Dystopian stat of the day.
According to a new piece in The Atlantic, Americans are more likely to place a bet this year than read a book. Wow. That is hard to believe, but then again my friend called the gambling hotline last night and lost $50 when it went over 2.5 rings. Something tells me the copy of Sense and Sensibility I gave him is about as used as the non-alcohol beer I gave my Uncle Gary.
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Platner drops out
Ceasefire in Iran ends
Egg family cashes out
-Max and Max
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Platner Suspends Campaign
Maine's Democratic Senate nominee Graham Platner suspended his campaign on Wednesday after a woman accused him of sexual assault, a claim he still denies
In an 11-minute video, Platner said the decision wasn't an admission of guilt but a response to Democratic leaders threatening to cut off support. He said he'll file to officially withdraw once his replacement is chosen through a "transparent and democratic process"
Former state Senate President Troy Jackson, former Congressional candidate Jordan Wood, and governor primary runner-up Nirav Shah have all entered the race to replace Platner, with Jackson reportedly polling the strongest against incumbent Sen. Susan Collins (R)
Iran Ceasefire Over
President Trump declared the US-Iranian ceasefire "over" on Wednesday, a day after the US struck over 80 Iranian targets in response to attacks on ships in the Strait of Hormuz
The clash followed the collapse of a US-Iran Memorandum of Understanding reached last month, which had reopened the strait and was expected to last 60 days
The US continued strikes on Wednesday night and into Thursday morning, hitting bridges and railroads that Iran had used to move missiles and drones. Iranian media said Tehran retaliated by launching strikes on US bases in Bahrain, Kuwait, and Qatar
Trump also threatened to reimpose a naval blockade and strike civilian infrastructure, while Pakistan, Qatar, Egypt, and Turkey are working to salvage the ceasefire
Trump Offers Ukraine Patriot License
President Trump praised Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's war effort at the NATO summit and offered new US military support
Trump's offer includes a license to manufacture US Patriot missile interceptors, as Ukraine has run low on them, leaving cities exposed to Russian strikes. Trump said he supports Ukraine's strikes deep inside Russian territory, calling them "an escalation that could help lead to an end" to the war
The tone marked a sharp shift from Trump's past criticism of Zelensky and followed a "businesslike and highly constructive" July 4 call between Trump and Putin
Egg Family Cashes Out $320M
The family that controlled Cal-Maine – the top US egg producer – cashed out $320M just weeks after prosecutors said the company helped drive up egg prices for years, per the Financial Times
The Adams family sold its controlling stake in April 2025, shortly after Cal-Maine's stock roughly doubled and egg prices quadrupled to a record price of over $8.50 a dozen
The DoJ and 17 state AGs alleged that Cal-Maine, Hickman's Egg Ranch, and Versova coordinated bids to inflate pricing, though Cal-Maine denied wrongdoing. The three companies have reached a settlement agreement without admitting liability
Reflections on Route 66
Roca’s Stefano and Max F offer two reports today from America’s most famous highway.
One’s from Vinita, Oklahoma, a quaint town that’s coming back to life, harnessing Route 66 as its backbone. The other is from Albuquerque, NM, and its most crime-ridden neighborhood known as the “War Zone.”
Read both reports here – free for all readers.
Unknown Number Calling? It’s Not Random…
Together With Incogni
The BBC caught scam call center workers on hidden cameras as they laughed at the people they were tricking. One worker bragged about making $250k from victims. The disturbing truth? Scammers don’t pick phone numbers at random. They buy your data from brokers.
Once your data is out there, it’s not just calls. It’s phishing, impersonation, and identity theft.
That’s why we recommend Incogni: They delete your info from the web, monitor and follow up automatically, and continue to erase data as new risks appear.
Try Incogni here and get 55% off your subscription with code ROCADEAL.
Trump to Halt Spain Trade?
President Trump directed the US to immediately cut off all trade with Spain, citing the country's refusal to meet NATO's new defense spending target of 5% of GDP.
Apple to Buy Broadcom Chips
Apple announced a five-year, $30B+ deal with Broadcom to produce over 15B computer chips domestically and to expand a Broadcom facility in Fort Collins, Colorado.
Robinson Attorneys Dispute DNA
Attorneys for Tyler Robinson, accused of killing conservative activist Charlie Kirk, are disputing DNA testing linking him to the towel-wrapped rifle found at Utah Valley University during a weeklong preliminary hearing.
What Does Roca Nation Think?
🏥 Yesterday’s Question: Does hyperfixating on your health ironically make you less healthy?
Yes! There is definitely a necessary balance. After having my first child, I got really into all the “crunchy” low-tox living, but for a while I really stressed myself out trying to avoid all the bad ingredients and chemicals and stressing that any exposure would be detrimental to my son. I have since chilled and while I don’t use any toxic cleaning products or bring UPFs/food dyes/seed oils into my home, we still enjoy potlucks with our church community group and eat chick fil a. I’ve learned to control what comes into my home and just trust God to take care of us and protect our health with all the things I can’t control. Stress is just as much if not more damning to my health than a chicken sandwich!
Savannah from NC
In short, yes. Hyperfixating on anything is unhealthy. It doesn’t matter if it’s something seemingly ‘good’ like your physical health, or excelling in school/work. Taken to an extreme these can become mentally unhealthy. Unchecked mental health problems inevitably manifest into physical health problems. There has been copious research on this type of behavior and the recommendation is always to use common sense and exercise moderation. -see what I did there
Jamie in MS
As with all questions the answer is “it depends.” If you are hyperfixated on health and that causes stress, then yes. If it doesn’t cause stress levels to rise, then probably not. That said, I’m not sure how it wouldn’t be stressful to track every gram of food/water/nutrients you put into your body as well as every calorie you burn and how you burn it.
There are so many resources now to help teach us how to stay healthy and fit and every single one of them comes down to 2 things.
Eat healthy – eat balanced meals, stay away from processed foods, and don’t overeat.
Move regularly – quit sitting and binge watching everything you can find on a screen and get up and move.
Randy in Washington State
💰 Today’s Question: This is a question for our Trump-voting readers: Are you alarmed by the fact that he earned $2.2B last year? Why or why not?
Reply to this email with your response!
Pane in the Neck
A federal judge has ruled United Airlines must face a lawsuit over window seats that don't actually have windows. The suit follows complaints from passengers who paid extra for the seats only to find themselves next to a blank wall on planes like the Boeing 737 and Airbus A321, with a similar case pending against Delta.
Oar-Some Achievement
Kelsey Pfendler, 32, became the first American woman to row solo from California to Hawaii, finishing the 2,400-mile trip in 43 days.
Way-No
Two 15-year-olds got busted after their Waymo robotaxi drove them straight to the police in San Mateo, California. The teens had been drinking alcohol and firing a toy gun loaded with water beads inside the driverless car when Waymo staff noticed and pulled it over in a parking lot.
EDITOR’S NOTE
Final Thoughts
Last night, cameraman Nik and Max T participated in local bayou culture and went frogging. Apparently you have to do it in the dark, and so we set off at 6 pm on a boat ride that kept us out for long enough for Max T to actually catch a frog himself and not rely on Easton — the Pierre Part, LA, local guiding us — to do all the frogging.
We think you’ll enjoy this one.
–Max and Max