New York Councilman Philip Reed has proposed a law to ban cell phone gabbing in “any place to which the public is invited or permitted and where members of the public assemble to witness cultural, recreational or educational activities.”
How dumb. What’s he going to do next, ban New Yorkers from talking loud in restaurants? From bumping into each other on the crowded streets and not apologizing?
While I have very little sympathy for the mobile phone industry and even less respect for those people who do chit-chat on their phones incessantly, I don’t believe in legislation on ethical and moral issues that don’t really hurt anyone.
Yes, I think it’s supremely annoying that some people can’t seem to wait 18 extra minutes to express googly-eye thoughts to their honey on the bus (“Yes, honey, oh, I’m now crossing 37th… I should be home any minute. How’s poochie? Yes, I love you too…”) Barf.
I am also similarly annoyed by loud gum-chewers, people who fill up their 10 gallon jug at the drinking fountain at the gym, and other assorted cretins. But I don’t ask my local legislators to pass laws against them.
Doesn’t Philip Reed have anything more pressing to attend to in politics? Maybe instead of proposing lame laws, he could instead simply informally encourage folks that are fed up to exert some extra peer pressure in person on the jerks who insist on yakking in the theatre — on the phone or otherwise.
Or perhaps even better yet… people in NY and elsewhere could discover the beauty of text messaging (SMS), just like the SMS-crazy Europeans and Asians. Short messages are pretty easy to send, they’re cheap or free, and they disturb neither the recipient nor the people around the sender.
Sounds a lot better than sending in policeman after chronic yakkers, doesn’t it? 🙂
What do you think?