Jess Lahitou

Throughout this long and increasingly nightmarish primary season, an argument emerged from Republican candidates who were routinely getting their butts handed to them by Donald Trump.

What’s the greatest achievement of the Rio Olympics? Is it the success of Latin America’s first host nation, Brazil? Is it the extraordinary feats of the US Women’s gymnastics team? Is it the spellbinding brilliance of Usain Bolt’s superhuman speed? Or is it perhaps the Twitter feed of Leslie Jones?

It is a rare day when a Congressional committee garners tabloid-like coverage, but Thursday was one of those days.

As the headline article (“Anxiety, Depression and the American Adolescent”) points out, depression has been replaced with anxiety as the leading mental health struggle of today’s adolescent. The one possible cause that stood out to me most was the impact of social media. With smartphone in hand, teens can be reading harmless texts, or – as was the case for one young female interviewed – they could be viewing disturbing Instagram posts, or reading about distant tragedies, or scrolling through hateful Facebook comments. Maybe even comments about them.

This last Friday happened to be the inauguration of President Donald Trump.

The five 2016 Democratic candidates for President met in Las Vegas for their first debate last night, and this writer’s prediction is that the field will be down to three for the next matchup. (Barring Joe Biden’s entry into the race, which remains a distant possibility).

Most Likely To Succeed: Carly Fiorina. One word: Yowza! On top of being the only candidate to move up from Fox’s conciliation debate to CNN’s main stage, Carly Fiorina kicked absolute butt. She went after Donald Trump, Chris Christie, every prominent Democrat, not to mention political pandering to women. Pundits agree: Fiorina won it.

Back in my early twenties, I struggled financially. But more so in that much-mocked Millennial quest of “finding myself,” I made a number of questionable decisions.

So I’m writing today from Elevation 8,080 ft., here in Avon, Colorado.

If you’ve heard recent Internet claims that The Salvation Army doesn’t deserve your money, and you are now wondering whether or not to toss a few coins in the red can on your way to stock up on Christmas goodies, here’s a thought experiment: