April 27, 2022

100 years ago, the German candy company Haribo invented the gummy bear. In the pantheon of great human inventions, the gummy bear stands out. Unlike the wheel or the Gutenberg Printing Press, the gummy bear has evolved to come with Vitamin C. It also inspired one of the world's most beloved songs.

― Key Stories

The Race Is On
Overview

• Chinese leader Xi Jinping said China’s priority for 2022 should be to outpace US economic growth
• China insiders told the WSJ that Xi said doing so is necessary to prove the superiority of China’s system
• In the last 3 months of 2021, the US economy grew at 5.5%, faster than China's 4%. It was the first time in 20 years that the US grew quicker over 3 months
• The Chinese economy is targeting a 5.5% growth rate for 2022, although achieving that may be difficult. China continues to have a “Zero-Covid” policy, which requires areas to lock down whenever cases are reported

Russia Talks Nukes; EU Doubles Down
Overview

• Russia's top diplomat warned of WW3 on Tuesday: “The risk is serious, real. It should not be underestimated”
• “NATO is, in essence, going to war with Russia through a proxy and arming that proxy,” he added
• NATO countries brushed off the statements. The same day, Germany said it would send 50 “Gepard” anti-aircraft tanks to Ukraine, something it had formerly opposed doing for fear of provoking Russia
• The UK also said Ukraine can use British weapons to hit Russian territory, and the EU said it is considering limits on the price countries can pay Russia for oil, thereby limiting imports

Texas Execution Paused
Overview

• A Texas court halted the execution of Melissa Lucio 2 days before her scheduled lethal injection
• Lucio, a 53-year-old mother of 14, was convicted of killing her toddler in 2007. Lucio said the child fell down the stairs
• Lucio's lawyers had argued she was pressured into confessing during a 5-hour interrogation, and that prosecutors misled the jury during the trial. The Texas court said those claims should be considered, and halted the execution indefinitely
• A bipartisan majority of Texas legislators called to pause the execution, as did 5 original jury members

Partial Brains Can Function
Overview

• A new study in the journal Neuropsychologia suggests people can live normally without sections of the brain
• The study researched a woman who is missing her left temporal lobe. She didn’t know it was missing until receiving a brain scan for an unrelated reason
• The left temporal lobe plays a major role in language processing. The woman processed languages well, though, having studied Russian and placed in the 98th percentile on a vocab test
• An MRI showed that her language processing abilities had moved elsewhere within her brain

See yesterday's results below the Wrap!

 Popcorn

Culture & Sports

• Defying Hollywood: The film adaptation of Wicked starring Ariana Grande will be split into 2 movies. The first is set to come out in 2024
• Game, set, vax: Wimbledon announced that it won't require a Covid vaccine to compete, paving the way for Novak Djokovic to play
• First class bump: Jack Harlow's #1 hit song "First Class" boosted streams of Fergie's "Glamorous," which "First Class" features, by 70% 

• Do it for the vine: The FAA revoked a YouTuber's pilot license after concluding that he crashed his plane for the sake of views
• It's a floater: A prototype of the world's first floating city is now floating around on the web. The United Nations led its unveiling
• Not so good, fellas: 6 alleged mobsters of the Genovese crime family were charged in a racketeering conspiracy in a Manhattan federal court
• Dorset ospreys produced an egg for the first time in 200 years in southern England. Conservationists have long tried to reintroduce them

― Roca Wrap

A Newsletter Exclusive

When the first 5 Chinese people arrived in Phoenix, Arizona – today the US’ 5th largest city – in 1872, it was little more than a camp of tents and shacks in the desert.

In 1879, though, a heatwave forced laborers to stop working on the railroad that was being built through the desert. Not wanting to travel too far and needing a place to wait out the summer, at least several hundred Chinese workers decided to go to Phoenix. Around 100 stayed, forming what would become the city's Chinatown.

By 1880, Phoenix’s population had swelled to 2,400 people, about 5% of whom were Chinese. All the people came from the Chinese province of Guangdong, and almost all were from the same Chinese village and family: The Ongs.

Among the Ongs was Louie, a successful businessman also known as “China Dick” or “Mayor Dick.” With restrictions making it hard for the Ongs and other Chinese to join American life, they built a parallel society within Phoenix. Mayor Dick was their leader.

The community was overwhelmingly comprised of young, single men, which led to instability and conflict. When there was an issue, both the Phoenix government and the people of Chinatown trusted Mayor Dick to resolve it. Mayor Dick used his leverage to secure rights for the community, and when Chinese in America ran into problems, Mayor Dick had the connections to resolve them. 

Mayor Dick built up a reputation as a leader, first in Phoenix, then across the country. A Phoenix newspaper said he was “beloved by all,” although he “ruled his countrymen with an iron hand. Relentless in his persecution of an offender he was…always fair and just.”

“It was seldom that American courts ever were called upon…inevitably it was China Dick who had the final say,” the paper wrote.

Booker T. Washington, who was born a slave and became one of the era’s most influential black Americans, visited Phoenix to meet Mayor Dick. He referred to him as “the supreme authority in Chinatown,” and asked him how he came to be known as mayor. 

“Well, you see, I am here 30 years. I know American customs. When Chinaboy gets in trouble, he comes to see me. When policeman gets in trouble with Chinaboy, both come to see me. I know how to make it right,” Washington quoted him as saying. 

Through Mayor Dick, Washington concluded, “The Chinaman in Phoenix, even though he is not a citizen, gets… a certain amount of self-government.”

Ong ended up dying from a car accident in Chinatown when he was 76. “All Chinatown was plunged into mourning as news of his death spread through the secret channels of the district,” a paper wrote at the time. 

In the decades that followed, Phoenix’s Chinese population continued to grow and become more prosperous, eventually moving out of the downtown and into the suburbs. Chinatown has since disappeared, but the legend of Mayor Dick lives on.

 Roca Clubhouse
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― Final Thoughts