Extemp Central News Quiz for the Week of July 27-August 2, 2015

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Here is this week’s Extemp Central news quiz.  Good luck!quiz-01

To access a list of all our old quizzes, click here.

1. Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee recently attracted criticism for making this attack on the Iranian nuclear deal.

[toggle title_open=”Close Me” title_closed=”Open Me” hide=”yes” border=”yes” style=”default” excerpt_length=”0″ read_more_text=”Read More” read_less_text=”Read Less” include_excerpt_html=”no”]President Obama and other Democrats blasted Huckabee’s comment that the U.S.-Iranian nuclear deal is “marching the Israelis to the door of the oven.”  The remark implies that the deal could lead to another Holocaust.  Huckabee has refused to back down from his remarks, arguing that the deal is against America’s best interests in the Middle East.[/toggle]

2. The rate of American homeownership is hitting historic lows. What is the current rate and when was it this low in the past?

[toggle title_open=”Close Me” title_closed=”Open Me” hide=”yes” border=”yes” style=”default” excerpt_length=”0″ read_more_text=”Read More” read_less_text=”Read Less” include_excerpt_html=”no”]63.4%.  This is the lowest share of Americans that own a home since 1967.  The percentage of American homeownership has fallen since the 2008 financial crisis, helped by stringent mortgage standards and stagnant wage growth.[/toggle]

3. According to AAA, what is the national average price of gasoline?

[toggle title_open=”Close Me” title_closed=”Open Me” hide=”yes” border=”yes” style=”default” excerpt_length=”0″ read_more_text=”Read More” read_less_text=”Read Less” include_excerpt_html=”no”]$2.80 a gallon.  This is a new high for 2015 and is ten cents more than last month’s average.  The average price of a gallon of gasoline was $2.03 in late January.  Rising gas prices are pegged as one reason why consumer confidence is at its lowest level since September.[/toggle]

4. This company recently surpassed Toyota as the world’s largest automaker in the first half of 2015.

[toggle title_open=”Close Me” title_closed=”Open Me” hide=”yes” border=”yes” style=”default” excerpt_length=”0″ read_more_text=”Read More” read_less_text=”Read Less” include_excerpt_html=”no”]Volkswagen.  The firm sold 5.04 million vehicles in the first six months of 2015, beating Toyota’s sales of 5.02 million.  General Motors finished third.  The rise of Volkswagen to the top spot meets the aims of CEO Martin Winterkorn, who has long sought to overtake Toyota.[/toggle]

5. This American university recently announced that it will no longer require that students submit ACT and SAT scores for most freshman admissions.

[toggle title_open=”Close Me” title_closed=”Open Me” hide=”yes” border=”yes” style=”default” excerpt_length=”0″ read_more_text=”Read More” read_less_text=”Read Less” include_excerpt_html=”no”]George Washington University.  Dean of Admissions Karen Stroud Felton said that the change was made because of concerns that students with below-average test scores were choosing not to apply.  Home-schooled students and college athletes will still be required to submit their test scores along with a few other categories of students.[/toggle]

6. Which four countries saw their human trafficking record improve from the worst level to the medium level in the U.S. Department of State’s annual Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Report?

[toggle title_open=”Close Me” title_closed=”Open Me” hide=”yes” border=”yes” style=”default” excerpt_length=”0″ read_more_text=”Read More” read_less_text=”Read Less” include_excerpt_html=”no”]Malaysia, Uzbekistan, Saudi Arabia, and Papua New Guinea.  Critics allege that Malaysia only saw its standing improved because American officials want to improve the country’s image so that the prospects of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TTP) will not be harmed.  Human Rights Watch argues that Malaysian convictions against human-traffickers were lower than in the previous years and that abuse of immigrants was taking place “with impunity.'[/toggle]

7. Explain why Bahrain has growing sectarian tensions.

[toggle title_open=”Close Me” title_closed=”Open Me” hide=”yes” border=”yes” style=”default” excerpt_length=”0″ read_more_text=”Read More” read_less_text=”Read Less” include_excerpt_html=”no”]Bahrain’s monarchy is Sunni, but two-thirds of the country’s population are Shi’ite.  A bombing that killed two policeman and wounded six others on Tuesday was blamed on Iran, who Bahrain says is stirring up tensions within its borders.  Iran denies the allegations.[/toggle]

8. A U.S. dentist was recently implicated in this wildlife crime in Zimbabwe.

[toggle title_open=”Close Me” title_closed=”Open Me” hide=”yes” border=”yes” style=”default” excerpt_length=”0″ read_more_text=”Read More” read_less_text=”Read Less” include_excerpt_html=”no”]Walter Palmer, a dentist in Minnesota, was recently pegged as the killer of Cecil the Lion, a major tourist attraction at Zimbabwe’s Hwange National Park.  The two Zimbabwean men that helped lure Cecil to his death face poaching charges.  Palmer could also face poaching charges, but he claims that he had proper legal hunting permits.[/toggle]

9. Which country has the second-largest army in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)?

[toggle title_open=”Close Me” title_closed=”Open Me” hide=”yes” border=”yes” style=”default” excerpt_length=”0″ read_more_text=”Read More” read_less_text=”Read Less” include_excerpt_html=”no”]Turkey.  The largest army in NATO is possessed by the United States.  The Turkish government has asked for NATO’s political backing as it looks to enhance operations against the Islamic State.[/toggle]

10. President Obama drew criticism from some African activists for announcing that this African nation was “democratic.”

[toggle title_open=”Close Me” title_closed=”Open Me” hide=”yes” border=”yes” style=”default” excerpt_length=”0″ read_more_text=”Read More” read_less_text=”Read Less” include_excerpt_html=”no”]Ethiopia.  President Obama said that Ethiopia had a democratically elected government during a press conference on Monday with Ethiopian Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn.  Human rights activists argue that the country is the second-worst jailer of journalists on the African continent behind its neighbor Eritrea.  However, President Obama did urge the Ethiopian government to enhance freedoms of expression and other democratic rights during his visit.[/toggle]

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