Good Morning. From the Vatican to a Ferrari showroom to a Texas smokehouse, today's stories all ask the same thing: who pays for progress?
Plus, how RDJ stays fit at 60, the SpaceX IPO date, TV for the whole family, and dementia-fighting dinners (forwarded this email? Join 523k readers).
TOP STORY TODAY
Pope vs AI
Pope Leo XIV issued his first encyclical yesterday, a sweeping warning that artificial intelligence threatens to normalize an "anti-human vision" and reduce people to cogs in a system chasing pure efficiency. He called urgently for regulation and independent oversight.
Titled "Magnifica Humanitas," the letter frames AI as a choice between building Babel or rebuilding Jerusalem. It warns against immense digital power concentrating among a few private actors, and flags risks from autonomous weapons that make war easier and less human-controlled.
The encyclical echoes an 1891 papal letter that defended workers against industrial tycoons. Leo, the first American pope, called potential mass unemployment from AI a "true social calamity," casting himself against Silicon Valley's techno-optimists.
Ferrari Goes Electric
Ferrari pulled the wraps off its first-ever electric car Sunday, the Luce, in Rome. Designed with former Apple legend Jony Ive (interview), it starts at 550,000 euros, roughly $640,000, making it one of the priciest non-limited Ferraris ever (video).
The Luce (pronounced loo-chay) is the brand's first five-seater, hits 60 mph in under 2.5 seconds, and tops 190 mph. Its entire upper half is glass. Lacking a real engine roar, it pumps synthetic axle sound to the street like an electric guitar.
The timing is bold. EVs have cooled in the US, and rivals Porsche, Lamborghini, and McLaren have all hit the brakes. Ferrari, betting on the superrich, did not (WSJ).
Brisket Crisis
Texas barbecue is in trouble. Skyrocketing beef prices are forcing closures of beloved joints across the state, with wholesale brisket now running $5.56 a pound, a 28 percent jump over the past year.
The state's 3,000-plus barbecue spots depend on cheap, quality beef. Several have already shuttered. The cause is a pileup of inflation, tariffs, meatpacker pricing, and a national cattle herd at its smallest in 75 years thanks to drought.
Owners and the Texas Restaurant Association expect closures to worsen this summer and stretch on for years. The herd will take years to rebound, and a screwworm threat across the border could shrink it further. See cattle’s 18-month supply chain here.
TOGETHER WITH WONDER PROJECT
Prestige TV Your Whole Family Can Watch
You don't get many free hours. When you do, The Old Stories: Moses is worth them. From the studio behind House of David, it stars Sir Ben Kingsley (yes, the Gandhi Oscar winner) as Moses and O-T Fagbenle as Pharaoh, directed by Jon Erwin.
Three episodes, shot with the scale of a feature film: the burning bush, the ten plagues, the parting of the Red Sea. And it's TV-PG, so the kids can watch too.
Streaming now on Amazon Prime Video. Watch here.
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TODAY’S LIFE ADVICE
Robert Downey Jr. On Doing Hard Things
At 60, Robert Downey Jr. is in superhero shape and dead sober. His secret isn't grinding harder. It's the opposite (video interview).
He learned the punishing, endless workouts of his past actually backfired. They were so miserable he'd reward himself by eating junk and skipping days. The fix was making fitness too small to skip.
His system now:
Keep workouts to 35 minutes, efficient enough that you "can't justify" blowing them off
Train before the day starts, so you enter it with your needs already met
Sessions should give energy, not leave you recovering all day
Show up early everywhere as a sign of respect for other people's time
On self-awareness, he's blunt: it isn't virtue. He says he's only self-aware because he paid such a high price for the times he wasn't.
And on happiness after success? There's no substitute for a clear conscience. Putting your head on the pillow at night with no wreckage, no apologies required.
One question he asks himself daily that reorients everything [58 minutes].
The Trap Behind Every Status Symbol
Buy the flashy car to be admired, and a strange thing happens: people admire the car and imagine themselves driving it. You vanish. Author Morgan Housel calls it the man in the car paradox (Mark Manson explainer).
The fix:
Want respect? Earn it through character, not purchases
Spend on freedom, not on being seen
Remember nobody thinks about you as much as you think
The signal you're sending isn't the one people receive. Housel breaks down why in his book, here.
TRENDING
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▲ SpaceX IPO sets June 12 Nasdaq debut under "SPCX," targeting a record $2 trillion-plus valuation
▲ AI girlfriends reach UK schoolboys as 1 in 5 boys aged 12-16 use companion chatbots romantically | Looking back at HER
▲ Star Wars returns to theaters after seven years, opening to $102 million domestically over Memorial Day weekend
▲ Home cooking cuts dementia risk 30%, jumping to 70% for first-time cooks, Japanese study finds
TOGETHER WITH BABBEL
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Fun Links
Nicolas Cage answers lore questions [Video]
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When Baldmaxxing goes wrong [SNL]
How to talk to your kids after sports [Video]
Chef Alton Brown won’t eat octopus [Video]
Serena Williams’ positive self-talk mantra [Video]
Partner: She lost 20 pounds in 28 days [Gear]
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