Two new can’t-miss RocaNews videos…
You probably wouldn’t be reading this newsletter if you thought the legacy media did a good job of covering this country. Traveling the country over the last year has reinforced our belief that many important places and topics are either outright ignored or blatantly miscovered, largely due to the legacy media’s elitism and ideological uniformity.
Well, we have two new videos that perfectily fit that bill: 1) A deep dive on the Florida illuminati that has overtaken DC; and 2) A reporting trip to Flint, Michigan to see how the city’s doing a decade after its water crisis. Hope you enjoy, and let us know what we should cover next.
💰 Colombia caves to Trump's threats
📉 Why Big Tech just took a nosedive
🤯 New ICE officer is... Dr. Phil?
–Max and Max
KEY STORY
Israel-Lebanon Update
At least 24 Lebanese civilians returning to their villages were killed after a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hezbollah broke down on Sunday, according to the Lebanese Health Ministry
Israel had previously agreed to withdraw its forces from southern Lebanon by Sunday, but the Israeli government said it would not withdraw until the Lebanese army deployed to the area
Lebanese protestors demanded that Israel adhere to the ceasefire and withdrawal agreement brokered in November, and Israel stated that it had fired “warning shots” at protestors that approached troops
The White House stated that the deadline for Israel’s withdrawal has been extended to February 18
Dig Deeper
Israel stated that it would stay longer because the Lebanese army had not yet deployed to southern Lebanon to ensure Hezbollah’s withdrawal, but Lebanon said it cannot deploy until Israel leaves
The White House released a statement on the extended deadline for Israel’s withdrawal, saying that “the arrangement between Lebanon and Israel, monitored by the United States, will continue to be in effect until February 18, 2025”
KEY STORY
DeepSeek Tanks Tech Stocks
Nvidia suffered the largest one-day market rout in history
Last week, DeepSeek – a small Chinese AI company established less than two years ago – released R1, a “reasoning” large language model (LLM) on par with OpenAI’s o1 model. It cost far less to develop and was made with far simpler chips than the Nvidia ones used by OpenAI
On Monday, Nvidia’s stock fell up to 18% on Monday, erasing nearly $500B in market value and constituting the largest one-day rout in market history
R1’s potential largely lies in its low cost and its “open source” development, meaning that researchers and firms can study and build on the model to improve its performance
Dig Deeper
Earlier this year, Goldman Sachs analysts predicted as much as a 30% market correction in 2025, a shift that could trigger a major financial downturn
That report cited the costs of potential tariffs and a tech sector bubble, with analysts writing that stocks like Nvidia, Amazon, and Google could face severe downward pressure if tariffs increase prices for semiconductors and data center equipment
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KEY STORY
Undersea Cable Sabotage
Swedish authorities seized a ship suspected of sabotaging undersea data cables in the Baltic Sea on Sunday
More than 95% of all the data sent around the world between countries and continents relies on undersea cables, but they are vulnerable to sabotage and cutting
On Sunday, Sweden seized a ship they accused of damaging a cable between Sweden and Latvia – an apparent act of sabotage. The Latvian prime minister stated, “We have determined that there is most likely external damage and that it is significant”
NATO launched a naval mission last month to defend underwater data cables, oil pipelines, and power lines following a string of sabotage incidents in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine
Dig Deeper
Sweden’s seizure comes two months after Denmark seized and boarded a Chinese-owned ship in November that Danish authorities suspected of cutting undersea cables
A month after that, NATO launched a naval mission to defend underwater data cables, pipelines, and power lines from sabotage
KEY STORY
Colombia Tariffs
Colombia’s president agreed to take deportees from the US amid President Trump’s tariff threats
On Sunday, Colombia’s president, Gustavo Petro, blocked US flights carrying migrants from landing in Colombia, leading Trump to threaten 25% tariffs, a travel ban, and sanctions
Hours later, the Colombian government stated that it had “overcome the impasse with the US government” and made “the presidential plane ready to facilitate the return of Colombians”
The White House warned that Trump “expects all other nations of the world to fully cooperate in accepting the deportation of their citizens illegally present in the United States,” holding up the trade war threat as a warning to other countries
Dig Deeper
The situation opened a rift between Colombia and the US – military allies and close partners on trade, combatting drug trafficking, and more
On Sunday, Petro posted a long statement on X predicting that the US would “try to carry out a coup with your economic strength and your arrogance...Overthrow me, President, and the Americas and humanity will respond”
The statement – which also called traveling to the US is “a bit boring” and said that American oil is “going to wipe out the human species” – ended with “FROM TODAY ON, COLOMBIA IS OPEN TO THE ENTIRE WORLD, WITH OPEN ARMS, WE ARE BUILDERS OF FREEDOM, LIFE AND HUMANITY”
RUNDOWN
Some Quick Stories for the Office
📱 Perplexity AI has made an offer to merge with TikTok and give the US government a 50% stake in the new company
🇵🇸 15 months after Israel’s offensive against Hamas began, tens of thousands of Palestinians are returning to Northern Gaza
🪖 Rwandan-backed rebels entered Goma, a city of 2M in eastern Congo, potentially beginning a deadly new phase in one of the world’s longest-running conflicts
🧑🔬 Some recent developments suggest the ongoing bird flu outbreak increasingly poses a risk of spreading to humans
🇺🇸 President Trump fired more than 15 independent federal government inspectors general on Saturday night
COMMUNITY
What does Roca Nation think?
🧐 Yesterday’s Question: Chiefs-Eagles Super Bowl. Thoughts?
As a Steelers' fan, you could not pay me enough to root for either team: everything Philthadelphia is anathema, and KC owns the refs and should not be the first 3-peat team.
This weekend’s officiating shone a spotlight on the embarrassing process of “spotting” the ball under a literal pile of players often from 20-30 yards away… and then awarding (or denying) a first down by inches (or a link of the chain).
It’s 2025 folks. Certainly the technology exists to do better. NFL… we’re talking to you!
I'm a member of a Chiefs family, and I gotta say, it warms my heart to see my brother, father, husband, and various other members of my community have a run like this after so much heartache back in the day. I think football has too many weird rules and I don't understand how they keep the clock at all, but I love the emotional rollercoaster that a room full of sports fans can take me on, and I am more than excited to watch our boys in red go to the ship once again. Tomahawk Chop baby!
🧐 Today’s Question: Do you (consciously) use AI in your daily lives? If so, what for? Fascinated to read answers.
POPCORN
Some Quick Stories for Happy Hour
🏀 DJ's Tasteless Track Gets Timeout: University of South Carolina's basketball DJ is facing backlash after playing a song by murdered rapper Camoflauge to taunt LSU player Flau'jae Johnson, the late artist's daughter
🪪 Your Next ID? There's an App for That: The UK announced that virtual drivers licenses are coming to smartphones later this year, though physical cards will still be valid
🇺🇸 From Talk Show to Border Patrol: Dr. Phil has taken his show on the road - specifically to ICE raids in Chicago, where he filmed himself questioning detained immigrants alongside Trump's border czar Tom Homan
🐕🦺 Police Corgi in the Dog House: China's first-ever police corgi, Fu Zai ("Lucky Boy"), lost his year-end bonus after being caught sleeping on duty and using his food bowl as a toilet
👶 Donut Delivery: A winter storm in Alabama forced a new mom to make an unscheduled pit stop at Krispy Kreme, where she delivered her baby boy in the parking lot just a mile from the hospital
ROCA WRAP
Double Power
Poland
This country has doubled the size of its military in the last decade.
Poland – a NATO-allied central European nation of 38M people – has a long and fraught history with Russia. Russia occupied or controlled Poland for most of the 1900s. As such, many Poles take talk of Russia’s expansionist agenda seriously.
Since Russia’s 2014 seizure of Crimea, Poland has transformed its military capabilities. Once the ninth-largest force in NATO, it now ranks behind only the United States and Turkey. It also leads European defense spending as a percentage of GDP.
Poland has doubled its armed forces to over 200,000 personnel and tripled its defense budget to $35B. Major purchases include a $10B deal for Apache helicopters and extensive weapons systems from South Korea, as Prime Minister Donald Tusk's government aims to reach 4.7% of GDP in defense spending this year.
Amid this, Poland has remained strongly pro-American in its defense outlook: The nation’s defense minister has indicated support for Trump’s demands that NATO countries spend 5% of GDP on defense, something other countries have balked at.
Is Poland the world’s next military power?
ROCA VIDEO
How a Florida Secret Society Has Overtaken DC
There's a new "Skull and Bones" in America, and you've never heard of it. It comes from the University of Florida, and it's called "Florida Blue Key." Three of arguably the five most powerful people in Washington, DC are either members or closely affiliated with it. For decades, it dominated Florida politics. You couldn't open the governor's mansion without the Blue Key. And now that key opens up the doors of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.
–Max and Max
EDITOR’S NOTE
Final Thoughts
Long newsletter today, so we won’t drag it out with an epilogue. Hope you enjoy those videos and have a great day.
–Max and Max
