Tag: extemp files Page 12 of 23

Here is your R&D for December 15th:

Only Connect from Time
Time Magazine has named Mark Elliot Zuckerberg as the 2010 Person of the Year.  Zuckerberg is the founder of Facebook.  Julian Assange and the Tea Party were the runner-ups.

The Municipal Debt Bubble from Reason
America’s cities and states are drowning in red ink, setting the stage for the next economic crisis.

Importing pessimism from the Economist
Asian policymakers are worried about importing inflation and sagging growth in Western nations, which have been strong export markets for them over the last decade.  Asian nations also worry about a rise in commodity prices, which occurred in the spring and summer of 2008.

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Here is your R&D for December 14th:

Berlusconi May Expand Majority, May Resign To Do So from the Wall Street Journal
After surviving a vote on no confidence in the lower house of the Italian parliament, Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has kept his political career alive.  However, Berlusconi has announced that he may formally resign in order to expand his parliamentary majority in new elections.

Obama officials warn of ‘devasting consequences’ if mandate struck down from the Hill
After a Virginia judge struck down the individual mandate in President Obama’s healthcare reform law yesterday, the Obama administration issued a warning that the ruling could hurt the ability of the law to control healthcare costs.

Deutschmark redux from Press Europ
As the European financial crisis continues, calls are rising in Germany for a return to the Deutschmark.  Although economists worry about the impacts on Germany’s exports if it were to leave the euro, they concede that Germany could pull off the move if it wanted.

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Here is your R&D for December 13th:

Ten years after Bush v. Gore, the fight goes on from the Christian Science Monitor
Ten years ago, the Supreme Court settled the 2000 presidential election and enabled Texas Goveror George W. Bush to defeat Vice-President Al Gore.  The election stirs up controversy to this day and is arguably one of the most important elections in American history.

Pelosi Walks Tax-Deal Tightrope from the Wall Street Journal
Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi is in a tough political position.  She has to let the Democratic caucus voice their displeasure at President Obama’s tax deal with Republicans, but cannot block the bill because it would harm the President’s agenda.

A surprising success from the Economist
According to the Economist, the Cancun climate summit was a success because the agreed upon documents call for new funds for climate finance and reducing deforestation and forest degradation.

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Here is your R&D for December 10th:

No cigar from the Economist
Why did President Obama’s deficit commission fail?  According to the Economist, the answer lies in an absence of political will.

Major setback for ‘don’t ask’ repeal from the Washington Post
The repeal of “don’t ask, don’t tell” was stymied in the Senate yesterday after a defense bill fell three votes short of the sixty needed to overcome a Republican filibuster.  The move has infuriated gay rights groups.

Bloomberg’s Non-Campaign for President from NBC New York
New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg gave a speech earlier this week where he called for bipartisanship and denounced national political figures.  Analysts believe that he may be pondering a 2012 presidential run, but could Bloomberg really win a general election?

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Here is your R&D for December 9th:

Scenarios: Fallout of success or failure at Cancun talks from Reuters
Reuters is back with some new scenarios today concerning the recent climate talks at Cancun.  What will happen if they succeed?  What will happen if they fail?

House sends DREAM Act to Senate from Politico
Yesterday, the House passed the DREAM Act, which provides a path to citizenship for young illegal immigrants.  However, Republicans are likely to filibuster the effort in the Senate.

Western Nations React to Poor Education Results from the New York Times
After an international survey revealed that Shanghai ahas the world’s best educated teenagers, Western nations are starting to question their education systems.

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Here is your R&D for December 8th:

Obama charts his own course from the Washington Post
President Obama’s decision to compromise with Republicans on the Bush tax cuts has earned him a tongue lashing from liberal activists, but he has defended the decision by saying it prevents taxes from going up on Americans making less than $250,000 a year.

Colleges See 16% Increase in Study of Sign Language from the New York Times
America’s colleges are seeing an increase in the number of students who want to study foreign languages.  The numbers are fueled by an interest in Arabic, Koran, Chinese, and American Sign Language.

Scenarios: Possible outcomes in Ivory Coast’s power struggle from Reuters
In this piece, Reuters describes the political situation in the Ivory Coast and lays out how the country’s political crisis may go.  A great article for extempers in approaching this subject.

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Here is your R&D for December 7th:

U.S. Regulators Propose Requiring Backup Cameras in All New Cars by 2014 from Bloomberg
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has proposed a rule requiring backup cameras on all new vehicles by 2014.  The rule would cost the auto industry an estimated $2.7 billion.

Talks fail to achieve limits on Iran’s nuclear program from the Los Angeles Times
In a move that’s about as surprising as the sun coming up every morning, China, Russia, the U.S., France, Germany, and Britain failed to get Iran to agree to limits on its nuclear program.  They intend to meet with Iranian officials in Instanbul next month.

Israel warns Argentina: Recognizing Palestinian state shatters peace process from Haaretz
Israel’s Foreign Ministry condemned Argentina’s recognition of a Palestinian state and argued that it will hamper the Middle East peace process.  Argentina’s announcement followed Brazil’s declaration of recognition last Friday.

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Here is your R&D for December 6th:

What Obama Needs to Come Back: Luck from Time
Can President Obama mount a political comeback before the 2012 elections?  Time magazine isn’t counting on it and offers a bleak assessment of the President’s political prospects.

U.S. steps up pressure on China to rein in North Korea from the Washington Post
The U.S. is stepping up diplomatic pressure on China to rein in some of North Korea’s aggressive activities.  The U.S. is also working with South Korea and Japan to build up an anti-China bloc in East Asia.

Reforming Pakistan’s Criminal Justice System from the International Crisis Group
Pakistan’s criminal justice system is imperiling its domestic security and the security of the South Asian region.  This International Crisis Group report explains the problems in Pakistan’s criminal justice system and offers ways to fix it.

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Here is your R&D for December 3rd:

House passes legislation to extend only some tax cuts from the Hill
House Democrats voted 234-188 yesterday to extend the Bush-era tax cuts for American families making less than $250,000 a year and individuals making less than $200,000 a year.  Three Republicans sided with Democrats on the bill, but twenty Democrats defected.

Carmel inferno proves Israel can’t afford war with Iran from Haaretz
This interesting article from Haaretz describes how Israel’s emergency services were not prepared for the recent Camel fire and would not be prepared for a war with Iran.

California Gov.-elect Brown to make state’s budget woes public from the Sacramento Bee (courtesy of the Miami Herald)
California Governor-elect Jerry Brown plans to launch a public campaign next week to tell Californians how bad the state’s budget crisis is.  Analysts believe that the campaign is meant to prepare voters for cost cutting measures forthcoming in Brown’s January budget proposal.

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Here is your R&D for December 2nd:

WikiLeaks cables, day 4: summary of today’s key points from the Guardian
Don’t feel like reading all the WikiLeaks cables?  This Guardian article provides a summary of the cables that were released today.

Fed aid in financial crisis went beyond U.S. banks to industry, foreign firms from the Washington Post
Recent disclosures show that the Federal Reserve gave aid to foreign banks and industry giants General Electric, Verizon, and Toyota during the financial crisis.  The data collected shows the scope of the Fed’s efforts to stop the financial crisis in the fall of 2008.

Japan’s Motion to Kill Kyoto Protocol a ‘Slap in the Face,’ Advocates Say from Reuters
Japan’s opposition to the extension of the Kyoto Protocol has been heavily criticzed by developing nations and environmental activists in Cancun, Mexico, where global climate talks are currently taking place.  Japan holds that the current climate apparatus doesn’t work because it only covers 27% of global CO2 emissions.

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Here is your R&D for December 1st:

States face $41 billion in budget gaps from CNN
It’s always good for extempers to have evidence in their files about the state of the state economies.  This article provides details of the fiscal problems facing states for the 2012 fiscal year.

Hamas would honor referendum on peace with Israel from Reuters
Hamas, the Islamic political and militant organization that opposes Israel’s existence, announced today that it would accept the outcome of a Palestinian referendum on a future peace treaty with the Jewish nation.

FCC chairman to propose plan for net neutrality from the Washington Post
Julis Genachowski, the chairman of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), plans to announce his neutrality proposal today.  Net neutrality would not allowed Internet providers from favoring or discriminating against traffic that goes over their networks.

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Here is your R&D for November 30th:

Wikileaks release ‘shows China thinking on Korea’ from the BBC
One of the interesting pieces of information uncovered by the release of State Department documents is that China seems to be frustrated by North Korea and is weighing whether a unified Korea would be best for regional security.

Severity of Problems in Haiti Vote Is Disputed from the New York Times
Colin Granderson, the chief of a team of international election observers in Haiti, announced yesterday that although the country’s presidential election had problems, those problems were not enough to invalidate the election.

Federal workers rage over President Obama’s two-year wage freeze from the New York Daily News
President Obama announced yesterday that federal employees would have their wages frozen for the next two years.  Unsurprisingly, the move, which signifies a shift of President Obama on fiscal matters, has angered public employees.

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Here is your R&D for November 29th:

US tries to contain damage from leaked cables from the Associated Press
The U.S. State Department is scrambling after WikiLeaks released more than 250,000 classified State Department documents.  The documents contain blunt interpretations of foreign leaders and provide insight into America’s handling of diplomatic hot spots throughout the world.

Kirk’s arrival boosts GOP from Politico
Republican Mark Kirk, the winner of Illinois Senate election several weeks ago, will be sworn in on Capitol Hill this evening.  Kirk will fill the rest of Roland Burris’s term before beginning his own six year term in January.  Kirk’s arrival boosts the number of GOP controlled Senate seats to 42, making it more difficult for Democrats to push partisan legislation in the lame duck session.

Election debacle has Haiti again near turmoil from the Houston Chronicle
Considering the chaos in Haiti over the last year, it is unsurprising that the country’s presidential election is in shambles.  Sunday’s vote brought the country’s political parties together to oppose Jude Celestin, considered President Rene Preval’s heir apparent.

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Here is your big R&D for November 23rd

North, South Korea exchange fire; 2 marines killed from the Associated Press
North and South Korea exchanged artillery fire today after North Korea shelled an island near their disputed sea border.  Two South Korean marines were killed.

Irish Debt Crisis Forces Collapse of Government from the New York Times
The Irish government collapsed a day after signing a $100 billion bailout from the European Union.  Prime Minister Brian Cowen says that he will dissolve the government after the country passes its 2011 budget in December.

North Korean attack: South mingles toughness with calls for calm from the Christian Science Monitor
After North Korea’s latest provocative attack, South Korean analysts are split over how best to respond.

Terrorism Trials and Detention’s Future from the Council on Foreign Relations
After the Ahmed Ghailani disaster, what is the future of America’s detention policy for terror suspects?

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Here is your R&D for November 18th:

Fears of new food crisis as prices soar from the Financial Times
The cost of global food imports will reach $1 trillion this year for only the second time in history.  The UN warns that rising inflation in emerging countries could create a second global food crisis.  The last food crisis was 2007-2008.

Mitt’s bad medicine from the Boston Herald
Although former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney is seen as a front runner for the GOP presidential nomination in 2012, he has one lingering problem:  his healthcare overhaul in Massachusetts that served as a model for President Obama’s healthcare reform package.  Considering the anger of the GOP base towards Obamacare, this issue could complicate Romney’s 2012 hopes.

GM Stock Sale in High Gear from the Wall Street Journal
Generate Motors is expected to sell $18.1 billion in shares in what experts believe will be the second-largest U.S. initial public offering (IPO) ever.  Yesterday, GM sold 478 million shares at $33 each, which beat expectations.

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