Joshua Buxbaum

From kissing babies on the campaign trail to posing for photo ops at schools, politicians love to surround themselves with kids. Too often, it’s just for show. The reality is a huge gap between how much American policymakers say they care about kids (a lot) and how much they do to support kids and families (not nearly enough).

I was 14 when I tried my first vape. It was “blueberry ice” flavored, and the head rush nearly knocked 9th grade me off my feet. The more hits I took, the more I wanted – and the more influence the cool-looking device that fit neatly into my hand had over my life. By 10th grade, vaping on an electronic cigarette became a daily – if not hourly – ritual. My friends and I hid our vapes in our socks and bras, sneaking puffs in school bathrooms and during lunch breaks.

Last week, 200,000 fans converged in Vienna for Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour, only to find her sold-out concerts canceled because of a foiled terrorist plot. Three teenagers – two Austrians and one Iraqi – were arrested for planning to attack the first of Swift’s shows, on Aug. 8, intent on killing themselves and as many concertgoers as possible.