The Kennedy Center has added another unexpected item to its New Year’s program: cancellations. A New Year’s Eve concert by jazz group The Cookers was scrapped, just days after a Christmas Eve show was pulled, as more artists quietly exit the schedule. The withdrawals come after the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts announced it would add Donald Trump 's name to the institution, a move that appears to be inspiring protest through absence. For a venue built to celebrate the arts, the loudest sound right now is silence - punctuated by the occasional press release.

The US is seeing a sharp rise in flu cases, driven by a new strain that is hitting older adults especially hard. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, hospitalisations, emergency visits and flu-related deaths are all climbing, even though the season hasn’t yet peaked. Health officials insist the surge isn’t historically unusual and say current vaccines still offer protection against severe illness - if not perfect peace of mind. Readers, meanwhile, remain divided: some trust the science, others suspect the virus has once again read the vaccine label and adapted accordingly.

President Donald Trump ays his immigration crackdown has delivered a jobs boom for U.S.-born workers - but economists say the numbers aren’t playing along. While fewer immigrants appear in the labor force, government data shows native-born employment is not surging and unemployment for U.S.-born workers has actually ticked up. Experts explain that the administration’s headline claims rely on a statistical quirk, not millions of Americans suddenly snapping up newly vacant jobs. In short, immigrants may be leaving the data - but the promised job bonanza for U.S.-born workers is still missing in action.

In the age of autocorrect and voice memos, some American schoolchildren are rebelling by learning cursive. In an after-school calligraphy club at Holmes Middle School, students voluntarily practice loops, flourishes, and capital letters they were never taught on a keyboard. The club has unexpectedly become popular, proving that "outdated" skills can still be very useful. It turns out cursive isn't dead-it just needed a quiet room after school and a good marker.

By 2025, scientists stopped asking whether microplastics are everywhere and started asking how worried we should be. Research over the past year confirmed that these tiny plastic particles aren’t just floating in oceans and rivers - they’re also turning up in our food and inside human bodies, which feels like an unnecessary level of intimacy. As Shannon Osaka notes, what was once an environmental problem has officially become a personal one. In short: microplastics are small, persistent, and apparently very enthusiastic about joining every ecosystem - including us.

The United States Secret Service has launched one of the biggest hiring drives in its history, aiming to expand its workforce by about 20 percent and give its exhausted agents a break. The urgency is driven by a crowded 2028 calendar featuring the United States presidential election and the Summer Olympics, both of which tend to attract attention - and not the good kind. Officials say the push will reduce burnout and cut reliance on outside agencies, a polite way of admitting the current workload isn’t sustainable. In short, the Secret Service is planning ahead - because last-minute scrambling is best left to the candidates, not their security.

The United States has quietly rewritten its childhood vaccine playbook, scaling back routine recommendations for shots against flu, hepatitis A, rotavirus, and meningococcal disease. The move, pushed through by the Trump administration, sidesteps the usual advisory process and reflects the long-held views of Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Officials say the new guidance simply brings the U.S. closer to international norms; critics worry it brings the country closer to preventable outbreaks. In short, America is calling it “alignment with peers” - while the debate over fewer shots and bigger risks is just getting started.

After a year of tiptoeing around Donald Trump, European leaders have finally drawn a red line - and it runs straight through Greenland. Trump’s renewed talk of “taking” the island, even floating military options, jolted capitals that had previously swallowed tariffs, insults and treaty-as-deal rhetoric in the name of keeping the peace. Denmark, backed by France, Germany, the UK and others, bluntly reminded Washington that Greenland’s future is a matter for Copenhagen and Nuuk alone, not an acquisition opportunity.

Donald Trump has announced that the United States will withdraw from 66 international organizations linked to the UN, trimming global cooperation across fields from climate change to cotton. The White House says it’s about focus and efficiency; critics call it another retreat from the world stage. Officials confirmed that both participation and funding are being cut, reinforcing Washington’s turn inward. In short, America is streamlining its diplomacy-by dramatically reducing the number of rooms it’s willing to be in.

A new report from the Heritage Foundation proposes a bold solution to declining marriage and birth rates in America: less social media dating, more tax breaks, and what they cheerfully call "couples boot camp." Drawing on data from the 2025 Project, the plan promotes heterosexual marriage and large families as a matter of national economic survival. The idea is simple: if people simply unplugged, settled down, and procreated more, prosperity would follow. Whether Americans see this as social renewal or government-sanctioned matchmaking remains, predictably, a subject of debate in the United States.

Washington National Opera is packing up and leaving the Kennedy Center, ending a long-running partnership that suddenly feels very short-tempered. The 70-year-old institution cited ongoing turmoil at the center following President Donald Trump’s return to power, alongside reports of falling ticket sales. The Kennedy Center, for its part, confirmed that cooperation has been cut off-apparently decisively. In cultural terms, it’s less a graceful exit and more a reminder that even opera can’t always outsing politics.

Donald Trump’s higher-education agenda is leaving a mark that universities say won’t be easy to erase. His administration’s push for tighter federal control has reshaped funding, rules, and campus culture, forcing colleges to adapt quickly-or comply reluctantly. Supporters argue the shake-up was overdue, bringing accountability to institutions long accused of operating on see-no-evil autopilot. Critics warn the cost could be lasting damage to academic freedom and research, proving that culture wars don’t stop at the campus gates.

A powerful force has been freezing the U.S. housing market, and it’s finally starting to thaw. For the first time, more homeowners now hold mortgages above 6% than the ultra-cheap sub-3% loans handed out during the pandemic. Those rock-bottom rates kept people glued to their homes, choking supply and pushing prices ever higher-a phenomenon politely called the “lock-in effect.” As that imbalance fades, more owners may finally consider moving, though few will do so without fondly remembering the golden age of cheap money.

As the 2026 midterms approach, Donald Trump is once again testing the guardrails of American democracy - this time before a single vote is cast. Fearing investigations, impeachment and a hostile Congress, he is using every available lever to shape the election rules and pre-emptively question the results if they don’t go his way. Critics say these moves go well beyond hardball politics and straight into norm-breaking territory. In short, Trump isn’t waiting to lose an election to dispute it - he’s getting a head start.

Ginger has been used as a remedy for upset stomachs for more than 2,500 years - and science says it’s not just folklore. Studies show it can ease mild to moderate nausea, which explains why doctors still recommend something your grandmother probably swore by. That said, ginger works better for some types of stomach trouble than others, and how you consume it actually matters. In short, ginger isn’t magic - but for an ancient root sold at every grocery store, it’s doing pretty well.

Talks between the Trump administration and Danish and Greenlandic officials ended much where they began: with “frank” conversations and fundamental disagreement over President Trump’s idea of owning Greenland. While the meeting produced a promise to set up a high-level working group, it delivered little actual consensus. Danish officials called the exchange constructive, which in diplomatic language often means “we strongly disagree, politely.” For now, Greenland remains unmoved-and very much not for sale.

American households are watching their electricity bills soar-up about 40% since 2020-while nearby data centers quietly enjoy far gentler price hikes. The reason isn’t mystery math: homes pay for aging poles, wires, and storm damage, while energy-hungry data centers often plug straight into high-voltage lines and negotiate friendlier deals behind closed doors. Regulators insist prices should reflect costs, but lobbying power tends to flow toward companies with billion-dollar projects, not people with monthly bills.

Americans are finding new reasons to hang on to smaller backyards, and it’s not suddenly because they love less space. With mortgage rates far above the sub-3% glory days of the early 2020s, many homeowners are choosing to stay put rather than trade their cheap loans for much pricier ones. Instead of moving, they’re expanding-often by building additions that quietly eat into yard space. In today’s housing market, the lawn is shrinking, but the logic is simple: it’s cheaper to sacrifice grass than to refinance.

European capitals are scrambling after President Donald Trump threatened tariffs against countries that refuse to support his bid to acquire Greenland, turning diplomacy into a high-stakes real estate negotiation. Ambassadors meeting in Brussels are weighing retaliation, worried the move could unravel decades of U.S. military and trade alliances. Protests have already erupted in Greenland, where locals appear unconvinced by the idea of becoming a bargaining chip. For Europe, the message is clear: when tariffs enter the conversation, even the Arctic is no longer off-limits.

Republicans have seized the education debate by leaning hard into culture wars, and Democrats are now wondering how they let that happen. Rahm Emanuel, openly eyeing a presidential run, argues the party needs to stop shadowboxing over hot-button issues and start talking relentlessly about student achievement. His message is simple: voters care more about whether schools work than about who won the latest ideological skirmish. In other words, Democrats may not win back education by arguing louder - but by getting back to basics.

Donald Trump announced at Davos that he has a “framework” for a Greenland deal, dialing back his earlier tariff threats and talk of outright acquisition. The sudden shift followed days of diplomatic whiplash, as Denmark and Greenland repeatedly reminded Washington that the island is, in fact, not for sale. Trump framed the move as progress toward “immediate negotiations,” even as details remained conspicuously vague. In true Trump fashion, the Greenland saga continues-less conquest this time, more framework, and just enough drama to keep allies guessing.