In the culture wars of western societies, loneliness appears to have become a new battleground. A couple of months ago, a video of Republican vice-presidential candidate JD Vance went viral. In it, Mr Vance refers to "A bunch of childless cat ladies who are miserable at their own lives and the choices that they've made want to make the rest of the country miserable, too”.
As expected, the comments did not go down well with large sections of American society. One of the most public responses to Mr Vance came from a very public figure.
Taylor Swift, singer, songwriter and the world’s biggest pop star, posted a picture of herself with her cat and signed off her endorsement of the Democratic Presidential candidate, Kamala Harris aptly: “With love and hope, childless cat lady."
This might seem like political banter in a fraught American election campaign, but there is something far deeper and more dangerous being trivialised here, and that is the global epidemic of loneliness affecting both men and women.
According to a 2023 Gallup-Meta poll across 142 countries, nearly a quarter of people are experiencing feeling very or fairly lonely. Alarmingly, the highest rates of feeling lonely are reported among young adults (aged 19 to 29), with 27 per cent feeling very or fairly lonely. No surprise then that towards the end of last year, the World Health Organisation declared loneliness to be a pressing global health issue and launched a three-year international commission on social connection.
In older adults, loneliness is associated with a 50 per cent increased risk of developing dementia
It estimated that one in four older adults experience social isolation and between five and 15 per cent of adolescents experience loneliness. Rates in low-and middle-income countries are comparable or higher than in high-income countries.
We are increasingly familiar with the distressing mental health affects of loneliness, such as the risk of depression, anxiety and even suicide. Alongside these dangers, there are also very real social impacts: dropping out of school or poorer economic outcomes. There are also startling physical affects.
Loneliness in older adults is associated with a 50 per cent increased risk of developing dementia and a 30 per cent increased risk of coronary artery disease or stroke. These are very real risks of cognitive decline as well as reduced life expectancy.
According to Dr Vivek Murthy, the US Surgeon General, and who is leading the commission, the health risks are as bad as smoking up to 15 cigarettes a day and even greater than those associated with obesity and physical inactivity.
It is, simply put, an epidemic affecting all groups, regions and notably, both sexes. Into this scenario, enter the culture wars and their ruthlessness in weaponising the very real suffering of both men and women to create division with seemingly little care for solving this crisis. In fact the very opposite is true: the tools it uses actively harm the people suffering.
In the West, I have noticed that genders are at times pitted against each other: focusing pity for male loneliness epidemic versus derision and hatred for female loneliness. The thrust of this appears to be that women are bitter when they are lonely, but they are also to blame for male loneliness but also responsible for solving it and somehow thus should be demonised. The most troubling part of this characterisation is that it harms most the people it purports to help: men suffering from loneliness.
Instead of supporting men to develop their own tools and support networks and engage with services aiming to help them, agency is taken away from men and instead the problem is someone else's, in this case, women. This therefore harms men further because they move further away from seeking help and instead do not take agency to solve their very real and very damaging problems.
This draws on long-standing cultural mores about the role of men and women in fostering social connection anywhere in the world. For example, women in relationships take on the bulk of the work of maintaining connections with extended family and friend groups, organising events, gatherings and keeping the wheels of social convention oiled.
This is part of "mankeeping", a relatively new term that talks about the responsibilities that fall on women to manage men’s emotional health, social lives and prompting them to seek care. It also draws on pervasive ideas that a woman’s purpose and fulfilment only comes from being married. And that a man must be strong and unemotional and it is unmanly to seek help.
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In some sections of society, women who express loneliness can sometimes be portrayed as "desperate," which implies their loneliness is a personal failure and their only route to success is to be married. But women now, such as Taylor Swift, may lean into these narratives, using humour as empowerment, to reclaim their own independent identities.
For men, believing in misleading tropes of masculinity can lead to a vicious circle. Men’s loneliness is often labelled merely as them being "alphas" and "sigmas", while their counterparts, or "betas", signify vulnerability. The very traits men are told to embrace are the ones that harm them, preventing them from seeking help.
Loneliness is a deeply serious issue for anyone, men and women. It shows up in different ways, which means that we need to be alert to its weaponisation in cultural and political discourse. This needs collective attention and compassion, perhaps particularly for men who are being harmed by these narratives while trying to navigate their feelings of isolation.
The most beautiful and simple solution to the disconnection that culture wars try to exacerbate would be to reach across divides, talk to each other and create real human connection.
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Specs
Engine: Electric motor generating 54.2kWh (Cooper SE and Aceman SE), 64.6kW (Countryman All4 SE)
Power: 218hp (Cooper and Aceman), 313hp (Countryman)
Torque: 330Nm (Cooper and Aceman), 494Nm (Countryman)
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh158,000 (Cooper), Dh168,000 (Aceman), Dh190,000 (Countryman)
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The burning issue
The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.
Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on
Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins
Read part one: how cars came to the UAE
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Why your domicile status is important
Your UK residence status is assessed using the statutory residence test. While your residence status – ie where you live - is assessed every year, your domicile status is assessed over your lifetime.
Your domicile of origin generally comes from your parents and if your parents were not married, then it is decided by your father. Your domicile is generally the country your father considered his permanent home when you were born.
UK residents who have their permanent home ("domicile") outside the UK may not have to pay UK tax on foreign income. For example, they do not pay tax on foreign income or gains if they are less than £2,000 in the tax year and do not transfer that gain to a UK bank account.
A UK-domiciled person, however, is liable for UK tax on their worldwide income and gains when they are resident in the UK.
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UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
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Indoor Cricket World Cup
Venue Insportz, Dubai, September 16-23
UAE squad Saqib Nazir (captain), Aaqib Malik, Fahad Al Hashmi, Isuru Umesh, Nadir Hussain, Sachin Talwar, Nashwan Nasir, Prashath Kumara, Ramveer Rai, Sameer Nayyak, Umar Shah, Vikrant Shetty
Race card
5.30pm: Maiden (TB) Dh82,500 (Turf) 1,400m
6.05pm: Handicap (TB) Dh87,500 (T) 1,400m
6.40pm: Handicap (TB) Dh105,000 (Dirt) 1,400m
7.15pm: Handicap (TB) Dh105,000 (T) 1,200m
7.50pm: Longines Stakes – Conditions (TB) Dh120,00 (D) 1,900m
8.25pm: Zabeel Trophy – Rated Conditions (TB) Dh120,000 (T) 1,600m
9pm: Handicap (TB) Dh105,000 (T) 2,410m
9.35pm: Handicap (TB) Dh92,500 (T) 2,000m
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Why it pays to compare
A comparison of sending Dh20,000 from the UAE using two different routes at the same time - the first direct from a UAE bank to a bank in Germany, and the second from the same UAE bank via an online platform to Germany - found key differences in cost and speed. The transfers were both initiated on January 30.
Route 1: bank transfer
The UAE bank charged Dh152.25 for the Dh20,000 transfer. On top of that, their exchange rate margin added a difference of around Dh415, compared with the mid-market rate.
Total cost: Dh567.25 - around 2.9 per cent of the total amount
Total received: €4,670.30
Route 2: online platform
The UAE bank’s charge for sending Dh20,000 to a UK dirham-denominated account was Dh2.10. The exchange rate margin cost was Dh60, plus a Dh12 fee.
Total cost: Dh74.10, around 0.4 per cent of the transaction
Total received: €4,756
The UAE bank transfer was far quicker – around two to three working days, while the online platform took around four to five days, but was considerably cheaper. In the online platform transfer, the funds were also exposed to currency risk during the period it took for them to arrive.
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Milestones on the road to union
1970
October 26: Bahrain withdraws from a proposal to create a federation of nine with the seven Trucial States and Qatar.
December: Ahmed Al Suwaidi visits New York to discuss potential UN membership.
1971
March 1: Alex Douglas Hume, Conservative foreign secretary confirms that Britain will leave the Gulf and “strongly supports” the creation of a Union of Arab Emirates.
July 12: Historic meeting at which Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid make a binding agreement to create what will become the UAE.
July 18: It is announced that the UAE will be formed from six emirates, with a proposed constitution signed. RAK is not yet part of the agreement.
August 6: The fifth anniversary of Sheikh Zayed becoming Ruler of Abu Dhabi, with official celebrations deferred until later in the year.
August 15: Bahrain becomes independent.
September 3: Qatar becomes independent.
November 23-25: Meeting with Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid and senior British officials to fix December 2 as date of creation of the UAE.
November 29: At 5.30pm Iranian forces seize the Greater and Lesser Tunbs by force.
November 30: Despite a power sharing agreement, Tehran takes full control of Abu Musa.
November 31: UK officials visit all six participating Emirates to formally end the Trucial States treaties
December 2: 11am, Dubai. New Supreme Council formally elects Sheikh Zayed as President. Treaty of Friendship signed with the UK. 11.30am. Flag raising ceremony at Union House and Al Manhal Palace in Abu Dhabi witnessed by Sheikh Khalifa, then Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.
December 6: Arab League formally admits the UAE. The first British Ambassador presents his credentials to Sheikh Zayed.
December 9: UAE joins the United Nations.
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The National Archives, Abu Dhabi
Founded over 50 years ago, the National Archives collects valuable historical material relating to the UAE, and is the oldest and richest archive relating to the Arabian Gulf.
Much of the material can be viewed on line at the Arabian Gulf Digital Archive - https://www.agda.ae/en
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The National in Davos
We are bringing you the inside story from the World Economic Forum's Annual Meeting in Davos, a gathering of hundreds of world leaders, top executives and billionaires.
