[Note: This is the first of three emails that I sent back to my friends in New Zealand and Australia, while I was visiting my family in the USA in early 2003.]

—–Original Message—–
From: G.L. Jordan [mailto:]
Sent: Monday, March 17, 2003 8:32 AM

Subject: Letters to Civilisation (One)

Dear Friends,

As I sit down to type this email, the TV is on CNN and the propaganda in the Azores is being promoted to the masses. The talk here is not of the appropriateness of war but, rather, of when it will occur. The newspapers are entertaining people with maps of Iraq and how “we” will go in and bring liberty (read here “American-style ‘democracy’ and consumerism”) to the people of Iraq. There is no discussion of the terrible loss of life that will occur and when it is suggested that many civilians will suffer and die, the responses given show a lack of interest in the plight of anyone who isn’t American. For those who cannot understand the effects of propaganda on the people of Weimar Germany, just visit prosperous 21st Century America and you will see how such propaganda is utilised to mould the minds of a people unable to think outside of their very limited perspective and who are poorly trained to analyse the information they receive.

The culture shock I am experiencing at the moment is emotionally painful and mentally exhausting. Being away from this culture so long and then returning, I realise just how emotionally aggressive these people are, how judgmental and how small minded my compatriots generally are. It is easy for all of us to look at the stereotypes of other cultural groups and then laugh to ourselves when we meet people who seem to be the prototypical of those stereotypes. Few people, it would seem, are able to step outside of their own cultural system and view their own people – and hence themselves – through the eyes of an outsider. Having that perspective is not necessarily an enjoyable thing.

Before leaving NZ, I was apprehensive about being surrounded by 280 million yanks. When I arrived at LAX, it was all I had anticipated and more. While I must say that it was pleasant being called “sir” by strangers (something that I have only experienced a few times in Australasia), my satisfaction in that small pleasantry was short-lived.

Where to start in discussing those first few hours?

While waiting in the terminal for my flight from LA to OKC (Oklahoma City) via Phoenix, the following was heard over the intercom:

Ladies and Gentleman,

If today is your birthday, Southwest Airlines would like to wish you “Happy Birthday.” Thank you.

At first I had to assume this was a joke. As the moments wore on, however, and there was no follow-up announcement, I began to realise that this was sincere. My first reaction was to laugh, until I began to ponder that this was a glimpse of what was to come during my sojourn on this continent. Any doubts I had about the sincerity of this announcement disappeared when I heard it repeated at least twice more during my wait to board my flight. Putting this into an Australasian context, I began to imagine that the yanks were like the Wiggles on speed.

On the flight from Phoenix to OKC, the head steward put on a voice – how shall I say this? – like a drag queen and spoke in this manner through the entire flight. He was doing his comedy routine from the end of the safety spiel until the landing in OKC and I found myself repeatedly looking at my watch and trying to calculate the hours until I would be back on the Air NZ flight leaving LA for CHCH. While I haven’t believed in deity(s) for quite a few years, I found myself seriously pondering at least the existence of purgatory/hell.

When I first arrived in Australia, I believed that Australians (particularly those in service industries) were impolite. They never seemed willing to greet you, to exchange any pleasantries, to say “please”, “thank you”, “sir”, etc. When I walked into shops, I was approached by staff who would simply say, “Yes?” I found this quite abrupt but realised after encountering such repeatedly that it was the norm. Now, upon returning to the country that is termed by locals as “the land of the free and the home of the brave” (a sentiment that I do not share), I find people in public quite intrusive. Of course you all know me well and realise that I am not one to take things lying down, so rather than jumping into their mindset and conversing with them on their terms, I simply respond as any other Aussie would – I give them a sombre look and give them what they would consider a cold response (typical, however for Australasia) in my Aussie accent.

Speaking of my Aussie accent – while I know most of you would smirk at such and imagine that I still sound like a yank, I can assure you that the people here view me as a “foreigner”. I have repeatedly been asked what country I am from and have received even more quizzical looks from checkout staff. I went into Wal-Mart and asked for a “battery” for my digital camera and the girl gave me a very cold reception. No doubt, the English pronunciation of “battery” (the final vowel being silent) was not to her liking.

I called Air New Zealand yesterday to ask about my luggage allowances from the USA (which is more than double allowed most places – 64 Kilos rather than 20) and the girl on the phone had a lovely kiwi accent. I asked her where she was from and I found that I just wanted to stay on the phone to hear her accent. This southern twang is driving me insane.

Last night, Kalena and I were able to do voice chat online and it was so good to hear her voice. Only 19 days until I can leave here!

On a more positive side, the shopping here is excellent. I am reminded that the best and cheapest goods in the world can be purchased here in this consumption-crazed country. Some of the things I buy in NZ are a quarter of the price here.

Janice – thanks for showing such an interest in this region of the world. Yes, I am only a few hours from where JFK was shot, I am close to Fort Sill (one of the largest military installations in North America) and about 30 minutes from where Geronimo (the native American warrior and political activist) was held and tortured until his death. Such positive references give you a small glimpse into the people of this area.

I will end this email here, as I do not wish to test your patience too much at this point and I will save the discussion of religion in America for another time.

Think of me in the wilderness.

Jerry

Before the Industrial Revolution, the largest divide in the West was between those with land and those without (with the clergy aligning themselves to the landed gentry and monarchies). After the Industrial Revolution, the divide become – if we put credence in Karl Marx and others – between those who possessed the means of production and those who were just cogs in the machine of production.

At the present time, a new divide is being created. In the Information Age, the new divide is based on knowledge (information). Those who refuse or are unable to adapt to new technologies are slowly being left behind economically (and perhaps considering social networking online, socially too). An obvious example would be the future employment opportunities for a child who isn’t educated in emerging technologies, but what about more immediate examples?

I was recently approached by a colleague who wanted “help” converting some long videos to short ones, suitable for upload to his website and YouTube. At first, I thought that he was asking me to train him how to use the many Linux-based video editing programs that I am familiar with, but as we chatted further, I realised that he wanted me to help him with the programs that he already had on his own computer. So, he wanted me to meet with him, learn to use his own program, explain that program to him and then help him edit his videos. The first thing that came into my head was, “You lazy bastard!” As I thought further about this, however, I began to realise that people like this fellow are steadily being left behind in the Information Age. Perhaps it is because of lack of motivation, perhaps it is because of lack of cognitive abilities (which I doubt in his case) or perhaps it is because it is all too daunting for him. Regardless of the reason, if individuals like this fellow are not able to sit down and take the time to learn new technologies as they develop, the future job opportunities for such individuals will continue to diminish.

Futuristic novels have long warned us of a time when there will be manual laborers and others who rule by the use of their intellects. As we enter the Information Age, it seems more and more likely that those who do not embrace technology will find that their job options will become increasingly narrow – perhaps eventually leaving them with few options outside of employment involving more manual tasks.