Month: September 2010 Page 3 of 5

HotTopics: United States Extemp Questions for the Week of September 21st-27th, 2010

1.  If the U.S. is to remain the world’s leader will it do so through partnerships with other nations or through military and economic strength?
2.  Is Lady Gaga bad for America’s youth?
3.  Do Social Security beneficiaries deserve a cost of living adjustment next year?
4.  Is the next economic bubble forming in bond markets?
5.  Will Murkowski’s write in bid cause the Republicans to lose her Senate seat?
6.  Have race relations worsened under Obama’s tenure?
7.  Are Democrats making a mistake by running away from healthcare reform?
8.  Will Michelle Bachmann win re-election?
9.  Should Michael Steele receive another term as RNC chairman?
10.  Is connecting the Tea Party to the GOP a winning strategy for Democrats in 2010?

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R&D: Sweden’s Green Party Shakes Up the Ruling Government, Obama Considers a New 2010 Strategy, and Protests Renew in Thailand

Here is your R&D for September 20th:

Swedish Greens say won’t support centre-right govt from the Associated Press
Sweden’s Green Party has announced that it will not support the centre-right Alliance government, a move that complicates the political climate because the Alliance does not want to govern with the Sweden Democrats, a small nationalist party that will enter Parliament for the first time.

Obama Aides Weigh Bid to Tie the G.O.P. to the Tea Party from the New York Times
Seeking to energize the Democratic base for the midterm elections, the White House is considering launching ads that tie the GOP to the Tea Party movement.

Red shirts’ redux from the Economist
Just when you thought things were stabalizing in Thailand, you are quickly proven incorrect as supporters of former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra gathered Sunday to mark the anniversary of the 2006 coup that toppled him from power.

Extemp Central News Quiz for the Week of September 20th-24th, 2010 (Short Answer Version)

Here is the multiple choice version of this week’s Extemp Central news quiz.  Pick well and good luck!

Extemp Central News Quiz for the Week of September 20th-24th, 2010 (Multiple Choice Version)

Here is the multiple choice version of this week’s Extemp Central news quiz.  Pick well and good luck!

Local Results: The Grapevine Classic (Texas)

Here are the results from the Grapevine Classic, held at Grapevine High School on September 17th.

United States Extemp

Champion: Susan Czaikowski (Lamar Consolidated High School)
2nd: Paul Samuel (Southlake Carroll High School)
3rd: Shikha Garg (Plano Senior High School)
4th: Kelley Kim (Spring Woods High School)
5th: Megan Schippmann
6th: Nick Lowrimore (Southlake Carroll High School)

Answering “How” Questions

by Logan Scisco

Most of the people reading this strategy piece are extempers who have at least one tournament under their belt.  If you fall into this category, and assuming that you are attending a tournament that has only two preliminary rounds, you know that over the course of said tournament you are presented with at least six different questions during preliminary rounds, of which you will choose two to speak on.  If you are an astute extemper, you might remember the questions that you drew at tournaments or at practice sessions so far this season.  Take a moment to reflect on questions that you have run into thus far.  What did they ask you to do?  After pondering this for a moment consider this:  you can usually tell what an extemp question wants you to do by looking at the first word of the question.  For example, a “can” question asks you to assess whether a certain event is going to take place while a “should” question asks you to make a judgment about whether doing something is right or wrong.

R&D: Doubts Grow Over Obama’s Economic Agenda, the Philippines Investigates Its Media, and the Senate Passes a Small-Business Jobs Bill

Here is your R&D for September 17th:

Rising Midterm Economic Pressures from the Council on Foreign Relations
This analysis brief, which links to other valuable news articles, describes how the Obama administration is struggling to show the American people that its economic policies are working.

Should the media be punished over Philippines bus siege? from CNN
As Filipino officials are leaving no stone unturned in an effort to punish those responsible for the bungled rescue of Hong Kong tourists taken hostage last month.  Some officials are pointing their fingers at the nation’s media.  This article analyzes the political fallout of such a move and if it is a threat to free press in the Philippines.

Senate passes small-business jobs bill, opening tax cut battle from the Christian Science Monitor
Find out what is in the Senate’s small-business jobs bill and what it means for the upcoming debate over the Bush tax cuts.

Extemp Central News Quiz Answers for the Week of September 13th-17th, 2010

Here is the multiple choice version of this week’s Extemp Central news quiz. Pick well and good luck!

The Yale Invitational Tournament Preview

by Aaron Lutkowitz

Aaron Lutkowitz competed for Montgomery Bell Academy in Nashville, Tennessee. In addition to victories at the 2008 George Mason tournament and the 2009 Yale tournament, Aaron finished in 3rd place at the 2010 Southern Bell Forum and went undefeated in the preliminary rounds of the 2009 George Mason Round Robin.  He was also a top ten finisher in last year’s National Points Race.  Aaron co-attends the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Duke University with plans to major in business and political science.

While Wake was always my first tournament of the year for three consecutive years (with diminishing returns each year), Yale was my one-hit wonder. It wasn’t even on my radar until a few months before senior year, but I’m extremely glad that I ventured up north to see friends and dip my competitive feet into the deeper end of quality extemp. I have a few tips, both for tournaments in general and for the Yale tournament specifically.

R&D: Home Repossessions Hit Record High, START Treaty Faces Test Vote, and Obama Looks to Name Warren as a Special Adviser

Here is your R&D for September 16th:

Foreclosure rates hold steady from CNN
Although the number of properties entering the foreclosure process dropped 30% last month, lenders repossessed a record 95,000 homes.  Find out what this says about the health of the housing market.

New START nuclear treaty faces key US Senate test from the Agence France Presse
Today, the START treaty with Russia faces a test vote in the U.S. Senate.  The Senate Foreign Relations Committee will take up the treaty and send it to the floor for approval.  67 votes are needed for ratification, but only two Republicans are on board to vote for it because of concerns that it will hamper plans for a missile defense system.

Obama reportedly to name Warren special adviser from the Boston Globe
President Obama reportedly plans to appoint Harvard law professor Elizabeth Warren to a Treasury Department post that lets her create the consumer protection bureau, which is part of the financial overhaul Congress passed earlier in the year.  Republicans have threatened to filibuster Warren’s formal nomination to the bureau, making the appointment necessary.

R&D: O’Donnell’s Upset Hurts GOP’s Senate Hopes, the State of Iran’s Economy, and Adrian Fenty Goes Down in D.C.

Here is your R&D for September 15th:

O’Donnell Wins, Bad Blood Simmers in DE GOP from Real Clear Politics
Tea Party candidate Christine O’Donnell scored an upset in Delaware’s Republican Senate primary last night, defeating Congressman Mike Castle, who was likely to win the seat in a general election.  After O’Donnell’s victory, Castle supporters are not happy and it will make O’Donnell’s chances of pulling an upset in the general election virtually impossible.

Iran’s slide to the bottom from the Asia Times
This is the first article of a two-part report from the Asia Times on the state of the Iranian economy.  Years of international sanctions and poor management have taken their toll.  Since extempers will run into questions on Iran’s nuclear program and political environment, keeping the nation’s economy in mind is never a bad idea.

How Adrian Fenty lost his reelection bid for D.C. mayor from the Washington Post
Last night, incumbent Washington D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty lost in the District’s Democratic primary.  Fenty was a champion of education reform, but that wasn’t the only cause of his defeat according to this piece.

HotTopics: United States Extemp Questions for the Week of September 14th-20th, 2010

1.  Are video games actually good for children?
2.  Has the first-time home buyers tax credit been a failure?
3.  What does the rise of Brazil mean for America’s influence in Latin America?
4.  Is America safer now than it was before 9/11?
5.  If Rahm Emanuel leaves the White House, should Valerie Jarrett become Obama’s new Chief of Staff?
6.  Has Michelle Rhee been good for the D.C. school system?
7.  Should the GOP compromise on the Bush tax cuts?
8.  Is it time to privatize Social Security?
9.  Will Michelle Obama’s war on obesity end up failing?
10.  Are tea party candidates hurting the Republican Party’s chances of taking control of the Senate this fall?

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R&D: Cuba is Cutting State Employees, Election Day in 7 States, and Bush Tax Cuts 101

Here is your R&D for September 14th:

Cuba to cut 500,000 from state payroll from the Financial Times of London
In a sign that the Cuban economy is changing, the country’s trade union federation announced Monday that more than a million state employees are going to lose their jobs.  It constitutes the biggest shift to private enterprise since 1968.

Is Delaware the key to the Senate majority? (And four other storylines to watch in the Sept. 14 primaries) from the Washington Post
Today is primary day in seven states (Delaware, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island, and Wisconsin).  The race that has the most attention is the Republican Senate primary where Representative Mike Castle, who has led most of the way, is now in a dead heat with tea party candidate Christine O’Donnell.  An O’Donnell victory would give the Democrats new life in a race that they might lose if Castle is the nominee in November.

Bush tax cuts 101: What changes could be in store for taxpayers? from the Christian Science Monitor
Don’t quite understand the debate about the Bush tax cuts?  This article from the Christian Science Monitor clarifies a lot of issues.

Local Results: 2010 University of Mississippi Tournament

Here are the extemp results from the 2010 University of Mississippi tournament:

Champion: Vineet Aggarwal (St. Andrew’s Episcopal School, Mississippi)
2nd: Rhett Spurlin (Collierville High School, Tennessee)
3rd: Brandon Zheng (Collierville High School, Tennessee)
4th: Aritra Biswas (St. Andrew’s Episcopal School, Mississippi)
5th: Jared Keys (Oak Grove High School, Mississippi)
6th: Jessica Glenn (Ridgeland High School, Mississippi)

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HotTopics: International Extemp Questions for the Week of September 14th-20th, 2010

1.  Does Nepal need to reform its military?
2.  Should the search for alternative fuels be a global effort?
3.  How will Europe’s changing demographic picture impact politics across the continent?
4.  Should Santos accept the FARC’s offer of peace talks?
5.  Will North Korea’s military allow Kim Jong-Un to take power from his father?
6.  Should Britain make cuts to its defense budget?
7.  Is the window for a Palestinian state closing?
8.  Are global economists exaggerating China’s manipulation of the yuan?
9.  How can the EU make growth across Europe more even?
10.  Is EU membership still a priority for the Turkish government?

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