Top Highlights

• There will never again be “cultural knowledge” that everybody knows, mostly because there is simply too much culture to know about.
• In the present tense, we always want the maximum number of alternatives; in the short term, choice improves our lives, and we’re completely aware of that. The problematic rub is that—over time—choice isolates us. We have fewer shared experiences, and that makes us feel alone. The proliferation of choice makes us feel vaguely alienated, and that mak...
• In the present tense, we always want as much individual choice as possible; once that present has passed, we’re happier if we’ve experienced the same limited options as everyone else.
• When given the choice, we’d all rather be happy now… even if that guarantees we’ll all be sad later.
• Basically, don’t get pissed off over the fact that the way you feel about culture isn’t some kind of universal consensus. Because if you do, you will end up feeling betrayed. And it will be your own fault. You will feel bad, and you will deserve it.