Tax Talks Raise Bar for Richest Americans

By most measures, the personal finances of Anne Zimmerman, a small-business owner in Cincinnati, have little in common with those of Oracle’s chief executive, Lawrence J. Ellison. Ms. Zimmerman runs an accounting business and a cloud-based Internet service company with combined annual profit of $250,000 to $500,000 in recent years. Mr. Ellison made nearly $15 million in salary, bonuses...

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'Life of Pi' a huge gamble for 20th Century Fox

Many people in Hollywood considered "Life of Pi" to be unfilmable. Now that it's about to hit theaters Wednesday, there's a...

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The Legacy of Linus Torvalds: Linux, Git, and One Giant Flamethrower

Linus Torvalds created Linux, which now runs vast swathes of the internet, including Google and Facebook. And he invented Git, software that’s now used by developers across the net to build new applications of all kinds. But that’s not all Torvalds has given the internet.He’s also started some serious flame wars. Over the past few years, Torvalds has emerged as one of the most articulate and...

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Celtic sparkle catches rapper Snoop Dogg’s eye

(Reuters) – U.S. rapper Snoop Dogg says he would be ready to splash his cash and invest in Scottish soccer champions Celtic.The 41-year-old, who is as well known for his love of sport as he is his music and drugs busts, fell further in love with the Glasgow club after watching highlights of Celtic‘s heroic 2-1 victory over Barcelona in the Champions League...

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Teenage Boys, Worried About Body Image, Take Health Risks

Béatrice de Géa for The New York TimesDavid Abusheikh at a gym in Brooklyn. He goes six days a week and says he uses protein supplements to help build muscle. It is not just girls these days who are consumed by an unattainable body image. Take David Abusheikh. At age 15, he started lifting weights for two hours a day, six days a week. Now that he is a senior at Fort Hamilton High School in...

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Investors Rush to Beat Threat of Higher Taxes

Business owners and investors are rapidly maneuvering to shield themselves from the prospect of higher taxes next year, a strategy that is sending ripples across Wall Street and broad areas of the economy. Take Steve Wynn, the casino magnate, who has been a vocal critic of higher tax rates. He and his fellow shareholders in Wynn Resorts, the company announced, will collect a special dividend...

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A young shooting victim wrestles with his fears

After the nightmares started, Davien Graham avoided his bicycle.In his dreams, he pedaled his silver BMX bike through his neighborhood,...

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Israel's Rocket-Hunting Ace Got His Start Playing <em>Warcraft</em>

War has once again erupted between Hamas and the Israel Defense Forces, with the Gaza-based militant group launching hundreds of rockets and missiles at Israeli towns. But many of these projectiles never made it to their targets, thanks to the new Iron Dome missile defense system that’s arguably become this conflict’s most important technological difference-maker. This article, first published...

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“Simpsons” actor Hank Azaria sues Craig Bierko over character right

LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) – Hank Azaria, who provides the voices for a host of characters on “The Simpsons,” including Moe Szyslak and Chief Wiggum, is suing over the rights to one of his characters.Azaria and his How to Pictures, Inc. filed suit Wednesday against “Leap Year” actor Craig Bierko in U.S. District Court in Central California on Wednesday,...

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The Neediest Cases: Emerging From a Bleak Life to Become Fabulous Phil

For years, Phillip Johnson was caught in what seemed like an endless trench of bad luck. He was fired from a job, experienced intensifying psychological problems, lost his apartment and spent time in homeless shelters. At one point, he was hospitalized after overdosing on an antipsychotic drug. “I had a rough road,” he said. Since his hospital stay two years ago, and despite setbacks,...

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