Dumb People & Their Smart Phones

Yes, this is a rant about cell phones/smart phones! Rather..the inappropriate obsession with them. Hey, I like technology, and gadgets, and media as much as the next guy or gal.

But what gets me is how stupid people become when they whip out their smart phones. Sure they can look up the latest news, movie showtimes, exotic recipes, and any plethora of minutiae. In fact, many seem to do so even when it's not necessary in the scope of a conversation.

I am finding that people will jump to their smart phone in the middle of a conversation just to look up some trite detail that they picked out of what I was trying to communicate to them. They remove their attention from the conversation just to look up trivia on the smart phone. Hey, I know people can be boring to listen to sometimes and I'm no exception. Call me old-fashioned, but I think it's rude. I am the type who enjoys face-to-face conversation with eye contact.

How many times have you gone out to a social atmosphere and saw a whole table of people clicking away at their smartphones; totally oblivious to the people sitting right across from them? How many family Thanksgivings have you had where the kids are texting while the rest of us are holding hands and saying grace?

You can call me a fuddy-duddy, but it drives me up the wall when people are playing with their phones in the middle of a classroom lecture, a dark movie theater, or even a funeral. Some people just don't acknowledge that there is a time and place for everything; and these people have smart phones. It is rude, tactless, and narcissistic.

So, why am I all bent out of shape with phones all of a sudden? Well, I was walking toward the exit of a grocery store earlier today and was about to step into the automatic 'EXIT ONLY' door that opens from one side...and some dumb person walked into the exit door, bumping into me...you can guess why.

I'm not mad that I got bumped into, but because of the fact that their eyes were glued to their phone screen. Really, how much of a moron do you have to be to just cruise all over town not watching where you're going?

Oh, but it isn't just walking through the grocery store. People not only do this while they are at stoplights, but while piloting a vehicle! (Yeah, I know it's old news, but it still really ticks me off!!) I rode passenger with my cousin in his over-sized pickup truck and he pulled out his cell phone while he was driving in the dark. I told him 2-3 times to put it away and pay attention. He insisted that he was an expert. I protested, I begged..but he wouldn't stop.

He nearly plowed into a car from behind, and I believe he would have if I had not been there to warn him. What a completely unreliable #$%@! I will never ride with him again. And not long after, he actually did cause a small fender bender due to his phone usage.

I have literally looked to the driver next to me on the freeway and seen them texting away with one hand on the wheel and no eyes on the road. I just get the heck away from them.

I remember a time when the cell phone was something you had for emergencies. It was a convenient way to get a hold of people at a time when a phone call could save the day. It allowed you to communicate important messages quickly.

But for some reason the text message got invented. And now we just send any little thought that pops into our heads and spills out onto our thumbs.

If you asked me, I would say the text message itself is a technological regression. Isn't it quicker, more convenient, and more personal just to call someone and say what you need to say? What's next? video smoke signals? digital flag semaphore? Just call the person and talk to them! Use your voice! Hear theirs! Stop distancing yourself from the people around you!

Oh, but the people who DO call have no phone call etiquette! The people that do call will do so at any hour of the day! Not to mention those pesky telemarketers that call me every morning at 7:30 AM from a disguised number. And I hate those people that call at any hour because it's a direct line that doesn't disturb the whole household. I had an ex-friend who did a little T&C violating and would accidentally dial my number (so he says) at around 3-4AM every morning! I asked him repeatedly to take my number off his contact list to avoid this 'accidental dialing' he claimed he was doing. He never did, of course.

And how about those people that call, don't leave a voice mail, assume you'll call them back because they figure you'll see you have a missed call from them, don't call them back right away, and they call again...and again...and again, and then leave a voice mail saying "..trying to get a hold of you. Call me back!"..as if that wasn't obvious from the get-go.

People, people...you can keep your smart phones, but please don't trade in your head for one. Don't be dumb with your smart phone.

There is a whole lot going on around us: interesting people, interesting things, sounds, smells, colors! There is no reason to have your smart phone at the dinner table, at the theater, in the classroom, or at the wheel.

Lift your head up once in a while or you're going to miss the show.

Please share your dumb smart phone story here.

And if you're one of those dumb people--stay out of my way...I know you can't tell where you're walking or driving at any given time--but just stay away from me.

i know what you mean.

i see teens at the movies and they are txting during the whole film that they just paid $7 for!?

ill be glad when a solar flare comes and sends us back to the stone age.

Originally posted by lonewolf10
i know what you mean.

i see teens at the movies and they are txting during the whole film that they just paid $7 for!?

ill be glad when a solar flare comes and sends us back to the stone age.

You and me both, brutha! I paid $150 dollars to go to a concert yesterday...kids sitting right in front of me playing on their phones missing the entire show

And movies here cost $14 a ticket!!!

I never answer my phone and people know it.. The only exception is if one of my two brats are calling.
I used to laugh at my daughter about her and her friends obsession with their phones.
At times there would be 4 or 5 teenage girls over on weekends and they would all be lined up against the wall.
All you could see was the top of their heads and the back of the phone as they were texting away.
They would barely even talk to each other the entire weekend... I dont get it

reply to post by NarcolepticBuddha


I live by example,no smartphone,I still have a landline with no call display and no voicemail.
I don't even like getting e-mails.
Who is the fuddy duddy now buddy?

I only have a simple cellphone which I won't even text on,its for work and the company pays for it.

Smartphones and dumb people.....you hit the nail on the head.

reply to post by NarcolepticBuddha
S &F I really don't have much to add as you pretty much addressed most of what I would say. The most stupid thing I ever saw involving a smart phone: I was working in the yard one day and heard a motorcycle coming up the road. I looked up to see an idiot wearing a fully tinted, full face shield helmet going at least 50mph (speed limit is 35) holding the handlebar with one hand and texting with the other- and not looking up at the road at all! It is a very bumpy, narrow road with no shoulder and deep ditches on both sides and lots of kids walk down the road every day. It was only by some miracle that this idiot didn't kill himself or an innocent pedestrian or get in a head on collision with an oncoming car or truck! Smart phones turn people into morons!

reply to post by DrumsRfun


Nice. I wish I didn't have a cell phone. I keep it away, out of sight. And then people bug me for not taking it with me, or for not answering them, or for not calling them back right away.

I was given a cell phone when I was in my senior year of high school...for emergencies, you know? It just became a snooping tool, I think. I hated it. I hated people calling me any time they pleased. I liked being alone. I liked the quiet. All of a sudden people had no reason to talk to me face-to-face haha. I hated getting stupid text messages from people and then being yelled at for running up the texting bill.

The greatest satisfaction I ever had with a cell phone is when I ripped my flip phone into two and stomped on it until it was a pile of plastic.

But, it just got replaced

Its the Ying and Yang of the universe.

It has to be this way.


Day - Night

Sun - Moon

SMART Phone - STUPID Human.

reply to post by NarcolepticBuddha


yea i cant tell you how many times ive gone to a restaurant, and ive glanced to my side and notice a young couple on what looks like a date..and they are both on their phones texting. LMAO smart phones have just about CRUSHED almost all forms of human to human interaction.

when im at the street lights about 6 out of 10 cars are all glaring down on their phones. just a bunch of dumbed down vegetables being spoon fed social media 24/7 and youtube etc...i went to a job orientation a couple of days ago and there where roughly about 50 people who attended, and i dare say maybe about 35-40 where all just hypnotically glaring down at their phones, and god knows how many where just "faking" to be on their phones to avoid any social interaction.

what the hell can someone possibly be doing on a phone so much?? what did they do before "smart phones"

reply to post by littled16


I miss your old avatar! But I know exactly where you're coming from. There is nothing worse than seeing someone speeding in a vehicle while trying to use their phone.

The freeways here are busy so I see it all the time. Sometimes I have seen some car wrecks where I don't even understand how they happened! I've seen a head on collision right in front of a freeway on-ramp where a big car was upside down.

I have no idea how some of these wrecks happen. But I can't help but wonder if cell phones were involved. Only a blindfolded driver could cause some of the wrecks I've seen.

When I signed on here in '10, I said in my intro that people look dumb while texting, or something to that effect. I wondered how that would affect my popularity--

People really do look like idiots, concentrating and moving their thumbs wildly on a tiny tablet.
Totally oblivious to their surroundings - the instant escape.

Was in a clinic the other day, watched as a mother and her 4 year-old came in to the waiting room, sat down and each took their phones out of their pockets and began staring into their phones - completely in synch. Wow. I chuckled out loud, knowing they wouldn't get the joke. They were busy.

Don't want any time to think?
Don't want any time to spend alone with your brain?
Don't think they knew the irony of calling it a "smart" phone?

Truer words have never been spoken since the birth of smart phones.

Originally posted by EnoEht
reply to post by NarcolepticBuddha

 

glanced to my side and notice a young couple on what looks like a date..and they are both on their phones texting. LMAO smart phones have just about CRUSHED almost all forms of human to human interaction.

Yeah, isn't that something? I don't understand how people go out in public together just to engage themselves with their gadgets.

I'm not sure what's more pathetic--the fact that I can't get a date, or the fact that people play with their phones DURING a date

Isn't that the big debate though? Is social technology bringing us together or pulling us apart?...Sure, you can keep in touch with your uncle in Germany. But you distance yourself from your close friends and family. I'm in the crowd that doesn't want to be assimilated by the Borg...

Social technology is NOT bringing us together as families or communities. I'm sure someone will come along soon to disagree with me.

No cell phone, no land line.
If ya want to talk to me, come over to my place. If i want to talk to you, i'll go over yours.

If i want to "text" someone, I will write a letter.

Mankind survived 1000's of years without phones and other "instant" communication just fine. While there may be benefits with having these contraptions, they are, in my opinion, far outweighed by the inconveniences.

Call me old fashioned, but it is what it is.

Originally posted by occrest
Call me old fashioned, but it is what it is.

You make it sound like a bad thing! I am 23 years old and see the wisdom in what you do. My older brother lives in the same town as me..about 6-8 miles away.

I went to visit him unannounced one time, and as I pulled up to the house I started to panic. I realized I didn't have my cell phone with me and was thinking, "Oh shoot! How am I supposed to let him know I'm here?"

It took me a few seconds, but it didn't even occur to me to go knock on the door!

Your way is better.

People get annoyed when I don't carry my cell on hand, it's not even a smart phone, I personally don't care for it. I only use it for Emergencies or to relay where I am to my parents, and to send locational information to my Boyfriend when trying to find where one is at during break at college. That or when my sis and dad just want to ask me how I am from 3 provinces away.

Needless to say, I don't use my phone for talking to friends in any way. In fact, if you looked at my phone, you would see that I atleast get a text atleast once every 2 days, though rarely... i'm not a trustworthy person for expecting to have a cell on hand. I don't carry it when I'm at home, nor touch it when at Home. I only use it when out of the house and use when required, simple as that.

It just annoys me to no end when people use their phones for purposes like casual chatting, or things that could concern ones safety. It annoys me as well when people use it without paying attention to their surroundings.

Yes, call me old fashioned for a 20-year old Woman, I would rather talk to someone in person, whether that be webcam or flesh and blood, no cell calls please for me... I don't even use the phone at home for conversations... (Except for relatives in different provinces).

Well, there's my rant to add alongside OP's wish for others to share.

I don't like to generalize and call all people who are hooked to their smart phones/tablets stupid, or judge the whole smart phone thing in general as stupid as it surely can have it perks; it's personal preference. I find people who don't watch where they are going or driving a vehicle while using their phones stupid, but depending on the situation, it's often more being anti-social and/or ignorance.

I have a smart phone and I love it. I use it for internet and online banking, whatsapp, silly games, music, and to call in case of an emergency. Due to being ill and often suffer from panic attacks in crowded places I would be lost without a phone. I also see no harm in using my phone for whatever I want when sitting in a bus/train/waiting room. It doesn't matter if I stare at a book/magazine or at a screen; I'm always staring at something. People scare me; when I'm occupied with something people tend to leave me alone. I'm not into the whole strange people starting talking to each other in a random area; it scares the hell out of me. There are 2 things I do dislike.

One is the rules that come with it. I hate phone calls when they are completely unnecessary, like random phone calls from people to ask random things I really don't feel like sharing on a daily basis. Not picking up the phone however seems to set people off into some fit I find hard to follow, like it's some unwritten rule that you have to answer the damn call. I pick up the phone on a time it suits me, or return the call when I find a proper time for it. People get really angry about this for some idiotic reason. I also loath the question 'where are you'. I don't see how it's any of their business to know where I am and how that is a conversation starter.

Two is the people who never let go of the damn thing; pretty much what the OP states too. When I meet up friends wherever that might be, the phone goes into my pocket or bag and it stays there. I only check the time every now and then since I don't have a watch or look when it goes off. I usually don't pick up the phone either then, and I return the call when I'm alone; not going to have a chit chat talk while I'm supposed to do that with the people I'm with at the time. Looking something up on the internet; sure. When the discussion/conversation requires it but that's about it. A lot of my friends however do the exact opposite. Their phones are constantly in front of them on the table, and are talking to me while doing things on their phones. That's what I call anti-social, even rude, and I usually make a comment about it, which in turn annoys them. When visiting the in-laws my boyfriend tends to happily stay attached to his phone/tablet while we're supposed to have a good time with the family. I find this very rude as do the other people, but whatever you do or say it doesn't matter.

I do not think smart phones / tablets are the root of all evil like some seem to think. People should be allowed to use them for whatever reason. You could technically say the same about computers. But there should be middle ground when it comes to paying attention and social matters.

Went to amsterdam for 3 days from a small regional UK airport with a small (by airport standards) gravel car park. The twat I went with had to download an app and record where he parked his car, even though it was clearly visible from the airport building.

So when we came back I walked straight to the car that I could still clearly see and remember the location of. I had time to smoke three ciggies at his car while he faffed about following directions on his phone. Numpty!

As an aside, after 24 years of friendship I swore never to have anything to do with him again after he destroyed the trip. He caimed not to believe in TPTB, the NWO, humanity being spyed on and surveilled etc etc but he was so frightened, neurotic and pathetic that he wouldn't do anything or go anywhere or indeed toke at all and he kept nicking my cigarettes and using the tobacco from them to make rollies so that he could tell his partner on his return that he hadnt smoked any cigarettes. There was much more atrocious behaviour but T&Cs prevent me from discussing.

This fits the bill nicely I think.....
Link
Ironically this ladies surname is SAFE!