Category: USA

As the year comes to a close, people everywhere celebrate, and one of the biggest events is the New Year’s Eve Ball Drop in Times Square, New York City. This tradition started way back in 1907, and now millions of people watch as a massive, shiny ball drops at midnight to ring in the new year!

This year, the ball is a stunning sphere made of 2,688 sparkling Waterford Crystal triangles and shines brightly with over 32,000 LED lights. The ball is heavy, weighing 11,875 pounds and 12 feet wide! It has changed a lot since it first began as a simple wooden ball with just 100 light bulbs.

Amazing Performances and Fun Festivities!

There will be lots of exciting performances this year! Rock star Lenny Kravitz, country singer Carrie Underwood, and Grammy-nominated Mickey Guyton are among the stars who will perform. Carrie Underwood will sing some of her popular songs right before the ball drops. Other artists like the Jonas Brothers, Megan Moroney, TLC, and dance group AGNEW will also entertain the crowd.

Before the ball drops, Mickey Guyton will sing the famous song “Imagine” by John Lennon, adding a special touch to the evening. And of course, there will be tons of confetti falling from the sky to celebrate, even if it rains!

How to Watch the Celebration

If you can’t make it to Times Square, don’t worry! There are many ways to watch the event live. The official Times Square website will stream the celebration starting at 6 p.m. on December 31. This livestream will have no commercials and will show behind-the-scenes footage and interviews. There will also be a live stream with American Sign Language (ASL) on YouTube!

Here’s how you can watch on TV:

– ABC: Join the fun on “Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve with Ryan Seacrest” starting at 8 p.m. ET. You can also watch it on Hulu the next day.

– CNN: Hosts Anderson Cooper and Andy Cohen will lead the “New Year’s Eve Live” show at 8 p.m. ET, featuring performances from stars like 50 Cent, Sting, and Shania Twain.

– CBS: Tune in for “Nashville’s Big Bash” live at 8 p.m. ET/PT, with a countdown from Times Square at midnight.

– NBC: While they won’t show the event live, there will be special pre-recorded segments featuring “TODAY” show hosts Hoda Kotb and Jenna Bush Hager.

FAQs

– How many people attend Times Square on New Year’s Eve?
About one million people are expected to come together in Times Square to ring in the new year!

– When does the Times Square New Year’s Eve celebration start?
It starts around 6:00 PM EST when the New Year’s Eve Ball is raised at One Times Square. Then at 11:59 PM EST, the Ball begins to drop.

Get ready to celebrate and welcome the new year in style!

Taylor Swift has made a big decision – she’s moving to Nashville full-time to be closer to Kansas City Chiefs player, Travis Kelce. They have been dating for about a year and their relationship is getting a lot of attention, with people wondering if they might get engaged soon.

After finishing her amazing Eras Tour, Swift has shifted her focus to her personal life. Reports say she’s now living in Nashville, which is closer to where Travis lives in Kansas. This move also makes it easier for her to attend more of his football games, and she has already been spotted cheering for him at the games.

Their relationship is getting more serious, with reports of them being seen together in public and even sharing little moments like back rubs. Just recently, Swift was seen supporting Kelce during a game against the Texans, showing how much she cares.

Travis also put together a special surprise party for Taylor’s 35th birthday, themed around her Eras Tour. Friends and family gathered in Kansas City for the celebration, with decorations and friendship bracelets that reminded everyone of her popular albums. Sources say Taylor was really touched by Travis’s thoughtful gift

The Mega Millions lottery announced a jackpot worth a mind-blowing $1.22 billion on Friday night. The lucky numbers drawn were 3, 7, 37, 49, 55, and the gold Mega Ball was 6. A player in California became a billionaire after winning this huge prize!

It had been three months since anyone won the top prize, but now someone is about to celebrate the New Year in style. The winner’s name hasn’t been revealed yet. If the winner decides to take the money over time, they will get the full jackpot paid in 29 yearly payments. Most winners, however, choose to take a cash option instead, which for this drawing is approximately $549.7 million.

Buying tickets for Mega Millions has been popular because of the huge jackpot. Even though the chances of winning are very low—about 1 in 302.6 million—lots of people keep buying tickets. The last jackpot winner before this was on September 10.

The biggest Mega Millions jackpot ever was $1.6 billion, which was won in Florida in August 2023. For Mega Millions and Powerball, you can buy tickets in 45 states, Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Powerball is also available in Puerto Rico.

Heads up! Starting in April, the ticket prices for Mega Millions will go up from $2 to $5. This ticket price hike comes with promises of better odds, more big prizes, and even bigger payouts!

Low-income supporters of Trump are worried about possible changes to important programs like Social Security and Medicare. Many of them depend on these benefits to survive. Lori Mosura, who lives in Pennsylvania and struggles with money, receives $1,200 each month from Social Security and food stamps. She recently told The Washington Post, “We helped get you elected; please take care of us. Don’t cut what helps the most vulnerable people.”

Others, like Steve Tillia, feel hopeful. He thinks the government might focus more on cutting unnecessary staff instead of the actual benefits. He told The Post, “It’s not about cutting programs; it’s about cutting the number of people needed to run them.”

Now, Trump is in a tough spot. He needs to balance what his supporters want with his plans for government changes. He’s teamed up with tech leaders like Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy to make the government run more efficiently. Experts warn this might lead to cuts in programs like Medicare, which cost a lot to run. Local officials, such as Chris Frye from New Castle, have cautioned that major cuts could lead to serious problems, like increased homelessness.

To add to the story, Trump recently shared on social media that Bill Gates, the founder of Microsoft, wants to meet with him. This is part of a pattern, as many tech CEOs are trying to understand what the new policies might be under Trump.

A recent argument has broken out in the MAGA community over Elon Musk. Some conservatives believe he is secretly blocking their posts on X (formerly Twitter), especially after he had a disagreement about immigration. Laura Loomer, a well-known conservative, is one of the critics who says Musk took away her blue verification badge. This badge helps people earn money and gets their posts seen by more users. Loomer claims she didn’t cancel her own badge, and this makes people think Musk is trying to silence her because of her criticism.

Along with Loomer, other conservatives like Ryan Fournier and Gavin Wax have also lost their blue badges, which makes it harder for them to earn money and reach their fans. This change happened after Musk publicly disagreed with some Republicans about immigration policies, calling some of them “hateful and unrepentant racists,” which made MAGA supporters very angry.

The fight is partly about how immigration policy might change under President-elect Donald Trump. Musk and another person, Vivek Ramaswamy, are for allowing smart workers from other countries to come to the U.S., which is upsetting some Trump supporters. They believe Musk’s views go against Trump’s stricter immigration rules. Musk has said the X algorithm might limit the reach of users who are often blocked or muted by others.

This situation shows that there are divisions in the MAGA movement about immigration. It raises important questions about free speech and how content is managed on X since Musk took over. Some conservatives feel betrayed because they thought Musk was a protector of their free speech.

Nvidia, a big name in making computer chips and AI technology, has seen its stock price skyrocket by 895% since last year. This is mostly thanks to the boom in artificial intelligence (AI) and how Nvidia’s new computer chips are designed for it. Many investors are excited about Nvidia, but one famous investor, Stan Druckenmiller, is going in a different direction.

Instead of buying Nvidia stocks, Druckenmiller sold all of his shares in the company. He has decided to invest in Broadcom, another chip company that is starting to make AI chips at lower prices. This move has caught everyone’s attention because Druckenmiller has a strong reputation as a smart investor. He now makes Broadcom one of his top 15 investments, which makes people wonder if he knows something that others don’t.

So, is Broadcom’s stock going to keep rising? Yes! Since Broadcom announced its AI chips, its stock is also climbing. Druckenmiller is really excited about Broadcom, and it seems like he believes it could compete well against Nvidia in the future.

Azerbaijan Airlines announced on Friday that early investigations into the recent plane crash in Kazakhstan revealed signs of “physical and technical external interference.” This comes as rumors grow, suggesting that a Russian missile might have hit their Embraer 190 aircraft.

In a tragic event, the passenger flight, which was flying from Baku, Azerbaijan, to Grozny, Russia, crashed while trying to land in Aktau, Kazakhstan, killing 38 out of the 67 people on board.

The airline has halted flights to 10 airports in Russia while investigators look into the crash. They made this decision based on initial findings that indicate there may have been outside interference.

Reports from a well-known Telegram channel, linked to Russian security services, say that Russian air defenses accidentally shot down the plane, mistaking it for a Ukrainian drone being used in an attack. However, this has not been confirmed yet.

A source speaking to Reuters said that the investigations suggest the plane was indeed hit by Russian air defense systems. Meanwhile, Russia’s aviation head claimed that Grozny was being targeted by Ukrainian drones when the Azerbaijan Airlines flight was trying to land. However, the Kremlin did not comment on the possibility of the plane being shot down by mistake.

The incident shocked many and raised questions about safety and the ongoing tensions in the area.

The 2024 season for UNC football had its ups and downs. It started with a shocking loss to James Madison, where UNC lost 70-50 after being down 53-21 at halftime. This defeat was tough: it set a new record for the most points allowed in school history.

After this game, there were rumors that Coach Mack Brown had retired, but it wasn’t true. He later clarified at a press conference that he was still committed to the team and its players. Sadly, the season took an even more painful turn when wide receiver Tylee Craft passed away from a rare type of lung cancer right before the game against Georgia Tech. The entire Carolina community was heartbroken, and to honor Tylee, many wore his No. 13 jersey.

Despite all the challenges, the Tar Heels showed great strength. They pulled together and won three games in a row to become eligible for a bowl game. However, after a loss to Boston College, rumors about Coach Brown being let go circulated again. The regular season wrapped up with the game against NC State, marking the end of Coach Brown’s long career at UNC.

Congress has the power to stop Donald Trump from taking office if they take action quickly. According to the 14th Amendment of the Constitution, if someone has engaged in an insurrection—meaning they have tried to overthrow the government—they cannot be president or hold any office.

This rule is clear: anyone who took an oath to uphold the Constitution is disqualified if they helped enemies of the U.S. or committed acts of rebellion. To lift this ban, two-thirds of Congress must agree.

Many believe that Trump participated in an insurrection, especially during the events of January 6, 2021, when a mob attacked the Capitol. Trump was impeached for encouraging this insurrection, but he was not convicted because not enough senators voted to remove him.

During the chaos, Trump tried to get his vice president, Mike Pence, to reject Electoral College votes, something Pence could not legally do. While the attack was happening, Trump also seemed to cheer on the crowd chanting harmful things about Pence.

Democrats must make a move against Electoral College votes for someone who the Constitution says cannot serve, to defend their promise to support the Constitution.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. Can Congress stop Trump from being President?
Yes, Congress can stop individuals who have engaged in insurrection from holding office under the Constitution, but it requires a majority vote.

2. Will Congress act against Trump?
It’s unlikely because many Republicans may not want to take action that could help the Democrats.

In a surprising turn of events, South Korea’s National Assembly has voted to impeach Acting President Han Duck-soo. This vote, which passed with 192 votes in favor and no one against, has thrown the country into confusion. The governing party, called the People Power Party (PPP), did not participate in the vote and argued that a two-thirds majority was needed, but the Speaker of the Assembly insisted a simple majority was enough.

As a result of the impeachment, Han Duck-soo will not be able to act as president. His duties will now fall to Deputy Prime Minister Choi Sang-mok until the Constitutional Court decides if Han should be dismissed or reinstated. The same court is also looking into the impeachment of President Yoon Suk Yeol—this all started after Yoon declared martial law on December 3, which stirred up a lot of disagreement in the country.

The impeachment of both leaders shows just how divided South Korean politics have become. The main issue is the Democratic Party’s wish to fill three empty seats on the Constitutional Court, which could change the power balance and lead to Yoon’s removal. Acting President Han hasn’t agreed to these appointments without support from the other party, making things even tenser.

This political mess is happening alongside investigations into whether Yoon abused his power during the martial law period. Several important military leaders, including the defense minister and police chief, have already been arrested for sending troops to the National Assembly during the crisis.

The dual impeachments of both Yoon and Han present serious problems for South Korea, not only politically but also economically. The Democratic Party is still working to fill the Constitutional Court seats, which is crucial for the future of the country during this uncertain time.