Entertainment
Boris Johnson’s WhatsApp Messages And Why People In Britain Talking About Them
LONDON — Because WhatsApp is popular among lawmakers and government employees, detractors claim the British government runs “government by WhatsApp.”
Therefore, it only makes sense that the main focus of Britain’s official investigation into how the nation handled the COVID-19 outbreak is a dispute over WhatsApp communications.
The investigation run by retired judge Heather Hallett included a lot of communications between then-Prime Minister Boris Johnson and cabinet members, advisors, and officials during the pandemic. Since some of the messages are private and unrelated to the investigation, the Conservative administration, currently under the leadership of Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, wants the ability to modify them before turning them over. It has challenged Hallett’s directive to turn over the unredacted messages in court.
What is the investigation looking into?
One of the greatest death rates in Europe, more than 200,000 people have died in Britain after testing positive for COVID-19, and Johnson’s government’s choices have been hotly contested. Johnson gave in to pressure from bereaved families in late 2021 and decided to launch an investigation.
The scope of Hallett’s investigation will focus on the United Kingdom’s pandemic preparedness, the government’s response, and whether or not the “level of loss was inevitable or whether things could have been done better.”
The former prime minister and many other top government officials are expected to testify during public hearings starting on June 13 and going through 2026.
WHY IS WHATSAPP Johnson OFF?
The texting service, owned by Meta, has grown to be a favorite among British government officials and the journalists who cover them. Users may feel secure knowing their conversations will remain private because of its end-to-end encryption and ease of use for solo and group chats.
This confidence has occasionally shown to be misplaced. Tens of thousands of his texts were given to a writer who was assisting Matt Hancock, a former health secretary who helped lead Britain’s response to the epidemic, in writing a memoir. The journalist gave them to a newspaper, which ran a series of front-page pieces with unpleasant details.
Johnson’s correspondence with more than thirty scientists and government representatives over two years beginning in early 2020 has been requested by Hallett. She also requests access to Johnson’s contemporaneous journals and notebooks.
WHAT IS THE POSITION OF THE GOVERNMENT?
According to the Sunak administration, some texts that took over after Johnson resigned amid scandals in the middle of 2022 are “unambiguously irrelevant” to the COVID-19 investigation. According to the statement, making them public would violate the public’s “legitimate expectations of privacy and protection of their personal information” and other areas of government activity.
The government’s Cabinet Office challenged Hallett’s request for the documents in court papers filed on Thursday. In the upcoming weeks, a hearing in the High Court will be the next step.
Hallett has the authority to call witnesses and subpoena them to testify per the investigation’s rules established at the outset with the government’s consent.
The former head of the government legal service Jonathan Jones stated, “The government has an uphill task,” in a blog post for the Institute for Government. The court will likely rule that the inquiry chair should choose how to proceed and what materials she needs to review.
WHAT SUGGESTS BORIS JOHNSON?
Johnson and his successor Sunak have a history of conflict; Sunak’s resignation from the administration in July 2022 assisted in Johnson’s overthrow.
Johnson has stated that he is happy to turn over his texts, separating himself from the government’s position. He claimed to have sent Hallett’s inquiry the WhatsApp exchanges on Friday.
However, they only cover a portion of the requested time period in another twist. There are no communications from Johnson that date back before April 2021. That period covers the early stages of the pandemic, during which the government made crucial decisions that are still debated today, three periods of the national lockdown, and the dates of the unlawful parties that took place in government buildings and resulted in a large number of people, including Johnson, receiving fines from the police.
Johnson claims that the messages are on a phone that he has been told not to use after the media discovered that his number had been listed online for 15 years.
According to Johnson, the security services ordered him to stop using the phone and never switch it on again. On Friday, he informed Hallett that he had “requested the Cabinet Office for assistance turning it on securely so I could search it for all pertinent documents. I suggest sending you all of this information directly.
SOURCE – (AP)
Entertainment
Gladiator II Rakes in $87 Million in Weekend Debut
Despite not playing in theaters in the United States, Canada, and China until this coming Friday, Gladiator II earned $87 million over the weekend, which is the best foreign opening for a Ridley Scott film to date.
Last week, the picture premiered in 63 countries, including the UK, and grossed $11.4 million from 722 theatres. Particularly impressive was its performance in France, where it raised $10.3 million from 729 outlets.
But this one is a little weaker compared to February’s smash hit sequel, Dune: Part Two, which grossed $97 million worldwide in its opening weekend. At the same time, Deadpool & Wolverine made $233 million for Disney, while Inside Out 2 for Pixar grossed $140 million.
The Fall Guy, an action comedy starring Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt, earned $36.7 million in its opening weekend worldwide, while Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga earned $30 million.
Last Monday, King Charles III attended a screening of Gladiator II in London, capping off a weeks-long worldwide press tour for the film’s cast and production. A Mexican biscuit brand, Rome’s public transportation system, and a German bank VR are just a few multinational brands it has teamed up with to boost its visibility.
In Australia, dessert merchant Oliver Brown offered a special edition of pistachio-heavy puds and drinks dubbed the Emperor’s Collection. The Gladiator II salted caramel latte is available at French Coffee Shop, a business in Paris.
After poor statistics for Venom: The Last Dance and The Rock’s comedy Red One, which premiered worldwide last week, fans hope that Scott’s delayed sequel can lift the global box office for the last month and a half of the year.
Some are predicting a Barbenheimer-style struggle for the top spot in the US box office when Gladiator II and the highly anticipated musical Wicked premiere on the same day, even though double-bill events are unlikely to be very popular.
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Entertainment
Blizzard’s Remastered Versions Of Warcraft 1 And 2 Are Now Available On PCs.
(VOR News) – It has been said by Blizzard that it does not intend to remake Warcraft 1 and 2 since the company believes that these games are “just not that fun any longer.”
When the corporation first made this declaration, it has been almost exactly eight years since it was delivered.
However, the firm has only recently made the news that it will be doing precisely that, and as part of the celebrations for Warcraft’s 30th anniversary, both of the remastered versions are now available to play. The celebrations did not start until today.
The public first played Warcraft in 1994.
This game played a significant role in Blizzard’s rise to the top of the competition. In the year that followed, Warcraft 2 was hastily created in order to suit the requirements of the burgeoning fanbase that the first Warcraft had established.
Additionally, the company has just disclosed that they will be remastering the games, and these remasters will contain a variety of additions to the traditional real-time strategic action that is included in the games.
The initial stage of these enhancements to the development process consists of a new collection of hand-drawn pictures that may be toggled on and off in real time. The artistic style of the originals has been said to be completely captured by these photos, according to the assertions made.
Specifically, Blizzard has implemented “modern controls” for Warcraft 1, which include the option to move with a right click, the ability to pick bounding boxes, and a faster progression rate.
These features are all present in the Warcraft game.
The alterations that have been made include these, however they are not the only ones. It is important to note that these changes have been introduced in addition to the user interface and user experience enhancements that have been implemented throughout both games.
Tool tips, health bars, mission decision screens, and increased unit selection are some of the enhancements that have been introduced in this version of the game. As an additional feature, the multiplayer mode that was included in the first version of Warcraft 2 is still included in the remastered version of the game.
As an additional point of interest, each and every one of the legacy custom maps is entirely compatible with the new edition and may be played in the same capacity.
Despite the fact that there is currently no information regarding whether or not Warcraft 1 Remastered and Warcraft 2 Remastered will eventually be made available on other markets, both of these remastered versions of the game are currently available for purchase on Battle.net for personal computers at prices of $9.99 and $14.99, respectively.
Both of these versions of the game are remastered versions of the original game. A Battle Chest bundle is also available for purchase, and it can be purchased for the price of $39.99. All of the titles that have been remastered are included in this bundle, in addition to Blizzard’s Warcraft 3: Reforged, which has been met with a considerable deal of criticism.
Blizzard has been making continual efforts to improve the game ever since it was first made available to the public in the year 2020.
This is despite the fact that the game was met with poor reviews practically immediately after it was released. An entirely new upgrade, version 2.0, is currently being made available to all gamers without delay.
One of the numerous enhancements to the quality of life that are included in this is “much, much more,” in addition to a wide range of options for personalizing the hockey experience within the game and a new ladder.
In addition to the high-definition versions of all of the older Warcraft assets, these upgrades also include new environments and lighting, a redesigned user interface, and a variety of other enhancements.
SOURCE: EG
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Yellowstone Season 5 Part 2 Returns Without Kevin Costner
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Entertainment
Yellowstone Season 5 Part 2 Returns Without Kevin Costner
Yellowstone will finally return for the second half of its fifth season. We have a lot to speak about, such as recalling what is going on in this program, Kevin Costner’s departure, and whether or not season 5, part 2, will truly end Yellowstone.
Season 5 Part 1 ended on a cliffhanger—we could be in for a full-fledged Dutton family civil war—and we’ve been waiting for nearly two years.
A quick recap: nothing changes from how this program usually goes, except it’s a little more intense. Beth Dutton (Kelly Reilly) despised Jamie Dutton. Jamie Dutton (Wes Bentley) despised Beth Dutton.
That has always been the case since childhood trauma, but now things have escalated. Their father, John Dutton (Kevin Costner), is now Montana’s Governor, and Jamie, who should be his top legal thinker, is played by a group of local businessmen known as Market Equities.
Anyway, Jamie and Beth are attempting to kill each other, and John appears to be leaning toward Beth’s side.
Given Kevin Costner’s public exit from the program, part 2 of season 5 will be especially noteworthy. Long story short, he departed to make his Horizon films and never returned.
So, how will Yellowstone pick up the tale without John? That much is unknown, which adds to the season’s appeal!
Of course, our other characters continue to do what they do. Rip (Cole Hauser) is doing his Rip thing. Kayce (Luke Grimes) oversees the ranch. His wife, Monica (Kelsey Asbille), is still grieving the loss of their unborn son.
But we do have some high stakes to pick up—and they will begin on Sunday, November 10th, whether Kevin Costner appears on screen or not.
Another twist: While we believed season 5 would conclude the Yellowstone story, part 2 is in the works.
There have also been suggestions that Yellowstone could return for a sixth season, starring Cole Hauser and Kelly Reilly as Rip and Beth. Hmm, certainly!
Yellowstone’s fifth season, part 2, will air each episode of the truncated half-season on Sunday nights at 8:00 PM EST.
The episodes will then be shown on linear TV, Hulu with Live TV, or the Paramount Network website and app for those with a cable subscription. The premiere will also re-air on CBS at 10:00 p.m. EST.
Yellowstone season 5, part 2, will consist of six episodes, the first of which is currently accessible to watch and stream. That implies the series might end with five more episodes of Western family drama.
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