Tag: extemp files Page 5 of 23

How Senator Lautenberg’s Death Makes the Senate Even Less Functional from The Atlantic
This interesting piece discusses how Senator Frank Lautenberg’s death will impact pressing issues in the U.S. Senate regarding immigration reform, ending filibusters, and gun control.

Chris Christie’s Lautenberg Dilemma Is 2013-as-2016 All Over Again from The Atlantic
This brief piece summarizes the challenge facing New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, as he now has to select a replacement for Senator Frank Lautenberg, who passed away yesterday at the age of 89. Republicans want Christie to appoint a Republican to Lautenberg’s seat, but in a majority Democratic state that may not be possible and it may threaten Christie’s presidential ambitions.

Hezbollah willing to join fight for Golan from The Jerusalem Post
With his regime on the ropes, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad had considered opening a military offensive against Israel to recapture the Golan Heights. Lebanese militant group Hezbollah has offered to support such an initiative and they are currently fighting for Assad’s regime in Syria.

Hezbollah’s Gamble in Syria from Foreign Affairs
In conjunction with the story above, why is Hezbollah fighting to keep Bashar al-Assad in power? This piece chronicles the history between Hezbollah and Syria and provides excellent background information for extempers on this topic.

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Can Japan Remain Committed to Nonproliferation by The Washington Quarterly
This academic article, from the Spring 2013 edition of the Washington Quarterly, provides an interesting overview of whether Japan can afford to not have a nuclear weapons program. However, the authors conclude that Japan could provide a model for other nation-states that merely use nuclear power for domestic energy and avoid militarizing it.

U.S. Support for Euthanasia Hinges on How It’s Described from Gallup
This month Vermont became the fourth state in the nation to legalize physician-assisted suicide. This poll provides evidence that if the word “suicide” is used in asking a question about the practice then support plummets from 70% to 51%.

Unprotected: How Legalizing Prostitution Has Failed from Der Spiegel
This enlightening article from the German magazine Der Spiegel describes how attempts at legalizing prostitution within Germany have not succeeded in reducing exploitation and human trafficking. It provides an indictment of libertarian policies towards prostitution.

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Confidential report lists U.S. weapons system designs compromised by Chinese cyberspies from The Washington Post
In an alarming confident report, the Pentagon revealed that Chinese hackers acquired designs for over twenty major weapons systems, which could harm America’s chances in a future war with China.

Preventing Pharmageddon: Treatment Access for Noncommunicable Diseases from The Council on Foreign Relations
This policy memorandum from the Council on Foreign Relations discusses battles over access to patented medicines by developing nations.  It is a helpful article for extempers looking to increase evidence in their files about global medical issues.

Winning the jobs war from Politico
This op-ed piece, written by Delaware Governor Jack Markell discusses strategies that the country needs to take to make sure current students are ready for jobs of the future.  The op-ed heavily promotes the STEM education program.

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A Republican Senate Majority in 2014: So Close, But Yet so Far by Shrinking the Margin of Error
Although this source is a blog, it provides an excellent resource for extempers looking for a quick overview of the 2014 Senate races. Since an easy, generic domestic politics question is to ask about these campaigns, this blog post can help guide extempers in the right direction and prepare them for those topics.

Nuclear Iran: A Glossary of Terms from The Washington Institute for Near East Policy
Are you confused by some of the terminology surrounding Iran’s nuclear program? This excellent policy brief (make sure to download the .pdf) provides a dictionary for terms about Iran’s nuclear program and provides an updated overview of the topic. A fantastic resource for rookie and veteran extempers that have likely had to speak about this topic several times in their careers.

Obama reaches for moral high ground on drones, Gitmo from The Christian Science Monitor
Yesterday, President Obama gave an important foreign policy speech where he explained that the war on terrorism could not last forever, that American drone policy would be severely restricted to those who posed an imminent danger to the United States, and that Guantanamo Bay should be closed. This article explains the big ideas of Obama’s speech, centering mostly on drones and Gitmo.

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Drones: Myths And Reality In Pakistan from The International Crisis Group
President Obama’s drone policy has been one of the most controversial parts of his foreign policy. This executive summary, and full report, discusses America’s drone policy in the 21st century and discusses ways to make the American drone policy more transparent.

Batten down the hatches – the DNC is nearly over, but the US presidential election is a long way from finished. Across the pond, ECB President Mario Draghi is digging in his heels, but the Germans seem less than enthusiastic with his plan. All that and more in this week’s linkfest:

• Arctic ice melt could cause even more warming (BBC)
• Number of Americans on food stamps has reached a record high (CNBC)
• Draghi unveils his Euro-backstopping bond-buying scheme (BBC)
• Veganism touted as the answer to feeding a growing global population (Guardian)
• Propaganda war raging over the Syrian conflict (le Monde)
• East Africa looking to roll back barriers to trade (AllAfrica)
• Republicans struggling to connect with Latino voters (WSJ)
• Quick overview of the key differences between GOP and DNC platforms (NYT)
• Mexican President Nieta gets his team together (LAT)
• Santos gears up for peace talks with the FARC (CSM)
• How to improve education? Tackle “summer learning loss” (CSM)
• Dan Drezner breaks down some misconceptions about US-China relations (FP)
• Afghanistan Commander Gen. John Allen on the progress in the forgotten war (FP)
• Zuma and the ANC sitting on a tinder box with the mine worker dispute (CFR)
• Irony ensues after Goophone patents the iPhone 5 design (BGR)

Here is your R&D for August 12th:

Postal Service proposes cutting 120,000 jobs, pulling out of health-care plan from the Washington Post
The U.S. Postal Service is proposing a plan that would slash its workforce by 20% and withdraw from federal health and retirement plans.  The USPS has lost $20 billion over the last four years.

Unmask the thugs! Looters will no longer be able to cover up, says PM as he also promises cash for the rioters’ victims AND a crackdown on social media from the UK Daily Mail
In response to the riots affecting London, British Prime Minister David Cameron said that if looters try to repeat their acts of violence this week they could have their social networks, mobile phones, and BlackBerrys turned off.

U.N. far short of dollars to deal with Africa famine from CNN
An estimated 600,000 children are on the brink of starvation in Somalia and the United Nations is desperately looking for donors to stave off more suffering.  The UN has only received 48% of the $2.5 billion it says is needed to deal with the crisis.

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Here is your R&D for August 11th:

Republicans fend off Dem challenge to tough anti-union rules from USA Today
Democrats fell one seat short of regaining the Wisconsin State Senate in a series of recall elections on Tuesday.  Four of six Republicans that were up for recalls survived.  Two Democrats face recall elections next week.

With Return to Iowa, Romney Heeds Call of G.O.P. Strategists from the New York Times
Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney has been cautious about returning to Iowa, where he suffered a severe setback in the 2008 GOP presidential primary election.  However, he has decided to return to the state after Rick Perry’s potential candidacy is gaining momentum.

Georgia-Russia: Learn to Live like Neighbours from the International Crisis Group
On the third anniversary of a war between Georgia and Russia, both nations are facing increasing tensions.  The International Crisis Group recommends in this briefing that both countries need to have talks to improve regional security.

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Here is your R&D for August 5th:

Helping famine-stricken Somalia: It’s not as easy as sending food from the Los Angeles Times
This op-ed piece on the Somali famine from the Los Angeles Times breaks down what experts are saying needs to be done to solve the problem.

Countering Syria’s Ramadan Offensive from the Council on Foreign Relations
This analysis brief from the Council on Foreign Relations breaks down international pressure on the Syrian government over the latest outbreak of violence against political dissidents.

Global stock sell-off continues from the Financial Times
Global stock markets were rattled yesterday as central bankers failed to calm nerves about slowing economic growth.  Investors are worried about austerity measures in the United States and Europe and the slowdown taking place in global industrial production.

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Here is your R&D for August 4th:

Obama, Bernanke out of ammo to boost jobs, growth from Reuters
According to this analysis piece, President Obama and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke do not have any more tools at their disposal to combat America’s 9.2% unemployment rate.

Silvio Berlusconi fails to stem rising panic in financial markets from the Guardian
Italy was once regarded as Europe’s economic “sick man” and its economy is now under strain after yields on its government bonds have reached record levels.  Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi’s appeals to the financial community appear to have had no impact on the situation.

Worry Grows Over Delays in F.A.A. Pay from the New York Times
In a story that has the potential to become the next political hot topic, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is working under a partial shutdown as Congress is logjammed over a delay in restoring federal funds for airport construction projects.

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Turkey held parliamentary elections yesterday.  This R&D provides some useful articles for extempers at the NFL National Tournament concerning this event.  Since all of the articles are about the same topic, explanations are not provided for each article.

Recep Erdogan wins by landslide in Turkey’s general election from the Guardian

Turkey election:  Press hails Erdogan victory from the BBC

Turkish elections see highest voter turnout in years from Today’s Zaman

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Here is your R&D for June 8th:

Oil Rises the Most in Three Weeks as OPEC Fails to Reach Accord from Business Week
In Vienna, OPEC failed to agree on production targets for the first time in 20 years, as Iran and Venezuela succeeded in thwarting Saudi Arabia’s bid to increase production.  The move will likely send oil prices higher.

Zeroed In on N.H., Huntsman to Make Third Visit from RealClearPolitics
Former Utah Governor Jon Huntsman is making several trips to New Hampshire as his campaign has made the decision to skip the Iowa caucus.  Huntsman is not contesting Iowa because he does not favor ethanol.

Obama, Merkel pledge to cooperate on Libya, economy from the Los Angeles Times
German Chancellor Angela Merkel and President Obama pledged last night to continue military action in Libya and to work to contain the debt crisis that is troubling the euro zone.

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Here is your R&D for June 7th:

Remembering Six Days in 1967 from Foreign Policy
Michael Oren, Israel’s ambassador to the United States, writes this article, which presents the case for why Israel cannot go back to pre-1967 borders.

Congressman Anthony Weiner: Why Democrats are extra mad at him from the Christian Science Monitor
Congressman Anthony Weiner admitted yesterday that he had inappropriate online relationships with several women other than his wife.  Weiner has said that he will not resign, but Democrats in the House may force him to do so.

Second time’s the charm from the Economist
This is the Economist’s insightful write-up of the Peruvian presidential election and what challenges incoming president-elect Ollanta Humala will face.

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Here is your R&D for June 6th:

U.S. Innovation and Economic Recovery from the Council on Foreign Relations
How can the U.S. escape its economic malaise?  Four experts describe policy options in this expert roundup from the Council on Foreign Relations.

Wal-Mart Tops U.S. High Court Agenda as Violent Video Game Ruling Looms from Bloomberg
This article summarizes major cases that the Supreme Court will rule on during the next four weeks.  It might be of use to extempers who are in United States Extemp at NFL Nationals next week.

Peru presidential victor Humala faces balancing act from the Christian Science Monitor
Ollanta Humala narrowly defeated Keiko Fujimori to win the Peruvian presidency yesterday.  Humala campaigned as a Hugo Chavez-type candidate, but his narrow victory, as well as Peru’s strong economic growth, may cause him to govern more moderately.

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Here is your R&D for June 1st:

Kan faces political revolt on Fukushima from the Australian
Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan is facing a revolt from the opposition Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and New Komeito and it could cost him his government and lead to fresh elections.  Kan has to ensure that 80 of his party’s members do not jump ship in a vote of no confidence.

Not-so-sweet home from the Economist
Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi’s conservative government lost run-offs for mayor in nearly 90 Italian towns and cities on Monday, which included Milan and Naples.  Berlusconi and his team insist that the setbacks are merely a protest vote and do not herald any significant political changes in the months ahead.

National debt limit: Grand bargain eludes, narrow deal likely from the Christian Science Monitor
The House rejected a bill last night that would have raised the national debt limit with no strings attached.  Democrats said that the move was a political stunt, but Republicans insist that they will not raise the debt ceiling without accompanying cuts in the federal budget.

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