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1. Is Macedonia bound to become the next flare-up in the Western-Russian relationship?
2. Are there any economic benefits to climate change?
3. What are the strategic implications of Japan building a stealth jet?
4. How can Saudi Arabia liberate its economy from dependence on foreign oil exports?
5. Is ISIS a more dangerous terror group than al-Qaeda?
6. Will President Obama’s entrance into the Brexit debate help or hinder pro-EU forces?
7. How will a recent earthquake affect Ecuador’s economy?
8. Will the Freedom Party win the second round of the Austrian presidential election?
9. Should the international community create “safe zones” inside of Syria?
10. Will new UN sanctions against North Korea restrict the communist nation’s nuclear program?
Arguably the biggest demand of the progressive activists over the last two years has been a demand for a $15 minimum wage. Striking the nation’s low-wage establishments such as fast food chains, advocates insist that a massive wage hike would significantly dent poverty and provide a sufficient boost to the U.S. economy. The “Fight for $15” movement has scored victories in cities such as Seattle and most recently in New York and California. The Democratic primary has also become ground zero for the debate, with Bernie Sanders favoring a $15 federal minimum wage, while Hillary Clinton has adopted a more reserved approach, putting her support behind a $12 federal minimum wage that could be raised if the economy would support a larger increase. Meanwhile, business groups and conservative economists argue that a $15 minimum wage will most states and cities uncompetitive in a global economy and warn that such policies will increase, rather than decrease, poverty in America. What is clear is that this fall’s presidential election could hinge on the economy and whether Americans should receive another minimum wage increase. As a result, extempers should be prepared to discuss this topic and answer questions about it.
Here is today’s premium R&D to accompany 
s a list of all our old quizzes, 
In 2011, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) secured the approval of the United Nations Security Council to intervene in Libya to prevent Muammar Gaddafi from slaughtering civilians. Gaddafi was in the midst of a widespread revolt after he used violence against demonstrators that were inspired by the Arab Spring, which by that point rocked Tunisia and Egypt. However, NATO quickly moved from protecting civilians via no fly zones to regime change and in October 2011, anti-government rebels caught up to Gaddafi and executed him. Although President Obama wanted to avoid another Iraq, that is what transpired in Libya except this time no U.S. forces were committed to postwar reconstruction. Instead, Libya gradually devolved into political in-fighting and civil war and much like Iraq and Syria today, the country is under threat from the Islamic State, which is attempting to establish a foothold in the North African country to strike out at Libya’s neighbors and across the Mediterranean at Europe. Last week, in a speech at the National Defense University in Washington, President Barack Obama said that the biggest mistake of his presidency was not planning the reconstruction of Libya better, but there are some signs that things could improve. For example, the leader of a UN-approved government, Fayez al-Serraj, arrived last week to serve as Libya’s new prime minister and quickly won over some Tripoli militias and the loyalty of the heads of the central bank and national oil company. Still, al-Serraj has a tough road ahead of him to get Libya running smoothly again and he must handle militias, win over opposition legislators, and secure more economic support from the West so that Libya does not become a “Somalia on the Mediterranean” that Western policy analysts most fear.