Let’s just say it - we messed up.

When the internet first came along, it was brilliant. We could email long-lost friends, video chat with family across the country, look up any fact in seconds. Then came forums, MySpace, Facebook. It was like being handed the keys to a kingdom of human connection... only to realize, years later, we locked ourselves inside and threw the real world out.

Today, we have neighbors we’ve never spoken to, hometown Facebook groups that read like war zones, and kids growing up more comfortable with memes than playgrounds. Somewhere along the line, the promise of digital connection traded our human instincts for cold, click-driven reactions.

We Don’t Meet at the Fence Anymore - We Post in Caps Lock Instead

There used to be a rhythm to community life. You’d see your neighbor while watering your lawn. Someone’s dog would escape, and half the block would join the chase. You’d attend PTA meetings in person, not read a comment thread of digital shouting matches.

Now, someone hears a fire truck and before they even glance out the window, they’re in a Facebook group typing “What’s going on at 5th and Main???” as if we’re all digitally monitoring the universe instead of, you know, being in it.

And don't get me started on the vent posts. One person has a bad experience with a barista or a barking dog, and suddenly the entire community is labeled as trash. These one-click judgments, blasted out to thousands of local strangers, aren’t just unfair - they’re toxic.

That’s not community. That’s an echo chamber of unfiltered frustration, and it’s rewiring our minds to view connection as a transaction, or worse, a battleground.

Online Groups Gave Us the Illusion of Belonging

Let’s be real: Facebook groups, Nextdoor threads, and subreddits are not communities. They're digital mirrors that only reflect what we feed into them - and what we feed in often isn’t pretty.

We crave validation, so we type out rants. We crave outrage, so we engage with drama. We crave safety, but we expose personal fears to people we’ve never met face-to-face. And worst of all - we forget to go outside.

We’ve confused “being heard” with “being known.”
And being known takes more than a post. It takes showing up.

The Internet Made It Too Easy to Avoid Each Other

Back in the day, you couldn't hide behind a username. If you had an issue with someone, you'd knock on their door or bring it up respectfully in person. It forced you to be human about it. Civil. Accountable.

Now? You can ghost your neighbor, block someone for parking wrong, or flame an entire small business with a two-star review because the cashier didn’t smile. We avoid discomfort at all costs - and with that, we avoid growth, connection, and any chance of genuine resolution.

The hard truth? The internet gave us shortcuts, and we used them to dodge humanity itself.

A Slow Decay of the American Mind

We are overstimulated, over-informed, and under-connected. We know more about celebrity divorces than we do about the family three doors down. We’ve traded depth for speed, nuance for outrage, and peace for a constant buzz of updates and dopamine pings.

Our brains aren’t built for this. And neither are our hearts.

We are social creatures. Our survival used to depend on it. Now our emotional survival still depends on it - but we’ve tricked ourselves into thinking pixels and pings are enough.

They’re not.

What’s Actually Healthy? Walking Next Door.

You want real connection? Get off your phone and knock on someone’s door. Invite a neighbor over for coffee. Help someone unload their groceries. Host a potluck. Talk to the person who always walks their dog at the same time you do.

You’ll find out real quick that most people are just like you - a little lonely, a little overwhelmed, and deeply craving real-world interaction.

Community isn’t dead. It’s just been buried under a million notifications and a culture that forgot the value of showing up.

We can’t uninvent the internet. But we can reinvent how we use it.

Use it to plan a get-together - not to replace one. Use it to coordinate help for someone in need - not to gossip about them. Use it to connect - then close the laptop and actually go connect.

It’s time we stop typing and start talking. Because our brains, our neighborhoods, and our souls are starving for something real - and that realness is still right outside your door.