This is just a reminder, kids: reading is fundamental.

So is getting facts straight before urging a mass boycott.

The first half of Peter Jackson's two-part adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien's "Lord Of The Rings" precursor "The Hobbit" doesn't hit theaters until almost a year from now on Dec. 14, 2012.

That doesn't mean there isn't time to find something to hate about it. And in this instance, it doesn't even have anything to do with character design or entirely with how faithful Jackson will or won't be to the source material.

Well . . . take the part about the source material with a grain of salt. The group Christians For A Moral America apparently has a major problem with Jackson, an admitted atheist, helming the Tolkien adaptation, going so far as to call him "Satan's little helper" in a statement on the group's website and calling for members to boycott the project:

Invading your local cinema next winter is a new work of evil "The Hobbit". "The Hobbit" follows on from the "Lord Of The Rings" trilogy and seemingly has brought everyone back to "Middle Earth" from the dead. Peter Jackson has once again stepped up as Satan's Little Helper to direct the two-part film and is once again using witchcraft and wizardry to peddle the film, even though the books had strong Christian undertones (good vs evil; Christians vs Atheists) but Jackson being the self-proclaimed Atheist he is obviously doesn't want to present this movie in the way it was meant by Tolkien. Let's vote with our wallets and send a big message to Hollywood and Jackson; Christians will NOT tolerate this blatant Anti-Christian bigotry and Atheist propaganda. Our children's minds are filled with enough poison these days from the media without us as parents actively doing the same while filling liberal fat cats' coffers.

Hmm. Whoever wrote this seems intent on putting him/herself over as one savvy Tolkien scholar. This person also fails pretty miserably at it, and wounds credibility by noting that everyone has been brought "back to 'Middle Earth' from the dead" and that the movies "follow on from the 'Lord Of The Rings' trilogy."

Pro-Tip, champ: "The Hobbit" came first. No one has been "brought back from dead."

Problem, The Second: do explain what level of witchcraft and wizardry is Jackson's take using that wasn't used in Tolkien's work? Sure, problems have been expressed many times with Jackson's liberties taken with Tolkien's tone, story and characters, but the inclusion of witchcraft and wizardry has never been one of them.