| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| The main person implicated in this scandal attempted to deflect it by referencing the "Beergate" controversy in Durham. This scandal is credited with contributing to the Liberal Democrat victory in the 2021 North Shropshire by-election. This scandal caused the resignation of Allegra Stratton, the Downing Street Press Secretary. For the point, name this political scandal in which Boris Johnson was criticized for holding social gatherings in spite of COVID-19 restrictions. | Partygate |
| As a result of protests in support of this person, Mohsen Shekari and Majidreza Rahnavard were executed for allegedly attacking members of the Basij militia. It was alleged that those protests for this person resulted in the poisoning of students at the Isfahan University of Technology. The Kurdish slogan "Woman, Life, Freedom" became a rallying cry after the death of this woman, when she was accused of improperly wearing her hijab. For the point, name this woman whose death sparked a series of anti-government protests in Iran in 2022. | Mahsa Amini (accept Jina Amini) |
| In one novel by this author, Jack Turner adopts the name of a university student killed at an abusive juvenile detention center in Florida. Another novel by this author follows Cora's attempt to escape slavery in Georgia, and reimagines the titular network as a physical transportation system. This author of The Intuitionist is the only living two-time recipient of the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. For the point, name this American author of The Nickel Boys and The Underground Railroad. | Colson Whitehead (or Arch Colson Chipp Whitehead) |
| This company recently self-censored a cartoon that included a joke about Chinese children making smartphones. This company was the target of boycott demands in 2020 after credits for a film thanked government agencies in Xinjiang. In 2001, Kim Jong-Nam, then the presumed heir to Kim Jong-Il, was detained in Japan after attempting to visit a Tokyo resort licensed from this company. For the point, name this mass media and entertainment conglomerate led by Bob Iger. | The Walt Disney Company (accept Disneyland) |
| A leader with this name worked with Roberto Lavagna on a debt restructuring which ultimately required equal payouts to all bondholders, and that person became president after Carlos Menem resigned prior to a runoff election. Another leader with this name was arrested for obstructing investigations into the AMIA bombing and led the Front for Victory faction of the Justicialist Party. For the point, what last name is shared by a husband and wife who served from 2003 to 2015 as presidents of Argentina? | Kirchner (accept Néstor Kirchner; accept Cristina Fernández de Kirchner) |
| This artist, inspired by his imprisonment, paid tribute to Martin Luther with the sculpture Man in a Cube. This artist evoked the power of popular support in his set of 100 million painted Sunflower Seeds, and he created a separate work of ornaments painted with the character for free speech. This artist was arrested following his investigations into the collapse of schools in the Sichuan earthquake. For the point, name this Chinese dissident and visual artist who was the artistic consultant on the "Bird's Nest." | Ai Weiwei (accept in either order) |
| An inquiry into preparedness for this event did not begin until David Cameron succeeded Tony Blair. Families affected by this event were targeted for phone hacks by The News of the World. A set of 52 steel columns, divided into four groups, memorializes this event initially thought to be caused by a power surge but later blamed on al-Qaeda. For the point, name this set of terrorist attacks on a double-decker bus and the London Underground. | 7 July 2005 Bombings (or 7/7 Bombings) |
| As a major general with Yahya Rahim Safavi, this man cooperated with American forces to incite an uprising against the Taliban in Herat in 2001. This man's funeral procession visited cities such as Najaf and Ahvaz. This man, nicknamed the "Shadow Commander," helped organize aid to Kurdish forces and Hezbollah as head of the Quds [[KOODZ]] Force. For the point, name this Iranian general who was assassinated by a U.S. airstrike in Baghdad in January 2020. | Qasem Soleimani |
| This institution was fined 1.3 billion Euros for issuing bonds to Mozambican finance minister Manuel Chang to develop a tuna fishing industry. This institution was criticized for its role in the 1Malaysia Development Berhad scandal. Climate activists played tennis within the Lausanne facilities of this institution in order to pressure Roger Federer to break his connections with it. Acquired by UBS in 2023, this is, for the point, what Zurich-based bank that faced the possibility of collapse in that same year? | Credit Suisse Group AG |
| This man led efforts to get Huawei and Apple to back his country's "Chivo" digital wallet. This man founded the political party Nuevas Ideas, although he was officially elected president under the Grand Alliance for National Unity. This self-described “Philosopher King” is his country's first president in over thirty years to not belong the ARENA or FMLN parties, and he made his country the first to use Bitcoin as legal tender. For the point, name this president of El Salvador since 2019. | Nayib Bukele (or Nayib Armando Bukele Ortez) |
| In 2014, this artwork was reworked to include a Syrian refugee in honor of the third anniversary of the Syria conflict. After singer Justin Bieber got a tattoo of this work and posted a photo of it online, its creator responded back with the comment, "Controversial." Before the 2017 UK General Election, the artist of this work created a version that included a Union Jack in the design. In 2018, after a copy was sold at auction, a frame with a built-in shredder destroyed, for the point, what image created by street artist Banksy? | Girl with Balloon (accept Girl and Balloon; accept Balloon Girl) |
| A Chinese analog of this phenomenon has been termed tang ping, literally translating to "lying flat," and rejects the "996" system of business hours. This phenomenon was credited with giving workers more leverage in a labor action strike known as "Striketober" due to a shortage of workers. The end of telecommuting policies has also helped trigger this phenomenon. For the point, name this economic phenomenon where millions of workers quit their jobs during the COVID-19 pandemic. | Great Resignation (accept clear-knowledge equivalents) |
| This organization, which launched the One Trillion Tree campaign in 2020, was the subject of Melbourne protests called S11 in 2000. This organization annually announces a group of "Young Global Leaders." This organization, which was founded by Klaus Schwab, had a recent meeting titled the "Great Reset" that was convened by Prince Charles. For the point, name this organization which annually meets in Davos, Switzerland. | World Economic Forum (or WEF; prompt on "Davos" before mentioned) |
| This organization's CEO, Sam Altman, acknowledged that its services may produce political bias. One system developed by this organization, DALL-E, has been speculated to cause unemployment issues for artists. Elon Musk resigned from this organization's board due to conflict of interest concerns over the development of self-driving technology in Tesla cars. For the point, name this organization whose systems include ChatGPT. | OpenAI |
| This man controversially supported the burial of a former dictator at Fort Andres Bonifacio, after saying he would do so at a debate in the Visayas archipelago. This man's daughter, Inday Sara, is currently the vice president of his country. This politician has been criticized for condoning the violence of the Davao Death Squad. For the point, name this former president of the Philippines known for launching a War on Drugs, succeeded by Bongbong Marcos. | Rodrigo Duterte (or Rodrigo Roa Duterte; accept Digong Duterte; prompt on "DU30" or "PRRD") |
| The group All Under One Banner conducts regular protests in support of this action. This action is also supported by the Alba Party and the Declaration of Calton Hill, which supports a Republican government. The Edinburgh Agreement granted legal exception for a referendum on this action, a second of which was proposed in 2021 but was struck down by the courts. Better Together campaigned against, and Nicola Sturgeon for, for the point, what action that would reverse the Acts of Union? | Scottish Independence (accept any answer indicating the Independence of Scotland from the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland) |
| This person faced criticism for using the phrase "Wir schaffen das," or "We can do this," after visiting a refugee camp in Dresden. This person was referred to by many liberal pundits as the "leader of the free world" after Donald Trump's 2016 election. This person holds the record of being named Forbes' most powerful woman for the greatest number of times. For the point, name this longtime former chancellor of Germany from 2005 to 2021. | Angela Merkel (or Angela Dorothea Merkel) |
| This man received more Senate votes for his confirmation than any other Biden nominee, with only Josh Hawley and Mike Lee voting against him. This man served as the last commanding general of Operation New Dawn in the final days of the Iraq War. This man coordinated military strikes in Syria as the first offensive military attack under the Biden administration. For the point, name this current Secretary of Defense under Joe Biden. | Lloyd Austin (or Lloyd James Austin III) |
| This man debated Slavoj Žižek over whether Marxism or capitalism provided a better opportunity for happiness. Penguin Random House held an internal town hall over the controversial publishing of this man's book, Beyond Order, a sequel to 12 Rules for Life. This man publicly refused to comply with Bill C-16 due to his concerns it could force the usage of certain pronouns and thus necessitate compelled speech. For the point, name this Canadian psychologist known for his criticism of left-wing politics. | Jordan Peterson (or Jordan Bernt Peterson) |
| During one event, a member of this group allegedly continued to shoot at civilians in Nisour Square until he was physically threatened by his partners. Those people in this group, led by Erik Prince, were pardoned from murder and manslaughter convictions by Donald Trump. The bodies of four members of this group were hung from a bridge after an ambush that precipitated the First Battle of Fallujah. For the point, name this private military company which played a significant role in the Iraq War. | Blackwater (accept Academi; or Constellis; or Xe Services) |
| Backlash to the closed-door Őszöd [[ESH-zee]] speech in this country saw Ferenc Gyurcsány refuse to resign despite claiming he "lied" to win elections. This country's city of Visegrád names a coalition it forms with three other countries which include Poland, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic. This country built a barrier to prevent the inflow of refugees on its southern border with Croatia and Serbia. For the point, name this Eastern European country led by nationalist Viktor Orbán. | Hungary (or Magyarország) |
| The first national leader from one of these political parties was Latvian Prime Minister Indulis Emsis. In 2016, member Alexander Van der Bellen of one of these parties defeated the right-wing Norbert Hofer to become Austria's president. In Germany, one of these political parties merged with Alliance 90, and formed the "traffic light coalition" with the Social Democratic Party and the Free Democratic Party. For the point, name these political parties known for their environmentalism. | Green Parties |
| The U.S. Senate removed all original provisions of a bill reducing property taxes for soldiers in order to start a draft of this law, which avoided a filibuster when Arlen Specter switched parties. California v. Texas continued to uphold this law after its key penalty was reduced to zero dollars. The case NFIB v. Sibelius challenged this law's "individual mandate." For the point, name this 2010 U.S. law that expanded Medicaid and private health insurance access. | Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (or ACA; accept Obamacare) |
| This country’s right-wing Freedom Front Plus party is led by Pieter Groenewald. Julius Malema warned businesses across this country to close in anticipation of a “national shutdown” day to protest blackouts known as load shedding. That man from this country is the leader of the Economic Freedom Fighters. This country, which is the smallest member of BRICS, is where protests erupted after Jacob Zuma was arrested in 2021. For the point, name this country led by Cyril Ramaphosa. | Republic of South Africa (accept RSA) |
| This man was nicknamed “the terminator” for laying off 9,000 employees from Boussac, the company which owns Christian Dior, upon acquiring it. This man, by surpassing Zara’s owner Amancio Ortega, became the richest person in fashion in 1999. This man is the CEO of the world’s largest luxury goods company, LVMH, which includes Louis Vuitton. For the point, name this billionaire art collector who once overtook Elon Musk as the world’s wealthiest man, hailing from France. | Bernard Arnault (or Bernard Jean Étienne Arnault) |
| A performance of this show viewed by Mike Pence saw actor Brandon Victor Dixon express concern about the policies of the Trump administration, causing Trump to call for a boycott. Some have speculated the popularity of this show caused the Treasury Secretary to reverse the change of the 10 Dollar Bill’s design. For the point, name this winner of the 2016 Pulitzer Prize for drama, a musical created by Lin-Manuel Miranda, based on the founding fathers of the U.S. | Hamilton |
| This person was observed fleeing from a ranch with his personal chefs after being interviewed for Rolling Stone magazine by Kate del Castillo and Sean Penn. In one prison escape, this person used a mile-long tunnel where a motorcycle was later found; in an earlier escape, he was smuggled out in a laundry cart. In that interview, this man described having fleets of submarines and airplanes used for narcotics smuggling. In 2016, Mexican marines captured, for the point, which leader of the Sinaloa Cartel? | Joaquín Archivaldo Guzmán Loera (accept "El Chapo") |
| This club was the first to field winning teams in both the men’s and women’s Champions Leagues. Its women’s team was victorious in 2021, and its men’s team last won in 2015, under Luis Enrique. A series of "economic levers" activated by this team's president, Joan Laporta, included the sale of TV rights to Sixth Street, and allowed them to register Robert Lewandowski. For the point, name this Spanish team which, in 2021, was financially unable to re-sign Lionel Messi. | Futbol Club Barcelona (or F.C. Barcelona; accept Barça) |
| Republican Carl Paladino of this city was able to garner its support in a 2010 gubernatorial race despite it usually voting for Democrats. This city's mayor, Byron Brown, retained his post despite losing a Democratic primary against socialist India Walton. This city, from which Governor Kathy Hochul hails, was the site of a 2022 mass shooting targeting its African-American community of East Side. For the point, name this second-largest city of New York, bordering Canada. | Buffalo |
| The blog Nawaat helped protestors circumvent censorship in this country. This country, which, along with its eastern neighbor, was the home of many refugees who arrived on the island of Lampedusa in 2011. This country's National Dialogue Quartet was awarded the 2015 Nobel Peace Prize for their work in building a democracy following the overthrow of Zine El Abidine Ben Ali. For the point, name this North African country where the self-immolation of Mohamed Bouazizi led to the start of the Arab Spring. | Republic of Tunisia (or al-Jumhūrīyah at-Tūnisīyah) |
| Coach Daryl Morey tweeted support for protestors against this country’s government, causing the NBA to face criticism for disavowing it. Citizens of this country were especially targeted by a bill signed by Ron DeSantis which banned them from owning property within ten miles of “critical infrastructure.” For the point, name this country, the birthplace the "Princess of Huawei," Meng Wanzhou, who was the subject of an extradition case in Vancouver. | People's Republic of China (accept PRC; accept Zhonghua Renmin Gongheguo; accept historical terms for China like Cathay or the Middle Kingdom, but do not accept the Republic of China or Taiwan) |