Thus The Economist in its current edition. “Living alone is on the rise all over the world,” the mighty newspaper elaborates. “Is this bad news?” I have no qualms with the gist of the article, but I find the question puzzling. News? Living alone has been on the rise all over the world for quite some time. The richer the country, the greater the attraction of solitude. As countries get richer, the attraction spreads. The same is true of cities within countries. The attraction of solitude is strongest in the richest cities. And so on, and so forth. The dissolution of the family is part and parcel of the same process. Once again, no news here. The only possible news on the subject would be the reversal of this entrenched trend. Could it ever come to pass, though? Indeed it could, but in hard times. The attraction of solitude will evaporate with poverty, social unrest, war, and worse. What with the depression and global warming, these are very real prospects in the days to come. At any rate, people get together only when the going gets tough.