It seems like nobody really wants to have fun anymore, and that’s okay, just don’t ruin everyone else’s time.
I cannot speak for everyone, or really anyone for that matter, however, I am willing to bet that someone out there can understand the frustration of seeing people just standing around at a gathering, especially those that involve music.
I understand that many people may suffer from anxiety and may not react well with crowds, and that is okay, however, if you see everyone around you dancing and having fun, it should be an invitation to do the same right?
On many occasions, I have witnessed people at events whether it be concerts, kickbacks or bars where someone is burying their face in their phone or standing around silently judging people who are simply enjoying themselves with their friends or partners, and I can understand that to a degree. My problem arises when people are recording others enjoying themself instead of actually trying to have a good night.
As it stands right now, I feel as if Gen Z is suffering from some sort of surveillance induced anxiety that takes away from the opportunity to be weird. Although not accurate and a work of fiction, movies like “Project X” show just how carefree and sometimes out of hand youth culture could be when the freedom to be themselves was not at risk of being spotlighted.
At the time the movie was made, smartphones and social media had already become a staple of modern culture, however, not to the degree they are now and will continue to be. This does not stop the events of the movie from playing out and showing the aftermath of what happens when a house party ends up destroying a neighborhood block and causing the military to shut it down.
Although the events of the film are extremely stupid and beyond exaggerated, the feeling of young people being young with no care in the world bleeds through the chaos and debauchery and acts as a window into a time before seemingly everything had a camera in it.
Not everything needs to be posted to social media. Not every electronic we own needs to have the ability to take 4k video and capture every little move you may make. Hell, we’ve got glasses that have the ability to record what the wearer may see in a discreet way.
If you are going to go to a gathering and be a curmudgeon, just stay at home. If I am going to an event that has music, of course I am going to dance like a moron, and I shouldn’t have to worry about what someone might think if someone uses their Meta Glasses to live stream to the same, boring individuals as themself.
Let people be weird and enjoy themselves; just shut up and dance.
Caden Adkins can be contacted at [email protected].
