Read my latest in @GivingReview ! https://t.co/UHGd1htrPx
— Frank Filocomo (@FilocomoFrank) Oct 28, 2026
October 28, 2026 at 09:15AM
A blog dedicated to the revitalization of America's distinct civic culture.
Frank's Latest on X
October 28, 2026 at 09:15AM
Engaging with Nature
I live in New York City. The "Concrete Jungle," some call it.
There's an LCD Soundsystem lyric that I often think about: "New York, I love you, but you're bringing me down."
For all that's great about New York, one of its obvious down sides is that it's largely divorced from nature.
The city can often feel cold and drab.
Lack of greenery, it turns out, is bad for us.
According to a new study in The Lancet, engaging with nature can actually help combat feelings of loneliness.
Conducted in Barcelona, the study found that nature-based social prescribing (NBSP) "alleviated loneliness among 18+ vulnerable participants in urban areas at M3 by an average of 10.5 percent and these reductions increased through M12 by an average of 16.8 percent."
This, from the Foundation for Social Connection:
We've got some beautiful parks. That's true. But largely insufficient.
I found a cheat code, however, in the world of fish tanks.
I have three nano tanks around my apartment: a 5-gallon, 6-gallon, and 10-gallon.
These are my little slices of nature.
I propagate freshwater plants, breed fish, and cultivate self-sustaining ecosystems.
Every morning, I make a pot of coffee, sit on my couch, and watch as my rasboras swim in a tight school, and my guppies pick on hair algae.
In this video, aquarist Corvus Oscen talks about the aquarium hobby as something that allows you to escape the "sadness of a cubicle."
It makes sense: we weren't meant for a world of DoorDash and Excel spreadsheets; we were meant for rootedness, place, and communion with nature.
Wendell Berry once wrote that "the ancient, sacred bond between land and people has been broken."
Too many on the coasts have become rootless city-dwellers. And that's just no way to live.
My advice, not that I'm any kind of expert: if you're like me and you live far from nature, introduce a slice of it into your living quarters.
Make your apartment verdant with house plants, aquariums, terrariums, and the like.
Watch this music producer. He works with computers and hardware all day. But he's made it a point to ensconce himself in plants and foliage.
For all that's great about New York, one of its obvious down sides is that it's largely divorced from nature.
The city can often feel cold and drab.
Lack of greenery, it turns out, is bad for us.
According to a new study in The Lancet, engaging with nature can actually help combat feelings of loneliness.
Conducted in Barcelona, the study found that nature-based social prescribing (NBSP) "alleviated loneliness among 18+ vulnerable participants in urban areas at M3 by an average of 10.5 percent and these reductions increased through M12 by an average of 16.8 percent."
This, from the Foundation for Social Connection:
When linked with nature-based programs, social prescribing can promote nature contact to foster restorative and social benefits. Group-based activities that include natural elements have been found to cultivate connection and belonging, and increased program length is correlated to increased benefits.I live in a studio apartment in Brooklyn, though. I'm not really familiar with nature-based anything over here.
We've got some beautiful parks. That's true. But largely insufficient.
I found a cheat code, however, in the world of fish tanks.
I have three nano tanks around my apartment: a 5-gallon, 6-gallon, and 10-gallon.
These are my little slices of nature.
I propagate freshwater plants, breed fish, and cultivate self-sustaining ecosystems.
Every morning, I make a pot of coffee, sit on my couch, and watch as my rasboras swim in a tight school, and my guppies pick on hair algae.
In this video, aquarist Corvus Oscen talks about the aquarium hobby as something that allows you to escape the "sadness of a cubicle."
It makes sense: we weren't meant for a world of DoorDash and Excel spreadsheets; we were meant for rootedness, place, and communion with nature.
Wendell Berry once wrote that "the ancient, sacred bond between land and people has been broken."
Too many on the coasts have become rootless city-dwellers. And that's just no way to live.
My advice, not that I'm any kind of expert: if you're like me and you live far from nature, introduce a slice of it into your living quarters.
Make your apartment verdant with house plants, aquariums, terrariums, and the like.
Watch this music producer. He works with computers and hardware all day. But he's made it a point to ensconce himself in plants and foliage.
 |
| Legowelt producing music |
These things take upkeep, of course, but it's less than you think.
Touch grass, and if there is none, import it.
 |
| Fish tank in my parent's apartment. |
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Take me back. No AI. Just good vibes and decent, affordable coffee. https://t.co/kC9S4GxqLH
— Frank Filocomo (@FilocomoFrank) Oct 25, 2026
October 24, 2026 at 10:05PM
Study: Americans Still in Need of Connection
Findings from the latest Social Connection in America™ survey don't exactly inspire much optimism.
They more or less confirmed what we already know to be true: Americans are devoid of adequate social connection.
According to the survey, "four in ten Americans report moderate to severe loneliness."
That's significant. And very troubling.
And virtual connection - whether it be Zoom or FaceTime calls - doesn't cut it.
And virtual connection - whether it be Zoom or FaceTime calls - doesn't cut it.
I wrote a bit about the inferiority of virtual connection for RealClear Books & Culture last year (see here). While better than nothing, IRL human connection remains inimitable.
Another, sadly, unsurprising finding: "57% of Americans do not belong to clubs or organizations."
I can already hear Robert Putnam, 26 years after the publication of Bowling Alone, saying "I told you so."
I can already hear Robert Putnam, 26 years after the publication of Bowling Alone, saying "I told you so."
As I said, this survey just reinforces what we all see around us. Take the train, for instance, and you'll see the zombified masses tethered to screens. There is no effort to connect to our fellow community members.
Work has become transactional, with little emphasis on the importance of shooting the breeze by the water cooler.
Work has become transactional, with little emphasis on the importance of shooting the breeze by the water cooler.
Rather, the emphasis is on efficiency and productivity. Working on Excel sheets until your fingers feel numb and your eyes are red is productive; chatting with colleagues is not.
What if we've become too productive? Too obsessed with work? Too preoccupied with self-improvement?
Perhaps we'd be better off if we learned to slow down. Leisure mustn't continue to be looked down upon as wasted time.
This study, for example, finds that "doing the things you enjoy can be good for your health."
This study, for example, finds that "doing the things you enjoy can be good for your health."
So, the jury's in: Loneliness is bad for you. Leisure is good for you.
Americans, thus, must make an effort to slow down, embrace leisure, and reorient their mindsets away from workaholism and towards quality time with quality people.
Perhaps this is something that Europeans understand better than we do...
Americans, thus, must make an effort to slow down, embrace leisure, and reorient their mindsets away from workaholism and towards quality time with quality people.
Perhaps this is something that Europeans understand better than we do...
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I'm no political analyst, but this seems significant https://t.co/Q7KmOkgRMY
— Frank Filocomo (@FilocomoFrank) Oct 14, 2026
October 14, 2026 at 04:41PM
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Absolutely true https://t.co/4cuDgJLEzF
— Frank Filocomo (@FilocomoFrank) Oct 13, 2026
October 13, 2026 at 02:07PM
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Amen https://t.co/8nosz7ilRk
— Frank Filocomo (@FilocomoFrank) Oct 10, 2026
October 10, 2026 at 06:34PM
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Social media platforms from X to Instagram to Facebook have become inundated with a kind of conspiratorial Jew-hatred that used to be relegated to the fringes of the web. https://t.co/SUbYrdzIEG
— Frank Filocomo (@FilocomoFrank) Oct 8, 2026
October 8, 2026 at 10:32AM
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Zoomers do not care about being called an antisemite. American Jews and Christian philosemites who throw this label around liberally make matters worse. Let low-IQ Jew Haters assume their natural role of being the old crazy man yelling at clouds. Let them be stupid.
— Frank Filocomo (@FilocomoFrank) Oct 7, 2026
October 7, 2026 at 04:23PM
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I've been saying this for a long time. https://t.co/weVXXlmjze
— Frank Filocomo (@FilocomoFrank) Oct 7, 2026
October 7, 2026 at 04:13PM
Gen Zzz
By Frank Filocomo
Gen Z is becoming "the nihilistic generation."
Many Zoomers - particularly Zoomer men - feel as though they'll never be able to own a home or provide for a family on one income like their parents did.
Memes like this are all over social media:
To be sure, many of the memes that utilize this format are actually quite funny. But there's no denying that they're profoundly sad, too. They strike a nerve, an indisputable truth.
29-year-olds in Brooklyn, where I live, are not home or landowners; they rent studio apartments they can barely afford. Some just rent rooms at $1,000/month.
Cats have supplanted kids. Don't get me wrong, I love cats, but this is a negative development.
Out birthrate in the U.S. is below replacement.
What's more, it feels like the life has been sucked out of Zoomers.
This X post is instructive:
Statistically, Gen Zs are: - reading fewer books - less sexually active - drinking less alcohol - smoking less than millennials - less likely to follow cricket - dumber than previous generations - not wasting afternoons watching ants crawl so bc wtf are they actually doing?
— microaggression (@mutton2pyaza) September 29, 2026
Sure, this anonymous X user doesn't bother backing up any of these claims, but the general thesis is accurate. That is, Gen Z is "Generation House Cat."
Generation House Cat doesn't drink, have sex, participate in social events, or read.
They prefer comfort. And, don't get me wrong, I get the appeal.
Comfort, however, isn't conducive to human growth. On the contrary, it stunts growth.
But how do Zoomers snap out of this fog?
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