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Agreed It's crazy how quickly society has shifted. We used to chide people who had their nose buried in a book as socially awkward. Now, everyone has their nos

Agreed It's crazy how quickly society has shifted. We used to chide people who had their nose buried in a book as socially awkward. Now, everyone has their nose buried in a phone. You used to have social interactions when waiting anywhere. That doesn't really happen anymore. Seems like everyone would rather be distracted by something on their phone. The ability to be bored has become a rare and valuable skill.

retcore 4y ago
>You used to have social interactions when waiting anywhere London perfected ignoring everybody long before even the rise of mass circulation newspapers according to diaries of family who knew the place a hundred years ago. The Tube of the eighties celebrated the apotheosis of ignoring one another and the British seem to make a art form out of studious but "polite" asociability* in every queue. Actually reading this discussion I've realized that I have seen almost nobody using headphones in London in recent years, eliminating possibly the highest barrier to interaction. Curiouser I have most recently only noticed people glued to their phones whilst walking not standing at the bus stop. *as opposed to anti social manners for clarity
- pictureofabear 4y ago
  Yes, people in large metropolises have been indifferent to each other for ages. Everywhere else in the US, it used to be the case that you would make small talk with people while waiting at the doctor's office, in barbershops, in the line at the grocery store, wherever.
cxr 4y ago
Suppose someone's able to go out and find an arrangement that lets them get in their 20 hours of boredom a week. (Adjust this for however much your recommended dose is.) Should those people be allowed to spend some time listening to a podcast they enjoy?
- pictureofabear 4y ago
  People can spend their time how they want, and I will continue to internally judge them, and they will continue to not care what I think (and they shouldn't). Such is the human condition.
  - cxr 4y ago
    There was an implicit "(without you judging them)" in that question.

retcore 4y ago

>You used to have social interactions when waiting anywhere London perfected ignoring everybody long before even the rise of mass circulation newspapers according to diaries of family who knew the place a hundred years ago. The Tube of the eighties celebrated the apotheosis of ignoring one another and the British seem to make a art form out of studious but "polite" asociability* in every queue. Actually reading this discussion I've realized that I have seen almost nobody using headphones in London in recent years, eliminating possibly the highest barrier to interaction. Curiouser I have most recently only noticed people glued to their phones whilst walking not standing at the bus stop. *as opposed to anti social manners for clarity

pictureofabear 4y ago
Yes, people in large metropolises have been indifferent to each other for ages. Everywhere else in the US, it used to be the case that you would make small talk with people while waiting at the doctor's office, in barbershops, in the line at the grocery store, wherever.

cxr 4y ago

Suppose someone's able to go out and find an arrangement that lets them get in their 20 hours of boredom a week. (Adjust this for however much your recommended dose is.) Should those people be allowed to spend some time listening to a podcast they enjoy?

pictureofabear 4y ago
People can spend their time how they want, and I will continue to internally judge them, and they will continue to not care what I think (and they shouldn't). Such is the human condition.
- cxr 4y ago
  There was an implicit "(without you judging them)" in that question.