That doesn't actually contradict me.

Everything you’ve said is true, but also you literally cannot replicate in-person interaction. Perhaps one day we will be able to trick our lizard brains with virtual interactions, but we can’t do it at present. There is no replacement for touching, feeling, smelling, and seeing. You can have meaningful relationships online but you are absolutely missing out if you’re only interactions are digital.

This may be the case as a fully formed and experienced adult, but it's critical at developmental stages

There's a level of human connection and validation that can't be satisfied virtually. We're animals, that contact is important. We wouldn't settle for a virtual significant-other, and by the same token the experience of quality time with buds over extra-curriculars isn't going to be fully replicated in a chat-room, blog message or email.

You aren't a developing teenager, probably. It's well evidenced as essential for psychosocial development

My co-workers are online too but that has no bearing on whether I see friends in person, nor does it encompass my entire social life.

As recent decades have progressed and more of our lives have gone digital, self reported rates of loneliness, isolation and depression have been skyrocketing. It's sometimes called the Internet Paradox - a technology that is supposed to increase our connection is correlated with increased feelings of isolation.

It's been the subject of study but it's impossible to truly reject the hypothesis due to the ubiquity of the effect - there's no control group. Obviously correlation is not causation, but I think the severity of the effects warrant further thought and investigation.