King Charles III’s coronation took place Saturday at Westminster Abbey. The grand celebration included performances from Katy Perry and Lionel Richie, along with a message from Tom Cruise that closed, "Your Majesty, you can be my wingman any time." Well, King Charles III, with that, you got the title you really wanted on Saturday: Goose. Buckle up, Chuck ✈

In today's edition:

• China really wants more babies

• RFK Jr. calls out CIA for JFK

• The coronation

 🔑 Key Stories

China to Boost Childbirths

Chinese President Xi Jinping held a meeting of top officials about correcting China’s falling birth rate

• China has had a low birth rate since the 1970s, when it began restricting couples to having just one child. China removed that limit in 2016

• Since 2020, China’s workforce has shrunk by 41M people; in 2022, China’s population shrank for the first time in 6 decades, and its birth rate fell 10%

• Last week, Xi held a meeting about “high-quality population development,” where the government says he “delivered an important speech.” That suggests China will likely increase efforts to boost its population

Dig Deeper

• The meeting comes as China’s government makes numerous efforts to increase the birth rate. In February, one Chinese province began giving motherhood benefits to unmarried Chinese women. Other provinces have banned extreme wedding-related costs, introduced a state-sponsored dating app, and increased subsidies, childcare, and education offerings

US Adds More Jobs Than Expected

New data showed that the US added more jobs in April than expected

• Economists had expected the US to add 180,000 jobs last month; according to a government report released Friday, it actually added 253,000

• Jobs growth was particularly strong in business services, healthcare, hospitality, and construction – which now employs a record 7.9M Americans

• The data suggest the US is not immediately headed for a recession, as some have assumed. That was supported by a strong earnings report by Apple, the world’s most valuable company, on Friday. The combination caused stocks to surge

Dig Deeper

• Some analysts worry the strong data will push the Federal Reserve to raise rates again, which slows economic growth and may harm the financial sector. Last week, the Fed raised rates for the tenth consecutive time, but for the first time in over a year, said it had no more plans to continue raising rates

Weed Linked to Schizophrenia?

A study found that cannabis use disorder may cause up to 30% of schizophrenia among 21- to 30-year old men

• Past studies have linked cannabis use disorder — excessive weed use despite negative life impact — to schizophrenia. This new study, the largest ever, sought to determine the extent of that link

• Using data from 6.9M Danish people over 50+ years, it found that ~15% of 2021 schizophrenia cases among men aged 16-49 and 4% among women may have been avoided by preventing cannabis use

• It found the highest link among 21- to 30-year old men, and found that the link had increased over time

Dig Deeper

• The study is the largest to show a link between cannabis use disorder and schizophrenia in such a large population. “This study adds to our growing understanding that cannabis use is not harmless,” the study’s lead author said

Texas Mall Shooting

A gunman killed at least 8 people at a Texas mall on Saturday

• The shooter opened fire indiscriminately at a mall in Allen, a town 25 miles north of Dallas, around 3:30 PM. He killed 8 people and injured at least 7 others, 3 of whom are in critical condition. A hospital said the injured ranged in age from 5 to 61

• A police officer who was at the mall for a different reason shot and killed the gunman, authorities said

• The shooter was a 33-year-old man who had interacted with neo-Nazi content online. He wore a patch supporting such beliefs during the shooting

🍿 Popcorn

ICYMI

• Bronny speaks: Bronny James, LeBron James’ son and the 19th-ranked basketball recruit in his class, has committed to USC. LeBron has said he won't retire until he can play with Bronny

• RFK vs CIA: Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. said he thinks the CIA's involvement in the murder of JFK, his uncle, is "beyond a reasonable doubt" 

• From the Faux Nation: A Cal Berkeley anthropologist has admitted to having no Native American ancestry after years of claiming it and leveraging it for research

Wildcard

• No ordinary wakeup call... A Hilton guest in Tennessee says he awoke to a hotel manager sucking his toes at 5 AM. The manager claims he smelled smoke in the room

• Rebels without a chaperone: A New Jersey mall has resorted to banning teens under 17 without a supervisor of 21+ past 5 PM on Fridays and Saturdays to curb disruptive behavior

• Steve's check-flation: A $175 check signed by Steve Jobs — payable to a now-defunct consulting firm — is expected to fetch over $25,000 at auction

👇 What do you think?

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🌯 Roca Wrap

England has a new monarch.

The UK’s first coronation in 70 years took place on Saturday. It features 2 gem-studded crowns, the Coronation Chair, the Stone of Scone, the Diamond Jubilee State Coach, 2,300 handpicked guests, and much more.

The United Kingdom is a constitutional monarchy, in which an elected parliament passes laws but the head of state is a monarch. The current royal family traces its lineage to King Alfred the Great, who ruled in 871 AD. It has existed under its current name – the House of Windsor – since 1917.

King Charles III – the eldest son of the late Queen Elizabeth II – legally became king of the UK when his mother died last September. He also became king of 14 “Commonwealths,” or former British colonies. Tradition dictates that all British monarchs hold a coronation to formalize their rule.

At 74, Charles is the oldest British monarch ever to be crowned.

He gained notoriety in the 1990s for a series of high-profile affairs, including one with his current wife, Camilla, while he was married to Princess Diana. Diana died from a car crash in 1997, and Charles married Camilla in 2005.

The coronation of King Charles III began at 10:20 AM London time (5:20 AM EST).

Charles III and his wife Camilla traveled in the Diamond Jubilee State Coach from Buckingham Palace – the royal residence – to Westminster Abbey, an Anglican church. Throughout the morning, 12 songs specially commissioned for the coronation played.

The top bishop of the Church of England received Charles and Camilla at Westminster.

At the bishop’s instruction, everybody cheered, “God save the king!,” as trumpets sounded. The royal family formally invited all its subjects to join to create “a chorus of millions of voices”

Then came the oath: At the direction of a bishop, King Charles III was sworn to uphold the laws of the UK and defend the Church of England. The traditional oath requires monarchs to pledge to be “Defender of the Faith upholding the rights of the Church of England;” to be more inclusive, Charles had the bishop clarify the pledge referred to “all faiths and beliefs.”

Charles was then covered with gold sheets as the bishop anointed him with holy oil, symbolizing his being God’s chosen monarch. Charles then sat on the Coronation Chair, a wooden chair used to coronate British monarchs for 700+ years.

The throne holds the “Stone of Scone,” a rock traditionally used to coronate Scottish kings. The British seized it in 1296 and it has been included in every coronation ceremony since.

Charles was handed the Royal Orb, a diamond, ruby, and sapphire-encrusted golden ball created in the 17th century, and 2 scepters. He was crowned with the 1661 St. Edward’s Crown, which is made of gold, diamonds, and gems.

Charles switched to a different crown – the 2,868-diamond Imperial State Crown – and he and his wife received a military escort back to Buckingham Palace. They traveled in a different wheeled vehicle, the 18th-century Gold State Coach.

The entire coronation cost ~$125M and attracted an average of 18M viewers in the UK.

The 2,300-person coronation guest list included 100+ heads of state, China’s vice president, European royalty, celebrities, and 850+ community and charity representatives.

First Lady Jill Biden attended, although President Biden did not. Prince Harry, who recently published an expose about the family, attended, while his wife Meghan Markle, who has accused the family of racism, did not. Prince Andrew, who stepped back from public duties over ties to Jeffrey Epstein, also was there.

The festivities concluded with a coronation concert on Sunday, headlined by Katy Perry, Lionel Richie, and Andrea Bocelli, and a UK national bank holiday today.

Did you watch the coronation? If so, what did you think? If you didn’t, why not?

Let us know at [email protected]!

 🌊 Roca Clubhouse

Yesterday's Poll:

Will you celebrate Cinco de Mayo today?

Yes: 26%

No: 74%

Yesterday's Question:

Just 20 Qs!

🧠 Final Thoughts

We hope you all had unbelievable weekends. We spent ours at a cabin on the Virginia/West Virginia border, discussing bigger and better ways to get you all the news you need.

Hope you have wonderful Mondays!

–Max and Max