But let no-one mistake how far above the rest of the world the US has risen.
In modern Italy, one feminine deity is venerated above the rest: Mary, the mother of Jesus.
The president looms above the rest of the pack, thanks to a few spikes in views.
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However, they are also all trading at levels well above the rest of the market.
Kelley: Brands that get hip to this early can really rise above the rest.
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But out of all those terrible, horrible jobs, one stands tall above the rest: The lumberjack.
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When it comes to modding consoles there are two names that generally stand above the rest: Mr. Benjamin J.
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The Sound BlasterAxx stands above the rest in appearance as well as performance.
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As NBC's prime-time ratings suffered, Leno's "Tonight Show" was still able to rise above the rest in its time slot.
Germany still has some fiscal stimulus in the pipeline, which may lift its economy above the rest for a while.
Among all the attributes of the greatest leaders of our time, one stands above the rest: They are all highly trusted.
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"Offensively they're head and shoulders above the rest of the league, " says Adam Proteau, an NHL Web columnist for Hockey News.
He wasn't just head and shoulders above the rest, he soared so high, he could barely make out the competition beneath him.
But in one discipline it stands head and shoulders above the rest.
But it does challenge the notion that there's a distinct category of exceptional people who are heroes, elevated above the rest of us.
It is the illegitimate offspring of a long-abided system that places the profits and concerns of big business and the mega-rich above the rest of us.
New York teems with venerable, historic restaurants and boasts a fair share of the country's most distinguished steakhouses, yet Keens Steakhouse stands above the rest.
Usually head and shoulders above the rest of us, they would have stood out regardless, but on a campus where basketball was a religion, they were gods.
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There are plenty of Portland restaurants vying for the distinction of the city's best, but Le Pigeon, under chef Gabriel Rucker, is (still) considered a notch above the rest.
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Only some passionate feelings on this subject can explain the parliamentary party's decision to spurn Mr Clarke, whose experience and popular appeal put him head and torso above the rest.
New York City remains home to roughly double the number of hedge-fund managers as London, but the two centres increasingly stand head and shoulders above the rest of the world.
The 1975 Cincinnati Reds of Pete Rose and Joe Morgan, winners of 108 games and a world championship, scored more than two full standard deviations above the rest of the league.
One company that stands out above the rest is DaVita, a Fortune 500 kidney care and dialysis services organization that aspires to be a role model in the health care industry.
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Sangakkara adopted a positive approach right from the start of his innings and looked a class above the rest with a series of superbly timed strokes on both sides of the wicket.
The specially outfitted Boeing 757 barely shuddered as it gingerly skirted some of the most ferocious storm cells over Fort Walton Beach and then climbed above the rest in zero visibility.
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Danny Orr's chip allowed Jon Wells to leap above the rest and crash over the line, and soon afterwards skipper Rob Purdham stole in to score after Sheriffe had made an electrifying 50-metre run.
Installs gone wrong certainly aren't all that uncommon, but the tale told by one VTECnical of the 8thcivic.com forum is undoubtedly a cut above the rest, and could well have you reconsidering that suction cup option.
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While Ballmer was guardedly optimistic about the economy, he faces a traumatized organization unless he can go up against this many cheaper competitors and win share, while keeping his revenues per employee above the rest of the pack.
The anodized shell is tightly beveled -- almost to the point of being too sharp-- while the screen is raised slightly above the rest of the construction (a relief, then, that there's a layer of Gorilla Glass shielding it).
Add to that batsmen like Lloyd, Sir Viv Richards, Larry Gomes, Richie Richardson, Desmond Haynes and Gordon Greenidge, and it is easy to see why the West Indies were head and shoulders above the rest for such a long time.
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