Jess Lahitou

Jess Lahitou

Bio

Jess is a literature lover, former teacher, new(ish) mother, and politics junkie. Currently in Miami, this Colorado native is embracing the culture shock. Art Basel? Wynwood? Ropa Vieja? Yes, please.

Jess Lahitou Articles

A recent poll found a whopping 58% of voters disapprove of their presidential choices.

3 Independent Party Candidates That Could Win The White House And Why

All this means that, for the first time since 1992, a third-party candidate has a very strong chance of impacting election results. And if something truly wild were to happen (say, no candidate broke the 270-electoral vote mark needed to win the presidency), then there’s an outside chance that a third-party could actually win the White House.

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The nightmare that is Aleppo defies description. (Image Credit: Freedom House via Flickr)

How To Help Syria

With Twitter awash in letters of goodbyes, 140-word final messages from “collateral damage,” my heart broke last night. That doesn’t mean anything, and neither does this: I want to say I’m sorry to Syria.

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Given their unfair and potentially exploitative access to the personal life details of millions of voters, in an ideal world, social media tycoons wouldn’t run at all. (Image Credit: Instagram/@zuck)

Is The Next President Coming Out Of Silicon Valley?

Americans deserve to vote without being unwittingly “nudged,” “tweaked,” or otherwise manipulated by those with the most power and most incentive to do so. Ergo, any candidate from Silicon Valley needs to be treated with an excess of skepticism.

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Maybe it's not sexy or trendy, but foreign policy has life or death consequences for people all over the world. (Image Credit: Shaker Bison)

This Is Why Foreign Policy Matters

That’s what Syria is — our morally bankrupt foreign policy, impossible to escape, impossible to fix.

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My mom has been an invaluable mentor — not just to me, but to many of my friends.

A Mother's Wisdom: Why Everyone Needs A Mentor And A Friend

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.

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Up your followers past a certain number, and endorsement deals might suddenly seem a whole lot more lucrative than that old proletariat pastime of "love." (Image Credit: Instagram/@tristasutter)

I Miss When The Bachelor Franchise At Least Pretended To Take Itself Seriously

The blatant promise of a career in the spotlight has stripped the Bachelor/Bachelorette of its beautiful, benign lie: that we could watch “regular” people navigate the perils and pitfalls of modern dating, that such a quest was in and of itself enough, and that a happy ending was a real possibility.

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New Hampshire Elects Sanders And Trump: To Rejoice Or Weep?

Rejoicing or weeping will depend on who you are, but let’s look at what happened either way.

Democrats:

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Yeah, that's Steven Seagal (Image Credit: Gage Skidmore / Flickr)

Just A Few Ways Politicians Dropped The Ball Today

One question here: why is a major government agency unable to fix its Twitter account for over a year? Two questions: Who is Marc Rich?

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Serve: baby does something. Return: you react in kind. (Image: Thinkstock)

The Most Important Thing Dads Can Do for Baby: Serve and Return

I’m not one for overstatement; the research here is rock solid. And while “serve and return” is borrowed lingo from tennis (hopeful we have some fellow Del Potro fans in the house), the practice has nothing at all to do with sports.

When it comes to babies, “serve and return” refers to meaningful, face-to-face interaction with the little one. The sort of conversation where you’re not just talking at baby, but watching his reactions, and responding in kind.

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Smiling through the pain of crippling debt.

Red, White, & News: Political Issues Millennials Need To Know About

If you’re a 20 or early 30-something, odds are high that you or someone you know has boomeranged back into a parental basement. In 2012, an estimated 36% of young adults lived at home with one or more parents.

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