I have been lucky enough to be able to work and live in several countries around the world. One thing in common I noticed in all these places is that guys and girls don't have time and don't want to commit to a stable long relation. They invest pretty much themselves and their time in their career, traveling , parties, dogs, cats and bitcoins :) ! The mantra is to get rich and retire at 40 years old! Travel the world…
The decline of the family has unleashed an epidemic of loneliness
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Re: The decline of the family has unleashed an epidemic of loneliness
#292I have been lucky enough to be able to work and live in several countries around the world. One thing in common I noticed in all these places is that guys and girls don't have time and don't want to commit to a stable long relation. They invest pretty much themselves and their time in their career, traveling , parties, dogs, cats and bitcoins :) ! The mantra is to get rich and retire at 40 years old! Travel the world…
A lot of people have kids _for themselves_. There are a lot of other endeavours one can pursue that will bring happiness. I think where we fail as a society, is in teaching ourselves how to find those pursuits, surround ourselves with friends, and avoid loneliness. > The mantra is to get rich and retire at 40 Hrm, I question the circle of people you're surrounded by. Many millennials are struggling to afford the basi…
Re: The decline of the family has unleashed an epidemic of loneliness
#293Dating apps ruined modern relationships. 80% of women go for the top 20% of men.
Re: The decline of the family has unleashed an epidemic of loneliness
#294I look at so many of my single friends who are achingly lonely (late 30s to early 40s) and they all have a particular trait in common: they obsess about the possibilities the future may hold yet don’t acknowledge the hard work it would take to get there. There’s also a sort of collective delusion that if you wait around long enough, your dream partner will show up and that if a relationship takes any work at all that…
You mean, a totally self-centered outlook on life leaves you lonely? Who knew?
Re: The decline of the family has unleashed an epidemic of loneliness
#295Earlier quoted context omitted.
At the risk of wading into deeply controversal territory, I'll add some personal observations. One of the harsh realities I have seen is that it's very difficult for women to "have it all" meaning a fulfilling personal, family, and professional life, especially in the most competitive fields. Yet for many years this idea has persisted in a mythical sense as broadly achievable. I am now in my late 30s. I've watched my…
> It makes me sad because while they have awesome professional accomplishments, they would have been awesome mothers and parents as well. I just wanted to point out politely how strange this language reads to me. It's ultimately the decision of each person whether to have kids or not. This being "sad" for them is an overreach, morally, IMO--and part of the fight feminism led was to carve out a space for women in soci…
Re: The decline of the family has unleashed an epidemic of loneliness
#296The nuclear suburban household is a manifestation of the soulless, profit-driven mass culture that we've been actively fleeing from ever since we woke up to find ourselves isolated amongst our acquaintances. Every generation in the West since the 1950s has engaged in a desperate scramble to find meaning and connection, because, spoilers, there's something hauntingly awful about eating microwave dinners in front of the television with your family after working 10 hours doing supply chain managment for WhateverCo. with a spouse with whom you never learned to communicate with and children whose only job is to stay on the rails and not get any strange ideas about life.
I don't even think that loneliness is intrinsically a bad thing. Pain is a signal that forces you to adapt.
Re: The decline of the family has unleashed an epidemic of loneliness
#297Earlier quoted context omitted.
Please get help.
Please point out the part of my comment that is wrong.
Re: The decline of the family has unleashed an epidemic of loneliness
#298Earlier quoted context omitted.
It's easier to sell to lonely individuals than a satisfied family. Hence all the crazy pressure to work more and be less... human.
You sure? People with families tend to spend more money (out of necessity). It's easier for people without kids to save up more money.
Re: The decline of the family has unleashed an epidemic of loneliness
#299Earlier quoted context omitted.
You sure? People with families tend to spend more money (out of necessity). It's easier for people without kids to save up more money.
It's easier to meet your basic survival needs as an individual, and thus you have more disposable income for nonsense commodities. Everybody I know who is single and has a good job buys tons of junk they don't need (or often even want). It's the norm.
Re: The decline of the family has unleashed an epidemic of loneliness
#300I felt loneliness acutely this week. I live alone, spend most evenings alone, and on top, work's coding and research has been slow for 2 weeks. Collaborators are at conferences and on vacation, so I had much less work and much less face-to-face contact than usual. Given that I code on my own, distribute analyses via email, and occasionally meet if people are around, I barely talked to people some days this week. Goin…
Try yoga at a small studio, communities are often great :>
It's like saying attend local evangelical church. The people you meet will be potential friends for some types of people. For other types, not so much.