Uh. Duh!

Cell phones, laptops and PDA's are so prevalent in our "advanced" society.  Does anyone remember that our species has survived thousands of years without 100% connectivity to Facebook, Twitter or work email?

As motorbike pilots (hehe), I'm sure each of us has been a little more aware that something has been getting worse while navigating our metropolitan streets.  For those of you that have been riding for 10 or more years, or rode 20 years ago, you probably see a huge difference in driver attention today.  Speaking for myself as a newer rider, driver distractions have always been on my mind during my riding tenure.

Image taken from web.

I am particularly disheartened when I'm sitting at a stop light and count the number of drivers turning left in front of me on their cell phones.  My counts have been increasing over time.  It started with an average of 30% talking on the phone a couple years ago.  Today the percentages are a higher 60%.  I realize these counts are a snapshot in time.  But it is only a snapshot in time for someone to be focused more on the conversation than the road, and something bad happens.

Image taken from web.

I'm concerned at our society's fixation with their cell phone.  We have all heard the stories of being out to dinner and everyone at the next table over is texting, not talking to each other at the table.  Or walking through the supermarket and think the person walking in the other direction has said something to you.  When you turn to inquire you realize they are talking on the cell phone with their invisible Blue Tooth headset tucked into their ear, like some brainwave antenna.  Mr. Oilburner experiences people on his commuter bus just chattering away on the phone, loud enough that the entire world hears their side of an inane conversation.  Etiquette of soft talking in respect for those around you seems to be gone.


Do you think the "No Phone Zone" and "No Phone Pledge" are enough? 

Mobile etiquette getting worse, not better

(Reuters) - Whether is it texting during dinner, talking on a cellphone in a public restroom or using a laptop while driving, most people think mobile etiquette is getting worse, not better.

Ninety one percent of U.S. adults questioned in a new poll by computer innovation company Intel said they have seen people misuse technology, and three quarters think mobile manners have decreased in the past year.

"New digital technologies are becoming a mainstay in consumers' lives, but we haven't worked out for ourselves, our families, communities and societies what all the right kinds of behaviours and expectations will be," said Genevieve Bell, the head of interaction and experience research at Intel.

The poll of 2,000 adults revealed that most U.S. adults wished people practised better mobile etiquette and found the lack of cellphone manners extremely annoying, even though about 20 percent admitted to poor etiquette themselves.

Nearly 75 percent said the lack of mobile manners has created a new form of public rage and 65 percent admitted they became angry around people who misused mobile devices.

The most annoying behaviours were the use of mobile devices during driving, followed by talking on a cellphone loudly in a public place and walking in the street while texting or talking on the phone.

People reported seeing, on average five mobile offenses every day, according to the poll. Nearly a quarter said they had even seen someone using a laptop while driving, and one in five said they checked their mobile devices before getting out of bed in the morning.