🌊 Ozempic Saving Fuel Costs?
Plus: Record snow in Russia, Trump talks Greenland, & lunar hotel startup
There’s a (snow)storm coming, Mr. Wayne.
A massive snowstorm is expected to cover more than two dozen states — from Texas to the Northeast — with snow and ice this weekend. If you’re in the Great Lakes region, that snow will come sooner: Many of our Midwestern readers will be getting ~2 feet of snow in the next couple days. The storm this weekend is expected to hit Dallas, Atlanta, Charlotte, and Memphis, so get ready for some all-time social media clips.
We’ll be in Miami this weekend and are set to leave Monday. That Monday may quickly become Tuesday, then Thursday, and then March 31st.
🇷🇺 Record snow buries Russia’s Far East
✈️ Ozempic saving hundreds of millions on fuel?
🌕 Hotel rooms on moon available soon
–Max and Max
KEY STORY
Record Snow Buries Russia’s Far East
Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula was hit by its worst snowfall in 60 years
Kamchatka, a peninsula in Russia’s Far East, regularly faces brutal winter conditions, but the current storm has exceeded average levels
Weather officials measured over 6.5 feet of snow in the first half of January, following approximately 12 feet in December. In some areas, snow piled up between 10 and 40 feet high
The storm caused widespread power outages, blocked roads, and grounded all flights in the region. Grocery stores depleted their supplies of basic necessities, while forecasters predict the snow will persist through January 26
Dig Deeper
The unprecedented snowfall resulted from several low-pressure weather systems that formed in the Sea of Okhotsk, which sits off Russia’s eastern coast
Footage captured vehicles nearly completely covered by snow as people dug pathways to reach building entrances. The mayor of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, the region’s administrative center, declared a citywide emergency late last week
KEY STORY
Trump Plans Greenland Talks at Davos
President Trump announced plans to meet with "various parties" at the World Economic Forum (WEF) this week to discuss his push to acquire Greenland
The WEF hosts an annual gathering in Davos, Switzerland, drawing thousands of government leaders and business executives. On Saturday, Trump announced new tariffs, effective February 1, on eight European countries that oppose his Greenland plans
On Truth Social on Monday, Trump said he agreed to a meeting of the various parties in Davos. He wrote, "Greenland is imperative for National and World Security. There can be no going back"
Dig Deeper
European national security advisers from multiple countries have been meeting on the sidelines of the forum to discuss the Greenland situation, with the issue added to their agenda after Trump's tariff announcement
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen vowed an "unflinching united and proportional response" to Trump's tariff threats
Plus, check out Max F’s recent article on whether a Greenland deal is possible and what it could look like
KEY STORY
Ozempic to Cut Airline Fuel Costs?
A study found that major airlines may save up to $580M per year on fuel costs as passengers shed weight from weight-loss drugs like Ozempic
Fuel is one of the largest expenses for airlines, with the four biggest airlines expected to spend nearly $39B on fuel in 2026
Last week, financial services firm Jefferies found that American Airlines, Delta, Southwest, and United may cut fuel spending by $580M yearly as the use of GLP-1 drugs, such as Ozempic, rises
The savings stem from lighter passenger loads as more Americans take GLP-1 drugs. One November 2025 survey showed that around 12% of Americans use GLP-1 medications
Dig Deeper
American Airlines, Delta, Southwest, and United expect to use 16B gallons of fuel next year, costing $38.6B and accounting for roughly one-fifth of total expenses
While the fuel savings amount to 1.5% of costs, researchers found that reducing a plane's weight by 2% might increase investor profits by around 4% per share
KEY STORY
DoJ Investigates Church Protest
The Justice Department (DoJ) opened an investigation into protesters who interrupted a church service in Minnesota last weekend
Around 30 to 40 protesters – including ex-CNN host Don Lemon – entered Cities Church in St. Paul on Sunday, yelling "ICE out." The group alleged that Pastor David Easterwood serves as acting director of the ICE St. Paul field office
Separately, on Tuesday, federal prosecutors delivered subpoenas to six Minnesota officials, including Governor Tim Walz (D) and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey (D), as part of an investigation into whether they obstructed federal immigration enforcement
Dig Deeper
Attorney General Pam Bondi announced the DoJ would investigate the church incident as a potential violation of the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act, which prohibits using force or threats to interfere with religious worship
On Monday afternoon – a full day after the protests at the church – Walz’s office condemned the protest in a statement that read: “The Governor has repeatedly and unequivocally urged protesters to do so peacefully. While people have a right to speak out, he in no way supports interrupting a place of worship”
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QUOTE OF THE DAY
He who has a why to live can bear almost any how.
-Friedrich Nietzsche
WE THE 66
Tiananmen Square 2.0?
What happens when a brutal regime faces mass protest and refuses to back down?
In today’s deep-dive, we revisit the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre and compare it to Iran’s latest uprising — from the economic spark that ignited both movements to the brutal crackdowns that followed
So is Iran facing its own Tiananmen moment? And what comes after the tanks roll in?
RUNDOWN
Some Quick Stories for the Office
💲 Netflix changed its bid for Warner Bros. Discovery to all-cash at $27.75 per share, though it did not increase the total value of $82.7B, including debt.
📉 US stocks dropped over 2% on Tuesday as Trump escalated threats of tariffs on European allies unless they support his plans for America to control Greenland.
🌨️ Over 100 vehicles crashed or slid off Interstate 196 in Michigan on Monday as lake-effect snow blanketed the area.
🪖 The Pentagon plans to reduce participation in NATO advisory groups by about 200 personnel, primarily affecting the alliance's 30 Centers of Excellence that train forces on warfare tactics.
🏳️ Syria's government and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) agreed to a ceasefire after nearly two weeks of fighting in northeastern Syria. The SDF had controlled the region since 2015 after defeating the Islamic State (IS) during the Syrian civil war.
What does Roca Nation think?
🇺🇸 Yesterday’s Question: Which story do you consider most important right now: Iran, Greenland, Venezuela, or Minnesota? Something else?
Well duh. The most important story right now is Roca’s amazing video viewership. It was excellent work and shows how much the average Joe yearns for genuine, high quality journalism. Bravo!
Jamie from MS
Thanks for taking the time to dive into the current situation in Minnesota. (Kinda hard to avoid, but...thank you all the same!)
There are so many different ways to address the current events--politically, logically, emotionally... No matter how determined you are to stay unbiased and view the facts as they are, it quickly gets messy and complicated!
Justice demands right and wrong, freedom and consequences. But who is right? And who is wrong? Who decides who gets freedom? And who determines the consequences? My idea probably won’t match your idea. And in our current world, we claim that true freedom is being able to define and determine what is true is what is true for ME.
And that just doesn’t work.
It reminds me of my college Philosophy class. Kant’s wall has us all working so hard to determine what we can know to be true. My truth versus your truth. Science versus religion. Red versus blue. ICE versus protestors. The wall keeps things divided. One pitted against the other in an attempt to prove who, or what, is right. We don’t really get anywhere. It just gets messy and complicated!
The only way to dismantle the wall, is to rise above it in love. It may sound mushy or unrealistic or overly sentimental. But love is the most practical, the most challenging, the most radical action of all. A commitment to acknowledge the reality presented at the wall AND to operate above those differences in a way that serves, hopes, trusts, and unifies.
Minnesota is falling apart. Tensions are high. Fears are real. Anger is intense. Questions abound.
My husband and I couldn’t even celebrate our 11th anniversary at a high-end restaurant without being confronted of the realities around us. Two lone ICE protesters pushed their signs in our faces, making sure we noticed them.
So, how do we respond? By proving they are wrong? By convincing them I am right? By swearing my allegiance to one politician or the other?
Or by rising above the reality of differences and choosing to love my neighbor as I love myself. To honor others as better than myself. To bear one another’s burdens. To rejoice with those who rejoice. To mourn with those who mourn. To live in peace with everyone, as far as it depends on me.
That is the true challenge! Minnesota nice has the opportunity to become Minnesota love. But not that mushy-gushy kind of love...that selfless kind of love that is committed to rising above and loving your neighbor as yourself.
Let’s pursue true justice and let justice do what it is meant to do. And in the meantime, let us love the men and women that are serving our country as ICE, let us love the protestor shouting their truth, and let us love the foreigner living next door.
That’s my hope and prayer as a true Minnesotan on a -1° day!
Jennie from MN
I’m a white, moderate male living in the Bay Area of California. The only story I actually care about following is Minnesota, because that’s happening in my country. Those are my countrymen going to war with each other.
Venezuela will be owned for the foreseeable future by the oil corporations of America, regardless of who becomes President; that’s all there is to that story. Because of that control over their oil, what happens in Iran will have even less impact on the average American than it would otherwise. And Greenland is a classic Red Herring; Trump is behaving like a child and stalling time while his goons redact another 99% of the Epstein Files that have his name on them.
Minnesota needs to be covered, as objectively as possible, because it’s the perfect powderkeg for mainstream media and extremist politicians to use against “the other side”. Thank you, Roca, for the coverage and commitment to proper journalism!
Nicolas from the Bay Area
❄️ Today’s Question: Are you prepping for a massive snowstorm this weekend? Honolulu readers, feel free to keep scrolling…
Reply to this email with your response!
POPCORN
Some Quick Stories for Happy Hour
🌑 Room with a View: A California startup is accepting $1M deposits to book rooms in what they claim will be the first lunar hotel, opening in 2032.
🐄 Cow Tools: An Austrian cow named Veronika has become the first documented cow to use a tool, demonstrating her skill with sticks, rakes, and brooms to scratch herself.
🏫 Artificial Indigestion: A University of Alaska student was charged with criminal mischief after eating another student’s AI-generated artwork in protest.
🏌🏻♂️ Out of Bounds: A bronze statue of golf legend Seve Ballesteros has been stolen from his hometown of Pedrena in northern Spain.
🐷 It Takes a Village: A Chinese woman’s request for help slaughtering two pigs for a traditional feast unexpectedly drew thousands of volunteers to her rural village.
ROCA WRAP
Voice of the Jazz Age
F. Scott Fitzgerald
The writer who defined the Jazz Age died believing himself a failure, only to become an American literary icon.
Born in Saint Paul in 1896, Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald was named after a distant cousin who wrote “The Star-Spangled Banner.” His father’s failed wicker furniture business forced the family to move to Buffalo, where his father worked as a salesman until being fired when Fitzgerald was twelve. They returned to Saint Paul, where his mother’s inheritance allowed them to maintain a middle-class lifestyle despite his father’s alcoholism and unemployment.
At Princeton, Fitzgerald befriended future literary critic Edmund Wilson and fell in love with Chicago socialite Ginevra King. Her wealthy father reportedly told the young Fitzgerald that “poor boys shouldn’t think of marrying rich girls.” Rejected as an unsuitable match, a devastated Fitzgerald enlisted in the Army during World War I, hoping to die in combat. While stationed in Alabama, he met Southern belle Zelda Sayre, who refused to marry him until he proved financially successful.
After returning to Saint Paul as a failure in 1919, Fitzgerald became a recluse and lived on the top floor of his parents’ home, working day and night to revise his novel. When Scribner’s accepted the manuscript, an ecstatic Fitzgerald ran down the streets flagging down random cars to share the news. This Side of Paradise became an instant sensation in 1920, selling 40,000 copies in its first year and making the 24-year-old a household name. Zelda agreed to marry him a week after publication.
The newly famous couple became celebrities for their wild behavior, doing handstands in hotel lobbies and spinning in revolving doors. While living on Long Island, Fitzgerald wrote The Great Gatsby in 1925, drawing on his obsession with Ginevra King and his experiences among the wealthy. The novel received favorable reviews but sold fewer than 23,000 copies in its first year, a commercial failure that haunted him.
As Zelda’s mental health deteriorated, she was diagnosed with schizophrenia and institutionalized. Fitzgerald’s alcoholism worsened, and by 1936 his book royalties amounted to just $80. He moved to Hollywood as a screenwriter but failed there, too. While visiting bookstores to buy his companion a set of his novels, he discovered they had stopped carrying his works. Fitzgerald died of a heart attack in 1940 at age 44, believing his life was a failure and his work forgotten. Only thirty people attended his funeral. Yet within years, The Great Gatsby became required reading in schools nationwide.
The writer who died thinking himself a has-been became one of the ultimate voices of American literature.
EDITOR’S NOTE
Final Thoughts
We hope that going from the Arkansas Delta to NYC’s Diamond District doesn’t give you whiplash, but that’s just how we roll at Roca. This was an incredibly fun video to make, and we enjoyed meeting Trax, the most viral man of 2026 so far.
The winter storm forecasts are daunting but also exciting. Stay warm out there, folks.
–Max and Max
So what's going to happen to the Diamond District with Mandami as MAYOR????