Never thought a soda story could be sad — until we came across the tale of RC Cola last night. You might even call it... soda-pressing. Despite RC Cola being totally irrelevant and perpetually on a 50% off sale, it's done most of the heavy lifting. RC Cola came out with the first canned soda, the first caffeine-free soda, and the first 16-ounce soda. It also was the first to stage nationwide taste tests. Yet despite all their innovation, you have probably never once tried it. SAD.

In today's edition:

• Yeezys for sale again

• Family Feud murderer

• 20 Questions!

 🔑 Key Stories

Clean Slate for Ex-Cons

New York State lawmakers are advancing a bill to wipe criminal records 3-7 years after a sentence is served

• The bill, which hasn’t been formally introduced yet, would clear criminal records several years after the culprit’s sentence if they aren’t convicted of other crimes. For misdemeanors, they’d be wiped after 3 years; for felonies, after 7

• That applies to those who commit violent crimes, including murder, but not sex crimes

• Certain employers, schools, prosecutors, and other state officials could still access the sealed files. The bill isn’t yet finalized but is likely to be soon

Dig Deeper

• Supporters – mostly Democrats, who control all 3 branches of New York’s government – say the bill would reduce state unemployment and give ex-convicts a second change to integrate into society

• Critics say the bill undermines public safety and lets criminals off the hook. Others say Americans have the right to know about people’s past crimes

Yeezys Back on Sale

Adidas resumed sales of Yeezys, its Kanye (“Ye”) partnership, months after cutting ties with him

• Adidas is the world’s 2nd-largest sportswear store by revenue. Yeezy – its Ye brand – was one of Adidas’ best-selling lines, generating ~8% of its revenue

• Amid a backlash against Ye over antisemitic comments, Adidas cut ties with him and stopped selling Yeezys. That cost Adidas hundreds of millions of dollars in lost sales, and Adidas debated what to do with ~$1.3B in Yeezy inventory it still had on hand

• On Wednesday, it began selling Yeezys again. It will donate a portion of sales to activist groups

Dig Deeper

• Yeezys appear to only be available on Adidas’ “Confirmed” app. Adidas hasn’t said how many it has sold or how much of the proceeds it will donate

Aussie War Crimes

An Australia judge ruled that one of the nation’s most elite soldiers may have committed war crimes

• Ben Roberts-Smith is a former elite Australian soldier who won the country’s top medal of honor

• In 2018, news outlets implicated him in committing war crimes in Afghanistan, including executing or ordering others to execute prisoners. Roberts-Smith denied that and sued those outlets for defaming him

• In 2020, a panel found “credible evidence” that his unit committed war crimes. Then on Thursday, a judge struck down his defamation suit. Roberts-Smith will likely face criminal charges over his alleged crimes

Dig Deeper

• The judge didn’t verify all of the claims but verified enough to throw out his defamation lawsuit

• Roberts-Smith was reportedly on vacation at the time of the verdict. He has previously said that authorities are preparing criminal charges against him

Automatic Braking Required

The US’ top auto safety regulator proposed requiring automatic emergency braking systems in most cars

• Since 2011, many automakers have added automatic emergency braking (AEB) systems to their new models. Those use cameras or sensors to detect an impending crash and automatically stop the car

• Up to 90% of new cars include AEBs, but they aren’t required and many different versions of them exist

• A federal agency proposed new rules to require all light vehicles – cars, pickup trucks, SUVs – to be equipped with standardized AEBs. The agency will receive public feedback before finalizing the rules

Dig Deeper

• The agency is proposing all light vehicles be equipped to stop automatically to avoid hitting pedestrians at speeds of up to 37 MPH. They would also have to brake for speeds of up to 62 MPH to avoid hitting stopped or slow-moving vehicles

🍿 Popcorn

ICYMI

• Lionel of Arabia? Lionel Messi will leave Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) after 2 years with the club. He is reportedly considering an offer to join Ronaldo in the Saudi league

• Mo money, mo lawsuits: Rapper turned businessman Sean “Diddy” Combs has accused liquor company Diageo for neglecting his tequila brand because he’s black

• Jeff Who-stein? JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon says he had never heard of Jeff Epstein before Epstein's 2019 arrest. Another former top JPMorgan exec says Dimon is lying

Wildcard

• Fatal feud: A Family Feud contestant who jokingly said he regretted his marriage on the show was convicted for the first-degree murder of his wife

• Iron Zuck: Mark Zuckerberg announced that he completed the “Murph challenge,” in which you run 2 miles and do 100 pull-ups, 200 push-ups, and 300 squats while wearing a weighted vest

• Hedgehog of Wall Street: Sonic the Hedgehog co-creator Yuji Naka has been convicted for insider trading. He is expected to serve 2.5 years in prison and face fines of $1.2M+

👇🏻 What do you think?

Today's Question:

Just 20 Questions!

See yesterday's results below the Wrap! 

🗣 20 Questions

Every Friday, we ask the Roca readers 20 questions, then feature our favorite answers the following week.

With all the news of AI changing the future, we’d like to remember the things that influenced our past. So today, we’ve got 20 Questions: Nostalgia Edition!

We’ve got 20 prompts representative of cultural touchstones from the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s. Let us know: How much did each one impact your life?

Rate each prompt on a 1-10 scale, 1 being no influence; 10 being incredibly influential.

Here's the link. Have an AMAZING WEEKEND!

If you have thoughts, let us know at [email protected]!

 🌊 Roca Clubhouse

Yesterday's Poll:

What do you say more?

Twelve: 41%

A dozen: 59%

Yesterday's Question:

If you had to choose between universal power or universal respect, which would you pick, and why?

Tejas from Hyderabad, India: "I would pick universal respect because universal power comes with too little respect, and universal respect comes with just enough power."

Linda from Dallas, Texas: "I would choose universal respect. Respect means you treat people well, with honor, no matter who they are or what they can do for you. Power means nothing. You could have it and either have the respect of others or the loathing of others. You could be a truly great person or extremely evil. Why have power when you could have respect, and possibly get power through respect.

An assistant principal at my daughter’s high school had power, but she bullied kids and treated them like yesterday’s stinky trash. She had a lot of power. She had no one’s respect."

Mary-Anne: "Neither. Alot of responsibility comes with alot of power and/or respect."

Last Week's 20 Qs Responses:

1. Hamburger: 80%

   Hot dog: 20%

2. Lake day: 44%

   Pool day: 56%

3. Last day of May: 49%

   First day of June: 51%

4. Chips and salsa: 53%

   Chips and guac: 47%

5. Beer: 56%

   Seltzer: 44%

6. Baked beans: 39%

   Potato salad: 61%

7. Popsicle: 14%

   Ice Cream: 86%

8. Fireworks: 82%

   Sparklers: 18%

9. In the parade: 14%

   Watch the parade: 86%

10. Strawberries: 49%

    Watermelon: 51%

11. Iced Tea: 55%

    Lemonade: 45%

12. Spring: 57%

    Summer: 43%

13. Pie: 53%

    Cake: 46%

14. BBQ Chicken: 37%

    BBQ Ribs: 63%

15. Dress only in red, white, and blue: 20%

    Normal clothes: 80%

16. Holiday 5K Race: 11%

    Sleep in: 89%

17. Travel: 39%

    Stay at home: 61%

18. Watch the Indy 500: 14%

    Don't watch the Indy 500: 86%

19. Road trip: 68%

    Fly/train: 32%

20. Red: 30%

    White: 12%

    Blue: 58%

🧠 Final Thoughts

We hope everyone has a wonderful first weekend of June. Before you do so, here's a reminder of the Big News business model: They'll send news updates all weekend, warning of catastrophes, scandals, and crises. They don't care if you are out to dinner, on a date, or watching the new season of "I Think You Should Leave." They'll try to suck you out of the moment and into your phone, because when you click on that notification – they profit.

We're building a future where that isn't the case; where you only get the news you need, when you want it.

The Roca App is coming soon!

—Max and Max