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do you think the world is better off with cell phones or worse off in general
In general worse off. Nobody has time for anyone anymore and a lot of kids didn’t do such great things with cell phones.
It’s a great thing if people wouldn’t have abused it.
defintely better off without. Nowadays, people are son engrossed in their cellphones all daylong. talking in the street… also, things that peopl ecan have accces to on the cellphone aren’t having such a great effect on us either. And texting… don’t get me started. tue it has its benefeits, but imho, the bad out ways the good.
maskimm
I held out for quite a number of years, but cellphones are a Fait Accompli. Live in the world we are in, not the world we wish we had.
Y is everyons so against it? After all it has lots of benefits too.Since I have a phone I am less nervous I know that I can always be reached.
It has made people much ruder, but it has given me greater peace of mind, knowing that I can easily reach people when necessary. the key word is NECESSARY.
Now, for some venting:
If someone is visitng a friend or having a conversation with them, PLEASE don’t answer phone calls all throughout the visit. And don’t speak so loudly that the nice dinner I am having with my husband in one of our rare forays into a nice restaurant, is ruined by your extremely private and irrelevant conversation. I was having pizza with my daughter only to hear a PHYSICIAN discussing a patient’s personal business (called her by name as well) on his cell phone. He violated several HIPAA laws by doing so. And did I REALLY have to hear about his patient’s gallstones while I was eating a slice of pizza?
Cell phones are great. Its a shame they are misused. I think this is best answered as follows. To paraphrase the gemara “nimnu vigamru, tov liadam shelo nivra, aval, acshav shenivru….” Now that hashem saw fit for the technology to be available, let’s use it appropriately.
or…we can all wear loincloths and make fires by rubbing 2 sticks together
“It has made people much ruder”
I dont think so. Rude people will be rude whether they had cell phones or not. Lack of etiquette isnt an invention that came along with the cell phone.
OOmis – I noticed your attitude towards med prof. in other posts. Why didn’t you say something to him? Maybe he didn’t realize how loud he was?
Sacrilege
The cell phone has allowed people to become ruder its a fact. Ever sit on a bus or train and have someone yaping away at loud decibels about their personal life? Its very rude and most people are bothered by that. I have heard girls curse out their boy friends on the phone and all kinds of garbage over the years. The cellphone has broken down privacy. Now everyones private business is discussed on the street, in a bus, car….
Then what about the people that go to Levayas and leave their phone on? Phones going off in middle of Hespedim, are we officially crazy?! Phones, going off in middle of shemonah esrei in shul, phones going off in a shiva house… Oh I have another one, how about people not looking at you in the face while they talk to you because they are so busy texting, a good friend once did that to me I almost walked away from him, it took a lot of self control to not do that or grab his phone away. My conclusions are as OOMIS said, we have become a lot ruder thanks to cell phones!!!
WIY –
Thats is all true but those are just people given the situation with something else would be just as rude. I dont claim to be the kindest person out there but when on a bus if someone calls me I tell them I’m on the bus and I’ll call them back, if I’m with a friend and someone texts me I’ll quickly text them back that ill ttyl, its basic common courtesy, its not some out there concept.
I dont know if its the cell fone that did it to people or maybe this belongs in the Respect thread but people in general have lost courtesy for each other.
Nuts. Every single invention, unless specifically made to destroy, is to better our living. Cell phones are fantastic, whether for business or personal use. You just about can’t along in business without a cellphone, or possibly a smartphone either. Are there abuses, sure. Let’s get rid of cars because kids take them for joy rides and hurt or kill. Let’s get rid of fire because some are arsonists. Or how about a famous one, let’s get rid of religion because it’s the opiate of the people. Don’t get rid of anything. Learn how to use it. Learn from other people’s foibles and be good. You don’t be rude. I’ll bet that most people who say cell users are rude are probably rude themselves.
HIE, the problem is not with cell phones; the problem is with some of the people that use them. They forget that there is a button on the cell phone marked OFF. The cell phone does not take over peoples’ lives; people allow it to take over their lives. I have no problem turning mine off, or not answering the phone if it rings at a time when I can’t talk. Once people learn to turn them off once in a while, the problem is solved.
better off…. communacation has become alot easier and more efficient and you talk to more people than you would if you didnt!
Cellphones didn’t do anything. Cellphones never did anything and unless some drastic new technology comes down the pipe, cellphones will never do anything.
everyone is always on their blackberrys 24/6, its a good thing shabbos exists.
Sadly to say a lot of people are so addicted to texting that they will text their friends on Shabbos. 🙁
better off…. communacation has become alot easier and more efficient and you talk to more people than you would if you didnt!
Yeah that’s true but on the flip side most people don’t have real relationships and don’t communicate because it’s so much easier to text someone than to talk to them…then you don’t have any awkward pauses in your conversations.
Yes it also strengthens relationships, but that’s only if you use it properly.
People should learn to control themselves when it comes to using technology. This is true of talking, texting and browsing. Just ask all those people facing manslaughter (or worse) charges for the damage done texting and driving. Blaming the blackberry or phone is the last tactic the defense attorney will try. Its nice to look for excuses, but at the end of the day it is a matter of self control, or lack thereof.
Technology will continue thats progress and it is no different than the radio, tv, newspapers, computers, internet, even the library for that matter, even medicine and alcohol. Every new thing invented for the benefit of mankind is not done to cause harm or to be used in a bad or malicious fashion. However there will always be those who will misuse a “good” thing and take it to the extreme where it causes harm and damage.
We can always look at anything in a bad light and we can always choose to misuse and abuse any given object even as simple as a baseball bat. Obviously it is used for sports and entertainment. It is an object that is not meant to cause harm to anyone and yet there are many people who have been bludgeoned to death with a bat. Does that mean that we should stop producing bats and cancel the sport? Medicines such as vicodine and others are important pain killers used legitimately for pain but it is also sold by drug dealers should its production be halted?
Cell phones is a tremendous convenience and has become a necessity. Those who choose to abuse it can cause harm to others. Parents need to use common sense and NEED to parent when it comes to when and what they allow their children to have as far as technology. But that can also be said about the radio. You can have a radio in the home to listen to news and weather and the Jewish channel, but then again it can be turned to sports and music as well. WE all have bechira and choices to make, WE need to understand control and moderation in ALL we do whether it is in the use of technology, eating, gossiping, or any other vices we may have.
The best combatant against shmutz is to teach your children about making the proper choices for themselves. You can’t follow them around 24/7 and you can’t keep them in a cocoon. You just have to explain to them why you do what you do, and why you want them to do what you teach them to do and trust that the relationship you have with them will be stronger than the yetzer horah and the influence of others.
This topic makes me smile. And I thought call waiting was the rudest thing, when it first came out! One time I was downstairs in my basement and the phone was ringing upstairs so I dropped what I was doing and raced to the phone….I answered, it was a neighbor who said hello and then said “do you mind holding on, I got a CLICK (another call)”. I hung up! Yes, I did mind! If you make a call, don’t do it when you are expecting another important call!
But as with most things, we all just get used to all these new devices and get on with our lives that are made easier by these technological advances…
As far as shuls are concerned is there any reason that signs are not posted to shut your cell phone or leave it in your car? Hatzolah members are told to lower their radios when they are in shul, why can’t ordinary men understand this concept?
I guess your point is that men can’t follow rules.
Too much of the cellphone use is unecessary and misused.
Parents walking with their children on the street are focusing on their phones and not their children.
As much as we are trying to stop the Loshon Hora, cellphone is making it more rampant. If someone tells you something you immediately call someone to spread the “news”, whereas without the cellphone you would rethink it till you got home and then realize that it’s not something to talk about.
With cellphones, more children will end up needing some special ed services. Instead of remembering 5-6 items when going to the store, the parent gives them a phone and they call home to know what to buy. So no practical practice for memory which is important for any type of learning.
Written communication such as writing letters is almost obsolete.
Even if you call your parents 100 times a day from your cellphone it does not come to one visit. I read of a Buuby who said she’ll get rid of the phone so people will once again visit her.
So the list can go on and on.
People are not smart enough to realize that all phone conversations both cell and landlines are recorded. This is the way too many people arrested were very easily fingered.
…as it says in Pirkei Avos “Ayin Roah V’ozen Shomaas”….
“I dont think so. Rude people will be rude whether they had cell phones or not. Lack of etiquette isnt an invention that came along with the cell phone. “
No, I respectfully disagree. The cellphone gives them a venue to be completely oblivious to the rest of the world around them.
To answer Health about the doctor who spoke in public – I did want to say something to him and I should have, but he was not getting off the phone, and I did not want his patient to be embarrassed to know that I had overheard the conversation. the doctor left the pizza place still talking on the phone.
i think cell phones are good with BASICS only.. meaning incoming and out going calls… it helps people feel safe.. but then add texting and internet on the phone along with all the other ‘mishagas’ i think it’s gone too far! people (including myself unfortunately…) can’ go two seconds without their phone! i hate that about myself and i am working very hard not to be so dependant on it!!! it’s really not easy in this day and age!!
“With cellphones, more children will end up needing some special ed services.”
This has to go into the top 10 most ridiculous things I’ve heard in the CR. There is absolutely no basis whatsoever for this assertion.
cell phones are like most other technological devices-they can be used in a good way or in a bad way. I just had an argument with someone about the internet too. The internet can be horrible and addicting but it can be used by the right people, in the right times. Same with cell phones. Use it at the right times, for the right purposes, and your fine. Why are people saying cell phones are bad when there are HUGE advantages to having a phone with you at all times. No reason to say its bad for the people who use it properly. And for the ones who don’t-learn some self control. Do dieters only keep the amount of food they’re allowed to eat in the house? NO! Same story with cell phones. You can have a cell phone-please use it wisely.
They are very harmful for people in many ways. They have been proven to help cause cancer. They operate with radiation. there are numerous studies that prove that just carrying a cell phone in your pants pocket will decrease a mans sperm count by 28%. Talking on a cell phone is akin to pressing your ear against a microwave door while it is on. There are long term studies still going on to prove the long term consequences for brain cancer (20 year long studies take a while) In the meantime, the multi billion cell phone industries have the clout and power to keep things hushed up for the most part but every single cell phone sold must by law come with a booklet (that nobody reads) explaining the possibility of cell phone radiation being able to cause cancers.
2morecents, I would suggest you read the following:
http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/factsheet/Risk/cellphones
“They operate with radiation. there are numerous studies that prove that just carrying a cell phone in your pants pocket will decrease a mans sperm count by 28%.”
This is just not true. Iit’s only for men who carry their phone in their pants pocket and use a hands free device, or perhaps for those who text and hit the send button while the phone is in their lap. In other words, this is only if the phone is actually on and in use. I’ve looked at the studies, and the researchers all say that further work must be done to see if the conclusions are valid.
This whole discussion is foolish. People have bechirah and can choose how and what they choose to do. The discussion should focus on control and the proper importance one should give any device in relation to family, friends, driving, etc. We can choose not to answer a phone, we can choose not to text and drive, we can choose to put our children above telephone conversations.
Cell phones and texting basically replaced beepers. When i drive i here the beep that I just got a text message, so I know that when I stop the car, I can check my messages. It doesn’t mean that I must reach for my phone and read them. If I am in a meeting, and the phone rings I check to see who is calling because if it is my elderly mother (and it can be an emergency) I will answer, if it is anyone else I will call them back. It is MY choice. And that is the greatest part of the cell phone, the caller ID part. I get to screen the calls and pick up my messages. I also get to say, “My battery is running low, I will call you back when I get home” or “I am in the car and don’t have speaker phone” or “I am in the car with other people so this isn’t private”.
No one has to be attached to a cell phone and it doesn’t have to control anyone’s life. Any person who is mature and has a handle on themselves understands this. I probably have a hundred gadgets on my phone that I have never explored and have no idea what they are. I am just not interested. I am sure that that woman who is on the cell phone not paying attention to their child is on the house phone not paying attention to their child so don’t blame the cell phone.
Sales people have been 100 percent more productive will the use of a cell phone. Doctors can be reached much easier and are much more productive because of it. Lawyers and many other professions as well. It has become a lifeline to many and is more beneficial in so many ways than it is harmful. You can’t fault progress for the basic foolishness of humans you have to fault humans themselves. Learn to control yourselves and use tools appropriately and teach your children to do the same. Anyone who gives their children a cell phone instead of a shopping list is just plain lazy.
OOmis – I agree with Aries. And in the case of the Doc. in the pizza shop, he might not even realized how loud he was. You should have said to him -Excuse me -could you please lower it or take this convo elsewhere? The patient on the other end has no idea who you are, -maybe you’re his secretary in his office, -maybe you’re his colleague and he’s in the hospital.
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