World Schools Workshop Tournament Has Begun

The World Schools workshop students, who come from five different countries, have entered the final phase of their program -- the tournament. There will be a six round tournament and then the top two teams will stage a final top determine the WDI World Schools Champion.

Students come from the USA, Korea, Canada, Malaysia and Slovenia, some of the best debating nations in the world. After working with an all-star international faculty, it is now down to business.

They will debate three topic that they have prepared four as well as three topics that are given to them one hour before the debate. The rush has been on in the pursuit of information and good arguments for the last few days, and with the final scheduled for tomorrow now is the key time.

Two students are pictured here. Helen who debates for Canada and Tim who debates for Slovenia. We will post the results and hope to have a video of the final to show you.

College Policy Debate Workshop In Full Swing

As July ended the air was full of debating at the World Debate Institute. The college policy debaters were having their daily practice debates in the Old Mill complex right next to the Royall Tyler Theatre, the headquarter of the WDI.

There was a wide variety of experience on display. Some of the students here are among the finest debaters in America and are working hard now to prepare for a year that will prove that. On the other hand, there are fairly new debaters here. The good part is that they are very accepting of one another and work together on research assignments. Some of the more experienced debaters have been helping the less experienced by watching their debates and making comments. There is no doubt that learning to judge debates also makes one a better debater. The senior faculty, Kevin, Jackie, Sarah and David have done a great job of bringing divergent groups of students together.

We have also seen the considerable progress of Max Adler from New York City. Max is an extremely intelligent young man but he cannot talk. But, he can debate. He has been working with a pair of American Sign Language translators to "get their signs straight" and is developing new methods of taking notes. We will talk more about Max in the future.

A New Battle in Congress: Lobbyists v Human Rights

Check back with ETP for more news throughout the day

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Also:
- Today's Top HEADLINES
- INTERNATIONAL news
- Picture of the day
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(Scott A. Morgan) We all noticed last fall when the American Voters decidely threw out an Incompetent Republican Congress and replaced them with the Democrats. But it is becoming clear that if WE expected a change in how things are run in Washington we were sadly mistaken.

Like in the last Republican controlled Congress A Bill that was designed to address the internal climate in an African Country that is an ally was introduced. Sadly it appears that it is travelling down the same road. If certain people have their way this legislation will not see the floor to be voted on.

H.R. 2003 which deals with Freedom Democracy and Human Rights in Ethiopia was reintroduced in the House after a journey that had some treachery in it. After clearing the House International Relations Committee (now the Foreign Relations Committee) it was tabled by then Speaker Hastert. Now under the leadership of Speaker Pelosi it may suffer the same fate as it did in the last Congress.(More...)

Today's Top HEADLINES

-Ethiopian rebel group (ONLF) says troops kill aid workers
-Questions shower Ethiopian ex-leader Negaso Gidada
-Rumblings of trouble in Africa (Ethiopia, Eritrea)
-Red Cross repatriates Eritreans, Ethiopians
-UN says Mogadishu violence scaring returnees
-Spy recalls secret mission saving Ethiopian Jews
-‘Rahab S’nt Qen Yifejal?’ Reflections of a Well-Fed Visitor
-Model Liya Kebede Launches Baby Line LemLem

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

-UN to send peacekeepers to Darfur
-Shock at sex crimes in DR Congo
-Poll: Bad news for McCain, good news for Obama
-Rescue operation launched to free Korean hostages: report
-Sunni bloc quits Iraq govt
-Death verdicts for Iran reporters (Iran has sentenced two dissident journalists for being "enemies of God")
-Riyadh gives talks with Israel cautious welcome
-Lottery player wins twice by mistake

Picture of the Day

(1955: First Ethiopian Jews Arrive In Israel to Attend Mizrachi Religious School. Almost all eventually return to Ethiopia as educators and community leaders. [Photo: AMIT.])
"The early origins of the falashas are shrouded in mystery, and, for lack of documentation, will probable remain so forever....There can, however, be no denying that Ethiopia....country in which the flashas have lived since time immemorial, has long been under remarkably strong Jewish influence, and that in Ethiopia the two religions, Christianity and Judaism, blended in a manner virtually unknown elsewhere in Christendom." - Richard pankhurst

-The falashas, or Judaic Ethiopians, in their Christian Ethiopian setting (Dr. Richard pankhurst)


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