The Aging Dinosaur: Virtual Reality vs. Reality Reality

It seems unfathomable to me that our world has developed so far beyond interpersonal relationships and into the realm of AI that contact with other people is becoming more and more virtual. This has been going on for quite some time, beginning with chat rooms, online gaming, and now the ever annoying facebook or social networking platform. When I say that, I say that with some humor, I am one of the millions of individuals on fb. Although lately, I am beginning to become perturbed by that social network, not that I'm looking for another one. I have friends, close friends, and family all over the country and my only connection with them is through fb? That's so fucked up. I even have family locally and my only connection with them is via fb, how disturbing is that? Granted, I don't necessarily want to see all these people everyday, or talk to them everyday, but the personal disconnect that is fb is quite unsettling. At first, the novelty was interesting. I could find out what my friends/family were doing, but now it's an inundation of status updates, attention seeking "look at me" posts, which not only seems to be a form of virtual pollution but has got to be the most arrogant and conceited cry for attention in a forum that is responsible for severing human contact. It does have its advantages. When you have friends and family all over you can keep in touch, although you could actually talk and see those friends and family through Skype if you are so inclined in utilizing technology, you could also use a phone, making the experience less barren. It does function well as a platform to disseminate information, that is undeniable. Events that are happening are distributed via facebook invitations, but with the ease in doing so, the amount of events that are now taking place has risen exponentially, as have the "specialty" pages on fb.

I am an individual that would rather engage others in person, but distance makes that difficult, the phone is preference one for me, preference two is email, fb is further down the ladder in my book. The ability to network is my main reason for utilizing facebook. Although my main preference is the phone, there are some individuals that are just not good at returning calls if you cannot connect initially. Others are just not good phone people, they call you and they don't maintain the conversation or barely initiate a conversation and yet they've called you. I've called people and it seems like I've caught them at a bad time, but they don't inform you of that, usually they treat you like you've imposed yourself on them, it's a phone for god's sake. I'm not sure if it's because virtual reality has forced an awkward wedge in between people, you know, virtual distance, yet it has also created virtual closeness. People don't want to be bothered and they can use technology to their advantage, e.g. caller ID, IM blocks/online status notifications. I wonder if all this technology and the advances in virtual reality hasn't placed humankind behind the proverbial eight ball. We aren't necessarily as social as other animals on our planet, but interaction occurs on a daily basis for those of us that leave our homes everyday. If you want a job, you're typically asked whether or not you're a "team player" or if you "work well with others." Well most people have jobs, and in the countries that unfortunately exist as third world countries, the people still interact with one another and actually exist in a more developed social structure than those of us with computers, cell phones, flat screen televisions and any other smart technology you want to throw in there.

As someone that loves the outdoors and nature, I have a difficult time navigating between virtual reality and reality reality. Ironic enough, I work within virtual reality.

Johnny Depp as Tonto, Postscript

After posting the Johnny Depp as Tonto blog, I was thinking how coincidental it was that Depp decided to adapt a novel about an Indigenous person after having starred two years earlier as William Blake, beside Indigenous actor, comedian, musician; Gary Farmer (Exaybachay, a.k.a Nobody) in Jim Jarmusch's, Dead Man? It seems to have been a logical chain of events for Depp. First, you play a role next to an Indigenous actor, who is playing a character that is Indigenous. Secondly, you find a novel centered on an Indigenous character and all the strife of Indigenous culture, adapt it for the screen and then star in said adaptation. I never mentioned that the author of the novel, The Brave, is also the author of the Fletch and Flynn series of novels. Therefore, The Brave is quite a departure from the cultural content he was used to depicting or even knowing about.

Johnny Depp as Tonto

Now as an artist that has utilized The Lone Ranger as part of his body of work and is a staunch advocate for the accuracy of Indigenous portrayal in media, I am interested in this turn of events. Granted, Johnny Depp has claimed he is Cherokee, Irish, German with some Navajo(?) [via IMDB] all well and fine. The problem isn't is Johnny Depp Cherokee, it's what does he know about being INDIGENOUS, there I said it.

What authenticity is he going to bring to the silver screen that will translate what you and I know as Our shared cultural experience, Pan-Indian as some of it might be? I don't think he is going to offer anything to Indigeneity other than some dressed-up caricature of what he and Verbinski thinks "Indian" is. Now, is it okay since Tonto is a fictional character? How much fantasy is he going to project to an audience that not only loves Depp, but practically worships him? How much of this character will the audience actually walk away with as truth and how much as fiction? We know that the majority of America gets their information from media, and that information is framed in its presentation. So, if Depp's portrayal of Tonto is a caricature of what he has conjured in his mind about Indigenous people then we should be prepared to do battle with fantasy. If he doesn't embellish on his character's persona, a la Capt. Jack Sparrow then we might hope for a more humanistic approach to his rendition of Tonto. I'm hoping for the latter. My biggest qualm regarding this turn of events, Johnny Depp as Tonto is when has he ever portrayed an Indigenous person?* Why now? What not utilize the myriad other Indigenous actors known for their Native roles? Wes Studi? Damn, even Cherokilmer (term coined by friend, Maria Colon of FLABMAG.COM), Val Kilmer is more known for his role as FBI half-breed, Ray Levoi as well as his charitable endeavors with the Native American Indigenous Cinema and Arts Organization. Why not Adam Beach or Benjamin Bratt?

Honestly, I look at this casting existing only in the end product, cha-ching $$$. Director Gore Verbinski, Pirates of the Caribbean franchise will be taking on the task of directing Depp once again in his performance of Tonto. Now, that franchise has earned to date $2.68 billion in worldwide box office revenue. How is this not the reason? Where are the other people dismayed at having Tonto resurrected by Verbinski, Disney, and Johnny Depp and thrust into the popular culture as something that is Indigenous? Disney is infamous for its horrendous representations of Indigeneity and its place in popular culture as somehow the man behind the curtain.

* Yesterday my friend, colleague and FLABMAG.COM founder/editor extraordinaire, Maria Colon enlightened me. I didn't know Depp was the star of his own directorial debut in The Brave, where he plays what is a typical Native American stereotype. Funny thing is Depp adapted the novel of the same name from Gregory McDonald. "The film was first shown at the 1997 Cannes Film Festival[1] where it received mixed reviews. The film was released in theaters and on DVD internationally, but not in the United States." You can actually view it on youtube. Thanks to Maria for bringing this to my attention.