TOKIMEKI Runners

As fans of the Love Live! School Idol Project franchise gears up to next year's School Idol Festival ALL-STARS app game as well as the road to 10th anniversary this 2020, the world of Love Live! welcomes a new chapter as they introduced the brand new Nijigasaki High School Idol Club for the whole world to see.

TOKIMEKI Runners

So, the Nijigasaki High School Idol Club, the byproduct of the Perfect Dream Project ever came up from the School Idol Festival app game, before getting your first hands on their first CD, let's get to know Nijigasaki High's finest that will surely become their new personal favorites at the moment.

• Aguri Onishi as Ayumu Uehara, a sophomore who became a school idol because of her childhood friend and her want to make their dreams come true. Although talentless, she's aiming to become a school idol.
• Mayu Sagara as Kasumi Nakasu, a freshman who thinks school idols are the definition of cute and her aim is to become the cutest school idol known.
• Kaori Maeda as Shizuku Osaka, a freshman who got transferred to Nijigasaki High School. She became interested in the theatrical aspect of school idols. She used to be at the drama club but she realized that being a school idol could really help her improve her acting skills.
• i☆Ris's Miyu Kubota as Karin Asaka, a senior who is a pretty girl in a womanly-kind of way. When she says she'll do something, she'll do it.
• Natsumi Murakami as Ai Miyashita, a sophomore who is a solid student and athlete, and on top of that, a school idol.
• Akari Kito as Kanata Konoe, a senior who got transferred to Nijigasaki High. Why is she so sleepy? It's a secret.
• Tomori Kusunoki as Setsuna Yuki, a sophomore who loves school idols and everything about them. She can tell that school idols and the people who support them are positively overflowing with feelings of love.
• Maria Sashide as Emma Verde, a senior transfer student to Nijigasaki who came to Japan from Switzerland because she loves Japanese idols. She studied Japanese really hard to come here.
• Chiemi Tanaka as Rina Tennoji, a freshman who always have a Rina-chan board on her face because her face isn't very expressive but it lets her show how she feels.

So, that's the end of the introduction of the Nijigasaki High School Idol Club, the byproduct of the Perfect Dream Project. Now, let's get to know their first CD now that you got your hands on it.

Their first CD features the new school idol group's first ever song titled TOKIMEKI Runners and in addition, the members are performing their first-ever solo songs for your listening pleasure, a great way to introduce yourselves to the Nijigasaki High School Idol Club.

Welcome to Love Live! School Idol Festival, Nijigasaki High School Idol Club. The whole world's waiting for your arrival and here we are, nine new girls taking their first steps and we can't wait to see what's next for these new arrivals as the preparations for what's next in the world of Love Live! continues.

TRACK LISTINGS:

01.TOKIMEKI Runners

02.夢への一歩

03.ダイアモンド

04.あなたの理想のヒロイン

05.Starlight

06.めっちゃGoing!!

07.眠れる森に行きたいな

08.CHASE!

09.Evergreen

10.ドキピポ☆エモーション

THREATS FROM NORTH KOREA: US sounds word of caution on expansion of Korea ties

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Tuesday the U.S. has “made clear” to South Korea that progress on disarming North Korea should not lag behind the expansion of relations between the two Koreas.

Pompeo said there’s “complete agreement” between Washington and Seoul on this, but his comments to reporters underscore U.S. anxiety over a potential disconnect with its close ally.

Pompeo said the U.S. and South Korea set up a working group, which is meeting in Washington on Tuesday, to ensure they don’t “talk past each other” on their dealings with North Korea. U.S. Special Representative for North Korea Stephen Biegun was holding the talks with his South Korean counterpart, Lee Do-hoon.

“We have made clear to the ROK that we do want to make sure that peace on the peninsula and denuclearization of North Korea aren’t lagging behind the increase in the relationship between the two Koreas,” Pompeo told a news conference, using the acronym for the South’s official name, the Republic of Korea. “We view them as moving forward together.”

Negotiations between the U.S. and North Korea on ending its nuclear program have appeared to stall in the months since President Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un held a historic summit in Singapore, where they made a vague commitment on “denuclearization” of the Korean Peninsula but glossed over how to make it happen.

So while North Korea is pressing for sanctions relief now, the U.S. is continuing to intensify economic restrictions and says it won’t relent until Pyongyang denuclearizes.

In the meantime, South Korea’s liberal government has pressed forward in cooperation with the North, staging brief reunions of divided families and dialing down military tensions. North Korea on Tuesday blew up some of its front-line guard posts on the heavily fortified border as part of an agreement with the South, Seoul’s Defense Ministry said.

That’s not been opposed by the U.S., but last month, South Korea was forced to walk back on a proposal to lift some of its unilateral sanctions against North Korea, which was viewed as premature by Washington. At that time, Trump retorted that Seoul could “do nothing” without Washington’s approval.

While fears of armed conflict between the U.S. and North Korea have reduced since their leaders were trading threats and insults last year, doubts linger over the North’s commitment to giving up its nukes. U.S. officials are also wary of any effort by the North to create a rift in the seven-decade U.S.-South Korean alliance.

Source: Associated Press

Let's Do The News! (November 21, 2018)

- A group of professors and advocates of the Filipino language condemned the Department of Education (DepEd) for supporting the removal of the Filipino and Panitikan as core courses in the curriculum for tertiary level. Alyansa ng Mga Tagapagtanggol ng Wikang Filipino Convenor Dr. David San Juan criticized the DepEd – under the leadership of Education Secretary Leonor Briones – for allegedly supporting the removal of the Filipino and Panitikan a core course in the new general education curriculum in college.

- The Philippine National Police remained firm in its stand not to arrest former First Lady Imelda Marcos without an arrest warrant. Chief Superintendent Benigno Durana Jr., PNP spokesperson, said an arrest warrant has yet to be issued by the concerned court pertaining to the conviction of Marcos. Besides, he added that Marcos has already posted a P150,000-bail for her temporary liberty.

- The guidelines that will pave the way for unlimited rice importation has already been approved and signed by the NFA Council, the highest policy making body of the National Food Authority.

- Pope Francis will travel to Panama in January for the Catholic Church's big youth rally, as confirmed by the Vatican. History’s first Latin American pope will be making his first visit to Central America, though he has been to Mexico, Cuba and several countries in South America.

- Haiti faced a third day of protests and violence on Tuesday as anger grew over allegations of government corruption.

- US President Donald Trump plans to make his first visit to a war zone. As he departed Tuesday for Florida to celebrate the Thanksgiving holiday at his private club in Palm Beach, Trump said he’d soon correct the oversight.

- Boko Haram jihadists have killed 53 soldiers and farmers in three days of attacks in northeastern Nigeria, security sources said Tuesday, in a new show of force ahead of February elections in the West African country.

- Mitsubishi unveiled the heavily facelifted Delica D:5 minivan with a heavily revamped exterior design, new interior, and clean diesel engine.

2019 Mitsubishi Delica D:5

- The fight between Manny Pacquiao and Adrien Broner is all set on January 19 at the MGM Grand, Las Vegas.

- Brandon Vera expects to defend his title on his match against Mauro Cerilli at ONE: Conquest of Champions on Friday at the Mall of Asia Arena.

- The son of veteran actor Tirso Cruz III, Teejay, passed away at the age of 37.

- Mark Estephen confirms she's returning to being a transgender woman.

TTFN!!!

THE IDOLM@STER CINDERELLA GIRLS STARLIGHT MASTER 23 Twin☆kle★Tail

The STARLIGHT MASTER CD range, inspired by THE IDOLM@STER Cinderella Girls Starlight Stage app game, keeps on growing and this 23rd installment of the range shows no signs of slowing them down for the best IDOLM@STER sub-franchise in ages. Does that give a little shine to you?

THE IDOLM@STER CINDERELLA GIRLS
STARLIGHT MASTER 23 Twin☆kle★Tail

The featured song in this installment is titled Twin☆kle★Tail and as featured in the cover, Mika Jougasaki (CV: Haruka Yoshimura) and Rika Jougasaki (CV: Nozomi Yamamoto) performed the latest featured song as heard in the game so if you already mastered this song from DEBUT to MASTER+, here's your chance to listen the full M@STER VERSION so you can listen to this song much better. In addition, there are two additional songs in this installment such as 花のことば by Yumi Aiba (CV: Juri Kimura) and a very special Lunatic Show ～For SS3A rearrange Mix～ by Yuzu Kitami (CV: Larissa Tago Takeda), and Tomoe Murakami (CV: Miharu Hanai).

Like the newest addition to your Starlight Stage playlist? Get one right now and be sure to keep playing THE IDOLM@STER Cinderella Girls Starlight Stage for more!

Don't be afraid!

Poppin'Party's Rimi Ushigome told us that her older sister named Yuri was in the band as the guitarist and singer for Glitter*Green and she's really cool as Rimi told. Stories come and go but a piece of BanG Dream history has arrived to tell the tale for fans of Bushiroad's girls band anime franchise.

Don't be afraid!

Due to inconsistent public demand, a piece of BanG Dream history has arrived and this is the only single Glitter*Green can offer for fans like you. Fans who spent most of their time listening to the song "Don't be afraid!" for only a minute can now listen to this song longer with the extended version never before heard as well as the additional song you wouldn't want to miss.

Those who got the one with the Blu-Ray on it will have more surprise for the fans because this BD features Suzuko Mimori, the voice of Yuri Ushigome from the TV series, performs alongside THE THIRD (TBD), now named RAISE A SUILEN, as well as Mimorin at the Milky Holmes Fan Club Event since the end of 2016.

Stories come and go, but with a piece of BanG Dream history from the sounds of Glitter*Green, legends truly are forever.

Forza Motorsport 7: The car that killed Can-Am racing

As the celebration for Porsche's 70th anniversary comes full circle, the November Spotlight Car of Forza Motorsport 7 showcases how one car killed a motorsport series due to its dominance. I'm talking about the legendary 917/30.



Before taking a drive, let's talk more about this machine. You see, Porsche and Penske are well-known motorsport titans in history and the 917/30 is one of them. Because of its turbocharged 5.4L V12 engine that produces over a thousand horsepower, the 917/30 is the car that put an end to Can-Am racing series forever.

The respected Mark Donohue, who was Roger Penske's trump card in the Can-Am series, piloted the #6 Penske Sunoco 917/30 and won 6 races in a row in the 1973 season, their first and last season it competed in. In fact, it's so dominant, it killed Can-Am for good.

Aside from that, Donohue took it to the Talladega SuperSpeedway and clocked an average of 221.03 mph, eclipsing AJ Foyt's closed circuit world record of 217mph, before Donohue's untimely death. Needless to say, the 917/30 remains an unrivaled legend in motorsport history due to its outrageous performance that gave a final nail to the coffin of the motorsport it competed in.



Of course, digging deeper to the 917/30's outlandish tale is just the half of it because there is one major reason why the 917/30 killed Can-Am racing and that's because it was too fast for the opposition to handle. Several decades on, this motorsport legend is still too fast for anyone to handle such brute force, including me. Getting your foot down, you'll notice how intimidating this car is and trying to handle this machine on the first try is like getting wrestled by a brown bear in the wilderness. That feels downright scary but this is the kind of experience you'll get from a legendary racing machine that killed Can-Am racing.

To demonstrate what's what, the producers invited players to try out this month's spotlight car round Lime Rock Park just to get the feeling of what this destoryer of Can-Am racing does. Roll the tape.



Of course, this can can get round Lime Rock in less than a minute but there are some other drivers that can do faster than the average lap time and only a few understand the biggest potential underneath its intimidating performance raw enough to spell doom on the racing series it competed in in the past.



The Porsche 917/30 maybe the car that killed Can-Am racing but in the process of celebrating 70 years of Porsche, this outlandish motorsport icon really is part of Porsche's motorsport hall of fame and that really is something the next generation of drivers are learning from.

THREATS FROM NORTH KOREA: South Korea's nuclear envoy in Washington

South Korea's nuclear envoy is in Washington to meet his American counterpart amid rising tensions between North Korea and the U.S. following the regime's continued development of weapons and the discovery of undeclared missile bases.

The two allies are expected to hold talks aimed at keeping them on the same page when it comes to dealing with Pyeongyang.

A new bilateral consultative body between Seoul and Washington to discuss North Korea's denuclearization is expected to be inaugurated on Tuesday, local time, as nuclear negotiators
from both countries are scheduled to meet in the U.S.

Arriving in Washington on Monday, South Korea's special representative for Korean Peninsula peace and security affairs, Lee Do-hoon said they will discuss all areas that require close bilateral cooperation.

Lee also said high-level talks between North Korea and the U.S. should take place soon,
explaining that the Trump administration wants to hold a second North Korea-U.S. summit in early January.

Joining Lee for his meeting with Stephen Biegun, the U.S. State Department official in charge of Korea affairs, are officials from Seoul's Unification Ministry and National Security Office.

The U.S. State Department issued a statement on Monday saying the two allies will discuss the continued diplomatic efforts on the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, UN sanctions on the regime and inter-Korean cooperation.


In the meantime, the U.S. has sanctioned another individual for their dealings with North Korea,
this time a South African national for allegedly helping the regime buy oil.

The U.S. Treasury Department says Vladlen Amtchentsev, a Russian-born South African national,
advised an already sanctioned entity, Velmur Management, on how to evade U.S. sanctions to support purchases of oil for the North.

Velmur also assisted a company called Transatlantic Partners, which has been sanctioned for operating in North Korea's energy industry.

The Treasury Department added the two firms are also suspected of laundering millions of dollars in connection with North Korea.


A UN committee said it does not see Japan's reparations to the Korean women forced to serve as sex slaves during World War two enough.

The Committee on Enforced Disappearances said in a report that it is "concerned at the lack of enough reparations to the victims and regrets the state party's position.

It also said that information including the exact number of victims is not enough and that more research needs to be done.

A Japanese official to the UN in Geneva said the report is highly regrettable and said that it only shows a one-sided picture of this issue.


Over 100 South Koreans who visited to North Korea's Mount Geumgangsan to celebrate
the 20th anniversary of the launch of South Korean tours there returned home on Monday.

Chairwoman of Hyundai Group Hyun Jeong-eunsays she expects the program to resume in the near future.

Hyundai Asan spearheaded major inter-Korean projects – both the tours to Mount Geumgangsan and the Gaeseong Industrial Complex.

However the mountain tours stopped after a South Korean tourist was shot dead in 2008.

But, over 100 South Koreans – including Hyundai officials, South Korea's lawmakers and former unification ministers -- visited the mountain from Sunday to Monday to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the tour program.

Source: Arirang News

Let's Do The News! (November 20, 2018)

- Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte is OK with the selection of the Mislatel consortium as the third major telecommunications player, according to the Malacanang. Presidential Spokesman Salvador Panelo reiterated that the President’s primary concern was that the new major player made the “best offer” and followed the rules, including the regulations on the bidding process.

- Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon asked his colleagues in the Senate to look into the issues surrounding the construction of the Binondo-Intramuros Bridge. Drilon, citing warnings aired by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, said its construction may cause the delisting of four centuries-old churches from the World Heritage Site.

- Senator Paolo “Bam” Aquino IV is now pushing for a bill that seeks to provide incentives and benefits to overseas Filipino workers who wish to start a business in the Philippines.

- Researchers warned that by the end of the 21st century, many parts of the world may have to cope with up to six climate catastrophes at once, ranging from heat waves and wildfires to diluvian rains and deadly storm surges. “Human society will be faced with the devastating combined impacts of multiple interacting climate hazards,” said co-author Erik Franklin, a researcher at the University of Hawaii’s Institute of Marine Biology.

- The United States failed to water down a UN resolution on combatting sexual harassment and violence against women despite backing from Russia, China, India, several Muslim countries and the Vatican.

- NASA has picked an ancient river delta as the landing site for its uncrewed Mars 2020 rover, to hunt for evidence of past life on Earth’s neighboring planet, according to officials.

- Russian and US officials say space cooperation remains strong despite worsening tensions. Roscosmos director Dmitry Rogozin and Bill Gerstenmaier, head of NASA’s human explorations and operations, said after a conference marking the 20th anniversary of the International Space Station that their agencies plan to collaborate on developing a moon orbiting outpost.

- The United States considers adding Venezuela to the list of state sponsors of terrorism but no final decision has been made, according to sources. Adding Venezuela to the list could limit U.S. economic assistance and impose financial restrictions on a country already suffering from hyperinflation, mass migration and shortages of food and medicine.

- Carlos Ghosn would face arrest by Japanese authorities after the Nissan chairman was questioned over suspected under-reporting of his corporate salary by several hundreds of millions of yen. Nissan issued the statement that they will remove Ghosn from his positions as chairman and representative director. Also, Nissan representative director Greg Kelly will be fired for  “deeply involved” in reporting compensation amounts in the Tokyo Stock Exchange securities report that were less than the actual amount.

- Brian Bowen II, the former five-star prospect at the center of an FBI investigation into college basketball corruption, filed a federal racketeering lawsuit against Adidas on Monday.

- Washington Wizards fined John Wall, All-Star guard, for verbal assault against coach Scott Brooks in a recent practice session. After teammate Jeff Green and Brooks pushed Wall and Wizards teammates to raise the level of intensity in a practice last week, Wall fired back with "f--- you," toward Brooks, league sources said.

TTFN!!!

THREATS FROM NORTH KOREA: South Korea's top nuclear envoy left to US

South Korea's top nuclear envoy left for the U.S. today, as Seoul aims to restart denuclearization talks with North Korea.

Lee Do-hoon, Seoul's special representative for Korean Peninsula peace and security affairs will be in Washington for three days for meetings with his U.S. counterpart Stephen Biegun, Washington's special representative for North Korea.

While discussions on North Korea's denuclearization and developments on the Korean Peninsula will be key agendas, the two diplomats are also to planning to fine-tune details of their new working group, announced after their last meeting in Seoul a month ago.

And officials from the National Security Office and the Unification Ministry are known to have joined him on the trip.
Lee said high-level talks between Pyeongyang and Washington will also be discussed.

At the APEC Summit in Papua New Guinea, South Korean President Moon Jae-in proposed a joint project called the Digital Innovation Fund, aimed at fostering the Pacific Rim's digital capabilities.

The South Korean leader also reaffirmed his resolve to play a part in advancing sustainable growth in the region.

On the sidelines of the summits in Singapore and Papua New Guinea, President Moon held bilateral meetings with Russian President Vladimir Putin, U.S. Vice President Mike Pence and Chinese President Xi Jinping.

President Moon and Pence reaffirmed that talks between Pyeongyang and Washington are progressing well and Pence requested the South Korean leader to engage in closer communications with the Kim Jong-un regime.

At the summit between Presidents Moon and Xi, the leaders both saw the second North Korea-U.S. summit and a planned visit to Seoul by Kim Jong-un as crucial in resolving the denuclearization issue.

Some 100 South Koreans, including the chairperson of Hyundai Group Hyun Jeong-eun, headed North on Sunday to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Mount. Geumgangsan tour program which started in 1998.

However tours to North Korean Mountain halted in 2008 after a South Korean tourist was shot dead

Since then, Hyundai Group has tried to resume them, but sanctions on North Korea stood in their way.

Still, on Sunday, 10 years since the tours stopped, the two Koreas celebrated the 20th anniversary together.

The celebration was suggested by Hyundai, and North Korea agreed to it.

The chair of Hyundai Group, Hyun Jeong-eun is attending together with South Korean lawmakers and former ministers of unification, while the North is sending around 80 officials from its Asia-Pacific Committee.

South Korea's Ministry of Unification says the two sides will not be talking about resuming the tours this time.

Source: Arirang News

Let's Do The News! (November 19, 2018)

- Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte directed the entire government to take an "active role" in the administration's war against drugs over a week after the chief executive bared his plan in a lecture at Malacanang. Under Memorandum Circular No. 53, Duterte directed all government offices, agencies, and instrumentalities, including government-owned or controlled corporations and state universities and colleges to take an active role in the anti-illegal drugs campaign.

- The secretary of the Mindanao Development Authority (MinDA) and Iligan City’s representative to the Lower House said they support the extension of martial law in Mindanao up to next year.

- About 452 policemen from six provinces and two cities of the region are the recipient of nine traiing and seminar programs of the Police Regional Office Cordillera that started in November. Supt. Pelita Tacio, PROCOR information officer, said there are nine trainings that started on November 1, with three still ongoing. Each policeman took different programs.

- Asia-Pacific leaders failed to agree on a communique at a summit in Papua New Guinea on Sunday for the first time in their history as deep divisions between the United States and China over trade and investment stymied cooperation.

- Russian President Vladimir Putin told US Vice President Mike Pence that Russia did not meddle in the 2016 US election, according to reports, during discussions about an upcoming meeting between Putin and US President Donald Trump.

- So far, the death toll from the Camp Fire in Northern California has jumped to 77.

- Hector Beltran Leyva, a Mexican drug lord whose cartel earned a reputation as one of the country's most vengeful and ruthless, died at the age of 56 of cardiac arrest, according to authorities.

- Lamborghini's Squadra Corse showcased their Urus ST-X Concept car that signals the arrival of its upcoming one-make race series coming soon as well as the one-off SC18.



- The MTRCB chairperson comments on the issue between the Philippine National Police and the ABS-CBN TV series Ang Probinsyano. Last weekend, the PNP withdrawn their support to the said TV series that starred Coco Martin due to the storyline.

- Check out the full trailer of Love Live! Sunshine!! The School Idol Movie.



TTFN!!!

Doctor Who S11E07

The recent episode of Doctor Who puts a terrifying meaning to retail as The Doctor and her companions are going deeper to the galaxy's biggest retail and find out what's going on.

Having received a mysterious message from the package, The Doctor and her companions are investigating the galaxy's biggest retail, known as Kerblam!, posing as workers, and what they find in the underbelly of Kerblam! is more than what they're expecting.

This is the first time in history we get to see the title of the episode that ends with an exclamation point and believe it or not, the opening sequence of the episode gave us the jive because of the fez. Yes, Doctor, it's still you but still, fezzes are cool. 

However, no time to get awed over the fez because what this episode expresses is the horrifying future where robots taking over humans (almost) in the workforce and it's hard to imagine what life be as shown in this episode when it happens in the coming years.

Technology in the workforce. If it gets too much, there can be some fatal consequences more deadly than the Kerblam! bubble wrap from the episode.

NEXT EPISODE PREVIEW:

2018 NASCAR Monster Energy Cup - Ford EcoBoost 400

Logano, Kyle Busch, Martin Truex Jr., and Harvick. The Final 4 are all set and the question is, who will win the 2018 NASCAR Monster Energy Cup? In the Ford EcoBoost 400 race of the 2018 NASCAR Monster Energy Cup, this epic finale will decide which one of the Championship 4 will be crowned the champion.

Kevin Harvick, who is one of the four contenders for the title, won Stage 1, while non-championship driver Kyle Larson dominated Stage 2, and with that, the race for the championship gets intense as Kyle Busch lost four places during trouble at the pit stop. Then, Logano out-pitted Truex by a time. 

As the climax approaches, caution has thrown as the #19 of Daniel Suarez caught in smoke and the right side slammed against the wall. As the race restarted, Martin Truex Jr. charged but Joey Logano overtook him and continues all the way until Joey Logano got what he wanted; his first Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Championship title!

What an unbelievable upset! For a guy who won two races in this season and over twenty in his lifetime career, Joey Logano's dream of becoming the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Champion come true and that really is a Sunday worth remembering for him and Team Penske. 

This season marks the end of the Ford Fusion racecars and for a NASCAR driver like Joey Logano, this is the biggest sendoff ever pulled off and with that championship win, it's a great honor for a Ford driver like him to say goodbye to such machines as the era of the Mustang in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series begins next year.

And that is the end of the 2018 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series. See you next year in Daytona 500!