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

- According to the lawyer from the camp of Senator Grace Poe, she admittedly used her US passport despite having a Philippine passport. During the oral arguments before the Supreme Court, Poe's lawyer said that the presidential candidate used her US passport four times until March 2010. The lawyer argued that Poe is a dual citizen at the time and had the right use both passports.

- Senate Minority Leader Juan Ponce Enrile accused the President Benigno Aquino III for direct involvement to the death of forty-four Special Action Force members last year. Enrile claimed that the President  knew it from the first day about the operation to suppress the terrorists led by Marwan.

- The British Ambassador to the Philippines warned that people may resort to radicalism if the Bangsamoro Basic Law remains stalled in Congress. He also states that threats from the Islamic State militants may come in this nation following last week's Jakarta attacks. Right now, the death toll in Jakarta is now up to eight.

- Iran has vowed to push forward their missile programs despite the recent sanctions posed by the Us government. The Iranian Defense Minister condemns the recent sanctions posed by the US, saying that it won't have any effect as their missile program is completely domestic and based on Iran's own science and technologies.

- A SpaceX rocket has exploded after a failed vertical landing on a floating platform in the Pacific. Last weekend, the US space venture company launched its Falcon 9 rocket from California and successfully delivered a satellite into space. The company aims to reduce launch costs by developing technology to reuse the first stage of rockets rather than having them fall into the ocean.

- Eight people are hurt in a massive pileup of car crashes during a snowstorm in South Korea. Police say a car slipped and rammed into a guardrail on a highway in Jeongeup in the southwestern province of North Jeolla. Then, 14 vehicles hit from behind and later, another car stopped about 500 meters from the first pileup, and was hit by six others.

- Actor Vin Diesel teases the next installment of The Fast and The Furious film series. Titled Fast 8, the first of the final film's trilogy will hit theaters in April 2017 and it will be set in New York city.

- The collaboration between Love Live! School Idol Project and The Powerpuff Girls continues as the μ's are now donned in costumes from their Snow Halation song for a special exhibition beginning on the 22nd of January.

- Actress Valeen Montenegro was accused on being third party on the divorce between Ciara Sotto and her husband Jojo Oconer. Ciara has been married to Jojo five years ago, where they gave birth to an 11-month-old child.

- Actor Dingdong Dantes describes his first year of marriage with actress Marian Rivera. Late last month, the celebrity couple celebrated their first wedding anniversary. CHECK IT OUT.

TTFN!!!

Renault Megane IV

The Renault Megane is now on its fourth-generation and for this latest regeneration, it's now packed with a whole new look, new tech, new performance, and a whole new attitude that sets the class apart. So, what's it all about the new Megane?

2016 Renault Megane

Before you take a look at the all-new, fourth-generation Renault Megane, it might be best to compare with or without wearing your glasses because this is the main reason why this car is called "Megane". Approach yourself two times near the car, then move backward by four times, and then backward again by eight times. See the difference if you're going through different directions with or without glasses? Without your glasses, your new Megane looks a lot like a Mercedes-Benz A-Class from the distance, but with your glasses on, you can really point out its Talisman-inspired looks, which is now the new norm for Renault's "la vie, avec passion" slogan.

2016 Renault Megane interior

Because the design was heavily inspired from the Talisman saloon, you can expect the same interior as seen on the Espace, which is going to be also the new norm for future Renault interiors. For music lovers and speedo boys who love changing the radio of their cars, look away now because the new interior has a very irreplaceable touch screen armed with Renault's updated R-Link telematics system, smartphone connectivity, and much else that will put anyone to shame, except for those who got their hard-earned or hard-found songs in their smartphones to connect with. While you are ignoring this huge touch-screen, which is going to be a nightmare for a CD-less world of cars with irreplaceable radios (that's right speedo boy, you will never replace that big screen from this car), the interior of the new Megane is downright premium and downright comfortable to be accustomed with. Aside from having decent space for the passengers, there's still more room fit for your next shopping trips to the mall or to the farmer's market. What this is is a hatchback that suits anyone's lifestyle anytime, anywhere, year in, year out.

2016 Renault Megane

Under the hood, the new Megane comes with several choice of petrol and diesel engines ranging from the more powerful Energy TCe 205 available on the GT model and the more efficient Energy dCi 110 engine ECO2. Whichever engine you can choose, it can be mated with either a 6-speed or a 7-speed EDC gearbox, which sounds great to shift gears but it feels too good for its own form. Sorry, it's not a bad or a miss but rather "good" is what sums it up when it comes to its gearbox issues.

What about dynamics? Well, because this is an entirely new car with an entirely new underpinning, you might think that this is all fun and games, well in the GT-Line model that is, but there is little fun and games in the new chassis it sports as well as a more clever suspension setup fit for European roads. It feels good to handle as the present-day Clio but for sheer enjoyment, only time will tell.

Of course, the new Megane is all high-tech from start to finish and with that, you can expect a wide array of high-tech features such as Traffic Sign Recognition, Lane Departure Warning, headlamps that switches to high beam automatically, Easy Park Assist, Blind Spot detection, autonomous braking assist, and hill start assist. Those tech stuff sounds great but it can be quite scary for first-timers.

2016 Renault Megane

Should you buy one? The new Renault Megane starts at 18,200 Euros and when you compare its pricing to its French rival, the Peugeot 308, it's surprisingly 600 Euros cheap so where does all the extra difference coming from? Perhaps you should do the budget thing and find out but better still, the new Megane's a smart buy for a start.

Photo: Renault

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

- Economic sanctions against Iran has finally been lifted after the country has successfully finished the necessary steps to restrict its nuclear program. This historic deal was welcomes by the parties involved in the deal and Iranian leader Hassan Rouhani was praised by such move. US President Barack Obama states that they've achieved this historic progress through diplomacy without causing much tension in the Middle East. Meanwhile, the US imposed new sanctions on Iranian companies and individuals linked to the missile programme from using the US banking sections.

- Turkish prosecutors have decided to hold 10 Syrian members of the Islamic State in custody in connection to the bombing at downtown Istanbul last week. The ten among the 16 men have been questioned over possible links to Nabil Fadli, an ISIL member from Syria. Fadli is a suspect behind the suicide attack near a heritage site, killing 10 German tourists.

- Indonesian prosecutors told that the guns used in last week's Jakarta attacks were sourced from the Philippines. Last week, a group of attackers belonged to the group calling itself a branch of ISIL bombed parts of Jakarta, killing four people and injuring 26 others. So far, 12 suspects have been arrested. Police are investigating whether the attackers have linked to the Abu Sayyaf group.

- The Commission of Elections has denied Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte's motion for inhibition of Commissioner Ma. Rowena Amelia Guanzon from disqualification cases against him due to lack of merit. The order came out after Duterte's camp filed a motion for inhibition before the COMELEC last week.

- The Senate and the House of Representatives only got nine days left to approve the proposed Bangsamoro Basic Law before they go on the adjournment again on the 6th of February for the election campaign. The House is expected to start making amendments to the draft while the Senate is still in the period of floor debates.

- According to the Department of Transportation and Communications, one of the new MRT-3 train will be arriving at the end of the first quarter of this year. The DOTC recently conducted tests on the second MRT light rail vehicle delivered from China, which arrived last month. The DOTC Secretary Joseph Emilio Abaya said that if the evaluation is successful, they might expect another train to arrive this year. 48 new coaches are expected to arrive as part of the MRT-3 capacity expansion project.

- In an effort to ease the ban from the Olympics and other international competitions, the All-Russia Athletic Federation chose Dmitry Shlyakhtin as the new leader of the athletics federation at a meeting in Moscow on Saturday. Last November, the International Association of Athletics Federations suspended Russia after a report by the anti-doping body alleged there was a vast systematic doping operation.

- At the final day of the 2016 Dakar Rally, KTM biker Toby Price named as the winner, marking it the first Australian to win the Dakar in the two-wheel category. As for the four-wheel offroaders, Stephane Peterhansel for Peugeot snagged his 12th Dakar win. Marcos Patronelli win the quad category while Gerard de Rooy won the truck category.

- For the first time, the Subaru Levorg will be joining the ranks of the 2016 British Touring Car Championship as the choice for the BMR BTCC Racing Team to be driven by four drivers including Jason Plato and Colin Turkington.

Subaru Levorg joins the BTCC

- Azumi Asakura and Yumi Hara, who played Yukiho and Takane from THE IDOLM@STER, as well as Rei Matsuzaki and Hiromi Igarashi, who played Kirari and Anzu from THE IDOLM@STER Cinderella Girls, will be making an appearance at the C3 Hong Kong event on the 20th of February for a special talk and live stage.

TTFN!!!

Chevrolet Spark (M400, US Spec) and Second Generation Chevrolet Cruze

Two new Chevrolets are ringing the new year with a boom on the compact car markets in their classes. On the compact side, the Chevrolet Spark has been given a much mild-mannered regeneration while the Chevrolet Cruze, in the compact midsize sedan stakes, got fully regenerated for the new generation. So, what lies ahead of these two?

2016 Chevrolet Spark

2016 Chevrolet Spark interior

Of course, you might think you are already familiar with the new generation Chevrolet Spark because South Korea already has one last year and you are already familiar by how it looks because as told, the design looks not very premium-ish for the new model. That's just half of the story because apart from its rather unpleasant looks for a compact car, the inside is worth questionable because with technology continue to evolve, the rather cheap but comfortable interior doesn't come with a CD player and instead, it comes with a standard touchscreen with the Chevrolet MyLink that now comes with Apple CarPlay or Android Auto compatibility. Apart from that, like all good Chevys, 4G LTE connectivity is standard as well. It's hard to think why things like these would evolve into something more smartphone-ish or maybe they're trying to adapt through the easy life just like us?

Here in the USA, the new Spark is powered by a bigger and more powerful 1.4L petrol engine mated with either a more enjoyable 5-speed manual gearbox or a more casual CVT. This engine produces 98P of power and 94lb-ft of torque, and whichever gearbox you're on, you can expect an EPA estimated fuel economy of 41MPG highway, which is rather impressive for a compact car of such size, although it remains irrelevant in American roads dominated by Focuses, Darts, and many others.

While this is a compact car for the city roads, it's not surprisingly half bad to handle although the compound crank rear suspensions doesn't feel as sophisticated as any European compacts do. It's ashamed why this new Spark is not offered in European roads, where in turn gets a more similar Vauxhall Viva or Opel Karl.

2016 Chevrolet Cruze

2016 Chevrolet Cruze interior

Okay, if the new Spark doesn't suit your taste as your first car if you recently got your driver's license, perhaps why not consider the all-new Chevrolet Cruze? Yep, the all-new model and while it doesn't look as pleasant as the previous model, at least it's not as dull as what the Chinese had. It's surprisingly bigger than the new model, more rakishly stylish, and more high-tech features than any other compact midsize saloons of its class, which really sets the competition apart.

On the inside, it still has the grim reality of having a touch-screen with added connectivity standard, meaning there is no place for your CD collection, which is very very sad why we are now living in the age where cars have irreplaceable radios, no place for CD players, and so on like what cassette players happened. Better get those CD content be ripped through your smartphone if you got enough space to do so.

Anyway, while this is basically an Opel/Vauxhall Astra K underneath, the new Chevrolet Cruze features handling similar to European compacts, making it a well-sophisticated compact saloon fit for daily uses. Under the hood, the new Cruze comes with a more peppy 1.4L turbo engine, which produces 153 horsepower and promises a EPA estimated fuel economy of 40MPG highway.

Should you buy either of those two? The new Spark starts at $12,660 while the new Cruze starts at $16,620, so whichever Chevy you choose, these new Chevys have features that will set the competition apart. Although some purists will never like the design of both of these cars, which some say it's deemed ugly, the premium amenities are what made these two compensated from their looks.

It's a shame that Europeans will miss out on those and they have to make do with their highly similar Opels or Vauxhalls, in the case of the Karl, Viva, and the Astra K.

Photo: General Motors

Stars of 2016 NAIAS

2017 Lexus LC

The 2016 North American International Auto Show runs on now until the 24th of January, 2016, at the Cobo Center, Detroit, Michigan, and in this event, the year 2016 is started with the best and finest of the motoring industry. From world premieres, full model changes, debutants, concepts, and techs, there's so much in store for this year's NAIAS. While you were there, let's jot down the stars of this year's NAIAS.

Production Cars

2017 Audi A4 Allroad Quattro

2017 BMW M2 Coupe

2017 Buick Envision

2017 Chevrolet Bolt

2017 Chevrolet Cruze Hatchback

2017 Chrysler Pacifica

2017 Ford F-150 SVT Raptor SuperCrew

2017 Ford Fusion

2017 GMC Acadia

2017 Infiniti Q60

2017 Lexus LC 500

2017 Lincoln Continental

2017 Mercedes-Benz E-Class

2017 Mercedes-Benz SLC-Class

2017 Mercedes-AMG SLC43 AMG

2017 Porsche 911 Turbo range

2017 Volvo S90

Concepts:

Acura Precision Concept

Audi H-Tron Quattro COncept

Buick Avista Concept

Kia Telluride Concept

VW Tiguan GTE Active Concept

...and more.

Gallery: http://www.carscoops.com/2016/01/heres-270-pics-to-choose-your-2016.html

20 Years of Pokemon: The 20 most beautiful Pokemon

Continuing on the celebration for twenty years of Pokemon, it's time to focus on the prettiest Pokemons in history. Through the years, apart from featuring cute Pokemon like Pikachu, Fennekin, Oshawott, Minccino, and many others, history has been peppered also with some of the prettiest Pokemons a sophisticated trainer would want more than any fashion accessory. What makes a Pokemon pretty? Nobody knows, not even science can't tell, but either way, time to jot down the twenty most beautiful Pokemons from Kanto to Kalos.

1) Pikachu - Hmmm? I already mentioned Pikachu as one of the cutest Pokemons in history but why would I decided to put it on the list of the most prettiest Pokemons in history? Although maybe cute, Pikachu can be somewhat very beautiful not by the way it looks but by the way it moves. The finest examples of Pikachu's beauty are either Pikachu Pop Star and Pikachu Belle, one of the Cosplay Pikachu variants as pointed from the ORAS games.

2) Ninetails - Although its Pokedex description sounds scary, apart from the part where grabbing one of its tails could result to a thousand-year curse, Ninetails, which is the evolved form of Vulpix after contact with a Fire Stone, is considered to be one of the prettiest and a real keeper for trainers who have great taste of style.

3) Goldeen - Misty used to have one of these during the Indigo League years, the beginning, of course, but anyway, Goldeen's quite a beautiful water-type Pokemon that shows its true colors even when swimming. Don't let its looks fool you because its horns are darn tough.

4) Articuno - One of the three legendary birds in the Kanto region and obviously one of the prettiest if you were lucky enough to see one flying through the winter skies.

5) Meganium - Meganium is the final evolved form of Chikorita and according to its Pokedex description, its breath has the power to revive dead plants and grass, and making it healthy again. Anyway, its wondrous aroma makes it well-suitable to be on the list because if you can imagine female trainers starting their Johto Journeys in a Chikorita and then worked their way to become Meganium, you know that they got class.

6) Bellossom - Sure, when a Gloom made contact with a Leaf Stone, it becomes a Vileplume, but when Gloom made contact with the Sun Stone, it becomes a Bellossom, turning from an ugly Grass-and-Poison type into a fragrant, yet gorgeous, Grass-type Pokemon. Apart from its wondrous aroma, Bellossom's graceful at dancing and when you see a flock of Bellossoms dancing together, it's definitely a pretty spectacle to watch.

7) Ho-oh - One of the legendary Pokemons in the Johto region, only a trainer worthy of a heart of pure gold will be blessed by its appearance by shining its rainbow-colored wings. Although I don't find Ho-oh to be multicolored because it's fiery red, its beauty is considered the stuff of legends.

8) Gardevoir - Gardevoir's one of my favorite Psychic-type Pokemon and when witnessing its Mega Evolution, its prettiness is off the scale. Prettiness aside, its Pixilate ability is a real knock-out especially when Gardevoir's armed with Hyper Voice or Hyper Beam. No wonder the Kalos league champion has one.

9) Altaria - Despite being a Dragon-type Pokemon, Altaria's appearance is rather peaceful and beautiful to keep. Because its so beautiful, its Pokedex description says that its humming sounds beautiful. I also forgot that its Mega Evolution looks fluffy and gorgeous even though it has changed from a Dragon-and-Flying-type to a Dragon-and-Fairy-type, a beautiful combination.

10) Milotic - Milotic is no doubt the most beautiful Pokemon in existence but having a hard-to-find Feebas evolve into one is no easy task because it takes a lot of blue PokeBlocks to get the job done. Despite this hard task, having Milotic is a definite proof that you have a strong liking for a Pokemon's beauty.

11) Roserade - When the Diamond and Pearl games came out in 2006, Roselia, first appeared during the Advanced Generation years, gained two new stages; a pre-evolved form called Budew and a final evolved form called Roserade. If made contact with a Shiny Stone, Roselia evolves into Roserade, the bouquet Pokemon. According to the Pokedex, despite its graceful appearance, it can languish foes with its poisonous thorns. Do I have any idea what kind of trainer would be interested in a Roserade? Well, more specifically a female trainer dressed like a prince in an all-female troupe.

12) Cresselia - Cresselia's one of the Sinnoh legends and according to the Pokedex, it is said to represent the crescent moon. This legendary Pokemon is definitely quite a beauty to behold if you're in a middle of a night watch.

13) Leavanny - The Pokedex states that Leavanny, the final evolved form of Sewaddle, weaves clothing from leaves, using the cutters on its arms and sticky silk. Yep, we seen that stuff during the Black and White anime but one thing you will find about Leavanny's beauty is its smile. Its smile is so beautiful and cute, I felt like I'm one of the few who are completely in love with it.

14) Lilligant - Lilligant's one of the prettiest Pokemons in the Unova region, probably because of its fragrant flower that most trainers deemed to be difficult to take good care of it, according to the Pokedex.

15) Cinccino - Yeah, I did listed Minccino as one of the cutest Pokemons in history but what about its evolved form when it made contact with a Shiny Stone? Cinccino's definitely a beauty to behold in the eyes of a trainer and no matter how things get dirty, this Cinccino never gives up because its special oil coated on its fur makes it clean itself, except when its coating gets blown by Snivy's Leaf Storm attack.

16) Meloetta - Meloetta's a mythical Pokemon with has a melody far beyond compare with any other Pokemon that knows how to sing. When armed with the Relic Song, Meloetta can transform from its Aria Forme to Pirouette Forme, turning from a graceful singer to a graceful dancer back and forth.

17) Vivillon - Vivillon are famous for having a wide range of patterns depending on region and because of its diverse patterns, many trainers wanted to collect most of it, which sounds more of challenge.

18) Florges - In one episode of the Pokemon XY anime series, we've seen a Florges trying to attack Goodra but then later eventually joined to save its homeland from an impending doom. Although pretty to look at, Florges really means business, even for a Fairy-type Pokemon.

19) Xerneas - Xerneas is the stuff of the Kalos legends and known to be the bringer of life. Legends told that it slept for a thousand years in the form of a tree before its revival. When its horns shine like a rainbow, it is said to bring life. Either way, this legendary Pokemon is quite a beauty to behold.

20) Diancie - When witnessing its Mega Evolution, Diancie's beauty is beyond compare of any of the most beautiful Pokemon existed. With such beauty, it was known as the Royal Pink Princess. For us, Diancie or Mega Diancie, it's a definite proof that we still believe that Diamonds are Forever....

Next time, let's list down the 20 most scariest Pokemons as part of the Pokemon 20 year celebration.

Photo: Pokemon

Tsai Ing-wen named as Taiwan's new leader

For the first time in Taiwanese presidential history, a female president is taking reign in the country of Taiwan as Tsai Ing-wen, leader of the Democratic Progressive Party, emerged as the winner of the Taiwanese elections, defeating Nationalist Party candidate Eric Chu.

By winning the election, Tsai became the first female leader of Taiwan and the Democratic Progressive Party will return to power after an eight-year opposition.

As of 2030 hours Taiwan time, Tsai had over 6.58 million votes garneted , while Chu had 3.61 million.

Report: http://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/english/news/20160116_31.html