it's relatively easy for me to meet people online, but there's only so much i can get out of virtual friendships anymore.

  • CheGueBeara [he/him]
    ·
    3 years ago

    Capitalism!

    • Proletarianization means you spend most of your time away from home doing a job with little relation to anyone else.

    • Capitalist "urban planning" frequently splits people up based on economic zoning rather than a more village-like approach where being outside and in community is even plausible let alone incentivized.

    • "Third places", i.e. not work or home, tend to be service businesses like restaurants or coffee shops designed to sell you something and get you out of there - deliberately too small to have a meeting of 20 people. As land value has increased, community centers become very expensive to build and maintain and require huge parking lots due to the last point. That is, even if a community wanted a viable place to hang out and organize, they wouldn't be able to afford it.

    • CptKrkIsClmbngThMntn [any]
      ·
      3 years ago

      Not to mention, so many things you might have gotten from your community in other societies - food, housing, childcare, etc. - you now obtain through cold, economic transactions.