TITANIC OF TICON
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Tuesday, 29 May 2018
Tuesday, 10 October 2017
NRA supports ATF reg, not new law on 'bump stocks
The long-simmering debate in this country over gun rights took a dramatic turn Thursday when the National Rifle Association unexpectedly joined an effort to restrict a device used to accelerate gunfire in the Las Vegas massacre.
The NRA’s announcement gave political cover to a growing number of Republicans who have indicated a willingness to consider regulating “bump stocks,” devices that allow a legal semiautomatic rifle to mimic the rapid discharge of a fully automatic weapon. Less clear is whether the move signals an opening for further action on an issue that has divided the nation and produced virtually no new restrictions in recent years despite a steady stream of mass shootings.
“The NRA believes that devices designed to allow semi-automatic rifles to function like fully-automatic rifles should be subject to additional regulations,” read a statement issued by the powerful organization Thursday.
Federal law enforcement officials have said that Las Vegas gunman Stephen Paddock fired weapons outfitted with bump stocks Sunday, leaving 58 dead and hundreds injured in a matter of minutes. Experts have said that audio of the attack makes clear that the shooter unleashed a torrent of bullets faster than he could have fired without adapting his rifles.
'Victoria & Abdul' goes skin-deep on great story
(CNN)Even taking acknowledged liberties with what's billed as a "mostly" a true story, "Victoria & Abdul" is such a fascinating, relevant slice of history it's a shame that the movie isn't a bit less superficial. Anchored by Judi Dench's towering presence, what emerges is a small-scale film on the order of "Driving Miss Daisy," yet which leaves its protagonists' motives frustratingly murky.
Set in 1887, the movie finds Dench's Queen Victoria bent and wizened, an octogenarian who has outlived most of her contemporaries and has little use for the toadies around her. The monarch is unexpectedly smitten, for want of a better word, by Abdul Karim (Indian star Ali Fazal), a young clerk who has been dispatched from India to deliver a gift as part of the Queen's Golden Jubilee.
Abdul appears to instinctively reciprocate that admiration, for reasons that writer Lee Hall ("Billy Elliot") and director Stephen Frears ("The Queen") leave vague. As his perplexed colleague (Adeel Akhtar) notes, the British have done no favors to their homeland as a colony, which makes his immediate devotion puzzling.
Simply put, it would help if we knew more -- indeed, almost anything -- about him. While there's nothing wrong with being inspired to Google the subject after watching a movie, it shouldn't feel like a prerequisite.
Abdul becomes the queen's constant companion and Munshi, or teacher, instructing her about India, Urdu and Islam. The relationship unsettles the court, breeding suspicion regarding his motives from such quarters as the queen's son (Eddie Izzard), doctor (Paul Higgins) and Prime Minister (Michael Gambon, briefly).
Sunday, 8 October 2017
Alice And Wendy In 'Kingdom Hearts' Were Voiced By The Original 1950s Movie Actress
Kathryn Beaumont was 13-15 years old when she voiced Alice and Wendy in the original 1950s animated #Disney films Alice in Wonderland (1951) and Peter Pan (1953). She returned 50 years later to voice the same characters in 2002 for #KingdomHearts at the age of 64, before finally retiring from the characters and voice acting in 2005.
Saturday, 7 October 2017
Meet the World's Funniest Dog for New year
Martha the mastiff won the title of World's Ugliest Dog for 2017 at the Sonoma-Marin Fair in California.
Dogs Make You Laugh Out Loud: Meet the world's funniest and coolest dogs ... out with joy after being reunited with his owner after two years apart. ... Also, don't miss the new series of The Dog Rescuers (Tue C5 8pm)
Thursday, 5 October 2017
Highlight Reel #335 - Barrel Paradox Crashes Game
It’s been many years since the original 3DS launched. There’s a new version with better 3D, improved controls, and of course, a wealth of excellent games to play. There’s also a new 2DS XL that can do everything its 3D brother can do, aside from 3D.
Below, find our 12 favorite games for the 3DS and 2DS. All of these games will play on the original 3DS, the 2DS, and the New 3DS.
The 12 Best Games For 3DS And 2DS
It’s been many years since the original 3DS launched. There’s a new version with better 3D, improved controls, and of course, a wealth of excellent games to play. There’s also a new 2DS XL that can do everything its 3D brother can do, aside from 3D.
Below, find our 12 favorite games for the 3DS and 2DS. All of these games will play on the original 3DS, the 2DS, and the New 3DS.
Game About Being An Asshole Goose Looks Hilarious
An upcoming game starring a naughty goose combines stealth gameplay and puzzle solving, allowing players to cause mischief and mayhem on a small farm. It’s silly fun that I never knew I wanted until I saw the trailer.
Developed by Australian developer House House, makers of the bizarre Push Me, Pull You, an untitled game starring a goose will allow players to cause trouble as a flappy waterfowl and terrorize a hapless gardener. In alpha gameplay, the goose can be seen furiously honking as well as engaging in some trickery to splash the gardener with his own sprinkler.
The game doesn’t have a playable demo or anything for the moment. It seems you’ll have to wait until it releases in 2018 to get your fill of tactical goose-pionage action.
The Star Wars Battlefront II Beta Shows EA Has Made Better Choices This Time
Star Wars Battlefront II’s multiplayer went into a semi-open beta today for players who preordered. I’ve spent most of the day blasting away. A few small changes from the previous game makes it much more focused and exciting to play.
2015’s Star Wars Battlefront felt fragmented at launch, thin on content and lacking the grand scope found in 2005’s Battlefront II. The 2005 game had numerous classes to pick, a ton of vehicles, and great maps to play on. Battlefront II (not to be confused with Battlefront II) brings back classes and revamps how bonuses work. These changes aren’t revolutionary, but they make the multiplayer a ton of fun. Whether you’re defending a space tank in the objective heavy, ground battles of Galactic Assault mode or blowing up ships in Starfighter Assault, everything feels a lot more streamlined.
Returning to classes helps everyone find a role on the battlefield. Players can choose from four classes: assault, heavy, officer, and specialist. Assault and heavy classes are standard infantry units that can swarm objectives with heavy firepower. The officer buffs nearby allies to give them more health and boost their damage. Meanwhile, specialists can mark enemies with thermal binoculars and use sniper rifles. The classes creates a team dynamic that 2015’s Battlefront was sorely lacking.
Calm Down With These Stress-Free, Non-Violent Video Games
Inspired by games from the 2016 Self-Care Jam (which Kotaku mined for favorites), MetaFilter users recently named their favorite calming video games. Some will be familiar, but others are deep cuts by independent developers. Most aren’t for winning or losing, just exploring, interacting, and existing. None of them force you to battle other players in a tense show-down. Try these out if you’re too stressed out for Overwatch or Plague Inc.
Toys
Take care of pets and plants, or just exist, without the stress of a dying Tamagotchi or depressed family of Sims.
- Viridi (Android/iOS): Take care of a potted succulent.
- Neko Atsume (Android/iOS): Collect cartoon cats like Pokémon that never have to fight.
- ISLANDS: Non-Places (PC/Mac/iOS): Play with ten small, abstracted scenes full of vending machines and palm trees.
- Mountain (PC/Linux/Mac/Android/iOS): Be a mountain, which is just as non-action-packed as it sounds.
Puzzles
Solve untimed puzzles in beautiful environments.
- Monument Valley (Android/iOS/Windows Phone): Twist and explore geometric, castle-like architecture as a princess and, in volume 2, her mother.
- The Witness (PC/Mac/iOS/PS4/Xbox): Tease out the logic of schematics on a Myst-like island.
Exploration
Some of these games give you a goal, some tell a story, some just give you a space to explore.
- Abzû (PC/PS4/Xbox): Swim with fish through a pastel oceanscape.
- Fugl (PC/Mac): Fly around a pixellated world as a pixellated bird.
- Firewatch: After you win this game as a Wyoming fire lookout, wander around the lush forest.
- Proteus (PC/Mac): Walk around a deserted island for three days and trigger a mystical experience in this single-serving walking simulator.
- No Man’s Sky (PC/PS4): Fly around a massive procedurally-generated galaxy of planets.
- Everything (PC/Linux/Mac/PS4): Shrink and grow as various animals in a procedurally generated world with a “Powers of Ten”-style scale.
I have two personal recommendations:
- Samorost (Browser/PC/Mac/Linux/Android/iOS): A point-and-click adventure. As a speechless gnome, you’ll save a sleepy fantasy world full of magic mushrooms and Miyazaki-like creatures. This three-game series, with earthy art and a whimsical soundtrack, brings back memories of 1996’s The Neverhood.
- Osmos (PC/Mac/Linux/Android/iOS): This single-player spiritual predecessor to the multiplayer casual game Agar.io is far less aggressive. You still have to consume everything smaller and avoid everything bigger, but once you get good, piloting your one-celled organism around the screen feels calming.
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