https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/blogs-trending-47693115

Oscar-winning Freddie Mercury biopic Bohemian Rhapsody was released in China on Friday, but references to the Queen singer's sexuality and AIDS diagnosis were censored.
Several minutes of footage were edited out of the film, including scenes of two men kissing and the word "gay".
There has been significant reaction to the film's release online. More than 50,000 users have posted reviews on Sina Weibo, China's Twitter-like micro-blogging platform.
Though some users complained of "half watching and half guessing" as a result of the deleted scenes, others were pleased the film had been released at all.

>What was removed?
In the Chinese version of the film, several scenes have been amended or deleted.
Explicit and implicit references to Mercury's sexuality were edited out, including an important scene in which he comes out to his then-girlfriend.
Other scenes to be removed include a close-up of Mercury's crotch as he performs, interactions with his male partner Jim Hutton and the entire sequence in which the character and his onscreen band-mates recreate Queen's iconic music video for 1984 single I Want to Break Free, in which they dress in women's clothes.

>What was the reaction?
Thousands of Chinese social media users have been sharing reviews of the film online.
Most have been positive, with more than 80% of social media users to post reviews on Weibo awarding the film five stars out of five. However, there has been notable criticism of the revisions.
"If there were no deleted scenes it would have been better," one Weibo user wrote.
"Why is it necessary to delete gay-related content? Doesn't a person's life… deserve to be complete?"
"It's really good that Bohemian Rhapsody is being screened in the mainland," said another. "But the plot was broken because of deleted scenes."

Police have expressed frustration at the number of people wasting their time by submitting 'fake' notifications to hand over firearms.

Yesterday, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said the government was banning the sale of military-style semi-automatic firearms and assault rifles, as well as ammunition clips and other parts used to convert semi-automatic firearms to fully-automatic weapons.
After a reasonable period for returns, those who continue to possess these firearms will be in contravention of the law. Anyone in breach of the law will be liable to a $4000 fine or up to three years' imprisonment.
Police yesterday afternoon established an 0800 number to facilitate the collection of the weapons.

By 11am this morning, they had received 474 calls. Within one single hour, police staff had dealt with 127 calls.
Another 1000 people had used an online notification form to tell police of their intentions of handing over firearms, with a significant number of these being "fake", police said.

"Unfortunately, some people have decided it is a good use of their time to misuse the form and submit 'fake' notifications to hand in weapons," a police statement said.
"While these individuals may be short of productive work to do, police are not.
"In the current environment this is unacceptable. These vexatious forms are a huge waste of Police time and resources which could be put to better use."

The changes order the Order of Council announced yesterday would mean the listed firearms were now categorised as needing an E-class licence endorsement. Ms Ardern said it would effectively be a waste of time applying for the licence.
Police will work with New Zealand Defence Force to enable safe storage, transport and destruction of MSSAs. It will not be practicable for firearms owners to physically return their weapons to Police stations without prior approval.

https://www.radionz.co.nz/news/national/385354/police-frustrated-over-fake-notifications-to-hand-in-firearms

>South Korea spycam scandal: more than 1,500 hotel guests secretly filmed and streamed live on the internet
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2019/03/21/1500-hotel-guests-secretly-filmed-broadcast-live-internet-south/

More than 1,500 hotel guests in South Korea were found to be unwitting performers for a community of online voyeurs in rooms carefully rigged with tiny cameras hidden in everyday objects.

Police arrested two men suspected of hooking up 42 rooms in 30 hotels to an online community of 4,099 members, 97 of whom paid for the streaming service, according to local media.

Two other men, thought to have helped by installing the cameras, are also being investigated.

The suspects netted 7 million won (£4,700) from broadcasting the private lives of guests using innocuous household objects, such as hairdryers and TV sets, with tiny cameras installed, police said.

More than 800 illegally filmed videos had been streamed over the months the rooms and site had been operational.

Police in Seoul told CNN that while cases of illegal voyeurism is nothing new, this is the first time they had discovered such footage being broadcast live on the internet.

Man arrested with multiple past felonies in San Jose, CA, he turns out to be an illegal alien.
ICE finds out and attempts to get the city to hold him for them on 6 different occasions.
The county refuses
Man is released, and then stalks and murders a mother in her late 50'

“This isn’t about politics, this is about public safety,” Garcia said, adding that documented and undocumented immigrants should have no reason to fear police in the city. “He could have been turned over six times.”

San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo called Larson’s death a “devastating tragedy” and doubled down on Garcia’s statements, calling for a change in the county’s policy that would benefit all residents, especially immigrants who are most often targeted by felons who should be deported.

Sheriff Laurie Smith released a statement following the news conference siding with the city’s position

The case brought forth outcry from Santa Clara County Sheriff Laurie Smith, San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo and San Jose Police Chief Eddie Garcia, who said the county’s refusal to honor detainer requests and notifications allowed Arevalo Carranza to be released from county jail without notifying federal authorities

Though Liccardo, Garcia and Santa Clara County District Attorney Jeff Rosen have pointed to notifications as a legal and “common-sense” approach to handle suspects like Arevalo Carranza, Williams drew attention away from the county’s culpability and pointed to ICE’s failings

“The one agency that doesn’t seem to want to use warrants is ICE,” Williams said, describing ICE as wanting to circumvent the judicial review process

He did not say iif the county would be pushed to change its policy on notifying federal authorities in the aftermath of Larson’s death

Arevalo Carranza was arrested and released in Los Angeles and Santa Clara counties six times, last in Jan

https://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2019/03/14/bambi-larson-murder-county-criticizes-officials-ice/

House Oversight committee chairman Elijah Cummings accused the White House of an "unprecedented level of stonewalling, delay and obstruction" in a Washington Post op-ed published Tuesday as his committee seeks information related to multiple ongoing investigations into the Trump administration.
Cummings said the administration has not turned over "a single piece of paper to our committee or made a single official available for testimony during the 116th Congress" related to the ongoing committee investigations.

CNN reported Friday that though the White House is publicly maintaining they will cooperate with all requests, officials have internally taken an aggressive approach to the oversight requests as part of their strategy which has included slow-walking responses to demands for hearing dates and delaying efforts to turn over documents or schedule transcribed interviews.

The committee is currently looking into a number of high-profile controversies within the Trump administration and is seeking relevant materials in order to complete their probes. At the top of the list, Cummings wrote, are questions surrounding White House security clearances, particularly whether proper protocols were followed when top-secret clearances were granted to the president's son-in-law Jared Kushner and former national security advisor Michael Flynn.

Cummings wrote in the Post that while the White House offered to allow the committee to "read -- but not keep -- a few pages of policy documents," but he alleges that those materials had "nothing to do" with the investigations.

CNN reported earlier this month that President Donald Trump pressured his then-chief of staff John Kelly and White House counsel Don McGahn to grant his daughter and senior adviser Ivanka Trump a security clearance against their recommendations, according to three people familiar with the matter.

https://www.cnn.com/2019/03/20/politics/elijah-cummings-washington-post-op-ed/index.html

The United States expects free, fair and secure presidential elections in Ukraine. This statement was made by the United States Ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovic in a video message published by the embassy’s press service on Facebook.

“The United States supports the people of Ukraine in anticipation of free, fair and safe elections to be held in Ukraine next week. And we urge the Ukrainian government, civil society and all citizens to contribute to Ukrainian democracy, ”said Yovanovitch.

President of Ukraine, Petro Poroshenko, has signed the law prohibiting Russian observers’ from participation in Ukraine's elections, announced the head of state press service.

"President signed the law that prohibits representatives of an aggressor country from being official observers at the elections in Ukraine," said the report.

https://www.uawire.org/ukraine-s-president-signs-law-banning-russian-observers-from-participation-in-elections

>Three UK tourists in Vietnam who plunged 50ft (15m) over a waterfall to their deaths were not properly warned of the dangers, a coroner has ruled.

Sisters Izzy Squire, 19, and Beth Anderson, 24, of Sheffield, died along with friend Christian Sloan, 24, of Kent, at Datanla in February 2016.

>They had slid down a natural water slide into a pool where they were meant to climb out.

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-47626177

What did Pompeo say?

He was asked if "President Trump right now has been sort of raised for such a time as this, just like Queen Esther, to help save the Jewish people from an Iranian menace".

"As a Christian, I certainly believe that's possible," said Mr Pompeo, a former Kansas senator and CIA director.

"I am confident that the Lord is at work here," he added.

Mr Pompeo came under fire during his tour of the Middle East for holding a conference call and only inviting "faith-based" members of the media to join.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-47670717

https://youtu.be/r4fRxCxeGSw