Each Monday as I prepare to teach my Current Events Class at Literacy for Life, I send a vocabulary list to the students enrolled in the class so they can look up the words before the class or use the list to make some notes during the class. None of them grew up in the US, and my current crop of students are all from Asia or Africa, so they frequently don’t understand some things that Americans think are common knowledge.
I use CNN’s free daily newsletter “5 Things” to get a summary of the major events from the last 24 hours. I skim that every day to make sure I’m not missing major events. My topics today are going to be
the ongoing situation in Ukraine
a possible 4th COVID shot for immunocompromised older people
the most recent activities of the January 6 Committee
the Ginni/Clarence Thomas situation, the death of Madeleine Albright
the Oscars (and the punch/slap heard ‘round the world)
inflation
the recent trip made by the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge (William and Kate) to the former British colonies in the Caribbean
I think this will fill 90 minutes, don’t you?
Here’s today’s vocabulary list.
News For You Vocabulary
neutral – not aligned with either side in a conflict
sovereignty – the authority of a country to govern itself
immune-deficient – describes a person whose body does not produce the expected protection against disease and infection. May be natural (the person was born with it) or the result of disease or medical treatment.
Contempt of Congress – obstructing the work of the United States Congress. Includes refusal to comply with a subpoena
Subpoena – an order that tells a witness to answer questions or produce evidence in an official proceeding.
Oscar – award for artistic and technical merit in the movie industry.
Insurrection – a violent uprising against an authority or government.
Conflict of Interest -- a situation in which a person is in a position to derive personal benefit from actions or decisions made in their official capacity.
Example: Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas voting against disclosing information about the January 6 attack on the Capitol. The information possibly included texts from his wife to people in the Trump White House before this event occurred.
Secretary of State – US Government official in charge of the State Department. In many countries, this is called the Foreign Office, and the official in charge is called the Foreign Minister.
Cabinet – top advisors to the President; includes the Vice President and the heads of 15 executive departments: the Secretaries of Agriculture, Commerce, Defense, Education, Energy, Health and Human Services, Homeland Security, Housing and Urban Development, Interior, Labor, State, Transportation, Treasury, and Veterans Affairs, as well as the Attorney General
British Empire – all of the areas around the world claimed by the United Kingdom in the 17th, 18th, 19th, 20th, and 21st centuries.
Duke and Duchess – one of the levels of titled nobility in Britain. The five levels are duke, marquess, earl, viscount, and baron.
Inflation – a general increase in prices (and fall in the purchasing value of money).
Supply – the amount of product available at a given price
Demand – the amount of a product people want to buy at a given price
...and good luck with the 90 minute limit...
Right. ...in descending order...the levels of titled nobility...