That's what I was criticizing in your colleagues. Think it's a heartwarming story about an admirable gesture, and calling it anything else is shortsighted.

If it's about approaching strangers, that changes things a lot. Agree that technology has put up barriers to the way we interact with the world around us, including strangers. Though not everything is due to technology: how we were raised, how much of an introvert we are, etc. are also factors that color how comfortable we feel interacting with strangers.