energy markets is key to spur domestic economic growth

National Renewable Energy Laboratory, 08

(“Strengthening U.S. Leadership  of International Clean Energy Cooperation,” December 2008, accessed 8-20-12, http://www.nrel.gov/international/pdfs/44261.pdf)

U.S. international clean energy leadership … economic development.

Competitiveness is key to the overall health of the economy

Baily and Slaughter, Former Chairperson of the Council of Economic Advisers and Dartmouth College Economics Prof., 08

(Martin and Matthew, “Strengthening U.S. Competitiveness in the Global Economy,” December 2008, accessed 9-1-12, http://www.pegcc.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/pec_wp_strengthening_120908a.pdf)

What do we mean by competitiveness? … creation and investment.

U.S. economic growth is key to prevent global instability and great power wars

Khalilzad, former director of policy planning at the Defense Department, 11

(Zalmay, “The Economy and National Security”, 2-8, http://www.nationalreview.com/articles/259024/economy-and-national-security-zalmay-khalilzad?page=3, ldg)

Today, economic and fiscal trends pose … hegemony and aggression.

Decline causes war.

Royal, director of Cooperative Threat Reduction at the U.S. Department of Defense, 2010

(Jedediah, Economics of War and Peace: Economic, Legal, and Political Perspectives, pg 213-215, ldg)

Less intuitive is how periods of economic … should be considered ancillary to those views.

Economic collapse causes nuclear war

Friedberg and Schoenfeld, 2008

(Aaron and gabriel professor of politics and international relations at Princeton University and visiting scholar at the Witherspoon Institute, “The Dangers of a Diminished America”, Wall Street Journal, http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122455074012352571.html)

Pressures to cut defense spending, and to dodge the … travails with external adventures.

Tournament:  | Round:  | Opponent:  | Judge:
Energy crunch is going to happen

Rowell, Oil Change International staff writer, 12

(Andy. “US Military Warns Of “Severe Energy Crunch.”” 4-12. http://priceofoil.org/2010/04/12/us-military-warns-about-forthcoming-%E2%80%9Csevere-energy-crunch%E2%80%9D/. Accessed: 9/6/2012.  

 The United States Joint Forces Command … million barrels per day.” 

Thorium based reactors are key to solve energy security

Hargraves, Dartmouth ILEAD Energy Policy Professor, 12

(Robert, “Throium: energy cheaper than coal”, Pg 27-28, 2012, accessed 8-30-12 wdw)

The world population is … to attain energy security.    

US needs to secure sources of energy – failure to do so causes resource wars

McPherson, DownRange Global Solutions Inc. executive vice president, 10

(Richard, retired U.S. Navy nuclear engineering officer, International Atomic Energy Agency former representative. “Modular Nuclear Reactors May Hold The Key to U.S. Energy Security.” National Defense, pg. 20, October 2010. Ebscohost. Accessed: 9/2/2012. ADC)

Studies show that oil reserves are … the will to travel the path to energy security?