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Month: May 2011 Page 2 of 4
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Here is the second part of a special CFL nationals R&D.
World Leaders
Putin decides to retake presidency from the Australian Sunday Times
According to sources within the Russian government, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has decided to run for the Russian presidency in 2012. However, President Dmitry Medvedev may challenge Putin in that election.
Protesters Call for the Resignation of Georgia’s President from the New York Times
Protesters in Georgia are calling for the resignation of President Mikheil Saakashvili, who they say is stifling the implementation of pro-Western democratic reforms and failing to improve the country’s economic situation.
North Korea’s Leader Kim Jong Il Travels to China for Economic Guidance from Bloomberg
North Korean leader Kim Jong Il is in China to learn about China’s economic restructuring. Chinese leaders hope that Kim Jong Il will use this knowledge to make North Korea more prosperous.
Here is a special CFL R&D that provides articles for three of the nine CFL extemp topic areas. The second CFL R&D will come out tomorrow evening.
U.S. Politics
Daniels Decides Against Presidential Run from the Wall Street Journal
A race in New York’s 26th Congressional district Tuesday could spell bad news for Republicans, as their chosen candidate is set to lose after facing a strong Democratic challenger who is running against the Republicans House budget plan and a strong independent candidate.
by Mirza Germovic
Mirza Germovic competed for Theodore Roosevelt High School in Des Moines, Iowa. He placed 3rd at the Catholic National Tournament last year and placed in finals at the St. Mark’s Tournament, George Mason Patriot Games and The Extemporaneous Speaking Tournament of Champions (TOC). Mirza now attends Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. where he is studying International Politics with the hopes of working in journalism. He shares his thoughts on competing and performing well at the Catholic National Tournament in this article for Extemp Central readers.
CFL Nationals is not often viewed as prestigious as the NFL National Tournament – both for the number of schools that attend and the talent they bring – however, competing and doing well there is just as big of reflection on one’s extemp skills as it will be to do well in Dallas in June of this year. It is easy for competitors, coaches and entire teams at the CFL tournament to lose sight of the fact that national titles are at stake – thinking that you can coast by for one round is enough to guarantee a not-so-happy fate.
Here are the results of the 2011 Hawaii Speech League State Forensic Championship, held on April 16th at Punahou School. All of these finalists have earned automatic qualifications to next year’s Extemporaneous Speaking Tournament of Champions (TOC) at Northwestern University.
Myrna Ishimoto United States Extemporaneous Speaking
Champion: Shay Kauwe (Kamehameha Schools)
2nd: Stephen Li (Punahou School)
3rd: Ben Shiroma (Punahou School)
4th: Kenneth Li (Iolani School)
5th: Kaitrin Tobin (Iolani School)
Here are the results of the 2011 Idaho High School Activities Association State Speech Championships, held on April 15th-16th, held at Lake City High School. All of these finalists have earned automatic qualifications to next year’s Extemporaneous Speaking Tournament of Champions (TOC) at Northwestern University.
Champion: Max Johnston (Highland High School)
2nd: Matthew Wittrock (Highland High School)
3rd: David Delyea (Eagle High School)
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Here are the results from the 2011 Oregon State Activities Association State Tournament, held on April 21st-23rd at Western Oregon University. All of these finalists have earned automatic qualifications to next year’s Extemporaneous Speaking Tournament of Champions (TOC) at Northwestern University.
Champion: Sofia Ellis-Curry (Glencoe High School)
2nd: Alex Bean (McMinnville High School)
3rd: Troy Phillips (Roseburg High School)
Finalist: Aishwarya Subramanian (Lake Oswego High School)
Finalist: Savan Patel (Beaverton High School)
Finalist: Nicole White (Lake Oswego High School)
Finalist: Heidi Rangel (Sam Barlow High School)
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The 2010-2011 Extemp Central National Points Race and National Team Points Race standings have been updated to reflect the results of the Extemporaneous Speaking Tournament of Champions. Check out the newest standings by clicking on the National Points Race tab above or by clicking here.
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1. Is the GOP presidential nomination now Mitt Romney’s to lose?
2. Should Newt Gingrich have criticized Paul Ryan’s Medicare plan?
3. How will the arrest of Dominique Strauss-Kahn impact America’s relations with France?
4. Are better relations with the Chinese military worth halting arm shipments to Taiwan?
5. How should be done to stop the U.S. Postal Service from bleeding red ink?
6. Did Mike Huckabee make a mistake by deciding not to run for president?
7. Does Osama bin Laden’s death demonstrate the usefulness of enhanced interrogation techniques?
8. After Tom Coburn’s withdrawal, will the “Gang of Six” survive?
9. How will recent Mississippi flooding impact the U.S. economy?
10. Is Mitch Daniels waiting too long to decide whether to enter the 2012 presidential contest?
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Here is your R&D for May 17th:
South Africa election: Why some poor black voters may ditch the ANC this time from the Christian Science Monitor
Economic problems are causing some black South Africans to reconsider their political ties to the African National Congress (ANC) and that could cause the ANC to lose some municipal elections tomorrow.
Here comes your non-violent resistance from the Economist
If the Palestinians adopt more peaceful tactics to resist Israel, will the U.S. support them? That’s a question this article from the Economist seeks to answer.
IMF’s Crisis-Management Challenge from the Council on Foreign Relations
The arrest of IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn on sexual assault charges may impair the IMF’s role in the European debt crisis and the global economic recovery and for that reason, it may be wise for Europeans to avoid putting one of their own in charge of th
1. Is Great Britain withdrawing from Afghanistan too quickly?
2. Would the Pakistani government benefit more by having a stronger relationship with China instead of the United States?
3. How will the arrest of Dominique Strauss-Kahn impact the 2012 French presidential election?
4. Is Belarus headed for a debt crisis?
5. Will the Syrian government’s attempt to distract its population from domestic political problems work?
6. Would Greece’s exit from the euro be legal?
7. Is the ICC moving too quickly against Moammar Gaddafi?
8. How should Guatemala confront rising drug violence?
9. Will BP’s risky deal with Rosneft pay off?
10. How can the Democratic Alliance increase its share of the black vote in South Africa?
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Here is your R&D for May 16th:
U.S. accuses Syria of inciting Israel border clashes from Haaretz
The White House accused Syria of inciting a deadly border clash between Israeli troops and Palestinian demonstrators and claimed that the Syrian government is trying to use the incident to distract from its domestic political problems.
Top warcrimes prosecutor seeks Kadhafi warrant from the Agence France Presse
Luis Moreno-Ocampo, the head prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, applied for a warrant for Moammar Gaddafi’s arrest and the arrest of one of his sons and the Libyan head of intelligence for crimes against humanity. Some critics claim the move could strengthen Gaddafi’s resolve.
Is College Too Pricey To Pay Off? 57% of Americans Say Yes from Time
Over half of Americans now say that the cost of college does not match the value of the education that students receive. However, 86% of Americans say college was a good investment for them.