> There are various obvious ways of decreasing social alienation in US society; the problem with that is, most people aren't going to like it

There are also not-so-obvious ways. For example, returning to a society where most of our trips are on foot and transit rather than by the isolating and dehumanizing bubble of personal automotive.

As always with public policy, the question arises of what's the better way to address problems. The gulf from recognizing a problem and implementing policy to solve a problem is vast.