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The upstream cause of the youth mental health crisis is the loss of community

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Re: The upstream cause of the youth mental health crisis is the loss of community

#231

Post by diputsmonro »

djom wrote: post #208
diputsmonro wrote: post #170

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I respect that viewpoint and would be happy to adopt it in different times. But it's not as simple as political tribalism. For example - Several of my close friends are trans. For the last decade or so, Republicans have been viciously attacking trans people and several states are actively taking away their rights. The entire right wing media ecosystem uses every chance they can to demonize trans people in the new cul…

[flagged]

I don't want to get into a giant political debate here, but I would urge you to follow the spirit of this post and actually talk to some trans people, in person, to get their perspective before voting for people who demonize them and take their rights away.

All of those are rooted in transphobia. The entire point of those bathroom bills to "protect women" is built upon the foundational idea that trans people are dangerous predators who want to assault people. It's a bigoted idea not supported by the data, which is built out of fear, and - appropriate to this whole post - a lack of understanding from never having actually talked to a trans person.

Re: The upstream cause of the youth mental health crisis is the loss of community

#232

Post by AlwaysRock »

andrepd wrote: post #185
vegadw wrote: post #165

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What frustrates me is that, it seems (Read as: the following is just my vibe) that the majority of 3rd places left are religious in nature, but I, personally, don't want to be religious or raise children that are. There are some options, of course, but they're limited and often of poor quality, at least locally. Libraries are trying to adapt to fill this gap, and maker spaces spring up but most don't have funding to…

Sports, hobby groups, book clubs? There are plenty of options to meet like-minded people other than churches.

Yeah, this really is the key. I've moved several times as an adult, and my new friend group always comes from doing sports or some hobby regularly with the same group of people.

Re: The upstream cause of the youth mental health crisis is the loss of community

#233

Post by rangerelf »

jamil7 wrote: post #168
ToucanLoucan wrote: post #115

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is both a loss in and of itself, and is also a rational response by people within this system. Everything MUST make money because everyone is FUCKING broke. People don't monetize their hobbies for fun, they do it because they're barely scraping by and the notion of spending time on things that don't make money is so beaten out of us that it feels wrong to do it. We can't go anywhere without spending money, we ca…

I think it’s pretty reasonable to expect people with cars to pay for parking?

I don't think so; the streets are paid for by whatever vehicular taxes, the sidewalks are paid for by property taxes, there's income and sales taxes for additional financing; charging for parking is just adding salt to the wound.

In fact... hear me out. It might be that, those that own the paid private parking lots in high traffic areas exacerbate the parking issues in contested areas, creating pressure on free parking areas; then they lobby to put parking meters in those free areas because "the city needs all the money it can get" (ehh, it shouldn't, it doesn't), and voilá, no more free parking anywhere.

Just a thought.

Re: The upstream cause of the youth mental health crisis is the loss of community

#234

Post by fragmede »

goethes_kind wrote: post #183
kelseyfrog wrote: post #82

Well, yes, we've doubled down on mediating social interactions through economic relationships. Most of the interactions adults have in their lives are with or in the framing of economic relations. Homes, are being invaded with tablets and mobile devices which bring along with them framing interactions as economic relations through ad and consumer frames. Workplaces are inherently settings of economic relations, and t…

I'm in my 30s but I'm feeling this so hard. Growing up we used to have these kid/youth centres that were run by local Catholic organizations. We used to hang out there after school. Ostensibly the point was that there'd be 30 minutes of catechism doctrine, but we didn't really care about that. To us it was just a the place where everyone would be. I miss that so much. A place where you can just go and meet people you…

You don't like being drunk that much, or like climbing, but, were your parents really that Catholic? We, as humans, need a dream to build towards, be in service of, and find our place in. What are we doing here and why are we doing it? For those of us who haven't figured it out yet, attaching to someone else's purpose gives us one and we don't have to figure it out ourselves.

You need to find religion, just don't call it that. Find your dream that's impossible and work towards making it possible. figure out your role in making that possible. and then work on it. as hard as you can. find others along the way.

Re: The upstream cause of the youth mental health crisis is the loss of community

#235

Post by [deleted] »

benreesman wrote: post #184
kelseyfrog wrote: post #82

Well, yes, we've doubled down on mediating social interactions through economic relationships. Most of the interactions adults have in their lives are with or in the framing of economic relations. Homes, are being invaded with tablets and mobile devices which bring along with them framing interactions as economic relations through ad and consumer frames. Workplaces are inherently settings of economic relations, and t…

It goes by various names (“trad life”, etc.) but whatever you call it the premise is dystopian and terrifying: people now become celebrity influencers on the back of appearing to live some semblance of a historically normal life. For many that’s now the unattainable dream: a community with values that sit still long enough to even aim at upholding them, a robust partnership early enough in life to start a family the…

[deleted]

Re: The upstream cause of the youth mental health crisis is the loss of community

#236

Post by snozolli »

silverquiet wrote: post #80
philip1209 wrote: post #66

The books the authors cite are great and worth reading. Some personal observations: - The USA lacks a unified cultural identity now. There are lots of reasons for this. But, it's considered taboo to express a love of the USA - which hurts our community + culture. - People put a lot of effort into work, and work is becoming more transactional. No more "life-long employment with the buddies" kind of situation. - Americ…

I don't disagree with the comment, but whenever people talk about a "love of the USA", I always want to ask what is it that you love? To stereotype a bit, I'm guessing that it will not be the federal government (despite a strong reverence for the flag of that government).

I always want to ask what is it that you love?

- Public lands. Most states have National Parks in them. Every state has state parks. These generally give enormous freedom of enjoyment to vast areas of land and are accessible to most.

- General freedom. We've all seen videos of abusive cops, but the fact is that's still rare. If you want to launch a business, you'll likely be able to find a location, understand regulations, and form the legal entity without paying off officials. We have corruption, but it's generally at high levels and invisible to the general public, so you don't feel the pervasive effects.

- Economy. Sure, I miss the 90s tech boom, but the US has the most advanced tax system in the world, and a highly effective banking system that spurs the economy. It's far from perfect, but it's better than a whole lot, and most people take it for granted.

I think we peaked in many ways between 1995 and 2012, but if we can clean up our act and make it through the new era of Robber Barons and foreign interference, we'll be in a really good place again.

Edit:

- ADA. To my knowledge, no other county has as good of regulations benefiting the handicapped and disabled. From accessible businesses and buses to readable signage to minimum doorway widths in homes.

Re: The upstream cause of the youth mental health crisis is the loss of community

#237

Post by lisper »

AftHurrahWinch wrote: post #212
lisper wrote: post #162

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> it's considered taboo to express a love of the USA American here. First-generation immigrant. Came from Germany at age 5. This misses a crucial part of the problem. It is considered taboo to express a love of the USA in certain social circles . In others, it is considered taboo not to express a love of the USA. The problem is that the two sides have very different ideas of what "loving the USA" means. Among the fir…

Really great comment! You noted: > The problem is that the two sides have very different ideas of what "loving the USA" means. Among the first group (liberals) the USA is envisioned as an inclusive melting pot where all are welcome. Have you had the chance to talk with a 3rd group who believe that the US is malignant and think that the most moral action they can take is to undermine the state? I think there is even a…

> Really great comment!

Thank you.

> Have you had the chance to talk with a 3rd group who believe that the US is malignant and think that the most moral action they can take is to undermine the state?

Yes, but I don't think those people can be said to "love the USA" under any reasonable interpretation of that phrase.

Re: The upstream cause of the youth mental health crisis is the loss of community

#239

Post by Animats »

phil21 wrote: post #180
vegadw wrote: post #165

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What frustrates me is that, it seems (Read as: the following is just my vibe) that the majority of 3rd places left are religious in nature, but I, personally, don't want to be religious or raise children that are. There are some options, of course, but they're limited and often of poor quality, at least locally. Libraries are trying to adapt to fill this gap, and maker spaces spring up but most don't have funding to…

The mad rush to as quickly abolish religious practices in mainstream U.S. culture without any form of societal replacement is puzzling to me. I am no fan of religion having grown up in an exceedingly religious environment. But it was always completely obvious to me even as a child that the primary purpose of religion was to form local communities and have others with shared values to rely on. We seem to be doing it w…

> The mad rush to as quickly abolish religious practices in mainstream U.S. culture without any form of societal replacement is puzzling to me.

In the US, it's been a slow process over 35 years, since 1991.[1] England and Wales are much further along - believers are below 50%. But Islam is on the way up in the UK, at 6%.

The high-intensity religions, the ones that require religious activity once a day or more, seem to be thriving.

[1] https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/2022/09/13/how-u-s-reli...

Re: The upstream cause of the youth mental health crisis is the loss of community

#240

Post by diputsmonro »

saulpw wrote: post #215
diputsmonro wrote: post #170

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I respect that viewpoint and would be happy to adopt it in different times. But it's not as simple as political tribalism. For example - Several of my close friends are trans. For the last decade or so, Republicans have been viciously attacking trans people and several states are actively taking away their rights. The entire right wing media ecosystem uses every chance they can to demonize trans people in the new cul…

There are people who vote Republican in private, and they are different from those who loudly proclaim their Republicanism to everyone they encounter. It might be a shame that the private Republicans vote how they do, but that doesn't have to affect their ability to engage with trans people, or vice versa. So I would say the problem is not the ideological divide per se, but the 'identity' politics which makes both si…

> ...but that doesn't have to affect their ability to engage with trans people, or vice versa.

I disagree. How am I supposed to trust and feel safe around someone who knowingly voted for a politician who loudly campaigned on removing my rights and demonizing my very existence?

A politician who supports an esoteric policy that disadvantages me in some way is entirely different than one who loudly and plainly says that I am less human and should have fewer rights than others. That rhetoric kills people. And it's not a deal-breaker for you? I cannot call such a person a friend. A vote for a Republican in modern times is an expression to trans people that their rights and safety are less important to you than whatever esoteric tax policy or whatever than won your vote.

You can value that policy more than the rights of trans people if you want, that's your prerogative. But it will make trans people and their allies trust you a lot less when they discover that you think their rights are just a bargaining chip to be traded away, and justifiably so. What other situations are you willing to throw them under the bus over, not just in politics, but in life? It's not just a matter of pride or preference, but a matter of rights and safety.

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