May 19, 2022

Right now, sitting on a runway in New York are 700,000 gallons of unused hand sanitizer laid out on pallets spanning 3 football fields. The state has no clue how to dispose of the excess hand sanitizer it created during the early days of Covid. So, if your tap water starts tasting funny, you know why. 

― Key Stories

Not-So-Big Mac?
Overview

• A NY man sued McDonald’s and Wendy’s, claiming their burgers are larger in ads than in real life
• His proposed class-action lawsuit seeks $50M for himself and other customers
• It says the chains’ burgers appear 15%+ larger in marketing than they are in real life. Legal analysts say it will be difficult for the plaintiff to prove that
• The suit cites one YouTube reviewer who said Wendy’s Bourbon Bacon Cheeseburger looked “a little sad... not like the picture,” and another who warned, “It's going to be a small burger folks. I am just telling you straight up”

Dr. Oz, Guns on Planes, & More
Overview

• Results started to come in for 2 major US primaries
• The primary for the Republican senate seat in Pennsylvania (PA) is too close to call. The Trump-backed candidate — Mehmet Oz (TV’s Dr. Oz) — leads his main competitor by 0.2% with 96.9% of the vote in. That vote will likely go to a recount, which could take until early June
• John Fetterman won the PA Democratic Senate nod
• In North Carolina, Chuck Edwards beat incumbent Madison Cawthorn in the state’s 11th District House primary. Cawthorn was hurt by a leaked nude video and 2 citations for trying to bring a gun on a plane

Intentional Plane Crash in China?
Overview

• A US investigation of a jet that crashed in China in March found that the crash was likely intentional
• The jet had plummeted from cruising altitude, which is extremely rare, and the specific Boeing 737-800 jet is considered one of the industry's safest. The crash killed all 132 people on board
• Data from the plane’s black box suggest that “the plane did what it was told to do by someone in the cockpit,” a source told the Wall Street Journal
• Investigators are now looking into the plane's pilots, as well the possibility that someone broke into the cockpit and crashed it

Disinformation Board Paused
Overview

• The Biden administration put the “Disinformation Governance Board” on “pause” 3 weeks after announcing it
• The board would be dedicated to fighting misinformation. It had come under criticism from conservatives and free-speech advocates
• It would have fallen under the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which decided to terminate the board Monday, per the Washington Post
• The board’s leader — a “disinformation expert” and think-tank scholar — reportedly resigned on Tuesday, having experienced “physical threats”

See yesterday's results below the Wrap!

 Popcorn

Culture & Sports

• Feeling '22: Taylor Swift delivered the commencement address at NYU's graduation. She urged students to "live alongside cringe"
• Are you fur real? A new study suggests that 7 in 10 Gen Z adults would prefer to adopt a pet than have a child of their own
• The holy spirit: Pope Francis joked outside the Vatican that what he needs for his injured knee is tequila. The Pope is now 85 years old

• A Florence coffee bar was fined $1,050 after a man called the police for the bar not displaying the price of his $2.10 espresso
• New birthday, who dis? The Cambodian prime minister changed his birthday from April 4, 1951 to April 5, 1952 for good luck
• Pakistan authorities are accusing local TikTokers of setting forest fires for views. A wildlife official says they should be put behind bars
• There will be fraud: A Japanese man who accidentally received all of his town's Covid funds gambled away the full $358,000

― Roca Wrap

A Newsletter Exclusive

Roca's executive director Jen Flanagan contributed this Wrap from Paris, where she has spent the last 2 weeks working remotely. 

Where is everyone?
 
That was my first thought in Cosne-sur-Loire, a small town about 100 miles (160 km) south of Paris. I had just arrived by train and expected to easily find a taxi to explore the area. But the train station was closed, as were most shops nearby. Many were boarded shut. Not a taxi insight.
 
I eventually found an open convenience store, and I asked the cashier how to find a taxi. He laughed. “Difficult, madame,” he said.
 
A customer overheard my request, and said he knew a friend in a nearby town who was a taxi driver. He made a call, and about 30 minutes later, a car pulled up with my taxi driver, a man named Remi.
 
As Remi and I began our drive, I was immediately struck by the views of rolling farms, wildflower fields, and quaint medieval villages. “How beautiful,” I kept repeating. “It’s called the countryside,” Remi said.
 
Seeing my excitement, Remi decided to make several detours. We stopped in a small town known for its pottery; another for its cheese. He kept googling pictures (while driving, to my dismay) of local chateaux and cuisine as he described their history and significance to me. His pride for the region was clear.
 
For Remi, and for many others, the French countryside represents a way of life, a quiet escape from France’s cities. The French call this “la France profound” (deep France), the idea that the deepest and most profound parts of France are found in the countryside, and its cultures and traditions.
 
But for many others, rural France is increasingly a place of frustration. Economic growth has slowed and unemployment has risen in many parts of rural France in recent years.
 
I think of Cosne-sur-Loire, empty and quiet on a beautiful Saturday. While waiting for Remi, I noticed several posters for Marine Le Pen, the right-wing candidate who had recently lost the French presidential election to Emmanuel Macron, 42% to 58%.
 
Yet Le Pen called her loss “a victory,” having gained 9 percentage points from her presidential run against Macron 5 years ago. Far right parties in general have never been so strong in France.
 
Le Pen dominates in rural areas – such as Cosne-sur-Loire – which she calls “forgotten France.” Hostile to immigration and the EU, she portrayed Macron as urban, overlooking rural France in pursuit of globalization and Europe. 
 
Remi said he had friends who voted for Le Pen. “5 years ago that was radical,” he said. “Not now.” He said many of those friends are farmers who can’t compete with imports. 
 
He said he voted for Macron, however. “Le Pen divides us,” he said. “We aren’t rural France against cities.” He said he has 2 daughters, around my age, studying in Paris. “They want the city life. I want the country life,” he said. “We are still a family.”
 
From Remi’s perspective, that’s what makes France, France: A unique balance of tradition and progress.
 
He did say there is one thing, however, that I will never find in Paris: A true 7-course meal. He invited me to his family’s home for such a meal later on my trip.  “The best of France,” he promised me.

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