Gradually, then suddenly / How betting apps are recruiting your kids / Please stop poking the flight attendants episode artwork

EPISODE · May 29, 2026 · 11 MIN

Gradually, then suddenly / How betting apps are recruiting your kids / Please stop poking the flight attendants

from News Sidequest

The Brookings Institution just released the most precise picture yet of American household financial fragility — and the number that should stop everyone is this: a single $1,000 increase in annual living costs would push 3 million more households over the edge. Also: prediction markets and sports betting apps are using memes, leaderboards, and social media to recruit users as young as 18 — and a UCLA gambling researcher says a young brain exposed to this "is going to want it again." And flight attendants are formally asking passengers to stop poking, tapping, prodding, and otherwise physically touching them to get their attention. One veteran of 20 years says it's a rare flight when it doesn't happen. Plus an excavator divorce, a kindergarten graduation brawl, a monkey in a Florida backyard, and an influencer banned from Cedar Point. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Brookings Institution just released the most precise picture yet of American household financial fragility — and the number that should stop everyone is this: a single $1,000 increase in annual living costs would push 3 million more households over the edge. Also: prediction markets and sports betting apps are using memes, leaderboards, and social media to recruit users as young as 18 — and a UCLA gambling researcher says a young brain exposed to this "is going to want it again." And flight attendants are formally asking passengers to stop poking, tapping, prodding, and otherwise physically touching them to get their attention. One veteran of 20 years says it's a rare flight when it doesn't happen. Plus an excavator divorce, a kindergarten graduation brawl, a monkey in a Florida backyard, and an influencer banned from Cedar Point. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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Gradually, then suddenly / How betting apps are recruiting your kids / Please stop poking the flight attendants

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This episode was published on May 29, 2026.

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The Brookings Institution just released the most precise picture yet of American household financial fragility — and the number that should stop everyone is this: a single $1,000 increase in annual living costs would push 3 million more households...

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