I think taking a screen/news break is actually a good idea. However, I am also on of those people that will strike up a conversation, or reciprocate, with a stranger almost anywhere. You can tell pretty quickly which people aren't interested, even before you start a conversation, but the vast majority of the time I've found people to be open and receptive to those random connections.

There are three thoughts this article brought up for me. The first is that a lot of the isolation and loneliness, imo, is driven by the outrageous expectations we have about retirement. Many people have built their entire social networks around work, and haven't developed any non-work activities, hobbies or friends. When they retire, they find themselves sitting alone in their houses in fairly short order, wondering what to do with the next decades of their lives.

The second is the fact that I think it's crazy to talk about politics now, or, to be frank, any time. The old rule was you never talked about money, politics or religion. Now everything seems to be fair game, and I think it's a problem. I really don't care what your politics are, what your religion is, or how much money you have. That's not what's going to make me like you.

But...that leads me to the third thing. I think we paint everyone with a very broad brush: "repugnicans," "libtards," etc. You can be a conservative and not be evil. But there is a swath on the far left and the far right whose beliefs and views are so outlandish that I feel it's not just that I don't like them, it's that I feel their views should not be normalized. White supremacists, people who hate all police, etc. It's not OK to say that all Republicans are white supremacists, but some are. It's not OK to say that all liberals want to see cops get killed, but some do. In our desire to be fair, open-minded, etc., I feel that if we point out the truly evil views held by some people, we are immediately tagged as fascists, anti-America, etc. But we should be able to point out that these views are evil, to excuse them is to enable them, and that it's completely wrong.

My 2c!

quote:

The second is the fact that I think it's crazy to talk about politics now, or, to be frank, any time. The old rule was you never talked about money, politics or religion. Now everything seems to be fair game, and I think it's a problem. I really don't care what your politics are, what your religion is, or how much money you have. That's not what's going to make me like you.

On the other hand.... THESE DAYS I NEED TO VENT! The current President is SO awful I can't imagine not talking "politics" with friends, family and mate. Similarly, I can't be friends or even FB friends with anyone who constantly supports Trump. It makes me sick.

jf