spockman wrote:
This is why healthy societies have a host of intermediary institutions that are supposed to teach/influence people to be better. And generate affection for each other. These intermediary institutions also give people a sense of belonging which helps mitigate the feeling of being alone which is so very common now in the West.
Intermediary institutions: Religious organizations. The family. Social clubs like Kiwanas and Rotary. The list goes on.
One of the problems of America predicted by Tocqueville something like 150 years ago is that the relentless promotion of individual freedom in America leads to a feeling of isolation. People don't feel they owe their fellows anything because they are told they are free to follow their own interests. This feeling has infected even those American institutions which should be telling people to look after each other like family and church.
Once the individual figures out he/she is free and owes their fellows little except to pay their taxes eventually they figure out their fellows owe them very little in return. And they are alone. The only place to turn for help is the State.
Which explains in part why both Democrats and Republicans are not giving up on big gov't.
Communism and extreme versions of socialism don't work either because people do need rewards for their efforts. We are only human after all.
This morning my high school sophomore told my middle schooler that middle school is the WORST. We realized that we have isolated the middle schoolers to protect both the elementary kids and the high school kids. It is a seething cauldron of misery. Teachers who work there too long become psycho. Teachers drawn to it by a feeling of compassion or sympathy are angels.
We wondered what creating the middle school has done to America. We decided that middle schools are probably the root cause of gun violence.
I read today that gun violence is contagious, similar to how suicides are contagious. In fact, the researcher said most mass shooters are probably suicidal. The mass shooting can be viewed as a catastrophic suicide that kills others.
How does this relate to the isolation you described above? Depression is characterized by isolation. We need ties to bind us to each other.