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- 🌊 Trapped in Antarctica
🌊 Trapped in Antarctica
Plus: Trump challenges Biden pardons, Serbs hold record rally, & Roca visits Navajo Nation
March Madness is here. Are you ready to get hurt again?
We all know by now that the odds of filling out a perfect bracket are preposterously low. The number sounds like one your six-year-old cousin made up: One in nine quintillion. You have a better chance of winning both the Powerball and Mega Millions in the same week. But come on… look at the bracket… so shiny… Janet can’t win the office pool again this year… it all just makes sense.
🥶 Scientists get trapped in Antarctica
🇺🇸 Trump reviews Biden pardons
🎥 Roca visits Navajo Nation
–Max and Max
KEY STORY
Deportation Battle
The Trump Administration has denied violating a federal court order by deporting hundreds of Venezuelan immigrants to El Salvador
Trump signed an executive order on Friday invoking the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 to rapidly arrest and deport those the administration identifies as members of Tren de Aragua, a Venezuelan gang. The enemies law allows for summary deportations of people from countries at war with the United States
On Saturday, a judge ordered a pause to the deportations and all deportation flights to return. Flights proceeded to land in El Salvador anyway, prompting accusations that Trump violated a court order. Because the judge said, but did not write, that the planes must return, it’s unclear if the White House violated a court order
Dig Deeper
Amid accusations that the White House violated a court order, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt asserted that the federal courts "have no jurisdiction" over the president's conduct of foreign affairs or his power to expel foreign enemies. She added, "A single judge in a single city cannot direct the movements of an aircraft carrier full of foreign alien terrorists who were physically expelled from US soil"
KEY STORY
Record-Breaking Rally
In the largest protest in Serbian history, hundreds of thousands flooded Belgrade's streets to protest government corruption
In November, a concrete and glass canopy collapsed at a train station in Novi Sad, Serbia’s second-largest city, killing 15. The disaster has since become a powerful symbol of government negligence, particularly because President Vucic’s party has been in power for a decade and he personally reopened the renovated station in 2022
This weekend, a "15th for 15" protest – named for the 15 people who died – drew massive crowds across Belgrade, the capital, to demand an end to corruption and better governance
President Vucic rejected calls for his resignation, declaring, “I do not accept blackmail…I am the president of Serbia and I won’t allow the street to set the rules”
Dig Deeper
The protest movement began as student demonstrations but has evolved into a broad coalition that now includes taxi drivers, farmers, lawyers, and military veterans. During the protest, participants illuminated the night sky with their mobile phones for 15 minutes – one minute for each victim of the station collapse
Protesters demanded accountability, an end to corruption, and a better-functioning government
QUOTE OF THE DAY
Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn
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KEY STORY
Antarctic Scientists’ SOS
Scientists trapped at a research station in Antarctica have requested urgent help after a colleague allegedly sexually assaulted and threatened to kill a team member
Teams spending winters at the base are typically cut off for 10 months, with the only escape route being an emergency medical evacuation to a German base nearly 200 miles away. Researchers undergo psychological screenings before being sent there
In a new email to the South African government, one researcher warned that another’s behavior had become “increasingly egregious,” including making death threats and an assault
South Africa’s government said that it was “responding to these concerns with the utmost urgency and [has] had a number of interventions with all parties concerned at the base”
Dig Deeper
South Africa’s government said it had launched a “full investigation” and “will act accordingly in relation to any wrong conduct,” however, South Africa’s Antarctic research program has had numerous incidents in the past, including one researcher attacking a colleague with a frying pan in 2017
KEY STORY
Trump Reviewing Biden Pardons
President Trump questioned the validity of pardons granted by President Biden before he left office, stating his administration would investigate and potentially nullify them
On his last day in office, Biden gave preemptive pardons to family members and all members of the US House committee investigating the January 6 riot
Some of the pardons were allegedly signed using an autopen, a machine used to imitate signatures used by presidents, officials, and lawmakers to sign letters and legal documents
On Monday, President Trump asserted that Biden’s pardons were “void” because they were signed using the machine, but said the decision would be left to the courts
Dig Deeper
Autopens were pioneered by President George W. Bush’s administration, which said, “The President need not personally perform the physical act of affixing his signature to a bill he approves and decides to sign in order for the bill to become law”
RUNDOWN
Some Quick Stories for the Office
🥤 Pepsi bought prebiotic soda brand Poppi for $1.95B, marking a shift by Pepsi into health and wellness beverages
🏛️ Per White House officials, Vice President JD Vance expects the terms of an agreement on TikTok’s ownership by April 5
🇺🇸 The Trump administration deported a Brown University medical school professor who attended the funeral for Hezbollah’s former leader
🏫 Harvard University announced it will make tuition free for students from families making less than $200,000
🇷🇺 Secretary of State Marco Rubio reportedly asked Hungary not to veto EU sanctions on Russia
📱 Pavel Durov, the Russia-born founder of social media platform Telegram, was allowed to leave France while awaiting trial
What does Roca Nation think?
🧠 Yesterday’s Question: A new CNN poll found that the Democrats’ favorability rating has fallen to a record low. Why do you think that is?
Politicians in Washington have become so much more beholden to corporate and other big-money interests that they have lost touch with their constituents and their needs. People who voted Democrat, thinking that a traditionally left-center, labor-friendly party wasn't as corrupt as the other one, have been finding out that their representatives aren't representing the people as much as the party and their sponsors. and don't seem to be bothered by lawlessness and corruption happening in front of them.
I think the Democrats have fallen out of favor because they went too far left. And I think the same thing is happening with the Republican Party going too far right. I think the parties are bowing to what they see on social media rather than what regular people want. Most people you talk to in real life are way more centered and maybe slightly lean in one direction. I think everyone just wants, low taxes, a good economy and for people to be treated fairly. I don’t care what party you are, if you want to win our hearts and minds, run on a platform free of identity politics and made up problems.
Democrats seem to be stuck in their opposition to Trump, prioritizing a “woke” agenda that they believe is the only correct path forward. If that’s the hill they want to die on, so be it. Perhaps out of their decline, a new party can emerge—one that’s more centrist and capable of presenting real competition to the Republican Party. While I don’t think the two parties need to agree on everything, they should at least come together on issues that matter most to the American people. Right now, though, it feels like their fixation on this narrow agenda is preventing them from understanding what the majority of Americans truly want, focusing instead on the demands of a small, vocal minority.
🧐 Today’s Question: Is it rude to compliment someone’s weight loss when you see them for the first time in a while?
POPCORN
Some Quick Stories for Happy Hour
🛫 Measure Twice, Buy Once: The Swiss government recently found that its new $117M private jet is too large and heavy to operate at its capital's airport
🇨🇳 Cheeky Deportation: Two Japanese tourists were detained for two weeks in China before being deported after one exposed his buttocks while the other photographed him at the Great Wall
🍝 Page-Turning Dessert: A Spanish Michelin-star pastry chef created a $362 dessert infused with old books by soaking pages in liquid and transferring the aroma into alcohol using a technique called enfleurage
🎬 Method Acting?: Poland's prime minister promised military training to actor Jesse Eisenberg, a new Polish citizen, saying it would help him land "the new James Bond role"
🎭 Conan’s Oscar Encore: Conan O'Brien will return to host the Academy Awards in 2026. It’s one of the earliest host renewals in Oscar history
ROCA WRAP
Cricket Revolution
Kenya
Women in this country are turning to cricket farming.
Kenya's arid and semi-arid lands have traditionally been home to pastoralist communities like the Maasai, a tribe that has relied on livestock herding for generations.
These communities have faced increasing challenges in recent years, including severe droughts, shrinking grazing lands due to urbanization and private land ownership, livestock diseases, and banditry. According to Kenya's National Drought Management Authority, 2.6M livestock died between 2021 and 2023 across the Arid and Semi-Arid Lands region, devastating the livelihoods of many pastoralist families.
As it gets harder to raise cattle, some Maasai women are now turning to crickets.
One Maasai woman told the AP, "When they came to teach us, the Maasai, about crickets, we were shocked. What is this cricket? At first, we did not agree with the teachings."
Many herders believed crickets posed a threat to their livestock, with some fearing the insects could cause death to their cattle, leading people to kill any crickets found near homesteads.
Organizations have since worked to integrate crickets into local agriculture, though, and increasingly, farmers are hunting and trapping crickets. The insects are a nutrient-rich food source, packed with protein, vitamins, and minerals, making them valuable for family diets and potentially for producing animal feed.
And unlike cattle, they require little land, water, or space – each of which is getting ever scarcer in places like Kenya.
EDITOR’S NOTE
Inside New Mexico's Poorest Region (Navajo Nation)
We traveled to Navajo Nation to see what life is really like on America’s largest reservation, Navajo Nation. We found stunning landscapes and deep poverty—but also a strong culture fighting to survive. The Navajo face huge challenges, yet many are determined to preserve their way of life.
EDITOR’S NOTE
Final Thoughts
If you think dad jokes are bad, just wait until you hear a dad inflation joke.
I stopped to put air in my tires today. The pump cost $1.50! I remember when those things used to only cost 25 cents. I guess the price has adjusted for inflation.
If you unsubscribe after that one, we can’t blame you. Have a great day.
–Max and Max