September 2021 - Page 2 of 2

R&D from Prepd: Brazilian Politics

On September 10, 2021

Today’s R&D is brought to you by Prepd (pronounced “prepped”). Prepd is building debate technology that helps extempers and congressional debaters research, practice, and compete. Visit www.prepd.in to learn more.

This week’s R&D is on recent developments in Brazilian politics. President Jair Bolsonaro recently called on his supporters to gather in the capital of Brasilia to express their support for his administration and protest the actions of the nation’s Supreme Court. Brazil will not have a presidential election until fall, but observers fear that Bolsonaro is riling up his base to challenge the result of that election. There were also fears that Bolsonaro’s backers would try to overrun the Supreme Court building, which would be Brazil’s version of the January 6 Capitol riot in the United States.

Tuesday’s protests across Brazil demonstrated that President Bolsonaro may be too weak to stage a coup, but he is still strong enough to remain in power and produce a permanent constitutional crisis. @OliverStuenkel writes in @AmerQuarterly: https://t.co/ZhdH9BqXFn

— Carnegie Endowment (@CarnegieEndow) September 9, 2021

Brazil’s next presidential election is 13 months away, but already President Jair Bolsonaro has set out on a path that puts him on a collision course with democracy. https://t.co/Mpyo0KYrqP

— World Politics Review (@WPReview) September 5, 2021

Protests called by President Jair Bolsonaro for Brazil’s independence day turned out peaceful. But reasons for deep worry remain, @hoganem tells “The Intelligence” https://t.co/wB1C9J9zCx

— The Economist (@TheEconomist) September 8, 2021

2021-2022 Extemp Central National Points Race: Discussing This Year’s Structure

By geniao44446

On September 9, 2021

In National Points Race

With the national circuit season about to begin at the National Season Opener hosted by the University of Kentucky, Extemp Central wants to break down the structure of this year’s National Points Race.

The National Points was a competition that Extemp Central began during the 2008-2009 season. It was inspired by the poker magazine Card Player. The goal is to recognize the extemper that performed the best across a system of nationally recognized events during the season. We recognize that any ranking system is problematic as some great extempers belong to teams that do not go to many, if any, national circuit competitions. The National Points Race tries to weigh some of this by ranking post-season and major tournaments higher than regular season events, with the exception of Harvard, the biggest invitational tournament on the calendar. The winner of the competition receives a trophy from Extemp Central, funded by the efforts of our generous readers and supporters.

Six extempers have won the National Points Race and curiously, no state has had a repeat winner. Due to some interruptions of our service, we have not done the National Points Race since 2016, when it was won by Justin Graham of Trinity Preparatory School (FL). Graham finished that season with a record 876 points in the standings. We look forward to resuming the race this season.

Extemp Central News Quiz for the Week of September 6-12, 2021

By geniao44446

On September 8, 2021

In Quiz

Here is this week’s Extemp Central news quiz. Good luck!

HotTopics: International Extemp Questions for the Week of September 6-12, 2021

By geniao44446

On September 6, 2021

In International Extemp, Weekly Questions

1. Are Canada’s Liberals headed for defeat?
2. Who should be the next leader of Japan’s LDP?
3. Is it inevitable that Iran will become a nuclear power?
4. Should India repeal its agricultural reform laws?
5. Does Afghanistan need the UN to head off a humanitarian crisis?
6. Should Myanmar’s NLD form alliances with armed ethnic groups?
7. If the SPD wins Germany’s elections, how would they remake the country?
8. Why is Madagascar on the brink of famine?
9. In terms of its future security policy, what lessons should European nations take from Afghanistan?
10. Is ISIS making a comeback in Iraq?

HotTopics: United States Extemp Questions for the Week of September 6-12, 2021

By geniao44446

On September 6, 2021

In U.S. Extemp, Weekly Questions

1. Will the Supreme Court eventually find Texas’ recent abortion law unconstitutional?
2. Is the Biden administration sidelining Vice President Harris?
3. What impact will the end of pandemic unemployment benefits have on the U.S. economy?
4. Should reforms be made to the operations of local boards of education?
5. Would it be too early for former President Trump to declare himself a candidate for 2024?
6. Should the U.S. cooperate with the Taliban to fight ISIS-K?
7. With about a week to go, will California voters recall Gavin Newsom?
8. Under what conditions should the U.S. remove sanctions on Venezuela?
9. Should religious exemptions exist in COVID-19 vaccine mandates?
10. What reforms should Congress make to Social Security?

Site News: Check Out the 2021-2022 Tournament Calendar!

By geniao44446

On September 5, 2021

In Site News

Since we are less than seven days away from the 2021-2022 national circuit season kicking off at the National Season Opener at the University of Kentucky, Extemp Central has finalized the tournament calendar for the 2021-2022 competitive year. You can look at the calendar by clicking here or in the menu above.

Due to the unpredictable nature of where the COVID-19 pandemic will take us, some tournaments have not released their dates or exact information yet. If you see a tournament on the calendar that we do not have a date for (or last year’s results), please send them to us at [email protected] so we can correct the calendar.

Information about this season’s National Points Race will be revealed on Thursday, but extempers can expect us to keep the structure of previous years without substantial adjustment. Look out for new weekly questions tomorrow!

R&D from Prepd: Hurricane Ida

By geniao44446

On September 3, 2021

In R&D, U.S. Extemp

Today’s R&D is brought to you by Prepd (pronounced “prepped”). Prepd is building debate technology that helps extempers and congressional debaters research, practice, and compete. Visit www.prepd.in to learn more.

This week’s R&D is on Hurricane Ida. The category four hurricane made landfall in Louisiana on Sunday afternoon, knocking out power for one million residents and creating a great deal of damage in New Orleans. Thus far it has caused at least fifty deaths and more than $15 billion in property damage. Ida is the second-most powerful hurricane to hit Louisiana, trailing only Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

What saved human lives in Louisiana was real infrastructure. The low death toll in Louisiana this week is a revealing but cautionary American success story, writes @DanHenninger https://t.co/DSJPTzabQK

— WSJ Editorial Page (@WSJopinion) September 2, 2021

As many as 25,000 utility workers from 38 states are headed to Louisiana as part of a massive effort to restore power after Hurricane Ida https://t.co/sOea0gZ6Cq

— The Wall Street Journal (@WSJ) September 2, 2021