My rant for today: Tech is not ruining society. Yes, I know it’s very fashionable to have a poignant video with the caption, “I put my phone away for the rest of the day after watching this”. Good. I’m glad you enjoyed unplugging for a day. That’s not an invite to criticize the guy in line at the DMV or the girl alone at the bar for being on their phone. The DMV is boring, the guy in front of us smells, and that old lady is loudly complaining about other ethnicities. That girl at the bar is probably texting her boyfriend to hurry up because you keep staring at her like a creep. Nine times out of ten, there are actual, living people on the other side of those devices. People use them to stay in touch with friends and family that are hundreds of miles away, possibly in other time zones. Checking a work email while in line may spare them extra time for their kids when they get home. We live in a time where social media has even played a pivotal role in political upheaval and social change. Yes, some people are rude and check their phone on dates. They would probably still be rude even without the tech. Some people are addicted and have no self-control. Others have let work encroach into their personal lives and need to draw a line in the sand. The rest of us are handling the future just fine. This is a problem with people, not tech. In a light social setting, it’s perfectly ok to turn to someone outside of the group and strike up a quick exchange, but it’s not ok to check a text? Like everything else, there’s a balance. However, if I am out with friends and you’ve lost your job, had a breakup, or are just trying to find out where we are so you can hang out as well, I WILL CHECK YOUR MESSAGE. I will let less pressing texts wait, but I will at least check if I get the chance. If you actually want to criticize someone for engaging another human being, text or no, YOU are the rude one. And I’ll remember your stance the next time it’s you on the other side of the screen. I believe in the value of good manners and try to implement them when possible, but some points of etiquette have to change with the times. Let people know if you feel their priorities are off, but complaining and trying to shame people into paying attention to you isn’t helping other than to feed the trolls that capitalize off of your insecurities. Grrrrrrrr… Ok, rant done.
Posted on: Thu, 24 Jul 2014 21:22:48 +0000
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