1) Last week, the Duchess of Cambridge gave birth to a boy. What did the Duchess and her husband, Prince William, name him?
a) George
The full name of His Royal Highness Prince George of Cambridge is George Alexander Louis (pronounced Lou-ee) Windsor. He is third in line to the British throne behind his father Prince William and his grandfather Prince Charles.
2) On Wednesday, the House of Representatives voted no on a bill that would have made major changes to what program?
a) The National Security Administration’s (NSA’s) data collection program
The NSA has admitted to collecting telephone call data (the date of the call, the time, the duration, the number called, and the number of the caller,) from phone companies. The NSA denies, however, that its employees have been routinely listening to calls. The reform proposal was supported by a bipartisan coalition of liberal Democrats and conservative Republicans, but it failed to pass by a vote of 217-205.
https://www.reuters.com/article/2013/07/25/us-usa-defense-spying-idUSBRE96N16I20130725
3) According to a recent survey, what percentage of Americans will, at some point in their lives, live near the poverty line, face unemployment, or rely on welfare?
d) 80
According to the survey, the loss of manufacturing jobs to factories in other countries is a major contributor to the current economic conditions. https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/07/28/poverty-unemployment-rates_n_3666594.html
4) In response to recent political turmoil, the United States cancelled a scheduled delivery of four F-16 fighter planes to this country. What country?
d) Egypt
Egypt’s military recently removed President Mohammed Morsi from office before the end of his term. Since then, Morsi supporters have been protesting on a daily basis.
5) What company recently pled guilty to illegally destroying documents related to the 2010 oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico?
a) Haliburton
Haliburton, an oil services company, agreed to pay a $200 million fine and the guilty plea may be used against Haliburton in the ongoing civil trial in New Orleans. In recent years, Haliburton has also been accused of “perform[ing] shoddy, overpriced work for the United States military in Iraq, brib[ing] Nigerian officials to win energy contracts, and [doing] business with Iran at a time when [Iran] faced sanctions.”
6) Last week, President Obama nominated this woman, member of a presidential family, to be ambassador to Japan. What woman?
d) Caroline Kennedy
Kennedy is the daughter of President John Kennedy, who held the office from 1961-1963.
7) Last week, it was discovered that a New York City mayoral candidate has been “sexting” a 22 year-old woman while using the alias “Carlos Danger.” What is the candidate’s real name?
c) Anthony Weiner
Weiner was previously a member of the House of Representatives, but resigned his position after admitting to sending explicit photos of himself to various women.
https://seattletimes.com/html/politics/2021453876_apusweinermayor.html
8) A secular political leader in this predominantly Muslim country was assassinated last week outside of his home. What country?
c) Tunisia
The “Arab Spring” protests began in Tunisia in 2011. Those protests led to the ousting of Tunisia’s authoritarian ruler Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, but there is still a great deal of tension in the country between conservative, Islamist parties and the more secular opposition parties.
9) On his first official visit since becoming the head of the Catholic Church, Pope Francis I visited what country last week?
d) Brazil
There are more Catholics in Brazil than in any other country in the world.
https://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-pope-brazil-20130723,0,35743.story
10) What former Major League Baseball MVP was suspended for the remainder of the season as the result of his use of performance enhancing drugs?
b) Ryan Braun
Braun, who had previously denied using PEDs, did not challenge the suspension.