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Now this is precious. $6.2 billion and counting. That's how much films based on J. R. R. Tolkien's books have made in all at the box office so far. And there's still one part of The Hobbit trilogy to come. The Lord Of The Rings (LOTR) and The Hobbit are also on the list of Top 10 best selling books of all time - LOTR at No. 2 with 150 million copies sold. The Hobbit is No. 6 with 100 million copies sold.

Brick-and-mortar retailers have been suffering from slow economic activity for years, as well as from increased competition from online retailers. The rise in store closings is a prominent sign of their struggles. Weakened companies cannot afford the real estate and personnel costs that go along with supporting hundreds of unprofitable locations. The clearest proof of the problem was Radio ShackÂ’s recent decision to close more than 1,000 stores. Radio Shack is hardly alone. During that last several years Gap has closed 20% of its locations. Even MacyÂ’s, which has forecast strong earnings and is considered the most successful of the...

Many Americans consider obesity one of the nation’s most important health issues. Many also battle themselves with the problem every day. According to a recent report, 27.1% of all Americans were obese last year, up from 26.2% the year before. While many in the United States continue to struggle with their weight, the problem is more pronounced in the southeastern part of the country. Six of the 10 states with the highest obesity rates last year were located in that part of the country. Mississippi was the fattest state in America, with 35.4% of its residents considered obese. Based on...

2014 Talkers Heavy Hundred!

While "Noah" may or may not be having a hard time winning over Christian audiences, "Son of God," in theaters this weekend, appears to be enjoying the favor of the faithful nationwide. But can the new PG-13 Jesus film unseat 2004's "The Passion of the Christ" as the top-grossing Christian film of all time? Christian producers Mark Burnett ("Survivor," "The Voice") and Roma Downey ("Touched by an Angel") have rallied the same network of powerful and influential Christian leaders that in 2013 got behind their History Channel miniseries, "The Bible," for a "Theater Take-Over" campaign in anticipation of the nationwide...

I’m doing PR for my new book, The Demographic Cliff, in Australia at the moment. Last week, I was in Sydney, and tomorrow until Sunday, I’ll be in Brisbane, speaking at the “Secure the Future” conference. I always tell Australians that, despite my grim worldview for the next six to 10 years, they will weather the next great global financial crisis better than anyone else. If I could live in any wealthy, English-speaking country, it would be there. Why? Because of its demographics, and it’s a very civil society! The truth is that, with the lower birth trends that come...

Here Are The Countries That Spend The Most On Food Matthew BoeslerFeb. 24, 2014, 8:28 PM Renaissance Macro Research, Congressional Research Service This chart plots the share of household income in a given country spent on food against the level of household income in that country. Neil Dutta, head of U.S. economics at Renaissance Macro, warns that rising food prices may serve as an additional economic headwind to some of the emerging markets in the top-left region of the chart (India, China, Indonesia, and Nigeria, to name a few). "Food prices are climbing for a range of items including cattle,...

While many dogs and cats can live harmoniously together, there are certain dog breeds with hunting instincts that may be too strong to handle daily life with a feline friend

January 15-19, 2014 833 Republicans +/-3.4% Rand Paul: 13% Paul Ryan: 13% Chris Christie: 12% Jeb Bush: 11% Ted Cruz: 9% Marco Rubio: 8% Scott Walker: 6% Bobby Jindal: 3% John Kasich: 2%

Are you thinking about buying a new fuel efficient car but are wary of hybrid technology? Fear not! There are dozens of cars on the market today that deliver great fuel economy without resorting to heavy and expensive battery packs. While most of these vehicles are designed to run on petroleum products (either conventional gasoline or diesel fuel), the Ford Focus SFE is a FlexFuel vehicle that can run on 100% domestic E85 ethanol fuel as well as conventional unleaded gasoline. 2014 Ford Focus five-door E85 holds a significant price advantage over regular unleaded gas in some parts of the...

Lee beats out Rush Limbaugh on the magazine's list of the 10 celebrities with influence, thanks to his role as co-creator of the Marvel Universe.

Like many people in late middle age, I find myself wondering if my next dog will be different. I have long shared my life with retrievers — active, field-bred dogs who throw themselves with joy into every situation (and every puddle of water bigger than a dinner plate). Their boisterousness is infectious: My dogs make me happy. But in 10 years, or 15, or 20, will I be up to the demands of dogs like these? Or will a nice, quiet little spaniel be the dog I need? My answer may be different than others, even among people of similar...

A company can become broadly hated if it alienates a large enough group of people. It may frustrate customers with poor service, anger employees with unpleasant working conditions or low pay, and fail shareholders with poor returns. Often, these shortcomings are intertwined and it’s usually enough for a company to antagonize one of these groups for its reputation — and even its operations and finances — to suffer. Many of the most-hated companies have millions of customers and hundreds of thousands of workers. With this kind of reach, it’s important to keep employees happy in order to maintain decent customer...

Have you considered turn-offs for women? Or do you tend to instantly like or dislike a man without knowing why? There was a time when women were predominately concerned with making themselves more appealing to the opposite sex. But now that many women prefer to choose instead of being chosen, their preferences demand attention. Here are 10 turn-offs for women of all ages and stages of their relationships. 1. Being IgnoredBeing ignored is one of the main things that turn women off. From the first day of a relationship until death, most women expect their partners to be attentive. Most...

1. American Hustle 2. August: Osage County 3. 12 Years a Slave 4. Gravity 5. Rush 6. Nebraska 7. The Place Beyond the Pines 8. Captain Phillips 9. Monsters University 10. About Time Honorable mentions: 1. 42 2. Her 3. Blue Jasmine 4. Filling the Void 5. Black Nativity 6. The Kings of Summer 7. The Wolf of Wall Street

GLEN STEWART GODWIN Unlawful Flight to Avoid Confinement & Escape, Escape, Glen is being sought for his 1987 escape from (the max @) Folsom State Prison, where he had been serving a 26 year sentence for (very) killing a drug thug in 1980.. Later in 1987, Godwin was (shortly thereafter, again) arrested in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. After being convicted, (drug trafficking) he was sent to a prison in Guadalajara. In April of 1991, Glen killed yet another drug thug, then escaped again. Godwin is fluent in Spanish and (English) may be traveling in Central South America, and Mexico.

As the year ends, I see that others have already conscientiously compiled lists of the most underreported and misreported stories of the year, with some even breaking matters down between foreign and domestic. With that task addressed, I thought it would be worthwhile to compile a far from comprehensive list of ten of the more noteworthy techniques which those who pretend to be loyal to the tenets of journalism employed during 2013 to deceive, misinform, misdirect and smear. 1. Pretend that “no one” is saying something, when they really are. Carol Costello of CNN claimed in January that “no one...

Sorry, John 3:16: The Top 10 Bible Verses YouVersion Shared Most in 2013 Leading Bible app analyzes how its millions of users used the Bible this year. Jeremy Weber [ posted 12/30/2013 02:38PM ] Courtesy of YouVersion YouVersion has released its year-end analysis of how its millions of users engaged the Bible this past year. Users shared 68 million Bible verses in 2013 via the uber-popular Bible app, installed 49 million times this year (and nearly 123 million times worldwide). The Bible verse that was "bookmarked, highlighted, and shared ... more than any other verse" in 2013? Philippians 4:13: "I...

A lot of writers have acknowledged that 2013 was President Obama’s worst year yet in office. And it’s surely true. But he’s not the only one who had a tough year — and he’s less likely than anyone else to suffer immediate consequences, given that he has now won his last election ever. But 2013 was a long and difficult year for many of America’s most powerful and prominent institutions and people in public life. Here are ten net losers for the year, in no particular order.

Honorable Mentions: Justin Amash, Glenn Beck, Jim DeMint, Trey Gowdy, Bobby Jindal, Heritage Action, Louie Gohmert, Darrell Issa, Hobby Lobby, Sarah Palin, Jeff Sessions, Steve Stockman, Scott Walker. 10) Mike Lee: Lee is Robin to Ted Cruz's Batman and whenever there are conservatives fighting the Democrats or the Republican Establishment, he's right in the mix. Replacing Bob Bennett with Mike Lee turned out to be the biggest upgrade since Ronald Reagan took over for Jimmy Carter. 9) Mark Levin: Granted, Levin's push for an Article Five convention is a longshot, but it's a serious idea in an environment where the...