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A comment on Americans' Social Activity Has Steeply Declined in the Past 30 Years. Parent comment

Re:Americans' Social Activity Has Steeply Declined in the Pa... by mlhpdx on Wednesday October 14, 2026 @01:57PM (#50092016)
A picnic is basically free, for those near enough to open spaces. Likewise for hikes, which I’ll happily pay to drive an hour or more to enjoy.

I don’t think money is a barrier to getting out.

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Re:Americans' Social Activity Has Steeply Declined in the Pa... by cowlevel on Wednesday October 14, 2026 @09:19PM (#50097939)
What's the motivation though?
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Re:Americans' Social Activity Has Steeply Declined in the Pa... by newsclues on Thursday October 15, 2026 @01:59AM (#50099786)
Finding a nice spot in nature to take a photo and flex on instagram
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Re:Americans' Social Activity Has Steeply Declined in the Pa... by Gigachad on Thursday October 15, 2026 @12:50AM (#50099288)
I think the friction is a much bigger issue than the cost. People are stuck in a trap of scrolling short form video because it provides no friction. While organizing a picnic is extremely high friction relative to social media scrolling.

I think to solve this we are going to have to blow up social media and make going out in public more convenient and friendly. Otherwise we are going to end up in a WALL-E society where people spend all day with their meta glasses streaming AI generated micro dramas.

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