Reid's Speech Stuff

Extemp Questions Sept/Oct/Nov 2011

2011-12-01T08:55:00.000-10:00

Sept/Oct 2011
•What should the federal government do to minimize US market volatility?
•How reliable are the stress tests used by European banks?
•Do western economies need another round of quantitative easing?
•Can the new Libyan government maintain security & stability?
•What does the future hold for Libya?
•What can Mexico do to grow its economy?
•What should the international community do to help stabilize Libya?
•Is Japan’s government capable of stable leadership?
•Will the LDP rise to power again in Japan?
•Can President Sarkozy win reelection in France?
•Should the UN recognize the statehood of Palestine?
•Has the Ukrainian democratic revolution lived up to its promises?
•What do Augusts riots in London say about social stability in Britain?
•Can the UK coalition government survive?
•Will Italy’s austerity measures be enough to protect its economy?
•Can the government of Silvio Burlesconi rebuild the Italian economy?
•Does the global economy face recession?
•Do western economies face a double-dip recession?
•Can European governments agree on appropriate financial policy?
•When will the US housing market recover?
•What should the federal government do to curb unemployment?
•Will the 2012 election create gridlock in Congress over passing a job program?
•Should the federal government do more to promote higher education in the US?
•Can the Obama Administration rebuild Americans’ trust in their government?
•What can be done to improve Americans’ trust in their government?
•\Is America’s higher education system failing?
•Can President Obama build an effective partnership with Republicans in Congress?
•Can President Obama get re-elected despite the state of US unemployment?
•Will Congress act on a jobs bill before the election?
•Does Palestine’s/move for UN recognition of statehood mark an end to the Middle East peace process?
•Should the federal government have a large role in the public school system?
•What role should the federal government play in America’s public education?
•Should US troops be deployed to Mexico to aid in the drug war?
•How can President Obama rally the Democratic voter base in 2012?
•Does the Democratic party need more activism to counteract the Tea Party movement on the right?
•How stable is the Russian middle class?
•Is Russia too dependant on petroleum?
•Will a payroll tax cut entice American businesses to create new jobs?
•Should the IMF push for stronger financial reforms in Greece and Italy?
•How can the Afghan government effectively combat the Taliban forces in the tribal regions?
•Can Greece afford to default on their debt payments?
•Will the Arab Spring result in lasting democratic change in Islamic nations?
•How well are European businesses dealing with the Euro crisis?
•Can the Republican Party count on the support of Latino voters?
•How can the Republican Party rally the support of Latino voters in 2010?

Nov 2011•How much can the clean energy sector restart America’s economy over the long term?
•Are the policies of the Obama Administration to anti-business?
•Can the Occupy Wall Street movement effect real political change?
•Will the Republican candidates view on immigration alienate Hispanic voters?
•Can Herman Cain’s campaign survive all the way to the Republican primaries?
•What can be done to restore Americans’ trust in government?
•How quantitative easing programs worked in the US?
•Will the Occupy Wall Street movement reinvigorate the Democratic Party for the the 2012 election?
•Can President Obama gain politically from the failure of the debt super-committee?
•Will Greek financial problems break the back of the rest of the Euro Zone?

Older extemp questions

2011-11-10T21:43:00.002-10:00

I started typing these out from back in April/May, just found the word doc. whoops. Oh well, putting them up anyway

• What should Germany do to build up its domestic markets?
• Does Germany’s economic reliance on exports pose a risk for the EU economy as a whole?
• Is the situation in Afghanistan slipping out of control?
• Is America showing its commitment to the war in Afghanistan?
• Is grade inflation a serious problem in America’s schools?
• Will America’s unemployment numbers rise before the economy fully stabilizes?
• How much longer can the US continue it’s deficit spending
• Should US foreign policy make greater use of economic sanctions as a tool?
• Can the US afford to sustain significant troop losses in Afghanistan?
• How much of a direct threat does Al Qaeda still pose to the US?
• Is a military strike by the US or Israel necessary to deter Iran’s nuclear development?
• Is US foreign policy making progress in Iraq?
• Are Republicans on track to retake control of Congress in the midterm elections?
• Can the Obama Administration bring Washington beyond partisan politics?
• What options does the Obama Administration have to reduce American unemployment?
• Can US consumer spending drive a sustained economic recovery?
• How should the Obama Administration address concerns over America’s long term fiscal health?
• Is the Colombian government doing enough to combat the violence of the FARC?
• What more can the Mexican government do to combat increasing violence from drug cartels?
• Are America’s ties to Europe weakening?
• What does the future hold for Britain’s Labour Party?
• Does the lack of clean fresh water pose a significant security threat for India?
• Should NASA go back to the moon?
• What vision should President Obama have for peace in the Middle East?
• Can economic sanctions carry enough weight to stop nuclear development in Iran?
• Does American food aid to third world countries hurt those developing economies?
• Should the federal government bear a larger amount of the cost for public education in America?

Extemp Questions - Summer 2011

2011-09-07T10:56:00.001-10:00

April to June 2011
• Does Brazil’s economy have a bright future?
• Can Brazil’s government reign in corruption?
• Is online piracy still a major problem for the music industry?
• Should Obama push Israel harder on a two-state solution with Palestine?
• Does America’s derivatives market need its own regulatory agency?
• Should large banks be banned from trading financial derivatives?
• Is the NATO strategy in Afghanistan failing?
• Should America pursue stronger regional Free Trade Agreements with Asia?
• When should central banks begin to tighten monetary easing policies?
• Is a nuclear weapon free world an unattainable goal?
• Will cuts to NASA funding hurt US technological and economic development in the long run?
• What does the growing Tea Party movement say about politics in America?
• What does Mexico’s government need to succeed in the war on drugs?
• What more can the federal government do to curb US demand in the war on drugs?
• Should the EU bail out Greece’s economy/
• Can India’s economy grow as fast as China’s?
• Should America seek stronger strategic and economic ties with India?
• Is the Catholic Church taking the accusations of child and sexual abuse by the clergy seriously?
• What impact will Britain’s election have on UK relations with the EU?
• What does the future hold for Thailand’s monarchy?
• Should EU nations cut back on quantitative easing
• Is domestic terrorism being given an appropriate level of attention by the US Department of Homeland Security?
• Is polarization among America’s two major parties major parties making the US ungovernable?
• Should the federal government provide additional assistance to the states to help them overcome budget shortfalls?
• Is a fresh election in Zimbabwe necessary?
• Is standardized testing given too much weight in American public education?
June through Aug 2011
• Will Britain’s coalition government survive?
• Does the Arab Spring pose a serious threat for Israel?
• Will the Tea Party gain influence in the 2012 election?
• What compromises is Israel able to make to secure a lasting peace?
• Would a UN General Assembly vote to recognize a Palestinian state lead to a more aggressive posture from Israel?
• Will the Medicate debate hamper work on budget legislation?
• Can a moderate win the Republican nomination?
• Is the federal government doing enough to combat unemployment?
• Will sectarian politics in Bahrain reignite regional conflicts?
• What does the future hold for the politics of Prime Minister Silvio Berluscone?
• What should be done to grow Italy’s economy?
• Can Italy continue to avoid the Euro crisis?
• Does America face a double dip recession?
• Will Greece’s austerity measures succeed?
• Should the retirement age be increased to protect social security?
• Can cuts to federal entitlements spending solve America’s debt problems?
• Is America’s deficit spending a risk to US national security?
• Should President Obama seek Congressional for US actions in Libya?
• What role should the US play in international peacekeeping efforts?
• Is sectarian conflict growing in Syria?
• How strong is the Assad government in Syria?
• How can the opposition win in Syria?
• Will austerity measure collapse the Greek government?
• How can China continue to sustain it's economic growth?
• Can China grow its middle class?
• How should the IMF handle the European debt crisis?
• Should developing nations be given greater powers in the IMF?
• Does America need a balanced budget amendment?
• What role should the US play in Libya?
• What does the US debt debate mean for the 2012 election?
• Who can succeed Hugo Chavez?
• What has caused the grassroots of the Republican Party to move towards the right?
• How can the US create a viable long term debt reduction plan?
• Has President Obama done enough to push Congress on deficit reduction?
• Does Michelle Bachman have a viable shot at the Republican nomination for 2012?
• Does America need a balanced budget amendment?
• How will the scandals in the UK affect Rupert Murdoch’s business interests in the US?
• How can the Euro zone resolve it’s debt crisis?
• Do Spain’s proposed austerity measures go too far?
• Will / Should the America’s credit rating still be downgraded?
• Is Congress doing enough to combat unemployment?
• What more should Congress do to reduce unemployment?
• Has America’s economy lost the ability to create new jobs?
• Will politics break up the Euro zone economies?
• Will Peru’s economy succeed under its new President?
• Is it time for Rupert Murdoch to step down?
• Can the debt crisis lead European economies to further integration?
• Has corruption in South Africa improved under President Zuma?
• Has partisanship made America ungovernable?
• Can Egypt overcome it’s hurdles in the transition to democracy?
• Is America headed for another recession?
• Should America face additional credit downgrades?
• Has partisan bickering by a few individuals made America ungovernable?
• Will a weak economy make Obama vulnerable in the 2012 election?
• Does America face a long term military engagement in Libra?
• Is Islam incompatible with western style democracy?
• How much did riots in London change international perceptions of Britain?
• What can be done to combat ongoing unemployment in the UK?
• Can the new Thai government build a lasting unity government?
• What do the London riots say about the state of the economy in the UK?
• Can Syria’s protest groups create a unified opposition?
• Will Syrian opposition fall to sectarian differences?
• Can the European Central Bank continue to offset the sovereign debt problems in Europe?
• What effect will the US credit rating downgrade have on long-term economic stability?
• Is long-term restructuring of US entitlements spending politically feasible?
• Will the US institute another round of quantitative easing?
• Does the US patent system need a major overhaul?

Extemp Questios May 2011

2011-05-19T19:26:00.001-10:00

Been a while. Guess I'll start writing a few more.

1.Is Al Qaeda a diminished enemy?
2.Should the US accelerate its withdrawal from Afghanistan?
3.Is the killing of Bin Laden a game changer for Obama’s reelection bid in 2012?
4.Should the US reduce it’s aid to Pakistan?
5.Should the US worry about retaliatory attacks from Al Qaeda?
6.After the killing of Bin Laden is the US any safer?
7.What relationship should the US maintain with Pakistan?
8.Should the European Central Bank raise its interest rates?
9.Should the Fed raise interest rates?
10.Is radical Islam growing in the Arabian Peninsula?
11.How can the Obama Administration improve its relationship with the business community?
12.What impact will the Japanese nuclear reactor crisis have on long term nuclear power development around the globe?
13.When will alternative energy sources be able to make the US energy independent?
14.Does US immigration policy harm the US economy?
15.Do JSOC raids in Afghanistan create more jihadists than they capture or kill?
16.Has unemployment fallen off the radar of the US Congress?
17.What concessions will the Obama Administration make to Congressional Republicans to raise the debt ceiling?
18.Is the Obama Administration doing enough to address unemployment?

Extemp Questions for May, June and July 2009

2009-08-11T22:06:00.002-10:00

One of these days I'll actually start typing these out on a normal basis istead of jotting them in my omnipresent notepad so that I never get around to clearing out

• Should former Bush Administration officials be held legally accountable for torture to detainees?
• What should be done with Guantanamo detainees?
• Is a two state solution the key to successful peace in the Middle East?
• Is a resolution over the future of Palestine key to successful diplomacy with Iran?
• How will the BRIC nations cope with the global economic problems?
• Should the US ratify the nuclear test ban treaty?
• Does the world economy need a global central bank?
• Should the UN impose new sanctions on North Korea?
• Should the Obama Administration push for a new dialogue with Cuba?
• How safe is America’s border with Mexico?
• How can Mexico’s President Calderon win in his war against the drug cartels?
• Can China create an affordable and comprehensive health care system?
• Can additional NATO troops ensure a stable election in Afghanistan?
• What more should the UN do to slow the spread of AIDS in Africa?
• Is Iranian development of nuclear weapons inevitable?
• Can the US economy survive without GM?
• How can the Republican Party make itself more appealing to younger voters?
• Does voter outrage over bank executive’s pay make it difficult to provide necessary bailout funds?
• Is cyber=warfare a real threat to American infrastructure?
• Who should oversee America’s cyber-security efforts?
• Should US stimulus spending include funding for student debt relief?
• How should the Treasury overhaul the US financial regulatory system?
• Is the federal government ignoring the growing problem of homelessness?
• Is the US doing enough to stem the flow of Afghani opium?
• Should US do more to stem the flow of drugs and guns with Latin America?
• Should China take the lead in the six party talks with North Korea?
• Is Palestine the key to a de-nuclearized Iran?
• Is the worst over for the global economy?
• How long will it take for the US housing market to recover?
• Why is America’s voter turnout so low?
• How can Europe establish sustainable fisheries?
• How will a global outbreak of flu impact the global economy?
• What effects will GM’s bankruptcy have?
• What significance will GM’s bankruptcy have to the US economy?
• What kinds of people should Barack Obama appoint to the federal judicial system?
• Will Pres. Obama’s Supreme Court pick get approved by the Senate?
• Will the US economy need more federal stimulus money?
• Is the American military losing the fight in Afghanistan?
• Does the rise of Internet based news services signal the end for print newspapers?
• Should the EU push France to reform its prison conditions?
• How much will the financial crisis impact America’s long term economic health?
• How long will it take for America’s financial services industry to recover?
• What role should the US play in supporting the Iranian protesters?
• Will President Obama get health care reform accomplished in his first term?
• Is the White House doing enough to control federal spending?
• Is California’s prison system beyond repair?
• What plans should Sri Lanka have for post war reconciliation?
• What does Indonesia’s July election mean for the future of national politics?
• Does North Korea’s continued development of long range missiles pose a significant threat to the US?
• Can Britain’s Labour Party survive the next general election?
• Should African nations do more to subsidize small and subsistence farming/
• Do African Union nations need to take a more active role in Zimbabwe?
• How long can Robert Mugabe continue to exert his control over Zimbabwe?
• Should the compensation of American companies’ executives have federal government oversight?
• How should the US engage with the Iranian government?
• What support should the US provide to Iranian protesters?
• Is Chinese currency manipulation a threat to US economic recovery?
• Do charter schools work?
• Should America’s public schools have longer days and shorter summers?
• Does a strong Real mean long term economic growth for Brazil?
• How aggressive will the Chinese government be in its carbon emission reduction targets?
• Can the Pakistani government effective rein in the ISI?
• Is human trafficking a significant problem in Southeast Asia?
• Is militant Islam gaining strength in Central Asia?
• How can the international community get Sudan’s President Bashir to adhere to peace agreements?
• Why is anti immigrant attitude on the rise in Europe?
• Is Obama’s health care plan overreaching?
• Will Iran’s clerics be forced to choose between a legitimate government and uncontested power?
• Should the US push Netanyahu to accept a two state solution with Palestine?
• How can Argentina turn itself around?
• Do President Obama’s proposed reforms to US financial regulation give the Federal Reserve too much power?
• How can Japan encourage greater competition among its businesses?
• Will Iran’s leadership be forced to hold new elections?
• Can Mexico’s President Calderon really crack down on drug related government corruption?
• How can the US encourage greater foreign investment in Afghanistan?
• How will North Korea change after Kim Jong Il?
• What can be done to improve the world’s view of Zimbabwe?
• Should the World Bank provide more funding for infrastructure development in Africa?
• Can Israel afford to stop expansion of its settlement areas?
• Does the current state of Palestinian life in Gaza damage Israeli security?
• Should the US make it easier for third world refugees to apply for political asylum?
• What can President Obama do to encourage more publically funded elections?
• Will European unemployment continue to rise?
• Should the remaining US automobile industry be forced to adhere to even stricter CAFE standards?
• Are biofuels a viable stepping stone to a nationwide fleet of electric cars?
• Is America in decline around the globe?
• What should be the goal of America foreign policy in Africa?
• Does a multipolar world mean a decline for US influence globally?
• Why is American health care so expensive?
• Should health care reform incorporate more managed care?
• Are the welfare reforms of the 90’s being undone by federal economic stimulus?
• Will Obama push to reverse the “don’t ask don’t tell” policy?
• Are relations between Taiwan and China improving?
• Is security in Iraq getting worse?
• Should America set a timetable to withdrawal its forces from Afghanistan?
• Will aging populations prolong the global economic downturn?
• Should the EU be more involved in peacekeeping efforts in Africa?
• Should the US military devote more resources towards international peacekeeping efforts?
• Can the LDP still survive on the national political stage in Japan?
• Will Italy’s public debt mean a longer lasting economic crisis?
• Should Balkan nations be admitted into the EU?
• Is piracy sill a major threat for the American entertainment industry?
• Should the Chinese government crack down harder on counterfeit goods?

Extemp attention getter

2009-08-11T21:50:00.003-10:00

Don't remember exactly where I heard this but thought it could pretty easily be twisted to apply to a number of different situations and questions.

An old man is fishing one day when he catches a mermaid. The mermaid says that if he lets her go, she'll grant him three wishes. "Alright," he says, and thinks for a few minutes then says "I wish to be young and handsome. I wish to be married to a beautiful woman. Finally, I wish to be a very important man."

"done." Says the mermaid and with a flick of her tail she knocks the man unconscious. The next thing he knows he's being gently shaken awake by a beautiful woman who tells him "wake up Ferdinand, we have to go to Sarajevo today."

You could do something about "be careful what you wish for." It's appropriate to anything in the Balkans...

Of course it's only funny if you know WWI history and that killing Franz Ferdinand kicks off trench warfare, so maybe not for the mommy judges, but still, I found it amusing.

Elene Gabre-Madhin on TED.com talking about the development of markets

2009-08-11T21:19:00.002-10:00

http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/elene_gabre_madhin_on_ethiopian_economics.html

In specific she's talking about developing a market in Ethiopia but as a former World Banker she also goes through some economic theory that it behooves extempers to know well. In particular, think aout how she describes and explains the link between sellers access to markets and economic development. The development of a futures market and a rating system for grain that allowed purchase (and sale) of commotidites over long geographical distances (and time) is an important concept for developing nations, particularly Africa and Asia. Latin America, perhaps as well, though I have my doubts that the concept applies as well in the region.

Books I'm Reading 25) On The Wealth of Nations by PJ O'Rourke

2009-08-11T21:15:00.000-10:00

http://www.amazon.com/Wealth-Nations-Books-Changed-World/dp/B000RH0CB8/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1250060439&sr=8-2

I tried once, over a decade ago, to actually read Adam Smith's The Wealth of Nations. Figured it was good material to learn when I was doing debate in high school and afterwards when I was coaching. I never did make it through the entire thing. It was better at putting me to sleep than the ABA's Guide to Wills and Estates. I'm glad to know that somebody who's writing I've always enjoyed actually managed to wade through the entire thing.

Ironically enough i think I started reading The Atlantic and O'Rourke when I was in high school as well. I still thinks it's one of the best magazines around and the content for the book was published as a review by the Atlantic a couple of years ago.

The real gem of the work isn't so much O'Rourke's explanation of Adam Smith, it's in the explanations of the 'diversions' that Smith takes and the ancillary people surrounding Smith, like David Hume and other thinkers of the day. Oh and yes, I do recognize the irony of my writing what amounts to a short review of a review of a book that was published nearly two and a quarter centuries ago.

We're I still coaching debate, I'd make this required reading for my LD kids. It's an easy read of complex subjects and provides a solid foundation for me to drill them on Hume, Kant even Locke and other social contract theorists. Locke's ideas on property and justice would have probably made a nice contrast to some of the other viewpoints like Hume that O'Rourke goes into, come to think of it.

Regardless, it was well worth the weekend going through this even if I don't put it to much actual use anytime soon. And I do agree that it's somewhat annoying that the term "bullshit" didn't come into the vernacular sooner.

Extemp Questions May 2009

2009-05-08T01:39:00.002-10:00

Been a while...I've been jotting these down and haven't had much time until this week to type them all out.

• How much will America’s economic slowdown curb illegal immigration?
• Is President Hugo Chavez losing control of the Venezuela’s government?
• Is Hugo Chavez losing his dream of Bolivarian Socialism?
• Can Afghanistan successfully develop an economic alternative to growing opium poppies?
• Will Wal-Mart be forced to allow its employees to unionize?
• When will an HIV vaccine be developed?
• Is the global community doing enough to curb the spread of AIDS in the developing world?
• What effect will the retirement of the baby boomers have on the US economy?
• What effect will Obama’s presidency have on US race relations?
• Should the federal government subsidize the development of new nuclear power plants?
• What effect will falling oil prices have on political stability in the Middle East?
• Can global philanthropy use business practices to effect social change?
• Should the US implement a cap and trade system on carbon emissions?
• Is the Indian government doing enough to combat urban poverty?
• What direction will Cuba take under the leadership of Raul Castro?
• Who can lead the push for a strong, unified Latin American political bloc on the world stage?
• Is normalization of diplomatic relations between India and Pakistan possible?
• What should the US do with detainees currently in Guantanamo Bay?
• Is there a way back for the Republican Party?
• Does Silicon Valley still have its economic magic?
• Has a single currency been good for European economies?
• Should the UK adopt the Euro as its currency?
• What should the federal government do to get displaced American workers employed again?
• Should Kashmir be granted its independence?
• What political fallout will come from Russia’s current economic slide?
• How much is Internet shopping eroding the sales of American brick and mortar retailers?
• What can President Obama learn from Bill Clinton’s failed attempt at Mideast Peace?
• What impact will aging populations have on the global economy?
• Will the American tech sector prove resistant to the economic downturn?
• Does Britain’s Labour Party have a solid plan to break out of the current economic slump?
• Should the US postpone plans for missile defense systems in Europe?
• Is America’s Department of Homeland Security doing enough to guard the infrastructure of Cyberspace?
• What legacy will the second Bush Administration be remembered for?
• What should the federal government do to revive the lagging US housing market/
• Has mark to market accounting failed the US financial system?
• Should the FDIC form a ‘bad bank’ to absorb troubled assets?
• How should the US now define victory in Iraq?
• Can the British Army sustain its operations across the globe?
• Has the US troop surge in Iraq created a climate that permits political reconciliation?
• Does continued US engagement in Iraq strengthen the regional power of Iran?
• Does Pakistan pose a larger risk to US interests than Afghanistan?
• How can European nations get out from under the thumb of Russia’s Gazprom?
• How can the US federal government get financial institutions to restart the flow of credit to the economy?
• Should US taxpayers bear the risk of insuring banks’ lending?
• How can the British government restore banks’ capital levels?
• Why is single malt scotch so awesome?
• Does the current economic crisis set the stage for another round of class warfare in America?
• Should American universities do more to recruit foreign students?
• How can American automakers remain globally competitive?
• How will the global economic woes change the flows of migrant workers?
• How can the US best put terrorist organizations like Al Qaeda on the defensive?
• Can the US afford to close the detention center at Guantanamo Bay?
• Can President Obama give the Israeli-Palestinian conflict the attention it requies?
• Could a unity government administer Palestine effectively?
• Should Obama reverse President Bush’s decision to block US participation in the ICC?
• Does the economic stimulus plan move to slowly to effect economic recovery?
• What more should the federal government do to trim the rising costs of higher education?
• Should the EU loosen it’s economic requirements for membership?
• Can the UK government shore up struggling British banks?
• Is the US successfully combating the global movement of radical Islam?
• When will America’s efforts towards a European missile defense shield come to fruition?
• Should the WHO be more ambitious in combating global diseases?
• Should US law enforcement agencies be prohibited from storing the DNA samples?
• When will Chinese car makers be able to push into the US auto market?
• Should American multinationals be allowed to repatriate money made abroad without facing taxes?
• Will global philanthropy survive the economic crisis?
• Can the Republican Party successfully rebrand itself to American voters?
• Can Japan’s LDP party recover voters’ support?
• How can the Japanese government restore consumer confidence?
• Are bigger tax cuts needed in the US economic stimulus package?
• Are America’s financial sector executives morally as well as financially bankrupt?
• Should the European Central Bank lower interest rates?
• How can financial institutions add clarity and transparency to derivatives markets?
• Can bipartisanship win out in Congress?
• Will the US economic stimulus package create another round of global trade wars?
• How can the Republican Party rebuild its public image?
• Should individual states be required to disclose how federal stimulus money is spent?
• Can India keep up its economic growth amidst global downturn?
• Should the UN push for stricter sanctions against Myanmar?
• Will the government of Thailand loosen les magistre prohibitions on free speech?
• Can a free, independent press survive in Russia?
• Will a draw down of US troop presence in Iraq respark sectarian violence?
• Is the Iraq public disillusioned with the political process?
• Have the economies of the Asian Tigers been overly dependant on exports?
• Should developing nations have more say in the IMF?
• What more should the federal stimulus plan do for developing a comprehensive energy plan?
• Has American policy failed in the war on drugs?
• How will the new Israeli government affect the peace process?
• What place does ‘abstinence only’ sex education have in American education policy?
• Should the UN offer more aid to Haiti?
• Will revenues from newly discovered oil fields strengthen government corruption in Brazil?
• Is the Department of Homeland Security doing enough to secure America’s borders?
• Should the US renegotiate NAFTA?
• Should the US continue to support Hamid Karzai?
• Can additional American troops improve the security situation on the ground in Afghanistan?
• Should America’s foreign policy strategy in Central Asia be rethought?
• How can Taiwan best weather the economic downturn?
• Can a power-sharing government successfully run Zimbabwe?
• Can China sustain strong economic growth against the fall in global markets?
• Will the economic downturn strengthen the power of US labor unions?
• Does nuclear deterrence still have a place in US foreign policy?
• Will China’s growing middle class push for political change?
• Is Obama’s strategy for Iraq realistic?
• Does America need significant prison reform?
• Should the federal government impose net neutrality rules on American broadband providers?
• Should the federal government nationalize failing banks?
• Is political reform in Saudi Arabia moving too slowly?
• How should the US define victory in Afghanistan?
• Is the risk of a failed Palestinian state a significant worry for US policy in the Middle East?
• Does the US military need to put more effort into expanding it’s Civil Affairs force?
• How can the US combat Islamist insurgency in AfPak?
• Should the US do more to support Pakistan’s President Zadari?
• Is peace between India and Pakistan impossible?
• Should the EU have a larger voice on the world stage?
• Should American automakers be allowed to go bankrupt?
• Should Europe put more focus on the development of nuclear power?
• What does the future hold for EU expansion?
• Is there a chance for political consensus in Pakistan?
• Can new leadership build a functional government in Somalia?
• Does Europe need a unified industrial policy to survive the economic downturn?
• Has the UK been successfully addressing the concerns of its Muslim citizens?
• Is the EU effectively integrating Muslims immigrants into new cultures?
• Does the US still face significant threats of domestic terrorism?
• How large of a threat does a nuclear armed Iran pose for the region?
• Does Europe’s energy market require further consolidation to counter Russia’s influence?
• Will more Eastern European nations require IMF bailout?
• Should the federal government do more to encourage the recycling of household waste?
• Is America committed to a two-station solution in the Israel-Palestine conflict?
• Should the US government limit the size of banks to prevent failures that pose a systemic risk?
• Can the FDIC cope with the scale of bank failures?
• How will the Chinese government expand its economic stimulus to keep growing the economy?
• Should the Chinese government spend more on rural health care?
• How will Obama’s Presidency change America’s role in the Middle East?
• Should the ICC prosecute Sudan’s President Bashir?
• Is the Obama Administration doing enough to stimulate confidence in the economy?
• Should the federal government allow AIG to fail?
• Does the Obama stimulus plan need to be bigger in the short term?
• Does American news media work hard enough to ask the tough questions?
• What reforms are necessary in the American prison system?
• Is Mexico’s drug war moving to the US?
• How well has Latin America coped with the global economic downturn?
• Is political stability in Thailand still far off?
• Will corruption ruin South African democracy?
• Can Jacob Zuma retain support among South African voters?
• Can a coalition government lead Israel effectively?
• What can the Middle Eastern nations learn from Saudi Arabia’s success in combating radical Islam?
• Can the Iraqi government keep former Sunni insurgents from picking up arms again?
• Could fighting in the Balkans still flare up again?
• Who can take over leadership of Britain’s Labour Party?
• Does Europe’s economy show a glimmer of hope among global depression?
• Are the Torries poised to take power from the Labour Party?
• Has Russia’s Dimitri Medvedev shown himself to be the shadow of Vladimir Putin?
• Should the US continue to push for a draw down in the global number of nuclear weapons?
• How will Russia respond to NATO expansion into Eastern Europe?
• Can the US convince China and Russia to assist in dealing with Iran’s nuclear program?
• Does the Internet need a global legal framework to address international cybercrime?
• What kind of long term viability do American auto-makers have?
• Can GM avoid bankruptcy?
• When will American consumer spending begin to pick back up?
• How is Japan faring in the global economic crisis?
• How can Asian economies become less dependent on exports?
• Has Afghanistan become a true narco-state?
• Will the “green” stimulus money have lasting effects on US unemployment?
• Should the US push for further domestic development of bio-fuels?
• Will American unemployment get worse before the next mid-term elections?
• When will a Malaria vaccine become a reality?
• Is outrage over expensive bonuses undermining efforts to stimulate the economy?
• Can additional NATO troops ensure a stable election in Afghanistan?
• What more should the UN do to combat the spread of AIDS in Africa?
• Is Iranian development of nuclear weapons inevitable?
• Can the US economy survive a deep, long-term recession?
• How can the Republican Party in the US reinvent itself?
• Should National Guard troops be used to enforce border security?
• What role will Michelle Obama play in the Administration?
• What does Iran’s upcoming Presidential election mean for the future of the Middle East?
• Will the risk of accidents slow the global adoption of nuclear energy?
• Is American military spending out of control?
• Will Congress cut defense spending?
• Has Web 2.0 lived up to the hype?
• Is bankruptcy the best choice for American carmakers?
• How well is Obama doing thus far?
• What should the world do about the situation in Sudan?
• Is the ICC an effective body for adjudicating world crimes?
• What should Congress do to encourage cuts in American carbon emissions?
• Would a cap and trade system for carbon emissions work in the US?
• Are African nations improving in the fight against AIDS?
• Can democracy succeed in the Persian Gulf?
• Should the US unilaterally draw down its stockpile of nuclear weapons?
• How well are developing nations weathering the economic storm?
• What is the future of Iran’s theocratic regime?
• Does Iraq face an inevitable resurgence of sectarian violence?
• What can be done to curb corruption in African governments?
• Is the Sudan effectively a failed state?
• What should the UN do to ease the suffering of the Sudanese populace?
• How can the Pakistani government beat the insurgency in the North?
• Can new militias offer a real solution to the security situation in Afghanistan?
• Does rising unemployment pose a risk to China’s economic growth?
• Will Europe pass the Lisbon Treaty?
• Does the EU need a full time President?
• Can Britain maintain its stimulus spending levels?
• Will the current economic crisis be the downfall of the Labour Party in Britian?
• Is America moving fast enough on a global stage to combat global warming?
• Is the US ready to commit to significant reductions in carbon emissions?
• Has the Taliban found a safe new home in Pakistan?
• Does the global economy need new mechanism for regulating international banking?
• Is organized crime on the rise again in the US?
• Should the federal government pus to expand broadband Internet access across the US?

Extemp Questions through Dec. 08

2009-01-22T19:14:00.002-10:00

sorry, kinda forgot to post these. Had them in MS Word for a while, just never got around to the actual posting.

• Is the UK lacking in economic leadership?
• Can the economic issue trump the effect of Sarah Palin in conservative voters?
• Ten years after Pinochet has Chile’s army finally regained its legitimacy?.
• Can the Democratic Party of Japan lead an effective opposition to the LDP?
• Should the federal government subsidize nuclear energy development?
• Are European banks insulated from America’s current financial crisis?
• Is universal health care necessary to keep America’s economy competitive?
• Will the airline industry be the next to seek major federal bailout?
• Does the federal bailout of the financial sector set a precedent for the rescue of other industries?
• Can farming keep pace with the global population boom?
• Is American media biased in favor of the left?
• Can America effectively compete in a rapidly growing global economy?
• Does the federal bailout of the financial sector unfairly burden American taxpayers?
• Are UN peacekeepers needed in Somalia?
• Will Russia seek closer ties with Latin American nations?
• Should a new organization be created to oversee the US finance markets?
• Can a government plan save the US economy?
• What will the finance rescue plan really cost American taxpayers?
• In the government rescue plan, do American taxpayers bear too much burden for the irresponsible behaviors of the finance sector?
• Will the government financial rescue plan be adversely effected by the political changes of a new President?
• Can the baby boomers afford to retire with the economy in its current condition?
• Will the current credit crunch cause consumers to increase savings?
• Does the US face a shortage of doctors in its rural areas?
• Is financial globalization itself part of the problem in the current economic crisis?
• Will Barak Obama push congress for additional bailouts to the financial sector?
• Does South Africa face long term political instability?
• Can the global community eradicate the threat of Malaria by 2040?
• Can emerging economies change the shape of global financial markets?
• Can Afghanistan’s President Karzai work out a deal with the remaining Taliban insurgents?
• Is global free trade once again under threat?
• Should the US cut its farm subsidies?
• How can the US best promote global carbon emission reductions?
• Does the US face a serious shortage of primary care physicians?
• Is increased globalization good for the American economy?
• Are government bailouts of banks an unnecessarily expensive way to solve the global economic problems?
• What is the right way to reform global finance?
• Is deregulation to blame for the current market crisis?
• Does President elect Obama have a clear political mandate from the American people?
• Can President Obama govern effectively in a bipartisan manner?.
• How can the Republican Party rebuild itself by 2012?
• Are corporate bonds once again “junk”?
• Will China’s export economy stay strong amidst a global credit crisis?
• What business models can the music industry follow to curb the financial damage caused by Internet piracy?
• Will US government intervention be enough to curb the growing scale of the global economic crisis
• What does the future hold for Sarah Palin’s political career?
• What does Barak Obama’s Presidential victory tell about the status of race as a political issue for the US?
• Should the Canadian government take more action to stave off the impacts of the current economic crisis?
• Does Thailand’s government face another coup?
• When will Kashmir gain its independence?
• Is peace in Sri Lanka finally at hand?
• What more should the international community do to curb the flow of arms to chaotic African nations?
• Has Kosovo gain international legitimacy since it declared independence?
• Should the central banks of individual nations be made to cooperate and coordinate their efforts for the sake of the global economy?
• Can the economies of sub-Saharan Africa improve with the failing global financial markets?
• Should the IMF and the World Bank put more pressure n African antions to reform their human rights practices?
• Will the population booms in Africa worsen the poverty crisis across the continent?
• What should Congress do to simplify the US health care system?
• Should President elect Obama offer Hillary Clinton a role in his Administration?
• Will the current American financial crisis inevitably cause a global economic depression?
• Will American consumer spending continue to fall in 2009?
• Will China’s economic growth be able to cushion the global credit crunch?
• Will the economic slow down in rich nations allow developing economies the chance to grow?
• Does Africa need to integrate more into the global economy to prosper?
• Will America’s weakened economy continue to attract foreign investment?
• Will the Euro take over as the world’s primary reserve currency?
• What role has free trade played in creating the current economic crisis?
• Is immigration still poised to be a key policy issue for the new President?
• Is it feasible to secure the entire US-Mexico border from illegal immigration?
• How can No Child Left Behind be reformed to more effectively help states with primary and secondary education?
• Do mandatory minimums for drug sentencing effectively combat drug crimes?
• Is General Petraeus capable of leading the war on terror under a new President?
• Will the US military resist a large scale withdrawal from Iraq?
• How can the US make better use of the troops and resources it has in Afghanistan?
• Will new leadership in South Africa be capable of healing the political rifts that arose under Thabo Mbeki?
• Will the failing public health system be a main focus for President Obama’s first term?
• Can the international community effectively police the trafficking of weapons grade nuclear materials?
• Can the music industry find a business model that will let is sucessfuly adapt to the Internet?
• Can government intervention keep European banks solvent?
• What should the international community do to stabilize the government in Somalia?
• Are African Union troops sufficient for peacekeeping efforts in sub-Saharan Africa?
• What is behind European nations move towards the political right?
• Will EU nations begin to get tough on immigration and political asylum?
• Is illegal immigration out of control in Europe?
• Should Latin American nations push to privatize the development of energy resources?
• Is the quality of American higher education falling against the global norms?
• Why was the Obama campaign so successful at engaging the typically apathetic younger voters?
• What will history remember about the second Bush term in office?
• Can Pakistan’s ISI purge itself of Taliban loyalists?
• What should the US do to resolve do to resolve the conflict between India and Pakistan over the disputed Kashmir region?
• Can Japan keep its export economy strong?
• Is religion in China growing?
• What impact will religion have on the future of Chinese politics?
• Is the UN paying enough attention to the chaos in Somalia?
• Does international fixation on North Korea’s nuclear development programs prevent real progress on improving the quality of life for North Koreans?
• Should the US push for an official end to the war between North and South Korea?
• Can the Six-Party Talks help find a way towards eventual Korean reunification?
• What kind of contingency plans should the US have in place for the failure of the North Korean state?
• Will America’s lagging economy curb illegal immigration from Mexico?
• Will the current economic crisis create the impetus for Congress to reform the US healthcare system?
• Should Congress push for large infrastructure projects as a means to counter the economic depression?
• How well will the Euro cope with its first major economic depression?
• Is a political compromise with the Taliban still a viable option?
• Should the US push for he demolition of unauthorized Israeli settlements in the disputed territories?
• Should the UN rethink its mandate in the Congo?
• What can African nations do to make the continent friendlier to international business?
• Will the Obama Administration push for stricter gun control legislation from Congress?
• Does Europe need the Lisbon Treaty?
• Can Ireland be persuaded to reverse its decision on the Lisbon Treaty?
• Should the UN be brought in to negotiate the power sharing arrangement in the new government of Zimbabwe?
• Does China’s continued economic growth depend on additional economic reforms?
• Will Britian pull its support from the war in Afghanistan?
• When will the Kurds get their own nation?
• How can the US auto industry survive in the long run?
• What more can the Japanese government do to combat the growing problem of homelessness?
• Can emerging economies avoid catastrophe in the global market?
• When will the US begin to draw down its troop presence in Iraq?
• Does the US government’s foreign debt obligation pose a risk to national security?
• What does Barack Obama’s victory show about the future of public campaign financing?
• Has the US lost its influence in Latin America?
• Is Saudi Arabia ripe for political reform?
• Can the US rely on Saudi Arabia as an ally in the fight against radical Islam?
• What does the EU expect of the new American President?
• How can President elect Obama find common ground with Republicans in Congress?
• Will the Obama Administration have to defer some of its campaign promises because of the state of the US economy?
• Can the Republican Party get back in touch with Hispanic voters?
• Will international economic woes slow intra-European migration?
• What objectives does Venezuela have for it’s role in the future of Latin American politics?
• Can the strength of the Chinese Yuan help to stabilize Asian economies during the current crisis?
• Is the IMF still a key part of the international economy?
• Who should replace Ted Stevens in representing Alaska in the US Senate?
• Will Medicare reforms be a priority for the Obama Administration?
• Should the federal government raise the minimum age on Social Security benefits?
• What does the Obama victory show about the youth vote in America?
• Should US carmakers get an emergency bailout from the federal government?
• Should the US provide more aid to Central America?
• Will China make efforts to reduce carbon emissions?
• Has China made enough progress in protecting international intellectual property?
• Can Japan’s Prime Minister Aso revitalize the nation’s lagging economy?
• Should the LDP in Japan push for an early election?
• Is Congress taking appropriate measures to address prison overcrowding?
• Will Google be the next big tech firm to face antitrust lawsuits?
• Should American companies be held liable in US courts for their human rights practices in foreign countries?
• Can the Japanese economy weather the current global credit crisis without international bailout?
• Is there significant political bias in American news media?
• Is there an upside to the current economic downturn?
• Is greater international action needed for he preservation of fisheries and other marine resources?
• Should the federal government subsidize the development of clean coal energy?
• Will short term government bailout lead to long term profitability for the US automobile industry?
• Can federal spending curb rising US unemployment?
• Does nuclear energy development have a future in Europe?
• What would it take to disarm the world of nuclear weapons?
• Should large pharmaceutical companies focus more on developing world markets?
• Can US carmakers survive by pushing into the Chinese automobile market?
• Are the worlds richest nations headed for a deflationary spiral?
• How can the US effectively combat the global threat of non-state sponsors of terrorism?
• Has South Korea’s “Sunshine Policy” with the North been successful?
• Does South Korea face imminent economic implosion?
• Will Iran’s hard line government continue to thrive against the new Obama Administration/
• Can a workable power sharing deal in Zimbabwe be negotiated in good faith?
• Should the US support missle defense initiatives in Europe?
• How will America bear out the hidden costs of the war in Iraq?
• How competitive is the US in the overall global economy?
• What should America’s economic strategy be for improving long term global competitiveness?
• What will it take to restore Iraq’s middle class?
• Is a lasting peace in Sri Lanka on the horizon?
• Is a gradual withdrawal from Iraq in the best interest of the United States?
• Is security in Iraq finally turning around?
• Can the Iraqi government successfully block infiltration by Syrian Jihadists?
• Have Iraqi Kurds overreached on their ambitions for independence?
• Can Sunni leaders be drawn back into participating in Iraqi politics?

Weekend Reading - AIDS Sutra

2008-12-08T18:26:00.001-10:00

A nice publication from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation about AIDS in India, reported in a couple of places like the economist it covers some interesting and less explored aspects of AIDS in India. Amazon has a link to buy it as well

http://www.gatesfoundation.org/avahan/Pages/aids-sutra.aspx

Storytelling - Carmen Agra Deedy on TED.com

2008-10-22T05:52:00.003-10:00

Stylistically one of the best examples I can show you for how to tell stories. Interaction, expressiveness, character and the best twist and emotional tug at the end. Now that doesn't mean that all stories have to necessarily model themselves after one or another presentation. In fact the best of the best are original, but the aspects that make this so engrossing to watch are things that everyone can learn from when telling stories.

Weekend Reading - Transparency International Annual Global Corruption Report

2008-10-21T08:24:00.000-10:00

Each year transparency International publishes a report on corruption worldwide.

download link is at: http://www.transparency.org/publications/gcr give it a read when you get a chance.

Extemp Questions for the end of Sept.

2008-10-02T03:21:00.002-10:00

• What does the Chinese government need to do to create an effective health care system?
• What should Congress do to provide health care for the uninsured?
• Can south Ossetia survive as an independent state?
• How much worse will the US banking crisis get?
• Should Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac be dissolved?
• Will South Ossetia turn into another Kosovo situation?
• Can Obama convince voters that he has enough experience to lead?
• What can John McCain do to convince voters that he would be able to have a successful bipartisan government?
• Can John McCain effectively engage the religious right?
• Is confidence growing among Iraqis that they can govern themselves?
• Can the Shiite leadership in Iraq effectively integrate Sunnis into government?
• Should the US press India to accept the nonproliferation treaty?
• What should the US Treasury Department do to alleviate the mortgage crisis?
• Should the federal government do more to assist New Orleans?
• Does FEMA still need massive overhaul?
• What can be done to reform Colombia’s politics?
• What impact will the expansion of oil and gas exploration in South America have on the region’s indigenous people?
• Can new leadership stabilize Pakistan?
• Is Angola ready for real democracy?
• Will the June ceasefire hold in Gaza?
• Is Libya ready for major political reforms?
• Does a lack of unity across Europe harm the EU’s relationship with Russia?
• Does Germany face a serious economic recession?
• Will the European Central Bank continue to ease its lending policies?
• Is the UN doing enough to combat global poverty?
• Should the EU sanction Russia for its actions in Georgia?
• When will Cyprus reunify?
• Will Anbar province remain stable after the US hands security to Iraqi forces?
• What will it take to politically stabilize Thailand?
• Will a new Prime Minister be able to implement lasting political change in Japan?
• Does NATO still have a military role in Europe?
• What are Russia’s ultimate goals for the Baltic States?
• Is political instability on the horizon for the Ukraine?
• Can Russia afford to continue antagonizing Western Europe?
• Does Russia’s actions in Georgia hint at the future for Chechnya?
• Is Britain’s economy overly reliant on the finance sectors?
• What impact did Ron Paul’s campaign have on the Republican Party’s platform?
• Is the US housing market finally hitting bottom?
• Does Sarah Palin represent a new direction for the GOP?
• Can Sarah Palin win moderate voters to the Republican Party?
• Is the LDP’s long rule over Japanese politics at its end?
• What can be done to ensure security for international aid workers in Somalia?
• Can Somalia’s government avoid total collapse?
• Is Africa the next front in the fight between the West and radical Islam?
• Why is the democratic left losing ground across Europe?
• Dos the UK economy face a lasting recession?
• Can the Afghan government find successful alternatives to opium poppies as cash crops?
• Should South Africa’s President Mbeki step down?
• Should US taxpayers bear the costs of banks’ bad loans?
• Will the US financial rescue plan resolve the global credit crisis?
• Should the US institute a carbon tax on new cars?
• Can the American automobile industry find success in hybrid and electric vehicles?
• Do regional trade agreements aid or undermine the progress of global free trade negotiations?
• Will Japan’s economy continue to underperform?
• How should the US react to North Korea’s intentions to restart its nuclear development programs?
• Will Americans continue to keep significant personal debt?
• How can Americans lower the average household debt?
• Is China’s labor market able to sustain its rapid economic growth in the long run?
• Has China exhausted its available labor pool?
• Why is it so important to wage a war on drugs if a joint never tried to blow you up with an IED or crash an airplane into a building?
• When will Hydrogen fuel cell cars make it to the mass market?
• Will Pakistan remain a key American ally in the war on terror?
• Is UE membership in the Ukraine’s future?
• Can government control over Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac prevent their collapse?
• Will new leadership in Pakistan help stabilize the region?
• Will allowing India to import nuclear fuel let that nation remain economically competitive around the world?
• Will government conservatorship of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac help alleviate the global credit crisis?
• Can the Democrats woo Evangelical voters in November?
• How can John McCain best reinforce support among Evangelical voters?
• Can John McCain ride the wave of Evangelical voters into the White House?
• Is feminism in America waning?
• How should the next American President react to the strengthening ties between Venezuela and Russia?
• Can Hillary Clinton bring he supporters to the Obama camp?
• Will Joe Biden help Obama win over undecided voters as muc as Sarah Palin will help John McCain?
• Are CAFÉ standards imposed on new cars strict enough?
• How to the two main party platforms compare on the key issues facing the next President?
• How will he next American President address the resurgence of Russia on the world stage?
• What role should the federal government play in setting standards for American primary and secondary education?
• What new voters will Sarah Palin bring to the Republican ticket in November?
• In post-Olympic China will the government allow for greater democracy?
• Is political stability finally achievable in Angola?
• Is America’s space program underfunded?
• How can the next American President best restore America’s standing in the global community?
• Does the Ukraine have a future as a NATO member?
• What does the restoration of Russia’s military power mean for Eastern European nations?
• Will Ireland approve the EU Lisbon Treaty in a re-vote?
• Is a university degree still worth the time and tuition it takes?
• Is the American workforce ready to handle the retirement of the boomer generation?
• Are higher oil prices better for America?
• Can the global community adapt to the changes in the environment created by global warming?
• What impact will rising fuel oil prices have on the US household savings rate?
• Should individual states do more to encourage local renewable energy projects?
• Will government conservatorship of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac stabilize America’s housing market?
• How effective will the new government be in Zimbabwe?
• Will the holiday season be enough to salvage slinking American retail sales this year?
• Will the new government in Zimbabwe finally allow for the distribution of needed food aid?
• What are the priority reforms that need to be made in Zimbabwe to stabilize the country?
• Can American forces in Afghanistan gain some progress by fielding forces into the tribal lands of Pakistan?
• What can the global community do to preserve world fisheries and other ocean resources?
• Is additional government regulation of the financial services sector necessary?
• Will Cuba open new economic inroads for foreign investment?
• Should the US finally lift the trade embargo against Cuba?
• Is the NATO reconstruction effort in Afghanistan failing?
• How effective are Pakistan’s efforts in combating terrorism throughout the tribal areas?
• How much influence can the LDP keep Japanese politics?
• Can the new power sharing deal in Zimbabwe work?

Extemp Questions 29 Aug 2008

2008-08-29T22:39:00.003-10:00

• Is the crisis in Darfur being adequately addressed by the international community?
• What would it take to eradicate the threat of Malaria around the world?
• Is the federal government doing enough to secure America’s seaports?
• How can the global telecommunications network be better used to promote democracy and international human rights?
• Does the breadth of modern economic globalization pose a risk to individual national interest?
• Should America develop a new ‘Marshall Plan’ to save Africa?
• What steps can the international community take to better respond to the threat of failing states?
• Can a global climate change agreement be made effective without US buy in?
• Is international cooperation on the development of alternative energy sources necessary to move America off of a hydrocarbon based economy?
• What will it take to eradicate Polio from the globe?
• How can Gordon Brown’s goal of education for all children of the world be realized?
• Will the European Union’s Lisbon Treaty be ratified?
• Will Ireland revote and pass the Lisbon Treaty?
• What would ratification of the Lisbon Treaty mean for the future of the EU?
• Should developing nations be given a larger voice in shaping the policies and practices of the IMF?
• Has America’s ‘abstinence only’ sex education policy been successful?
• Should the federal government fund comprehensive sex education programs in America’s public schools?
• What does the Supreme Court’s overturning of the Roe v. Wade decision mean for the future of the pro-life movement?
• How will the November elections impact the makeup of the Supreme Court?
• What does the future hold for the US-Russia relationship?
• What is the future of Russia’s relationship with the EU?
• What role should the US play in Eastern Europe?
• What is the future of Russian democracy?
• What will it take to restore America’s trust in Russia?
• Does anybody else thing the Olympics would have been way more interesting if they had the decathletes high-jump over Yao Ming’s head?
• Who will succeed Pervez Musharaf in leadership of Pakistan?
• Is unity a significant problem for the Democratic Party heading into the November elections?
• What strengths does Gov. Sarah Palin bring to John McCain’s Presidential campaign?
• Did McCain reach too far outside the beltway for a running mate?
• So maybe I’m old but who doesn’t think that Sarah Palin would be a hotter Vice President than Hillary Clinton?
• Will Joe Biden’s comments in the primary season be a liability to the Obama campaign?
• What will it take to get the necessary international aid to people in Zimbabwe?
• Will US consumer spending fall further in the last half of 2008?
• Will Thailand’s Prime Minister be forced to resign?
• What can be done to boost Japan’s lagging economy?
• What options does the US have to help resolve the Georgia-Russia crisis?
• Is Japan facing a serious political leadership vacum?

Extemp Questions 29 Aug 2008

2008-08-29T22:39:00.000-10:00

Extemp Questions 16 Aug 2008

2008-08-16T01:54:00.000-10:00

• What should America’s overall strategy in the Middle East look like?
• Will the peace process between Israel and Palestine stagnate under the next American President?
• Should the federal government invest more into early childhood education?\
• How will the resignation of Prime Minister Olmert affect the future of the Israeli-Palestinian peace process?
• When will China enact effective pollution controls?
• Is Afghanistan on the right track for rebuilding?
• How can America’s small businesses best react to rising oil prices?
• Should Olympic sponsors put greater pressure on China to reform its human rights practices?
• What role will Hillary Clinton play in the general election?
• Can the US withdraw all of its troops from Iraq within two years?
• Will Shiite militias in Iraq shift their focus away from violence?
• Will America’s involvement in foreign conflicts put the international dominance of the dollar at risk?
• Does the American economy’s rely too heavily on the financial sector?
• Should Congress impose stricter regulations on the financial industry?
• Is the Presidential campaign taking on too negative of a tone?
• Can expansion of offshore oil exploration stave off an energy crisis in America?
• Can exploration of offshore oil fields ensure America’s energy independence?
• When will America be able to move the economy off of it’s dependence on hydrocarbons?
• Should the federal government enact stricter fuel efficiency standards on new automobiles?
• Can the US government have a balanced budget without raising taxes?
• Is partisanship in Washington too big of a problem for any new President to fix?
• Is the surge in Iraq working?
• Would the improvements in Iraq have been possible without the troop surge?
• Will America provide a timetable for troop withdrawal?
• Will Joe Lieberman be welcome in the Democratic Party in the next term?
• Can the McCain campaign hold onto the Republican Party base?
• What role will the Clintons play in Obama’s campaign?
• Will the Obama campaign lose many of Hillary Clinton’s supports in the general election?
• What options should be left on the table when Congress addresses the problems with Social Security?
• What key issues will the Presidential campaign focus on?
• Should the tax credits for oil companies be ended?
• Is federal government bailout of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac necessary?
• Do American capital markets need stricter government regulation?
• Did the tax rebates make a significant impact on stimulating the US economy?
• Are the long term fundamentals of the US economy still strong?
• How can China resolve the conflict between economic development and environmental protection?
• Should the US push China to improve its stance on human rights issues?
• Is China making enough of an effort to involve itself in the family of nations?
• Will economic realities prevent bold plans and campaign promises in the next Presidential term?
• Will John McCain try to distance himself from the Bush Administration in the campaign?
• Will Russia’s military action in Georgia prompt a response from the rest of Europe?
• What impact will Russia’s military action in Georgia have on European energy policy?
• How much work will the Obama campaign have to do to bring the Clintons back into the Democratic Party folds?
• How can the US revitalize its lagging manufacturing industry?
• Does access to clean fresh water pose a significant threat to international security?
• When will the US economy be able to recover from the current housing and mortgage crisis?
• Is American secondary education still competitive on the global stage?
• What should America’s exit strategy be in Iraq?
• What criteria should America use to determine when it’s possible to leave Iraq?
• What role will Iran play when the US leaves Iraq?
• Are Sunni Arabs a real part of the Iraq government?
• Do journalists in American uphold their responsibility to promote open and balanced dialogue?
• Is there a real alternative to the “West Bank first” policy to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict?
• Is the two station solution between Israel and Palestine still viable?
• Should the US still work with Hamas and Hezbollah even if they do not recognize Israel’s right to exist?
• Does the prevailing Israeli political leadership still want to prevent an independent Palestinian state?
• What will it take to develop a lasting trust between Israeli and Palestinian leaders?
• What stance on the Mideast peace process would be in the best long term interests of the United States?
• Is American involvement in the Mideast peace process still relevant?
• Why did the Palestinian National Unity government fail?
• Is it possible to generate a sense of urgency in the in the international community to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict?ss

Oratory/Expos, etc. - follow up on a previous post

2008-07-29T09:37:00.002-10:00

Randy Pausch, the Carnegie Mellon professor who I've posted about before died last Sat. at age 47.

His CMU "Last Lecture" and an email i just got aused me to pause and reflect on the collective wisdom that he and they have taught me. (The below I blatantly and honestly steal from Mark Goulston. http://markgoulston.com)

1. "No dying man wishes he'd spent more time at the office."

2. While you're out trying to win the respect and admiration of the outside world who usually won't give it to you, don't make those who really do care about you feel like their love and respect isn't worth anything.

3. Don't let your emotional shyness cause you to wait until it's too late to say: "I'm sorry," "Thank you," "I love you" and "I'll miss you."

4. Wealth is what you take from the world; worth is what you give back a.k.a. In the end, it' s not what you have that matters, it's what you leave behind.

5. Smart is about knowing what will make you money; Wisdom is about knowing what's important.

6. Love means ALWAYS having to say (and show) you're sorry.

Extemp Questions 25 July 2008

2008-07-25T00:09:00.001-10:00

• What more should the federal government do to curtail the rising homeless populations in America’s major cities?
• Is Congress really committed to balancing the budget?
• Will domestic inflation start causing America’s international trade position to falter?
• What plan does John McCain have to improve the US economy?
• Does America need a “carbon tax”?
• What steps should the federal government take to support Freddie Mac?
• Should the US consider removing itself from the ABM treaty?
• Will housing lenders require federal bailout?
• Can the federal government have a balanced budget while continuing to wage wars in Iraq and Afghanistan?
• How can the No Child Left Behind Act be revised to improve American public education?
• What qualities should John McCain look for in a running mate?
• Is American primary and secondary education underfunded?
• What should Congress do to make higher education more affordable to middle class Americans?
• Is it possible for US factory jobs to come back?
• Will Mexico begin to take some of America’s manufacturing business from China?
• Is it possible to move all US electricity production off of fossil fuels within the next ten years?
• Does the demand for oil by emerging economies such as China make renewable energy a viable option for the US?
• Will Al Gore return to politics?
• Will the main issue of the fall elections be Iraq, the economy or something else?

Extemp Questions 7 July 2008

2008-07-07T21:48:00.001-10:00

• What should the G8 nations do to alleviate global hunger?
• What should the US do to lead the G8 nations in carbon emission controls?
• Has Afghanistan replaced Iraq as the central focus of the global war on terror?
• Will a permanent lunar base benefit NASA’s dreams of a manned mission to Mars?
• Should Israeli withdrawal from Palestine be a precondition for the progression of the peace process?
• Should the US push Saudi Arabia to reform its human rights violations?
• Is the Saudi Arabian justice system violating international human rights accords?
• Will Belarus and Russia merge into a single nation?
• How will Vladimir Putin function as Prime Minister?
• Is crime in America cities getting worse?
• Will the US automobile industry shift its focus to electric and hybrid vehicles?
• Can the EU incentives Iran to end it’s nuclear enrichment program?
• Has Rupert Murdoch’s acquisition of The Wall Street Journal proven that there is still some life left in print journalism?
• Is the era of serious American print journalism over?
• How did Barack Obama’s campaign become so successful at fundraising?
• Can the Obama campaign motivate younger voters to turn out to the polls in November?
• Is public campaign financing the solution to big money influence in politics?
• Will the Obama campaign be held captive by the left-leaning wing of the Democratic Party?
• Should the moratorium on exploration of offshore oil and gas reserves be lifted?
• Should resources devoted to the war in Afghanistan be increased?
• Is it possible to win in Afghanistan with the level commitment the US current devotes to the area?
• What factors and characteristics should Barack Obama look for in a running mate?
• Will Barack Obama garner the Hispanic vote in November?
• Should the US encourage the development of new nuclear power plants?
• Should the Federal government enact a moratorium on new coal-fired power plants?
• Where does the war in Iraq stand as an issue in the General Election season?
• How has immigration reform in the Western United States impacted immigration across the country?
• Will the American West be the key battleground in the 2008 Presidential election?
• Will rising oil costs sink the US automobile industry?

Extemp Questions 12 June 2008

2008-06-12T20:19:00.001-10:00

• Are Americans’ First Amendment rights being adequately protected in the age of the PATRIOT Act?
• What does the long primary election season mean for Democratic Party unity?
• What mistakes did Hillary Clinton make in her primary election campaign?
• Is China improving human rights practices in preparation for the summer Olympics?
• Has enough been done to improve Afghanistan’s national infrastructure?
• Is improved infrastructure and better roads the key to Afghanistan’s future?
• Are China’s efforts in environmental protection having an impact?
• Can alternative energy sources be used to improve environmental quality and keep up with the rapid economic growth in China?
• Will the US dollar continue to slide against the Euro?
• Is the situation in Darfur being properly addressed by the international community?
• Do NGO’s have sufficient access to help the victims in Myanmar?
• What role should the African union play in Darfur?
• Does American discussion of withdrawal embolden Iraqi insurgents?
• Does media consolidation lead to a less informed public?
• Do American media sources cover enough international news?
• How can Democrats argue for withdrawal from Iraq without appearing soft on defense?
• Is American print news media falling by the wayside?
• Is media consolidation in the US damaging to the public?
• Should US troops oversees be subject to the jurisdiction of the international criminal court?
• Will Barak Obama and Hillary Clinton be able to unite the Democratic Party?
• Will history judge the Bush Administration in a better light than it is seen today?
• Can conservation efforts solve America’s energy woes?
• Will rising energy costs push the US into a long-term economic downturn?
• Will Africa be the world’s next development miracle?
• Can John McCain use his age as an asset in the Presidential election?
• Can American businesses better meet the bottom line by going green?
• Are VoIP telephone calls harming law enforcement efforts with wiretapping and criminal investigations?
• Can peaceful reunification of China and Taiwan be accomplished?
• Can John McCain unite both the social and conservatives in the Republican Party?
• Are the various movements within the Democratic Party too fractious to unite effectively?
• Can a Democratic majority in Congress agree on a plan to address the problem of health care reform in the US/

Extemp Questions 12 May 2008

2008-05-12T18:49:00.002-10:00

• Should America adopt a system of proportional representation for congressional elections?
• Should the US adopt instant run-off voting for federal level elections?
• Are effective election reforms possible in the US?
• Should the US get rid of the electoral college for Presidential elections?
• Should national level elections be standardized and regulated by the federal government?
• How can the US overcome the different conflicts of interest in the process of running elections?
• Should the same sex marriage debate be left to the individual states to decide?
• How can the US become the global leader in environmental protection?
• Can a single-payer system work for the health care system in the US?
• Is enough being done to combat homelessness in the US?
• What reforms to mental health care would most benefit the US?
• What more should be done to combat global hunger?
• Can the development help eradicate Malaria across the globe?
• What metrics should be used to determine a timeline for US troop withdrawals from Iraq?
• Is the federal government doing enough to ensure America’s cyber-security?
• Will Russian President Dmitri Medvedev continue the path laid by Vladimir Putin?
• Can President Medvedev end the rampant corruption in the Russian government?
• Has life for Israeli Arabs improved over the past few years?
• Should the US be willing to accept a long-term troop presence in Iraq?
• Is the primary campaign season in the US too long?
• Have attack ads in the Democratic primaries helped John McCain in the general election?
• Is America ready for an African American President?
• What steps are necessary for the US to return to a balanced budget?
• Can Israel survive as a Jewish democracy?
• Is an independent Palestine in the best interest of Israel?
• When will the US housing market rebound?
• Can Congress pass effective campaign finance reform?
• How significant of a problem are performance enhancing drugs in professional sports?
• Should Intelligent Design be taught in America’s public schools?
• How can the US most effectively wage the War on Terror?
• Should education be a more prominent issue in the Democratic primaries?
• How well has General Patraeus been doing in Iraq?
• How should the role of the US in the Middle East change?
• Why have the Kyoto protocols been so ineffective at promoting environmental controls?
• Will the rest of the global economy fall under the US recession?
• Should federal government contributions to school funding be raised?
• Is online file sharing bad for musicians?
• Should the federal ban on stem cell research be lifted?
• What dos the future hold for Cuba?
• Is the black market trade of nuclear materials being combated effectively?
• Can Afghanistan effectively police the narcotics trade within its borders?
• Would Obama be a stronger candidate than Clinton in the fall elections?
• Can the stranglehold of special interests in Washington be broken?
• Does Hillary Clinton still have a viable path to the Democratic nomination?
• Is universal health care a viable solution to the problems in the American Health Care System?
• Will values voters be a necessary block of voters for the Presidential nominees to court?
• Can the US afford to enforce its immigration policies?
• Is youth violence on the rise in the US?
• Does US foreign policy do enough to address international human rights issues?
• How large of a part should energy efficiency play in resolving America’s energy independence?
• Is America’s high education staying competitive with the rest of the world?
• Will America’s economy right itself in the second half of 2008?
• Is the development of corn based ethanol hurting the US economy?
• Is Colin Powell a viable running mate for John McCain?
• Are free trade agreements good for the US economy?
• Will Kosovo’s declaration of independence recreate the regional instabilities of the 1990’s?
• Should the US increase the number of H1-B visas?
• Is state sponsored terrorism on the rise?
• What has been the impact of the Brown v. Board decision on American society?
• Is Barak Obama capable of running an effective national campaign against John McCain?
• How can the US become more energy efficient?

Policy Debate ('07-'08) - Paul Ewald on TED

2008-05-10T14:08:00.003-10:00

One of those things that would have been interesting to have much earlier in the debate season, Paul Ewald talks about the domestication of germs. How it's possible in a relatively short time frame to manipulate the virulence of some diseases by manipulating the means in which it can be transmitted. For example, making Malaria less virulent and less resistant to anti-malarial drugs by mosquito proofing homes.

http://www.ted.com/talks/view/id/259

Further information on evolutionary domestication of diseases (Malaria specifically):
http://memorias.ioc.fiocruz.br/935/24mvt.html - About the Tennessee Valley Authority mosquito-proofing houses around the 1930's and 40's when it build dams to provide hydroelectric power which caused Malaria outbreaks.

Randy Pausch - Last Lecture

2008-04-09T21:21:00.004-10:00

In the same vein as the TED lectures that I've posted here, this is something you should watch. if you do oratory, get an understanding of how the message is portrayed. No I don't expect you to do push ups. Get an idea of what it is to motivate, to inspire, to persuade those you are talking to.

http://download.srv.cs.cmu.edu/~pausch/

Extemp Questions - Mar. 23 2008

2008-03-24T22:02:00.003-10:00

• Can the Korea’s reunify?
• Will China use its trade surplus as an economic weapon?
• What impact will the looming retirement of the Boomer’s have on the US economy?
• Should the US default on its Social Ssecurity obligations?
• Should local school boards be removed in favor of national control of primary and seondary education?
• Does local control of education cause failing schools?
• Is No Child Left Behind failing?
• What can the US learn from Europe about secondary education?
• Will the tone of the primary season hurt the Democrats in the upcoming general election?
• Should Florida and Michigan be allowed a voice in the Democratic Party primaries?
• Is offshoring of jobs dangerous for the US tech industry?
• What will it take to make universal health care a reality for the US?
• Will there be new primaries for Michigan and Florida?
• Should we be prosecuting Eliot Spitzer or congratulating him for how hot that chick was?
• What is currently the biggest risk for the US economy?
• Does the failure of Bear Stearns signal fundamental problems with inventment banks?
• Is The Fed doing what it should to stabilize the economy?
• Can Ben Bernanke keep inflation in check?
• Are the US economic fundamentals still stable?
• Will US consumer spending continue to slow?
• Has the troop surge in Iraq been successful so far?
• Will the US economy rally by the November elections?
• Is US foreign policy towards the Middle East headed in the right direction?
• How should the US approach free trade with Latin American nations?
• Should private security contractors fall under the jurisdiction of military law?
• Does the hiring of private security contractors make the US military more efficient?
• Has Sarbanes-Oxley legislation improved corporate accounting in the US?
• Is e-voting technology ready for primetime?
• Should the US increase its diplomatic and political support of Israel?
• How significant is Chain’s space program?
• Will economic anxiety be the big issue for the November elections?
• What impact will Ralph Nader have on the Presidential election?
• Will John McCain’s age be seen as an asset or a liability for his campaign?
• Is a weak dollar good for American unemployment?
• Can multinational corporations revive the US economy?.
• How can the US reduce its trade deficit?
• How has globalization impacted the US economy?
• Has NAFTA harmed the US economy?
• Is intellectual property law reform necessary to protect the US entertainment industry?
• Will China continue to keep the value of the Yuan artificially low?
• Are US consumers headed for significant rise in inflation?
• Do hard times in the US housing market signal the shape of the rest of the economy?
• Will US unemployment rise?
• Can the federal government save Medicare?
• Is the federal government doing enough to protect America’s endangered species?
• Would ‘Net Neutrality’ be good for the US economy?

Extemp Questions 28 Feb. 2008

2008-02-28T22:06:00.002-10:00

• Is the push for net neutrality good for American consumers?
• Is the quality of American higher education falling behind the global curve?
• Should the federal government be allowed to negotiate with pharmaceutical companies for prescription medications?
• Is US national seaport security being overlooked?
• What should the US do to lead the world in controlling carbon emissions?
• Can public funding improve the fairness of US elections?
• Will a “Passengers Bill of Rights” improve the quality of US air travel?
• Should the federal government impose stricter fuel efficiency standards on new automobiles?
• Is the Federal Reserve keeping interest rates too low?
• Has the prop surge in Iraq been successful thus far?
• Should the US put a deadline on troop withdrawal from Iraq?
• Should the US put a deadline on troop withdrawal from Afghanistan?
• Will the US continue to look to Pakistan as a regional ally in the global war on terror?
• What can African governments do to improve access to clean potable water?
• Will the resignation of Fidel Castro improve relations between Cuba and the US?
• What’s next for Cuba?
• Should the US end its embargo against Cuba?
• Has the music industry been irreparably harmed by the popularity of online music sources?
• Should Congress push for a balanced budget amendment?
• How can the federal government curb deficit spending?
• What steps should US companies take to curb the growing trade deficit with China?
• Should additional limits be placed on interim federal court appointments?
• Is additional gun control legislation necessary?
• Will Kosovo’s declaration it’s independence from Serbia reignite regional violence?
• Will the Beijing Olympics raise the question of Taiwanese independence?
• Should the US further reduce its nuclear arsenal?
• Should the US Air Force end its use of cluster munitions?
• Are primary election processes in the US unfair?
• Has Microsoft finally resolved its problems with the European Union?
• Has Bill Clinton been a liability to Hillary’s Presidential campaign?
• Will union endorsements carry significant weight in the general election?
• Can John McCain mend his relationship with the evangelical wing of the Republican Party?
• Is more regulation of financial institutions necessary?
• Should the number of US troops stationed in Korea be decreased?
• Is diplomacy still an effective part of American foreign policy?
• Should America move from income based taxes to consumption based taxes?
• Should individual states be empowered to set their own carbon emissions standards?
• Is a federal cap and trade program on carbon emissions a good idea?
• Should genetically modified food products be required to have special labeling?
• Is corn based ethanol a viable alternative ethanol source?
• Can animal cloning benefit American food producers?
• Should American airport security procedures be scaled back?
• Does the US health care system have too many doctors?
• Will Ralph Nader's Presidential campaign sap necessary votes from the Democratic nominee?

Extemp Questions 28 Feb. 2008

2008-02-28T22:06:00.000-10:00

Extemp Questions, updated 19 Feb. 2008

2008-01-21T02:32:00.001-10:00

Updated: 19 Feb 2008

• How should the US approach the current situation in the Palestinian territories?
• Should private equity firms face greater degrees of governmental scrutiny than other businesses?
• Is statehood the destiny of Palestine?
• Should the Kurds in Iraq have their own independent state?
• Does the strong support received by Dr. Ron Paul show a disappointment within the Republican Party’s base?
• Will the ideas of change that Obama represents win over the hearts of Democratic voters in the 2008 primaries?
• Is there a realistic fear among Afghani’s that they will be abandoned by the United States?
• Should the US increase the number of combat troops in Afghanistan?
• How can the US best develop political stability in Afghanistan?
• Is government corruption in Afghanistan an insurmountable obstacle?
• What role should the federal government play in American public education?
• How will history regard Karl Rove?
• Can the legacy of the George W. Bush presidency still be saved?
• Are American goals in the Middle East too ambitious?
• Should the US consider moving its currency back to a gold standard?
• How uncoordinated do you have to be to get an injury from playing the Wii?
• What can be done to make South Africa safer?
• Will South Africa be ready for the 2010 Olympics?
• What more is necessary for South Africa’s blacks and women to achieve socioeconomic equality?
• How should the US cope with the impending retirement of the baby boomers?
• How can the US retain its economic dominance against the rise of China and India?
• Will the Republican Party fare better when President Bush’s second term is over?
• Is Karl Rove a misunderstood political genius or a dark political mastermind?
• Are online predators a significant threat for American youth?
• Has consolidation of power under the Executive Branch peaked with the Bush Presidency?
• How can the governments of the world better control the flow of illegal weapons?
• Where is Iraq heading?
• Has the prison at Guantanamo helped or hurt the US in the global war on terror?
• What should happen to the remaining detainees in Guantanamo?
• Does the cost of free trade outweigh the benefits for developing nations?
• Should the US embrace free trade with South America?
• What will it take for the world to effectively combat global warming?
• How has American media shaped the Democratic race for the Presidential nomination?
• How can the US improve governmental transparency?
• Can Clinton’s experience win out over Obama’s movement for change?
• Is John McCain a strong enough conservative to rally Republican voters?
• Which Presidential candidates does the issue of the economy help the most?
• Would Hillary Clinton’s nomination rally Republican voters to turn out against her?
• Is America’s military readiness faltering?
• Can the US achieve effective immigration reform without causing harm to the national economy?
• Should the federal government impose more regulations on stop predatory lending practices?
• Do mortgage-interest tax breaks on real estate harm the US economy?
• Will a shaky global economy curb consumer spending?
• Would a national public health system harm the quality of US healthcare?
• Is a national ID card a violation of American’s rights?
• Can NGO’s solve Africa’s economic development problems?
• Should the US leave open the option of pre-emptive military action against Iran to prevent proliferation of nuclear weapons?
• Is the WHO devoting adequate resources to combating disease in Africa?
• How does the development of commercial space travel benefit global society?
• How can the federal government promote the development of alternative energy sources?
• When will the US end its dependence on foreign oil?
• Can ethanol and biodiesel take a big chunk out of America’s foreign oil dependence?
• When will third party candidates be viable in national elections?
• Should all electronic voting machines be taken out of US elections?
• Should the federal government focus more resources on early childhood education?
• Has the Head Start program improved the global competitiveness of America’s students?
• Should there be a cap on the damages awarded in medical malpractice lawsuits?
• Will the burst in the US housing market cause a significant drop in US consumer spending?
• Should the federal government create a national standard for primary elections?
• Can the tech sector keep the US stock market afloat?
• Can Electronic Medical Records significantly reduce the cost of health care in the US?
• What is the cause of the bitter tone common in American political campaigns?
• Do American income disparities deepen political polarization?
• What does the future hold for the Evangelical movement with regards to US politics?
• How can the EU develop closer ties with the US?
• How has the global war on terror changed Europe’s relationship with the US?
• Can Iraq’s President Ahmadinejad afford to continue his saber rattling tactics?
• Can the International Criminal Court be an effective body of justice for the world’s worst crimes?
• What will it take to end Robert Mugabe’s iron grip on power in Zimbabwe?.
• Is democracy across the globe stronger now than it was at the beginning of the war on terror?
• Why is Russia so complacent with Putin’s authoritarian rule?
• Should African leaders be more outspoken against President Robert Mugabe?
• Is America able to effectively promote liberal democracy throughout the world?
• What reforms are needed to end government corruption in Nigeria?

Oratory/Etc. - Isabel Allende on TED.com

2008-01-09T03:40:00.000-10:00

Another good TED talk. A great example of something that would work well as an oratory or an expos piece.

URL: http://www.ted.com/talks/view/id/204

Policy Debate - African Aid (that's aid, not AIDS) TED Talk - Andrew Mwenda

2007-12-23T23:07:00.000-10:00

An interesting talk from TED from Sept. that I came across again and wanted to pass along. Andrew Mwenda, who recently started a newspaper in Uganda, talks about financial aid to Africa and how it should be re-evaluated. Good ideas for policy debate this year. http://www.ted.com/talks/view/id/159

Christmas Truce

2007-12-09T18:27:00.000-10:00

I have some friends who are teachers. I have some freinds who are historians. I'm not sure who among them knows this story, but I think more people should. As Christmas nears in a year of war, it should be something on everyone's mind.

Peace is not won or lost. It is earned with the blood of the few who die for the many. It is kept in the souls of those who live on, because those who lie dead do not complain.

For those teachers I do know, your students should understand the legacy of war and peace of their history.

On Male Circumcision and the spread of HIV/AIDS - Clean version

2007-12-06T01:25:00.000-10:00

To be fair, I was a little snarky in the previous post. I'm going to leave it there just because but this is the cleaner, nicer version. Where instead of "child soldier" I find other terms much less objectionable than "war orphaned, amputee, land mine victim, forced to gang bang half a Hutu in exchange for her life" see Maka, I can be less snarky.

---- Edited, relatively safe for public consumption version----

So I was asked to help read/edit a pape for some policy debaters. In the case is an argument for male circumcision as a form of preventative medicine for reducing the HIV/AIDS infection rates.

On first glance this would seem pretty stupid right? I mean seriously, getting a circumcision doesn't prevent the exchange of bodily fluids. Hell I'm circumcised and I've got a kid so I can prove do you that bodily fluids are quite easily exchanged. But yes, contrary to logical thinking, there is some medical validity to this claim. While there is some sucess at reducing new infections rates, I want to stress that trying to claim that male circumcision stops AIDS or can even play a major role in stopping the spread of AIDS is lame. So if you're reading this and you know who you are, take it out of the paper. Seriously guys, it's like trying to claim you can solve global warming by cranking up an air conditioner and leaving the door open. It's a stuipd idea, it's not a public health plan and you should be ashamed for writing while stoned, drunk, and/or tripping on LSD.

First off the positive: circumcised men are less likely to contract HIV (according to the studies), up to 60% less likely in fact. The negative side of that? They're not at all less likely to prevent infecting someone else. So if you happen to be getting raped by a Tutsi death squad all of whom are circumcised, great!
You're less likely to infect them but they're no less likely to infect you with AIDS.

The Lancet study showed a link bewteen circumcision and AIDS infection, it does not show that AIDS is prevented by circumcision, only that it can reduce my chances of contracting HIV/AIDS. So yes, good news, I can have 40% more risky without statistically getting infected. You know what else I can do that works even better? Wear a fucking condom. You know what works even better than that? Not have risky sex with skeezy looking African hookers in the alley behind the Botswanan hotel. Those are preventative measures. If wearing a condom is like buying insurance, getting circumcised is like living in New Orleans and just praying for it not to rain.

so the in short, stop acting like you're the one retard scientist trying to disprove global warming. While there may be some impact of male circumcision on reducing new AIDS infections, getting your dick cut is not the same as wearing a condom, stop trying to base an entire half page worth of material to crazy science that defies all logic and practical reasoning. If you want to put in one or two sentences about how a program for male circumcision could be an example of an easy to implement part of an overall public health program, fine go for it. Two sentences is about what the NY Times should have given to it and you're not the NY Times.

That said, here's a few links:
http://www.cirp.org/library/disease/HIV/vincenzi/
http://www.cirp.org/library/disease/HIV/
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/04/28/world/africa/28africa.html
http://www.news24.com/News24/Africa/News/0,,2-11-1447_2230833,00.html

Extemp Questions - short list of questions from Nov. 2007 reading the sunday paper

2007-12-03T22:58:00.001-10:00

• Do genetically modified foods need more regulation from the federal and state governments?
• Is the US military becoming too assertive in US politics?
• Should the military be less involved in public politicking?
• Is an all-volunteer military good for the US?
• Does free trade do more harm than good for developing nations?
• Will the Kurds in Iraq push for an independent nation?
• What goals does Iran have for the future of Iraq as a nation?
• What goals does Iran have for the Middle East region?
• Would a US troop withdrawal from Iraq help or hinder Iran’s regional goals?
• What role should Bill Clinton play in Hillary’s Presidential campaign?
• Is Bill Clinton an asset or liability for Hillary’s Presidential bid?
• How long will the dollar last as the world’s primary currency?
• How can America’s economy safely end its dependence on Asian creditors?
• Does China’s lack of environmental regulations pose a long term risk for the global economy?
• Does China’s lack of environmental regulations create a disadvantage for continued economic growth?

On Male Circumcision and the spread of HIV/AIDS - a.k.a. - Why getting your dick cut is not the same as wearing a condom

2007-12-03T22:38:00.001-10:00

So I was asked to help read/edit a paper, I suppose something of a policy case, for some debaters. In the case is an argument for male circumcision as a form of preventative medicine for reducing the HIV/AIDS infection rates. On first glance this would seem pretty stupid right? I mean seriously, getting a circumcision doesn't prevent the exchange of bodily fluids. Hell I'm circumcised and I've got a kid. But yes, contrary to logical thinking there is some medical validity to this claim. Not much mind you and I want to stress and trying to claim that male circumcision does not stop AIDS so if you're reading this nimrods, take it out of the paper. Seriously guys, it's like trying to claim you can solve global warming with a fucking air conditioner. It's a stuipd idea, it's not a public health plan and you should be ashamed for writing while stoned.

First off the positive: circumcised men are less likely to contract HIV (according to the studies), up to 60% less likely in fact. The negative side of that? They're not at all less likely to prevent infecting someone else. So if you happen to be raping an African war child/orphan/child soldier you may not get AIDS. If you happen to already be infected, she'll still get AIDS from you. Or he will; whatever floats your boat. I don't judge.

The Lancet study showed a link, it does not show that AIDS is prevented by circumcision, only that it can reduce my chances. So yes, good news, I can anally rape 40% more child soldiers without getting infected. You know what else I can do that works even better? Wear a fucking condom. You know what works even better than that? Not anally raping child soldiers at all. Those are preventative measures. If wearing a condom is like buying insurance, getting circumcised is like living in New Orleans and just praying for it not to rain.

so the in short, stop acting like you're the one retard scientist trying to disprove global warming. While there may be some impact of male circumcision on reducing new AIDS infections, getting your dick cut is not the same as wearing a condom, stop trying to base an entire half page worth of material to crazy ass science that defies all logic and practical reasoning. If you want to put in one or two sentences about how a program for male circumcision could be an example of an easy to implement part of an overall public health program, fine go for it. Two sentences is about what the NY Times should have given to it and you're not the NY Times.

That said, here's a few links:
http://www.cirp.org/library/disease/HIV/vincenzi/
http://www.cirp.org/library/disease/HIV/
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/04/28/world/africa/28africa.html
http://www.news24.com/News24/Africa/News/0,,2-11-1447_2230833,00.html

Policy - AIDS new infections overestimated

2007-11-28T23:56:00.001-10:00

At least according to TED and the NY Times. There's also a great link there to Emily Oster's talk on TED. http://blog.ted.com/2007/11/aids_overestima.php

Extemp/Policy/Public Forum - Open CRS

2007-11-26T08:26:00.000-10:00

They publish a crap load of congressional research papers. http://opencrs.com/

If you have an RSS reader, I would suggest the RSS feeds so you can stay current, they put out stuff every day, so there's always something interesting.

The research topics vary. You'll see everything from tax policy to border control to AIDS appropriates to street gangs. Lots of useful stuff.

SSRN - Social Science Research Network

2007-11-25T17:51:00.001-10:00

A while back the SSRN used to publish a crapload of academic research papers for free. I used to like them for the law papers, specificallly the intellectual property (hence these are generally the ones I have saved), but the topic areas are very diverse. Theoretical crap critiquing Dworkin, practical application of the Fourth Ammendment with regards to new technologies, all sorts of shit.

Now you have to pay for it, but if, for example, you're a school with a giant endowment of land and can afford to put two air conditioning units in each classroom in the Konia building, you can probably afford a subscription. Go buy one.

Extemp - State Department Country Reports on Terrorsim

2007-11-25T14:50:00.000-10:00

Formerly called Patterns of Global Terrorism. I used to request this each year, now you can just download it http://www.state.gov/s/ct/rls/crt/ but it's got some great summaries and it's a good overview, and reference. It's also really nice to cite in Extemp.

Extemp - State Department Background Notes

2007-11-25T14:47:00.000-10:00

I didn't realize the State Department had started making these available online. I used to get the World Fact Book for extemp these are kinda better, plus you can download them now. http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/

Extemp - Al Gore wins nobel prize

2007-10-13T16:33:00.000-10:00

Now I know most of you are too young to remember when eight years ago America had a choice between Al Gore and George W. Bush. Consider. We GOT a fucking retard. We could have gotten a future nobel prize winner as President. That's right kids, hate your paretns, they fucked up yet again.

Oratory, LD, general debate - Steve Pinker on TED.

2007-09-26T03:51:00.000-10:00

Once again a link from TED.com. This is a brief history of violence which Steve Pinker talks about. A good overview of Hobbesian thought and the Leviathan, as well as some interesting evidence for an LD debater to use as a starting point for things like Capital Punishment or other cases involving conflict between an individuals rights and a society. http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/view/id/163

LD: notes on just society death penalty - DRAFT

2007-09-14T20:32:00.000-10:00

This is a ZIP file with notes in Word Doc format and a short article in PDF format.
Resolution is that a just society should not use the death penalty as a form of punishment.

Quote of the day

2007-09-14T10:34:00.000-10:00

from TED:
"a good speech is like a miniskirt - short enough to arouse interest but long enough to cover the subject"

Extemp Questions 14 Sept. 2007

2007-09-14T10:32:00.000-10:00

What should the role of the US military in Iraq be for the next 12 months?
What are Iran's ambitions in the Middle East?
Would the fall of the Maliki government be good for Iraq?
Can Chris Dodd win the Democratic nomination in 2008?
Does the large amount of international aid to Africa impede African development?
Does foreign aid to Africa encourage ethnic tension?
Is Africa too dependent on foreign aid?
How long will it be before US troops are off the front lines in Iraq?

PFD notes: insurance and genetic testing

2007-09-13T22:15:00.000-10:00

Public Forum Debate notes on medical insurance and genetic testing policies. ZIP file

PFD notes: internet file sharing

2007-09-13T22:14:00.000-10:00

Public Forum Debate notes on internet file sharing. ZIP file

PFD notes: universal health care

2007-09-13T22:13:00.001-10:00

Public Forum Debate notes on universal health care insurance.

PFD: US losing the war on terror

2007-09-13T22:12:00.001-10:00

Public Forum debate notes on whether the US is losing the war on terror. ZIP file.

Policy notes: detention and searching

2007-09-13T22:10:00.000-10:00

Policy notes from previous resolution about detaining and searching people.

Extemp: extemp questions 2006-2007

2007-09-13T22:08:00.001-10:00

Extemp qustions from the 2006-2007 year.

Extemp: TIT 2005 extemp questions

2007-09-13T22:06:00.000-10:00

extemp questions from the 2005 Thanksgiving tournament.

Extemp: extemp questions list 2004-2005

2007-09-13T22:05:00.000-10:00

extemp questions from the 2004-2005 year

Extemp: extemp questions 2003-2004

2007-09-13T22:03:00.000-10:00

Extemp questions for the 2003-2004 year.

Extemp: 2002-2003 set of extemp questions

2007-09-13T22:02:00.001-10:00

Extemp questions from the 2002-2003 year.

Extemp: example outline

2007-09-13T22:00:00.000-10:00

Example outline for extemp: what can be done to quell the rage in Iraq?

LD notes: school drug testing

2007-09-13T21:59:00.000-10:00

LD notes on school drug testing. ZIP file

LD notes: school autonomy vs community standards

2007-09-13T21:57:00.002-10:00

LD notes on school autonomy vs community standards. ZIP file. Fuck Kansas.

LD notes: nat'l security vs indiv. rights

2007-09-13T21:57:00.001-10:00

LD notes on national security vs individual rights. ZIP file.

LD notes: univ. human rights vs nat'l interest

2007-09-13T21:55:00.000-10:00

LD notes on universal human rights vs conficting national interest. ZIP file.

LD notes: letter vs. spirit of law

2007-09-13T21:54:00.000-10:00

LD notes on the letter of the law vs the spirit of the law. ZIP file

LD noteS: judicial activism

2007-09-13T21:53:00.001-10:00

LD notes on judicial activism. ZIP file

LD notes: globalization vs nat'l sovereignty

2007-09-13T21:51:00.000-10:00

LD notes on globalization vs nat'l sovereignty. ZIP file

LD notes: civil liberties vs terrorism

2007-09-13T21:50:00.000-10:00

LD notes on Civil Liberties and combatting terrorism. ZIP file

LD notes: sanctity vs quality of life

2007-09-13T21:49:00.000-10:00

LD notes on the sanctity of life vs the quality of life. ZIP file

LD notes: US mitigate international conflict

2007-09-13T21:48:00.001-10:00

LD notes on the US obligation to mitigate international conflict

LD notes: environment vs. economy

2007-09-13T21:47:00.001-10:00

LD notes on the environment vs. economic development. ZIP file

LD notes: common good vs self interest

2007-09-13T21:46:00.000-10:00

LD notes on the common good vs. self interest. ZIP file.

LD notes: moral principles over the rule of law

2007-09-13T21:44:00.000-10:00

LD notes on moral principles vs the rule of law. ZIP file

LD notes: civil disobedience in democracy

2007-09-13T21:43:00.000-10:00

LD notes on civil disobedience in democracy. ZIP file

LD notes: individual privacy vs societal welfare

2007-09-13T21:41:00.000-10:00

LD notes on individual privacy vs. societal welfare. ZIP file

LD notes: US moral obligation to promote democracy

2007-09-13T21:40:00.002-10:00

LD notes on the US moral obligation to promote democratic ideals. ZIP file.

LD notes: community vs national standards

2007-09-13T21:37:00.000-10:00

LD notes on community standards vs. national standards. ZIP file

LD notes: Universal Human Rights vs Nat'l Interest

2007-09-13T21:35:00.000-10:00

LD notes on universal human rights vs. national interest. ZIP format.
From States 2004

LD Notes: judicial activism

2007-09-13T21:33:00.000-10:00

LD notes on judicial activism and american rights. ZIP file

LD Notes: State power of eminent domain

2007-09-13T21:30:00.000-10:00

Notes on the LD resoutiion for the power of eminent domain to promote private enterprise. PDF format

Bonus fun term of the day - MRE

2007-09-13T12:47:00.002-10:00

pre-package meals known as "Meals Ready to Eat" by the military. Given to soldiers and also to victims of natural disasters during initial stages of recovery efforts. They have a shelf life longer than spam and the turkey ala king is horrible, but the orange drink powder is pretty good. Not Tang good, but still not bad.

Also known as: Meals Rejected by Ethiopians or Meals Rejected by Everyone.

Fun term of the day - wasta

2007-09-13T12:47:00.001-10:00

Arabic term meaning influence through networking, graft, kickbacks, etc.

One of the hidden forces behind Arab society. Also the name the of a town in South Dakota. Go Figure.

See: http://www.danielpipes.org/article/642

Extemp Questions 5 Sept.

2007-09-05T07:59:00.000-10:00

Is the Republican Party too dependant on its Evangelical constituency?
Should the Republican Party put more effort into courting non-Evangelical voters?
Does religion have too much influence on American politics?
Can the Democratic Party court more religious voters?
Have American courts gone too far in pushing religion out of public spaces?
Should the Republican Party push for a return to fiscal conservatism?
Will Congress attempt to rein in government spending?
How long will the US maintain a significant troop presence in Iraq?
Does North Korea’s agreement to dismantle its nuclear program signal a move towards a lasting peace?
How can China balance economic growth and environmental converns?Will the war in Iraq destabilize neighboring countries?
How easily can the war in Iraq spread beyond its borders?
Will a continued American presence in Iraq destabilize the Middle East?
Should the federal gasoline tax be raised?
Will Congress raise taxes to lower the budget deficit?
Will moderate centrist politics win in 2008?
Can someone opposed by the religious right win the Republican nomination for President in 2008?
Does Hillary Clinton's experience give her a significant advantage over Barak Obama in teh 2008 primaries?

Extemp Questions 30 Aug 2007

2007-08-30T18:59:00.001-10:00

• Are centrist politics dead in the Democratic Party?
• Should the US embrace globalization?
• Should the US increase the H1-B visa quota?
• What impact will the resignation of Karl Rove have on the Presidential election in 2008?
• What will the political legacy of Karl Rove be?
• How will the resignation of Attorney General Alberto Gonzales change the priorities of the US Justice Department?
• Does Congress need to overall its ethics regulations?
• Seriously now, what’s with all the “I’m not gay” conservative Republican congressmen loving the cock?
• What will Saudi Arabia’s growing leadership role in the Middle East mean for the region?
• Will Saudi Arabia continue to remain friendly to US interests in the Middle East?
• Is growing American secularism a result of Americans turning away from conservative right politics?
• How can Democrats gain support among religious voters?
• How long can China maintain its rapid industrial and manufacturing growth?
• Is outsourced manufacturing to china bad for the US economy?
• Can Americas economy continue to compete effectively against global economic forces?
• What will it take to have open religion flourish in China?
• Will Republicans in Congress use the war in Iraq to diverge from President Bush in the 2008 election?
• Will competition for global resource become a major point of tension between the US and China?

Oratory/Expos - Stories

2007-08-16T16:32:00.000-10:00

A very nice talk from TED by Chris Abani on storytelling and the importance of stories. This would be a great topic for someone to write an oratory about. The importance of telling the stories so that we can learn from them. For Hawaii, where I live, this is importnat because the stories that are not told are lost. For a family, it's equally so, how did you come to be. Joe Galloway, a reporter in Vietnam used to tell a story about how his great-grandparents had met in a shoe store because each one of them had lost a leg in the civil war, so they would meet and buy a pair of shoes together. More recently the stories of the history of the British Empire in the Middle East could have told us a great deal about how stupid American expectations about Iraq were. The stories of our lives are our history and when we forget them, we forget ourselves. when we refuse to tell them because we think it might be painful to hear or painful to tell, we rob others of their history. Remember that the root word of history is STORY and that story should be told.

Extemp Questions 6 Aug. 2007

2007-08-06T13:00:00.000-10:00

Should the US raise its minimum fuel efficiency standards?
Is the war in Iraq breaking the Army?
Will Congress’ push to control the war in Iraq harm military readiness?
Has the troop surge in Iraq worked?
Is Hillary Clinton’s experience a help or a hindrance in her Presidential bid?
Can alternative fuels reduce America’s foreign oil dependence?
Has American intelligence gathering improved sinne Sept. 11, 2001?
What would the outcome be for Iraq if Amerian troops are redeployed out of the country?

Rives

2007-08-01T21:26:00.000-10:00

Rives is probably one of the most interesting poets and storytellers I've seen in some time. I saw something on HBO that had him which got me interested, but then he poppsed up on TED.

TED, if you're not familiar with it is sort of a bunch of geniuses who have way too much free time to think up some really cool shit.

Anyway, Rives on Ted talking about 4 A.M. Probably one of the best examples of an expository ever. Highly entertaining and where else are you going to get a Polish writer in the same monolouge as Bill Clinton and Judy Dench.

Rives profile on ted.com

Debate: Old Debate Guide - Primarily for Judges

2007-07-05T00:03:00.001-10:00

1. Overview of debate
The basic premise of all debate is that you are the judge. Literally and figuratively, you are the deciding factor. Yes, there are criterion fur judging, but it really boils down to who convinced you and who communicated their ideas to you better.
If one of the debaters makes an argument and it sounds flaky to you, call them on it. Write it down on the ballot. Just remember, that no matter what, the judge is always correct. Even if the competitors all think the judge is wrong, the judge is still correct. It’s even better than being a real judge because there’s no appeals process for them to overturn you.

2. Lincoln-Douglas
Lincoln Douglass is a value and morality debate. The topic will change every couple of months (so usually each tournament we go to will use a different topic).
This category is truly about who can persuade you better. You will hear some terminology and I’ll cover that, but for the most part, it’s all about who has the best marketing. To decide this you can consider all sorts of things. First and foremost, their ideas should be clear to you. They can have best ideas and arguments, but if they can’t communicate them…oh well. The arguments should be constructed in such a way that you weigh the ethics of the situation and the given topic. The side has the greater moral justification for their claims wins.
They should have evidence, perhaps in the form of quotes from noted philosophers (you might hear names like John Locke, John Stuart Mill, Emmanuel Kant, Abraham Maslow, if you have no idea who these people are or what they stood for, that’s okay, most of the students don’t have much of a clue either). They may give you examples or hypothetical situations and say that, “well, under these conditions, the moral justification supports the affirmative.” They may throw statistics at you (although this is less common). They will do whatever they can to make their point, support their point and get you to understand their point. If, at the end of the debate, you don’t understand their point, don’t feel bad, just write “hey, you sounded good, but I have no idea why the Categorical Imperative says it’s immoral to impose an Orwellian state on students who only want to be involved in the Chess Club. I’m sorry, you didn’t make you’re point clear.” That’s all the justification you need. It is their responsibility to justify their moral ground. Not yours. While it is their responsibility to provide evidence, it is also your responsibility NOT to provide it for them. You aren’t allowed to connect the dots for them or add in your own ideas or ideology, just listen.
As for terminology, the first thing you will hear about, the most important thing you will hear about, is the VALUE. The VALUE is the kind of general concept, or moral idea that they will use to support their side. For example, you may hear one of the negative speakers say “my VALUE is Individual Privacy.” What that means is that the negative debater will try to prove that the affirmative side is not justified because we in America hold privacy to be one of our fundamental rights. There are all kinds of values. Some make sense, other don’t. Again, this is your call. If someone has the value of Bilingual Education, certainly, that’s a good value. It just has no place in a debate about Medical Privacy. The value and how well the debater supports it, is what determines the win/loss for the round.
The next big thing you’ll hear about is the VALUE CRITERION. I like to think of the VALUE CRITERION as the top of the Monopoly box. It’s essentially the set of rules that govern how we’ll play this little game called debate. Most of the novice debaters and some of the varsity debaters won’t know how to properly create, use and argue the VALUE CRITERION. Don’t let it disturb you. For example, the affirmative speaker may have a VALUE CRITERION of Educational Responsibility. That’s a pretty abstract concept. Most of us would stare blankly ahead and imitate Homer Simpson. What the speaker is attempting to tell you, is that each school, each education institution has a responsibility to its students. (“oh, okay”), We have to shape today’s debate in that context, (“losing me here….”). In order to have a fair debate, we need to look at the responsibility that a school has towards its students, and see which side best meets those responsibilities (“okay, you do your job, I do mine, whoever does the better job wins. Got it”) . The VALUE CRITERION (VC, or just CRITERION) is used to set the parameters in which the debate must take place. A good debater will know how to use this. A poor debater will rattle off something that sounds great, without really knowing what if means. It is up to you to decide, which set of rules is better to judge the debate by. Just as legal judges have to decide based upon the set of rules that is the law, LD debate judges must decided based upon the set of rules that is the VALUE CRITERION.
You will hear other terms, like CRYSTALIZATION (summary), FLOW (the notes they are constantly taking). The basic rules is, they have to make you understand, if they don’t, it’s their fault, not yours. Don’t let the terminology get the best of you.
Some things to look for in LD: The debate itself rests on the idea of a conflict. If there is no conflict in the debate, well, I can think of a number of things I would rather do on a Saturday. When you see this, note it on the ballot “I don’t see the conflict in this debate anymore, it seems you guys have gotten off track.”
One of the things we normally teach students is that the last speech they give should be a summary, a CRYSTALIZATION of the round. What were the key issues? Why, in a nutshell, should you vote for that particular side? Should you fall asleep during most of the round, listening to the crystallization at the end can be great. It is not required for competitors, but the more experienced ones will do it and it does make things a lot clearer.
Also judge them on delivery. Did they maintain eye contact with you? Could you hear them? Were they jumping around? Playing with pens? Doing anything unprofessional? You can rank them down for this to, or make note of it on the ballot.

3. Controversy / TTD / Public Forum
As the new category, I honestly can’t tell you much about this. If you are at all familiar with extemporaneous speaking, that’s what I personally expect from controversy teams. They shouldn’t necessarily have everything memorized, but they should be maintaining eye contact with you most of the time. The style isn’t much like debate at all. It’s centered more on who can form the better ideas. The topic will be given to them ahead of time, so they should be reasonably prepared. To be honest, this one is real simple. It comes down to who convinced you the best. This category was specifically devised with the intention of helping novice JUDGES get their feet wet in debate and though there are ground rules the category is still in infancy.

4. Policy Debate
There are different levels of Policy debate. This category, I warn you, is a sure cure for insomnia. Policy debate is based primarily on evidence. While the competitors can make some arguments based on logic, I’d be wary about anything they say is “common sense.” It’s been my experience that “common sense” isn’t all that common. There are different judging criteria based upon judges personal preference, but here in Hawaii, most of the judging is based upon stock issues (things like (SOLVENCY, INHERENCY, TOPICALITY, terms which will be explained below).
Since the policy debaters have the same topic over the course of the whole year, you may find yourself hearing the same case (or a pretty close copy) several times over. Over time, you should see cases improve and evidence get updated for information that becomes available. When deciding between conflicting pieces of evidence, I’ll usually opt for the most credible and most up to date source provided. You can ask to see a piece of evidence if you like.
There is a lot of terminology associated with policy debate. Rather than telling you how to judge, I’d like to go over some of the terms you’ll come across. I’m sure I’ll forget some of them, and I apologize. But this is a pretty decent list to start with.
HARMS: This is pretty straightforward. The HARMS of the case outline the problem in the status quo that we are debating today. For example, under this year’s resolution, HARMS may be things like overfishing, reef killing algae or Eskimos molesting salmon.
SOLVENCY: Is directly related to HARMS in that the affirmative team’s plan or the negative team’s counter-plan has to be proven to solve the HAMRS that they bring forth. If they cannot reasonably prove that they solved for those things then the plan should lose, because it’s not going to work. Solvency is simply the proof you present that you plan can and will do what you say it will. It’s what separates the marketing aspects of debate and the engineering aspects of debate.
WORKABILITY: Not to be confused with SOLVENCY. WORKABILITY deals with whether the plan can reasonably be put into action. For example if the plan calls for an increase in taxes for funding, how reasonable is it that the public would go along and approve an increase in taxes? Or if the plan required that Congress pass a Constitutional Amendment, is it proven that Congress would be willing to do so? WORKABILITY asks not about whether the plan would work, but whether the plan could be put into action at all. This is directly connected to INHERENCY.
INHERENCY: In policy debates, the teams create plans on the. First off, their plans should not be something already in place or on the planning table at the moment. Second is that usually this plan is one which faces difficulty being put into place. Both of these concepts are related to INHERENCY. What INHERNECY asks, is whether there is some barrier in place for getting he plan enacted. The barrier can take many different forms. The students will use terms like ‘attitudinal barrier’ (the people don’t want to change). All of these really boil down to the fact that there is something in the status quo that would require prodding to put the plan into action (sometimes you might have to beat a few people with a really big stick). Maybe people don’t want their taxes increased for funding the plan, or Congress would disagree and not pass the plan, or the President is strongly against it because it doesn’t bomb someone. For whatever reason, the debaters plan must account for some barrier to implementation.
TOPICALITY: In order to have a proper debate at each tournament, the teams should both adhere as closely to the resolution as possible. This is where topicality comes in. For example, the resolution may contain the term ‘establish’. If we define it as “to create something new,” than any plan presented must be new and cannot copy something already in place in the real world. Or you may find the term ‘significantly’. Well, what is ‘significant’? How much of a difference do you need to make? One fish? Two fish? Red fish? Blue fish? While the ultimate decision is up to you, the teams should present evidence and numbers to back up their competing claims about the significance of the plan.
Your job in determining topicality is to listen to the definitions provided by both sides, determine which (if there are opposing definitions) is the more appropriate, and then decide whether the plan abides by those definitions.
Hints and Tips
You’ll see a lot of differences between JV and Varsity policy. The varsity policy teams for example tend to speak quicker. If they go too fast for you, put your pen down and stare straight ahead. This is a sign to them to slow down.
You’ll also notice that they tend to follow the flow more. You should expect better organization from the more experienced debaters. If you ever get lost in the organization of the debaters, it’s their fault, not yours. Make note of it on the ballot.
You may come across topic specific terms in these debates. There are terms that are relevant to the topic but not to debate in general that you are not familiar with. You’re not supposed to be. The debaters are supposed to explain it. Any acronyms they use, they are supposed to define. All of this goes back to being able to communicate their ideas to you. The most important thing I can express to you is that the judges is never wrong, the debater is just unable to communicate the idea effectively.

Extemp: old extemp questions 2005 Thanksgiving

2007-07-05T00:01:00.001-10:00

IX
Middle East
• A year after the death of Arafat, are Palestinians better off?
• Is Iran’s development of a nuclear weapon inevitable?
• Can Saddam Hussein get a fair trial?
• Can Chalabi gain the support he needs to administer Iraq?
• Is there anything that can stop the rash of bombings across Iraq?
• Can Ariel Sharon maintain his pullout of Gaza?
• Will Al Qaeda attacks against moderate nations like Jordan increase in the coming months?
• Will insurgent actions from Iraq spread to nearby Arab nations?
• Do Sunni’s have a political strategy for their role in the Iraqi government?
• Should Arab nations normalize relations with Israel?
• What does Saudi Arabia’s entry to the WTO mean for the nation’s economy?
• Can the Saudi government contain the growing support for militants?
• Should the US repay Iraq for work done by Halliburton?
• Will the December vote in Iraq find overwhelming support among the people?
• What role should Hamas play in Palestinian elections?
• How can the US shorten the growing reach of the Zarqawi network?
• What can bring together Iraq’s different political factions?
• Would a Palestinian State boost the security of Israel?
• What more should Saudi Arabia to do fight terrorism?
• Is Jordan’s King Abdullah out of touch with his own people?
• Is Iraqi reconstruction proceeding on schedule?
• Will looted Iraqi relics ever be recovered?
• How can the Sunni’s be encouraged to participate in the December Iraqi elections?
• Are female suicide bombings going to be an increasingly popular tactic by Al Qaeda?
• Can the US negotiate a lasting peace deal between Israel and Palestine?
• Should richer, Persian Gulf oil states share the oil revenues with poorer Arab states?
• Is Iraq exporting terrorists?
• Will the movement of Moqtada al-Sadr towards mainstream politics encourage greater Shiite participation in the Iraqi government?
• Would the loss of Zarqawi end organized insurgency efforts in Iraq?
Europe
• How can France quell the Paris riots?
• Is Europe ready for the Bird Flu?
• Will the rest of Europe see civil unrest like that in France?
• What are the economic factors behind the riots in France?
• Is Viktor Yushchenko succeeding in his plans to repair Ukraine?
• What reforms are necessary in European immigration policy?
• Is Turkey’s accession to the European Union a good idea?
• Can the German coalition government meet its goals?
• Will the UK pass significant anti-terror legislation?
• Does the Labour Party in the UK face serious internal conflict?
• Is the British health care system failing?
• How should the UK address terror threats?
• Have Russia’s actions in Chechnya tarnished its relationship with the EU?
• Can Vladimir Putin keep Russia on course?
Asia
• How serious is the Bird Flu threat?
• How long can China keep up its huge trade surpluses?
• How can the US effective engage North Korea to stop nuclear development?
• Can multilateral talks work with regards to North Korea?
• Will China allow its currency to rise in value against the dollar?
• How can Japan improve its ties to the rest of Asia?
• Should China allow greater foreign access to its markets?
• Will Chinese money be the core of global capital funds in the coming decade?
• Can Afghani corruption be stopped?
• What is necessary to control the narcotics trade in Afghanistan?
• What agenda does Prime Minister Koizumi have for Japan?
• Is Japan’s economy on track for a continued rise?
• Will closer US-Japan military ties act as a deterrent against North Korea?
• Can sanctions work against North Korea?
• Is Japan ready to let go of its Imperial family?
• Would opening its markets be in the best interests of China?
•
Latin America
• Will free trade agreements provide enough economic stimulus for Latin America?
• Should the US end its Cuba embargo?
• Are Land Reforms a good idea for Venezuela?
• Can President Hugo Chavez effectively leverage Venezuela’s oil wealth to get what he wants?
• Can Colombia disarm right-wing paramilitaries?
• Will former President Alberto Fujimori be tried in Peru?
• Will a Free Trade Zone across the Americas benefit the United States?
• Will General Pinochet actually stand trial?
• How can Latin American better curb the narcotics trafficking?
•
Africa
• What more should the international community do to combat AIDS in Africa?
• Is debt relief a realistic solution to ending African poverty?
• Can Ethiopia prevent political unrest from turning into a civil war?
• Will elections in Liberia result in any significant reforms?
• Should the US intervene in Zimbabwe?
• Should the UN take action to stop deportations in Zimbabwe?
• Will Zimbabwe admit to failure on its land reforms?
• Does lack of infrastructure doom Sub-Saharan Africa to poverty?
• Is there a political solution to the problems in Darfur?
• Why isn’t more being done to combat famine and hunger in Africa?
• How can Ethiopia resolve the problems that are at the heart of its current crisis?
• How long can Robert Mugabe maintain control of Zimbabwe?
•
UN/Intl Orgs/Economy
• Is the world economy healthy?
• How has free trade changed the world economy?
• Can unanimous decisions continue to effectively run the UN?
• How can the international community better prepare for the next major natural disaster?
• Can global free trade work to aid developing nations?
• Has the developed world failed to offer acceptable amounts relief to victims of the Southeast Asian earthquake?
• Should the UN revoke its mandate for US troops in Iraq?
• Do IMF loan stipulations do more harm than good for developing nations?
• How can the WHO control a global outbreak of Bird Flu?
• Are global mergers still good business practice?
• What motivates suicide bombers across the world?
• Should the UN have greater control over the Internet?
• Do NGO’s do more harm than good in developing nations?
• What more should be done to reduce global deforestation?
• What should the world do to stave off an avian flu outbreak?
• What effects does global warming have on developing nations?
• Is global free trade losing steam?

NX
Politics
• Will Democrats win big in next year’s midterm election?
• Will Sam Alito be confirmed to the US Supreme Court?
• Will ethics questions be the legacy of the Bush Administration?
• Can the Bush Administration move quickly beyond the CIA leak case?
• Will Christian “values voters” continue to dominate the Republican Party?
• Is the US ready for a female President?
• Will the indictment of Scooter Libby pose a serious problem for the Bush Will Karl Rove be indicted?
• Administration?
• Is Sam Alito the most qualified person for Supreme Court nomination?
• Can the Republican Party appease right wing voters and not lose the moderates?
• Will the Democrats continue to pick up political victories?
• Is the ‘nuclear option’ practical in a Supreme Court fight?
• Will Democrats fight the nomination of Sam Alito to the Supreme Court?
• Can Tom DeLay get a fair trial in Texas?
• Should there be a litmus test for Supreme Court nominees?
• Should the White House replace some of the top Presidential staffers?
• Can President Bush reunite the Republican Party over budget issues?
• How is the Democratic National Committee doing under the direction of Howard Dean?
• How can the President turn around his approval ratings fall?
• Is the Iraq war a political problem for the President?
• Can the Bush Administration recover from the CIA leak investigation in time to assist the Republican Party in the midterm elections?
• Can the Democrats maintain secular support and still campaign on moral values?
• Can the Democrats develop and present real plans to American?
• Will Sam Alito be confirmed to the Supreme Court?
• What steps need to be taken to bring down the Zarqawi terror network?
• Will opinions on abortion hang up the nomination of Sam Alito?
• Would a Democratic filibuster of the Alito nomination backfire?
•
Economy
• Should the US end farm subsidies?
• How can the Congress get a handle on budget deficits?
• Should simplification of the tax code be a priority for the Bush Administration?
• Is Ben Benanke the right choice to follow Alan Greenspan in running the Federal Reserve?
• Is the federal government too reliant on foreign debt?
• Is the housing boom doomed to collapse?
• Should the federal government enact price controls on petroleum?
• Is the federal government giving enough in relief to Gulf Coast hurricane victims?
• Should the US take stronger trade actions against China?
• Is the economy facing a slowdown?
• Are US innovators losing their competitive edge against foreign companies?
• Is it time to reconsider a flat tax?
• Will businesses use bankruptcy as a way to avoid paying out obligations to retired employees?
• Will increased immigration increase American wages?
• When will the Fed end its increase in rate hikes?
• What can be done to reduce the rising costs of higher education?
• Can Ben Bernanke keep inflation at bay?
• Will the market see strong growth in 2006?
• How can the US reduce its foreign debt?
• What more should be done to close the trade gap with China?
Social Issues
• How serious is the threat from the Avian Flu?
• Is the US prepared for a large scale epidemic?
• Who should bear the costs of rebuilding the Gulf Coast?
• Can Congress develop an effective energy policy?
• Should the US be doing more to develop renewable energy resources?
• What role should the federal government play in establishing curriculum for schools?
• Should oil drilling be allowed in ANWR?
• What is necessary to secure the border with Mexico?
• Has American made all the progress it needs to in the areas of Civil Rights?
• Who should be held responsible for flu vaccine shortages this year?
• Should the federal government open funding to more stem cell lines to scientists?
• Should the retirement age be raised?
• Will the new Medicare drug benefits really improve American health care?
• Has FBI abuse of the USA PATRIOT Act been overblown?
• Should the teaching of Intelligent Design in schools become an issue for the federal government to take up?
• Has No Child Left Behind been successful so far?
• Have the monies from tobacco settlements been misspent by states?
• Should the US enact a moratorium on capital punishment?
• What should the US do to prepare for the avian flu?
• Will there be significant social backlash if the Roe v. Wade decision is overturned?
•
Foreign Policy
• Is US foreign policy too unilateral?
• Should the US push China to enact religious tolerance reforms?
• How can the US entice Sunni’s to participate in the December Iraqi elections?
• Who should be held responsible in the Iraq oil-for-food scandal?
• Will a Free Trade Zone across the Americas benefit the United States?
• What role should the US play in nuclear negotiations with Iran?
• Will closer US-Japan military ties act as a deterrent against North Korea?
• How is John Bolton doing as Ambassador to the UN?
• How can the US establish closer ties with Saudi Arabia?
• What more can the US do to improve its image internationally?
• How should the US answer torture allegations from detainees?
• Can the US negotiate a lasting peace deal between Israel and Palestine?
• How can the US encourage reconciliation between the different political factions in Iraq?
• Should the US push for closer international ties in space exploration?
• Should the US be doing more to help stabilize Afghanistan?
• How has American managed to keep its oil prices so low for so long?
• Should US negotiations with North Korea involve talks on human rights offenses?
• What can the US do to push for greater Mexican involvement in policing the border?
• Should the US consider a timetable for a troop withdrawal from Iraq?
Military/Defense/Iraq
• Is the American public support for the war in Iraq coming to an end?
• How is the US doing in the war on terror?
• What is necessary to gain local support for US efforts in Iraq?
• Did the White House misuse intelligence in pushing the case for war against Iraq?
• Will US support of Ahmad Chalabi be enough to stabilize his administration of Iraq?
• How have stories of US mistreatment of prisoners harmed the effectiveness of US military forces abroad?
• Will the public call to withdraw troops from Iraq continue to gain public support?
• What further steps are necessary to secure America’s seaports?
• Is increased airport security making flights more secure?
• Should the US be held accountable to the reports of Iraqi spending audits?
• How can US forces secure the December vote in Iraq?
• Do partisan critics hurt the war effort?
• How can the military improve its recruiting numbers?
• Is the US strategy against Iraqi rebels working?
• Can the US train up sufficient Iraqi military forces in time to successfully combat the insurgency?
• Has the US effectively dealt with the threat of terrorists obtaining nuclear weapons?
• Can America secure its rail transportation systems?
• How can the US shorten the growing reach of the Zarqawi network?
• Should Guantanamo detainees have their access to the courts limited?
• How will the war in Iraq impact future votes for war powers?
• Has America’s focus drifted away from finding Osama bin Laden?
• Why has public support for the war in Iraq fallen so quickly?
•

Extemp: old extemp questsion from Nov 2006

2007-07-05T00:00:00.001-10:00

Extemp Questions
Round 1 - Asia
1. Will Taiwan attempt to declare independence in the shadow of the 2008 Beijing Olympics?
2. Can China control its economy?
3. Can America shrink its trade deficit with China?
4. How dangerous are North Korea’s nuclear weapons?
5. Will a Nuclear North Korea be willing to return to the 6-Party talks?
6. Should the world provide more humanitarian aid to North Korea?
7. Is Thailand’s economy due for a makeover?
8. Will Thailand’s new cabinet enact significant new reforms?
9. Has South Korea’s “Sunshine Policy” with the North worked as it was intended to?
10. Is Internet censorship in China working?
11. Is Japan’s economy on the verge of a strong resurgence?
12. Can an increase in Japan’s birth rate secure the economy for another generation?
Round 2 - Europe, Africa and Latin America
1. Has Bosnia’s new constitution worked to keep the peace?
2. How effective were the reforms initiated by Ukraine’s Orange Revolution?
3. Should Turkey be admitted into the EU?
4. Will the Horn of Africa be ignored in the war on terror?
5. How can war-torn Africa move forward?
6. Does Nigeria have any hope for a stable future?
7. How much has Rwanda healed in the years since the genocide?
8. Would cheap retroviral drugs help African nations develop?
9. Will a larger force really prevent illegal border crossings from Mexico to the US?
10. Is the US embargo against Cuba still necessary?
11. How dangerous is Hugo Chavez to American interests?
12. Can Lula de Silva effectively combat poverty in Brazil?
Round 3 - US
1. How will the Republican controlled Congress fare in the wake of the Mark Foley scandal?
2. What will it take to have real campaign finance reform?
3. Can the Big Three American automobile manufacturers continue to compete in the global marketplace?
4. Does the US spend enough on primary and secondary public education?
5. Is a guest-worker visa program a tenable solution to the growing problem of illegal immigration?
6. How can the rising costs of higher education be curbed?
7. Is America positioned for a resurgence of centrist politics?
8. Is it time for the US to take another look at universal health care?
9. Should The Fed raise interest rates?
10. What should the Bush Administration do with Guantanamo Bay detainees?
11. Is the threat of homegrown terrorism overstated?
12. Which nation will pose the greatest threat to US security in the next decade?
Spare Round – Middle East
1. What steps are necessary to defeat the Iraqi insurgency?
2. Is a lasting Arab-Israeli peace a pipe dream?
3. What is preventing Iraq from establishing a viable domestic police force?
4. How can narcotics trafficking in Afghanistan be curbed?
5. Has the death of Yasir Arafat improved life for the Palestinian people?
6. Is the Israeli “security fence” still a good idea?
7. What can America learn from Israel’s experience in occupying Palestine?
8. What pieces are still missing to achieve peace in Iraq?
9. Is a lasting peace between Syria and Israel a real possibility?
10. Should Iraq be carved into Sunni, Shiite and Kurdish states?
11. Will expansion of Israeli settlements end hope for lasting peace with Palestine?
12. Will Iraq prove to be a training ground that will begin to export terrorists to other areas?
Final Round - Global Issues
1. Is America doing enough internationally to provide Humanitarian Aid?
2. Does the US exert too much influence in the UN?
3. Who does Fair Trade benefit the most in the global economy?
4. Is the UN World Food Program doing enough to reduce world hunger?
5. Who will be the next UN Secretary General?
6. Does free trade promote labor exploitation in third world countries?
7. Will the development of nuclear weapons in Iran prompt similar activities throughout the Middle East?
8. How should the world react to Iran’s continued pursuit of nuclear weapons?
9. Is the IAEA doing its job effectively?
10. What can the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation do to best help the world?

Extemp: Old Extemp Questions from 2006

2007-07-04T23:59:00.000-10:00

NX – January 2006
Crime/Justice
• How important should adherence to precedent be when selecting new Supreme Court Justices?
• What more should the federal government do to combat eco-terrorism?
• Should Democrats try to block the confirmation of Samuel Alito?
• What have we learned so far about the Roberts Court?
•
Politics
• Will tougher lobbying laws really curb corruption?
• How much will corruption play into this year’s midterm elections?
• How much will the scandal surrounding Jack Abranoff damage the Republican Party?
• Will Republican anti-corruption reforms be well accepted by politicians and the American public?
• How can we reduce the overwhelming amount of money in elections?
• Weill lobbying reform work?
• Should there be a new enforcement officer for lobbying and ethics rules in Washington DC?
• Should politicians be given free airtime for campaign advertisements?
• Who can the Republicans unite behind in 2008?
• Does the president have enough political capital to push through is agenda?
•
Foreign Policy
• Should the US be more actively involved in Pakistan?
• Why is the US still fighting the Taliban in Afghanistan?
• How can the Bush Administration ease tensions between the US and Europe?
• Will US military strikes in places like Pakistan cause a withdrawal of international support in the war on terror?
• Has the Bush Administration mishandled the ongoing nuclear disagreement with Iran?
• How should America react to Hugo Chavez?
• Should USAID foreign assistance be used to promote Bush Administration goals for spreading democracy?
Economy
• Will the reopening of universities in New Orleans help stimulate economic recover?
• Are traditional pension plans doomed?
Environment/Energy/Science
• Should the US devote more resources to developing renewable energy sources?
• How can American energy policy become less dependent on Middle Eastern oil?
Immigration
• What changes are needed to make an effective immigration policy?
Education
• How high of a priority should schools be in the restoration of New Orleans?
Health
• Is enough being done to combat homelessness?
• Should the federal government seek to overturn state laws allowing doctor assisted suicide?
• What more should the federal government do to help the millions of Americans without health insurance?
• Does the new Medicare drug plan need revision?
• Can America combat obesity?
• How should congress deal with the problems in Medicaid and Medicare?
• Is it time to consider universal health insurance?
•
Defense
• Is the goal of secular democracy in Iraq possible?
• What lessons can history provide to US forces in Iraq?
• What can the US do to repair Iraq?
• With all the resources thrown at him, why has Osama bin Laden been caught yet?
• What more should the US do to develop the Iraqi military?
• How much has corruption stifled progress in Iraq?
• How long can the US continue to sustain its level of deployment?

IX – January 2006
Africa
• What actions are necessary to end violent rebellion in Nigeria?
• Should the UN get out of the Ivory Coast?
• Should UN peacekeepers have a stronger mandate across Africa?
• Should NATO get more involved in Darfur?
Asia
• Should the international economy be concerned about China’s large trade surplus?
• Is Taiwan on the verge of a political shift in power?
• Is rapid market expansion causing social disturbance in China?
• Is Japan ready for a female to succeed to the throne?
Europe
• How can the Bush Administration ease tensions between the US and Europse?
• How can real democracy reestablish itself in Russia?
• Should Europe reduce its dependence on Russian oil?
• Does anyone else find it funny that people in a country named Turkey are dying of the bird flu?
• How can Europe reduce its dependence on Russian oil and gas?
• Will the withdrawal of Italian troops from Iraq by the end of 2006 further chill relations between the US and Europe?
• Is Europe Al Qaeda’s new front?
Global Issues
• Should there be international sanctions against Iran?
• What lies behind rising global oil costs?
• How should the global community work together to combat bird flu?
Latin America
• Should the global community be more concerned about the world’s oil supply?
• Is a resurgence of violence in Haiti inevitable?
• Is Colombia doing enough to combat coca farming?
Middle East
• What would happen if American forces left Iraq?
• Would the withdrawal of US troops ignite a civil was between Iraq’s Sunnis and Shiites?
• If American troops withdrawal from Baghdad what would stop Iraqi Sunnis from launching an attack to try to control the city?
• Would a withdrawal of US troops embolden the Iraq insurgency?
• Would a reduction of US troop levels in Iraq cause an increase in the number of foreign Jihadi fighters?
• Would the Kurds in Iraq try to secede if US troops left?
• If US forces leave Iraq would Iran try to gain control?
• Is the goal of secular democracy in Iraq possible?
• What lessons can history provide to US forces in Iraq?
• What can the US do to repair Iraq?
• Can sabotage and covert assassination stop Iran from becoming a nuclear power?
• What more should be done to develop the Iraqi Defense Force?
• Why does Iraq not have enough trained military and police forces?
• How much has corruption stifled progress in Iraq?
• What will history say about Ariel Sharon?
• Should Israel remove voting rights for Palestinians associated with any terrorist organization?
• Will the death of the Kuwaiti Emir create any significant shift in that nation’s policies?
• Should the Israel military be used to forcefully remove settlers that refuse to relocate?
• Would international economic sanctions against Iran be effective?
• Can diplomacy resolve the nuclear tensions with Iran?
• Can Saddam get a just trial?
• Can Mahmoud Abbas gain the upper hand over militant Palestinian groups like Hamas?
• Can Hamas manage the Palestinian government?
• Should the US deny aid to Palestine until Hamas changes its charter?
• Will the new Palestinian government seek peace with Israel?
• Who should preside over the trial of Saddam Hussien?
• What does the election of Hamas mean for the Palestinian people?
•

Extemp: Old topic areas (2006)

2007-07-04T23:58:00.000-10:00

These are different topic areas for extemp from 2006.

1. Africa – Aids
2. Africa – Civil War
3. Africa – Dafur
4. Africa – Economy
5. Africa – Liberia
6. Africa – Politics
7. Africa – South Africa
8. Africa – Uganda
9. Africa – Zimbabwe
10. Asia – China
11. Asia – Economy
12. Asia – Free Trade
13. Asia – Indonesia
14. Asia – Japan
15. Asia – North Korea
16. Asia – Oil
17. Asia – Philippines
18. Asia – Politics
19. Asia – South Korea
20. Asia – Terrorism
21. Asia – Thailand
22. Europe – Bosnia
23. Europe – Economy
24. Europe – Energy
25. Europe – EU
26. Europe – Euro (EMU)
27. Europe – France
28. Europe – Free Trade
29. Europe – Germany
30. Europe – Immigration
31. Europe – Russia
32. Europe – Spain
33. Europe – UK
34. Europe – Ukraine
35. Global – Aids
36. Global – ASEAN
37. Global – EU
38. Global – Free Trade
39. Global – Global Health
40. Global – Human Rights
41. Global – Hunger
42. Global – International Humanitarian Aid
43. Global – Narcotics
44. Global – NATO
45. Global – Poverty
46. Global – Trade
47. Global – UN
48. Global – WHO
49. Global – World Economy
50. Global – WTO
51. Latin America – Brazil
52. Latin America – Cuba
53. Latin America – Economy
54. Latin America – Free Trade
55. Latin America – Immigration
56. Latin America – Mexico
57. Latin America - Narcotics
58. Latin America – Oil
59. Latin America – Peru
60. Latin America – Politics
61. Latin America – Venezuela
62. Middle East – Afghanistan
63. Middle East – Egypt
64. Middle East – Humanitarian Aid
65. Middle East – Iran
66. Middle East – Iraq
67. Middle East – Israel
68. Middle East – Jihad/Religious Conflict
69. Middle East – Jordan
70. Middle East – Oil
71. Middle East – Palestine
72. Middle East – Syria
73. Middle East – Terrorism
74. Middle East – War On Terror
75. Middle East – Water
76. US – Economy
77. US – Education
78. US – Elections
79. US – European Relations
80. US – Foreign Policy
81. US – Health Care
82. US – Immigration
83. US – Iraq
84. US – Medicaid
85. US – Medicare
86. US – Politics
87. US – Trade
88. US – War on Terror
89. US – Welfare

Extemp:l Example Extemp Outline

2007-07-04T23:57:00.001-10:00

What can be done to quell the rage in Iraq?

ANS: Treat the symptoms of the rage to get rid of it.

• Causes of rage:
a. Internal Religious and Ethnic conflict
b. Iraqi Nationalism against the ‘invading’ US
c. Lack of economic development and infrastructure
We need to tackle all three areas to quell the rage in Iraq

1. Internal conflicts
a. Pop. 22 Million ( from Atlas)
b. Ethnic background breeds conflict between Arabs and Kurds. “There are Kurds in the way.”
i. 75-80% Arab
ii. 15-20% Kurdish
iii. 5% Other (Turk, Assyrian, etc)
iv. (Fox News 12, 13, 14 Apr., CNN 12, 13, 14 Apr.)To solve this, we need to balance the interests of the groups, give the Kurds some autonomy over the regions where they are in the majority, balance the power in the new government that the US will turn over power to this summer (June 30 is handoff date)
c. Religion
i. 97% Muslim – long history of clash between the two Muslim groups
1. 60-65% Shi’a
2. 32-37% Sunni
ii. 3% Christian
iii. Solve by 1. killing the Christians and 2.
iv. (CNN 12, 13, 14 Apr.)We also need to quiet religious fanatics and extremist clerics like the one providing most of the resistance and uprising in places like Fallujah.
d. (July 25, 2003 CSM (Christian Science Monitor) Iraq has a large population in poverty and though it had a large middle class for the Middle East, there is still a significant class distinction between rich and poor. This leads to tensions between the haves and have-nots. Need economic development to solve.
e. (CNN Oct. 2002) American intervention in Iraq has led to sharper conflicts between internal religious groups and anti-Kurd movements

2. Iraq Nationalism
a. WE BOMBED THEM!!!!!!! But it was for their own good. (Pres. Bush speech 13 Apr.)
b. WE BOMBED THEM!!!!!!! So that we could help them get democracy where Kurds get an unfair proportion of power. (USA Today 14 Feb)
c. (BBC April 2002) WE BOMBED THEM!!!!!!! So that we could overthrow an evil dictator that created the largest middle class in the middle east and replace it with a system of anarchy and chaos
i. (BBC) America wiped out the middle class in Iraq since 1991 Gulf War
d. WE BOMBED THEM!!!!!!! And we expect what? A cookie?

3. Iraq needs an economic base to develop
a. (US Institute of Peace Dec 23, 2003) Developing a middle class is the key to peace and stability
b. (U Mich. “Strategy for Economic Reconstruction and Development of Iraq”) Develop a strong trade center, develop oil, develop democracy to protect property and infrastructure
c. (US Institute for Peace 6 Aug 2003)
i. need to reconstruct roads and infrastructure
ii. promote development of local Iraqi businesses
iii. provide US aid as long as necessary – to strengthen and promote the Iraqi government

Extemp: 59 Headlines

2007-07-04T23:56:00.003-10:00

59 Actual Newspaper Headlines (collected by journalists)
1. Something Went Wrong in Jet Crash, Expert Says
2. Police Begin Campaign to Run Down Jaywalkers
3. Safety Experts Say School Bus Passengers Should Be Belted
4. Drunk Gets Nine Months in Violin Case
5. Survivor of Siamese Twins Joins Parents
6. Farmer Bill Dies in House
7. Iraqi Head Seeks Arms
8. Is There a Ring of Debris around Uranus?
9. Stud Tires Out
10. Prostitutes Appeal to Pope
11. Panda Mating Fails; Veterinarian Takes Over
12. Soviet Virgin Lands Short of Goal Again
13. British Left Waffles on Falkland Islands
14. Lung Cancer in Women Mushrooms
15. Eye Drops off Shelf
16. Teacher Strikes Idle Kids
17. Reagan Wins on Budget, But More Lies Ahead
18. Squad Helps Dog Bite Victim
19. Shot Off Woman's Leg Helps Nicklaus to 66
20. Enraged Cow Injures Farmer with Ax
21. Plane Too Close to Ground, Crash Probe Told
22. Miners Refuse to Work after Death
23. Juvenile Court to Try Shooting Defendant
24. Stolen Painting Found by Tree
25. Two Soviet Ships Collide, One Dies
26. Two Sisters Reunited after 18 Years in Checkout Counter
27. Killer Sentenced to Die for Second Time in 10 Years
28. Never Withhold Herpes Infection from Loved One
29. Drunken Drivers Paid $1000 in `84
30. War Dims Hope for Peace
31. If Strike isn't Settled Quickly, It May Last a While
32. Cold Wave Linked to Temperatures
33. Enfields Couple Slain; Police Suspect Homicide
34. Red Tape Holds Up New Bridge
35. Deer Kill 17,000
36. Typhoon Rips Through Cemetery; Hundreds Dead
37. Man Struck by Lightning Faces Battery Charge
38. New Study of Obesity Looks for Larger Test Group
39. Astronaut Takes Blame for Gas in Spacecraft
40. Kids Make Nutritious Snacks
41. Chef Throws His Heart into Helping Feed Needy
42. Arson Suspect is Held in Massachusetts Fire
43. British Union Finds Dwarfs in Short Supply
44. Ban On Soliciting Dead in Trotwood
45. Lansing Residents Can Drop Off Trees
46. Local High School Dropouts Cut in Half
47. New Vaccine May Contain Rabies
48. Man Minus Ear Waives Hearing
49. Deaf College Opens Doors to Hearing
50. Air Head Fired
51. Steals Clock, Faces Time
52. Prosecutor Releases Probe into Under sheriff
53. Old School Pillars are Replaced by Alumni
54. Bank Drive-in Window Blocked by Board
55. Hospitals are Sued by 7 Foot Doctors
56. Some Pieces of Rock Hudson Sold at Auction
57. Sex Education Delayed, Teachers Request Training
58. Include your Children When Baking Cookies
59. 4-H Girls Win Prizes for Fat Calves

Extemp: Attention Getters

2007-07-04T23:56:00.001-10:00

Under the Bush administrations new education restructuring plan, the grading system would change. A "A" grade could mean average, and a grade of "F" denotes "Fantastic." All this restructuring really means is that millions of American students would finally be getting a first rate education. Of course we should expect no less of a system that teaches the "Three R's or Reading, Riting, and Rithmatic

In Texas recently an inmate was put to death based upon the testimony of a sole eyewitness. In light of this I'd like to try a little test. I'd like you to describe from memory, the last speaker in here. How tall was he/she? What was he/she wearing? Was he/she wearing glasses? Okay, now if this person was accused of murder, would you feel comfortable sending him/her to death based upon your description?

Did you know that one in every 200 people is a psychopath? There are _______ people in Congress alone. What does this say to us about our government?

Hydrogen is an explosive gas....Oxygen supports combustion. Yet when these are combined, they form water, with is used to fight fires. Likewise, Jesse Jackson is an explosive liberal and Rush Limbaugh supports combustion of liberals, but when they are combined......oh never mind, that would cause lots and lots of fire.........

Did you know that cat urine glows under a blacklight? Did you know that if you count the number of times a cricket chirps in one minute, divide by 2, add nine, and divide by two again, you have the correct temperature in Celsius? Isn’t it amazing what we learn in school? While 90% of Dutch teenagers are fluent in English, where only 80% of American teenagers are fluent in English, but I’ll bet the Dutch kids don’t know about cat urine and blacklight. The American education system is not without its problems......

If lawyers can be disbarred and clergymen defrocked, shouldn't it follow that... ...electricians can be delighted... ...musicians denoted... ...laundry workers decreased... ...cowboys deranged... ...models deposed... ...dry cleaners depressed... ...and maybe, with any luck, politicians devoted?

Enclosed is my 2000 Tax Return & payment. Please take note of the attached article from USA Today. In the article, you will see that the Pentagon paid $171.50 for hammers and NASA has paid $600.00 for a toilet seat. So, please find enclosed four toilet seats (value $2400) and six hammers (value $1029). This brings my total payment to $3429.00. Please note the overpayment of $22.00 and apply it to the "Presidential Election Fund," as noted on my return. Might I suggest you the send the above mentioned fund a "1.5 inch screw?" (See attached article...HUD paid $22.00 for a 1.5 inch Phillips Head Screw.) It has been a pleasure to pay my tax bill this year, and I look forward to paying it again next year. I just saw an article about the Pentagon and "screwdrivers." Signed, A Faithful Taxpayer

Can you imagine working at the following company? It has a little over 500 employees with the following statistics: * 29 have been accused of spousal abuse * 7 have been arrested for fraud * 19 have been accused of writing bad checks * 117 have bankrupted at least two businesses * 3 have been arrested for assault * 71 cannot get a credit card due to bad credit * 14 have been arrested on drug-related charges * 8 have been arrested for shoplifting * 21 are current defendants in lawsuits * In 1998 alone, 84 were stopped for drunk driving Yes, these employees are the 535 members of your United States Congress. The same group that perpetually cranks out hundreds upon hundreds of new laws designed to keep the rest of us in line.

Good Luck: Leprechaun
Bad Luck: Ted Kennedy
Good Luck: Rabbit’s foot
Bad Luck: ...Yeah, real lucky for the rabbit...
Good Luck: Finding a four leaf clover
Bad Luck: Finding a four leaf clover in a patch of poison ivy
Good Luck: Wishing on a falling star
Bad Luck: Wishing on a falling Russian Space Station
Good Luck: Dropping a penny in a wishing well
Bad Luck: Dropping a young child in a wishing well
Good Luck: Rubbing Buddha’s belly
Bad Luck: Rubbing Al Gore’s belly
Good Luck: Good luck pennies
Bad Luck: ...dropped on you from the top of the Empire State Building
Good Luck: Finding $10 on the street
Bad Luck: Finding a $10 hooker on the street
Good Luck: Winning the lottery
Bad Luck: Winning a visit from Pat Robertson
Good Luck: Crucifix or Rosary
Bad Luck: Being Catholic
Good Luck: Pot of gold at the end of a rainbow
Bad Luck: Pot of gold at the start of a 10 year stint for theft
Good Luck: Rubbing a bald head
Bad Luck: Rubbing Jesse Ventura
Good Luck: Lucky #7
Bad Luck: Fixing numbers for Enron gets you 7 to 10
Good Luck: Blowing on the dice when playing craps
Bad Luck: Blowing on Andrew Dice Clay

WHY DID THE CHICKEN CROSS THE ROAD
Ronald Reagan - "I forget"
Mark Twain - "The news of his crossing has been greatly exxagerated".

Pentagon Buzz-Phrases
Essentially complete... It's half done.
We predict ... We hope to God!
Risk is high, but within acceptable ranges of risk: 100:1 odds, or with 10 times over budget using 10 times the people we said we'd employ.
Potential show stopper... The team has updated their resumes.
Serious but not insurmountable problems... It'll take a miracle.
Basic agreement has been reached... The @##$%%'s won't even talk to us.
Results are being quantified... We're massaging the numbers so they will agree with our conclusions.
Task force to review... Seven people who are incompetent at their regular jobs have been loaned to the project
Not well defined at this time... Nobody's even thought about it.
Still analyzing the requirements... See previous answer.
Not well understood... Now that we've thought about it, we don't want to think about it anymore.
Requires further analysis and management attention... Totally out of control!
Results are promising... Turned power on and no smoke detected -- this time.

Policy Debate Judging criteria
Solvency: So far the only things I see being solved, is insomnia
Harms: The only harm in policy debate is the harm to my intelligence
DisAd: ...and I could have been watching a round of SPAR, or HI
Ad: ...at least I didn’t have to sit through another round of PR
Topicality: Resolved: The Federal government should enact new legislation to ban the judging of policy debate as cruel and unusual punishment

Journalism course the University of Arizona:
ICBM – Inter-Continental Business Machine
Fidel Castro - Palestinian leader whose wife likes to buy lots of shoes
Alzheimer’s - Imported beer

AT&T fired President John Walter after nine months, saying he lacked "intellectual leadership". He received a $26 million severance package. Perhaps it's not Walter who's lacking intelligence...

Police in Oakland, California spent two hours attempting to subdue a gunman who had barricaded himself inside his home. After firing ten tear gas canisters, officers discovered that the man was standing beside them, shouting to please come out and give himself up...

An Illinois man pretending to have a gun kidnapped a motorist and forced him to drive to two different automated teller machines. The kidnapper then proceeded to withdraw money from his own bank accounts...

A man in Taormina, Italy was hospitalized after swallowing 46 teaspoons, 2 cigarette lighters, and a pair of salad tongs.

Fire investigators on Maui have determined the cause of a blaze that destroyed a $127,000 home last month -- a short in the homeowner's newly installed fire prevention alarm system. "This is even worse than last year," said the distraught homeowner, "when someone broke in and stole my new security system..."

A man walked in to a Topeka, Kansas Kwik Shop and asked for all the money in the cash drawer. Apparently, the take was too small, so he tied up the store clerk and worked the counter himself for three hours until police showed up and grabbed him.

Los Angeles Police lucked out with a robbery suspect who just couldn't control himself during a lineup. When detectives asked each man in the lineup to repeat the words, "Give me all your money or I'll shoot," the man shouted, "That's not what I said!"

A bank robber in Virginia Beach got a nasty surprise when a dye pack designed to mark stolen money exploded in his Fruit-of-the-Looms. The robber apparently stuffed the loot down the front of his pants as he was running out the door. "He was seen hopping and jumping around," said police spokesman Mike Carey, "with an explosion taking place inside his pants." Police have the man's charred trousers in custody.

A 9-year-old boy in Manassas, Virginia received a one-day suspension under his elementary school's drug policy last week - for Certs! Joey Hoeffer allegedly told a classmate that the mints would make him "jump higher." And a student in Belle, West Virginia was suspended for three days for giving a classmate a cough drop. School principal Forest Mann reiterated the school's "zero-tolerance" policy...not to be confused with the "zero-intelligence" policy...

In Medford, Oregon, a 27-year-old jobless man with an MBA blamed his college degree for his murder of three people. "There are too many business grads out there," he said. "If I had chosen another field, all this may not have happened."

In Ohio, an unidentified man in his late twenties walked into a police station with a 9-inch wire protruding from his forehead and calmly asked officers to give him an X-ray to help him find his brain, which he claimed had been stolen. Police were shocked to learn that the man had drilled a 6-inch deep hole in his skull with a Black & Decker power drill and had stuck the wire in to try and find the missing brain.

More than 600 people in Italy wanted to ride in a spaceship badly enough to pay $10,000 a piece for the first tourist flight to Mars. According to the Italian police, the would-be space travelers were told to spend their next vacation on Mars, amid the splendors of ruined temples and painted deserts. Ride a Martian camel from oasis to oasis and enjoy the incredible Martian sunsets. Explore mysterious canals and marvel at the views. Trips to the moon also available. "Authorities believe that the con men running this scam made off with over six million dollars.

A man spoke frantically into the phone: "My wife is pregnant and her contractions are only two minutes apart!" "Is this her first child?" the doctor asked. "No, you idiot!" the man shouted. "This is her husband!"

In Modesto, CA, Steven Richard King was arrested for trying to hold up a Bank of America branch without a weapon. King used a thumb and a finger to simulate a gun, but unfortunately, he failed to keep his hand in his pocket. Hmmm...wonder what he uses for a knife?

Authentic Graffiti
“Make love, not war. Hell, do both: get married!” - Women's Restroom; The Filling Station. Bozeman, Montana
“I've decided that to raise my grades, I must lower my standards.” - Houghton Library, Harvard University. Cambridge, Massachusetts.
“It's hard to make a comeback when you haven't been anywhere.” - Written in the dust on the back of a bus. Wickenburg, Arizona.
“If voting could really change things, it would be illegal.” - Revolution Books. New York, New York.
“A Woman's Rule of Thumb: If it has tires or testicles, you're going to have trouble with it.” - Women's Restroom, Dick's Last Resort. Dallas, Texas.
“No matter how good she looks, some other guy is sick and tired of putting up with her crap.” - Men's Restroom, Linda's Bar and Grill. Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
“If pro is opposite of con, then what is the opposite of progress? Congress!” - Men's Restroom, House of Representatives. Washington, D.C.

Extemp: Jokes

2007-07-04T23:55:00.003-10:00

An engineer died and ended up in Hell. He was not pleased with the level of comfort in Hell, and began to redesign and build improvements. After a while, they had toilets that flush, air conditioning, and escalators. Everyone grew very fond of him. One day God called to Satan to mock him, "So, how's it going down there in Hell?" Satan replied, "Hey, things are great. We've got air conditioning and flush toilets and escalators, and there's no telling what this engineer is going to come up with next."
God was surprised, "What? You've got an engineer? That's a mistake. He should never have gotten down there in the first place. Send him back up here."
"No way," replied Satan. "I like having an engineer, and I'm keeping him."
God threatened, "Send him back up here now or I'll sue!" Satan laughed and answered, "Yeah, right. And just where are YOU going to get a lawyer?"

NASA was interviewing professionals to be sent to Mars. Only one could go, and he couldn't return to Earth.
The first applicant, an engineer, was asked how much he wanted to be paid for going. "A million dollars," he answered, "because I want to donate it to MIT."
The next applicant, a doctor, was asked the same question. He asked for two million dollars. "I want to give a million to my family", he explained, "and leave the other million for the advancement of medical research."
The last applicant was a lawyer. When asked how much money he wanted, He whispered in the interviewer's ear, "Three million dollars." "Why so much more than the others?" the interviewer asked. The lawyer replied, "If you give me $3 million, I'll give you $1 million, I'll keep $1 million, and we'll send the engineer."

In the beginning, God created heaven and earth. Shortly thereafter God was in receipt of a notice to show cause why he shouldn't be cited for failure to file an environmental impact statement. He was granted a temporary planning permit for the project, but was stymied by a Cease and Desist Order for the earthly part. At the hearing, God was asked why he began his earthly project in the first place. He replied that he just liked to be creative. Then God said, "Let there be light." Officials immediately demanded to know how the light would be made. Would it require strip mining? What about thermal pollution? God explained that the light would come from a huge ball of fire, and provisional approval was granted with the proviso that no smoke would result. The authorities demanded the issuance of a building permit, and (to conserve energy) required that the light be left off half the time. God agreed, saying he would call the light "Day" and the darkness "Night." Officials replied that they were only interested in protecting the environment, not in semantics. God said, "Let the earth bring forth green herb and such as many seed." The EPA agreed, so long as only native seed was used. Then God said, "Let waters bring forth creeping creatures having life; and the fowl that may fly over the earth." Officials pointed out this would require approval from the Department of Game coordinated with the Heavenly Wildlife Federation and the Audubongelic Society. Everything went along smoothly until God declared that he intended to complete the project in six days. Officials informed God it would take at least 200 days to review his many waiver applications and environmental impact statements. After that there would have to be a public hearing, and then there would be a 10-12 month probationary period before.... At this point, God created Hell.

Three guys, a Canadian, Osama Bin Laden, and Uncle Sam are out walking one day. They come across a lantern and a genie pops out of it. "I'll give each of you one wish, that's 3 wishes total" says the genie. The Canadian says, "I'm a farmer, my dad was a farmer and my son also will farm. I want the land to be forever fertile in Canada". With a blink of the genies eye, poof, the land in Canada was forever made fertile for farming. Osama Bin Laden was amazed, so he said, "I want a wall around Afghanistan so no infidels, Jews or Americans can come into our precious state." Again with a blink of the genies eye, poof, there was a huge wall around Afghanistan. Uncle Sam asks, "I'm very curious, please tell me more about this wall." The genie explains, "well, it's about 15,000 feet high 500 feet thick and completely surrounds the country, nothing can get in or out it." Uncle Sam says, "Fill it with water".

Once upon a time the government had a vast scrap yard in the middle of a desert. Congress said,"Someone may steal from it at night." So they created a night watchman position and hired a person for the job. Then Congress said,"How does the watchman do his job without instruction?" So they created a planning department and hired two people, one person to write the instructions, and one person to do time studies. Then Congress said,"How will we know the night watchman is doing the tasks correctly?" So they created a Quality Control department and hired two people. One to do the studies and one to write the reports. Then Congress said,"How are these people going to get paid?" So they created the following positions, a time keeper, and a payroll officer, then hired two people. Then Congress said,"Who will be accountable for all of these people?" So they created an administrative section and hired three people, an Administrative Officer, Assistant Administrative Officer, and a Legal Secretary. Then Congress said,"We have had this command in operation for one year and we are $18,000 over budget, we must cutback overall cost." So they laid off the night watchman.

Three boys are in the schoolyard bragging of how great their fathers are. The first one says:"Well, my father runs the fastest. He can fire an arrow, and start to run, I tell you, he gets there before the arrow". The second one says:"Ha! You think that's fast! My father is a hunter. He can shoot his gun and be there before the bullet". The third one listens to the other two and shakes his head. He then says:"You two know nothing about fast. My father is a civil servant. He stops working at 4:30 and he is home by 3:45"!!

A Guy walks into a store. He sees three brains on display. One is a Libertarian Brain, priced at $250. The second is a Democrat Brain, priced at $275. The third is a Republican Brain, priced at $5,000,000. The Guy asks the sales clerk,"Man, why does the Republican brain cost so much more than the other two?" Clerk replies,"Well, sir, that brain has never been used.

The LAPD, The FBI, and the CIA are all trying to prove that they are the best at apprehending criminals. The President decides to give them a test. He releases a rabbit into a forest and has each of them try to catch it. The CIA goes in. They place animal informants throughout the forest. They question all plant and mineral witnesses. After three months of extensive investigations they conclude that rabbits do not exist. The FBI goes in. After two weeks with no leads they burn the forest, killing everything in it, including the rabbit, and they make no apologies. The rabbit had it coming. The LAPD goes in. They come out two hours later with a badly beaten raccoon. The raccoon is yelling: "Okay! Okay! I'm a rabbit! I'm a rabbit!"

A few day's after George W. Bush's inauguration, a man came up to the uniformed Marine on duty at the White House and said "I'd like to see President Clinton. The Marine politely answered "Sir, Mr. Clinton is no longer president." The man said, "Oh, O.K." and walked away. The next day the Marine was again on duty and the same man approached and again asked to see President Clinton. The Marine again answered, "Sir, Mr. Clinton is no longer president." Again the man answered, "Oh, O.K." and walked away. The next day the same man approached the same Marine and again asked to see President Clinton. The Marine, a little annoyed, said "Sir, I've told you, Mr. Clinton is no longer president. Don't you understand that?" "Yes, I do" said the man, "But I just enjoy hearing it." The Marine smiled and said, "See you tomorrow"

Four boys were fishing. As their boat rounded a point on the lake, they saw a man thrashing in the water. With no hesitation, they jumped into the water and saved him. It was not until they pulled him to shore that they noticed the man they had saved was President George Bush, who had slipped away from the Secret Service for a swim. When President Bush caught his breath, he thanked the two boys and offered them anything they wanted in return for saving his life. The first boy thought about it for a while and finally answered. "I would like a presidential appointment to West Point so I can serve my country." The next two thought that was a great idea, but one said he had always wanted to be a pilot so he would rather attend the Air Force Academy. The third boy chose the Naval Academy. The president turned to the fourth boy, who was still thinking. Finally he answered, "Mr. President, I would like a burial with honors at Arlington National Cemetery" The president was shocked and asked the boy why he would make such a request at his young age. The boy replied "Because when my father finds out I saved you, he is going to kill me!"

A seedy-looking man was sitting in the first row at a town meeting, heckling the mayor as he delivered a lengthy speech. Finally the mayor pointed to the heckler and said, "Will that gentleman who differs with me please stand up and tell the audience what he has ever done for the good of the city?" "Well, Mr. Mayor," the man said in a firm voice. "I voted against you in the last election."

An older couple had a son, who was still living with his parents. The parents were a little worried, as the son was still unable to decide about his future career. They decided to do a small test. They took a ten- dollar bill, a bible, and a bottle of whiskey, and put them on the front hall table, and hid, pretending they're not home. The father's plan was: "If our son takes the money, he will be a businessman, if he takes the bible, he will be a priest - but if he takes the bottle of whiskey, I'm afraid our son will be a drunkard." So, the parents waited nervously, hiding in the nearby closet. Peeping through the keyhole they saw their son arrive. The son saw the note they had left. Then, he took the 10-dollar bill, looked at it against the light, and slid it in his pocket. After that, he took the bible, flicked through it, and took it. Then, he grabbed the bottle, opened it and took a whiff, to get assured of the quality. Then he left for his room, carrying all the three items. The father slapped his forehead, and said: "Darn. Our son is going to be a politician!"

It was election time, again. So, a politician decided to go out to the local reservation to gather support from the Native Americans. They were all assembled in the Council Hall to hear the speech. The politician had worked up to his finale, and the crowd was getting more and more excited. "I promise better education opportunities for Native Americans!" The crowd went wild, shouting "Hoya! Hoya!" The politician was a bit puzzled by the native word, but was encouraged by their enthusiasm. "I promise gambling reforms to allow a Casino on the Reservation!" "Hoya! Hoya!" cried the crowd, stomping their feet. "I promise more social reforms and job opportunities for Native Americans!" The crowd reached a frenzied pitch shouting "Hoya! Hoya! Hoya!" After the speech, the politician was touring the Reservation, and saw a tremendous herd of cattle. Since he was raised on a ranch, and knew a bit about cattle, he asked the Chief if he could get closer to take a look at the cattle. "Sure," the Chief said, "but be careful not to step in the hoya."

A turkey was standing in a field chatting to a bull. "I would love to be able to get to the top of yonder tree," sighed the turkey, "but I haven't got the energy." "Well, why don't you nibble on some of my droppings?" replied the bull. They're packed with nutrients." The turkey pecked at a lump of dung and found that it actually gave him enough strength to reach the first branch of the tree. The next day, after eating some more dung, he reached the second branch. Finally after a fourth night he was proudly perched at the top of the tree. Whereupon he was spotted by a farmer who dashed into the farmhouse, emerged with a shotgun, and shot the turkey right out of the tree. Moral of the Story: Bullshit might get you to the top, but it won't keep you there.

There once was a happy little fly buzzing around a barn one day when she happened upon a large pile of fresh cow manure. Since it had been hours since her last meal and she was feeling hunger pangs, she flew down to the irresistible delicacy and began to munch out. She ate and ate and then she ate some more !!! Finally, she decided she'd had plenty. She washed her face with her tiny front legs, belched a few times, then attempted to fly away. But alas she had pigged out far too much and could not get off the ground. She looked around wondering what to do about this unpleasant situation when she spotted a pitchfork leaning upright against the barn wall. She'd found a solution!! She realized if she could just become airborne she'd be able to fly. So, she, painstakingly, climbed to the top of the handle. Once there, she took a deep breath, spread her tiny fly wings, and leaped confidently into the air. She dropped like a rock and splattered all over the floor. Moral of the Story: "Never fly off the handle when you know you're full of crap."

A priest was driving along and saw nun on the side of the road. He stopped and offered her a lift which she accepted. She got in and crossed her legs, forcing the habit to open and reveal a leg. The priest looks and nearly has an accident, and after changing gear lets his hand slide up her leg. She immediately says, "Father, remember Psalm 129". The priest says sorry and removes his hand but is unable to remove his eyes from her leg. Further on when he changes gear and has ogled at her leg for the zillionth time he lets the hand slide up the leg again. The Nun once again says, "Father remember Psalm 129". Arriving at the convent the nun gets out and the priest goes on his way. Once he arrives at his church he rushes to the bible and looks up Psalm 129 and it said, "GO FORTH AND SEEK, FURTHER UP YOU WILL FIND GLORY" Moral of the Story: In your job should always be well informed or you may miss a great opportunity.

A crow was sitting on a tree, doing nothing all day. A small rabbit saw the crow, and asked him, "Can I also sit like you and do nothing all day long?" The crow answered: "Sure, why not." So, the rabbit sat on the ground below the crow, and rested. All of a sudden, a fox appeared, jumped on the rabbit and ate it. Moral of the Story: To be sitting and doing nothing, you must be sitting very, very high up.

Einstein, Casals, Picasso, and GW bush die and go to heaven. St. Peter is waiting for them, and requests identification. Einstein, who is first in line, says "I don't have any ID, but I can explain the equivalence of matter and energy." He is given a blackboard and proceeds to give an eloquent explanation of one of his most famous theories.
"Only Einstein himself could explain this so well," says St. Peter.
"Step right in, professor. Next?"
Then Casals, who is next in line, says "I don't have any ID, but I can
play my cello to prove who I am." He is given a cello and plays the most beautiful music imaginable.
"There's no question, you must be Casals," says St. Peter. "Next?"
Picasso steps to the gate. "I don't have any ID, but I can paint a
picture to prove who I am." He is given some brushes and paints a spectacular picture.
"Okay, you're Picasso. Go right ahead," says St. Peter. "Next?"
"I'm George W. Bush," says the former president, "but I don't have any
ID. How can I prove who I am?"
"Well," says St. Peter. "Einstein was just here, and he discussed some
of this theories. Then there was Casals , who played the cello for us. Then Picasso came, and he painted a picture. Can you do anything like that?"
"Who are Einstein, Casals, and Picasso?" asks Eisenhower. St. Peter
looks at him and says,"Mr. President, go right in."

Why is it that in the US, we punish people for their vices? Isn’t the punishment inherent in the vice itself. You smoke, you get cancer. You drink too much, you wake up hung over. You have unprotected sex you get marriage. Punishment is natural.
That’s why drugs should be legal. If passing out on a park bench in winter because you’re too stoned to use your keys isn’t punishment enough….Besides, when you put them in jail, you’re only giving them a warm place to stay.

A linguistics professor was lecturing to his class one day. "In English," he said, "A double negative forms a positive. In some languages, though, such as Russian, a double negative is still a negative. However, there is no language wherein a double positive can form a negative."
A voice from the back of the room observed, "Yeah, right."

A police officer stops a driver and says, "Not only have you been driving too fast, you've been overtaking where it was not allowed. Your lights don't work, your tires all completely worn out... This is surely going to cost you a lot. What's your name ?"
"Schtrathewisizeski Vocgefastilolngchilnic."
After hesitating a bit, the officer replies with a stern look on his face, handing back his driver's license, "OK, let this be your last warning. Don't let me catch you doing this again."

A visitor from Netherlands was explaining the colors of his country's flag to his American host, "Our flag symbolizes our taxes. We get red when we talk about them, white when we see our tax bills and blue after paying them." The American host replied, "It's the same here, only we also see stars."

British archaeologists find several pieces of copper wire and they estimate the age to be about 25,000 years old. The British government proudly claims that the English had telephones a long long time ago. At around the same time, German Archaeologists find glass strands and they announce that ancient Germany was wired by fiber optic networks. The next month, the French Minister of Culture and Language announces, "Well, we dug and dug and found nothing. Therefore, we are pleased to conclude that ancient French used cellular phones, proving once again their superiority over their counterparts who used seemingly primitive technologies."

A woman takes her 16-year-old daughter to the doctor. The doctor says, "Okay, Mrs. Jones, what's the problem?" The mother says, "It's my daughter Heather. She keeps getting these cravings, she's putting on weight, and is sick most mornings." He examines Heather, then turns to the mother and says, "Well, I don't know how to tell you this, ma'am, but your dear Heather is about 4 months into it." The mother says, "Pregnant?! She can't be, she has never ever been left alone with a man! Have you, Heather baby?" Heather is indignant; she replies furiously, "Absolutely not! I've never even kissed a man, mama!" The doctor walked over to the window and just stares out it. About five minutes pass and finally the mother says, "Is there something wrong out there, doctor?" The doctor replies, "No, not really, it's just that the last time anything like this happened, we are told a star appeared in the east and three wise men came over the hill. I'll be darned if I'm going to miss it this time!"

A magician was working on a cruise ship in the Caribbean. The audience would be different each week, so the magician allowed himself to do the same tricks over and over again. There was only one problem: The captain's parrot saw the shows each week and began to understand how the magician did every trick. Once he understood he started shouting in the middle of the show: "Look, it's not the same hat" "Look, he is hiding the flowers under the table" "Hey, why are all the cards the Ace of Spades ?" The magician was furious but couldn't do anything; it was, after all, the captain's parrot. One day the ship had an accident and sank. The magician found himself on a piece of wood in the middle of the ocean with -- who else? -- the parrot. They stared at each other with hate, but did not utter a word. This went on for a day and another and another. After a week the parrot said: "OK, I give up. Where's the boat?"

The man told his doctor that he wasn't able to do all the things around the house that he used to do. When the examination was complete, he said, "Now, Doc, I can take it. Tell me in plain English what is wrong with me."
"Well, in plain English," the doctor replied, "you're just lazy."
"Okay," said the man. "Now give me the medical term so I can tell my wife."

Four surgeons were taking a coffee break and discussing their work. The first one said, "I think accountants are the easiest to operate on. Everything inside them is numbered." "I think librarians are the easiest," said the second. "When you open them up, all their organs are arranged alphabetically." The third surgeon said, "I prefer to operate on electricians. Their organs are color-coded." "You're all wrong," said, the fourth. "Lawyers are easiest. They're heartless, spineless, gutless, and their heads and asses are interchangeable."

President Clinton looks up from his desk in the Oval Office to see one of his aides nervously approach him. "What is it?" yells the President. "It's this abortion bill, Mr. President. What do you want to do about it?" the aide asks. "Just go ahead and pay it." responds the President.

Canada recently passed a law which puts a skull and crossbones symbol on a pack of cigarettes to signify its harmful effects. In light of this, people in the US are raising the question of whether the US should put the symbol of a happy face on packages of medical marijuana.

A little boy wanted $100 badly and prayed for two weeks, but nothing happened. Then he decided to write a letter to the Lord requesting the $100.
When the postal authorities received the letter addressed to the Lord, USA, they decided to send it to the President.
The President was so impressed, touched, and amused that he instructed his secretary to send the little boy a $5 bill.
The little boy was delighted with the $5 and sat down to write a thank-you note to the Lord, which read:
Dear Lord,
Thank you very much for sending me the money. However, I noticed that for some reason you had to send it through Washington DC and, as usual, those jerks deducted $95

A little boy goes to his dad and asks, "What is politics?" Dad says, "Well son, let me try to explain it this way: I'm the bread-winner of the family, so let's call me Capitalism. Your Mom, she's the administrator of the money, so we'll call her the Government. We're here to take care of your needs, so we'll call you People.
The nanny, we'll consider her the Working Class. And your baby brother, we'll call him the Future. Now, think about that and see if makes sense." So the little boy goes off to bed thinking about what Dad has said. Later that night, he hears his baby brother crying, so he gets up to check on him. He finds that the baby has severely soiled his diaper. So the little boy goes to his parents' room and finds his mother sound asleep. Not wanting to wake her, he goes to the nanny's room. Finding the door locked, he peeks in the keyhole and sees his father in bed with the nanny. He gives up and goes back to bed. The next morning, the little boy says to his father, "Dad, I think I understand the concept of politics now." The father says, "Good, son, tell me in your own words what you think politics is all about." The little boy replies, "Well, while Capitalism is screwing the Working Class, the Government is sound asleep, the People gets ignored and the Future is in deep shit."

POLITICAL VIEWS DEFINED
Socialism - You have two cows. Give one to your neighbour.
Communism - You have two cows. Give both to the government. The government gives you milk.
Capitalism - You sell one cow and buy a bull.
Facism - You have two cows. Give milk to the government. The government sells it.
Nazism - The government shoots you and takes the cows.
New Dealism - The government shoots one cow, milks the other, and pours the milk down the sink.
Anarchism - Keep the cows. Steal another one. Shoot the government.
Conservatism - Freeze the milk. Embalm the cows.
Liberalism - Give away one cow. Get the government to give you a new cow. Now give them both away.

Four men were bragging about how smart their dogs are. The first man was an
Engineer, the second man was an Accountant, the third man was a Chemist, the fourth was a Government Worker.
To show off, the Engineer called to his dog.
"T-Square, do your stuff."
T- square trotted over to a desk, took out some paper and a pen and promptly drew a circle, a square and a triangle.
Everyone agreed that was pretty smart. But the Accountant said his dog could do better.
He called his dog and said, "Slide Rule, do your stuff."
Slide Rule went out into the kitchen and returned with a dozen cookies. He divided them into 4 equal piles of 3 cookies each.
Everyone agreed that was good. But the Chemist said his dog could do better.
He called his dog and said, "Measure, do your stuff."
Measure got up, walked over to the fridge, took out a quart of milk, got a 10 ounce glass from the cupboard and poured exactly 8 ounces without spilling a drop.
Everyone agreed that was good.
Then the three men turned to the Government Worker and said, "What can your dog do?"
The Government Worker called to his dog and said, "Coffee Break, do your stuff."
Coffee Break jumped to his feet, ate the cookies, drank the milk, dumped on the paper, sexually assaulted the other three dogs, claimed he injured his back while doing so, filed a grievance report for unsafe working conditions, put in for Worker's Compensation and went home on sick leave.

Seeing the brand new Porsche in the dealership windows Bill walks in, opens the door, sits in the car, adjust the mirrors and sear, sits back and closes his eyes and begins to grins widely. After a few seconds, a salesman, walks up.
“ I see your thinking about buying this car.” He says
“Oh I’m definitely buying this car,” says Bill. “But I’m thinking about women.”

The coroner is tasked to examine a body that just came in. He thinks it might have been have been a man named George he met once but he body is so badly so he calls in Georges two best friends to see if they can help in the ID. Al, the first friend walks in and says, “he’s pretty badly burned alright. Roll him over.” Staring at the dead man’s behind, al announces confidently, “nope, that’s not George.” Thinking it kind of a strange way to deny the ID, the coroner brings in the second friend Joe, who agrees, “yup he’s pretty badly burned but roll him over.” Again staring at the dead man’s behind the frined confidently announces that it is not George. “How do you know that it’s not George?” the still bewildered coroner asks. “Poor George had two assholes.” Said Joe.” What? How could he have two assholes?” asked the shocked coroner. “Everybody knows George has two assholes. Every time the three of us go out, everyone says, ‘oh look, there goes George and those two assholes’.”

California issued another power alert today. And things are getting serious. With computers, televisions and stereos all off, families are coming dangerously close to talking to one another.

Hit Television Shows in Iraq:
"Husseinfeld"
"Mad About Everything"
"U.S. Military Secrets Revealed"
"Suddenly Sanctions"
"Allah McBeal"
"Children Are Forbidden From Saying Anything Darndest"
"Buffy The Slayer of Yankee Imperialist Dogs"
"Iraq's Wackiest Public Execution Bloopers"
"Achmed's Creek"
"The Price is Right If Saddam Says It's Right"
"Two Guys, a Girl, and a Mosque"
"When Kurds Attack"
"My Two Baghdads"
"Everybody Loves Saddam Or He'll Have Them Shot"
"Captured Iranian Soldiers Say the Darndest Things"
"Totally Clothed Baywatch"

At a recent meeting between Pres. Bush and the Pope, a short hour long session got stretched to two days by complications in their discussion. After two days a weary Bush stood in from of the press and announced to the press that the meeting was a huge success with him and the Pope agreeing on 80% of the material. A few minute later, a tired and frustrate Pope addressed the press with a sad demeanor declaring the meeting a huge failure. A reporter asked why it was that the meeting was a success if he and the Pres. agreed on 80% of the material and the Pope replied, "Because we were talking about the 10 Commandments.

A List of Short Books
1) A Guide to Arab Democracies
2) A Journey through the Mind of Dennis Rodman
3) Amelia Earhart's Guide to the Pacific Ocean
4) Career Opportunities for History Majors
5) Contraception by Pope John Paul II
6) Detroit - A Travel Guide
7) Different Ways to Spell "Bob"
8) Dr. Kevorkian's Collection of Motivational Speeches
9) Easy UNIX
10) Ethiopian Tips on World Dominance
11) Everything Men Know About Women
12) French Hospitality
13) Bob Dole: The Wild Years
14) How to Sustain a Musical Career by Art Garfunkel
15) Mike Tyson's Guide to Dating Etiquette
17) Spotted Owl Recipes by the EPA
18) Popular Lawyers
19) Staple Your Way to Success
20) The Amish Phone Book

A kid comes home from school with a writing assignment. He asks his father for help. "Dad, can you tell me the difference between potential and reality?"
His father looks up, thoughtfully, and then says, "I'll demonstrate. Go ask your mother if she would sleep with Robert Redford for a million dollars. Then go ask your sister if she would sleep with Brad Pitt for a million dollars. Then come back and tell me what you've learned."
The kid is puzzled, but decides to ask his mother. "Mom, if someone gave you a million dollars, would you sleep with Robert Redford?"
"Don't tell your father, but yes, I would."
He then goes to his sister's room. "Sis, if someone gave you a million dollars, would you sleep with Brad Pitt?"
She replies, "Omigod! Definitely!"
The kid goes back to his father. "Dad, I think I've figured it out. Potentially, we are sitting on two million bucks, but in reality, we are living with two easy women."

Similarities between the Titanic video and the Clinton grand jury testimony video:
Titanic: $9.99 on the Internet
Clinton: $9.99 on the Internet
Titanic: over 3 hours long
Clinton: over 3 hours long
Titanic: The story of Jack and Rose, their forbidden love, a subsequent catastrophe
Clinton: The story of Bill and Monica, their forbidden love, a subsequent catastrophe
Titanic: villain - White Star Line
Clinton: villain - Ken Starr
Titanic: Jack is a starving artist
Clinton: Bill is a B.S. artist
Titanic: In one part, Jack enjoys a good cigar
Clinton: Ditto for Bill
Titanic: During ordeal, Rose's dress gets ruined
Clinton: Ditto for Monica
Titanic: Jack teaches Rose to spit
Clinton: Let's not go there
Titanic: Rose gets to keep her jewelry
Clinton: Monica forced to return her gifts
Titanic: Behind the scenes, Leonardo DiCaprio is wildly popular
Clinton: Behind the scenes, Bill has a 70% approval rating
Titanic: Jack surrenders to an icy death
Clinton: Bill goes home to Hillary

There are a lot of video games. There are a lot of Jewish actors. They stare in a lot of movies based on video games. There is only one Jewish video game. It’s called Quicken.

There was an old woman who was walking down the street one windy day. As each gust of wind would come, her skirt would fly up exposing, everything it covered. After this happened a few times, a young man walking behind her sheepishly asked,
“Ma’am, why don’t you try to hold down your skirt as you walk so the gusts of wind don’t lift it up and, well…. Expose you”?
“Sonny”, she said sternly, “ Everything below this skirt is 82 years old, this hat on my head is brand new”.

Dry cleaning is a scam, you cannot clean my dry because I do not own one, nor can you clean with dry since it is not really a think. I can’t walk in and say “Here’s my coat I would like it cleaned with only 100% pure organic dry please.” Doesn’t happen. Worse yet, if I bring in a shirt caked with mud and say “Here’ you go I want this shirt spotless and you can’t use any liquids.” What are they going to do, blow on it real hard? The whole bit is a sham to sell wire hangers and plastic wrap.

Three convicts are on their way to jail and are allowed one item to pas time while incarcerated. The first prisoner turns to the second and asks, “So what did you bring?”
“I brought paints.” Claims the first one. “I’ll be the Grandma Moses of jail and I’ll paint anything I can get my hands on. How ‘bout you?”
’I brought a deck of cards.” The first one replies. “ I can play any number of games, poker, solitaire, blackjack, gin, whatever.”
The third convict, seeing the other two, begins to smile to himself. Thje other two, taking notice, ask him, “Why are you so smug, what did you bring?”
“I brought a helmet here.” he says patting the box
Puzzled, the other two ask what he intends to do with it
“Well,” he says, “according to the box, I can go bike riding, skydiving, rollerblading…” -

A man’s wife sent him out one day to buy a ham. Upon his return she remarked, “Oh, you forgot to cut the end of the ham off.”
“Why would I want to cut off the end of a ham?” asked the man.
“I don’t know,” responded, the wife, “It’s just something I learned from my mother.” The next day while visiting his mother in law, the man asked why she cut’s off the end of ham.
“Oh, she replied, I don’t know I guess it’s just something I learned from my mother.”
More curious now, the man decided to call up the grandmother long distance, and asked her why she cuts off the end of a ham. “Well,” she replied, “It’s really very simple, my oven is too small to cook the whole ham.”
We often do things out of simple convention, rather than doing things out of purpose and reason.

All in all, the White House hasn’t changed all that much since GW Bush took office. The only real difference is that we went from a President that embarrassed his daughter to daughters who embarrassed the President.

A manager is having an affair with his secretary. One night the man wakes up in his mistresses bed and realizes he is very late, he should have been home hours ago. "quick" he says, waking up the mistress, "take my shoes and walk around in the yard with them." He said. Not understanding, the woman complied anyway, as the man hopped into the shower. He gets out of the shower, quickly dresses and goes home.
As he reaches the doorway, he is greeted by his angry wife. "Where have you been?" she yells at him. "Do you have any idea what time it is?"
"I can't lie to you dear, I've been having an affair with my secretary. After making passionate love to her, I fell asleep and only woke up twenty minutes ago." the husband replies sorrowful.
"Don't you lie to me you jerk," the woman screams. "I see your shoes, you've been golfing again!"

In today's vibrant economy, even previously undesirable traits like being rude and obnoxious, can lead to successful careers. Telemarketing for example, or Sunday morning Political Pundit.

The Federal Government rarely makes any sense. Take for example, the Uniformed Division of the Secret Service. Doesn't the uniform sort of give away the secret? What makes even less sense is that they drive around in white cars with little shield logos painted on the side. You know, even illiterate criminals know a white car with a shield on the side means "cop."

Political correctness remains a hot topic today, though to be honest, I don't understand it at all. I mean, politics is one of the least respected professions in the whole world, so the idea that anything could be correct with it seems...well...incorrect. Now political suicide or putting them all in political asylum seems to be a better goal.

While suturing a laceration on the hand of a 90-year-old man, a doctor and the old man were discussing Bush's health care reform ideas. The old man said, "Well, ya know, old Bush is a post turtle."
So, not knowing what he meant the doctor asked him what a "post turtle" was.
He said, "When your driving down a country road, and you come across a fence post with a turtle balanced on top, that's a post turtle. You know he didn't get there by himself, he doesn't belong there, he can't get anything done while he's up there, and you just want to help the poor thing down."

George W. and Laura are at a restaurant. The waiter tells them tonight's specials are chicken and fish.
"The chicken sounds good; I'll have that," Laura says.
The waiter nods. "And the vegetable?" he asks.
"Oh, he'll have the fish," Laura replies.

A woman drove a mini-van filled with a dozen screaming kids through the mall parking lot, looking for a space. Frazzled, she coasted through a stop sign. "Hey, lady, have you forgotten how to stop?" yelled an irate man. She rolled down her window and yelled back, "What makes you think these are all mine ?"

A man walks into a lawyer's office and asks how much the barrister's rates are.
The lawyer says fifty dollars for three questions.
The man asks, "Isn't that awfully expensive"
"Yes," the lawyer replies, "what's your third question?"

A drunk was driving through town, weaving violently all over the road, when a cop finally pulled him over.
"Where have you been?" asked the cop.
"At the pub," slurred the drunk.
"Well, it looks to me like you've had quite a few," the cop snapped.
"I guess I did," said the drunk with a smirk.
"Are you aware that your wife fell out of the car a few intersections back?" the cop asked sternly.
"Thank goodness," sighed the drunk. "I thought I had gone deaf!"

A White House press release noted that during his last physical, Pres. Bush measured his resting heart rate at 43 beats per minute. Not only does this make him the healthiest Pres. to date, it also marks the first time a President’s resting heart rate equals his IQ

A Senator was walking doen Pennsylvania Ave. one day when he noticed an old bottle lying on the sidewalk. Wanting to be a conservationaist conservative he picked up the bottle and wiped it off. Suddenly a magic genie appeared.
“Thank you for setting me free. In return for my freedom i shall grant you one wish.”
So the Senator thought a while and finally he said, “alright, I’ve got it, work in the Senate ges me so wound up I really need a vacation. The only problem is I have a fear of flying and boats take too long. Could you build me a bridge to _____(insert warm and sunny place here, by default I would say Hawaii or Grand Cayman, but for a Cuba question if may be good to improvise)______.”
“He, he, he.....uuuummmmm,” said the genie, “see, here’s the thing. It’s been about 5,000 years and I’m kind of rusty, could we maybe try somethign a little easier here?”
“okay,” replied the Senator, “how about ___(insert topic here, ‘a balanced budget’, ‘a bi-partisan congress’, ‘a decent Pres.’, ‘welfare reform’)_________”
“Right.” The genie quickly responded, “and how long was that bridge again?” (or if you like the other punchline is “and would you like that bridge with two lanes or four?”)

Three Wannabe Detectives
A policeman was interrogating 3 blondes who were training to become detectives. To test their skills in recognizing a suspect, he shows the first blonde a picture for 5 second and then hides it. "This is your suspect, how would you recognize him?"
The first blonde answers, "That's easy, we'll catch him fast because he only has one eye!" The policeman says, "Well...uh...that's because the picture shows his profile."
Slightly flustered by this ridiculous response, he flashes the picture for 5 seconds at the second blonde and asks her, "This is your suspect, how would you recognize him?"
The second blonde giggles, flips her hair and says, "Ha! He'd be
too easy to catch because he only has one ear!"
The policeman angrily responds, "What's the matter with you two?!? Of course only one eye and one ear are SHOWING because it's a picture of his profile!! Is that the best answer you can come up with?
Extremely frustrated at this point, he shows the picture to the third blonde and in a very testy voice asks, "This is your suspect, how would you recognize him?" He quickly adds"...think hard before giving me a stupid answer."
he blonde looks at the picture intently for a moment and says, "Hmm...the suspect wears contact lenses."
The policeman is surprised and speechless because he really doesn't know himself if the suspect wears contacts or not. "Well, that's an interesting answer...wait here for a few minutes while I check his file and I'll get back to you on that." He leaves the room and goes to his office, checks the suspect's file in his computer, and comes back with a beaming smile on his face.
"Wow! I can't believe it...it's TRUE! The suspect does in fact wear contact lenses. Good work! How were you able to make such an astute observation?
"That's easy," the blonde replied. "He can't wear regular glasses because he only has one eye and one ear."

HOW TO MESS WITH THE IRS!
(Internal Revenue Service, an agency of the government to whom Americans pay taxes on their salary.)
--Always put staples in the right hand corner. Go ahead and put a down the whole right side. The extractors who remove the mail from the envelopes have to take out any staples in the right side.
--Never arrange paperwork in the right order, or even facing the right way. Put a few upside down and backwards. That way they have to remove all your staples rearrange your paperwork and re-staple it (on the left side).
--Line the bottom of your envelope with elmer's glue and let it dry before you put in your forms, so that the automated opener doesn't open it and the extractor has to open it by hand.
--If your very unfortunate and have to pay taxes use a two or three party check.
--On top of paying with a three party check pay one of the dollars you owe in cash. When an extractor receives cash, no matter how small an amount, he has to take it to a special desk and fill out of few nasty forms.
--Write a little letter of appreciation. Any letter received has to read and stamped regardless of what it is or what its on.
--Write your letter on something misshapen and unconventional. Like on the back of a Kroger sack.
--When you mail it, mail it in a big envelope (even if its just a single EZi form). Big envelopes have to be torn and sorted differently than regular business size ones. An added bonus to the big envelope is that they take priority over other mail, so the workers can hurry up and deal with your mess.
--If you send 2 checks they'll have to staple your unsightly envelope to your half destroyed form.
--Always put extra paper clips on your forms. Any foreign fasteners or the like have to be removed and put away.
--Sign your name in ink on every page. Any signature has to verified and then date stamped.
NOTE: These are just a few of the fun and exciting things you can do with the man. These methods are only recommended when you owe money

Extemp: One Liners

2007-07-04T23:55:00.001-10:00

Africa is like a sleeping lion; beautiful when left alone

I have realized why politicians do nothing to improve the quality of public school education. They are terrified of educated voters

We'll have peace in Ulster if we have to kill everyone to do it.

NAVY
Never Again Volunteer Yourself

MARINE
Muscles Are Required Intelligence Not Essential

ARMY
Aren't Ready to be Marines Yet

He who is filled with hot air rises to great heights.

Enron finally got a new auditor, The Count from Sesame Street Financial Services

Jeffrey Dahmer was going to get a bail bond before going to trial but it would have cost him an arm and a leg.

Modern drugs: Better Living Through Chemistry.

If Visa is "everywhere you want to be" does that mean it's accepted in heaven?

Why harp on today's media when stories like "Hansel and Gretel” contain blatant acts of pedophilia, murder and cannibalism?

If you really have to practice what you preach in heaven, isn't that punishment enough?

Did Moses train by parting smaller things first, like ponds or maybe bowls of soup?

The nightly news: telling us what we think is important.

The Fourth of July: Celebrating our freedom....to eat and drink 'till we're woozie and set off explosives.

All college is good for is getting you a BA so you can BS your way past the HR people to be a CPA for some PR firm.

Is it illegal t use a cellular phone while operating a bumper car in New York too?

Cases of justifiable homicide: Guy in a restaurant, on a cell phone

Isn’t bad cholesterol organic too?

Have you ever wondered whether Roman gladiators, got free lifetime medical coverage?

I think the most honest politician would be the one who started in the fertilizer business.

Despite consistent ridicule by liberals, GW Bush has a striking intelligence. It's been striking since 1968.

Despite the placement of a pacemaker, VP Dick Cheney is in striking good health. It's been striking since right before his first heart attack.

It's always bothered me that doctors call what they do "practice."

As Daniel Boone once said, "we're not out of the woods yet."

_________ is like bowling: His head is as smooth as the ball, got hit by a strike, had nothing to spare and ended up in the gutter.

Why is there only one monopolies commission?

Medical research has shown the brain to be comprised of approximately sixty percent fat. This just suports what kids have known for a long time: Ice cream is brain food.

Why do parents make toddlers play in the sand and then tell them to think outside the box?

When companies ship Styrofoam, what do they pack it in?

Can a vegetarian eat animal crackers?

What do we do if there is an endangered animal that can only eat an endangered plant?

If a police officer has to arrest a mime do they still tell him he has the right to remain silent?

Rporters asked George W. Bush today if he wanted his $1.6T tax cut for rich people to be retroactive to which he replied, "No, 'cause then only Superman could touch it."

Why is a weekly news magazine dangerous at a party? Because TIME flies when you're having fun

They say that it's tough to learn Bosnian because it has seven verb tenses: six past, one present, and no future.

What will Clinton be remembered for?
Being the President after Bush

Have you ever heard of the Longhorn Style Extemp Speech? Most extempers use this style it without even knowing it. It’s got two good points but a lot of bull in between.

If nicotine is so addictive why aren’t people addicted to second hand smoke?

NATO: Not Altogether Though Out

Is it OK to use the AM radio after noon?

What do chickens think we taste like?

What do people in China call their good plates?

What do you call a male ladybug?

What hair color do they put on the driver's license of a bald man?

When dog food is new and improved tasting, who tests it?

Why didn't Noah swat those two mosquitoes?

There would be fewer problems with children if they had to chop wood to keep the television set going.

It rarely occurs to teenagers that the day will come when they'll know as little as their parents.

Confucius says: “To save face, keep bottom half shut”

Talk is cheap because supply exceeds demand

Hard work pay's off in the future, but laziness pays off now

Light travels faster than sound. That's why some people seem bright until you hear them speak

Drugs may lead nowhere but at least it's the senic route

Before you get into an argument with someone, walk a mile in their shoes. Then you'll be a mile away and you'll have their shoes.

Extemp: Our Rights

2007-07-04T23:54:00.004-10:00

Our Rights: The following was written by State Representative Mitchell Kaye from Cobb County, GA
We, the sensible people of the United States, in an attempt to help everyone get along, restore some semblance of justice, avoid anymore riots, keep our nation safe, promote positive behavior, and securethe blessings of debt-free liberty to ourselves and our great-great-great grandchildren, hereby try one more time to ordain and establish some common sense guidelines for the terminally whiny, guilt-ridden, basically lazy people. We hold these truths to be self-evident:
ARTICLE I: You do not have the right to a new car, big screen TV, or any other form of wealth. More power to you if you can legally acquire them, but no one is guaranteeing anything.
ARTICLE II: You do not have the right to never be offended. This country is based on freedom, and that means freedom for everyone - not just you! You may leave the room, turn the channel, express a different opinion, etc., but the world is full of idiots, and probably always will be.
ARTICLE III: You do not have the right to be free from harm. If you stick a screwdriver in your eye, learn to be more careful. Do not expect the tool manufacturer to make you and all your relatives independently wealthy.
ARTICLE IV: You do not have the right to free food and housing. Americans are the most charitable people to be found, and will gladly help anyone in need, but we are quickly growing weary of subsidizing generation after generation of professional couch potatoes who achieve nothing more than the creation of another generation of professional couch potatoes.
ARTICLE V: You do not have the right to free health care. That would be nice, but from the looks of public housing, we're just not interested in health care.
ARTICLE VI: You do not have the right to physically harm other people. If you kidnap, rape, intentionally maim or kill someone, don't be surprised if the rest of us want to see you fry in the electric chair.
ARTICLE VII: You do not have the right to the possessions of others. If you rob, cheat or coerce away the goods or services of other citizens, don't be surprised if the rest of us get together and lock you away in a place where you still won't have the right to a big-screen color TV or a life of leisure.
ARTICLE VIII: You don't have the right to demand that our children risk their lives in foreign wars to soothe your aching conscience. We hate oppressive governments and won't lift a finger to stop you from going to fight if you'd like. However, we do not enjoy parenting the entire world and do not want to spend so much of our time battling each and every little tyrant with a military uniform and a funny hat.
ARTICLE IX: You don't have the right to a job. All of us sure want all of you to have one, and will gladly help you along in hard times, but we expect you to take advantage of the opportunities of education and vocational training laid before you to make yourself useful.
ARTICLE X: You do not have the right to happiness. Being an American means that you have the right to pursue happiness, which, by the way, is a lot easier if you are unencumbered by an overabundance of idiotic laws created by those of you who were confused by the Bill of Rights.

Extemp: Political Cows

2007-07-04T23:54:00.003-10:00

Politics Made Simple
Feudalism: You have two cows. Your lord takes some of the milk.
Pure Socialism: You have two cows. The government takes them and puts them in a barn with everyone else's cows. You have to take care of all the cows. The government gives you a glass of milk.
Bureaucratic Socialism: Your cows are cared for by ex-chicken farmers. You have to take care of the chickens the government took from the chicken farmers. The government gives you as much milk and eggs as the regulations say you should need.
Fascism: You have two cows. The government takes both, hires you to take care of them, and sells you the milk.
Pure Communism: You share two cows with your neighbors. You and your neighbors bicker about who has the most "ability" and who has the most "need". Meanwhile, no one works, no one gets any milk, and the cows drop dead of starvation.
Russian Communism: You have two cows. You have to take care of them, but the government takes all the milk. You steal back as much milk as you can and sell it on the black market.
Perestroika: You have two cows. You have to take care of them, but the Mafia takes all the milk. You steal back as much milk as you can and sell it on the "free" market.
Cambodian Communism: You have two cows. The government takes both and shoots you.
Dictatorship: You have two cows. The government takes both and drafts you.
Pure Democracy: You have two cows. Your neighbors decide who gets the milk.
Representative Democracy: You have two cows. Your neighbors pick someone to tell you who gets the milk.
Bureaucracy: You have two cows. At first the government regulates what you can feed them and when you can milk them. Then it pays you not to milk them. Then it takes both, shoots one, milks the other and pours the milk down the drain. Then it requires you to fill out forms accounting for the missing cows.
Capitalism: You don't have any cows. The bank will not lend you money to buy cows, because you don't have any cows to put up as collateral.
Pure Anarchy: You have two cows. Either you sell the milk at a fair price or your neighbors try to take the cows and kill you.
Anarchy-Capitalism: You have two cows. You sell one and buy a bull.
Surrealism: You have two giraffes. The government requires you to take harmonica lessons.
Olympics-ism: You have two cows, one American, one Chinese. With the help of trilling violins and state of the art montage photography, John Tesh narrates the moving tale of how the American cow overcame the agony of growing up in a suburb with (gasp) divorced parents, then mentions in passing that the Chinese cow was beaten every day by a tyrannical farmer and watched its parents butchered before its eyes. The American cow wins the competition, severely spraining an udder in a gritty performance, and gets a multi-million dollar contract to endorse Wheaties. The Chinese cow is led out of the arena and shot by Chinese government officials, though no one ever hears about it. McDonald's buys the meat and serves it hot and fast at its Beijing restaurant.

Extemp: Quotes

2007-07-04T23:54:00.001-10:00

It's not having what you want, it's wanting what you've got - Sheryl Crow.

"The GOP is the evil party, the Democrats are the stupid party, and bipartisanship is when they join forces to do something both evil and stupid." - Stephen Johnson

I'm an idealist. I don't know where I'm going, but I'm on my way. - Carl Sandburg

To err is human--and to blame it on a computer is even more so. - Robert Orben

All generalizations are dangerous, even this one. - Alexandre Dumas

When you build bridges you can keep crossing them. - Rick Pitino, Lead to Success

Hatred does not cease in this world by hating, but by not hating; this is an eternal truth. - Buddha, The Dhammapada

In university they don't tell you that the greater part of the law is learning to tolerate fools. - Doris Lessing

Somebody who thinks logically is a nice contrast to the real world - The Law of Thumb

The secret of success is sincerity. Once you can fake that you've got it made. - Jean Giraudoux

Not even computers will replace committees, because committees buy computers. - Edward Shepherd Mead

You're not to be so blind with patriotism that you can't face reality. Wrong is wrong, no matter who does it or says it. - Malcolm X

"He means well" is useless unless he does well. - Plautus

No punishment of the unrighteous has ever been too severe in the eyes of the righteous. - Author Unknown

It is of interest to note that while some dolphins are reported to have learned English -- up to fifty words used in correct context -- no human being has been reported to have learned dolphinese. - Carl Sagan

People love high ideals, but they got to be about 33-percent plausible. - Will Rogers (1879 - 1935)

Women! Can't live with them...pass the beer nuts. - Norm (Cheers)

I know not with what weapons World War III will be fought, but World War IV will be fought with sticks and stones. - Albert Einstein (1879 - 1955)

Get your facts first, and then you can distort them as much as you please. - Mark Twain

What luck for rulers that men do not think. - Adolf Hitler (1889 - 1945)

No. - Amy Carter (President Jimmy Carter's daughter) when asked by a reporter if she had any message for the children of America

The optimist proclaims that we live in the best of all possible worlds; and the pessimist fears this is true. - Irving Caesar

Scriptures, n. The sacred books of our holy religion, as distinguished from the false and profane writings on which all other faiths are based. - Ambrose Bierce (1842 - 1914), The Devil's Dictionary

... if you find a person that you've never seen before getting in a crop duster that doesn't belong to you -- report it. - George W. Bush,

The whole problem with the world is that fools and fanatics are always so certain of themselves, but wiser people so full of doubts. - Bertrand Russell (1872 - 1970)

ALLIANCE, n. In international politics, the union of two thieves who have their hands so deeply inserted in each other's pockets that they cannot separately plunder a third. - Ambrose Bierce (1842 - 1914), The Devil's Dictionary

Rule 1: Never play poker with a guy who does card tricks.
Rule 2: Never show card tricks to the guys you play poker with. - Harry Anderson

When China renewed diplomatic relations with the United States, the Senate was leery: "Any country that has 900 million people, and claims its favorite sport is Ping- Pong, will lie about other things too."

An honest politician is one who, when bought, stays bought. - Robert Heinlen

“The buck stops here” - Harry Truman

“Well done is better than well said” - Benjamin Franklin

“Every great achievement was once impossible”

“Our problem is not the lack of knowing; it is the lack of doing” - Mark Hatfield

“A journey of a thousand leagues begins with a single step” - Lao Tzu

“You can’t build a reputation on what you are going to do”- Henry Ford

“An optimist is a person who goes after Moby Dick in a rowboat, and brings the tartar sauce with him.” - Zig Ziglar

“It is better to ask some of the questions than know all of the answers” - James Thurber

“More matter, less art” - Hamlet Act II, scene 2, line 103

“A drop of honey catches more flies than a gallon of gall” - Abe Lincoln

“It is amazing how much people could get done if they do not worry about who gets the credit” Sandra Swinney

“Gladly we desire to make other men perfect, but we will not amend our own fault” - Tomas Kempis

“Most of us can live peacefully with our own faults, but the faults of others get on our nerves” - Banking

“What’s popular isn’t always right & what’s rights isn’t always popular”

“More people would learn from their mistakes if they weren’t so busy denying them” - J. Harold Smith

“99% of the failures come from people who have the habit it making excuses” - George Washington Carver

“If at first you don’t succeed, destroy all the evidence that you have tried”

“There is no more miserable human than the one in whom nothing is habitual but indecision” - William James

“A great man shows his greatness by the way he treats little men.” - Thomas Carlyle

“The most pathetic person in the world is one who has sight but has no vision.”- Hellen Keller

“May I never get too busy in my own affairs that I fail to respond to the needs of others with kindness and compassion.” - Thomas Jefferson

“Everyone has a right to his own opinion. It’s generally of no use to anyone else.” - Dublin Opinion

“Part of the problem today s that we have a surplus of simple answers and a shortage of simple problems.” Syracuse Herald

“If it were considered desirable to destroy a human being, the only thing necessary would be to give his work a character of uselessness.” - Fydor Dostoevsky

“Don’t ever let your problems become excuses.”

“They conquer who believe they can.”- Ralph Waldo Emerson

“I have learned that success is to be measured not so much by the position one has reached in life as by the obstacles which he has overcome while trying to succeed.” - Booker T. Washington

“I must do something,” will always solve more problems than “something must be done.”

“The bible says “it came to pass,” but never “it came to stay.”

“People have a way of becoming what you encourage them to be -- not what you nag them to be.” Scudder N. Parker

“People who are unable to motivate themselves must be content with mediocrity, no mater how impressive their other talents.”- Andrew Carnegie

“The man who does things makes many mistakes, but he never makes the biggest mistake of all -- doing nothing.” - Benjamin Franklin

To break through creativity, we must defer judgment. That is, learn to accept all ideas, without prejudice, and examine them each in turn - Scott Isaksen

The law of "An eye for an eye” will eventually leave everyone blind. - Martin Luther King Jr.

"If you take out the killings, Washington actually has a very very low crime rate." - M. Barry, DC Mayor

“We often change jobs, friends and spouses without changing ourselves.”

“Words and ideas can change the world.” - Dead Poets Society

“Carpe Diem, seize the day, make your life extraordinary.” - Dead Poets Society

“That the powerful play goes on and you may contribute a verse.”- Walt Whitman

“Perhaps the candle burns brighter if it burns shorter.” - Darius

‘Times, they are a changin’, no longer will we see ‘Beware of Dog’ signs, in today’s world we will see, ‘Beware of Dog’s Lawyer’ signs.” - Jim Davis

“Depressed is waking up in the morning with the feeling that the world is out to get you...And finding out, you’re right.” - Jim Davis

“The last thing a depressed person wants to see is a happy person.” - Jim Davis

“Clark’s Law - any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.”

“The evil that men do lives after them.” - Micah Brock

“How dark can your existence be when compared with an eternal void.”

“Self in indulgence, there’s a great message in those words, if you don’t indulge yourself, no one else will.” Jim Davis

“I am the show.” - Miles Davis

“I hate TV, there’s too much sex, violence, infomercials, commercials, reruns, game shows and talk shows. It’s disgusting. The ten hours I watched yesterday was horrible.” - Jim Davis

“If there’s anything a depressed person hates, its a happy person.” - Jim Davis

“In our fast paced world, relaxation is practically a lost art.” - Jim Davis

“Life is like a poker game, if you don’t win, you lose.” - Jim Davis

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Extemp: Republican

2007-07-04T23:53:00.003-10:00

Extemp: 10 Commandments

2007-07-04T23:53:00.001-10:00

In today's political climate, the formulation of law does not follow a heavenly model. To illustrate how low we've sunk, here's how the Ten Commandments might have been developed if the process were governed by current political rules. Chief heavenly pollster informs God of alarming findings: His flock is hungry for moral guidance. God floats a trial balloon, leaking word to key town criers that he is formulating a comprehensive policy statement on proscribed human behavior to be called "The Ten Commandments." Opponents are sharply critical of the plan, asking, "Do you want the same guy who runs the weather to tell you how to live your life?"
Slipping in the polls, the Deity taps David Gergen, formerly associated
with the Party of Darkness, as "Counsel to the Creator." Gergen sees "absolutely no problem" with his previous service under Satan.
"All The Almighty's Men," a scathing insider view of celestial politics is released, triggering a nosedive in the Lord's approval rating. National Big Heavy Stones Association demands rescission of "Thou Shalt Not Commit Murder" prohibition, claiming it infringes on the protected Right to Bear Arms and noting that "Rocks Don't Smote People, People Smote People." God appoints Moses, influential human being person, as his Morality Spin Doctor. They brainstorm strategy: "What if we chiseled the thing on a tablet or something, and you come down from a mountain holding it up above your head looking like Charlton Heston. Would that not be an awesome Photo Op, or what?" Pharaoh Cuomo tries to horn into the spotlight, declaring, "The Ten Commandments do not go far enough." He agonizes publicly over a possible run at divinity himself,
deciding in the end that "the Pharaohship is where I belong now." Moses presents the Ten Commandments (now renamed by Gergen "The Guaranteed Pathway to The Rapture Security Act") as planned in a dramatic ceremony at the Pearly Gates, featuring a hot "Rock n Roll Heaven" Band. Tsenturion Tsongas ridicules the plan, quipping, "I'm not Santa Claus - I can't promise you eternal life if you follow ten rules." Tsongas suggests a $1.00 per grain Sand Tax to pay for the sins of the people. He is stoned. The People oppose the plan upon learning of its strict rules, including a uniform penalty for non-compliance: roasting in the white-hot flames of hell for eternity. The Lord backpedals, saying, "I have never said that all of the Commandments are written in stone. All I want is righteousness as a whole. If we can approve "No Cussing" this year, we'll phase in the others over a ten-year period. "Adulterers of the Euphrates" puts considerable pressure on the King of Kings through their powerful lobbying group. God agrees to an amendment stating, "Thou Shalt Not Commit Adultery, Unless Thou Art Bigtime Sorry." One week before the vote, God gets tough, saying to Abraham: "Unless you vote for the package as proposed, I will take your first-born son." Abraham responds, "Okay, but you've got to come down to Mesopotamia and stand next to me on the podium at the Shepherd's of Distinction luncheon." A formal vote is held up in Congress when greedy representatives saddle the bill with the most useless make-work pork barrel project in history -- The Pyramids. Centurion Helms filibusters over failure to add Eleventh Commandment forbidding man to lie down with man. God goes directly to the people in a "Fireside Chat" -- his head appears in their fireplaces, surrounded by flames. Ratings are tremendous. Gergen advises the Lord, "You are coming across as too High and Mighty." The Lord snaps back at Gergen "I am high and mighty." You need to loosen up your image. Perhaps you can take up a musical instrument. See if Gabriel can teach you how to use that horn. Ponchus Perot appears on the "King Larry" show to debate. He is humiliated, causing an upsurge in support for the Ten Commandments, but not enough to win the votes. After a flurry of amendments and broad changes in the package as originally proposed, the bill is passed. The Lord signs the bill into law in a ceremony in the Cloud Garden. As passed, the law contains no commandments, but authorizes new aqueduct projects in the home districts of five key Centurions.

LD: The use of the state's power of eminent domain to promote private enterprise is unjust.

2007-07-04T23:50:00.002-10:00

Resolved: The use of the state's power of eminent domain to promote private enterprise is unjust.

If you know what eminent domain is already, that’s a good start. My guess is that most of you are going to Google it since eminent domain isn’t a common term. Shit, I’d be willing to bet that half your teachers probably couldn’t immediately tell you what eminent domain is off the top of their head so don’t feel bad. You’re stupid, but no more stupid than your teachers, or at least half of them. That said; let's start with the primary term and some basic understanding of the different viewpoints. At this point if you haven’t Googled for a basic concept of what eminent domain is, go do so. I’ll do formal definitions later, but you’ll want to at least have a basic idea of what I’m talking about in the next few paragraphs.

Eminent domain: Now for the sake of laziness (and in your case decent debate) I’m going to limit the resolution to eminent domain in the US. It’s primarily a term used in the US anyway and hopefully the limitation makes for a better debate. The problem with such a limit, is that LD is really a value debate so even though I bound the discussion to US policies and practices (and might throw in a few Canadian references), remember that your arguments should be broadly moral based. Though it’s perfectly reasonable for you to use US examples, remember that in the end, the debate is a value debate.

That said I want to point you to three opposing views of what eminent domain is. All of them hold some truth. The first, which I’ll call the liberal activist view, sees eminent domain as something which is abused and evil for its effects. To quote the Castle Coalition,

“As early as 1795, the U.S. Supreme Court described the power of eminent domain—where the government takes someone’s property for a "public use"—as "the despotic power." Eminent domain has the potential to destroy lives and livelihoods by uprooting people from their homes and businesspeople from their shops.”

The opposing view to that is one which argues the use of eminent domain is necessary for redevelopment and broader community welfare. These two views, of the individual’s rights and of community welfare, are where you will find the larger portion of your moral argument on each side.

A recent New York Times article , started with commentary from developers extolling (vocab word, go look it up) the benefits of eminent domain to communities.

“Bank of America agreed to join the developer Douglas Durst in 2003 in building a 54-story tower in the heart of Midtown Manhattan, giving a psychological and economic lift to a city that was still reeling from the destruction of the World Trade Center. Mr. Durst said he would not have been able to negotiate with Bank of America or other prospective tenants had the state not authorized him to use eminent domain.”

The more moderate viewpoint is the one which most politicians are currently taking. They all recognize the need for economic development and community revitalization but the images of kicking old people out of their homes and fucking over small business owners doesn’t help them get re-elected. No fancy-ass quote here, just understand that the more practical (rather than moral) view is trying to balance the two other sides in a reasonable manner. In California for example, eminent domain can only be used in urban areas and only where the state can demonstrate considerable need for redevelopment. Trying to balance those interests is a hard reality. Washington state and a number of other states and local communities are currently involved in trying to pass legislation that would clarify and/or restrict state powers of eminent domain .

Let’s look at the formal definitions and use of eminent domain. On first glance you might think that the state can’t simply take private property for no reason. This is true. What normally happens is that rather than confiscate property and turn it over to private enterprise, the state will condemn a property. In many cases even the threat of condemnation is enough to get private property owners to sell out.

HUD (Housing and Urban Development) says that eminent domain “is the power of a government body to take private property for public use.” ; This is a fair, but bland definition. It suits the negative well but can be sort of non-topical as the resolution is asking about taking for private enterprise (thus you have to make the link between private enterprise and public use). HUD in particular talks about the typical uses of eminent domain for things like building roads, or building a new airport in a congested urban area.

Now, I used the term condemnation a couple of places above and you’ll see it in reading on eminent domain. The condemnation they’re talking about is NOT the same thing as condemning a property as in deeming it unfit for habitation. Most of the properties condemned under eminent domain are in perfectly reasonable condition. The term condemnation as used in eminent domain just means that the government is taking your shit. The only thing to be decided is how much they’re going to pay you for it. By comparison, condemning a property for things like health of safety violations doesn’t take away the property. Make note of the distinction to avoid confusion. It might also help if you make that difference clear for the judges.

Brief Legal Background: In the US, the 5’th Amendment requires just compensation for takings under eminent domain and further requires that “public use” for the property be demonstrated by the government. The more important affirmative case will be Calder v. Bull, 3 U.S. 386 from 1798 in which the judge decided that taking property from one person for the profit of another person (IE private enterprise) is pretty fucked up. This interpretation of taking private property for “public use” was, for the most part, maintained through the 1980’s. At this point the courts decided that economic development could fall under “public use” and allowed for taking for things like building a GM plant in Michigan. The most recent major case is Kelo v. New London , decided in Feb. 2005. In a split 5-4 ruling the USSC decided that local governments could have pretty wide discretion to decide what constitutes a “public use” in taking and upheld the condemnation of 15 waterfront properties for economic development purposes and improvement of tax revenues.

Now in terms of definitions for Eminent Domain, I would suggest something neutral. While you can later argue about what truly constitutes a “public use” the HUD definition fits pretty well and is appropriate for both sides.

You should also have a general definition for Private Enterprise, but the concept should be pretty common and I leave it to you to find your own specific definition. Similarly, you should have a definition for unjust, but the specific wording is your problem

Okay so on to the case analysis. We’ll start with affirmative. First off consider your options for a value and a value criterion. For a value the first one that comes to mind is Justice, especially since its converse is explicitly in the resolution. Fairness would also apply here although depending on your definition, Fairness might just be a synonym. You have a few other options here such as Individual Rights but the obvious should work for this resolution. For value criterion, I would suggest Cost-Benefit Analysis. In particular this is useful because a good chunk of the legislation passed by states and the federal government restricting usage of eminent domain power uses CBA to determine if a particular example of eminent domain is a public use or not. Depending on your choice for values, Justice or Fairness could also apply as a value criterion. As with most of the resolutions, it depends on how you want to formulate your approach to the case.

There are three main affirmative case points. First that eminent domain is supposed to serve a public use and taking property from one private owner for the benefit of another is not a public use. Second that it constitutes a significant violation of individual property rights and third is that in practical terms the state power to take property has been widely misused and abused.

The “takings clause” of the Fifth Amendment, is itself pretty straightforward. It says that that "nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.” This establishes two fundamental points. First that private property should only be taken for “public use” and that the owner must be justly compensated. Now the negative will argue that because the compensation is just, the taking of property is just. That isn’t necessarily the case because the taking should also be for a public use. Private Enterprise is the exact opposite of a public use. Private Enterprise is a private, not a public use. Thus the promotion of Private Enterprise through eminent domain violates the Fifth Amendment. While takings for things like building freeways or expanding urban airports might be justified, taking private property from one individual for the benefit of another is a violation of Constitutional rights and is unjust. Courts have held from the late 1700’s through the late 20’Th century in Calder vs Bull that it is reprehensible and unjust to take from one person for the enrichment of another. This is especially true since Private Enterprise does not serve a public use.

The negative rebuttal to this point of course is that Private Enterprise does serve a significant public use. It can be used to improve a local tax base; it can be used to redevelop local economies and infrastructures. In Baltimore for example it was essential for redevelopment and the rise in tourism. Things like jobs and community revitalization serve a significant public use.

Here you could (as the affirmative) begin to ask some questions about the nature of eminent domain. For example, what constitutes due process for something like a government taking of property? What defines a public use? To what extent do we weight the benefits and the impacts of a taking? Is monetary compensation enough for people who are displaced from their homes? Or who’s businesses are closed? Here it helps to establish some of the practical stuff that can be easily extended to moral and ethical arguments in rebuttal and crystallization. For example, if the negative cannot clearly define limits to when Private Enterprise constitutes a legitimate public use, then there are few, if any, moral limitations on the power of eminent domain.

The second main affirmative argument is that a taking which seeks to replace one private property holder with another violates both individual rights, property right sand due process. This is true even if we concede that Private Enterprise constitutes and indirect public use, even though you shouldn’t make that concession. One good example of this violation can be found here in Hawaii. In 2001, the Honolulu City Council tried to get five landowners of beachfront property in Waikiki to sell to Outrigger Hotels for a hotel expansion. The City argued that the expansion, as part of the $300M Waikiki Beach Walk redevelopment plan, would attract more tourists and provide jobs. Arguing for the City, Councilman Jon Yoshimura, who for all you know, could very well be judging you, said that condemning the property would “encourage the parties to negotiate.” Yes, because a fucking lawsuit where the state will take your land is such a nice opening to negotiations. In 2002, the City Council passed a resolution allowing it to condemn the property and then it could turn around and resell that property to Outrigger. Rather than encouraging fair negotiation for sale of property between two private parties, the sate’s use of eminent domain powers simple allows Outrigger to buy condemned property from the City and County of Honolulu. If you’re familiar with the Leasehold Conversion controversy (probably not) that was/still is affecting some of the larger land trusts (ie: KSBE) much of the moral argumentation is the same, saying that the state shouldn’t be involved in the sale use of private property unless there is a significantly compelling (good terminology for cases) public interest. There is little public purpose in the transfer of private property between two private parties. Here you also get one of the most important cross-ex questions the affirmative can ask the negative, namely “where’s the public purpose?” Make it the burden of the neg to prove that there is a public purpose in the use of eminent domain. The state needs to show some public purpose and some public benefit for the exercise of eminent domain powers. Using power of the state simple because it is expedient or for the benefit of a single private party at the cost of another private party violates the core concepts of what it means to have private property. If the state can simply take that property and redistribute it to whomever they deem, then there is no right to private property at all, it is simply a whim of the government. Such abuse of power is immoral and unjustified. As a further note, in many cases, such exercise of power rarely follows any significant effort towards due process.

The third main affirmative point is that when we authorize, on moral grounds, the use of eminent domain to transfer property between two private parties, significant abuses occur. While a few homes might stand in the way of a multimillion dollar development deal, these homes have families living in them. What is the fair market value of 40 years of memories in a home you are forced to move from so that a new shopping plaza can be built? (Good cross-ex question) The abuse occurs because the state is violating the concept of a free market (in which sellers and buyer negotiate to a mutually agree price) to unfairly benefit a single private interest. Some of the abuses are fairly significant. In the Kelo case for example, some residents were given only 30-90 days eviction notice during which they would have to find a new place to live and facilitate that move. The lead plaintiff, Susette Kelo, was served her eviction notice the day before Thanksgiving. Now yes, this is a rather emotion cheery picking on my part, but there are a host of different abuses across the country. From low income families in Florida being evicted to make room for upscale condo’s to hotels in Waikiki taking over private land with the consent of the City Council, abuses occur nationwide and effect thousands of home and business owners. The abuse of eminent domain power is not isolated to a few instances, nor is it necessarily rampant, but it is significant and has life changing effects on the owners of property that has been condemned.

The negative rebuttal to this of course is that eminent domain has many legitimate uses and is often necessary to reduce urban blight and improve economic conditions. For example, in Baltimore use of eminent domain was necessary to revitalize the economy and improve tourism. Organizations such as the Dudley Street Neighborhood Initiative rely on the use of eminent domain to clean up communities and establish a strong neighborhood.

The key to the affirmative side is to push the significance of the taking of property on the smaller owners and the push the idea that the transfer of private property is NOT a public use, even if there are some incidental effects on things like tax base (which, again, you shouldn’t concede unless you really have to).

On the negative you’ll have two main approaches to the resolution, one that argues that eminent domain isn’t really a moral or immoral power at all, it’s just a tool. With this approach you’re more denying the resolution than denying the immorality of eminent domain. There are some flaws with this, but if you run it correctly it can be fairly powerful. The second approach is to argue that the intent of eminent domain is a just one because it servers the needs of the larger community and while it might not be an ideal solution it is the best one for the community. With this you accept that some people are harmed, but argue that because the individuals are compensated and because the public benefits, the use of eminent domain power is justified. It is entirely possible for you to use both approaches, argue that it is neutral tool, and then say that even if it isn’t neutral, it’s certainly not unjust because of all the positive uses.

In the first approach you should approach the resolution as many city and state politicians would. It’s a tough issue because of the clash between public sentiment and public need. As with many things like nuclear weapons, farm subsidies, or trade sanctions, the power of eminent domain is a tool. As with any tool, it has the potential for good use and the potential for abuse. Asking the question in the resolution is akin to asking about the morality of a hammer, pair of pliers or tire iron. The resolution does ask us about particular applications of eminent domain with a specific end in mind. The moral question we are asked to determine isn’t about eminent domain, but whether the promotion of private enterprise is just. The fact that it is a state power adds a level of complexity but we have to keep in mind that the question isn’t about eminent domain, but rather the promotion of private enterprise.

The affirmative will of course ask where the clash is. Just about every time you try to deny the moral question exists instead of negating it you open yourself to attacks on where the value clash is in the debate. Here the clash is relatively clear, even if you try to deny the morality of the question at hand The argument in the debate exists because some people are being deprived of property by the state for what is on face, (and I swear to fuck if you use the term prima facie in a round I will throw things at you) not really a public use. The benefit to the larger community comes at the expense of a few and often indirectly, as a result of the redevelopment rather than as a result of the condemnation. Because there’s the extra step to see the public benefit, the clash exists. It is the role of the negative to clearly establish that link.

In the second approach you establish that link. The use of eminent domain can be justified in many circumstances because of the significant public benefit. The use of eminent domain offends some because the state strips an owner(s) of private property but the necessity of that action to accomplish the public interest justifies its use. We don’t argue that land can be condemned for something like roads, (or is that under contention too? Ask during cross-ex) so the negative needs to make the next logical step which is to say that redevelopment and community improvement is also a significant public use. In California for example eminent domain is used in blighted areas to revitalize the area. Much of this occurs through private redevelopment. When the state of California condemns a property it has particular restrictions in place. It needs to be in a urban area which is considered blighted (go look it up). In those areas condemnation can take place and the land can be redeveloped. This allows for revitalization of an area and improvement across the board for that community. It means jobs for that redevelopment project, it means larger tax revenues for the area and it often means improved infrastructure to facilitate that new development. All of these things constitute a pretty considerable public use for the power of eminent domain. The effect on individual property owners still exists but the action is justified. Another good example of this, mentioned above is the Dudley Street Neighborhood Initiative.

The affirmative rebuttal to this, which holds some merit, is that this action unfairly targets those individuals with the lowest income who are the most disadvantaged. Further, because most of the redevelopment replaces the blighted areas with upscale higher income homes and business areas which prohibit people who got evicted from returning.

The negative can also argue a pretty significant legal precedent in Kelo. As the most recent decision it is the current ruling and it goes to pretty large length to consider economic development (and by extension private enterprise) as a pubic use. The powers of eminent domain are established in the Constitution so that power is pretty secure. The particular application of that power for the purpose of economic development, under the Kelo guideline, is also pretty strong. It would do you well to pull some of the wording from the actual decision. The important distinction to make about the Takings Clause is that it cannot be used to take from one owner for the benefit of another private party, but it can be used if part of a larger plan for community redevelopment. So a City taking a home away from one person so that a billionaire could bulldoze it and build his own home there would be illegal. But because of the positive effects of redevelopment on the community, a plan which uses eminent domain can be considered a public use and therefore justified.

The affirmative rebuttal for this is that there is also considerable legislation against the use of eminent domain. Three states have passed laws banning the use of eminent domain for economic development and more are following. Congress has even approved legislation which is against the use of eminent domain which is primarily for economic development purposes.

Again the negative position should be to clearly make the link between economic development as a public tool and then eminent domain’s public use through economic development. There are many different examples you can draw from to show the positive effects. Be careful that the affirmative, as last speaker can get in the last word, so make sure that you establish early the positive effects of eminent domain power.

Some other links
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=32172
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/printer-friendly.asp?ARTICLE_ID=32172
http://www.law.cornell.edu/supct-cgi/get-us-cite?467+229 – Hawaii Housing Authority v. Midkiff which was a precedent case for Kelo is also kind of amusing and you should read it if you get a chance.

PFD: Resolved: That the American media work against the best interest of the American public

2007-07-04T23:50:00.001-10:00

Resolved: That the American media work against the best interest of the American public

I could bitch, moan whine and complain about how bad this resolution is, and I will, just not all at once lest it deter you from getting interested in what could potentially be one of the funniest resolutions of the year. I would like to preface at this point that I will turn this set of notes into a rant for the podcast I write for. It will contain considerably more non-family friendly language and be even less useful for you unless you’re looking for the funny.

Before we go into overview, I want to ask a question: what responsibility does the American media have to the American public? Or for that matter, the interests of Americans? Note here that we aren’t limited to news media. There’s nothing in the resolution that asks us to ignore American Idol or Howard Stern. That in mind, I ask you again, what responsibility does the media have to the interests of Americans? There are millions of Americans who find American Idol to be incredibly interesting. Does that mean that the media is working in their interest? This then leads us to the real questions at hand. First, what does it mean to work in (or against) the best interests of Americans? And more importantly, who makes the decision on what is (or is against) the best interests of Americans? No, you cannot say that the judges make that decision. You as debaters don’t make the decision, but neither do the judges, the judges only decide who sucked the least in the round.

So wrap your head around this, as this is the progression you should be thinking about as you prep this resolution. Who decides what is in the best interest of Americans? Once we figure out who we can ask, what they have determined is in the best interest of Americans. Once we figure out what is in the best interests of Americans, we can ask what media we’re talking about here. While the implication is primarily for the news media, it’s not stated as such, so we could just as easily be talking about Howard Stern. It may even be a large premise of the affirmative that shows like Stern’s are against the interests of Americans. You could even expand it to say that those ClearChannel motherfuckers are killing my ear drums playing the same song 7 million times a day on the radio. Now once you figure out what media we’re talking about, you can answer the question as to whether or not the media you have determined we’re debating is acting in the interested of the American public. Now once that’s done you still have one more question to answer which is: does it right damn well matter? Is it the purpose of the media to act in the interests of Americans? Note that the reason this is at the end is because you still need to know what the interests of the American public are, as well as what the purpose of media is in order to answer it. This last one is particularly important for aff because if we determine that the purpose of the media has nothing to do with the interests of the American public then you can outright say that no they aren’t but they aren’t supposed to either so it’s just fine. There’s nothing wrong with it because that’s not the purpose of the media. If the media in question don’t have a responsibility to the American public then it’s like asking if your neighbors pet cat is acting in the best interests of forest fire prevention. It doesn’t make a fuck bit of difference one way or the other.
I want to start with the transcript from Jon Stewart’ appearance on Crossfire. There’s a section in there where he’s talking to Tucker Carlson and he says “you have a responsibility to the public discourse, and you fail miserably.” Stewart’s proposition here is that specifically a cable TV news station has a responsibility to the public discourse. That because they present themselves as a news show informing the public, there is a responsibility there to actually inform the public. To ask the hard questions, and push for the hard answers and make the politicians and decision makers accountable for what they say they’re going to do. As much as I like Jon Stewart and am daily impressed by the quality of the writers on his show, the sentiment expressed here has flaws. The affirmative here will argue that because the cable TV stations like CNN are profit driven, they’re motivation isn’t the best interests of the American public, it’s the best interests of the shareholders. NBC is owned by GE, not the American people. ABC’s parent company Disney is responsible to shareholders not the American public.

The negative counter to this will be Stewarts claim. That because these shows have access to the decision makers and because they say the intention of the show is to inform Americans and act as a check on government; they have a responsibility to act in the interests of the American public. Now the flip to this is also Stewart’s argument, that even though that have that responsibility, they aren’t living up to it. To quote again from the Crossfire appearance: “stop hurting America.” As the 24-hour news networks have degraded into little more than both sides spiting out talking points. The shows that do say they’re trying to inform the public, don’t really inform them about anything. There is no debate, just two sides trying to figure out which one yells louder. That does not work in the interest of Americans. The assumption of course (and yes, it’s generally bad to assume) is that keeping Americans informed is in the public interest. If you want to try and argue on the affirmative that it isn’t you can try to but really, it’ll be hard to argue.

Keep in mind here that you don’t necessarily have to uphold ALL the interests of the public. The resolution says “best interest” which you can take two ways. First you can take it as the singular BEST interest of the people. This takes work because you have to establish what that single interest is. The second view to take is that there are multiple interests and that the media may not uphold all of them, but it does uphold some of them and does fail on some of them. If you’re the first speaker you can set the tone of the debate by ascribing one of these two views.

On the negative side you can argue that one interest of the American public is to keep the airwaves “decent.” We accomplish this via FCC regulation of broadcast and cable media. We accomplish this by things like fines for the “wardrobe malfunction” Janet Jackson had, or by forcing Howard Stern’s move to the relatively unregulated satellite radio. The point is that we have obscenity laws to regulate the content that can be seen by minors. Things like the v-chip and the content warnings on CD’s. If we consider it in the best interest of the American public to keep content reasonable for all public viewers, then it can be argued that things like FCC regulations do force the American media to act in the best interest of the American public.

The affirmative rebuttal to this is that these regulations sometimes make little or no sense. When Oprah can talk about the same subjects, using the same language as Howard Stern and face no punishment from the FCC while Stern faces significant fines and gets forced off broadcast airwaves, these regulations violate ideas of fairness and equality which do not function in the best interest of Americans.

Continuing on the negative side, the argument can be made that things like PBS, NPR and other public media are not beholding to any private shareholders in the same manner as companies like NBC or ABC. Because PBS is a public network and not motivated by profit, we have to ask what it is motivated by and what it seeks. As a public network it is ultimately beholden to the public. And so it works in the best interests of the public. Shows like the News-Hour or Frontline offer an unassuming and honest view of many important public issues.

The affirmative flip to this is that there is limited exposure by so few public venues as opposed to the larger commercial interest. The major broadcast networks. CBS, NBC, ABC, FOX, control the largest part of the television market share because of the content and the way they do business. Even if PBS has the content which does follow the best interests of Americans, it likely doesn’t have the market share to make a difference. How would you rather spend your time? Watching Weekly Business Report or watching 24? It’s not enough for one or two independent outlets to follow what they believe is in the public interest. It is just as important to get the public to see that content and if they don’t draw public consumption, the fact that they produce quality material doesn’t matter. How is it in the best interests of Americans to have the content if they aren’t watching it?

Now take a look at radio. ClearChannel for example owns and operates more than 1200 hundred radio stations across the US. As FCC regulations have eased, the market share for ClearChannel listeners has increased dramatically. With each new station they open in each market, the competition is driven out. As the affirmative you can easily argue that the lack of competition and the drive to push out alternative content is actually harming America and restricting the content that is available to the American public.

The negative rebuttal to this is that ClearChannel has been cleared through anti-trust probes launched against it. They abide by FCC regulations and have been cleared by the DoJ of anti-trust practices. From an economic standpoint, they offer an efficient way to provide radio content. A large national network can more competently distribute radio to the American public. This includes news, talk, music, etc. All of which helps develop American society and culture as well as business.

Therein lies a strong negative argument for all forms of media. The development of American culture and business is the main function of the media. The business of the media is culture and business is good. One of the primary exports of America is the content it spreads around the world via media. Everything from music to movies to news is spread around the world by the media and in that sense they work for American interests abroad. Further, they make a great deal of money. This money goes into America’s economy which is definitely in the interest of Americans. Universal Pictures and the RIAA will sue your ass for those DVD’s you bought from Taiwan because it steals money from America. The development of the American economy through the media is a strong benefit to the interests of the American public.

The flip side of course is that exporting this culture can have negative effects too. The push to export American culture has led to ugly Chinese kids singing the Backstreet Boys to the whole fucking internet. It has also led to much complaint about American across the globe. As much as they might like Coca-Cola, conservative governments don’t particularly like seeing some hairy man-ass on NYPD Blue or appreciate (even if I do) that blonde in the tight dress on Battlestar Galactica. American ideals exported abroad through media have been used as an excuse to incite terrorist action against the US which certainly doesn’t operate in the public’s best interest. As far as the economics, all business helps the economy, if we base the decision today’s debate on economics why not propose selling drugs? I bet Viacom could make a shitload of money selling cocaine to your neighbor or dealing low-cost amphetamines to computer programmers. The economics of the issue are irrelevant all businesses have some effect on the economy. Even PBS has some effect. Big Bird and Tickle Me Elmo aren’t free.

I’m going to leave it here for now and wait for some comment or feedback. I suggest you look through some of the commentary here: http://www.americasdebate.com/forums/simple/index.php/f56.html not all of it is quality but some of it is and some of it raises interesting points that you can argue further.

For more on ClearChannel in particular, I would suggest http://bigpicture.typepad.com/comments/2005/02/all_about_clear.html There are a bunch of interesting bits that are pointed out. Read the comments as well, some of it is pretty good. I’m not a big fan of ClearChannel myself, but you should know both sides of the equation.