Hmm I am not sure. I can’t make a decision if I should get it or leave it for now. But when I see everyone have it, its tempting, its in style & fashion, and it’s an everyday need similar as clothes and shoes. Like fashion changes every six months, there is an update or new version of it in the technology market and everyone goes crazy. But then again something inside me is resisting. There is this tug of war going on inside me which is telling me to not buy it and at times feeding my temptation to go ahead and get one. Yes, I am talking about getting a cell phone and yes, people do get shocked when they hear this. I kind of feel embarrassed but still this embarrassment isn’t a huge pusher which would make me buy one.
I can very well afford it (Alhumdullilah) and for me, its not the matter of getting a cell phone, the real problem lies in its many negative aspects and less positive/helpful outcomes. There were days when its moderate and proper usage made it a blessing , but with time, its becoming more of a curse on our society.
In fact for me, I think it will be bad for my social and personal life. My friends laugh when I response to their endless questions and suggestions of getting a cell phone. They inquire why not? I reply “I am scared of cell phones” though I do own a laptop, then why not a cell phone!?! Because I don’t want to be a cell phone slave. Ignoring my family, friends, surroundings, nature, paying no attention to my lectures/studies, no time to read a good book, no pondering or reflecting on my day to day routine, doing things without thinking or REALLY observing and postponing a group study or group assignment, instead of having a discussion everyone in the group is busy with their cell phones. I can’t even tell what the other person was wearing, the color of his/her clothes, bag or shoes at the end of a conversation because I am so occupied with my texting. We are supposed to have a con-ver-sation; where two or more people converse, exchange words and speak to/with each other. We are becoming isolated and forgetting the norms of a society.
I feel so pissed off when I am talking to someone, giving my 100% attention but the other person is distracted and have no idea what the hell I am talking about and I feel like grab his/her cell phone and smack it into pieces. Personally I am a very good listener and demands the same from others which in return leaves me being irritated and annoyed. There was a time when listening and polite conversation was considered a virtue and good manners had a high value of one’s personality. Like I said, standards are being reversed.
There are good aspects of it too but bad ones are out-weighing the good ones. I have access to phone at home, university and work and in case of emergency, yes, it is a blessing. I don’t have a shady social life and I don’t stay outdoors unnecessarily. If I need to contact someone in an emergency situation, there are pay phones all over the city. For the sake of safety, it’s a bad excuse now a days just to get a cell phone and parents usually fall for such excuses. I think, for me, I would choose to be the victim (a mere chance)of an unsafe situation than to become a technology slave and loose all my ethics and moral values. People still survived in those days when cell phones never existed and people (like Me :D ) will survive in the future too.
A death of A young man occurred here in a car crash while texting and driving and his parents started this awareness campaign titled "don't choose a text to be your last words" and pressuring the city to ban texting when behind the wheel. I hope the bill passes and it becomes a law.
Thumbs-up to those who use it in moderation and are not its Slave. Thats how it should be, but how i see it around me, its not the way it should be. Its affecting people like me and i made an effort to voice my frustrations to its ill-users. :D
I read this quote on internet "I fear the day that technology will surpass our human interaction. The world will have a generation of idiots"(This quote is not by A. Einstein). Technology lovers will hate me :D , but hey, i don't care. By the way, you'll bully me into buying one and at such times, i am not a good listener :P
