No talking on the quiet carriage. No boom box on the subway. No conversation in the queue.
Is this capitalist isolation or is this western “decorum” or what? Why do I have to shake off the instinct to cringe when I hear someone playing music through their phone speakers? Why do I worry if anyone can hear my music through my headphones? What the fuck is this pathetic silence masquerading as a “culture”
You might, but also they might not have anything interesting to say. The pressure to make small talk and the addiction to have things constantly distract you from any deep contemplative introspection is way more prevalent.