Hikikomori and Lying Flat: When "Making It" Becomes Hopeless

No wonder so many people devote themselves to curating an artificial digital representation of themselves that they reckon is worthy of recognition and status.

What does it take to "make it" in today's economy? As described in Withdrawing from the Rat Race Is Going Global, the world has changed in fundamental ways that have made it much more difficult to "make it" into the ranks of the middle class, and even harder to claw one's way into the higher reaches of the economic order, i.e. the top 10%.

In summary, de…