Amidst a weak yen in Japan, electronics are currently facing some serious price hikes, including the likes of Apple’s iPhone, but also encompassing a wide range of pretty essential goods including TVs, fridges, dishwashers, and printers.
One area that seems to be immune (for now) is the video game console market. According to Bloomberg (thanks, VGC), the three major console manufacturers – Nintendo, Sony, and Microsoft – were asked whether a price increase is on the cards in Japan in the near future. While Sony and Microsoft conspiciously declined to comment, Nintendo stated quite plainly that it has “no plans” to raise Switch prices.
Of course, plans can change at the drop of a hat, but it’s nonetheless reasonably welcome news for customers. As cited by Bloomberg, none of the console manufacturers want to be the first to raise the price of their products, but what this currently means is that consoles in Japan are effectively $100 cheaper than anywhere else.
On the flipside, as a result of companies not opting to raise their prices, this has also led to scalpers in Japan buying consoles and selling them on again at a profit at the most opportunistic time, further increasing demand in the country and driving profits away from shareholders. As such, an eventual price increase may seem almost inevitable.
One likely reason that Nintendo is declining to raise the price of the Switch is that all models are still selling like hotcakes in Japan. Just last week, Nintendo managed to sell almost 70,000 Switch units, whereas the PlayStation 5 managed just over 11,000. It’s clear that Nintendo sees no reason to raise its prices when its products are still performing so well. Nevertheless, as the yen weakens, Nintendo is expected to report a profit loss as part of its next financial results.
Do you think console prices will rise in Japan? Who will be the first to cave? Let us know in the comments!
AUSTIN, Texas– The father of a 6-year-old killed in the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting testified Tuesday that conspiracy theorist Alex Jones made his life a “living hell” by pushing claims that the murders were a hoax.
In more than an hour of emotional testimony during which he often fought back tears, Neil Heslin said he has endured online abuse, anonymous phone calls and harassment on the street.
“What was said about me and Sandy Hook itself resonates around the world,” Heslin said. “As time went on, I truly realized how dangerous it was. … My life has been threatened. I fear for my life, I fear for my safety.”
Heslin said his home and car have been shot at, and his attorneys said Monday that the family had an “encounter” in Austin since the trial started and have been in isolation under security.
Heslin and Scarlett Lewis, the parents of 6-year-old Jesse Lewis, have sued Jones and his media company Free Speech Systems over the harassment and threats they and other parents say they have endured for years because of Jones and his Infowars website. Jones claimed the 2012 attack that killed 20 first-graders and six staffers at the Connecticut school was a hoax or faked.
Heslin and Lewis are seeking at least $150 million in the case.
“Today is very important to me and it’s been a long time coming… to face Alex Jones for what he said and did to me. To restore the honor and legacy of my son,” Heslin said.
Heslin also said that while he doesn’t know if the Sandy Hook hoax theory originated with Jones, it was Jones who “lit the match and started the fire” with an online platform and broadcast that reached millions worldwide.
Heslin told the jury about holding his son with a bullet hole through his head, even describing the extent of the damage to his son’s body. A key segment of the case is a 2017 Infowars broadcast that said Heslin holding his son didn’t happen.
An apology from Jones wouldn’t be good enough at this point, he said.
“Alex started this fight,” Heslin said, “and I’ll finish this fight.”
Jones wasn’t in court during Heslin’s testimony, to move the father called “cowardly.” Jones has skipped much of the testimony during the two-week trial and had a cadre of bodyguards in the courtroom when he did attend. Tuesday was the last scheduled day for testimony and Jones was expected to take the stand as the only witness in his defense of him.
Scarlett Lewis was also called to the stand Tuesday.
Heslin and Lewis suffer from a form of post-traumatic stress disorder that comes from constant trauma, similar to that endured by soldiers in war zones or child abuse victims, a forensic psychologist who studied their cases and met with them testified Monday.
Jones has portrayed the lawsuit against him as an attack on his First Amendment rights.
At stake in the trial is how much Jones will pay. The parents have asked the jury to award $150 million in compensation for defamation and intentional infliction of emotional distress. The jury will then consider whether Jones and his company will pay punitive damages.
The trial is just one of several Jones faces.
Courts in Texas and Connecticut have already found Jones liable for defamation for his portrayal of the Sandy Hook massacre as a hoax involving actors aimed at increasing gun control. In both states, judges issued default judgments against Jones without trials because he failed to respond to court orders and turn over documents.
Jones has already tried to protect Free Speech Systems financially. The company filed for federal bankruptcy protection last week. Sandy Hook families have separately sued Jones over his financial claims from him, arguing that the company is trying to protect millions owned by Jones and his family from him through shell entities.
In a recent filing, Microsoft told New Zealand’s Commerce Commission that Activision Blizzard produces no “must-have” games. Weird thing to say when the company plans to spend $68.7 billion to buy the gaming giant behind Call of Duty, Overwatch, Diablo, World of Warcraftand plenty more.
In the document, Microsoft said: “There is nothing unique about the video games developed and published by Activision Blizzard that is a ‘must have’ for rival PC and console video game distributors that give rise to a foreclosure concern.”
Attempting to downplay the importance of Call of Duty is just one of the ways Microsoft has tried to placate regulators. In February, the company pledged it would continue to make the franchise available on PlayStation consoles beyond any existing agreements between Sony and Activision.
— Matt Smith
The biggest stories you might have missed
It left its equipment in the streets in some cities.
An e-bike- and scooter-sharing startup co-founded by Olympian Usain Bolt appears to have stopped operations. Bolt Mobility offered bikes in five cities, including Portland, Burlington, Vermont and Richmond in California, and others. “We learned a couple of weeks ago (from them) that Bolt is ceasing operations,” a transportation planner in Chittenden County, Vermont, told TechCrunch. “They’ve vanished, leaving equipment behind and emails and calls unanswered.”
Continue reading.
You’ll also see them on individual app pages.
Apple famously bragged it’ll never invade your privacy to serve ads, but it does have an ad business on its App Store and elsewhere. The company is now expanding that business by adding a new ad slot to its Today homepage tab and on individual app pages. The company says these new ad slots will adhere to Apple’s policies on privacy and transparency, by not offering personalized ads to users under 18, never using sensitive data and avoiding hyper-targeting.
Continue reading.
Whether you have Series X, Series S, One X or One S, there’s something here for you.
TMA
Microsoft’s console strategy is unique. Someone with a nine-year-old Xbox One has access to an almost-identical library of games as the owner of a brand-new Xbox Series X. That makes it difficult to maintain meaningfully different lists for its various consoles — at least for now . But while next-gen exclusives may be few and far between, there are a lot of gamers who simply haven’t experienced much of what Microsoft has had to offer since the mid-’10s.
It’s in that frame of mind that we approach this list, now updated: What games would we recommend to someone picking up an Xbox today? Expect more updated guides to the best games throughout the week.
Continue reading.
The proposed class action suit accuses Musk of breaching his fiduciary duty to Twitter shareholders.
TMA
It’s not only Twitter trying to force Elon Musk to buy the company for $44 billion. An investor filed a proposed class action lawsuit to try to stop Musk from backing out of the deal. Luigi Crispo’s suit accuses Musk of breach of contract and breach of fiduciary duty to Twitter’s shareholders. Musk last month claimed the company made “false and misleading representations,” and that it misrepresented the number of bots and fake accounts on its platform. Crispo concurred with Twitter’s claims that Musk is using false claims about bots and spam to wriggle out of the deal without a valid legal standing.
Continue reading.
Premium features.
It’s 2022 and Spotify is adding the most basic of functions to its iOS and Android apps: dedicated play and shuffle buttons on playlists and album pages. Until now, tapping the button on most playlists started playback, shuffled. This vanilla playback ‘feature,’ however, will only be available to Spotify Premium subscribers.
Continue reading.
There’s already a “TikTok Music” trademark application filed.
TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, has filed a trademark application with the US Patent and Trademark Office for “TikTok Music.” The service would let users “purchase, play, share, download music, songs, albums, lyrics… live stream audio and video… edit and upload photographs as the cover of playlists… [and] comment on music, songs and albums.”
A voter drops off his mail ballot for the 2022 Pennsylvania primary elections in Newtown Square, Pa., on May 2. The state’s Supreme Court has ruled in a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of a state law that expanded mail-in voting.
Matt Rourke/AP
hide caption
toggle caption
Matt Rourke/AP
A voter drops off his mail ballot for the 2022 Pennsylvania primary elections in Newtown Square, Pa., on May 2. The state’s Supreme Court has ruled in a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of a state law that expanded mail-in voting.
Matt Rourke/AP
Pennsylvania’s mail-in voting law has been upheld by the state’s Supreme Court, allowing all voters in the key swing state to cast ballots by mail in November and for other future elections.
In a 5-2 decision released Tuesday, the Democratic-majority court overturned a lower court’s ruling from January that found Pennsylvania’s Act 77 to be in violation of the state’s constitution.
“We find no restriction in our Constitution on the General Assembly’s ability to create universal mail-in voting,” Justice Christine Donohue wrote in the majority opinion.
The state law, which passed with bipartisan support in 2019, has become a main focal point in a Republican-driven campaign against mail-in voting in Pennsylvania.
The integrity of what was once a largely uncontentious voting option has been subjected to baseless attacks from former President Donald Trump and his allies, leading many GOP lawmakers to make an about-face on their initial support for mail-in voting.
In fact, the lawsuit that was heard by the courts was brought in part by a group of Republicans in the Pennsylvania state House who helped pass Act 77.
The case has been closely followed by many voting rights advocates and election watchers, as it put access to the ballot box for Pennsylvania’s more than 8.7 million registered voters at stake.
Apple AirTags have become lifesavers of late, with many people reporting using them to locate their lost luggage at airports while traveling. The trackers, which use ultra-wideband versus Bluetooth like most others, are a great way to keep tabs on valuable items, from luggage to a purse, wallet, gym bag, headphones, car keys, and more.
With that said, Apple is a relatively new company to the business, and while the AirTags are great, and pretty affordable (though users will also need to buy an accessory of some kind for attaching it to something), there are other options worth considering. as well. These are particularly fitting for those who don’t own an iPhone, though they all work with an iPhone app, too.
SCREENRANT VIDEO OF THE DAY
Tile Pro
One of the first and most popular brands of Bluetooth trackers is Tile, and its top-line model is the Tile Pro. In comparing the Tile Pro to the AirTag, the Tile Pro comes in a number of colors and employs a rectangular shape with keyring to nicely hang on keys. It works with the Tile app for locating whatever item it’s attached to, both within range using Bluetooth and out of range using the crowdsourced Tile community.
The Tile Pro has the longest range of all Tile devices at up to 400 feet, though this is still only half that of the AirTag. It is also the loudest when using the phone to ring it when it’s in range. The tracker comes with a replaceable battery that lasts for up to a year. It’s water-resistant, works with both Android and Apple devices, and even supports voice-assisted finding using Alexa, Google, or Siri.
Tile Slim
Perfect for placing in a wallet or side pocket of a bag or luggage, the Tile Slim is, as the name implies, slim in design. Resembling a credit card, it isn’t quite as powerful as the Pro with just a 250-foot range, but its battery will last for up to three years. However, the battery is non-replaceable, which means users would have to opt for Tile’s battery replacement program.
RELATED: iPhone Models That Work Best With Apple’s AirTag
Water-resistant and with the same phone compatibility and voice assistance options, it’s the best choice for slotting into a wallet. This one is perfect for the person who often forgets their wallet on the table or in the pocket of the jeans they threw in the hamper.
Samsung Galaxy Smart Tag
Samsung has its own Bluetooth trackers to compete with the Apple AirTag, and one of the most affordable options is the Samsung Galaxy SmartTag. The only issue here, however, is that it is only compatible with Samsung Galaxy phones. For those who own one, however, this alternative might be the best one.
RELATED: Apple AirTag Vs. Galaxy SmartTab+ Bluetooth Trackers Compared
Like the others, it is powered by Bluetooth and can easily attach to keys, backpacks, purses, and more using the keyhole. It works with the app to ring to find a lost item or connects to the Galaxy Find Network for finding it offline. The SmartTag can even be used to control compatible smart devices in the home, turning lights on and off, which is a nice added benefit.
Tile Stickers
Another option from Tile, the Tile Sticker is unique in that it is the one that most closely resembles the AirTag but it has a cool feature: an adhesive back to stick to the underside of a skateboard or bicycle seat for an unobtrusive way to keep track of larger items. And there are certainly many items worth keeping tabs on with a Bluetooth tracker.
With an up to 250-foot range, water-resistant design, and voice assistance, it also has a three-year non-replaceable battery. But in ensuring it’s always powered up, one of these could be the difference between saying goodbye to that stolen bike and actually tracking down where it went.
Tile Mate
Yes, Tile warrants yet another shoutout with the Tile Mate, the super-affordable option among the pack that has an up to 250-foot range, up to three-year non-replaceable battery, water-resistant design, and voice-assisted finding .
Like the Tile Pro, it has a built-in hole for securing it directly to a set of keys, but it’s square in shape versus rectangular. It’s smaller than the Pro but a bit larger than the AirTag, making it a nice middle-of-the-road option for someone looking for something other than the AirTag.
Chipolo One
The Chipolo One looks almost identical to the Apple AirTag with its small, round shape, except it has a tiny hole for securing it to a key ring. Like the others, it uses an app where users can keep track of the item’s location, and it offers a 200-foot range.
RELATED: The Different Types & Styles Of AirTag Accessories Explained
Like with AirTags, set it to receive an alert if the item goes out of range. If it does, the device leverages the Chipolo community to help locate it. The Chipolo One has an easily replaceable battery that lasts up to two years and is water-resistant. As a bonus, it can even be used a remote shutter to trigger a phone’s camera and has different ringtones from which to choose. It also works with voice control via Google Assistant, Alexa, and Siri. Devices like the Chipolo One could be among the best electronics users can buy.
Orbitkey X Chipolo Tracker
Leveraging Chipolo technology and the company’s community of users, the Orbitkey x Chipolo Tracker is another option that’s a bit more expensive than the others, but that’s because it’s designed to work with other unique Orbitkey products.
Namely, this includes the Orbitkey Key Organiser, which is designed to house keys in a Swiss Army knife fashion. Pop the Orbitkey tracker in there as well and it will keep track of the location of the pocket knife-looking contraption. Like the Chipolo One, the button on the device can trigger a phone’s camera. For tracking purposes, it has a shorter range of up to 150 feet and a replaceable battery that only lasts up to six months, but it’s simple and cheap to replace by grabbing one from any hardware store. In terms of design, for those who opt for the Orbitkey Key Organizer as well, it’s a seamless fit that’s worth the extra bucks to keep things neat and tidy without having bulky, jangling keys on a ring.
Huawei Tags
In looking at how the Huawei Tag and Apple AirTag differ, the price is the first big difference: the Huawei Tag is much, much cheaper. It’s most inexpensive option on the list, in fact. It has a pop-up that will advise if an item is left behind and is supported by Huawei’s own “find” network.
It’s rated for water resistance and has a battery that lasts for a year. Like the AirTag, the Huawei Tag is a tiny little device that requires the purchase of a separate keychain or another accessory if users want to affix it to anything, like a set of keys or bag zipper. With that said, the Huawei tag is only available in China for now.
NEXT: Best Travel Cameras
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti Could Be As Powerful As The RTX 3090 Ti
About The Author
Christine Persaud (1227 Articles Published)
A professional writer and editor with 20 years of experience, Christine, who shifted to working freelance in 2014, is a self-professed TV fanatic with tastes that vary considerably from comedies to dramas, sci-fi, and more. She can usually be found binging a new show at night, a glass of red in hand. With a long history writing in the field of consumer tech, she now also writes on topics from entertainment to parenting, lifestyle, marketing, and business. She resides in Toronto, Ontario in Canada with her husband and son.
President Joe Biden experienced a “rebound” Covid infection after taking the antiviral drug Paxlovid — and he’s not the only one.
Some patients who took Pfizer’s Paxlovid after contracting the coronavirus have reported the same phenomenon: Days after they finished a five-day course of the oral drug and felt better, their Covid symptoms or a positive test result returned.
Health experts say Paxlovid’s rebound effect doesn’t impact every patient or make it any less effective at its job, which is fighting severe illness from Covid. Still, like with so much about the pandemic, you might have some questions: How severe are rebound cases? Why do they happen? How common are they, and should you still feel comfortable taking the drug?
The answer to that last question is a resounding “yes,” doctors say. Here’s why, and what else you need to know about Paxlovid rebound cases:
Who can take Paxlovid?
In December 2021, the US Food and Drug Administration made Paxlovid available under an emergency use authorization to treat mild-to-moderate Covid cases in a specific group of eligible patients. You can get Paxlovid if you check all three of these boxes:
You tested positive for Covid
You’re at least 18 years old, or at least 12 years old and weigh at least 88 pounds
You have one or more risk factors for severe Covid
That includes patients 65 and older — such as Biden, 79 — or those with underlying conditions like cancer, diabetes or obesity. You may not be able to take Paxlovid if you take certain medications that can interact with the drug and cause serious side effects, according to the FDA.
You can obtain Paxlovid prescriptions from your healthcare provider or through the Biden administration’s “Test to Treat” program, which gives free Covid antiviral pills to patients who test positive at pharmacies across the country.
If you’re eligible, you should start taking Paxlovid as soon as possible after testing positive for Covid, and within five days of experiencing Covid symptoms. You’ll need to take three pills, twice a day, for five days.
Pfizer’s clinical trials last November suggest that Paxlovid does its job: The drug was 89% effective at preventing hospitalization among people who were at risk of developing severe illness.
Notably, that trial was conducted before Covid’s omicron variant emerged — but Pfizer said in January that Paxlovid still works against omicron, citing three laboratory-based studies. It appears to also work against omicron subvariants like BA.5, with no current data showing otherwise, according to Barbara Santevecchi, a clinical assistant professor of infectious diseases at the University of Florida’s College of Pharmacy.
How common are rebound cases, and what are they like?
Some people who take Paxlovid test negative for Covid after finishing their five-day treatment, but then test positive or experience symptoms again two to eight days later, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Roughly 5% of the tens of thousands of Paxlovid users have experienced rebound cases so far, White House Covid response coordinator Dr. Ashish Jha said at a news conference last month. They appear to be very mild: A June CDC study found that less than 1% of patients taking Paxlovid were admitted to the hospital or emergency department for Covid in the five to 15 days after they finished the treatment.
Patients also appear to recover from rebound cases without any additional Covid treatment, the CDC says.
A UC San Diego School of Medicine study released in June identified “insufficient drug exposure” as the most likely cause. In that scenario, Paxlovid stops the virus in its tracks for five days, but doesn’t stick around long enough to purge the infection entirely — allowing the virus to temporarily replicate again once the drug is gone.
Dr. Davey Smith, the study’s senior author and an infectious disease specialist at UCSD Health, hypothesizes that some people may metabolize Paxlovid more quickly, or that the drug might need to be taken for more than five days to fully clear the virus in every patient . But there’s no clinical data to back that up yet, he says.
“We don’t know if it’s safe or efficacious to do double the amount of time of Paxlovid, doing two courses,” Smith tells CNBC Make It. “That’s getting too far out over your skis without the clinical research to guide it.”
If you experience a rebound case, you do need to reenter quarantine until you test negative again. The CDC advises isolating for at least five more days before checking the agency’s current isolation guidelines. You should also wear a mask for 10 days after rebound symptoms begin, the CDC advises.
For those lucky enough to have transitioned to working from home full-time during the ongoing pandemic, a good webcam — better than what’s built into most laptop’s screens — is a must-have accessory, and Insta360 just raised the ‘good webcam’ bar even further with the 4K Link, which uses a three-axis gimbal to always keep users perfectly framed, plus some other fun tricks.
The company isn’t yet a household name, but for quite a few years, Insta360 has been giving companies like DJI and GoPro some much needed competition when it comes to action cams and 360-degree cameras. Today, Insta360 announced its first dedicated webcam, which borrows some of the tech from the company’s other imaging products.
Image: Insta360
Reminiscent of the tiny DJI Pocket 2 handheld stabilized video camera, the Insta360 Link is instead designed to be perched atop a computer monitor or laptop screen, where it stars at the user with its most compelling feature: a surprisingly large half-inch 4K sensor. The company promises the sensor will provide more detail, better dynamic range including an HDR mode to account for bright objects in frame like an outside window, and improved low-light performance, which is especially important as the Link doesn’t include LED lighting of its own. The camera operates at 30fps, but a free accompanying app lets users adjust its frame rate, resolution, white balance, and exposure to account for even the wonkiest of lighting situations.
There’s also a pair of built-in microphones with noise-cancelling capabilities, but the camera’s most unique innovation is a three-axis gimbal, which is used here to track the position of the person in front of the camera and keep them perfectly framed at all times, instead of just keeping the camera stabilized. When users are on a call but out of reach of their computer, the Insta360 Link can also recognize and respond to hand gestures to activate features like its AI-powered tracking, or simply zooming in and out.
The moving camera facilitates other unique shooting modes as well. For easily referencing a document on a desk, the Insta360 Link can point straight down and even make perspective adjustments using its software, so what users on the other end of a video call see doesn’t look distorted. That software also powers a whiteboard mode where the camera can recognize and zoom in on a whiteboard so it’s easier for others on a call to see what’s being written. For those streaming to social media, the Insta360 Link can even rotate itself 90-degrees and capture video in portrait mode better suited to smartphone consumption. Instead of a lens cap, the webcam will automatically point itself down to block the lens for increased privacy after 10 seconds of inactivity.
The Insta360 Link is available for pre-order now from the company’s website, but given all of its extra functionality, it comes with a hefty $US300 ($416) price tag.
Kyle Chalmers admits he can’t say for sure that he is going to compete at the 2024 Olympics.
It was one of several sad admissions he made following his mighty victory in the men’s 100m freestyle on Tuesday morning.
Chalmers put his finger to his lips in a gesture suggesting he was silencing his critics.
The 24-year-old revealed after the race the celebration was a special one he had thought about doing before even getting to the starting blocks.
“It’s something I’ve envisaged myself doing, probably a bit more of a powerful celebration after a win, but that one was a special one,” he said
“That probably means more than giving it a fist bump or a tensing of the muscles. I hope that sends a powerful message.”
He said he was almost in tears before the race.
When asked if he will make it to Paris, he replied: “I definitely want to. That’s been my dream to win in Paris.
“But if I have to keep going through a similar thing I won’t last until Paris, I know that. It’s too challenging and not something I swim for.
“I know I stand here bravely, but this has really set me back a lot. I really don’t know what’s next for me. Right now I’m on a high of racing, but I’m sure tomorrow when I wake up or at the end of the week when I get my flight home there’ll be plenty of different emotions that go through my head, but if it is the pool I think I’ll go back (to the same training set-up).”
Still, the carried interest tax provision was not in December’s more expensive version of the Democrats-only bill that Sinema had generally signed off on. And its inclusion is a main factor in Sinema’s public neutrality about a bill 49 of her colleagues are expected to support.
Still, the party is moving forward with the expectation that the bill will pass without a single GOP vote, taking advantage of strict rules that let Democrats sidestep a filibuster, even as much of the road ahead is still under construction.
“I’m going to approach it from the positive side and just say I anticipate Sen. Sinema will be on board,” said Sen. Jon Tester (D-Mont.).
Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.) declined to address his own conversations with Sinema but touted the bill’s health care and climate provisions. He said his constituents of him are focused on the drought and wildfires in Arizona and prescription drug prices.
“We have an incredible opportunity here to fix this problem,” Kelly said. “I want to see us get something across the finish line.”
The legislation would impose a 15 percent minimum tax on large corporations, increase IRS enforcement and lower prescription drug prices to bring in an estimated $739 billion in revenue. It also spends $369 billion on energy and climate, extends Obamacare subsidies through 2024 and sends $300 billion to deficit reduction.
Overall, it’s much smaller than Democrats’ previous party-line proposals from last year, but significantly larger than the health care-focused package the party thought it was getting just last week.
Sinema is reluctant to publicly endorse the bill in part because it has not been OK’d by the chamber’s nonpartisan parliamentarian and may still change. After hearing from both Republicans and Democrats alike, the Senate’s rules referee will ultimately weigh in on whether provisions of the bill can enjoy protections from a GOP filibuster that are afforded by this year’s budget process.
And the bill is still evolving behind the scenes. Schumer indicated Democrats will try to add legislation addressing sky-high insulin costs. And in an interview, Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.) said his party will attempt to attach his legislation to cap insulin costs at $35.
“My bill to cap the cost of insulin will be in the reconciliation bill,” Warnock said.
But Republicans think they will be able to make a case that the Georgian’s plan runs afoul of the Senate’s budget rules, which would trigger a vote at a 60-vote threshold. That could still be a useful political exercise for Democrats, challenging Republicans to vote on the floor to block the insulin provision.
Warnock is up for reelection this fall, and Democrats are eager to emphasize their fight to lower drug prices on the campaign trail. Asked what he’s hearing about carried interest in Arizona, fellow incumbent Kelly responded that he’s hearing a lot about high drug prices.
The Senate is expected to move to the bill later this week; a vote to proceed to it will be the first test of support among all 50 Democratic caucus members. After that comes 20 hours of debate and then an unlimited “vote-a-rama” on amendments, all of which require just a simple majority to pass.
That chaotic free-for-all will offer Sinema, as well as every other senator, an opportunity to change the bill, though Republicans will probably offer the bulk of amendments.
Days after Manchin blindsided most colleagues by cutting his deal with Schumer, GOP senators are racking their brains behind the scenes to see if they can foul it up. Republicans are hopeful that Sinema will vote with them on a handful of amendments and then resist efforts by Democratic leaders to wipe those changes from the legislation at the end of the vote-a-rama.
Senate Minority Whip John Thune (RS.D.) said he’s been talking to Sinema about why he opposes the legislation and added that she’s “analyzing it, keeps her own counsel … and usually comes to her own decisions, pretty independent of any pressure she might get from either side .”
One possible GOP amendment would scuttle the carried interest language in the legislation, which brings in $14 billion in revenue of the $739 billion total in the package. Thune said Sinema is taking a “pretty hard stand” against that portion of the bill.
“I certainly am for that and I’m sure we will [try]. I think that’s one that’s got a good chance if we’re voting for it. Although who knows, [Democrats] may strip it out before they get it there if she objects enough,” said Sen. Kevin Cramer (RN.D.). “I never cease being amazed at how little they include her.”
There’s no doubt about the fact that ever since Verdansk bid farewell to Warzone, Call of Duty fans have been mostly in shambles. The map was an iconic part of the battle royale from the time when it was released in early 2020.
Now that Caldera and Fortune’s Keep are trying to attain a similar level of popularity as Verdansk, it seems to be not working at all. Simply due to the reason, that the majority of Call of Duty players are still missing their beloved map. They just want it back, no matter what. And now, famous musician Marshmello has made this point very clear. To be precise, he’s joined the campaign along with the fans.
ADVERTISEMENT
Article continues below this ad
‘Alone’ and ‘Friends’ maker Marshmello urges Activision to bring back Verdansk in Call of Duty Warzone
American music producer and DJ Marshmello is also known for his love for video games. Apart from being a Fortnite enthusiast, he’s also played Call of Duty, especially the Warzone battle royale since it was first launched. In case you have missed it, in May 2020 he also did a charity Tournament Livestream while playing several matches.
Now everyone is aware of the fact that Verdansk is currently missing from Call of Duty’s highly popular online multiplayer. Ever since it was removed by Activision, most of the fans have been upset as they have no other option than to choose Caldera. While Fortune’s Keep is gaining positive reactions, Verdansk seems to be on a different level altogether due to its connection with the players.
DIVE DEEPER
Top 5 Locations Call of Duty Warzone Fans Should Drop Into in the New Fortune’s Keep Map
28 days ago
It looks like even Marshmello feels this pain as he recently posted to tweet on this exact situation. While surprising his followers on social media, he wrote that the map should return as soon as possible. “honestly bring back verdansk please,” the musician wrote.
Meanwhile, Call of Duty fans were awestruck by his tweet as some of them thought he only plays Fortnite. On the other hand, the majority of the followers agreed with the DJ as they, too, want Verdansk back in Warzone. They registered their voices in unison, along with Marshmello. Have a look at the reactions below:
Call of Duty Warzone is now available on multiple platforms. Players can have it on Xbox, PlayStation, and PC via Battle.net. What are your thoughts on the ongoing situation of the battle royale?
ADVERTISEMENT
Article continues below this ad
Do you think Activision will consider bringing the iconic map again, now that a celebrity like Marshmello has urged for the same? Let us know in the comments.
WATCH THIS STORY: Top 5 Call of Duty Games of All Time
Image: Insta360
