1. Has Turkey’s central bank lost is credibility?
2. Should global powers work to contain the Taliban?
3. Does China have the upper hand in disputes over the South China Sea?
4. Should North Korea take up Yoon Suk-yeol’s “audacious initiative” of denuclearization in return for normalized relations?
5. Can the liberal international order be rebuilt?
6. How are hypersonic missiles changing global security calculations?
7. Should Western governments increase their regulation of the Internet?
8. Why is Mexico’s judiciary so slow?
9. Should the Dutch government retreat from its nitrogen emissions goals?
10. How can Kenya avoid a wave of violence after its presidential election?
1. How would a Liz Cheney presidential bid affect the 2024 Republican presidential primary?
2. Is the U.S. investing enough in renewable energy?
3. What changes should be made to the Internal Revenue Service?
4. Should hybrid work become the norm?
5. How should the U.S. respond to reports of Iranian efforts to assassinate John Bolton?
6. Will former President Trump face legal charges for mishandling classified documents?
7. Is Greg Abbott’s policy of busing migrants to blue states achieving its objective?
8. Should the U.S. provide significant support to anti-Taliban rebels in Afghanistan?
9. If President Biden chooses not to run for re-election, will there be a large number of candidates trying to win the Democratic presidential nomination in 2024?
10. Which member of President Biden’s cabinet is most likely not to be in their position by this time next year?
1. Will the FBI’s raid in Mar-a-Lago significantly imperil Donald Trump’s chances of winning the Republican nomination in 2024?
2. Is the GOP blowing their opportunity to recapture the Senate?
3. Will the Federal Reserve have to crush the U.S. economy in order to tame inflation?
4. Should more states embrace open primaries?
5. What revisions should be made to privacy laws to prevent unwanted intrusions by Big Tech?
6. Why did Representative Ilhan Omar come so close to losing her primary?
7. How should colleges respond to declining attendance numbers?
8. What should U.S. economic engagement with the African continent look like?
9. Is panic about polio in New York City overblown?
10. How will the megadrought in the West affect agricultural markets?
1. Did Hamas make a wise choice staying out of Islamic Jihad’s recent fight with Israel?
2. Is the West’s drive for green energy accelerating environmental damage to developing countries?
3. If Ukraine were to recapture Crimea, how would that change its war with Russia?
4. Does Turkey need a strong relationship with the United States?
5. What changes should the West make to its counterterrorism strategies in the 2020s?
6. Is Central America drifting into authoritarianism?
7. Will de-globalization be one of the lasting legacies of the COVID-19 pandemic?
8. Is Bolsonaro planning a coup?
9. Can Xi Jinping politically afford to not “liberate” Taiwan?
10. Will Western Europe suffer an energy crisis this winter?
Cameron Roberts competed for Jack C Hays High School in Kyle, Texas. She was the 2022 Extemp TOC Champion, two-time ETOC finalist, two-time Texas state champion winning in both TFA and UIL, 2020 NSDA finalist, and a 2022 MBA invitee. Cameron will be attending New York University in the fall, where she will be studying international relations with a focus on refugees and migration policy.
1. Will the UN deal with Russia and Ukraine help alleviate projected global food problems?
2. What does the killing of Ayman al-Zawahiri mean for the future of al-Qaeda?
3. Will the finding of Ayman al-Zawahiri in Kabul make it more difficult for the Taliban to eliminate Western sanctions against its rule?
4. Are Israel and Hamas headed toward another war in Gaza?
5. Will NATO have to intervene to calm tensions between Serbia and Kosovo?
6. Is ISIS rising again?
7. Why is al-Shabab attacking Ethiopia?
8. Can Sergio Massa fix Argentina’s economy?
9. Should Germany make a U-turn on nuclear power?
10. What does the Haitian government need to do to control rising gang violence?
1. How can the U.S. prevent going to war with China over Taiwan?
2. Should Congress create regulations for NIL in college athletics?
3. Is it too late for the Democrats to win the House?
4. Can the U.S. do anything to halt Central America’s slide toward dictatorship?
5. Is the declining unemployment rate the best signal of America’s economic health?
6. Will the U.S. see another surge of COVID-19 this winter?
7. Is the Alex Jones verdict a significant victory in the fight against fake news?
8. How much aid should the U.S. continue to give to Ukraine?
9. Can Charlie Crist win Florida’s gubernatorial race?
10. What lessons should pro-life forces learn from the electoral failure in Kansas?
Ananth Veluvali competed for Edina High School in Edina, Minnesota. He was the 2021 NCFL National Champion and, in 2022, was the runner-up at the MBA Round Robin, Extemp Tournament of Champions, and NCFL Nationals; he is also a two-time NSDA National Finalist, finishing in 3rd place this past year. This fall, Ananth plans on attending Stanford University, where he intends on studying computer science and economics.
Ananth agreed to an interview with Extemp Central to discuss the biggest lessons he learned while competing in extemporaneous speaking, while also providing advice for how future competitors can achieve his level of success.
1. Should Speaker Nancy Pelosi visit Taiwan?
2. Is the U.S. economy in recession?
3. What steps should news organizations in their reporting of monkeypox so as not to stigmatize the LGBTQ+ community?
4. Is former President Trump making it harder for Republicans to win control of the Senate this fall?
5. Should President Biden announce his 2024 intentions the day after the midterm elections?
6. Is the era of mask mandates over?
7. Should the U.S. invest more in nuclear energy?
8. Will the Manchin-Schumer deal reduce the federal deficit?
9. Did the Uvalde school shooting mark a turning point in the debate about gun violence in America?
10. Is Google guilty of anti-trust violations?
1. What should Russia demand for the return of Brittney Griner and Paul Whelan?
2. Can the West do more to alleviate the emerging food crises in the developing world?
3. Should ASEAN suspend Myanmar’s membership?
4. Will Liz Truss be Britain’s next prime minister?
5. Is Turkey the best party to broker a larger peace deal between Russia and Ukraine?
6. Should China launch a military takeover of Taiwan?
7. How will Germany’s energy crisis affect the country’s Green Party?
8. Is Pakistan the next Sri Lanka?
9. Who will form Iraq’s next government?
10. Should Latin American governments end energy subsidies?
The 2021-2022 national speech and debate season was brought to a close a few weeks ago in Louisville, Kentucky at the National Speech and Debate Association (NSDA) National Tournament. This season, like the academic year, had its complications because of the ongoing nature of the COVID-19 pandemic, but some parts of the country resumed in-person competitions and there were steps back to “normalcy.” And, whether online or in-person, the national circuit continued its operations and the Extemp Central National Points Race came back.
To review the year, Extemp Central compiled the top seven stories from the national circuit, which we hope our readers will enjoy.