Sooooo you probably thought I was going to go on one of those "Dang it, speak ENGLISH if you're going to live in the USofA tyrades" huh? Maybe tomorrow. For today, the subject of my rant revolves around the latter. If I have to step out of the way for ONE more child or adolescent who can't watch where they're going for texting, I'm going to plow right over them! PLEASE tell me why ANYONE under the age of 16 needs a cell phone? Although I've never been the biggest proponent of cell phones to begin with, I do enjoy the ability to text without having to ramble over dead air for 20 useless minutes. HOWEVER, I remember a time when there WERE no cell phones and GUESS WHAT?? We SURVIVED!!
What purpose do they really serve for a 12 year old? I keep hearing the arguement about having to stay late at school. Well I also happen to remember when we had to stay late at school *brace yourselves* WITHOUT a cell phone. It WORKED!
Do any of you even realize how many jobs have been flushed because of the uprising of cell phone usage? Having that little old home phone you think is so LATE once provided about 3 people with jobs. Were it not for the fact that we're in contract, I'd probably give mine up without hesitation. It's not as if I ever use it anyway.
I get the novelty. I get the convenience. I'm among the first to call my momma in the middle of wal*mart when I'm picking up the ingredients for one of my favorite dishes to ask her those questions only your momma can answer about the dish. I've been more than grateful to have my phone on the rare occasions I've absolutely needed one. I'm 33 years old, and I've posessed a cell phone for probably 3 years of my life. Look how far I've made it!
OK.. back to the original rant. What are we really teaching children by giving them cell phones at such unreasonable ages? Instant gratification. Just what every child needs a refresher course in! You don't have to wait for anything, skippy! You can have what you want, when you want it, how you want it, NOW!
This "free love" results in TOO many teenagers trying to multi task behind the wheel while YOUR loved ones are sharing the road! Why shouldn't they text and talk while driving? This technology is all they've known. I don't even want to know how many teens there are out there who have had cellphones for at least half of their natural lives. They don't realize that conversation can wait. They've never known the excitement of skipping home and waiting for the phone to ring. Now they can have their favorite vulgar jingles play right from their pockets with ALL their friends eagerly awaiting their answer on the other end of the line! Great!
If indeed your concern is your child's safety and his or her inability to reach you, there ARE phones out there that offer emergency only services. I've seen many that are equipped with ONLY the option to contact the parent or emergency services. What more does a child really need?
All I know is I'm tired of not being able to enjoy a trip to the mall without bumping into some little snit too engrossed in texting to be courteous to other shoppers or listening to 10 year old Tommy come up with lingo that would embarass Howard Stern while chatting on his cell with friends on the other end of the mall.
I'm MORE than open to enlightment in this matter. As a matter of fact, I'm begging for it, because I simply don't understand. DARE to share!!
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When I was working as an In-Home Day Care Provider, I watched a three year old boy. His Dad gave him a cell phone to use for emergencies. Three years! I thought to myself, 'Is there something wrong with my home phone that I am not aware of?' I scoffed and rolled my eyes. My second thought was, 'What a joke.' Would I even dare to give Landon a cell phone? Hell to the NO!!! They're dangerous. They are also quite annoying when Trash Talking Tammy decides to curse like a sailor in front of my kids while trying to sound cool to the person on the other end. Grrr... Don't even get me started on 'I think I'm cool' teens. Before we know it, we won't be speaking to other human beings, we will simply be sitting across the table in interviews texting one another instead of having actual conversations. Heaven forbid we open our mouths.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was a child, we rarely had a land line phone. I am guilty of allowing my oldest son to have a cell phone. It wasn't for enjoyment purposes. I like to stay in contact with him. Times are very different now oppose to when we were kids. It is more dangerous now. I don't expect anyone to understand that if their children are still young or if they don't have children. There are more young adults and middle age adults that cause accidents and have vulgarity while using cell phones. We can also clump in there that food and smoking be eliminated while driving and walking. I try not to breathe in while someone is smoking while walking in front of me, but that's a whole other story. I don't like the texting thing. It prevents proper social interaction. I enjoy face to face communication. I'm definitely not one to pick up the phone and call people just to chat. My son knows all the rules of cell phone usage. I think it is all about the parents teaching their children the right way of things.
ReplyDeleteI guess that's where those little simple phones come into play. They have 4 buttons. One to reach parents, one for 911, one for fire, and one for police I believe! :) They're MUCH more economically sound, as well as being less tempting to misuse! :)
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