[mcguire]

"...especially in the Bay Area. ... But there's a palpable lack of social fabric. I worry that this atomization is becoming a world-wide phenomenon – that we might be some of the first generations without the sort of community that it's in human nature to rely on."

Are we talking about a general problem, or about a group of 20-somethings who grew up with families, went to college where they had a lot of free time with a bunch of others in the same situation, and then moved hundreds or thousands of miles to a place that puts emphasis on lack of ties, short terms, mobility, and long work hours?

'Cause I can assure you that most of the lonely people in the world can't afford $100 per month for a friend network.

[sjg007]

The most lonely are old people I think.. but the ones that live in senior housing tend to do a lot better. Kids in college also do well since they are among their peers.. One idea to push this forward is mixed use housing. Parents want to find other parents so their kids can play. Teenagers likewise. So you need all ages in your little "village".

[bhl]

Kids in college are also lonely; I go to a school with a relatively large undergraduate populations. The result is that many people have trouble finding friends given that interactions are less frequent. Dorms and free time do help, but in the first week there were a lot of posts asking others on how they made their friends.

[watwut]

This was downvoted a lot, but I think there is something on it. The same value system that makes you see life outside of work as being lazy, prefers short term relationships and generally praise following own interests has higher chance of leaving you without close friends and community in the long term.

and it is also true that lonely poor or sick people or those caring about such relatives can be extremely lonely and isolated too, but with harder or non existent solutions.