Do you remember when,
upon a successful landing,
the passengers of a given flight
would give a round of applause to the pilot?
It's that type of unconditional respect
that is progressively becoming extinct;
it is that mutual altruism
that's being replaced with stoicism.
It's Stockholm Syndrome.
People
only when they are held inescapably
captive by one another's company.
Unequivocally self-centered
they will remain
for as long as they're offered
any means of escape:
Blasting beats,
ductile displays,
or just something to stare at
in infinite space.
But give them the motivation
of more pay or a better place,
and they'll suddenly will themselves
to speak with someone else.