“What In The World? Weekly Quiz” – Dec 2-8, 2019

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Himanshu Manchanda, Nashville, TN

Derek Hughey, Nashville, TN

Scott Carmichael, Sparta, TN

Jacob Church Williams, Franklin, TN

Neha Mehta, Nashville, TN

Sam Horner, Nashville, TN

David Hillinck, Huntsville, TN

Jaclyn Sheridan, Nashville, TN

Allan Ramsaur, Nashville, TN

Kathy Ingleson, Nashville, TN

Mary Raffety, Nashville, TN

Michael Xie, Brentwood, TN

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NOVEMBER 2019 MONTHLY QUIZ PRIZE WINNER

Derek Hughey of Nashville, Tennessee

 

The Uninhabitable Earth: Life After Warming

David Wallace-Wells

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To get in on the quiz make sure you’re getting TNWAC emails (here’s the free subscription link: http://eepurl.com/gt6dn) and make sure you’re following @TNWAC on Twitter.

We’ll post the answers and the names of the winner(s) in next week’s quiz.

Here’s last week’s questions and answers:

WHAT IN THE WORLD QUIZ

WEEK OF NOV 25-DEC 1, 2019

1. In district council elections in Hong Kong, widely seen as a test of support for the territory’s embattled Chief Executive Carrie Lam, THIS group of candidates and their supporters made strong gains, taking almost 200 of the first 236 seats declared.

A. Incumbent pro-Beijing councilors
B. Candidates from the “Hong Kong Establishment.”
C. The opposition pro-democracy movement
D. Cantonese nationalist organizers

Correct Response: C. The opposition pro-democracy movement
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-50531408

2. U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced THIS major reversal of longstanding U.S. policy, the latest of several recent pro-Israeli moves that many speculate will inflame tensions between the Trump administration and Palestinians and widen the divide between the United States and its traditional European allies.

A. Withdrawing all military assistance to Egypt due to allegations of corruption in the President al-Sisi regime
B. Returning a U.S. carrier fleet to the Israeli port of Eilat in order to deter piracy in the Red Sea
C. Rejecting a 1978 State Department legal opinion that called West Bank settlements “inconsistent with international law”
D. Instituting new regulations barring federal employees from participating in BDS (Boycott-Divest-Sanction) movements against Israeli companies and interests

Correct Response: C. Rejecting a 1978 State Department legal opinion that called West Bank settlements “inconsistent with international law”
https://www.cnn.com/2019/11/18/politics/pompeo-west-bank-settlements-announcement/index.html

3. Renegade Libyan military commander Khalifa Haftar has declared a “no-fly zone” over THIS capital city, a spokesperson of the Libyan National Army (LNA) proclaimed last weekend. The LNA has been fighting for months to take the city from the Government of National Accord (GNA) and its allied forces.

A. Tripoli
B. Cairo
C. Benghazi
D. Tunis

Correct Response: A. Tripoli
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2019/11/libya-khalifa-haftar-declares-fly-zone-tripoli-191124115453657.html

4. UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has promised a new vote on his Brexit deal by Christmas, as well as a raft of funding pledges, if THIS happens, in a statement made while officially launching the Conservative Party’s manifesto on Sunday. Currently, the UK is scheduled to leave the European Union (referred to as Brexit) by a deadline of January 31, 2020.

A. EU leadership agrees to a hard land border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland
B. The Conservative Party wins the general election on December 12
C. The U.S. agrees to an interim trade deal to help the UK economy stay stable during Brexit
D. The Labour Party votes out Jeremy Corbyn and replaces him with someone “[Johnson] can work with”

Correct Response: B. The Conservatives win the general election on December 12
https://edition.cnn.com/2019/11/24/uk/uk-election-conservative-manifesto-ge19-gbr-intl/index.html

5. Pope Francis made an impassioned appeal for the abolition of nuclear weapons during a visit to THIS Japanese city, one of two targeted by atomic bombs during WWII. The second papal visit to Japan, the Pope’s four-day visit included attending a meeting at the Peace Memorial in Hiroshima, the site of the other atomic attack.

A. Fukushima
B. Kyoto
C. Tokyo
D. Nagasaki

Correct Response: D. Nagasaki
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-50535930

6. U.S. National Security Adviser Robert O’Brien warned that President Trump would not do THIS with regards to China’s activity in Hong Kong, the South China Sea, and other areas of concern, while reiterating that the Trump administration would like to see phase one of a trade deal with China finalized by the end of the year.

A. “Intervene unless there’s a grave violation of human rights”
B. “Turn a blind eye to what’s happening”
C. “Burn bridges, with China or with other ASEAN nations”
D. “Allow [President] Xi [Jinping] to set the agenda”

Correct Response: B. “Turn a blind eye to what’s happening”
https://www.cnbc.com/2019/11/23/us-wants-china-trade-deal-but-wont-turn-blind-eye-to-hong-kong-trump-national-security-advisor-says.html

7. The Taliban took THIS action last week, a gesture that some predict could pave the way for renewed peace talks among the United States, the Taliban, and the Afghan government. Making the decision in consultation with international partners, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani attributed it to the desire to “facilitate direct peace negotiations” as talks among the actors have broken down in recent weeks.

A. Released two Western professors and later ten Afghan soldiers in a prisoner exchange
B. Sent a representative to participate in a new Track II dialogue with NATO forces and humanitarian organizations operating in the region
C. Agreed to a ceasefire in the volatile Wakhan Corridor
D. Invited U.S. peace envoy Zalmay Khalilzad to participate in the organization’s annual summit

Correct Response: A. Released two Western professors and later ten Afghan soldiers in a prisoner exchange
https://abcnews.go.com/US/us-australian-hostages-held-taliban-years-released-prisoner/story?id=67130077

8. A report out by the World Trade Organization (WTO) slammed barriers placed on G20 economies in the last six months, citing THIS as having a clear impact on economic growth, job creation and purchasing power around the world. The WTO also called for leadership from the world’s 20 leading economies to avoid increased uncertainty, weaker trade growth, and lower investment.

A. Increasing political violence within and between G20 states
B. A lack of dialogue among economically secure nations
C. A failure to provide adequate levels of economic assistance in the global South
D. Historically high levels of trade-restrictive measures

Correct Response: D. Historically high levels of trade-restrictive measures
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-trade-wto-g20-idUSKBN1XV282?taid=5dd71e47288b7c00012705f9&utm_campaign=trueAnthem:+Trending+Content&utm_medium=trueAnthem&utm_source=twitter

9. As in many of its neighboring countries, THIS Latin American nation has seen escalating unrest with anti-government demonstrations bringing a quarter-million people out to march in national strikes. In addition to angst around possible changes to minimum wage, pension and tax reforms, and the privatization of state companies, protestors are also angry about what some see as the government failure to honor a 2016 peace deal with the nation’s FARC rebels amidst escalating violence.

A. Brazil
B. Colombia
C. Argentina
D. Suriname

Correct Response: B. Colombia
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-50531816

10. In a surprise visit to Iraq to greet U.S. troops ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday, Vice President Mike Pence took a side-trip to the northern Iraqi city of Irbil to reiterate THIS to a key group of American allies. This follows widespread criticism for President Trump’s abrupt announcement to pull U.S. forces out of northern Syria.

A. The “strong bonds forged in the fires of war between the people of the US and the Kurdish people across the region.”
B. The “importance of working with Muslim allies from across religious and cultural divides”
C. The “need for wider recognition of the strong ties between US forces and their Ba’athist allies”
D. The “American commitment to alleviating the plight of Hazara people across the Middle East”

Correct Response: A. The “strong bonds forged in the fires of war between the people of the US and the Kurdish people across the region.”

Source: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2019/11/23/vice-president-mike-pence-makes-surprise-trip-iraq-kurdistan/4282249002/

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THE MISSION of the nonprofit, nonpartisan Tennessee World Affairs Council is to promote international awareness, understanding and connections to enhance the region’s global stature and to prepare Tennesseans to thrive in our increasingly complex and connected world.

THE VISION of  the Tennessee World Affairs Council is a well-informed community that thinks critically about the world and the impact of global events.   

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