Amazon Is Making a Lord of the Rings Prequel Series

Given that Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings trilogy won a combined 17 Oscars and, when you throw in the three Hobbit movies, grossed nearly $6 billion worldwide, you would think that the entertainment industry might be inclined to leave it way-more-than-well-enough alone. But that would be true only if you didn’t live in the entertainment universe that LOTR helped create, where single films become trilogies and trilogies become multipart series and no potential revenue stream is left undammed.

The mysterious sudden resignation of Lebanon’s prime minister, explained

The mysterious sudden resignation of Lebanon’s prime minister has sparked a political crisis that is escalating longstanding tensions between Saudi Arabia and Iran — and raises the real prospect of open warfare between the two Middle Eastern powers.

The intrigue began on November 4, when Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri suddenly announced his resignation — but he did it by reading a statement on live television from Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia. That immediately fueled speculation in Lebanon that the Saudi government, which has deep, longstanding ties to Hariri, had forced him to resign against his will and was holding him under house arrest.

In his resignation speech, Hariri explained he was stepping down because rising Iranian influence in his country had made him fearful he would suffer the same fate as his father, Rafik Hariri, who was assassinated by a car bomb in 2005 by agents believed to be affiliated with the Iranian-backed militant group Hezbollah.

Hariri is still in Saudi Arabia, and Lebanese officials are demanding his return. At the same time, rumors swirl that Saudi leadership hopes to replace Hariri with his brother, Bahaa. But on Sunday, in his first interview since his resignation, Saad Hariri spoke from his home in Riyadh to say that he was “free” to move about the country and that he would return to Lebanon “very soon.”

Deadly earthquake hits Iran-Iraq border: what we know

On Sunday, at 9:48 pm local time, a powerful magnitude 7.3 earthquake struck northwest Iran near the border with Iraq. As of Monday, more than 400 people had been reported dead — with most of the reported deaths in the Iranian province of Kermanshah. Thousands more are injured, according to Iranian state media. There are also eight people reported dead in Iraq’s northern Kurdish region. Overall, 70,000 people may be in need of temporary shelter.

10 traits the best bosses have in common

Everyone loves to complain about their boss, and a classic Gallup study found that 50% of current employees have left at least one job in their career to get away from a bad manager.

When asked for clarification, the most common reason seems to be a managers lack of clarity in setting expectations, which is obviously one of the most basic of employee needs.

On the other hand, almost every one of us in business can remember that one special manager in their career who exemplifies the norm, who commanded our trust, and treated us with respect, even in the toughest of business crises.

In an effort to be a better business advisor, and recognizing that the answer is not usually as simple as a single dimension, I have asked my own sample of employees at all levels for a list of key traits or attributes they see in great managers, resulting in the following list of ten top positive traits of a good boss:

Train crash 'kills 33' in Democratic Republic of Congo

A train crash in the Democratic Republic of Congo has killed 33 people, UN radio station Okapi reports.
It happened in Buyofwe in the province Lualaba, in the south of the country.
Radio Okapi said that the train caught fire after crashing into a ravine. According to reports, it was carrying flammable material.
The train was running between Lubumbashi, the second-largest city, and the town of Luena, 2,000km (1,200 miles) from the capital, Kinshasa.
The province's Governor Richard Muyej told the BBC there had been an accident but he could not confirm deaths.

A top Democratic lobbying firm caught up in Mueller's Russia probe is on the verge of shutting down

Podesta Group, a well-known lobbying firm with close ties to the Democratic Party and the Obama administration, might close its doors after being caught in the crosshairs of special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into Russia's interference in the 2016 election, CNN reported on Saturday.
Podesta Group — which was founded by brothers John and Anthony Podesta — got roped into the investigation over work it did for Trump's former campaign chairman, Paul Manafort.
Manafort was recently indicted, along with his associate Rick Gates, on 12 counts related to money laundering and his work as a foreign agent primarily associated with Ukraine's pro-Russia Party of Regions.

World-famous Russian basejumper dies in Himalayas after leaping 22,000ft off mountain

A renowned Russian basejumper has been killed in a horror plunge after leaping 22,000ft (7,000m) from a Himalayan mountain, according to reports.
Valery Rozov, 52, fell to his death in a tragic wingsuit accident on Mount Ama-Dablam, eastern Nepal.
The extreme sportsman held the record for the highest ever basejump from an altitude of 25,200ft from Tibet's Mount Cho-Oyu last year.
He smashed into a cliff during his latest stunt and leaves behind a wife and sons.