The Collective Is the Enemy of Community

Source: American Greatness
by Thaddeus G McCotter

“Whether reflecting on the impersonal essence of ‘virtual reality’ and the incessant stream of demands and anxieties it imposes upon our diurnal, increasingly alienated existence, or listening to the concerns of one’s fellow citizens, one hears a persistent leitmotif: the longing for true community, especially among the youth. One aspect of this longing has been well bruited: people’s gnawing sense that the myth of ‘virtual community’ is an alienating illusion that increasingly leaves them numb and pining for personal engagements—the flesh-and-blood amities, intimacies, and sundry other encounters of true community. Exacerbating this sense of loss, especially among the young, people are very concerned about ‘affordability’ (such as the inability to purchase a new home, rent an apartment, find an entry-level job, or keep the one they already have) due to the rise of artificial intelligence (AI) and inflation.” (10/10/26)

https://amgreatness.com/2026/10/10/the-collective-is-the-enemy-of-community/