I think it's interesting that so many here think tech meetups are the solution to loneliness. In part that's frustrating because I don't work in the tech industry (programming is a hobby for me), but it's also seems strange because I don't particularly want to limit myself to meeting people who work in the same field. But here in LA, that unfortunately hasn't made things any easier for me. It's just really damn hard to start new relationships here. You need a reason to see someone more than once, and it's hard to establish that the first time you meet someone.

I'm reminded of people who do the "if we're not in relationships at thirty, let's get married" thing. It seems absurd to most of us because it seems like you need an established romantic relationship. But maybe that's a mistake - maybe it's just as good to commit to making things work with someone you know you're compatible with. Likewise, I see people on the subway or bus looking at their phones, and I know many of them have to be lonely. It seems absurd for two lonely people to sit beside each other silently for half an hour. But maybe that's the problem: with modern technology we lack the pressure to create social bonds. If it's the 1930s I probably need to be on good terms with my neighbors. We're so independent now - I can even avoid interacting with a clerk if I want because people are willing to ship groceries to my door.

What seems to be needed is a way for many of us to blindly push a button that says "commit", and get randomly matched up with a compatible group of friends. Is that the best way to form social bonds? Probably not, but it's so much better than what we have currently that to go on as we do seems like madness.