--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We live in a culture where we put our…" description: "\"“We live in a culture where we put our most intimate secrets on the Internet and have no idea who our next- door neighbors are, where we labor in cubic..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b86/tracy-thompson-38198_community_we-live-in-a-culture-where-we-put-our-mo_135314.jpg" --- # We live in a culture where we put our most intimate… ![“We live in a culture where we put our most intimate secrets on the Internet and have no idea who our next- door neighbors are, where we labor in cubicles all day and go home at night to update our Facebook page. What we lack- what most of us instinctively know we are missing, what makes so many of…” quote by Tracy Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b86/tracy-thompson-38198_community_we-live-in-a-culture-where-we-put-our-mo_135314.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b86/tracy-thompson-38198_community_we-live-in-a-culture-where-we-put-our-mo_135314.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b86/tracy-thompson-38198_community_we-live-in-a-culture-where-we-put-our-mo_135314.jpg) > ““We live in a culture where we put our most intimate secrets on the Internet and have no idea who our next- door neighbors are, where we labor in cubicles all day and go home at night to update our Facebook page. What we lack- what most of us instinctively know we are missing, what makes so many of us log on to Facebook in the first place- is community.”” [Tracy Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-thompson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. We share intimate details online yet lack real‑world community, revealing a paradox of digital connection. **In simple terms:** Online sharing lacks true community. Key Takeaway Seek real connections beyond screens. Themes digital life community loneliness Mood reflective critical Type analytical philosophical When to use this quote - remote work - social media use - urban living - mental health Key Concepts social media paradox human connection Questions to Reflect On - How can we build genuine community offline? - What role should technology play in fostering real bonds? A Different Perspective Online platforms can deepen isolation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Community](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/community/) [First place](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/first-place/) [Internet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/internet/) [Twitter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/twitter/) ## Related quotes > [“Athena examined the diskette in her hand. It was a shiny black 3.5 inch high density floppy, with no label to give a hint…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-pederson/athena-examined-the-diskette-in-her-hand-it-was-a-shiny-black-3-5/) Ted Pederson > [It feels good to be in a place now where I can give back to my community.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lil-durk/it-feels-good-to-be-in-a-place-now-where-i-can-give-back-to-my/) [Lil Durk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lil-durk/) > [“We do what we must to earn our place in the community, but we live for the hours at home. For each other, for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/we-do-what-we-must-to-earn-our-place-in-the-community-but-we-live-for/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [Rowing provided a place to go, a community where people cared about what I did and what I achieved.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-greene/rowing-provided-a-place-to-go-a-community-where-people-cared-about/) [Nancy Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-greene/) > [Communication leads to community that is, to understanding, intimacy, and the mutual valuing that was previously lacking. Community can be defined simply as a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rollo-may/communication-leads-to-community-that-is-to-understanding-intimacy/) [Rollo May](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rollo-may/) > [As someone who has moved around a fair amount, I wondered what it would be like to stay rooted to one place, one community.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-monninger/as-someone-who-has-moved-around-a-fair-amount-i-wondered-what-it/) [Joseph Monninger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-monninger/) > [One of the pleasant things about small town life is that everyone, whether rich or poor, liked or disliked, has some kind of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-abbey/one-of-the-pleasant-things-about-small-town-life-is-that-everyone/) [Edward Abbey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-abbey/) > [I update my MySpace every day, I update my Facebook fan page, but that's about the extent of it. I don't want to get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patton-oswalt/i-update-my-myspace-every-day-i-update-my-facebook-fan-page-but-that/) [Patton Oswalt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patton-oswalt/) > [Why do people deserve a penny when they update their Facebook status? Because they'll spend some of it on you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jaron-lanier/why-do-people-deserve-a-penny-when-they-update-their-facebook-status/) [Jaron Lanier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jaron-lanier/) > [Oh, it's snowing outside. I better update my Facebook status for all of my friends that don't have windows. i hate that](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/oh-it-s-snowing-outside-i-better-update-my-facebook-status-for-all-of/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If I send you a text and you don'trespond, and then I see you update Facebook at the same time, you're dead to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-i-send-you-a-text-and-you-don-trespond-and-then-i-see-you-update/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The secret is to go to the Twitter laiapcption within the Facebook world. Here's a convenient shortcut:.The key link there is the box labelled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian/the-secret-is-to-go-to-the-twitter-laiapcption-within-the-facebook/) Julian > [I will update My Facebook status for money!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m4ster-strider/i-will-update-my-facebook-status-for-money/) M4ster Strider > [Oh, it's sunny outside. I better update my Facebook status for all of my friends that don't have windows.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/oh-it-s-sunny-outside-i-better-update-my-facebook-status-for-all-of/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Dear people who update their Facebook status every 30 seconds, there's Twitter for a reason.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy/dear-people-who-update-their-facebook-status-every-30-seconds-there-s/) [Amy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy/) ## More by Tracy Thompson > [It seemed to me the basic definition of mental illness, this persistent, painful inability to simply be with someone else. It might be lifelong,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-thompson/it-seemed-to-me-the-basic-definition-of-mental-illness-this/) [Tracy Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-thompson/) > [A broken leg can be remembered and located: "It hurt right below my knee, it throbbed, I felt sick at my stomach." But mental…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-thompson/a-broken-leg-can-be-remembered-and-located-it-hurt-right-below-my/) [Tracy Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-thompson/) > [I don't know when the idea of suicide first occurred to me. In some ways, it had been in the back of my mind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-thompson/i-don-t-know-when-the-idea-of-suicide-first-occurred-to-me-in-some/) [Tracy Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-thompson/) > [Having a mood disorder is not synonymous with having artistic talent, but it is true that people in the so-called creative professions-writers, actors, artists,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-thompson/having-a-mood-disorder-is-not-synonymous-with-having-artistic-talent/) [Tracy Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-thompson/) > [The anxiety was like poison ivy. It took nothing to set off that mental itch-a chance remark, remembering an event from the day before-but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-thompson/the-anxiety-was-like-poison-ivy-it-took-nothing-to-set-off-that/) [Tracy Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-thompson/) > [“The brain is the only organ that tries to make sense of its pain. It is as if the bone were trying to understand…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-thompson/the-brain-is-the-only-organ-that-tries-to-make-sense-of-its-pain-it/) [Tracy Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-thompson/) > [Reality is rarely what we imagine. Great and noble things do not always happen for great and noble reasons.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-thompson/reality-is-rarely-what-we-imagine-great-and-noble-things-do-not/) [Tracy Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-thompson/) > [Even at this stage, my preparations were like strapping on a parachute in an airplane that was about to crash; the whole time I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-thompson/even-at-this-stage-my-preparations-were-like-strapping-on-a-parachute/) [Tracy Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-thompson/) > [Better to inflict pain on myself than to let other people do it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-thompson/better-to-inflict-pain-on-myself-than-to-let-other-people-do-it/) [Tracy Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-thompson/) > [“The unexamined life is not worth living, but the unlived life is not worth examining.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-thompson/the-unexamined-life-is-not-worth-living-but-the-unlived-life-is-not/) [Tracy Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-thompson/) > [I yearned to get better; I told myself I was getting better. In fact, the depression was still there, like a powerful undertow. Sometimes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-thompson/i-yearned-to-get-better-i-told-myself-i-was-getting-better-in-fact/) [Tracy Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-thompson/) [Explore all 12 Tracy Thompson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-thompson/) ## More Community quotes > [Race is the idea that a human being is more superior than another human being, race in society grants illusional rights to mistreat each…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-limn/race-is-the-idea-that-a-human-being-is-more-superior-than-another/) [Jeremy Limn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-limn/) > [But we are convinced that if we are to play a meaningful role nationally, and in the community of nations, we must be second…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikram-sarabhai/but-we-are-convinced-that-if-we-are-to-play-a-meaningful-role/) [Vikram Sarabhai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikram-sarabhai/) > [In the hearing world, I'm constantly having to lip-read and trying to understand what's going on. Sign language is so beautiful. It gives you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rose-ayling-ellis/in-the-hearing-world-i-m-constantly-having-to-lip-read-and-trying-to/) [Rose Ayling-Ellis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rose-ayling-ellis/) > [The strains and stresses suffered by the individual in society are grounded in the normal functioning of that society (and of the individual!) rather…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-marcuse/the-strains-and-stresses-suffered-by-the-individual-in-society-are/) [Herbert Marcuse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-marcuse/) > [Hackney gets a bit of a bad rap, but it's the only place I've ever lived that felt like a community. I know my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sharon-horgan/hackney-gets-a-bit-of-a-bad-rap-but-it-s-the-only-place-i-ve-ever/) [Sharon Horgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sharon-horgan/) > [ The social \[media channel\] isn't about beauty contests and popularity contests. They're a distortion, a caricature of the real thing. It's about trust, connection,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umair-haque/the-social-media-channel-isn-t-about-beauty-contests-and-popularity/) [Umair Haque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umair-haque/) > [We're at a point in history were we have to become a part of the neighborhood of inhabited planets, like a neighborhood of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-mitchell/we-re-at-a-point-in-history-were-we-have-to-become-a-part-of-the/) [Edgar Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-mitchell/) > [I have to feel the audience. I enjoy that feeling of community.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-gahan/i-have-to-feel-the-audience-i-enjoy-that-feeling-of-community/) [Dave Gahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-gahan/) > [It rolls off my back. Ridicule doesn't mean anything - even from people you're supposed to wear knee pads around, like the scientific community.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwight-schultz/it-rolls-off-my-back-ridicule-doesn-t-mean-anything-even-from-people/) [Dwight Schultz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwight-schultz/) > [Jeff Chu's pilgrimage across America to discover his own place as a gay man in the Christian church as well as attitudes about being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-freitas/jeff-chu-s-pilgrimage-across-america-to-discover-his-own-place-as-a/) [Donna Freitas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-freitas/) > [I think that most of us, anyway, read these stories that we know are not "true" because we're hungry for another kind of truth:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/i-think-that-most-of-us-anyway-read-these-stories-that-we-know-are/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [Human life consists of doing certain things ... to take part in the life of the community; to be able to talk about subjects…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amartya-sen/human-life-consists-of-doing-certain-things-to-take-part-in-the-life/) [Amartya Sen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amartya-sen/) > [Parents who are stressed or disturbed will have more difficulty in meeting their children's needs. Parents who have little support--from friends, relatives, neighbors, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheila-kamerman/parents-who-are-stressed-or-disturbed-will-have-more-difficulty-in/) Sheila Kamerman > [I think what was special about 'Music by Prudence' was the classic story of the title subject's life path - from being an outcast…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ross-williams/i-think-what-was-special-about-music-by-prudence-was-the-classic/) [Roger Ross Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ross-williams/) > [Perhaps the greatest and least visible form of impoverishment caused by the Corporate State is the destruction of community.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-a-reich/perhaps-the-greatest-and-least-visible-form-of-impoverishment-caused/) [Charles A. Reich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-a-reich/) [Browse all 13,840 Community quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/community/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“We live in a culture where we put our most intimate secrets on the Internet and have no idea who our next- door neighbors are, where we labor in cubicles all day and go home at night to update our Facebook page. 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