If you are depressed or lonely you can call the Samaritans. At the other end of the phone line is a volunteer who will listen while you unburden your existential angst. I suppose it is just like a telephone version of the halfbakery.
Anyway I am not sure how relevant that is, but never mind.
The actual idea here is that there are circumstances where a Human has to interact with other Humans.
(I know... terrible isn't it? There must be some strategy to help avoid such situations)
Anyway where was I... yes. The actual idea here is that you could call on the help of a Silent Witness in any circumstance where you think it might be useful The S.W. will come to where you are and be with you during the interaction.
Examples could be difficult personal interactions like proposing marriage, divorce, announcing embarearseing personal situations. Challenges, such as asking the neighbours to stop doing something annoying, or asking teenage offspring why there is illegal drugs in the fridge. Slighty formal situations such as landlord house inspections or MOT re-tests.
Basically wherever there is an imbalance of social power the S.W. can help dilute the situation. Going out to buy a second hand car on a rainy evening? The S.W. will come with you and stand beside you while you haggle with Dave about the price. Did your pet badger dig a massive hole on the local cricket pitch? You can book a S.W. to come with you to the clubhouse when you go there to explain.
The S.W. would just be there to observe the interactions. They would not speak unless all parties asked them to, and then they would be measured and try not to offer advice guidance or opinions. They would be sworn to confidentiality regarding all parties.-- pocmloc, May 27 2022 Keeper of secrets Keeper_20of_20secrets [Voice, May 28 2022] [+]-- Voice, May 28 2022 There is a service to watch other people work and vice versa. You are not expected or even encouraged to speak.-- 4and20, May 28 2022 "Will you marry me?"
"Darling, of c... wait a minute; who are all those creepy strangers staring at us? Did you invite them?"-- pertinax, May 28 2022 And how did you know about the badger?-- pertinax, May 28 2022 I'm very shy, & I hate having an "audience", particularly for very personal conversations. I need the opposite of this idea; a service to get everybody else to get lost so I can say what I need to, to the one who is to hear it.-- neutrinos_shadow, May 29 2022 Can't you just ask for a more private meeting-place? Just "Let's take a walk and talk about this"-- Voice, May 29 2022 plus by voice : marked for tagline-- pashute, May 30 2022 How do you avoid seeing it get millions of views on youtube?-- pashute, May 30 2022 Preheated?
"A "Fair Witness" is a fictional profession in the book "Stranger in a Strange Land" by Robert A. Heinlein. In the book, Fair Witnesses were individuals trained to see the world around them, as literally as possible, until sensed (see/hear/smell/taste/touch) otherwise.
Another way to describe it would be someone that takes all things sensed as literal as possible & have no reason to believe what they just sensed will remain that way when they are no longer sensing them (seeing/tasting/etc.) An excerpt from the book itself, where the character referenced as "Anne" is an off-duty Fair Witness:
Jubal to Jill: "Even Cavendish did not--at least he won't say so. You know how Fair Witnesses behave."
Jill: "Well...no, I don't. I've never met one."
Jubal to Jill: "So? ANNE!"
Anne was on the springboard; she turned her head. Jubal called out, "That house on the hilltop--can you see what color they've painted it?"
Anne looked, then answered, "It's white on this side."
Jubal went on to Jill: "You see? It doesn't occur to Anne to infer that the other side is white, too. All the King's horses couldn't force her to commit herself...unless she went there and looked--and even then she wouldn't assume that it stayed white after she left."
But (+) for somebody you can call for support ...-- normzone, May 31 2022 I was listening to IoT from a couple of years ago on Dirac, he seems to have had that amazingly literal way of conversation as well.
But this idea is for a role, that anyone could take on (after being sworn to confidentiality), not a job for weirdos.-- pocmloc, May 31 2022 random, halfbakery