Let's Do The News! (June 6, 2017)

- The Philippine government expressed concerns that several Arab nations cutting ties with Qatar will have ripple effects on Filipinos working overseas.

- National Irrigation Administration Chief Ricardo Visaya chose not to talk about the ongoing siege in Marawi City. According to the former AFP Chief of Staff, he entrusted everything to his successor Gen. Eduardo Aῆo in resolving the Marawi conflict where he believes that the whole AFP will succeed in their operations against the Maute Group.

- The death toll from last week's Kabul truck-bomb explosion has reached 150, according to Afghan leader Ashraf Ghani, making the deadliest attack in the Afghan capital since the ouster of the Taliban in 2001.

- Singaporean authorities are investigating the protest by numerous blindfolded activists who held up books on a subway train in a call for justice for 22 people detained in 1987 under a tough internal security law. 30 years ago, twenty-two people are detained under the colonial-era Internal Security Act (ISA) for their alleged involvement in a Marxist conspiracy to overthrow the government.

- Veteran actor-comedian Jerry Lewis has been hospitalized in Las Vegas for treatment of a urinary tract infection but is expected to recover in time to travel to Canada later this month for his next movie shoot.

- The Mountain Dew Car Pack for Forza Horizon 3 has been unveiled and will be available at the XBOX Live marketplace tomorrow. It will feature seven additional machines such as the Lotus 3-Eleven, Ferrari F50 GT, Holden FX Sedan, and more.

- Vauxhall bids goodbye to the VXR8 with the final special edition GTS-R, armed with the supercharged V8 engine producing 587bhp, making this the most powerful Vauxhall ever built for 74,000 pounds.



- TVR will unveil their first all-new model this September 8th.

- This lovely Frederica Miyamoto figure as seen from THE IDOLM@STER Cinderella Girls is now yours to order starting at 13,000 Yen plus taxes and delivery and it will arrive this January.



TTFN!!!

Geekdom's Guide to...surviving a convention

If you're a teenager or a young adult with love for all things sci-fi, anime, comic book, and video game, a comic-book convention or anime convention, whatever they may call it, considered to be their greatest weekends of their lives because this is where geeks and nerds gather themselves not just for the panels, the events, and everything in store but for the cosplay everybody's doing during their three-day weekend.

Conventions happen once a year and if you managed to gain an admission to them, what are the best ways to survive a convention?

• MAKE A PLAN! - Before heading to the convention, you'll need to know what panels you will be entering, some celebrity guests you might be encountering, group photos you will take on if you got the right outfit, and everything you might come across at the convention. Convention committee will hand you out a guide so you will know what you will expect from there so don't feel nervous to plan first before setting off. Also, if you're into cosplays, costumes are a must and you need to notify everyone what you should be dressing as during the convention.
• KNOW YOUR LUGGAGE - Luggage plays a major role for convention-goers and for cosplayers, dressing as one of two characters they've set up for themselves really means they need to bring on the packs to carry their outfits but what about stuff they bought from the convention? This is a cracker of a dilemma because as convention-goers, they need to know the things they'll need to carry and if things get a little heavy, it will be a major pain in the arms on the convention or worse, the common "bumping on other people without knowing" scenario so know your luggage very well. Carrying paper bags won't help because when it gets heavy, it shreds easily and you will be massively embarrassed by your peers so it's best to carry a durable, reusable bag while dealing with the extra stuff for the convention when your backpack's jammed with your cosplay essentials and no room for souvenirs to spare.
• UNDERSTAND AROUND YOU - You got yourself the necessities to complete the cosplay you've always wanted to do at the convention but hold on just a darn minute because not all cosplays are acceptable in the convention because there are rules for certain cosplays. One such example is the weapon props and if the character you're cosplaying as comes with a weapon, such in the case of the Biohazard cosplays for example, you need to fully understand what's going on around here and thanks to current affairs surrounding us, cosplaying can be very nervous. Some conventions will allow anyone carrying a weapon replicas but they need to subject to peacebonding regulations. In the case of carrying gun replicas, that's going to be a very complicating process because as rules apply, they need to be non-working and can't be fired upon as well as the orange markings on it, like most replicas had. Also, the trigger needs to be removed so when they see that it's not working, they will allow it as long as you abide by the agreement the committee they set to you. Be sure that you promise to them not to flash those replicas around you or you will be ended up in the slammer.
• BE IN YOUR BEST BEHAVIOR - As your parents warned you, you best to behave yourselves while you're at the convention and when you encounter someone donning a cosplay so rare, super rare, super super rare, or ultra rare, be courteous before asking them to take a picture. A simple please and thank you would do the job rather nicely.
• KNOW YOUR ALLOWANCE! - Getting an admission to the convention can be very costly at the start but if you pre-register, think how much you will save some on your allowance but be warned, the later you pre-register, the more expensive your admission fee will be. Even if you are in the convention, it's important that you need some ample amount of cash on your wallet in case you want to buy some snacks or some souvenirs from the convention.
• HAVE FUN! - Once you're in the convention, you don't have to worry about a thing or two so take your time to see what's in store at the convention, meet new people, and make great memories.

And there you have it, the Geekdom's Guide to surviving a convention. There's nothing more fun than being prepared at the convention because you'll never know what to expect from there and more importantly, have fun!

2017 NASCAR Monster Energy Cup - AAA 400 Drive for Autism

Dover International Speedway is the next stop for the 2017 NASCAR Monster Energy Cup and with the summer season imminent, things are really heating up for the drivers gunning for the title and the glory they desired from the very beginning.

In Lap 16, Kyle Busch's pit stop ended in a disaster as the left rear wheel went loose and caused catastrophic damage to the left rear of his car. In Lap 65, the #41 car by went out of control after it collided with the #2, while Martin Truex Jr. scored his seventh mid-race stage clear. Then, on lap 396, David Ragan's car suffered mechanical failures and he was therefore out. and then later, major pileup wreckage occurred in Dover during overtime.

In the end, Jimmie Johnson is the winner of the AAA 400 Drive for Autism race of the 2017 NASCAR Monster Energy Cup. This is his 11th win of this career. Next race is on Pocono on the 11th of June.

Let's Do The News! (June 3, 2017)

- The Armed Forces of the Philippines declared a humanitarian pause for the crisis in Marawi City for trapped civilians. According to them, they carried out the 4-hour humanitarian pause in order the rescue civilians that were trapped by the conflict in the area.

- Transport group PISTON carried out a transport strike during the first day of classes, however passengers were reportedly unaffected. The group against the jeepney phaseout assembled at Quezon City Circle and went straight to the office of  Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board and the office of the Department of Transportation in Mandaluyong City.

- Following last weekend's Central London attack, Facebook wanted to make its social media platform a "hostile environment" for terrorists in a statement issued after attackers killed seven people in London and prompted Prime Minister Theresa May to demand action from internet firms.

- Bahrain will cut diplomatic ties with Qatar, accusing its fellow Gulf Arab state of backing terrorism and interfering in Bahrain's internal affairs. According to a statement, the close ally of Saudi Arabia was also cutting air and sea contact with Qatar and was giving its citizens in Qatar 14 days to leave.

- At Game 2 of this year's NBA Finals, the Golden State Warriors are leading the series at 2-0 after defeating Cleveland Cavaliers at the score of 132-113.

- Electronic Arts announced Need For Speed: Payback, which will launch on PS4 and XBOX One this November 10.

- The Metal Gear franchise will spawn orchestra concerts in Japan, North America, and Europe as part of celebrating 30 years of the hit stealth-action game series.

- Director Doug Liman revealed further details about the upcoming Edge of Tomorrow sequel film on the recent podcast. The sequel film titled Live, Die, Repeat and Repeat will be a prequel and a sequel to the said film.

- Actress Kiray Celis is named the winner in the first series of ABS-CBN's I Can Do That for her high-wire cycling act.

- In extraordinary news, a certain netizen named Janneth Enriquez managed to save a total of 43,000 pesos worth her tuition in three months time by saving all the five and ten pesos coins she got from her sari-sari store.

TTFN!!!

Doctor Who S10E08

Doctor Who S10E08

The Monks saga concludes in the recent episode of Doctor Who, titled The Lie of The Land, and in this episode, sacrifices need to be done to free the world from the lies fed by the Monks.

As the world's history fabricated by the lies the Monks done to them, Bill Potts and Nardole teamed up once again to save The Doctor and put the end of the lies once and for all. Stopping the Monks isn't an easy task and the key to stopping the Monks lies to an old enemy none other than Missy. Heeding her advice, the team infiltrated the Monks' pyramid but to stop the source of all the lies, a major sacrifice has to be made to free the world from the Monks' rule of history.

It was shocking and mind-boggling from start to finish. It's hard to explain how this episode unfolds from one minute to the next and the battle against the Monks has been one heck of a ride for viewers elsewhere, even plus ones do guarantee happy endings as Missy ruled out the guarantee.

So, what do you think of The Lie of The Land? Gary Pollard from Millennium FX explains what in the recent DW Fan Show webcast.



NEXT EPISODE PREVIEW:

Multiple casualties in central London attack

According to the Scotland Yard, about six people are reportedly killed in an attack in central London where three assailants were shot dead by authorities.

A white van hit several pedestrians on London Bridge just after 2200 hours local time. Three men left the vehicle and stabbed numerous people in Borough Market, south of the bridge. Armed officers confronted and killed the suspects eight minutes later.

Prime Minister Theresa May described the incidents as "dreadful events" while London Mayor Sadiq Khan called it "a deliberate and cowardly attack on innocent Londoners."

United Kingdom has witnessed terrorist attacks this year. First, there was the attack near the parliament where five people killed when a car was driven at pedestrians on Westminster Bridge and a police officer was stabbed outside Parliament, then there's the suicide attack at a concert in Manchester that killed 22 people including children.

Second-generation Jeep Compass

This is the new Jeep Compass and while this is basically a Jeep, it's smaller than today's Cherokee and it is willing, able, and ready to take on the world's noteworthy compact crossovers you name the rest, especially homegrown ones like the Chevrolet Trax. Although this is as smaller than today's Jeeps but bigger than the Renegade, is the Compass worthy enough to be TRAIL RATED?

2017 Jeep Compass

2017 Jeep Compass

Not yet at the moment because before you can determine if this Jeep is certified TRAIL RATED like the rest of the Jeeps, you need to dig deeper on what the new Jeep Compass is. First, let's look at the design and while almost everything looks vaguely similar to today's Cherokee, noteworthy for its styling that looks like one of the baddies from Pikmin or so they say, the front looks like it came from today's Grand Cherokee, so for that Jeep that's smaller than the others, it has some of the Cherokee DNA implanted on the new Compass. Job well done, Jeep.

2017 Jeep Compass

On the inside, it still looks like every other Jeeps of today so the new Compass isn't a big deal for ordinary drivers everywhere. Although what you called above average, the interior boasts some nifty features fit enough for today's drivers and it's surprisingly roomy enough for your estate sale stuff. With a certain optional extra, the cargo floor can be moved up or down to keep boot space well organized for the most demanding schedules of today.

2017 Jeep Compass

Now, we're back at the main question and if the new Compass is capable enough to bore the TRAIL RATED certification only the best Jeeps has to offer, Can be a no and a yes, I believe. In a normal Compass, it feels like it only works on your grocery trips, fetching kids from school, city trips, and pretty much about it, but in the Trailhawk variant, which is a certified TRAIL-RATED Jeep, it's good enough for the harshest regions, great open spaces, running around town, and relaxing Sunday drives on America's finest, thanks to Jeep's Active Drive Low system with 20:1 crawl ratio and low range. Couple that with the Selec-Terrain Traction Control System and Hill Descent Control, and this Compass is a new dimension in compact four-wheel drive crossovers.

Power comes from the 2.4L Tigershark MultiAir 2 engine with 9-speed automatic delivering 180HP of power output, 175lb-ft of torque, and a ton of towing capacity for the Compass, which sounds very moxie for a crossover of that size. Handling-wise, the Jeep feels pretty much like a Dodge Dart and it's very docile indeed for an American car and with over 70 optional safety and security features combined with the latest technology and contemporary engineering, this Compass is all about watching its occupants while dealing with today's road situations by any means necessary.

The Compass starts at 20,995 plus on-road costs, which makes it one of the most reasonably priced crossovers in America, although it is two grand more than its smaller cousin, the European-engineered Jeep Renegade. Whether if you're going around town or playing rough on a quiet Sunday drives, there's a Renegade that will match your preference. What to like about the new Compass is its pricing, features, styling, and offroad capability on the Trailhawk variant but what's not to like about it is the interior above average for first-time buyer as well as its Dart-like behavior that is, again, above average.

Photo: Fiat Chrysler Automobiles