🌊 Drop the Adults, Just Teens

55 years ago today…

The world woke up to one of the most infamous murder sprees in history: The Tate murders. Four of Charles Manson’s minions broke into the home of pregnant actress Sharon Tate, killing her, coffee heiress Abigail Folger, and three others in cold blood.

And on that note, have a great weekend!

Link to 20 Questions!

–Max, Max, and Owen

KEY STORY

USA Leaves Niger

The US handed over its last base in Niger

• Niger is one of the world’s poorest countries, located largely in the Sahara. In recent years, it had become a key base for Western spies, diplomats, and soldiers, who used it to combat surging terrorism in the area

• That was reliant on 1,000 US troops at a US drone base in Niger, facilitated by Niger’s pro-US president. Last year, the military toppled that president, turned Niger toward Russia, and ordered the US to leave

• This week, the US turned over the keys to the base. While it flew out sensitive equipment and weapons, it left housing units, vehicles, and other assets

Dig Deeper

• The American troops leave as the region, known as the Sahel, remains one of the world’s smuggling and terror hotspots, recording more jihadist attacks than any other

• The US says its objectives haven’t changed, and it’s looking for a new country to host its regional base. It’s in early talks with Ivory Coast, Ghana, Togo, and Benin – all relatively Western-friendly countries

KEY STORY

EV Fires: Myth or Real?

A large EV fire in South Korea is raising questions about the safety of electric vehicle batteries

• Last week, an unplugged Mercedes-Benz EV ignited in an underground car park near Seoul, destroying hundreds of cars, hospitalizing 23, knocking out power, and drawing attention to EV safety

• Car companies, including Chevy and Hyundai, have recalled EVs because of fire risk, yet governments’ and companies’ data show that EVs are up to 8x less likely than combustion vehicles to catch fire

Dig Deeper

• The government of Norway – which has the world’s highest proportion of electric car sales – says fires are four to five times more likely in combustion vehicles, while Australia’s government found that combustion vehicles are eight times as likely to catch fire

• Vehicle valuation company Kelly Blue Book corroborated these findings in the US

• Some data are murky, though, because they include arson and because EVs haven’t been on the road as long

ROCA’S PARTNERS

Get Priceless Financial Advice

Together with Money Pickle

• Money management presents many options: Save or invest, build a retirement pot, or optimize for taxes. But too many options make it impossible to choose – and in today’s changing markets, every missed opportunity could set you back

• Money Pickle fixes this: You can talk to their trusted financial advisors from the comfort of your own home and get personalized advice on investments, retirement, and financial goals

• Here’s how it works: Schedule a free online meeting, and you’ll get matched with a vetted, unbiased advisor who aligns with your personal goals

• They’ll talk you through the advisor process, give you their professional opinion, discuss services that might benefit you – and, of course, cover the cost of the call

• So, if you’re based in the US and want an advisor’s bespoke advice on your financial goals, you can start for free with Money Pickle

• Find out more here!

KEY STORY

Meta: Bring Us The Teens

Meta and Google colluded to secretly target minors with advertisements, per the Financial Times (FT)

• Meta ran ads promoting Instagram on YouTube – owned by Google – targeting a special demographic group that YouTube labeled “unknown”

• Per the FT, Google knew this group was heavily skewed to 13-17-year-olds and took steps to disguise the deal. Google rules prohibit advertising to minors

• After being contacted by the FT, Google canceled Meta’s ad campaign and said it initiated an investigation. Meta, meanwhile, said targeting the “unknown” audience did not circumvent any rules

Dig Deeper

• The deal was rolled out to a limited number of Canadian users earlier this spring and then tested on Americans in May

• The FT reported that the companies perceived it as a success and planned to expand it further, both to other countries and products, including Facebook

KEY STORY

Abortion Numbers Up

More women are getting abortions now than before Roe v. Wade was overturned, according to a new report. Driving the trend is a rise in telehealth abortions

• In the first three months of 2024, an average of nearly 100,000 abortions were performed per month, 20% of which came via telehealth providers. Two years ago, that number was 4%

• Although 14 states have banned abortions and 27 more restrict them, “shield laws” allow residents in states where abortion is restricted to get abortion drugs and receive video guidance through the process

Dig Deeper

• In June 2022, the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in its Dobbs decision, ending the federal right to abortion. That pushed the abortion decision back to the states

• Florida — which instated a six-week abortion ban — and a handful of other states with restrictions are aiming to put abortion on the ballot for voters in November

RUNDOWN
Some Quick Stories for the Office

🤯 An ex-MrBeast employee released a second YouTube video making new allegations against MrBeast, the platform’s biggest creator. The video – titled ”I Worked For MrBeast, He’s A Sociopath” – accuses MrBeast of mistreating his staff and businesses, abusing his power, tolerating a toxic workplace, and knowingly employing a convicted sex offender

🏠 Average US mortgage rates fell to 6.47%, the lowest since May 2023, ahead of expected Fed rate cuts. Home sales remain at historic lows, with high housing and mortgage costs pricing many buyers out of the market

🚨 Authorities found bomb-making materials in the home of a suspect who confessed to planning a terror attack at now-canceled Taylor Swift concerts in Vienna. The suspect, 19, reportedly changed his appearance, researched bomb-making techniques, and pledged allegiance to ISIS’ leader online. He intended to kill himself and “as many people as possible” using knives and homemade explosives. A second suspect, 17, was also recently hired by a company providing services for the shows 

🚫 A mass YouTube outage hit Russia on Thursday, with users reporting they could only access the site via VPNs. YouTube – one of the last bastions of free expression on the Russian internet – hosts content from Putin’s opponents that has been removed from other popular sites in the country. Last month, a government official warned that YouTube speeds would drop by up to 70%

🚔 The Wall Street Journal obtained bodycam footage showing local police complaining moments after the attempted assassination of Donald Trump, suggesting that local police warned the Secret Service that the warehouse where the shooter was positioned needed protection. “I f*cking told them that they needed to post guys f*cking over there… I told them that f*cking Tuesday,” a local officer says in the footage. “I talked to the Secret Service guys. They’re like, ‘Yeah, no problem. We’re going to post guys over here’”

📊 US stocks saw their best day since 2022 after a week of declines. The market rebounded as new data showed a large drop in unemployment claims, alleviating fears of an imminent recession. The S&P 500 rose 2.3%, and the Nasdaq jumped 2.9%

COMMUNITY

🧠 Yesterday’s question: What’s something from the 2000s that you miss? Could be anything from Rainforest Cafe to grocery prices…

ASK AND TELL
20 Questions

Ladies and gentlemen, the Weeknd.

Enough with all these 20 Questions themes. Let's go back to our roots: Our randomest musings from 2:35 AM the night before this newsletter goes out. So here we go with a random, grab-bag edition of 20 Questions. Can't wait to hear your thoughts.

Here’s the link.

Last Week’s 20 Questions:

Most common answer for each category in last week’s 🐐 edition of 20 Qs.

Basketball - Michael Jordan (not close)
Football - Tom Brady
Baseball - Babe Ruth
Soccer - Messi
Olympics - Michael Phelps
Comedians - Dave Chappelle
US president - Abraham Lincoln
Vocalist - Pavarotti/Freddie Mercury
Infomercial guy - Billy Mays
Talk show host - Johnny Carson
TV show dad - Homer Simpson
TV show mom - Lucille Ball
Comedy actor - Will Ferrell
Comedy actress - Julia Louis-Dreyfus
First Lady - Eleanor Roosevelt
Daytime TV host - Jerry Springer
Reality TV star - “None”
Conqueror - Genghis Khan
Lyricist - Bob Dylan
Wizard - Gandalf

POPCORN
Some Quick Stories for Happy Hour

🧨 Literally blowing up the bathroom: Authorities charged a 46-year-old Texas man with arson after he allegedly planted explosives under toilet seats in public restrooms, resulting in several injuries

🥇 No LeBronze: Team USA men’s basketball overcame a 17-point deficit to beat Serbia 95-91 in the Olympic semifinals. Curry dropped 36 points, leading the US to a gold medal matchup against France

🥉 The Bronze Variant: Noah Lyles, the American sprinter who won gold in the men’s 100M, won bronze in the 200M despite having Covid

♟ Anal beads out, poison in: Russian authorities are investigating a chess player after she allegedly attempted to poison her opponent before a match last week

💊 Shake ya jailfeather: Police arrested Nelly at a Missouri casino after allegedly finding four ecstasy pills on him. Nelly is a 3x Grammy winner known for his hit songs like “Hot in Herre” and “Just a Dream”

ROCA VIDEO

How a Lecture Changed JD Vance’s Life

Through the bestselling book Hillbilly Elegy and the subsequent Netflix film of the same name, you might know quite a bit about JD Vance’s early years. Spoiler: They were tough. But, you may not know as much about the years that followed his enlistment in the Army and graduation from Yale. How did he become a successful venture capitalist? Who influenced him? How did a law school lecture change his life? Watch the video below for answers.

Make sure to subscribe to the channel!

EDITOR’S NOTE
Final Thoughts

Thank you for all your feedback on yesterday’s video on Kamala Harris. But really? You still want LESS camera time from the Maxes? Going to have to really get a new skincare routine cause this Dawn dish soap is clearly not working great.

Have a great weekend.

–Max and Max