Let's Do The News! (June 14, 2016)

- The severed head believed to belong to the second Canadian executed by the Abu Sayyaf group was recovered Monday night. Authorities found the head after it was dumped in a plaza in front of Mt. Carmel Cathedral along Sanchez Street in downtown Jolo. According to Westmincom, the discovery confirms the brutal execution done by Abu Sayyaf terrorists.

- Reform measures are outlines for the "corrupt" Bureau of Customs under the Duterte administration, according to incoming finance and customs chiefs. Incoming Finance Secretary Cesar Dominguez III met with outgoing commissioner Alberto Lina and his replacement, Nicanor Faeldon to facilitate the transition at the agency as the Duterte administration goes on effect at the end of the month. According to Social Weather Station, the BOC is the most corrupt and was rated "very bad" -55 by businessmen, following by a bad grade in 2012 and execrable ratings from 2005 to 2009.

- The University of the Philippines and the Ateneo de Manila University were named among the 100 top universities in Asia in an annual list by Quacquarelli Symonds.

- US President Barack Obama said that the gunman behind the Orlando nightclub attack was apparently a homegrown terrorist. Day after the suspect revealed as Omar Mateen went on a massacre at a gay bar in Orlando, President Obama said there is no evidence that the shooter has links to the Islamic State.

 - Meanwhile, presidential candidates, Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump, expressed sharply different views on gun control and fighting terrorism following the deadly mass shooting in Florida. Clinton said she will prioritize stopping attackers who act without orders from terrorist organizations. Trump, meanwhile, reiterated his call for restricting immigration into the United States and attacked both Obama and Clinton for being weak.

- Reports said that the suspect behind the Shanghai airport explosion wrote a message on his smartphone suggesting that personal debt driven him to despair. The man thrown the homemade explosive at the departure lobby in the airport's second terminal on Sunday afternoon, wounding four people. The suspect received a wound to the neck and has been hospitalized.

- The Maserati Quattroporte has been given a minor change for the 2017 model year, packed with new exterior design and new equipment.

2017 Maserati Quattroporte

- The all-new Proton Perdana has been finally unveiled and it's now made for the general public unlike the previous model that was reserved for government use. Like the previous one, the new Perdana is actually a final-generation Honda Inspire underneath but under the hood, the new Perdana comes with either a 2.0L or a 2.4L petrol engine from Honda. Prices start from 113,888 to 138,888 Malaysian Ringgit.

2017 Proton Perdana

- In Game 5 of the 2016 NBA Finals, the Cleveland Cavaliers scored another win against the Golden State Warriors at the score of 112-97. It's now 3-2 in the tally.

TTFN!!!

F1 2016: Canadian GP

Photo: Getty Images

So, Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton, thanks to his pole position during qualifiers, scored himself another win despite a heated battle between him, Nico Rosberg, and Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel (due to bad pit stop strategy that worried the German ace driver). Of course, with Hamilton wins while Vettel placed 2nd, Williams got in for a treat as its driver, Valtteri Bottas, tasted his podium finish by entering third place in the race.

Meanwhile though, there's tensions brewing between the two young Red Bull drivers, Max Verstappen and Daniel Ricciardo. The team advised Verstappen to let Ricciardo pass him after the Australian fell behind his teammate at the start. However, the refusal consigning him to a seventh place. Toro Rosso's Carlos Sainz is reluctant in the race because despite his crash at the qualifiers and a poor gearbox issue, he finished 9th.

As the top three teams are edging themselves for the constructors' championship of the season, Hamilton's recent win made him 43 points behind Rosberg.

The next race is set at Baku for the 2016 F1 Europe GP on the 19th of June.

Top Gear S23E03

Top Gear S23E03

The third episode of "brand new" Top Gear is becoming more redeeming than the previous episodes not just because of Rory Reid and Chris Harris' debut appearance, but also the cars featured as well as its unbiased way to show how its done, well almost.

First, Chris Evans and Sabine Schmitz tries out the brand new Audi R8 round the Top Gear Track, right up to the point where Evans vomited after Sabine drove the R8 hard. When handed to The Stig, it lapped round the Top Gear Track in 1:15.7. Later on, Chris Harris tries out the Ferrari F12tdf round the Paul Ricard Test Track in France. Then, Rory Reid tries out the brand new Ford Focus RS and see if it stacks up against the Honda Civic Type R and the Mercedes-AMG A45. Lastly, Matt LeBlanc gives drifting extraordinaire Ken Block a tour round London while riding the mythical Hoonicorn.

On this episode's Star in a Rallycross Car, boxer Anthony Joshua did it in 1:52.6 while comedian Kevin Hart did it in 1:57.7.

Toyota Premio and Allion - Second Generation (2017 minor change)

The second-generation Toyota Premio and Allion saloons has been around for about nine years when they appeared in 2007, even though they're just luxurious or sporty alternatives to the commoners' choice, the Toyota Corolla. It's 2016 and these cars have been around like an eternity. We were expecting newer versions of these saloons but what did Toyota do with these ageing saloons? Yep, a second minor change. How organic...

2017 Toyota Premio

2017 Toyota Allion

The recent minor change for these saloons sees a much enlarged front grille that took some cues from the Toyota Crown saloons and although awkward to look at, there is little change on the rear view as well.

2017 Toyota Premio interior

2017 Toyota Allion interior

There are small changes on the interior such as a new instrumental panel, 4.2-inch TFT LCD, and the addition of brown interior color. That's it, nothing else you can ask about what's new.

2017 Toyota Allion

2017 Toyota Premio

You still have a choice between a 2.0L 3ZR-FAE a 1.8L 2ZR-FAE engine, or a 1.5L 1NZ-FE engine with Stop & Start system that shuts off the engine when stopped at the red light and then restarts when set off, each mated with a Super CVT-i gearbox. The 1.5L model is the fuel-efficient in the range, with fuel consumption of around 19.2km/L based on JC08 mode standards.

Speaking of changes, the Premio and Allion now comes with Toyota Safety Sense C, comprising of Pre-Collision System, Lane Departure Alert, and the Automatic High Beam function, for added safety of course.

The 2017MY Premio starts from 1,908,655 to 2,686,255 Japanese Yen while the 2017MY Allion starts from 1,897,855 to 2,650,909 Japanese Yen. The Allion is offered in Toyota dealerships across Japan while the Premio is offered only in Toyopet dealerships across Japan, there I said it.

Photo: Toyota Motor Corporation

Let's Do The News! (June 13, 2016)

- The Abu Sayyaf terrorists set another deadline for today for the government to meet with their ransom demand in exchange of the release of the three hostages that were abducted from Samal Island, but to government insists its no ransom policy and will not give in to their demands. The Armed Forces of the Philippines said they will stop their military operations against the Abu Sayyaf until they are able to save the hostages.

- The scheduled pre-trial for plunder and graft of detained senator Jinggoy Estrada was deferred for the fourth time on Monday, days after the second anniversary of the PDAF scam cases. During the hearing of the Sandiganbayan Fifth Division, the Office of the Special Prosecution informed the court that it wasn't done with the marking of documents.

- Four people were wounded by a suspected homemade bomb that exploded at Shanghai's Pudong Airport on Sunday afternoon. They say the man who threw the bomb tried to kill himself with the knife. The explosion occurred at around 1430 hours local time near a passenger line in front of a check-in counter in the second terminal. The man is said to have a neck wound and is being treated at a hospital.

- The South Korean government has started salvaging a ferry that sank off the country's southern coast over two years ago. The Sewol ferry sank in April 2014, leaving 295 people died and 9 missing. Most of the victims died are students taking on a field trip.

- The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute says the number of nuclear warheads worldwide stood about 60,000 in 1990 after the end of the Cold War but the number is now halved to about 31,000 in the new millennium after the leaders of the US and the former Soviet Union signed the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty in 1991. The number declined to about 22,000 in 2010. Efforts to reduce nuclear weapons continued under the New START Treaty signed between the two world superpowers a year after US President Barack Obama committed himself to create a world without nuclear weapons in a speech in Prague.

- Opinion polls show that British people are divided on whether the United Kingdom should remain or leave in the European Union, ahead on the June 23 EU referendum. UK Prime Minister David Cameron has urged people to vote to stay in the EU for the sake of their children and grandchildren. He wrote that plans for education, employment, and taxation would be suspended and people's pensions would be affected due to Brexit.

- A commercial vehicle variant of the Daihatsu Wake kei-car, the Hijet Caddie, was launched and it's priced at 1,188,000 to 1,544,400 Japanese Yen. Although intended to use for small business owners, the Hijet Caddie comes with Smart Assist II safety systems.

2017 Daihatsu Hijet Caddie

- The fourth-generation Renault Clio (Lutecia) range has been updated for the 2017 model year with a revised exterior design and some extras.

2017 Renault Clio

2017 Renault Clio Estate

- The Decepticon Barricade returns in Transformers: The Last Knight as a hunked-up sixth-generation Ford Mustang.

Barricade in Transformers: The Last Knight

- The Love Live! Sunshine!! TV anime series, due this July, will have a global simultaneous launch following its Japan premiere on the 2nd of July at Tokyo MX at 2230 hours (10:30 PM) JST.

TTFN!!!

Mass shooting at Orlando

A mass shooting took place at a gay bar at Orlando, Florida, killing 50 people, marking one of the worst mass killings in US history, exceeding the death toll from the 2007 Virginia Tech incident.

The gunman behind the attack identified as Omar Mateen, age 29, who killed 50 people and wounded 53 at the Pulse club before being shot dead by police. The Islamic State claimed responsibility behind the attack but it is not known if they're involved in this attack.

Reports state that Mateen dialed 911, the emergency number in USA, before the attack and swore allegiance to the Islamic State. Mateen was killed in a crossfire with police officers, after taking hostages at the club.

US President Barack Obama condemned  the attack, calling it not just an act of terror but an act of hate, even for the LGBT community.

Further reading:

1) http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/amp/36513658

2) http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/orlando-nightclub-massacre/amp/orlando-nightclub-shooting-emergency-services-respond-reports-gunman-n590446

3) http://www.nydailynews.com/amp/news/crime/deadly-mass-shooting-orlando-florida-gallery-1.2670541

4) http://m.huffpost.com/us/entry/us_575d878be4b00f97fba88f42/amp

Jubilee of Mercy: Jubilee for the Sick and Persons with Disabilities

Jubilee of Mercy logo

From the 10th to the 12th of June, 2016, people who are suffered from life-threatening diseases as well as their disabilities took part of the Jubilee for the Sick and Persons with Disabilities at St. Peter's Basilica, Vatican, which is part of the ongoing Extraordinary Jubilee of Mercy.

At Sunday's Holy Mass, Pope Francis called for solidarity and mutual acceptance and decried the pursuit for perfect bodies, saying it leads to society hiding away the disabled to avoid offending the sensibilities of "the privileged few".

Report: http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2016/06/12/pope_francis_homily_for_jubilee_of_the_sick_and_disabled_/1236700