Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

The pandemic has deepened an epidemic of loneliness

mcc.gse.harvard.edu

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

61–70 of 254 posts

Re: The pandemic has deepened an epidemic of loneliness

#61

Post by jes »

jbrun wrote: post #4

It's a bit paradoxical. I have a tech company and most staff want to come to the office 1 day a week. Getting them to come is very tough. Many of my staff and friends don't want to have kids, make no effort to find a partner and find all sorts of excuses. Netflix, the internet and these things are part of the problem, but I have no clue what the solution is. There is only one way to not be lonely - be with people who…

Do you think there could be any beliefs or behaviors on your part that may be contributing to the situation you describe?

Re: The pandemic has deepened an epidemic of loneliness

#63

Post by gruez »

mrdoops wrote: post #14
jbrun wrote: post #4

It's a bit paradoxical. I have a tech company and most staff want to come to the office 1 day a week. Getting them to come is very tough. Many of my staff and friends don't want to have kids, make no effort to find a partner and find all sorts of excuses. Netflix, the internet and these things are part of the problem, but I have no clue what the solution is. There is only one way to not be lonely - be with people who…

They need stable, actionable futures. Homes they can afford to own, communities they can raise kids in, an environment that won't go up in flames; they need systems that have their back.

The parent comment:

>Many of my staff and friends don't want to have kids, make no effort to find a partner and find all sorts of excuses

Is the lack of affordable housing and/or environmental disasters really responsible for people who lack the precondition (eg. having a partner) for buying a home?

Re: The pandemic has deepened an epidemic of loneliness

#64

Post by dfxm12 »

Looking at the key recommendations, there appears to be a policy aspect playing into this as well. If you feel lonely, consider this at the polls - Who is advocating for social infrastructure and having a commitment to more than ourselves, including those who are vulnerable?

On the flip side, be wary of those pushing personal liberty above all else and those who are trying to damage public health campaigns and institutions like health care and education.

Re: The pandemic has deepened an epidemic of loneliness

#65

Post by nullwarp »

Bancakes wrote: post #28
jbrun wrote: post #4

It's a bit paradoxical. I have a tech company and most staff want to come to the office 1 day a week. Getting them to come is very tough. Many of my staff and friends don't want to have kids, make no effort to find a partner and find all sorts of excuses. Netflix, the internet and these things are part of the problem, but I have no clue what the solution is. There is only one way to not be lonely - be with people who…

Why do you project your stereotypes and expectations over your employees? They're adults and if they wanted partners/kids/office work, they would go and get them. Maybe you're the one who has to adapt to the new world instead of 'finding issues' and even assuming you're the one to 'fix' your employees.

Yeah I don't really understand their comment either - do you need a partner and kids to not be lonely? Maybe some people just enjoy the freedom of independence.

Not everyone has to subscribe to the "get married and have kids" philosophy of life.

Re: The pandemic has deepened an epidemic of loneliness

#66

Post by cglan »

My general opinion as a young adult is that both the design of our cities and suburbs (making general hanging out a huge chore) and the past two years which have forced many people to be anti social have been devastating. The most social times for me are always when my friends are easily accessible through walking.

These days getting people to come over is so difficult and the lack of good public transit options make a 3 mile distance a ridiculous endeavor. Combine that with the stress of the past two years and public policy that continues to fail on a global level over this (when will it end) even my more extraverted friends have become anti social. It's hard to get out of that rut when you're in it. I've made do with the understanding that I'll have to push myself to hang out with people to the point of burning out in order to forge strong friendships but it's not ideal.

Re: The pandemic has deepened an epidemic of loneliness

#67

Post by panaffa »

api wrote: post #45

One of the things I blame is the decline of youth culture. When I was in high school and college (late 90s - early 2000s) we had all these youth "scenes" like goths, ravers, gen-X style hippies, garage band scenes, hip hop, underground punk, and so on. The standard formula was music plus style plus some kind of group bonding activity like dancing, playing music, going outside, etc. Drugs were pretty often involved to…

Reality interesting! I agree as a GenZ. I had no space that fascinated me. The Internet meant I was aware of many things I possibly shouldn't have been at a very young age. So it's harder for me to get excited about some rave or concert that's probably on YouTube. Frankly you'd be surprised at how much of my life is just 1. Computer and 2. Waiting to get back to computer.

Re: The pandemic has deepened an epidemic of loneliness

#68

Post by mymythisisthis »

api wrote: post #45

One of the things I blame is the decline of youth culture. When I was in high school and college (late 90s - early 2000s) we had all these youth "scenes" like goths, ravers, gen-X style hippies, garage band scenes, hip hop, underground punk, and so on. The standard formula was music plus style plus some kind of group bonding activity like dancing, playing music, going outside, etc. Drugs were pretty often involved to…

Many hackerspaces started around the late 2000s. I think from the same people that did raves in highschool.

Re: The pandemic has deepened an epidemic of loneliness

#69

Post by kelseyfrog »

arthur_sav wrote: post #51
jbrun wrote: post #4

It's a bit paradoxical. I have a tech company and most staff want to come to the office 1 day a week. Getting them to come is very tough. Many of my staff and friends don't want to have kids, make no effort to find a partner and find all sorts of excuses. Netflix, the internet and these things are part of the problem, but I have no clue what the solution is. There is only one way to not be lonely - be with people who…

We've lost the community aspect. Previously, communities were essential for survival but nowadays it's easier than ever to be independent. Work remote from your computer. Buy food, water, sex and get dopamine hits from social media. When you don't really need anyone, it's hard to be vulnerable and try to open up to new people. So here we are, we have everything at our fingertips and yet we're empty.

Lost? It was dismantled and it was done with intent. Let us not forget the people who did it and how they did it. "There is no such thing as society. There are individual men and women and there are families." - Margaret Thatcher It's much harder to build something than it is to tear it down.

Re: The pandemic has deepened an epidemic of loneliness

#70

Post by scandox »

menomatter wrote: post #30

How do they define loneliness? A lot of people are alone but content. Also the older I get the harder it becomes to maintain friendships. People move on socially, financially and geographically.

"Solitary" is what you're referring to. Loneliness is by definition a sad condition: "sadness because one has no friends or company."
Post reply on HN