Inside March 15, 2005's Issue

If I don't get into the nursing program, maybe I can work at the Waffle House

"Do you take this man for his long distance calls and roll-over minutes?"

Cell phone epidemic is threatening our privacy, our sanity and our lives

They're one of our newest threats of possible death, and they're everywhere. They're next to you in Blockbuster. They're next to you in class, and, even scarier, they're next to you in traffic.

These are not terrorists or psycho gun-nuts but your fellow brethren on a cell phone.

Most people today are so in tune with being codependent and addicted to constantly having someone pressed against their ear that privacy and alone time are things of the past. According to the technology analysts and consulting firm Gartner, 674 million cell phones were sold last year globally.

No longer do we interact with physical beings or use the tiny mechanical gadgets for emergencies only. Why would we when we can take pictures, watch our favorite shows and surf the web literally at any time? But with these seemingly wonderful advances in entertainment comes a price when a driver, distracted by a conversation on a cell phone, wrecks into someone else causing extreme damage and possibly death.

Being glued to a cell phone while going 60 mph down the road doesn't seem like something you would recommend everyone to do, but people do it all the time and the thought of everyone around escapes them.

According to www.ncsl.org/programs, in 2003, 13 percent of traffic accidents in Florida and Oklahoma involved cell phone distractions, 14 percent in California and Minnesota, 15 percent in Tennessee, and 42 percent in Pennsylvania.

It may seem like its cool seeing Snoop Dogg or Paris Hilton talking to six different people on their cell phone about what kind of laundry detergent to use as seen on the commercials but remember, these people have someone to drive them around.

Here at Georgia Highlands College, we've acquired our own near death cell phone epidemic. Every day, someone is almost run over by someone chatting on a cell phone while speeding through the parking lot in a hurry to get to class.

So what's the solution to all this? Maybe there should be a law restricting cell phone use while driving. Cell phones do come in handy for emergencies like breaking down on the side of the road or having a wreck, but the constant distraction of the phone is risky for more than just yourself and some sort of legal action should be done about it.

Next time you are in a checkout line somewhere and the phone rings - or vibrates - turn it off or at least wait until you are done talking to one person to talk to the other.

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