What are the Stock Issues?

the five stock issues are:

significance (are there significant problems and harms?)

inherency (is the present system unable to solve the harms/does the present system cause the harms)

solvency (will the affirmative plan will solve the harms)

disadvantages (do the plan's advantages outweigh any harmful consequences?)

topicality (does the plan support the resolution?)

in this approach, the goal is for the aff. to get the judge to say "yes" to each stock issue--yes, there is a problem, yes the plan will solve the problem, yes the plan's disadvantages do not outweigh the advantages, etc.

i prefer the "policy issues" which are:

advantages (sig, inh, solv)--will the plan gain a benefit?

disadvantages (links, impacts--brinks, uniqueness)--will the plan cause harmful consequences?

Topicality--does the plan support the resolution?

in this approach, the goal is for the aff to show that the advantages of the topical parts of their plan outweigh their disadvantages.

i'd add critiques as an additional issue--does the affirmative advocacy/plan violate fundamental principles that are more important than its advantages? eg a plan may save lives but do so by means that are so reprehensible that they cannot be supported. (eg executing an innocent person because that might deter murders)

Jim