If you are feeling more detached from others or have a diminished sense of community, you are with the majority of Americans. Health authorities are now saying that “Loneliness is an epidemic, and the health risks are ‘profound,’ US surgeon general warns.” I probably could have told them that. Senior Americans prefer the human checkout lines to the self-checks just so they can speak to their favorite cashier. We are being told that isolation and loneliness are as damaging to Americans’ individual and public health as are smoking and obesity. Maybe that is why Trader Joe has only cashiers–no self-checkouts. You always engage in a Trader Joe’s checkout.

Nearly half of the US adults reported loneliness in recent years. In 2021 Cigna healthcare showed 79% of people ages 18 to 24 reported feeling lonely–a rate nearly twice as high as that of seniors ages 66 and older. Some of the …