The One-Minute Meeting

It is becoming increasingly clear that inflation — which is slowing but still above 6% — will not get to what most people consider to be an acceptable level unless the U.S. can slow or reverse the nonstop rise in rent. Rent and shelter costs are an outsized influence on overall inflation. Prices have zoomed upward month after month since the pandemic began. The hottest inflation rates for apartment rentals are in the Midwest, including cities like Indianapolis, St. Louis and Cincinnati; and hot markets like Nashville, Raleigh, Miami, Charlotte and Chicago.

A new CDC survey shows American teenagers are in serious emotional trouble. In 2021, nearly six in 10 teenage girls said they felt persistent sadness. One in three teen girls said they considered suicide. The report says, “In 2021, nearly 30% of female students drank alcohol during the past 30 days. Almost 20% of female students experienced sexual violence by anyone during the past year and 14% had ever been physically forced to have sex. Although these numbers are high, the rates of poor mental health and suicidal thoughts and behaviors are even higher.”

Former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley “threw her hat into the ring” to become the GOP presidential nominee. Where does that phrase even come from? One hint might come from the first presidential candidate who is known to have used it: Teddy Roosevelt. The origin of the phrase goes back to around 1803. Think it over, then join me for today’s full newsletter and I will arm you with a collection of election cliches that you can sprinkle into your conversations today as an inside joke between you and me.