I was reading an essay by Noah Smith, an American blogger and economist, about a long held memory he had of watching a documentary set on a remote island. The locals were explaining to the host what they got up to on the island; fishing, building shelter, hunting with spears, tending the fire. It was a pretty basic way of life.
At no point did it occur to the chief strange that this entire conversation didn’t only include himself, a translator, and the host, but also a fourth person, the camera man. Surely, one would think, that someone who grew up in a world without electricity would be fascinated by a man carrying a very large, very electrical, very unusual camera on their shoulder.
You would think that, but you’re wrong. The chief had simply no interest in adopting a foreign technology.
Sadly, that trend continues to this day.
Italy, which is very hot at this time of year, as it has been every summer since the last ice age. This isn’t surprising.
But the absence of aircon remains a tradition. Whether the average Italian is incurious about it, fears it, or fails to recognise the value, remains a mystery to me. But as we all sit here running fans and feeling slightly sticky, it would be well worth considering.
Other than that, today has been another great day!