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Wednesday, December 31, 2025
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Good Morning! On this day in 1907, New York Times owner Adolph Ochs organized the first ball drop in Times Square to commemorate New Year’s Eve. The event has taken place every year since, except in 1942 and 1943, when revelers observed a minute of silence to welcome the New Year.
You’ll notice that today’s edition is a bit shorter as our staff takes time to celebrate the New Year’s holidays. Tomorrow we feature a special Jan. 1 Flyover, reviewing the top news stories of 2025 and giving you an opportunity to offer your judgment as well. Don’t miss it! Our regular issues will return on Sunday.
Today is the final day of 2025 to invest in The Flyover and help shape how we enter 2026. Our current investment round is closing next month, and bonus shares are expiring—see the Own The Flyover section below for more info. Invest in The Flyover →
Later today: You will find a quick sponsor message in your inbox from FinanceBuzz on a cash-back card that could pay off if you shop on Amazon or at Whole Foods.
Today’s sponsor, Momentous, offers a clean, research-backed creatine made with Creapure,® available in formats that fit real routines and designed to support strength, performance, and even cognitive health without cutting corners.
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 19 States Raise Minimum Wage
Nineteen states will raise their minimum wage effective Jan. 1, with over 8.3 million workers set to benefit from increases that average about 70 cents per hour.
Washington state will have the highest rate at $17.13 per hour, while Hawaii sees the biggest jump from $14 to $16, with six states crossing the $15 threshold for the first time, including Arizona, Colorado, Maine, Missouri, and Nebraska.
For the first time, more workers will be in states with a minimum wage of $15 or higher than those in states with the federal minimum of $7.25, which has remained unchanged since 2009, while 20 states, mainly in the South, still use this rate.
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College Football Playoffs in Spotlight
The College Football Playoff quarterfinals kick off this weekend with four win-or-go-home games: Miami faces off against Ohio State tonight in Texas, followed by an all-day, nationwide football marathon to determine who plays in the semifinals.
Tonight opens with defending champions No. 2 Ohio State continuing their quest for a repeat against No. 10 Miami in the Cotton Bowl at AT&T Stadium. The Buckeyes are favored by nearly 10 points.
On New Year’s Day, the competition starts with the tightest line on the board: No. 5 Oregon vs. No. 4 Texas Tech in the Orange Bowl. The spotlight then swings to Pasadena in the afternoon, where unbeaten No. 1 Indiana (and Heisman-winning quarterback Fernando Mendoza) is favored against No. 9 Alabama at the Rose Bowl.
The final evening game features an all-SEC rematch in New Orleans between No. 3 Georgia and No. 6 Ole Miss in the Sugar Bowl. The Bulldogs dealt the Rebels their only loss of the season back in October, making this a game of major proportions for revenge.
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Ocean’s Eleven-Style Heist Grabs $35M
Thieves drilled through a parking garage wall into a savings bank vault in Gelsenkirchen, Germany, then spent the weekend breaking into more than 3,000 safe-deposit boxes and stealing an estimated $35 million in cash, gold, and jewelry.
Police described the heist as “very professionally executed,” likening it to the movie Ocean’s Eleven, with witnesses reporting masked men carrying large bags through the parking garage stairwell before fleeing in a black Audi RS 6 with stolen license plates.
The break-in came to light Monday morning when a fire alarm was triggered, and emergency services discovered the hole. See the photo of the hole in the wall here.
About 200 distressed customers massed outside the closed bank branch on Tuesday after police received threats against employees, with many victims reporting losses far exceeding their insured values.
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How We Finish This Year Will Define the Next One
Today is the final day of 2025.
And how we finish this year will dictate how we start the next.
For decades, legacy media decided what Americans read, watched, and believed. They chased clicks. They elevated celebrity “journalists.” They blurred the line between reporting and opinion to push a political agenda—and then wondered why trust collapsed.
2025 was the year readers began choosing something different.
The Flyover’s growth didn’t explode because of outrage or agenda.
It grew because millions of Americans are hungry for:
- Facts over spin
- Reporting over opinion
- Common sense over political agendas
As we head into 2026, we’re sending a clear message:
The Flyover is going to be the No. 1 source of unbiased, fact-first, common-sense news in America.
And the reason won’t be corporations.
It won’t be political donors.
It will be reader-owners.
Own The Flyover. Invest today.
Today Is the Day to Act
Our current investment round is closing next month.
Bonus shares are expiring.
And today is the final day of 2025 to invest and help shape how we enter 2026.
If you’ve been on the sidelines—thinking about it, meaning to act, waiting for the right time—there is no clearer signal than this moment.
Because the future of news won’t change by accident.
It will change because our readers decided to build something better.
Help Us Send a Message
A message to legacy media that Americans are done being lectured to.
A message that facts still matter.
A message that trust can be rebuilt—if readers own the newsroom.
As we turn the page to 2026, we’re asking you to join us—not just as a reader, but as an owner.
Help us finish 2025 strong.
Help us start 2026 even stronger.
Own The Flyover. Invest today.
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The following stories are featured exclusively on The Flyover Podcast—a daily show that gives you the most important headlines in under 15 minutes. Clicking the link will take you directly to these stories:
➤ A train derailment in Kentucky forced residents to shelter in place and turn off their HVAC systems. (Hear Why)
➤ The American Kennel Club has named three new dog breeds. (Listen Now)
➤ An Italian cable car accident left visitors stranded on a mountain for hours. (Hear Details)
  
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Flying together with our sponsor
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Eligible customers can also use HSA/FSA funds through Truemed, making it easier to invest in supplements that actually work.
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 What’s open and what’s closed on New Year’s Day? Here’s a holiday schedule for federal and major public services on Jan. 1. ( See Schedule) The New Year is rolling in with rough weather on both coasts, but the forecast for the middle of the country is dry with above-average temperatures. (See Forecasts)
For those who prefer to stay at home on New Year’s Eve, here’s a guide to tonight’s many New Year’s Eve specials on TV. (More)
Flying together with our sponsor
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➤ The Department of Health and Human Services has halted all child care payments to Minnesota amid a growing federal investigation into alleged fraud within the state’s social services programs. The move follows a viral video exposé and claims that up to half of $18 billion billed to state-run programs since 2018 may be fraudulent. (See Details)
➤ The Trump administration announced sanctions against 10 firms and people in Venezuela and Iran, targeting drone production and sales. (See Details)
➤ Meanwhile, the CIA reportedly launched a drone strike on a remote Venezuelan port facility used by the Tren de Aragua gang to store narcotics, marking the first known U.S. land strike inside Venezuela. No casualties were reported. (See Details)
➤ Saks Global Enterprises is weighing a Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing as it faces a $100 million debt payment due today amid mounting liquidity challenges. (See Details)
➤ Tatiana Schlossberg, writer and granddaughter of President John F. Kennedy, died Tuesday at age 35 after announcing her terminal acute myeloid leukemia diagnosis in November 2025. (See Details)
➤ The U.S. drops a ball in Times Square, but other New Year’s Eve traditions around the world include Estonia’s custom of eating seven to 12 meals for strength, Turkey’s practice of smashing pomegranates on doorsteps for good fortune, and Argentina’s ritual of taking the first step of 2026 with the right foot. (See Traditions)
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Flying together with our sponsor
Not all creatine is created equal, and format matters more than most people realize. Momentous creatine is available as a powder, chew, or lemon-flavored option so you can stay consistent without compromising quality.
Each option uses Creapure® creatine and is manufactured to NSF Certified for Sport® standards, supporting strength, recovery, and cognitive performance with every serving.
Eligible customers may also be able to use HSA/FSA funds through Truemed, turning pre-tax health dollars into high-quality supplements designed to perform.
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 Daily Quote
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“Be at war with your vices, at peace with your neighbors, and let every new year find you a better man.”
— Benjamin Franklin, on wise ways to enter a new year
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 Today’s Trivia
What country will celebrate New Year’s tonight by eating a dozen grapes at midnight?
Show me the answer
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*Own The Flyover Disclaimer
Equity crowdfunding investments in private placements, and start-up investments in particular, are speculative and involve a high degree of risk and those investors who cannot afford to lose their entire investment should not invest in start-ups. Companies seeking startup investment through equity crowdfunding tend to be in earlier stages of development and their business model, products and services may not yet be fully developed, operational or tested in the public marketplace. There is no guarantee that the stated valuation and other terms are accurate or in agreement with the market or industry valuations. Further, investors may receive illiquid and/or restricted stock that may be subject to holding period requirements and/or liquidity concerns.DealMaker Securities LLC, a registered broker-dealer, and member of FINRA | SIPC, located at 4000 Eagle Point Corporate Drive, Suite 950, Birmingham, AL 35242, is the Intermediary for this offering and is not an affiliate of or connected with the Issuer. Please check our background on FINRA’s BrokerCheck. DealMaker Securities LLC does not make investment recommendations. DealMaker Securities LLC is NOT placing or selling these securities on behalf of the Issuer. DealMaker Securities LLC is NOT soliciting this investment or making any recommendations by collecting, reviewing, and processing an Investor’s documentation for this investment. DealMaker Securities LLC conducts Anti-Money Laundering, Identity and Bad Actor Disqualification reviews of the Issuer, and confirms they are a registered business in good standing. DealMaker Securities LLC is NOT vetting or approving the information provided by the Issuer or the Issuer itself. Contact information is provided for Investors to make inquiries and requests to DealMaker Securities LLC regarding Regulation CF in general, or the status of such investor’s submitted documentation, specifically. DealMaker Securities LLC may direct Investors to specific sections of the Offering Circular to locate information or answers to their inquiry but does not opine or provide guidance on issuer related matter. |
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