Alone
City Journal,
by
Kay S. Hymowitz
Original Article
Posted By: MissMolly,
6/3/2019 5:02:35 AM
Americans are suffering from a bad case of loneliness. The number of people in the United States living alone has gone through the studio-apartment roof. A study released by the insurance company Cigna last spring made headlines with its announcement: “Only around half of Americans say they have meaningful, daily face-to-face social interactions.” Loneliness, public-health experts tell us, is killing as many people as obesity and smoking. It’s not much comfort that Americans are not, well, alone in this. Germans are lonely, the bon vivant French are lonely, and even the Scandinavians—the happiest people in the world, according to the UN’s World Happiness Report—are lonely, too.
Reply 1 - Posted by:
poliposter 6/3/2019 6:28:11 AM (No. 89575)
That was a depressing morning read. I disagree with the part about parents not pushing marriage. If I mentioned anything about that, my daughters shut me down. Now in their 20s, they struggle to find males interested in any relationship (other than a hook up).
6 people like this.
Reply 2 - Posted by:
F15 Gork 6/3/2019 7:24:34 AM (No. 89595)
Once government became the head of the American family these results were inevitable.....
4 people like this.
Reply 3 - Posted by:
Hermit_Crab 6/3/2019 8:14:25 AM (No. 89616)
And some of us worked very long and very hard for the PRIVILEGE of being alone.
4 people like this.
Reply 4 - Posted by:
TexaTucky 6/3/2019 8:15:13 AM (No. 89617)
Agree with #2....totally depressed now. Gack.
The author cites Maslow, who wrote "A Theory of Human Motivation" that posited, in very basic terms, that as we, humans, satisfy our basic needs like food and shelter, we move on to satisfying the next need . . . safety, love, esteem, and then self-actualization.
I never bought the 'self-actualization' part as the fulfillment of human desire. I think that as we "advance" as a society and get all the stuff and money and self-indulgences taken care of, we wake up to the realization that the big hole in our hearts is shaped like God. Instead of Self, which is all our society seems to seek these days, we need to seek God if we ever hope to quell that angst in our souls.
Actually, I don't think that hole is a bad thing. Or an accident. I think God planted it in us as a sort of homing device to lead us back to Him.
And that, my friends, is T-Tucky's Monday morning religio-philosophizing minute.
8 people like this.
Reply 5 - Posted by:
IdahoSky 6/3/2019 8:55:27 AM (No. 89654)
You've got to invest your time into other people if you expect them to invest their time into you. That is especially true for spouses and children.
If you want to have a family, you must forge a bond with a spouse who wants the same thing, and then you must elevate the happiness of the family over the happiness of self.
It seems to be that last part that is tripping people up.
4 people like this.
Reply 6 - Posted by:
Laotzu 6/3/2019 9:08:36 AM (No. 89666)
We have achieved the inverse circumstance from that predicted by the move "Surrogates (2009)." In the movie, everyone stays home, and they send out their surrogate robot to maintain their physical presence in the world. In our reality, everyone wanders about in their loungewear, but they aren't actually present. Instead, their consciousness is oriented toward the little box in their hand, whether they're drive, walking or at the gym. The rest of us are ignored like surrogate corpses.
1 person likes this.
Reply 7 - Posted by:
Catherine 6/3/2019 12:21:57 PM (No. 89836)
Because both my boys have invited me to live with them, I don't have to be alone. But for a few years, while still working, I was alone in my apartment and it was the happiest I've ever been. Seriously. I have never been a 'joiner' or social butterfly. I love to read and watch serious things on TV and utterly ridiculous thing (GOT comes to mind) on TV. I do live with my single son but it's almost the same as being alone. He does his own thing and goes his own way. We have a dog and I talk to her more than anyone or anything else. Don't be depressed if you live alone. Find the things you like to do and do them. Yes, interaction is nice and I do have that occasionally with my other son and his wife but to be honest, I'm happier alone. I wish the media would stop finding unhappy things to write about. There is so much good in the world yet we never see it.
2 people like this.
Reply 8 - Posted by:
beancounter 6/3/2019 12:53:10 PM (No. 89865)
I think "diversity" is another culprit. People have nothing in common with the people in their neighborhood.
0 people like this.
Reply 9 - Posted by:
LC Chihuahua 6/3/2019 1:00:36 PM (No. 89872)
One is never alone if they have a relationship with God.
A person usually outlives their parents. If you have good friends and family, you are fortunate. One's job usually leaves something to be desired. So does society. Eventually, a person's health starts to fail. In the end, a person is alone. The only one that can really fill that void is God.
1 person likes this.
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