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In this day and age, it is ridiculously common to own and use a cell phone. I have one myself, and I understand the obvious benefits to owning one. Cell phones can bail you out of a difficult situation like if your car broke down or you need to tell someone something very important and there are no regular phones around. Although very helpful, the use of cell phones is detrimental to our society. They will continue to affect your life in an increasingly negative way if we don't do something about it.
Reason Number One: Driving
I know most of you are not able to drive yet, but your parents, brothers, sisters and possibly some of your friends are. If a person talks on a cell phone while driving, they are putting themselves, everyone in the car and everyone around them on the road at risk. I have a cell phone, but I do not EVER talk on it while I am driving because I understand how dangerous it is. When a person is talking on a cell phone and driving, their attention is not where it should be: on the road, watching the cars around them. According to a recent study, when someone talks on a cell phone while driving, they have the same attention to the road as a person would with a .08 blood-alcohol level . . . which in case you didn't know, is legally drunk (unews.utah.edu). If the police don't allow people to drive drunk, why would they allow people to drive while talking on their cell phones? The fact is, in 7 states, the police will not tolerate it. They have laws prohibiting driving and talking on cell phones in Arkansas, Arizona, California, Connecticut, New Jersey and New York (mobileoffice.about.com). I was in Georgia last summer and that state has also banned cell phones in the hands of drivers. They do allow "hands free" devices, but there are debates on whether or not this is actually a good idea. Cell phone usage while driving is banned in 32 countries around the world (mobileoffice.about.com)! Obviously, there is a problem. Why don't the other states catch on already?
Reason Two: Separation
Most cell phone conversations are not emergency calls. Most people use the majority of their cell phone minutes on sharing conversations about ridiculous and irrelevant things. We use cell phones to keep ourselves company and to separate ourselves from people we don't know. This is a growing problem. If people are not forced to break out of their comfort zones and fellowship with other people, society as a whole will continue to become more and more self-centered. Everyone who would rather talk on their cell phone rather than meet someone new is distancing themselves and allowing themselves to remain in their own little world-the cause of selfishness.
Reason Three: It's Rude and Inconsiderate
If a person is talking on their cell phone while around other people, they are being very rude. It is like they are saying, "My conversation is more important than you or anything else going on here right now." Believe it or not, there are people around you who would actually enjoy a conversation with you. They would learn new things, and so would you. A person cannot possibly learn from new people if they have their cell phone glued to their ear, gabbing about someone or something to keep them occupied.
If you will take anything from this article, I would urge you to keep in mind that cell phones were made with good intentions. They were made to help us out in emergencies and possibly keep us up to date on some things. Cell phones were NOT intended to cause car crashes, to exile people from society or to offend anyone. If we keep using cell phones the way we do right now, we will intentionally keep ourselves from enjoying the beautiful world around us. Next time your cell phone rings and you see it's your friend who always calls you because they are bored, do yourself a favor and reject the call. Open your eyes, think, be HERE and enjoy everything around you.
That's all for now!
-peachadee
Author's Note: Some information in this article was found on these sites:
http://unews.utah.edu/p/?r=062206-1
http://mobileoffice.about.com/cs/traveladvice/qt/usingcellphone.htm
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