James May once said the meeting between man and machine will not take place in the physical world but the digital. I would in fact go a step further and say the meeting between man and man is becoming a far more digital affair. By only 2010 25% of American marriages originated from online meetings (Rosenfeld and Thomas, Stanford university) It is becoming less common for people to meet, they rather meet up, already having known each other well for months possibly.
There are of course people who will lament this "impersonal" form of communication, but they're simply showing a conservative nature that offers nothing but a hindrance to progress. Every major leap in human history has been opposed by some and few leaps have been as large as the internet.
The people I meet in person I talk to in person, only online when I have something important to say. However when I get home I have people I talk to purely on the internet, most of these people I will never meet however this does not make any relationships any less significant than one that benefits from close proximity. I would only consider myself to have one friend that I've never met but I feel certain that as time goes on this number will rise for everyone.
Just as you don't have to befriend everyone you meet, I believe you don't have to meet everyone you befriend.
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