Instead of writing about goals I want to take a brief reprieve and talk about something I’ve noticed about American society.

Recently I’ve been meandering around my neighborhood with a camera taking clips of buildings, streets, and sometimes people. On two occasions people have came up to me asking in a sort of commanding tone what I was filming and why. I told them simply that I was moving out and where I was going people would be curious as to what my ‘ordinary’ neighborhood looked like.

However, this concept of ‘cultural exchange’ doesn’t seem to sit well with a lot of folks. They see a camera and jump to conclusion that it’s for a malicious intent. In one instance I knew that people in Mutsu, Japan might be curious as to what a mall looks like in the US. However, when I romped about the mall discretely with my camera some people became extremely paranoid as to what I was doing and one even called security on me. There too I explained that I was fulfilling a future need to show kids in Mutsu what a freaking mall looks like. Why?! I say to their constant questioning “Because in Japan… YOU can’t find any mall or store complex that’s completely in English!

I don’t know– maybe I did over step my boundries and next time I should hit every store owner and ask them if I could film parts of their store first. It all does seem a little crazy at the lengths society has worked to stop any and all efforts of people thinking ahead. I can’t believe we’ve agreed to a life of measured creativity, endless licensing, unnecessary permits, and other regulatory BS.

You see the thing that puzzles me most is not that technology for recording HD Movies or Awesome High Res Pictures then sharing them seamlessly over the net has become so easy. Rather what puzzles me is that as more tech comes onto the scene– less and less people want to use it or interact with it. It’s like the easier it is to communicate, film, or interact discretely— the harder it is to strike a conversation or engage people in some “cultural exchange project.”

Bottom-line– I believed a myth that Americans weren’t as timid as Japanese. That we were the exuberant and outlandish ones who feared little and lived out there ‘free.’ Truth is– we all might be a little camera shy– truth is we don’t want to know if we’ve been filmed. Truth is– maybe when someone comes around to coax us out of our bubble, we’re just as timid as anyone else. Also– truth is sometimes people are just rude when they don’t know how to deal with a situation.

Come on people– Smile for the flipp’n camera.  🙂 Aren’t you curious what Japanese people think of your little world?

~J out

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