We've been alone too long
Humans are social creatures. To be alone is a pathological state for us, leading to delusions and self-destructive behavior. We use isolation as a punishment.
What is true for individual humans is true for us as a species as well. The loneliness of our existence was held at bay for much of our history by the pressing needs of survival, but this time has now passed.
We are unable to distract ourselves any longer. We have no-one to love but ourselves, and we have become narcissistic. We have no-one to fear but ourselves, and we have become self-hating. Our motivations and dreams are diminished by the understanding that there is no-one to show them to.
The effects are everywhere: with no greater goals we obsess about relatively meaningless things, granting them importance simply because there is nothing else. We are in a constant state of bike-shed design. We argue bitterly and incessantly about minor variations in economy, health care, social support etc, because there is nothing pressing that would motivate us to simply solve the damn problem and move on.
We have nobody to look good to, nobody who will judge us for the way we treat our own and say "You guys are jerks", nobody who would take advantage of our sloppy behavior.
We need someone else. We have to find them or create them, and we have to hurry, because I don't think we can be alone with ourselves much longer without going mad.
