🌊 Honey, We Grew the Kids

Okay, we’re back.

That was a much-needed weekend after what was a chaotic and emotionally heavy week. What made it most distressing was to see where we are as a country. Some on the left celebrating his attack, and many on the right — including and especially Elon Musk — feeding the flames of our civil war. But what we saw in our inbox, generally, was a third way: Mourning the death of Kirk and political violence and calling for unity. Not a tacky kumbaya moment but a re-commitment to sanity, civility, and tolerance for alternative viewpoints. We would like to endorse option three.

Also, for our highly popular piece on what Charlie Kirk actually said, check it out here and subscribe for the whole thing.

–Max and Max

KEY STORY

More Kids Are Obese Than Underweight

A new UNICEF report showed that more children worldwide are obese than underweight for the first time in history

• Since 2000, the percentage of underweight children aged 5-19 dropped from nearly 13% to 9.2%, while childhood obesity rates tripled from 3% to 9.4%

• The UN agency released a report on Wednesday that showed one in five children aged 5-19 is overweight, totaling 391M young people worldwide, while 188M school-aged children and adolescents now live with obesity

• Pacific Island nations recorded the highest obesity rates, while high-income nations also showed elevated rates, including Chile at 27% and both the US and UAE at 21%

Dig Deeper

• The report blamed aggressive marketing of ultra-processed foods high in sugar, salt, and unhealthy fats as the reason behind obesity rates. A UNICEF poll of 64,000 young people across 170 countries found that 75% recalled seeing ads for sugary drinks, snacks, or fast food in the previous week, with 60% saying the advertisements increased their desire for the products

• UNICEF called for governments to implement mandatory food labeling, marketing restrictions, taxes on unhealthy products, and stronger protections against industry interference in policymaking

KEY STORY

Kirk Suspect Details

Utah Governor Spencer Cox (R) said that Tyler Robinson – the suspected Charlie Kirk killer – is not cooperating

• Robinson’s father helped turn his son in on Friday. Cox has since said that Robinson had a “leftist ideology” and was "radicalized" after dropping out of college

• Robinson lived in Utah with a partner who was born male and is transitioning to female, Gov. Cox said. Axios reported that six federal sources confirmed they are looking at whether Robinson’s relationship may have helped inspire the act, although they noted that Robinson’s partner was “shocked” by what happened and is cooperating with agents

Dig Deeper 

• Investigators recovered a high-powered, bolt-action Mauser rifle with engravings on unfired bullets that contained online memes and video game references, including one that said, “Hey fascist! CATCH!”

• Because Robinson is not cooperating investigators are gathering information from friends and family. The governor noted that Robinson spent much of his time immersed in online gaming message boards

• He is expected to be formally charged by local prosecutors on Tuesday

KEY STORY

Trump to Deploy Troops to Memphis

President Trump announced that he would deploy National Guard troops to Memphis, Tennessee

• Trump has sent National Guard troops to multiple cities since taking office, including over 2,200 troops to Washington, DC, and 4,000 Guard members plus 700 Marines to Los Angeles, despite objections from Governor Newsom (D)

• FBI data showed that in 2024, Memphis had the highest rates of murder and other violent crime among cities with populations greater than 500,000. Speaking on Fox News Friday, Trump called Memphis “deeply troubled” and said he would “fix that, just like we did Washington”

• The announcement came days after Memphis police reported that overall crime hit a 25-year low in the first eight months of 2025, with murder reaching a six-year low

Dig Deeper

• Trump revealed he had shifted away from his original plan to send troops to Chicago, saying he found the city too "hostile" with “professional agitators”

• Illinois Governor JB Pritzker (D) responded by saying, “It's disturbing that the President is hellbent on sending troops onto America's streets,” and threatened legal action to block any deployment

• While some Republican officials in Tennessee voiced approval of the deployment to Memphis, Memphis Mayor Paul Young (D) said, “I do not support the National Guard [deployment]”

QUOTE OF THE DAY

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KEY STORY

US to Change Asylum Laws at UN?

The Trump Administration outlined plans to propose major changes to international asylum laws at the United Nations

• Current international asylum frameworks date back to agreements signed after World War II in 1951 and 1967, allowing asylum seekers to choose which country they approach for protection

• Under the proposed framework, asylum seekers would be required to claim protection in the first country they enter rather than a nation of their choosing

• The proposed changes would also make asylum explicitly temporary from the start and give host countries broader authority to decide when conditions have improved enough to send people back to their home countries

Dig Deeper

• Internal documents described migration as “a defining challenge for the world in the 21st century” and stated that asylum “is routinely abused to enable economic migration”

• The president of the refugee resettlement group HIAS warned that changing the current system would return the world to “the situation we were in during the Holocaust”

• Human rights advocates expressed concern that the proposed changes would fundamentally undermine international humanitarian protections that have been in place for more than 70 years

RUNDOWN
Some Quick Stories for the Office

🗳️ Senate Republicans voted 51-49 last week to reject a Democratic amendment that would have forced the public release of Jeffrey Epstein’s sex trafficking investigation files

⚖️ Brazil’s Supreme Court sentenced Former President Jair Bolsonaro to 27+ years in prison after convicting him of plotting a coup to remain in power following his 2022 election loss

🏡 The US Environmental Protection Agency announced Friday it would eliminate requirements for thousands of industrial facilities to report their greenhouse gas emissions to the federal government

🔫 A federal immigration officer fatally shot a driver during a traffic stop in the Chicago area on Friday after the man allegedly drove his vehicle into agents while resisting arrest

📈 The US is pushing G7 allies to impose 50-100% tariffs on China and India for purchasing Russian oil, aiming to force Moscow into Ukraine peace negotiations

What does Roca Nation think?

🇺🇸 Today’s Question: What has upset you the most about the reaction to Charlie Kirk’s murder?

Reply to this email with your response!

POPCORN
Some Quick Stories for Happy Hour

🐻 Bearly Appropriate: Two Cornell students legally killed a 120-pound black bear while hunting, then brought it back to campus and skinned it in a residence hall kitchen

🇳🇵 Discord and Disorder: Following massive protests that collapsed the government, over 100,000 Nepalis used Discord, a social media chatroom platform, to select their country’s next leader

🇦🇱 I’m Sorry Dave, I’m Running Albania: Albania's Prime Minister Edi Rama has appointed an AI system named Diella as his new “minister” for public procurement, making it the world’s first artificial intelligence cabinet member

👽 Alien Attraction: Brazilian tourism officials unveiled a 13-foot alien statue in Varginha to commemorate the city's famous 1996 UFO incident

🐊 See Ya Later, Alligator: A Florida woman saved her 4-month-old puppy from a 5-foot alligator by repeatedly punching the reptile in the eye until it released the dog

ROCA WRAP
Right to Arm Bears

Wojtek

A brown bear played a significant role as a World War II soldier. 

In 1942, Polish soldiers traveling through Iran encountered a young boy who had found an orphaned bear cub. Eighteen-year-old refugee Irena Bokiewicz convinced Lieutenant Anatol Tarnowiecki to purchase the animal, and the soldiers named him Wojtek. Initially fed condensed milk from a vodka bottle, the cub quickly adapted to military life, learning to drink beer, smoke cigarettes, wrestle with the soldiers, and even salute when greeted. 

When British transport regulations prohibited mascot animals from traveling to Italy, Polish commanders found a creative solution: They officially enlisted Wojtek as a private soldier, complete with paybook, rank, and serial number. During the brutal Battle of Monte Cassino in 1944, Wojtek proved his worth by carrying 100-pound ammunition crates that normally required four men to lift, never dropping a single shell.

Wojtek's battlefield service earned him promotion to corporal and made him a celebrity among visiting Allied generals. The 22nd Artillery Supply Company adopted an image of a bear carrying an artillery shell as their official emblem in his honor. After the war, he was transported to Scotland with his unit, eventually retiring to Edinburgh Zoo, where former Polish soldiers would visit and toss him cigarettes.

Wojtek died in 1963 at age 21, weighing nearly 500 kilos and standing over six feet tall. His story became legendary, representing the resilience and ingenuity of Polish forces during their darkest hour.

From refugee camps to the front lines, one bear proved that soldiers come in all shapes and sizes.

EDITOR’S NOTE
Final Thoughts

Many of you took issue with the subject line last week of “Kirk Killer Caught.” We often err on the side of accuracy, but opted more for brevity and catchiness in the subject line. In the story, we clearly wrote that he was a suspect. Of course we believe in due process. We also believe in high open rates and apologize for any confusion.

Thank you as always for your feedback and commitment to our mission. Have a wonderful Monday!

–Max and Max