THREATS FROM NORTH KOREA:Russia joins fight against NoKor

Following Switzerland, Russia has joined global efforts to tighten sanctions against the Korean Peninsula for its nuclear and missile provocations, adding a new set of financial and trade sanctions to the already extensive list.

Reports state that the Central Bank of Russia has announced measures to suspend all financial transactions with the North.

The move comes just a day after Switzerland announced a comprehensive range of sanctions on the North,

Source: Arirang News

Let's Do The News! (May 20, 2016)

- Former Philippine National Police chief Alan Purisima was arrested at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport for graft charges on Friday. Reports told that Purisima has just arrived from Butuan City where he was arrested and the CIDG escorted him to the headquarters of the anti-graft court Sandiganbayan where he posted bail.

- The Department of Justice has dropped its probe on the alleged Davao death squad and its links to President-elect Rodrigo Duterte. Earlier this month, the DOH confirmed that it is conducting an investigation on the Duterte-linked vigilantes but the witness is no longer in custody as of now.

- China denied US claims that its fighter jets intercepted an American Navy spy plane over the South China Sea, and demanded that the US end such missions close to Chinese territory. The Pentagon said two J-11 jets flew within abut 15m of the US EP-3 Aries aircraft on Tuesday, forcing the US pilot to drop altitude to avoid a collision. It said the US plane was conducting routine operations in international airspace.

- Egyptian authorities believed that there is a possibility of terrorism as the search continues on the missing EgyptAir jet that went missing over the Mediterranean Sea. The Airbus A320 lost from radar on Thursday about three and a half hours after leaving Paris for Cairo. The aircraft was carrying 66 passengers and crew.

- The state of emergency in France has been extended for two months. This measure has been in place since last November's terrorist attacks that killed 130 people. The French lower house approved the extension on Thursday by a vote of 46 to 20.

- Few days ago, General Motors issued a temporary suspension on the sale of their Lambda-platform crossovers (Chevrolet Traverse, GMC Acadia, and Buick Enclave) due to misprinted EPA window stickers after the impact of a emission-related hardware wasn't properly calculated into the EPA fuel economy rating. Now, General Motors may compensate almost 170,000 crossover vehicle owners in response to a class-action lawsuit filed for the overstatement of three models' fuel-economy figures.

- Meet the top 19 finalists who auditioned for the South Korean TV drama adaptation of THE IDOLM@STER video game franchise. One of the finalists were a surprise because actress Yukika Teramoto is one of the 19 finalists for actress auditions for the show.

- How does the new Divination Seance work on the upcoming Gyakuten Saiban 6 (Ace Attorney: Spirit of Justice) video game, coming next month on the Nintendo 3DS? Let Ryuichi Naruhodo (Phoenix Wright) and Housuke Odoroki (Apollo Justice) explain in this new clip.

- Gran Turismo's entry to the PS4, Gran Turismo Sport, will be released on the 15th of November, 2016, featuring 130 cars, new class categories, new locations, first-ever livery editor, and other extras.



- Aston Martin once again partnered with Italian coachbuilder Zagato to create a specially made concept based on the flagship grand tourer Vanquish. It will be displayed at the upcoming 2016 Concorso d'Eleganza Villa d'Este, held at Lake Como in Italy.



TTFN!!!

Message / Rei Yasuda

Message, the latest single by singer Rei Yasuda, now added to the court record.

Message / Rei Yasuda

It's the latest single by singer Rei Yasuda featuring the closing theme song from the Gyakuten Saiban (Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney) TV series. Viewers who listened that closing theme song performed by this singer told that this is like a love song for Gyakuten Saiban's Mayoi Ayasato (Maya Fey) because of her appearance in the closing sequence. Now, it's the fans' chance to listen the whole closing theme song from the Gyakuten Saiban (Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney) TV series.

There is a limited edition release featuring a DVD packed with the music video of the said song.

Present this evidence to your friends who love the Gyakuten Saiban (Ace Attorney) TV show? OBJECTION!

TRACK LISTINGS:

1) Message

2) Reflection

3) Shakin' Da beat

4) Message (Instrumental)

Jaguar F-Pace

Jaguar is well known for making ultra-luxury premium sedans like the XJ and sportscars like the F-Type but when they decided that they will make their own sport utility vehicle, we all thought that it's going to be a Land Rover in Jaguar's clothing, but we are sort of wrong with this one...

2017 Jaguar F-Pace

Called the F-Pace, Jaguar's first ever crossover utility vehicle marks a new chapter in its lifetime and whenever this crossover is up against the likes of the Macan or the X3 or the GLC or the Q5 or even its stablemate, the Range Rover Evoque, it will be the F-Pace, as Jaguar states.

2017 Jaguar F-Pace

On the contrary, the F-Pace is not a Land Rover in Jaguar overalls because it uses the same underbelly as Jaguar's latest saloons, the XE and the new XF, so you may expect this to behave like a sportscar but you have to do better than that because despite its sports saloon underpinnings, the F-Pace isn't as sharp as either the XE or the new XF but as a crossover utility vehicle, the all-capable F-Pace sure is as witty as quick-shooting a sawed-off shotgun at different sides. However, don't get too jumpy because even if the F-Pace behaves like a sportscar because of its F-Type-inspired characteristics, cases of understeering is likely, probably due to its 4WD drivetrain (even if its recalibrated to allow most of the power goes to the rear wheels) and its electric power steering.

Back when these things stuffed onto the F-Type sportscar, my observation that I was going to think that the 4WD and power steering would degrade the F-Type's character but no. If drivers managed to get things right, the 4WD and power steering wouldn't be a problem to the F-Type and here in the F-Pace, the right timing will show how much fun this crossover would do, despite its weight. When you opt in for the high-end S with the 3.0 litre V6 380PS Supercharged Petrol engine, best not to overdo it or else you'll mess it up. Same thing goes for the 3.0L V6 diesel engine because even if it has a higher torque output than the petrol engine, there's no hiding from the clattering the engine gets.

It may have a great noise for a V6 engine but for everyday use, you can either go for the 2.0L turbodiesel engine with 180PS of power. It maybe short on power but I'm not highly sure that its efficiency maybe the key to make the F-Pace a practical crossover for business and leisure because with all that ruckus going on, it's hard to determine how fuel efficient this small Ingenium diesel is, especially with the claimed combined mileage of 4.9l/100km when a 6-speed manual is equipped.

Oh yeah, while most models do come with a hefty 8-speed automatic gearbox, the 2.0L diesel variant is the only variant to come standard with a 6-speed manual.

2017 Jaguar F-Pace interior

The F-Pace may have some Jaguar charm on the design department, but it's surprisingly technologically advanced and practical. There's some room in the back that can fit your leisurely stuff on your next day off. It even comes with an array of gadgets in partial terms of safety and convenience, including the brand new Activity Key, which allows the wearer to open the car when made contact and it's surprisingly durable, meaning you can take out in all sorts of outdoor activities. Who would have thought that Jaguar made some kind of wearable tech for discerning owners of the F-Pace crossover?

2017 Jaguar F-Pace

The Jaguar F-Pace starts at 34,170 Pounds and while this is as costly as the German-made luxury crossovers, the F-Pace shows how much handy capable Jaguar's first crossover can do. Its capabilities as a multirole is fairly unorthodox for a Jaguar of this magnitude but the F-Pace is surely ready to rise up from the challenge, no matter the odds.

Available colors: Polaris White, Ebony Black, Glacier White, Ultimate Black, Ammonite Grey, Dark Sapphire Blue, British Racing Green, Quartzite, Italian Racing Red, Odyssey Red, Rhodium Silver, Tempest Grey, Storm Grey, and Ingot.

Photo: Jaguar Land Rover

THREATS FROM NORTH KOREA:Switzerland joins fight against NoKor

Switzerland is now one of the countries upping pressure against North Korea, adding fresh batch of financial and trade sanctions to the already extensive list.

Reports noted that Swiss banks have put a stop to all financial transactions with the North and frozen all of the regime's assets. The restrictions are in line with the UNSC sanctions imposed in March after North Korea's fourth nuclear test and missile launch earlier this year.

Source: Arirang News

Let's Do The News! (May 19, 2016)

- The top 12 senators from the May 9 elections has been proclaimed by COMELEC. The names of the 12 senators are former TESDA Director Joel Villanueva, boxing superstar Manny Pacquiao, former PhilHealth director Risa Hontiveros, Valenzuela Representative Sherwin Gatchalian, former Justice Secretary Leila de Lima, Ping Lacson, Richard Gordon, Migz Zubiri, Francis Pangilinan, Senator Franklin Drilon, Senator Tito Sotto, and Senator Ralph Recto.

- The Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales said she will be inhibiting from cases involving President-Elect Rodrigo Duterte and his family due to her ties with them. Morales said her brother's son is the husband of Duterte's daughter, Davao City Mayor-elect Sara Duterte. The younger Duterte and Morales' nephew are both lawyers.

- The Pentagon reported that two Chinese fighter jets flew within about 50 feet of a US Navy spy plane in international airspace over the South China Sea, characterizing the incident as an unsafe intercept and said it is being reviewed. Two Chinese J-11 jets flew out to intercept the US EP-3 spy plane and came so close that they forced the pilot to descend a couple hundred feet in order to avoid a collision.

- Two powerful quakes struck Ecuador, injuring 85 people. These jolts come about a month after a powerful quake struck the South American country, killing over 600 people. A M6.7 quake struck early on Wednesday morning, followed by a powerful M6.8 quake shortly before noon on the same day. Reports told that one elderly person died.

- The EgyptAir Flight MS804, en route from Paris to Cairo, lost from radar at 0045 hours UTC shortly after entering Egyptian airspace. Authorities are launching an investigation for a passenger plane, which had 66 people aboard, went missing from the airspace.

- Moving on to the fuel economy crisis, Suzuki Motor Corporation admitted that they falsified their fuel consumption data on their 16 models currently being sold in Japan (including recently released ones such as the Ignis and the India-import Baleno). Despite the scandal, Suzuki will continue selling its cars while adding that earnings have yet to be impacted.

- Meanwhile, Mitsubishi Motors' president Tetsuro Aikawa stepped down from his post, effective late next month, when the automaker will hold its shareholder's meeting. Alongside Aikawa is Executive VP Ryugo Nakao. With Nissan gained control of about 34% of the shares from Mitsubishi Motors, Aikawa asked the rival car company to send one of theirs to replace his position.

- Two compact Volvo concepts have been unveiled. The Concept 40.1 previews a compact saloon while the Concept 40.2 previews a compact crossover.

- Today marks the 44th Weeksary of AlDub.

TTFN!!!

Rain or Shine wins PBA Commissioner's Cup

The Rain or Shine Elasto Painters triumphed the PBA Commissioner's Cup championship after Game 6 victory against the Alaska Aces at the score of 109-92 last night at the Smart Araneta Coliseum. 

Apart from the team's unorthodox win, Elasto Painters' Paul Lee was named as MVP for his four 3-point shots and finished with 20 points scored.

This is the second time the Elasto Painters won championship title since their Governors Cup win five years ago with import Jamel Cornely.

Congratulations to the Elasto Painters for such win and it's great that the team got one heck of a Lee-thal weapon for the win.

URL: http://pba.inquirer.net/71770/rain-or-shine-smothers-alaska-in-game-6-claims-2nd-pba-crown

TGUSA: Military Might

Top Gear, the hit American TV show, goes to war (literally) as the boys ventured out to a top-secret National Training Center in Fort Irwin with their cars of their choice and see if these cars are tough enough to serve with the US Army. Rut goes for the RAM Power Wagon, Adam goes for the Jeep Wrangler, and Tanner goes to the Subaru WRX STi.

The first challenge involves a race against a heavily armed tank in a very punishing terrain designed for military vehicles. Although all three cars were slower than a tank, the Power Wagon was the fastest.

Next up is evasive maneuvers and the boys are driving through the obstacle course while evading sniper fire. The one with the least shots wins and in this challenge, Tanner and the STi wins.

While their cars are getting camouflaged for the final challenge, Tanner tries out one of his favorite extreme offroaders in his collection; which is a Polaris RZR XP Turbo and he's going to race through the finish line before Adam shoots 10 targets with the M1A1 Abrams tank. In the end, the tank finished first.

A day later, the boys' cars got camouflaged for the final challenge, involving a daring rescue mission in a simulated battle zone. Taking advantage of the cars, the boys will have to work together to survive the simulated war zone. After accomplishing this harsh mission, the soldiers evaluated how these cars progressed and out of the three, the Power Wagon is the clear winner. Tanner's Subie though, sealed its fate with the tank's shrapnel.

HOMEFRONT: The Revolution

Five years ago, the original HOMEFRONT game, once developed by KAOS Studio and published by THQ, two years before its bankruptcy, featured a fictional plausible take of the United States taking control by the North Koreans (who once unified the two Koreas not by the South but by the North) and the once America the Great is now abandoned and only a handful of resistance fighters wage war against the Korean People's Army. With the HOMEFRONT games now under Deep Silver's hands, the folks from Dambuster Studios rebooted the once-forgotten franchise with a bold new take.

HOMEFRONT: The Revolution (PC)

HOMEFRONT: The Revolution
(XBOX One)

HOMEFRONT: The Revolution
(PS4)

The revived HOMEFRONT game is now called HOMEFRONT: The Revolution and this game features a much different story than the old THQ-era HOMEFRONT game. In an alternate history, North Korea became a technological superpower thanks to a multinational technology company called APEX and with the whole world taking advantage of APEX's technologies, even the United States, it became one of the world's biggest companies. In the not-too-distant future, with the United States in the depths of financial ruin because of overspending with APEX-sourced tech from North Korea, the once great USA has been taken control by the Korean People's Army and a group of resistance fighters in Philadelphia is staging a revolution to take back America from the grips of not just North Korea but the corporation behind it.

The new HOMEFRONT game features open-world combat where players wage guerilla warfare and use any means necessary to slip past enemies in unbiased firefights. Apart from being a shooter game, The Revolution behaves like last year's everyone's personal favorite, Fallout 4, because you can gain new allies, make negotiations, establish bases and safehouses, create new weapons, and more. There are endless possibilities to create your own resistance to wage war against the KPA tyranny.

Believe it or not, playing The Revolution is becoming more of a party than your usual shooter because you can team up with other gamers and work your way through completing various missions from simpler ones to the most intense missions only the bravest heroes can ignite the revolution.

The fun continues because you can receive in-game bonuses by logging on to the official site or the Homefront Resistance Network app for iOS and Android. You can avail of the Expansion Pass to gain access to upcoming expansions coming this 2016 such as The Voice of Freedom and Aftermath as well as the Beyond the Walls expansion, due next year.

Thoughts on The Revolution? It's starting to behave like the Fallout games due to its open-world action and creating your own resistance out of the people you've trusted. However, the storyline and the action are too intense for the faint at heart and you have to be brave enough to endure the thrilling action The Revolution has offered. While this game is recommended to play on co-op because playing solo is not enough to finish the job, it is best to stick to the PC version because with paid memberships on the XBOX Live and PlayStation Plus plagued the newest consoles, you'll have to empty your wallet to enjoy playing with other players.

THREATS FROM NORTH KOREA: Trump says he would speak to N.Korea's Kim Jong Un

Republican US Presidentiable Donald Trump says he will be willing to hold a summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un to stop the country's nuclear program.

In an interview with a certain news agency, Trump would speak to the North Korean leader and would have no problem doing so. Trump added that he would at the same time put a lot of pressure on China. He said China can solve problems with the Korean peninsula's nuclear program with one meeting or one phone call.

Trump's remark draw flak from the camp of Democratic Party presidentiable Hillary Clinton.

Source: NHK World

Let's Do The News! (May 18, 2016)

- The Philippines has gained a "new territory" through the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea's ruling on the 13 million hectare Benham Rise. Until 2012, the seismically active underwater region known as the Benham Plateau and extinct volcanic ridge had not been part of the archipelago, despite the Philippines is the only country within 200 nautical miles of the plateau.

- Philippine President-Elect Rodrigo Duterte's plans to revive the death penalty sparked criticisms from the public, even those from the Catholic Church and officials. Among the critics of the revival of life imprisonment is Camarines Sur Representative Leni Robredo, who is leading in the vice presidential race.

- In the latest presidential primaries for the November 2016 US Presidential Elections, the heated battle between two Democratic presidentiables Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders are heating up as Clinton wins at the Kentucky primaries while Sanders won the Oregon primaries. As of now, Clinton now has 2,291 delegates while Sanders is 763 delegates behind her.

- Series of bomb attacks in Baghdad, Iraq, have killed at least 70 people and injured 140 others. The Islamic State militants claimed responsibility for the attacks and all four bomb attacks took place within a few hours in areas populated by Shia Muslims. The Iraqi military and the US-led coaliton are stepping up an offensive against the Islamic State militants.

- US authorities opened the investigation into athletic doping by Russian athletes. According to reports, the US Justice Department is targeting anyone who might have benefited unfairly from doping. These would include Russian government officials, athletes, coaches, and anti-doping agency officials.

- In the ongoing fuel consumption crisis, South Korean authorities says Nissan manipulated emissions with their UK-built crossover with diesel engine, thanks to a dubious device that shuts off its exhaust reduction system under regular driving temperature.

- The long-awaited arrival of NASCAR in the world of Forza Motorsport 6 for the XBOX One console is here with the brand new FM6 NASCAR Expansion, now available for $20. The expansion not only sees the car roster full of 2016 season NASCAR machines but also the arrival of Homestead-Miami Speedway and the all-new NASCAR World Tour where players pit their NASCAR skills to the test against the world.

- Minzy, the former member of K-Pop girl group 2NE1, has officially signed with The Music Works Entertainment, a subsidiary of CJ E&M Music Performance Division. Minzy will be joining alongside singer Baek Ji Young on the record label.

- Torchwood alums John Barrowman (who played as Captain Jack Harkness) and Gareth David-Lloyd (who played Ianto Jones) are reprising their roles once again for their newest chapter of their Torchwood audio drama series titled Torchwood: Broken.

- With shooting for the fourth season of BBC's Sherlock has commenced, actor Toby Jones will be joining this season as a villain in the new season, due 2017.

TTFN!!!

F1 2016: Spanish GP

Image: Getty Images

The Spanish Grand Prix of the Formula One 2016 season held at Circuit de Catalunya became a historic F1 moment to remember because for the first time, a ranked outsider emerged a winner as Red Bull's Max Verstappen, who replaced Daniil Kvyat, became the youngest F1 driver to win a race and also the youngest to lead a race. Not bad for an 18-year-old ace driver.

Following Verstappen's historic win, two Ferrari drivers Kimi Raikkonen and Sebastian Vettel placed 2nd and 3rd. Despite their podium finish, things are going to be rough for the Ferrari F1 team.

Misfortunes aside, we witnessed Mercedes' downfall in the race as Hamilton and Rosberg crashed their machines during the start of the race. Fernando Alonso from McLaren-Honda, meanwhile, once again retired because his machine failed to start. And then, Force India's Nico Hulkenberg's car caught fire.

The overall standings sees a drastic change following Mercedes' DNF in the race. While Nico Rosberg remains his lead with 100 points, Ferrari's Raikkonen is now 2nd place with 61 points and Hamilton dropped to 3rd with 57 points.

The next race will be at Monaco on the 29th of May, 2016.