Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2006/05/18
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]On May 18, 2006, at 9:40 AM, Walt wrote: > If you want to let your imagination run wild then picture a public > bath system in a large American city. I think our culture has a long > way > to go before attempting to adopt the Japanese attitudes toward privacy. > Our culture, it seems, lacks respect for much else besides > consumption. > That, and the fantasy of spreading "democracy" throughout the world. The concept of privacy is a recent phenomenon in American culture and is absent in many world cultures. New York City had numerous public baths which were in use until the 50s. They were large, well constructed buildings with warm baths and swimming pools. A good example can be found on 23rd. St. between First Ave. and the East River. Public swimming pools are still in use. Tenements in the late 1800s and early 1900s were shared by multiple families, with perhaps 3 to 4 persons to a room. Often boarders were taken in to provide extra income. Strangers eating from a common serving plate was common in American inns and boarding houses through the early 1900s. I recently returned from a trip to Williamsburg, VA. We stayed in the Brick House, a colonial era hotel in the center of the restoration area. The hotel had 16 rooms dating from the 1700s. These rooms, about the size of a small modern bedroom, were rented to commercial travelers. The first three or four in each room got to share the bed. Late comers, bedded down on mats on the floor. On a busy market night, perhaps 6 to 8 strangers shared each room. The idea of an individual having an inviolable "personal space", exemplified as one person to one room and/or total control of information about onself, is very recent and dates from the post WW2 era. Despite what the Supreme Court says, there is no "right to privacy" in the Constitution. The implied "right to privacy" is a modern interpretation of the Framer's intent. Still, I don't want the NSA monitoring my telephone calls. Larry Z