Happy Least Productive Month!

Thanks to March Madness, March takes the crown for the least productive month. Between watching games, betting on games, and Googling “Where is Steven F. Austin?”, distracted workers cost their employers billions of dollars worth of productivity during the tournament.

Also, give Punxsutawney Phil a raise! 60 degrees and sunny this weekend!

In today's edition:

And so much more!

–Max, Max, Jen, and Alex

KEY STORY

Plastic in the Placenta

A new study published in the journal Toxicological Sciences found microplastics in all 62 human placentas tested

• The microplastics ranged in concentration from 6.5 to 790 micrograms (a microgram is a millionth of a gram). The most common plastic found, amounting to 54% of total plastic mass, was polyethylene, which is used in plastic bags and bottles. PVC and nylon were the next-most common plastics at ~10% each

• The lead author said “dose makes the poison”: “If [plastic exposure] keeps going up, we start to worry. If we’re seeing effects on placentas, then all mammalian life on this plan could be impacted”

Dig Deeper

• He added that “we are not sure if the current levels of microplastics are dangerous,” and said pregnant women shouldn’t make lifestyle changes based on the study

• His team is planning further research to clarify how microplastics affect health, and if so, what can be done to mitigate exposure

KEY STORY
Gaza Death Toll

Gaza’s health ministry announced that Gaza’s death toll since October 7 surpassed 30,000

• Gaza’s health ministry is controlled by Hamas and does not differentiate between combatant and civilian deaths. Nonetheless, many international organizations view its estimates as credible

• Gaza’s death toll is the largest of any Arab-Israeli conflict and corresponds to roughly 1 in every 73 Gazans

• Separately, on Thursday, 100+ Palestinians were killed as 30 trucks delivered aid in Gaza. Gazans said Israeli troops opened fire on civilians and called it a “massacre.” Israel said the aid trucks ran over a crowd of Palestinians and that its soldiers only fired later, when civilians rushed a checkpoint, “endangering [Israeli] troops” 

Dig Deeper

• Human Rights Watch and the UN estimate that 85%+ of Gaza’s 2.3M residents have also fled their homes, with 1.2M living in UN shelters

• The UN also estimates that 25% of Gazans are at risk of starvation, and a World Food Programme (WFP) executive recently said that Gaza is experiencing “the worst level of child malnutrition anywhere in the world”

KEY STORY

Fall of Weight Watchers

WeightWatchers’ shares plummeted Thursday after the company announced Oprah Winfrey will leave its board

• Founded in 1963, WeightWatchers (WW) became a multibillion-dollar company based around dieting and fitness. In 2015, Winfrey joined its board. Its stock peaked three years later at $101 per share. Since then, though, weight-loss drugs have devastated WW’s business

• On Thursday, the company announced that Winfrey – who has said that she is using weight-loss drugs – will leave WW’s board. The stock price fell 18% and is down to $3.12, a 97% drop since 2018

Dig Deeper

• In a regulatory filing, WW said her decision “was not the result of any disagreement with the company on any matter relating to the company’s operations, policies or practices”

• Winfrey said she will continue to advise WW and will donate her shares of it to the National Museum of African American History

SPONSORED

Choose Your Adventure

Happy first day of March, Roca! We know you’re an active community and love exploring new places and adventures

• In the spirit of the upcoming spring season, we’ve partnered with a select group of brands to give you the chance to embark on the outdoor adventure you've been dreaming of. That includes:

1. Flight cash from The Dollar Flight Club to fund a plane ticket to your destination of choice

2. $300 for sustainable swim gear from Midori 

3. Arctic White GloberRider45 Travel Packs from Matador 

Dig Deeper

• There are no strings attached: All these companies are just looking to generate awareness and are funding the giveaway to do so. We’ll randomly select winners at the end of March

• Choose your own adventure and enter here!

KEY STORY

Strike Stops Migrants

A strike by Colombian ferry companies has slowed the flow of migrants from South America to the US

• The Darién Gap is a dense, undeveloped jungle that connects Colombia and Panama. Migrants who come from South America to the United States over land have to pass through it

• Because there are no roads, reaching the Gap typically requires a boat trip from the Colombian mainland to the Central American isthmus

• Last week, amid pressure from the Biden administration to crack down on migrants, the Colombian navy seized two ferries carrying migrants and arrested their captains; since then, ferry companies have gone on strike, effectively halting the flow of migrants

Dig Deeper

• On a reporting trip to northern Colombia in 2022, Roca saw hundreds of migrants – including South Americans, Indians, and Africans – waiting for rides across the water

• Many migrants erect makeshift tents near the docks and spend their days recycling to save up the necessary funds

• ~3,000 migrants are now stuck in Colombia and waiting for transit

RUNDOWN
Some Quick Stories for the Office

🗳️ An Illinois judge disqualified Donald Trump from the state’s primary ballot, citing the “insurrection on January 6, 2021.” The judge paused the ruling pending appeals, meaning that Trump remains on the ballot

🔥 Northern Texas is facing the state’s largest-ever and US’ second-largest wildfire. The wildfire has already burned 1.1M acres, an area larger than Rhode Island, and as of Friday morning, is only 3% contained

🤖 OpenAI, Jeff Bezos, Nvidia, Microsoft and others invested $675M into humanoid robot startup Figure AI, which is partnering with OpenAI to create AI models “to bring humanoid robots into commercial operations”

🇺🇸 Trump and Biden made dueling visits to the Texas-Mexico border. Both delivered speeches there Thursday night, at which they blamed the other’s party for the record level of illegal immigration

🇦🇺 Australia’s intelligence agency said that an unnamed former politician “sold out” the country to an “aggressive and experienced” foreign spy agency. Politicians called for the alleged traitor to be revealed

🐋 For the first time, researchers documented humpback whales having sex – but both were male. One researcher involved said why that was the case is the “million-dollar question”

COMMUNITY
Weekly Debate

Most news companies repress ideas they don’t agree with. We are different. To prove it, we’re making this a place where people can have a free and open debate. Each week we lay out a debate on Monday and feature responses below, replies to those the following day, and so on.

This week’s Roca Votes Wrap asks: Do you consider obesity a major issue in your country? If yes, do you find semaglutide’s popularity a helpful or harmful development?

That’s it for this week’s topic! See you on Monday for the next one.

Find yesterday’s poll results to this week’s debate below the Wraps.

COMMUNITY
Treasure Hunt

Welcome to the weekly Roca treasure hunt! The rules are simple:

• Every day we give a hint. You get one guess, which you submit by emailing [email protected] with a Google street view screenshot

• Unlock an extra hint each Thursday once you refer five friends

• The first person to guess the answer wins this week’s prize: A free year of Roca premium!

Clue 1: Three continents strong

Clue 2: Conceived by a coward

Clue 3: 🎶 Tin soldiers and Nixon's comin' 🎶

Clue 4: One, two, someone's coming for you

Clue 5: It's implied that Freddy used to live here

Know the answer? Send the Google street view screenshot to [email protected].

POPCORN
Some Quick Stories for Happy Hour

🥳 Let’s do this again in four years, kids! A Brooklyn brother and sister born on Leap Day four years apart celebrated their unique birthdays together for the first time this year

🍦 Hazing Blizzard: Dairy Queen employees in Kentucky were forced to eat ice cream contaminated with cleaning solution, per the parents of one of the 17-year-old employees

🤌 Christophaaa, I saved the house: Drea de Matteo – famous for her role as Adriana La Cerva in “The Sopranos” – said OnlyFans saved her house from foreclosure after her acting career hit a standstill

🐷 Geaux pig geaux: A baby pig thrown like a football near a New Orleans Mardi Gras event was “pardoned” in a public ceremony and has found a permanent home

🎵 Queen B watching Canadian TV?: Beyoncé’s hit new song “Texas Hold ‘Em” is drawing comparisons to the theme song of the Canadian children’s show “Franklin”

⚽️ Red card for doping: Italy’s national anti-doping tribunal has banned France and Juventus star midfielder Paul Pogba, 30, from soccer for four years

ON-THE-GROUND
Roca in Serbia

We send our co-founder Max Frost to investigate topics around the world and he writes about them here. He’s currently writing from Serbia. Subscribers receive the full stories.

Serbia is home to a unique political type: The authoritarian liberal. How that came about is an interesting story. 

Like many countries, Serbia has long been an unequal country, divided between the poor, rural countryside and the cosmopolitan urban elite. In many countries, it’s that urban elite – that studies in Western Europe and the US, travels abroad, and speaks English – that is the biggest proponent of democracy and the West. 

In Serbia, that’s not necessarily true. My conversation with Danica, a Roca reader in Belgrade, explains why. 

Danica, a lawyer in her 20s, said people in Belgrade are “very open, very talkative.” She was both those things and eager to share her perspective. She began by saying that to understand Serbia today, we had to talk about 1999. 

That year – when Danica was a baby – was formative for Serbs. Their country was at war in its south (Kosovo) and faced an economic crisis. Many Serbs wanted their ultranationalist leader, Slobodan Milosevic, out. He was a “totalitarian tyrant,” Danica said, whose policies had destroyed the economy and turned their country into a pariah. Serbs – including Danica’s parents – protested en masse to get him to leave.

At first, the protesters – the cosmopolitan elites – targeted their rage at Milosevic. But then NATO started bombing Serbia in order to get Milosevic to call off the war and step down. While NATO and the protesters had the same goal – ousting Milosevic – the protesters were shocked that NATO would bomb Serbian bridges, airports, and cities. 

People were so shocked when the US started bombing Serbia that the anti-Milosevic protesters – the so-called “liberals” – turned against the United States. 

“They were chanting, ‘You can suck our d*ck, Clinton!’ And they were holding up targets, like, ‘Shoot at us! We don't f*cking care!’” Danica said. Serbia’s cosmopolitan elite thus became anti-Western. 

Today, that plays out in people with “liberal” views who are neither Western-oriented nor “democrats.” Danica – who studied environmental law, is working to help Serbia join the EU, and is a vocal critic of capitalism and supporter of Palestine – is one of those people.

While appearing liberal on paper, Danica is unabashedly fond of the days when Serbia was a communist dictatorship. She reminisced on when Yugoslavia was “fighting the colonists, supporting all these liberty movements. Yugoslavia was such a colorful country at the time. Culture-wise, art-wise, music-wise. It was such a boom. It was completely different.”

She said Tito, the dictator behind that, was “very smart,” “very charming,” and “very mysterious.” Today, Danica even has a Tito poster on her bedroom wall. 

Back then, Danica said, “The moment I graduate school, I get my own apartment, I get a job, I immediately get a good position. This was the system. People were graduating law school and immediately they get a position in the court if they want a position in the court.”

“They had all these benefits. But on the other side, you weren't that free to, like, criticize the government.”

“You can consider this system in the present now,” Danica said. “Ask yourself: Would I give up a portion of my political freedoms to have a welfare state? Would I live in a state where I can vote for only one party but I have free healthcare and free education that are great?”

To Danica, that was a solid deal. 

“I think it was a very good era,” she said. 

The next person I spoke to couldn’t have disagreed more strongly. 

Reply to this email to let us know what you think!

ROCA WRAP
Person of the Week: Sir Bobby Charlton

Bobby Charlton was born in England on October 11, 1937, to a football family: His mother’s cousin was a professional football player and her four brothers played for league clubs.

The young Bobby would follow in their footsteps, leading Manchester United's chief scout to recruit him to United’s youth team at just age 15.

Charlton’s family persuaded him to take an electrical engineering apprenticeship in case his football career didn’t work out. That proved unnecessary: Charlton’s passing, shooting, and tactics would make him one of the most complete midfielders of his time and help him dominate the pitch.

After a year, Charlton joined United’s professional team, which was being rebuilt by the legendary manager Sir Matt Busby. He became one of the famed “Busby Babes,” a group of up-and-coming footballers recruited by Busby to rebuild the club after World War II.

After making his first-team debut in 1956, Charlton quickly established himself as a key player, leading the team to the league championship that year. The next year, he helped United win the league again and become the first English team to compete in the European Cup. Then tragedy struck.

On February 6, 1958, Charlton and the United team were in high spirits flying home from Yugoslavia, where they had just secured points to advance in that year’s European Cup. The club was hoping to become the first to win three successive league titles – but then the flight stopped for a refueling stop in Munich.

A fierce snowstorm was underway there but despite rising apprehension – one teammate even switched seats with Charlton to take a “safer” seat in the rear – the takeoff proceeded. The plane never made it off the ground: It skidded off the runway and across a road, setting a house on fire and splitting in half.

The United goalkeeper escaped unscathed and began a one-man rescue mission. He found Charlton still strapped into his seat and thought he was dead, yet grabbed him anyway and dragged him from the plane.

Others weren’t so lucky.

Seven of Charlton’s teammates died at the scene, including the player with whom he had swapped seats. Of the 44 passengers and crew, 23 ended up dying from the accident. Only nine players survived, but two were so badly injured that they never played again.

Despite suffering significant injuries and emotional trauma, Charlton was the first injured survivor to be discharged from the hospital.

While recovering with family in England, he spent some time kicking a ball around with local youths. The moment was captured in a now-iconic photograph that reflected the nation’s belief that Charlton – just 20 years old – would rebuild the beloved club.

Rebuild he did: Charlton led the team to FA Cup victory in 1963 and the English League title in 1965.

The spotlight intensified in 1966 as England hosted the World Cup. Under Charlton’s leadership, England won its first – and to this day, only – World Cup title, a moment of national glory for the country. Widely considered one of the greatest players of all time, he also won the Ballon d'Or, football’s top individual prize, that year.

Charlton propelled Manchester United to another League title in 1967 and spearheaded their historic European Cup win in 1968, marking the team's first European triumph.

Over his national career, Charlton earned 106 national appearances for England, scoring 49 goals – a record that remained unchallenged for nearly fifty years. By the time he retired from professional football in 1973, Charlton had notched 249 goals for Manchester United, a record that lasted until 2008. In 1994 he was knighted, earning the title “Sir” before his name.

Sir Bobby Charlton entered a nursing home last year, where his life ended at age 86.

His commitment to Manchester United and football ensured his legacy as not just one of the sport's greatest ambassadors, but a national icon for England.

Reply to this email to let us know what you think!

ROCA WRAP
Person of the Week: Sir Bobby Charlton

Bobby Charlton was born in England on October 11, 1937, to a football family: His mother’s cousin was a professional football player and her four brothers played for league clubs.

The young Bobby would follow in their footsteps, leading Manchester United's chief scout to recruit him to United’s youth team at just age 15. 

Charlton’s family persuaded him to take an electrical engineering apprenticeship in case his football career didn’t work out. That measure proved unnecessary: Charlton’s passing, powerful shots, and tactical strategy would make him one of the most complete midfielders of his time and help him dominate the pitch.

After a year, Charlton joined United’s professional team which was being rebuilt by the legendary manager Sir Matt Busby. He became one of the famed “Busby Babes,” a group of up-and-coming footballers recruited by Busby to rebuild the club after World War II.

After making his first-team debut in 1956, Charlton quickly established himself as a key player, leading the team to the league championship that year. The next year, he helped United win the league again and become the first English team to compete in the European Cup. Then tragedy struck.

On February 6, 1958, Charlton and the United team were in high spirits flying home from Yugoslavia, where they had just secured points to advance in that year’s European Cup. The club was hoping to become the first to win three successive league titles – but then the flight stopped for a refueling stop in Munich.

A fierce snowstorm was underway there but despite rising apprehension – one teammate even switched seats with Charlton to take a “safer” seat in the rear – the takeoff proceeded. The plane never made it off the ground: It skidded off the runway and across a road, setting a house on fire and splitting in half. 

The United goalkeeper escaped unscathed and began a one-man rescue mission. He found Charlton still strapped into his seat and thought he was dead, yet grabbed him anyway and dragged him from the plane.

Others weren’t so lucky.

Seven of Charlton’s teammates died at the scene, including the player with whom he swapped seats. Of the 44 passengers and crew, 23 ended up dying from the accident. Only nine players survived, but two were so badly injured that they never played again…

Join Roca Nation

This was an example of a Roca Wrap. To read the rest of the Wrap, try a free two-week trial for Roca Premium and you’ll also unlock:

• A daily Wrap

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COMMUNITY
Weekly Debate

Yesterday’s Poll:

Do you worry about “normalizing” Ozempic, or is that what should happen?

Worry: 78%
Should happen: 22%

COMMUNITY
20 Questions

As is Roca tradition, every Friday we ask our readers 20 questions or polls and include the answers the following Friday. Let us know your thoughts!

We’ve got a classic 20 Questions this week — Rate This: Nostalgia Version. We dug up 20 iconic items from the past decades and want you to rate them on a scale of 1 to 10: 1 being the worst and 10 being the best.

Here’s the link! Have a great weekend.

Last Week’s 20 questions:

Last week, we asked you an open ended 20 Questions. Here’s a few replies per prompt:

1. Your rose of the week?
   "Bloomed beautifully”

   "Found $5"

2. Your thorn?

   "Stubbed toe"

   "Coffee spill"

3. Do you say rose and thorn or something else?

   "High and low”

   "Good and bad”

4. Your favorite dog breed?

   "Golden Retrievers"

   "Rescues"

   “Pitbulls - they’re friendly!!”

5. Your three favorite states?

   "Solid, liquid, gas"

   "California, Texas, Florida — although they fill like dif. countries lol”

6. The state/country you're from?

   "Constant confusion”

   We had every continent represented but Antartica!

7. If your house were on fire, what's the one thing you'd grab?

   Pets was top choice

   "The fire”

8. What's the best thing you read this week?

   "Takeout menu"

   “My second grade daughter’s dreams workbook. The young have so much hope for the world!”

9. What's something that really fired you up this week?

   "Injustice anywhere”

   "Out of coffee”

10. What's your take on self-help books?

    "Life-changing”

    “Who do those authors think they are”

11. Does America watch too much sports?

    "Yes, obsessively."

    "Dumb question, next question"

12. Last movie you saw in theaters?

    "Oppenheimer"

    "Forgot already"

    “Oscar shorts marathon”

13. Where are prices most outrageous to you these days? Theater, airport, where??

    "Everywhere"

    "Popcorn at all the above"

    “my bodega man smh. thought we were homies”

14. Your favorite 1980s artist?

    "Prince."

    "Pac-Man."

15. Your favorite 1990s artist?

    "Nirvana."

    "MS Paint”

16. Which decade had better music?

    1980s was the most common reply

    "Hot take, but right now"

17. An issue that doesn't get enough coverage in the news?

    "Mental health"

    "Alien invasions”

    “the absurdity of pennys as a coin”

18. If Roca were to start a podcast, who should be the first guest?

    "Elon Musk”

    "A talking dog”

19. Why aren't Americans socializing as much anymore?

    "Digital isolation”

    "Netflix binge"

    “social media, social media, social media”

20. Any fun weekend plans?

    "Hiking trip"

    "Sleep marathon"

EDITOR’S NOTE
Final Thoughts

We know we have many Roca readers in Texas and we’re thinking of you all as this fire burns. We hope you and your loved ones are safe.

See you Monday (and do those 20 Questions).

— Max, Max, Jen and Alex