mark, it's a return to box-office form for Cruise, who had been
Hollywood's most-dependable earner for two decades until he turned off fans with
odd antics in his personal life six years ago."Ghost Protocol" will be
Cruise's first top-billed $100 million hit since 2006's "Mission: Impossible III." He
had a supporting role in 2008's $100 million comedy hit "Tropic Thunder,"
which was headlined by Ben Stiller, Robert Downey Jr. and Jack Black.Even
with a No. 1 debut, "Ghost Protocol" still was a shadow of
its predecessors. The first three "Mission: Impossible" movies ranged from $45 million
to $58 million over opening weekend, but those installments opened at the
start of the busy summer season.As of Friday, "Ghost Protocol" also had
brought in a healthy $118 million overseas.Downey's "Sherlock Holmes: A Game of
Shadows" fell from No., 1 to No. 2 in its second weekend
with $17.8 million. The family sequel "Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked" dropped
from secon
to serve China's poor majority.Beijing is rapidly expanding China's 56,000-mile rail
network, which is overloaded with passengers and cargo. But it has scaled
back plans amid concern about whether the railway ministry can repay its
mounting debts.On Friday, the current railways minister, Sheng Guangzu, announced railway construction
spending next year will be cut to about $65 billion, down from
this year's projected $75 billion.A failure to expand rail capacity could choke
economic growth because exporters away from China's coast rely on rail to
get goods to ports.The rail ministry's reported debt is $300 billion. Analysts
say its revenues are insufficient to repay that. That has prompted concern
the ministry might need to be bailed out by Chinese taxpayers.
nd the product used, to improve safety and follow-up care.
against the Gingrich-Romney duo. And I think that I'm going to be
the one coming out Iowa with that mantle."And if we can do
that, then we're off to the races here, and conservatives around the
country, just like they're doing here in Iowa, are going to start
rallying around our campaign," he said.Santorum isn't the only one making a
last-ditch effort around the state to appeal to social conservatives. Rick Perry
and Michele Bachmann are likely Santorum's most competitive among the social conservative
crowd. And both are working vigorously to get supporters to show up
at the caucuses next Tuesday night. Bachmann also won a coveted show
of support from Phyllis Schlafly, founder of the conservative Eagle Forum, who
on Tuesday said Bachmann "has the courage to be a leader among
her peers.""She is a real champion in speaking up for values we
care about. Michele is a woman of faith and the mother of
a beautiful family. She has a 100 percent pro-life record and is a
Meryl Streep as former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher in the film
"The Iron Lady." (Reuters)Margaret Thatcher ran Downing Street with an iron fist
from 1979 to 1990. Vilified by her liberal opponents, Great Britains first
and only female prime minister was the patron saint of the conservative
movement.But Hollywoods new film about the iconic leader The Iron Lady,
starring Meryl Streep has viewers arguing about more than just politics.
Some people who were close to Thatcher say the film should is
too focused on Thatchers recent decline.Thatcher suffered series of strokes over a
decade ago and has not made a public appearance in some time.
She did not attend the Royal Wedding last spring, and her memory
loss has reportedly progressed to such an extent that the small group
of conservatives who maintained her office and continued to champion her beliefs
decided to disband earlier this year.Many of them say they are not
happy with the new movie."She was
nd technological concerns, Ramotowski said.In-person interviews weren't the norm before 9/11, when
consular officials had the authority to approve travelers based on an application
alone. Since then, however, screenings have become more strenuous, with fingerprint checks
and facial recognition screening of photographs.The State Department has made moves to
boost its tourist services in recent years, transferring employees from underworked offices
to bustling embassies and consular posts. Many visa processing centers are also
operating under extended hours.Other proposed changes include granting more multi-entry visas and
charging premium fees to tourists who want a visa right away, similar
to the premium passport fee charged to Americans with last-minute passport requests.
The tourism industry also wants more visa processing officers and to allow
travelers to submit applications in their native language."We can't afford to treat
them in a way that gives them an im
