Month: April 2019

Egyptian court to hear challenge to presidential term limits as supporters push for Sisi to stay on

Posted on by bamdj

An Egyptian court has agreed to hear a challenge to the two-term limit for the presidency, a potential first step towards changing the constitution to allow Abdel Fattah el-Sisi a third term as president.  

Mr Sisi, a former general who has crushed virtually all political opposition, has said publicly he plans to serve only two terms but many Egyptians suspect he will try to stay on as president.   

Ayman Abdel-Hakim Ramadan, a lawyer who supports Mr Sisi, filed a court case demanding that Egypt’s parliament debate the two-term limit and consider changing it. The court has agreed to hear the case on December 23.

Mr Ramadan made no secret of his hope the Mr Sisi would stay in office indefinitely, as previous Egyptian leaders have done. "I love el-Sisi very much and I believe in him," he said. "I want him president for life."

Mr Ramadan and his fellow petitioners wrote in their court filing that it would be “unfair to the great Egyptian people” if Mr Sisi’s term was limited to eight years and he was not given enough time to deal with the country’s security and economic problems. 

Egypt’s constitution was rewritten after the 2011 revolution which overthrew Hosni Mubarak, the longtime dictator of Egypt. 

The constitution was then rewritten again after Mr Sisi and other military leaders overthrew Mohammed Morsi, the elected Muslim Brotherhood president, in a military coup in 2013. 

The latest version of the constitution, which includes the two-term limit on the presidency, was overwhelmingly approved by a referendum in 2014.  

Any changes to the constitution would have to be approved by parliament, which is dominated by Mr Sisi’s supporters. The amendments would then have to be ratified in a national referendum. 

Mr Sisi won re-election in March with 97 per cent of the vote. Egyptian security forces arrested and intimidated all serious challengers and human rights groups denounced the election as “farcical”. 

While Mr Ramadan appears to have acted on his volition in filing the lawsuit, the case was widely covered in Egyptian state media, suggesting governmental approval for the move.  

FIFA 19 Ultimate Team has a new mode called Division Rivals

Posted on by bamdj

FIFA 19’s Ultimate Team has a brand new mode called Division Rivals.

Division Rivals replaces FUT’s online seasons mode, and is designed to appeal to a mid-tier level of player, below the hardcore-focused FUT Champions mode and above the casual-focused Squad Battles mode.

Here’s how it works: you play a number of placement matches which are used to determine your skill rating. You’re then placed into one of 10 divisions, with progression tied to your skill rating (the mode will show you how far away you are from a promotion in terms of skill rating). Here’s how it looks in-game:

Each week, you compete in a weekly competition against players within your division for ranking and prizes, in a similar fashion to Squad Battles mode. There are five ranks on the ladder, and at the end of each weekly competition you make progress towards the next rank, with your weekly rewards corresponding to where you finish that week. Here’s how it looks in-game:

Your weekly competition pool is determined by your overall skill rating, which determines your division. Your rank, which is determined by your weekly score, determines your rewards for that week.

There’s more! On top of all this is another set of points you accumulate through Division Rivals, called Champions Points. These Champions Points are used to qualify for the Weekend League (I’ve reported on FIFA’s gruelling ultra hardcore Weekend League before). So, in FUT 19, Rivals replaces the daily knockout tournament from previous FIFA games as the new way to qualify for the Weekend League.

“Based on the feedback we heard from our community, some people found it a bit of a grind to get into the Weekend League,” FIFA creative director Matt Prior told Eurogamer.

It’s important to note that Champions Points can be banked. So, if you earn enough points to compete in an that week’s Weekend League, but for whatever reason you can’t actually play FIFA that weekend, you can bank them and use them when you have the time to devote to playing. But you can’t stack qualification progress – aka, you can’t have two entries into the Weekend League.

In summary, there are three points you progress in Rivals. After each match you get a recap of your weekly score, which is tied to your weekly ranking rewards, your skill rating, which is tied to your Division Rivals division, and your Champions Points, which are tied to your qualification for the Weekend League.

Got all that?

Interestingly, when your rank is determined, you’re presented with a number of different rewards to choose from. One of these rewards is extra Champions Points. So, you might have been unable to qualify for the Weekend League that week, but if you redeem those extra points, you’ll get in.

Elsewhere, EA Sports has revamped the FUT Champions hub and, via the Champions Channel, added a way for players to learn from the best players. You can watch replays of matches played by the best FUT Champions players with button inputs displayed, so you can see exactly what they’re pressing at certain times. The replay viewer lets you skip to certain key moments from a match, so you can jump to goals, but entire games are there for you to analyse.

Meanwhile, FUT 19 has new pack opening cutscenes, and the addition of Europa and Champions League items that work in the same was as Team of the Week items do. You can sort items quicker, too. You can use the right stick to flick items up to the transfer market or down to quick sell. Click the stick in to send to your club. This new sorting system lets you quickly manage your packs, which is welcome.

FUT 19 has a new Player Pick pack type. This lets you choose a pull from between two and five players. “Neymar might be good for me but not as good for someone else because of, for example, chemistry,” Prior said. “The player pick pack type gives players more control over what they get, with a variety of players being surfaced and the player having to make the choice as to which one fits their team.”

The Player Pick pack type is in addition to the disclosure of pack odds, which is hitting FUT for the first time with FIFA 19. EA has yet to reveal exactly how this will work, but an announcement is expected soon.

And finally, FUT 19 Icons include Rivaldo, Cruyff, Lampard, Eusebio, Seedorf, Raul, Makelele, Gerrard, Klose, Cannavaro. Expect more to be announced.

Three months after the election, here’s why Sweden won’t have a government for Christmas

Posted on by bamdj

Over three months since its general election, Sweden is still unable to form a new government – so what are their options?

So far, two candidates to lead the country have been rejected by parliament – which had never even happened once in Sweden until this autumn – leaving the country in the middle of a delicate process.

What’s changed?

Elections in September left the populist hard-right Sweden Democrats – pariahs amongst the traditional parties – in third place with 62 MPs out of 349. Their ascent and the 2015 European migration crisis have led the larger parties to get tougher on immigration. The two traditional blocs came up virtually tied, but neither one can hope to govern without brokering deals beyond the usual alliances.

The centre-left Social Democrats, though maintaining a 101-year streak as largest party, slumped to 28.3 per cent of the vote, their lowest mandate since the party’s infancy in 1908. With eight parties represented in the proportional parliament, the party political system may be balkanising.

The Constitution provides that after four failed votes on the composition of a new government, a snap election would be automatic. Centre-right Moderates Leader Ulf Kristersson and caretaker Social Democratic prime minister Stefan Löfven have both had proposals rejected by MPs.

Swedish election 2018 results Parliament seats by party

Who is in charge of the process?

Andreas Norlén, the speaker, is tasked with proposing prime minister candidates and moving the process along.

A maximum of two further formal government proposals can be put before parliament before a snap election would automatically be called.

No one currently has the power to call an extra election without going through this procedure. The speaker announced on Wednesday he would give parties an extended negotiating period until January 14th, 2019 to break the deadlock.

The final two votes, if both need, are provisionally scheduled for January 16th and 23rd. The pressure by the last vote to avoid a snap election is believed to give that proposal the highest chance of passing.

Who will lead negotiations now?

The Speaker said on Wednesday he sees Mr Kristersson and caretaker prime minister Löfven as the only viable prime ministerial candidates, and put pressure on them both to come up with a fresh solution between the different parties.  

Based on what they come up with by the mid-January deadline, Norlén intends to propose one of them as prime minister for the penultimate possible parliamentary vote two days later.

Will there be fresh elections?

Michael Sundström, Senior Political Science Lecturer at Lund University, doubts the process will get that far. “For the upcoming two votes, people will sharpen up at that point. No one wants another election except the Sweden Democrats. We would end up with the same situation as now; it may even be harder next time.”

Current opinion polling and the drain on party finances of running another campaign may yet force further compromise on tax rates, immigration, and business regulation. But it will be a hard pill for parties to swallow and it’s one they’ve so far resisted.

An election would have to be held on a Sunday within three months of the fourth vote if it fails, and April 21st, 2019 has therefore been pencilled in as the last possible date by which to organise and hold the poll.

This would create the undesired scenario of elections to the Swedish and European Parliaments happening in quick succession. European elections are set for May 23rd to 26th across the 27 post-Brexit EU member states.

Swedes are increasingly frustrated with the inaction caused by the leadership vacuum. Swedish budgets normally run to 3000 pages.

Last month’s reached just 28, only the basics to keep the country ticking over. Swedes would have liked a new government for Christmas, but by the time they get one, over seven months of policy-making may have been lost.

Doug Ford Moves To Dismantle Ontario's Cap-And-Trade Program

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TORONTO — Ontario’s new premier has taken a step in his plan to dismantle the province’s cap-and-trade system, a move some observers say leaves businesses involved in the program grappling with uncertainty.

In a statement released Tuesday, Doug Ford said he has revoked the regulation that outlines the carbon pricing system and his government will officially begin winding down all green programs funded through it this week.

Ford said the province will nonetheless honour contracts and orders that have already been signed for projects funded by cap and trade, such as energy efficient insulation and window retrofits.

Some rebates for energy-efficient renovations that were financed through cap-and-trade revenues — such as the GreenON rebate program — were already being phased out before Ford officially took office last week.

The premier said the government will decide on a case-by-case basis whether some initiatives previously funded by the program will be paid for using tax base revenue. Those decisions will take into account his overall plan for the province and the results of an upcoming value-for-money audit of government spending, he said.

The Progressive Conservative leader, who was officially sworn in as premier Friday, had promised that cancelling cap and trade would be his first order of business.

In order to scrap the program, the premier must first amend or rescind the legislation that governs it, said Keith Brooks, program director for the advocacy group Environmental Defence. That law sets climate change targets and earmarks cap-and-trade revenues for green initiatives, among other things, he said.

The government also has to formally notify its partners in the Western Climate Initiative that it is withdrawing from the cap-and-trade system, Brooks said. The agreement signed by the province said the government would endeavour to give a year’s notice before pulling out but it’s unclear whether Ford plans to do so, he said.

“We know that the premier… promised to get rid of cap and trade and we understand he’s moving quickly to fulfil that promise but I think that there’s some problems here because there’s some questions that haven’t been answered,” he said.

Ontario companies have bought close to $3 billion in permits under the cap-and-trade system and need to know whether they will be compensated for those permits, Brooks said, noting some have suggested the province should offer a full refund.

More details are also needed on how the green initiatives funded by cap and trade will be closed so that both consumers and businesses involved in delivering those services can make decisions and plans, he said.

“I think that there’s a lot of businesses, quite frankly, that still have a lot of questions, I’m sure, about how this is all going to proceed,” he said.

“People need the details on exactly when this is going to be wound down and if there are any programs that are going to persist, we also need to know what those are, because otherwise the manufacturers are going maybe on a rollercoaster ride,” he said.

The NDP and the Greens have said Ford’s rush to pull out of the cap-and-trade system could stick taxpayers with the tab for billions in legal fees, penalties and other costs.

‘Party with taxpayers’ dollars’ over: Ford

Ford’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment Tuesday but the premier said in the statement that he believes scrapping cap and trade will put money back in Ontarians’ pockets.

“I promised that the party with taxpayers’ dollars was over and that this would include scrapping the cap-and-trade carbon tax slush fund. Today we are keeping that promise,” he said.

The government’s website does not list contact information for the newly appointed minister of the environment or any other cabinet members. A spokesman for Ford said the ministers’ offices are not currently staffed and requests for comment should go to the premier’s office.

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez praised after dance video humiliation attempt backfires

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An attempt to embarrass Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the youngest ever US Congresswoman, by publishing a college video of her dancing has instead led to a swell of support.

Ms Ocasio-Cortez was sworn in on Thursday as the new-look Democrat-controlled House of Representatives took their seats.  

The 30-second video shared on Twitter showed Ms Ocasio-Cortez dancing on the roof of a building in a student production. 

In a tweet, a user named AnonymousQ, who has since deleted their account, wrote: “Here is America’s favorite commie know-it-all acting like the clueless nitwit she is”. 

Twitter users responded by sharing their delight and praise for Ms Ocasio-Cortez, who was elected to represent New York’s 14th congressional district in November’s midterms.

Actor Russell Crowe said the dance was “fantastic”, and told his followers that “the more politicians we have like AOC the sooner we’ll all be dancing”. 

Comedian Patton Oswalt said: “She’ll never recover from the world seeing her … (watches video) … dancing adorably and having fun with her friends in high school?

The clip was taken from a video made during the congresswoman’s time as a Boston University undergraduate. 

It showed Ms Ocasio-Cortez and other students dancing to the song Lisztomania by the French band Phoenix in a Breakfast Club-style dance mix. 

On a platform of "Medicare for All" and fighting climate change, Ms Ocasio-Cortez defeated fellow Democrat incumbent Joe Crowley as one of the main surprises of the primary season.

Ms Ocasio-Cortez took her seat in a new-look Congress, the most diverse in Capitol Hill’s history.

Fellow Democrat Rashida Tlaib become the first female Muslim to take a seat.

Speaking for the first time since being sworn in, she was filmed telling an event in Washington on Thursday that Democrats would “impeach the motherf*****", in reference to Donald Trump.

Cortana commentates the Forza Horizon 4 Halo mission

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During a Forza Horizon 4 session at Gamescom today, I was shown the game’s recently-leaked Halo map in full. It’s a loving mash-up of Scottish countryside and, as expected, Halo campaign level The Silent Cartographer. Less expected – Cortana commentates your race throughout.

The event is a special one-off mission which appears in-world for you to select and can be played multiple times to your heart’s desire, creative director Ralph Fulton told me.

Master Chief himself pilots the Warthog you race with, and climbs aboard in a cutscene which describes the mission as a training level necessary for all UNSC forces in recognition of the “current Covenant threat”… before the action transitions back to the Scottish countryside – albeit with a Halo ring in the background.

Halo energy shields and a hovering Pelican also make appearances, themeing the level, while Cortana – seemingly confused – makes comments about the Scottish backdrop and points of interest and banters with Carol “Foe Hammer” Rawley, the pilot of the hovering Pelican.

“A fortification of some kind!” she says while you pass a castle. “It hasn’t been used in centuries!”

“News of this has leaked out,” Fulton said, introducing the level, “how probably doesn’t bear talking about but anyway… If you’re familiar with Horizon you’re familiar with Showcases, and racing ludicrous vehicles. And in our constant pursuit of pitting you against ludicrous vehicles we have been lead to this, which I think is our most fun Showcase yet, created in partnership with the guys at 343 Industries and out of a general passion for games in general we have at our studio.”

No footage or screenshots of the mode are yet available to share – but we were told some would be available soon.

With Forza Horizon 4 being set in Britain, I asked whether Albion might make an appearance. After all, Forza Horizon 4 maker Playground Games has that second studio…

“I’m not aware of that place,” Fulton replied, poker faced. “Is that in Kent?”

Jeff Bezos' Net Worth Soars To $134 Billion After Hiking U.S. Amazon Prime Price By 20%

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Jeff Bezos, by far the world’s wealthiest person and one of Donald Trump’s favourite Twitter targets, got $12 billion richer overnight, after Amazon announced stronger-than-expected earnings — and a hefty price hike for new subscribers to its Amazon Prime service in the U.S.

Bezos added $12 billion to his fortune as shares in Amazon spiked on Thursday. His net worth rose to a stunning US$134 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.

Investors were happy with the news the online retail giant had increased sales in the first quarter of the year by 43 per cent, to US$51 billion. Profit more than doubled, to $1.6 billion.

Investors also liked the sound of Amazon’s announcement, on its earnings call, that’s it’s hiking the price of its Amazon Prime service by 20 per cent in the U.S., to $119 a year from $99. The hike will apply to new subscribers starting on May 11.

But the price hike, for now, is limited to the U.S. Amazon told 680 News that it’s not hiking prices in Canada, where a Prime membership will continue to cost $79 a year.

Analysts were positively glowing about the company following its earnings release, with across-the-board increases in their outlooks for its stock price. In other words, Bezos stands to get a whole lot richer.

And the analysts didn’t sound too worried about consumers being put off by the price hike.

“We do not expect the company to get much pushback from consumers given the increasing value of the service,” J.P. Morgan analyst Doug Anmuth wrote in a client note, as quoted at CNBC.

Macron’s former aide admits using diplomatic passports months after dismissal for beating protester

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Emmanuel Macron’s disgraced former security aide, sacked this summer for beating a protester, has sparked a further scandal by admitting that he was still travelling on diplomatic passports.

Prosecutors are investigating allegations that Alexandre Benalla illegally used diplomatic passports, which should have been surrendered after he was fired in July, to travel to Africa and Israel. He is also suspected of trying to profit from his connections as a former presidential insider to win consultancy contracts.

“Perhaps I was wrong to use these passports,” Mr Benalla told the Journal du Dimanche newspaper in a telephone interview from an undisclosed foreign country. “But I want to make it clear that I only did it for my own personal comfort, to facilitate my passage through airports.”

He denied that he was travelling on diplomatic papers to enhance his credentials. “I never used them for my business,” the former aide said. 

Mr Benalla, 27, a one-time high-flyer who ascended to a senior post in the president’s office after serving as a bodyguard during his election campaign last year, promised to return the passports “in the coming days”.

He was at the centre of a major political scandal after video emerged showing him beating a May Day protester in Paris. The National Assembly was forced to postpone debate on a key constitutional reform bill in July as a parliamentary committee spent days hearing testimony from Mr Benalla, the interior minister and the chief of police.

Mr Benalla told the Journal du Dimanche that he had returned the passports to the Elysée Palace in August, but that they were handed back to him, along with other personal effects, by a member of the president’s staff in October.

The government has given a different account, however, saying that he was formally asked to surrender the passports on at least two occasions. 

Suspicions that Mr Benalla still maintained connections with Mr Macron were fuelled by his trip this month to Chad, where he met President Idriss Déby, just three weeks before a visit by the French leader. Mr Benalla also travelled to Congo-Brazzaville and met President Denis Sassou Nguesso. 

The Elysée was forced to deny any continuing links with Mr Benalla, saying: “Whatever approaches may be made by Alexandre Benalla, he is not an official or unofficial envoy of the presidency.”

The latest scandal comes as the beleaguered French president faces nationwide “yellow vest” protests demanding higher wages and lower taxes. The protesters say they will take to the streets again on New Year’s Eve.

Trudeau Uses Record-High B.C. Gas Prices To Promote Kinder Morgan Pipeline

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VANCOUVER — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau promoted the expansion of retail giant Amazon’s technology hub in Vancouver on Monday as he used the region’s record-high gas prices to continue selling the expansion of the Trans Mountain pipeline.

“I know that part of the challenge that folks across the Lower Mainland and B.C. are facing right now is related to the fact that we are connected so closely to the U.S. market and to what happens in the United States,” Trudeau said as the price of gas exceeded $1.60 a litre in the Vancouver area.

Canada currently ships oil only to the United States and loses about $15 billion annually by not exporting it to other markets through an expanded pipeline, he said.

“That level of dependency at any time would be difficult but right now at a time of protectionism and unpredictability in the United States it makes sense to diversify our markets to new markets across Asia,” Trudeau said.

“We know that the alternative to a new pipeline would be more oil by rail, more oil by trucks. That’s not what anybody wants.”

New government in B.C. wants to restrict flow

British Columbia’s former Liberal government approved the pipeline project, but the current NDP government has asked the province’s highest court to determine if B.C. has the power to enact environmental laws that would restrict the flow of diluted bitumen through the province.

Getting the pipeline twinned involves “collaboration and respect for the provinces,” Trudeau said. “We’ve moved forward in a partnership way right across the country and we’ve demonstrated that we understand that the national interest involves getting our resources responsibly to new markets but it also involves, for example, putting a price on carbon pollution right across Canada.”

Trudeau said such incentives, along with lower-emissions vehicles and public-transit investments, lead to a cleaner environment and further economic growth, with projects such the Trans Mountain pipeline.

It was a day of talking commerce for the prime minister, who attended an announcement about Amazon’s expansion in Vancouver and said innovation will help drive economic growth and improve the lives of middle-class Canadians.

He also said he’s optimistic that the United States understands extending aluminum and steel tariffs to Canada would be a bad idea for the economies of both countries. The U.S. was expected to impose tariffs internationally on Tuesday.

Before Trudeau spoke, Amazon’s general manager of web services Jesse Dougherty said the company would build a 38,000-square-metre tower on the site of Vancouver’s old post office headquarters.

He said 3,000 new employees working there in high-tech positions would be focusing on e-commerce technology, cloud computing and machine learning.

The building’s architectural heritage will be preserved, and the tower is expected to open in 2022, Dougherty said inside the former Canada Post building.

“We chose to build and grow in Canada because we recognize the diverse and exceptionally talented workforce here,” he said.

“As a homegrown British Columbian and a software engineer, I am so proud of living and working in a city that is recognized worldwide as a first-rate global tech hub.”

Seattle-based Amazon opened its first software development site in Vancouver in 2011 and now has more than 1,000 employees.

Dougherty said the company will build on its relationships with top Canadian universities, which he said are producing some of the best computer engineering students in the world.

“We’ve hired many graduates from schools right here in British Columbia,” he said, citing the University of British Columbia, Simon Fraser University as well as the universities of Toronto, Waterloo, and McGill.

Watch: Amazon to become first $1-trillion company?

Premier John Horgan said Amazon’s expansion in Vancouver is evidence that the province is a sound place to invest, though that has been questioned in connection with B.C.’s legal action involving the Trans Mountain expansion as it asks its highest court to determine whether it has authority to control shipments of diluted bitumen through the province.

“This investment will advance B.C.’s well-earned reputation as an innovation hub and will promote growth in all sectors of our economy, in all regions,” Horgan said in a joint statement with Jobs, Trade and Technology Minister Bruce Ralston.

Amazon is expected to announce its second North American headquarters, dubbed HQ2, sometime this year, with Toronto as the only Canadian city on the list of 20 finalists.

Sri Lanka’s disputed prime minister Mahinda Rajapaksa resigns

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Sri Lanka’s prime minister announced on Saturday that he would step aside, paving the way for his sacked predecessor to regain the position and end a political impasse that has paralysed the government and threatened civil unrest for the past seven weeks.

Mahinda Rajapaksa’s resignation signals the end of turmoil that began in October when President Maithripala Sirisena triggered a constitutional crisis by abruptly sacked Ranil Wickremesinghe, and appointing Mr Rajapaksa as his replacement.

The country was facing the threat of a looming government shutdown with doubts surrounding its ability to repay $1.5 billion due to bond holders by January 10th without an effective administration in place.

Mr Rajapaksa held a multi-religious service at his home where he signed a letter backing down from the post of prime minister controversially conferred on him on October 26.

The 73-year-old ex-president vowed to make a comeback at local council elections.

"There is no doubt at all that the people who stood by us since 2015 will continue to support us in the future as well," he said addressing his close associates. "We will bring the forces opposed to the country down to their knees by organising the people."

His aides said he was returning a fleet of limousines he had used since his disputed appointment.

President Maithripala Sirisena triggered the political turmoil by sacking Mr Wickremesinghe.

But Mr Wickremesinghe refused to step down insisting that his sacking was illegal, leaving the Indian Ocean nation of 21 million people with two men claiming the premiership.

Mr Rajapaksa was then defeated in a no-confidence motion on November 14.

However, the following day, Speaker Karu Jayasuriya ruled that he would recognise neither man as prime minister, leaving Sri Lanka effectively without a government.

The country was left heading for a government shutdown as parliament failed to approve spending for 2019 and credit rating agencies downgraded its debt amid fears of a sovereign default.

Mr Rajapaksa’s son Namal had announced on Friday that his father – who as president ended Sri Lanka’s civil war in 2009 amid allegations of grave human rights abuses – was throwing in the towel "to ensure stability".