Being Rich and leaving your windows open go together. I have seen this phenomenon is some neighborhoods - one that comes to mind is a townhouse community on the river with boats docked in front of the homes. There is a walkway that meanders through the community and the artsy part of downtown behind it. If you are the homeowner in your living room, you have a much better vantage point than the passersby who might curiously peer into your house. I always thought it was a strange choice to leave windows open specially when the living space is at eye-level with someone walking by.
The only way it makes sense is if the space that is in public view is decorative and performative. The people who live there perform their lives and show themselves in the most flattering light from that open window. Reality is a few walls away and hidden from view. There are likely rooms in that house that are soundproof and also don't have windows open to the world. It makes sense that the rich want to flaunt an ideal life - because it implies money can and has bought them happiness. If that were not true, there is almost no point in doing all the work it takes to get rich and stay rich. I think it has more to do with self-soothing and affirmation than exercising privilege. It is also like being on social media but in real life. You can gauge how the audience receives your staged and performed live - you can do more of what works and refrain from what does not. The author of this Atlantic piece has a different perspective though:
In the U.S., the uncovered window is perhaps less an expression of communal trust than one of personal protection. Wealthier homeowners, who can also afford state-of-the-art security systems, may not feel that they need shades. These curtainless windows have become one of our subtlest statements of privilege. They demand our attention, not only because they give us a peek inside beautiful homes, but also because they project the type of confidence and stability that few of us can dream of replicating.
In my parents' apartment complex in Kolkata all neighbors have all windows open. My mother checks in to see if M her neighbor in the building across from her is by her sewing machine sipping her chai before calling her. This signals that she is done with breakfast and puja and now working on her hobby projects - it is a good time to call. Everyone has some kind of routine that others have learned by observation and it is part of the social fabric. That is very different kind of open window situation than giving some random person walking by your house a glimpse of the Venetian chandelier hanging above your black ebony dining table.
