[fblike]
Today’s R&D is brought to you by Prepd, the only software built specifically for extemp. Prepd makes it easy to research, practice, and compete! Visit www.prepd.in to learn more. Like Prepd on Facebook for special info and contests.
This R&D provides resources on the ongoing plight of Detroit’s public schools. Last week, Detroit teachers staged a “sick out” to call attention to poor conditions in the city’s schools and Mayor Mike Duggan visited several and confirmed what teachers were reporting. Teachers are calling on Michigan Governor Rick Snyder to do more to fix the problem as Detroit’s schools have been under state oversight for the last seven years. Snyder has proposed more than $700 million to fix the problem, but legislation has not been forthcoming.
Detroit mayor finds dead mouse and cold kids in schools. What now? https://t.co/0LTpOiJM3P pic.twitter.com/nJK5HrRR2f
— CS Monitor (@csmonitor) January 16, 2016
Detroit public schools: “Our children are in that building breathing this day in and day out. This is third world.” https://t.co/a9obJIrcKl
— Motoko Rich (@motokorich) January 12, 2016
Detroit schools so cold the kids wear coats; there’s mold, rodents, overcrowding, underpaid teachers #GovRickSnyder https://t.co/jRQg1fgUp4
— mia farrow (@MiaFarrow) January 12, 2016
Since 2013, the European Union (EU) has been worried about the outcome of a referendum on Great Britain’s EU membership. A member of the EU since 1973, Great Britain has often stood for a different set of ideas than its EU counterparts, preferring economic liberalism and less financial regulation than EU bureaucrats in Brussels and rival heads of state in Paris and Berlin. One of Prime Minister David Cameron’s promises upon winning the British parliamentary elections last year was to hold a referendum on Britain’s EU membership. This was interpreted as a sop to Conservative voters that bolted the party for the far-right United Kingdom Independence Party (UKIP), which is fiercely anti-EU. Although a date for the referendum has not been set, Cameron is hoping that he can secure concessions from the EU on immigrant welfare benefits and economic regulations that he can in turn sell to British voters to make an exit from the EU – termed a “Brexit” – unthinkable. Considering the fact that Britain’s exit from the EU would rob the organization of more than 10% of its population and more than 15% of its economic power and the fact that recent polls show support for a “Brexit” rising, extempers need to consider how they should approach “Brexit”-style questions in the coming months as their likelihood of being asked at tournaments should increase.
Here is today’s premium R&D to accompany 
s a list of all our old quizzes, 
2015 was not a good year for Rahm Emanuel. While in the first year of a second term as mayor of one of America’s largest cities, Emanuel continued to spark controversy with regards to his open combat with the city’s teachers’ unions, his perceived unwillingness to confront police brutality, and allegations that he eavesdropped on local news media. Recently, Emanuel has faced calls from the progressive wing of the Democratic Party to resign over his mishandling of the Laquan McDonald shooting where the city government refused to release dash-cam footage of the incident until required to do so by a court order. This incident, representing the killing of African American suspects at the hands of the Chicago Police Department, has caused Emanuel to lose support among Chicago’s black residents, who were instrumental in his runoff victory over Jesus “Chuy” Garcia last year. As the former chief of staff to President Barack Obama and a significant fundraiser for former President Bill Clinton, Emanuel is well connected with the nation’s Democrat establishment. However, criticisms of his leadership in Chicago, where he has openly fought some of the most reliable parts of the Democratic base, could soon make him toxic to other national Democrats and thereby imperil his political career.