Just because folk like us are using say, Amazon more often, doesn’t mean our need for human contact has lessened. To quote Deb Schultz, “Technology changes, people don’t”.
You could even say, by removing the human element over in one corner, Amazon has created opportunities for others in another corner. Books & Books (one of the best independent bookshops in the country) maybe can’t compete with Amazon on price, but their café makes a mean tuna sandwich.
There’s a face-to-face social need here being met, one that e-commerce can’t touch.
The common concept here is the belief that the world can be completely known- that one website (or a handful of websites) is enough to fulfill all the needs of mankind. The world is far too complex for that, ditto human beings.
Though they have a huge monopoly, The Big Tech Four are only a tiny sliver of humanity. But to see that, one needs to get out more.
