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(March 20, 2025 at 2:26 am)Belacqua Wrote: So yes, I think you're right that loneliness and alienation are a serious problem, probably more than before.
You wouldn't be so lonely if you weren't such an insufferable cunt.
teachings of the Bible are so muddled and self-contradictory that it was possible for Christians to happily burn heretics alive for five long centuries. It was even possible for the most venerated patriarchs of the Church, like St. Augustine and St. Thomas Aquinas, to conclude that heretics should be tortured (Augustine) or killed outright (Aquinas). Martin Luther and John Calvin advocated the wholesale murder of heretics, apostates, Jews, and witches. - Sam Harris, "Letter To A Christian Nation"
March 20, 2025 at 4:07 pm (This post was last modified: March 20, 2025 at 4:58 pm by PhCritique.)
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CNN and ABC have addressed this topic. So this isn't something undeserving of some critical thought. I understand that some may roll their eyes towards this. Yes, it might be a stretch or at least subjective. But, if we can recognize that certain beliefs are false then lets apply that same reasoning and problem solving to this. No bias.
And if you think this is bs then ok. State your view. My apologies if this comes off as pretentious.
(March 19, 2025 at 5:05 pm)PhCritique Wrote: ...authentic friendships ought to be fair solutions (for everyone)....
Did you ever hear of the book Bowling Alone? It described, quite a while ago, how much community life has been degraded. People used to have more opportunity for social life with neighbors and friends -- and not like intimate best-friend-for-life type friends but just people you hang out with a couple of times a month.
But this book was written before the Internet took over everything, and the smartphone became the center of everybody's attention. It seems clear to me that the new tech is driving alienation and loneliness. Just because you can post on a social site doesn't mean that anyone there cares about you.
And the algorithms are designed to separate us. The sites keep track of what you like, and feed you ever more of the same, which puts us in siloes. Pretty soon we're getting entirely different news sources and entirely different views of the world. And when we encounter someone on line with such a different view of things, it isn't live-and-let-live, it's you evil fucker how could you vote for the downfall of all civilization?!!>!!??
I remember when I was a kid my family would go over to some other family's house once a week or so, and we kids would play with the other kids' toys, and the adults would just sit in the living room and chat. My parents were extremely left-wing -- in college my dad was about as radical as you can get without actually throwing a bomb -- but we lived in a small midwestern town and, looking back, I realize that probably nearly everybody else in town was Republican and conservative Christian. It seems strange today, but it was impolite to talk religion or politics. And of course religion hadn't yet been weaponized as a means of driving apart the political parties.
So yes, I think you're right that loneliness and alienation are a serious problem, probably more than before. And it may be that men are more at risk, because the old ways that men socialized -- with golfing buddies, etc. -- are being supplanted by newer technological and economic habits.
Your response is appreciated. I'm surprised Bowling Alone never hit my radar. I will definitely check it out.
My family had conservative views but we weren't necessarily republican. Three generations in one household. A hard working and Army veteran grandfather belonging to "the fruit" and freemasonry partnered with a hard working and open minded grand mother. We did everything together even as we moved apart. Challenging politics was impolite to us as well. "If it's negative, keep it to yourself" was our lingo.
I don't argue that men are more at risk. The risk goes up for each generation especially if they're lacking in education.
Administrator Notice You need a few more posts to be able to put external links on the forum. Please see the rules. Links removed.
CNN and ABC have addressed this topic. So this isn't something undeserving of some critical thought. I understand that some may roll their eyes towards this. Yes, it might be a stretch or at least subjective. But, if we can recognize that certain beliefs are false then lets apply that same reasoning and problem solving to this. No bias.
And if you think this is bs then ok. State your view. My apologies if this comes off as pretentious.
I do think this is a real topic of concern, and it's not pretentious to want to discuss it. The links you provided have been deleted, but it's easy enough to Google and find similar research studies.
In May of 2023, the U.S. Surgeon General released an advisory titled "Our Epidemic of Loneliness and Isolation" through the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The World Health Organization (WHO) in November 2023 declared loneliness a "global public health concern." Both of these are on line.
Both The Lancet Psychiatry and a publication called Perspectives on Psychological Science have published scientific studies on how loneliness affects health and mortality.
So it's real.
Quote:My family had conservative views but we weren't necessarily republican. Three generations in one household. A hard working and Army veteran grandfather belonging to "the fruit" and freemasonry partnered with a hard working and open minded grand mother. We did everything together even as we moved apart. Challenging politics was impolite to us as well. "If it's negative, keep it to yourself" was our lingo.
I don't argue that men are more at risk. The risk goes up for each generation especially if they're lacking in education.
I do think that small-c conservative values helped to work against loneliness. Prioritizing family, community, the Golden Rule, all those good things. Having empathy for one's neighbors and staying on good terms, even if they voted differently. These days it sometimes seems as if family or neighbors on the other side of the political divide must be shunned and shamed.
We've been taught to hate.
Years ago before we had the Internet I used to go and hang out at a little art gallery in my town. It was very amateurish, anybody could have a show, but it was run by a personable young lady. There was a big table in the middle of the room and at any given time there were likely to be a dozen people sitting around drinking green tea. It was a very low pressure way to have a social life -- you drop in, you wander off. People introduce you to others. After a while one of the regulars begins to stand out and you think "Oh, I could spend time with her." And then 30 years later we're still joyfully married. It's not like dating apps where (I imagine) you feel like you're in a job interview, being evaluated for suitability.
By the way, there is a site called religiousforums.com where the moderators encourage discussion. Several people who used to post here are over there now. Despite the name there are a lot of atheists and non-religious topics. If you are made to feel unwelcome on the present site you might give that place a try.
Administrator Notice You need a few more posts to be able to put external links on the forum. Please see the rules. Links removed.
CNN and ABC have addressed this topic. So this isn't something undeserving of some critical thought. I understand that some may roll their eyes towards this. Yes, it might be a stretch or at least subjective. But, if we can recognize that certain beliefs are false then lets apply that same reasoning and problem solving to this. No bias.
And if you think this is bs then ok. State your view. My apologies if this comes off as pretentious.
I do think this is a real topic of concern, and it's not pretentious to want to discuss it. The links you provided have been deleted, but it's easy enough to Google and find similar research studies.
In May of 2023, the U.S. Surgeon General released an advisory titled "Our Epidemic of Loneliness and Isolation" through the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The World Health Organization (WHO) in November 2023 declared loneliness a "global public health concern." Both of these are on line.
Both The Lancet Psychiatry and a publication called Perspectives on Psychological Science have published scientific studies on how loneliness affects health and mortality.
So it's real.
Quote:My family had conservative views but we weren't necessarily republican. Three generations in one household. A hard working and Army veteran grandfather belonging to "the fruit" and freemasonry partnered with a hard working and open minded grand mother. We did everything together even as we moved apart. Challenging politics was impolite to us as well. "If it's negative, keep it to yourself" was our lingo.
I don't argue that men are more at risk. The risk goes up for each generation especially if they're lacking in education.
I do think that small-c conservative values helped to work against loneliness. Prioritizing family, community, the Golden Rule, all those good things. Having empathy for one's neighbors and staying on good terms, even if they voted differently. These days it sometimes seems as if family or neighbors on the other side of the political divide must be shunned and shamed.
We've been taught to hate.
Years ago before we had the Internet I used to go and hang out at a little art gallery in my town. It was very amateurish, anybody could have a show, but it was run by a personable young lady. There was a big table in the middle of the room and at any given time there were likely to be a dozen people sitting around drinking green tea. It was a very low pressure way to have a social life -- you drop in, you wander off. People introduce you to others. After a while one of the regulars begins to stand out and you think "Oh, I could spend time with her." And then 30 years later we're still joyfully married. It's not like dating apps where (I imagine) you feel like you're in a job interview, being evaluated for suitability.
By the way, there is a site called religiousforums.com where the moderators encourage discussion. Several people who used to post here are over there now. Despite the name there are a lot of atheists and non-religious topics. If you are made to feel unwelcome on the present site you might give that place a try.
Which moderator discouraged discussion?
And why are you here? I keep asking. You hate the majority of us but still show up on the regular.
