Month: April 2018

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1. Does the death of Alfie Evans show the faults of single-payer healthcare?
2. Is North Korea more open to ending its nuclear program due to necessity or a genuine desire for peace on the Korean Peninsula?
3. Can France rescue the Iran nuclear deal on its own?
4. Should China work to assist or scuttle Trump’s summit with Kim Jong-un?
5. How can emergency care in Haiti be improved?
6. Is the Colorados hold on power slipping in Paraguay?
7. What steps can Indonesia take to better protect its environment?
8. Can peaceful protest ensure greater security for Pakistan’s Pashtun peoples?
9. Is Saudi Arabia the most progressive Islamic nation in the Middle East?
10. Why is India’s economy experiencing robust job growth?

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1. Does the Trump administration need better vetting procedures for future cabinet appointments?
2. Should Mueller be investigated?
3. Are Democrats losing their grip on African American voters?
4. Who should be the next nominee for VA Secretary?
5. Is America suffering from an epidemic of “lawlessness”?
6. Can legal intervention rescue DACA?
7. Should the GOP take hope from Debbie Lesko’s win in AZ-8?
8. Will America witness the significant growth of charter schools over the next decade?
9. How should the U.S. deal with the migrant caravan?
10. Will the Sprint-T-Mobile merger be good for consumers?

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1. If Trump could secure a peace deal with North Korea, would it solidify his chances of re-election in 2020?
2. Can Rudy Giuliani put an end to the Mueller probe’s interest in Trump?
3. What long-term changes need to be made to American immigration policy?
4. Is the DNC’s RICO produce lasting changes for future American elections?
5. Will the recent increase in gas prices erode the economic benefits provided by Trump’s tax cut?
6. Is Mitt Romney’s Senate primary in Utah a mere formality?
7. Should elementary students be allowed to have “best friends”?
8. Is it in America’s best interest to continue to be part of the Iranian nuclear deal?
9. Should major tech firms be regulated like national banks?
10. How should the U.S. engage Cuba now that Miguel Diaz-Canel has taken power?

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1. Should Miguel Diaz-Canel abandon Cuba’s alliance with Venezuela?
2. How can the Ivory Coast ensure that its coca production remains sustainable?
3. Does Russia need the U.S. to ensure a lasting peace in Syria?
4. Is the UN making it more difficult for peace talks to succeed in Yemen?
5. Has France become Europe’s major power broker with the United States?
6. Are human rights improving for the world’s peoples?
7. Can the ICC become a vehicle to protect the rights of Rohingya refugees in Myanmar?
8. Does the EU need a strategic partnership with Turkey?
9. Will international cooperation be necessary to create a post-fossil fuels energy revolution?
10. Why is the UN’s peacekeeping mission in Mali floundering?

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Our newly updated qualification board for the week of April 22 includes qualifiers from the Capitol Valley District (CA), Golden Desert (NV), North Oregon, Northern South Dakota, Rushmore (SD), Sunflower (KS), West Los Angeles (CA), Western Slope (CO – USX only) districts.  Thank you to all readers who provided qualifiers.

Also, we are updating our list of state champions for the 2017-2018 season.  If you have that information, please feel free to send it to us as well!

To check out the qual boards, click on “Quals 18” at the top of this page.  If you hover your cursor about the “Quals 18” category you will see a drop down menu to select the IX and USX qualification boards.  You can also click “IX” and “USX” in this message to access the qualification boards.

We hope to receive more contributions and results in the weeks ahead.  If you know the qualifiers from your NSDA District, please e-mail the following information to [email protected]:

• The name of the NSDA District and the state that is located in
• The names of those who will be ATTENDING nationals in IX and USX. Please do not send us the names of those who technically qualified, but opted to go in another event. We only want the names of those who will be going in the categories to avoid confusion.
• The schools those competitors attend.
• IF your district has an automatic qualifier from last year’s NSDA Tournament (a competitor that reached finals or semi-finals in IX and USX) and that person will be going back to NSDA in that event, please let us know. If you are an automatic qualifier and want to give this information to us yourself, fantastic!

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1. How should Russia respond to American airstrikes in Syria?
2. Why was Fidesz able to win the Hungarian elections?
3. Are corruption scandals undermining democracy’s long-term prospects in Latin America?
4. What role should liberal ideas play in Islamist states?
5. Are hopes of “warming” relations between China and Japan premature?
6. With Lula in jail, who is the frontrunner for Brazil’s upcoming presidential election?
7. What is the liklihood of North Korea giving up its nuclear weapons?
8. Are Indian authorities doing enough to combat sexual assault?
9. What should Emmanuel Macron do in the face of protests against his proposed labor reforms?
10. How can Iran improve the value of the rial?

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1. Should the President of the United States be required to get congressional approval before conducting air strikes on a foreign nation?
2. Will internal opposition to California’s “sanctuary status” eventually cause the Golden State to reverse its position on the issue?
3. Should more American retail and restaurant businesses go cashless?
4. Does Congress need to pass legislation to protect Robert Mueller from being fired by Trump?
5. Should Paul Ryan resign as Speaker of the House before the midterm elections?
6. Are teacher strikes counterproductive?
7. Is Eric Garcetti a long shot for the Democratic presidential nomination?
8. Will the Supreme Court overturn Quill Corp. v. North Dakota in South Dakota v. Wayfair?
9. Should the U.S. have a federal paid leave program?
10. How can America’s states overcome their revenue crisis?

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1. Is Terry McAuliffe a presidential contender or pretender?
2. How can the Republican Party best counter a “blue wave” in this year’s midterms?
3. Is America in the midst of a “soft” civil war?
4. Are Trump’s attacks on Amazon misguided?
5. If you were Mark Zuckerberg, how would you fix Facebook’s mess?
6. Are Republicans at risk of losing a Senate seat in Tennessee?
7. Will the U.S. invade Syria after Assad’s attack on Douma?
8. Is Scott Pruitt the wrong person to lead the EPA?
9. Are American universities failing to effectively confront intellectual and fiscal crises?
10. Should Congress continue funding to fight Ebola in Africa?

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1. Is global income inequality at a tipping point?
2. Will the jailing of Lula da Silva create more political instability in Brazil?
3. How should China react to Japan’s activation of marine units?
4. Can the international community do anything to stop Bashar al-Assad from using chemical weapons against rebel forces?
5. How should the EU position itself in a global trade war?
6. To India: Does Nepal matter?
7. Should NATO expel member states who become authoritarian?
8. Is Great Britain doing enough to combat gang violence?
9. Has Yemen become a failed state?
10. Would the election of Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador as Mexico’s next president be damaging to its economic future?

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Our newly updated qualification board for the week of April 3 includes qualifiers from the California Coast (USX only), New Jersey, San Francisco Bay, Southern California (IX only), Tarheel East (NC), Yellow Rose (TX – IX only), districts.  Thank you to all readers who provided qualifiers.

To check out the qual boards, click on “Quals 18” at the top of this page.  If you hover your cursor about the “Quals 18” category you will see a drop down menu to select the IX and USX qualification boards.  You can also click “IX” and “USX” in this message to access the qualification boards.

We hope to receive more contributions and results in the weeks ahead.  If you know the qualifiers from your NSDA District, please e-mail the following information to [email protected]:

• The name of the NSDA District and the state that is located in
• The names of those who will be ATTENDING nationals in IX and USX. Please do not send us the names of those who technically qualified, but opted to go in another event. We only want the names of those who will be going in the categories to avoid confusion.
• The schools those competitors attend.
• IF your district has an automatic qualifier from last year’s NSDA Tournament (a competitor that reached finals or semi-finals in IX and USX) and that person will be going back to NSDA in that event, please let us know. If you are an automatic qualifier and want to give this information to us yourself, fantastic!

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1. Is Nigeria’s military response to Boko Haram counterproductive?
2. Does Brexit pose a grave threat to the Good Friday Agreement?
3. Should Cuba’s next president move the country in a more capitalistic direction?
4. Is the world in the midst of a new Cold War?
5. What should Russia do to secure a stronger foothold in the Middle East?
6. Can surrounding nations work together to bring about a political solution to Venezuela’s ongoing crisis?
7. Did Israel overreact to the recent Gaza protests?
8. Will Afghanistan’s fall elections be marred by Taliban violence?
9. Is it in Mexico’s best interest to work with the U.S. on immigration policy?
10. How stable is Iraq?

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1. Will the recent wave of teacher strikes cause states to invest more in their education systems?
2. Does the creation of a more hawkish national security team bolster Trump’s ability to bring about a solution to the North Korean nuclear crisis?
3. Should the Senate confirm Ronny Jackson as the next Secretary of Veterans Affairs?
4. Will the Supreme Court take any significant action against partisan gerrymandering during its current term?
5. Should the Trump administration withdraw U.S. forces from Syria?
6. Would weaker regulations on the health insurance industry make health insurance more affordable?
7. Should the VA be privatized?
8. Is Hillary Clinton an asset or hindrance to Democratic efforts to regain control of Congress?
9. Should Amazon pay more for its use of the U.S. Postal Service?
10. Is Florida’s Senate race a bellwether for the 2018 elections?