Need to bring back Internet cafes.
Did those actually provide any sort of social outlet?
That’s similar to the reason my company gives for having to be in the office but I work on the computer and go home. The only people I interact with are my remote peers
Nationalizing dating sites.
These sites work great to match people when corpos aren’t allowed to fuck with the algorithms
Walkable neighborhoods with affordable places to hang out.
We turn the Internet off at the weekends
Please no
Just have a war. Nothing brings people together like necessity and shared trauma.
Don’t worry, that war isn’t far off.
Is it too harsh to say to outside and interact with people?
it’s lethally hot outside
I live in one of the hottest areas in the US and I still find ways to get outside.
The reason there were mountain men in the old days is that they appreciated nature and they didn’t feel alone though they often were. It’s not that hard to rekindle that feeling you only have to work at it a little. I was taking walks in the woods back when I was in grade school and I seldom feel alone though it’s harder to feel like that in a city.
a government dating app that has no algorythm, no payment, punishes mass scrollers, and has a ton of admins who actually ban the idiots out. we have the technology, but its all enshitificated.
There are at least 2 open source dating apps that I’ve seen, although one of them has 4chan branding. Not sure about the other.
This would work approximately as well as all the current apps. The people you want to date are either already in relationships, date without using the apps, aren’t dating right now, or simply don’t want to date you because you aren’t their type or aren’t good enough for them. The idea that the evil corporations know exactly who your perfect match is and are keeping them from you is a fantasy. The fact is, dating apps don’t work for most people because most people don’t put the effort in to present themselves well and put themselves out there.
Step 1
- Demolish all housing - everyone is homeless now
Step 2
- Mandate that everyone design their own silly costume - this is all you’re allowed to wear
Step 3
- Legalize and subsidize all the fun drugs - everyone gets a weekly allowance of shrooms, ecstasy, etc
Step 4
- Loneliness is officially replaced with several other problems
Username checks out
Be comfortable being alone.
Double the minimum wage and standardize a four day work week. People need more free time and resources in order to socialize effectively.
Couple this with providing safe and comfortable community spaces and every things peachy.
No, the local Starbucks/any place of business does not count.
This is a big one for me. Decoupling social activities from consumerism so people can access human connection without implicit or explicit paywalls.
More public transit and more public spaces. Transit that you don’t have to think about taking (because it’s safe, frequent, and cheap or free) takes you to new places or to familiar places more often, and lets you meet more people more often. And going outside and doing shit is just good for you, I’m sorry to report.
I agree. I think a big part of the issue is that going out to do things is just so expensive these days. There aren’t any “third places” for people anymore.
The neighboring village just built a smallish sk8erpark for the youth. Quite nice finally seeing kids outside again. When walking the dog I feel like I haven’t seen kids doing kids stuff since like forever
Doesn’t work. I live in Hong Kong, which has some of the world’s most efficient public transport systems. People don’t actually talk. They just look at their phones. A train cart can be full of people but no conversation.
Public transit isn’t for socializing, it’s for traveling. Public spaces like parks, libraries, squares, etc that don’t require payment to use are for socializing.
Oh I thought you meant socializing during transit, sorry. I forgot to consider in other places parks are not a maximum 15-minute walk away
This is the best answer !fuckcars
no more social media
For a lot of people in suburbia, the entire concept of indoor “third spaces” is mostly “pay to play” at the end of a drive. A big exception to this is/were shopping malls, but those aren’t always close by. To get to more a functional social fabric, we have to provide more convenient ways of interfacing with our neighbors that don’t always require money to change hands.
Perhaps this is a predictably orange-pill response, but we need to change zoning in a big way. Each suburban development has the street plan and infrastructure to support small businesses and common spaces, walking-distance from everyone’s front door. All it takes is to allow small-scale commercial development in corners of these collections of tract-homes and, just like that, you can have something like a functional village. Beyond that, encouraging more development of community recreation space, both indoor and outdoor, would go a long way to provide a place for people to mingle.
Edit: strip-malls don’t count. They’re often at the very edge of residential areas, and are tied up with way more capital than what I’m talking about. That’s why they’re made up of franchises, require ridiculous amounts of parking, and contribute to “stroads” and all the knock-on effects and hostile architecture that requires.
For starters, Ubi, and then expansive and free public transit for all and accessible for all including disabled people, more free places to just go and exist, no facism and more community. That’s just for the beginning though
Healthcare too.
Need those antidepressants before I even have the energy to touch grass.
