What will happen when everything turns into Memecion?

From Trust to Isolation: How Involuntary Celibacy Erodes Our Society.

**Written by: **kyla scanlon

Compiler: Plain Language Blockchain

Tragedy of the Commons

In economics, a commons tragedy is when shared resources – such as farmland, fisheries, or clean air – are overexploited and eventually collapse. Today, we are experiencing a modern version of the tragedy of public resources, not just physical resources, but also the basic infrastructure of our society:

• Social public resources: trust, relationships, community.
• Recognizing public resources: curiosity, education, critical thinking.
• Economic public resources: stable markets, common prosperity, institutional trust.
• Public information resources: language, reality, basic consensus.

Unlike traditional public resources that collapse due to physical depletion, these intangible resources gradually disintegrate due to systemic incentive mechanisms that reward isolation, compliance, instability, and division.

This may be a bit bold, but I think we are moving towards a social operating system of "involuntary celibacy (incelism)"—no longer just an online subculture, but the default mode of society. "Involuntary celibacy" refers to a group of people who believe they cannot find romantic partners, often exhibiting emotions such as "resentment, hatred, self-pity, racism, misogyny, and nihilism." This mentality is eroding public resources: isolation, outsourced cognition, flattened identities, and performative hatred have become profitable norms. Governance and culture are dominated by memes, hatred, and algorithm-driven anger.

Public Social Resources

A stable society begins with stable relationships—friends, neighbors, colleagues, and family. These connections form the foundation upon which abstract concepts like democracy or economic growth can operate.

But the current situation is not optimistic. Many people have already discussed this, such as Derek Thompson ( in his brilliant cover article "The Anti-Social Century" in The Atlantic, describing how we are becoming estranged from each other. The meaningful connections between gender, class, and politics seem to be collapsing. The social infrastructure has warped and deformed after the pandemic, and we have lost shared norms and collective rituals. What has taken their place? Transactional connections, a platformized sense of loneliness, and the false sense of belonging provided by algorithmic tribes—these are merely reflections of your preferences. Social interaction ) from friendship to romance ( is increasingly being commodified, optimized, ranked, and gamified. ) Of course, the internet and dating apps also have their beautiful sides, but the negative trends seem to be prevailing. (

A society built on transactional interactions and superficial connections is inherently fragile. People who cannot trust each other in daily life will not suddenly trust one another when voting. Those who cannot maintain friendships or romantic relationships may also struggle to engage in democratic institutions or civic participation. Without a solid foundation of relationships, society cannot sustain stable democracy.

Without a real sense of community, citizen participation declines. As Guy Debord warned, politics has become a performance rather than substance.

Understanding Public Resources

We no longer teach people to think - we teach them to obey.

Curiosity is now seen as adventurous or inefficient.

This is a pattern: no one is willing to take risks. Whether it's an elected official or a 19-year-old choosing a college major. Because in this economy, everything has turned into compliance. As the Italian philosopher Umberto Eco warned in "Ur-Fascism," social systems do not collapse overnight, but rather erode through small compromises, by gradually normalizing compliance as a civic virtue.

Taking Cluely as an example. This product allows you to wear glasses to "cheat" while dating, which is partly a marketing gimmick ) and partly reflects the current ethos of recognizing public resources. The rise of AI companies prompts us to rethink the meaning of "being human," and their answer is "efficiency and optimization." Perhaps this is the answer.

Cluely's manifesto states: "We built it so you no longer have to think alone." AI is no longer a tool for assisting thought, but rather seeks to replace thinking. Critical thinking, ambiguity, creativity - the qualities that define the beautiful traits of humanity - are replaced by optimized instant answers.

It is everywhere. In politics, nuances become dangerous, and Congress dares not confront President Trump. Even in leisure time, hobbies must be measured by "side hustle potential." In a brilliant article, Anne Helen Petersen wrote: "The logic we internalize is toxic and enduring: if you spend time doing something that has money-making potential, not making money is financially irresponsible." The obsessive pursuit of hobbies and their monetization is not just an escape from reality, but a response to educational burnout, economic instability, and performative living. It is a way for people to assert identity and agency within structural constraints. Optimize, efficiency, monetization, and the cycle continues!

Without curiosity and critical thinking, we are easily manipulated, susceptible to polarized narratives, and ultimately lose the ability to make independent judgments—this is crucial for democratic citizens.

Economic Public Resources

Policy is an emotional projection—when those who despise the system become the system itself.

The economy depends on trust—not just in money or policies, but in the reliable rules and institutions surrounding them. Today, that trust is evaporating. Why? Because economic policies have become a stage for personal grievances, emotional reactions, and political performances. I have written multiple times about the issue of "trust." Take tariffs as an example; tariffs could have served as a strategic tool, but that is far from the case recently. Tax rates are adjusted arbitrarily, supply chains are disrupted, and businesses are at a loss.

According to Bloomberg, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent ( Scott Bessent ) privately acknowledged this instability at a closed-door investor meeting arranged by JPMorgan, admitting that the current 145% tariff situation on China is unsustainable. He hinted that a cooling off would happen soon ( even though negotiations have not yet begun ), and pointed out that according to Eamon Javers ( Eamon Javers ), container bookings between China and the U.S. have dropped by 64%. He made it clear that the goal is not decoupling, but rather to push China towards a consumer society and the U.S. towards a manufacturing society.

This is absurd, as it seems to suggest that we are entering the "Chinese Century." The United States is giving up its most comfortable seat. When you see Chinese manufacturing—like the Xiaomi factory "producing one phone every second, with no production staff (, only maintenance personnel ), perspective, running 24 hours, lights all off"—you can't help but wonder, what does this mean?

What is even more disturbing is why this key information was shared privately during a closed-door investor event by JPMorgan rather than being made public and transparent? Part of the reason is that no one dares to directly challenge Trump—Basent seems to have leaked a lot of information because publicly questioning him is politically too risky. Another part may be some sort of implication of "handshake - fist bump - you are my people - go trade this information."

Meanwhile, in public, both sides are swinging between aggressive postures and vague commitments. Trump publicly stated that he would not take a "hardline" approach toward China, suggesting a de-escalation, at least for now. He also abandoned the idea of firing Powell. The market naturally rose on this news, but it's just news. The economy will still be mired in difficulties due to these fluctuations.

The market is currently running entirely on "vibes." Who can blame them? Just look at these headlines, it's like someone is talking to themselves.

China has expressed a willingness to negotiate, but on the condition of mutual respect and a reduction in threats. They certainly should make such demands! In contrast, the United States seems like a child in a toy store during its negotiations with Japan: "We don’t know what we want, but we definitely want something." The result is headline-driven market fluctuations and a diplomatic stalemate.

Martin Wolf (Martin Wolf) hit the nail on the head on "Odd Lots": The United States enjoys enormous economic power due to its status as the reserve currency of the dollar and can easily maintain huge deficits. However, the United States seems bent on squandering this advantage through chaotic, emotion-driven policy decisions. Wolf bluntly said, "You're rich and secure – unless you're too outrageously screwed. And now, why do you have to mess up so outrageously? That's where we are now."

We all know ( even those who initially supported tariffs understand ) that this governance method is extremely irrational, the policy is not based on economic logic, but shaped by resentment and projection. There is no plan at all — Bessent and Lutnik had to persuade Trump to lift the tariffs behind the back of the tariff supporters Navarro. Look at this!

At the same time, ordinary Americans are preparing to face the impact. The CEOs of Walmart, Target, and Home Depot privately warned Trump that tariffs could lead to supply chain disruptions and empty shelves. Who benefits from the trade war? According to the NBER, it is government-affiliated companies! No wonder Tim Cook personally made a call!

The hiring freeze is spreading nationwide, causing pain to the grassroots economy—real costs are being paid for abstract grievances. According to Goldman Sachs, the total layoffs of federal employees (, including contract and grant employees ), could reach as high as 1.2 million, with the tourism industry losing $90 billion, about 0.3% of GDP. Real costs. For what?

We have destroyed public economic resources not because it makes sense, but because our political leaders confuse economic policies with personal grudges. The chaotic market is thriving, and trust is evaporating.

Public Information Resources

We no longer have a shared reality—only overlapping simulations.

A simple way to determine whether a space has public resources for health information is: can you describe reality without immediately causing controversy? Can we agree on a common language, basic facts, or even meanings of words? The answer increasingly is: no. I wrote about this point in 2022.

Public resources of information—language, reality, and basic consensus—are collapsing because we have monetized division. Social media platforms are not built for clarity or understanding, but rather optimized for engagement, anger, and polarization. Algorithms do not reward nuance, but rather reward certainty, controversy, and emotional triggers.

What is replacing consensus reality? Loyal reality, tribal reality, personalized reality! We no longer debate ideas or solutions, but argue over whose facts matter, whose feelings matter, and whose truth prevails. The truth itself has become a loyalty test, rather than a common foundation. Without shared public resources of information, cooperation becomes impossible. We do not solve problems, but argue over who gets to define the problems! Language is weaponized, and reality is fragmented.

Conclusion

So, what should we do? Bitcoin is rising again. Since the "Liberation Day," it has decoupled from the Nasdaq, rising 10%, while the S&P 500 has fallen 6%. Its rise is not optimistic, but a direct vote against the collapse of trust (, and it has diversified from the US ). The rise of assets such as gold, silver, defense stocks, and cryptocurrencies reflects the fluctuations in social, cognitive, economic, and informational domains.

These public resources are being eroded, monetized, and exploited little by little. Social trust has turned into transactional loneliness. Curiosity has been replaced by compliance and cognitive outsourcing. Stable economic governance has been replaced by chaotic performances. Shared reality has splintered into competing tribes and personalized truths.

In other words, we have institutionalized the "involuntary celibacy"—no longer just romantic isolation, but a built-in, profit-generating disconnection within the social structure. The market impact is evident: as trust erodes, volatility increases, and traditional safe-haven assets regain dominance. Investors either acquire insider information from within the government or diversify their investments into precious metals, infrastructure, dividend-paying companies, and global portfolios to hedge against the capriciousness of domestic policies.

Social infrastructure does not disappear forever. Unlike depleted fisheries or farmlands, these intangible resources can be regenerated by choosing connection over transaction, critical thinking over compliance, substance over performance, and shared reality over isolated tribes.