Yesterday, I nearly ran a woman over with my car. Luckily, I was looking for parking on a side-road, and wasn't doing 20mph. From the headline, you might think I was dicking about on my phone when this happened.
Nope. She was.
I saw her walk across the pavement staring at her phone. I thought she would stop at the curb, but she just kept walking, without looking up as she stepped off the curb and into the road.
What inane message or social media post is worth ruining someone life over?
That's the thing that is often forgotten in these scenarios. Yes, she might have been hit by a car and severely injured. But that leaves out the fact that the person driving the car now has to deal with the fall-out.
Other than this short anecdote, which luckily did not end in someone being injured, I do see 3 reminders of how frightfully addicted our species is to these screens:
1 - On the school run - fellow drivers:
I've done the school run pretty much every morning and afternoon since our daughters started school, and every day sadly is the same thing. 8 out of 10 fellow drivers are actively doing something on their phones.
Some are trying to hide it by their side, whilst driving, glancing up and down, trying not to let the act of driving interfere with whatever is going on on that little screen. Others simply have it in one hand on the steering wheel, not even pretending to be focussed on controlling a car or van.
Sam Harris once mentioned the idea, unfortunately impractical, of setting up an obituary website, showing the text message or social media post that was the cause of each person's demise, either on their phone, or the phone of the driver who killed them.
Pity we can't have that.
2 - On the school run - sad boy:
On the same school run, on the last stretch of road, I would see the same scene 5 days a week, without fail.
A young boy, maybe 8 or 9, walking to his school or bus stop, fixated on the phone in his hand. He is walking this route every morning, and he has not noticed anything about his surroundings.
He doesn't strike me as the kid who walks through the school gate and has the confidence to walk up to a group of friends to strike up a conversation. I suspect he sits on the bus staring at his phone, sits in the playground staring at his phone, and does the same thing on the way home.
How is a child growing up like that, expected to be socially well adjusted and prepared to be a successful member of society? Why are we allowing this to happen to kids?
3 - London Underground - visible change in society:
When I first came to the UK in 1997, I lived in London, and for a few years travelled on the Underground most days.
At the time, almost everyone would be reading on their commute.
It might have been that almost everyone was reading the day's Metro or 10+ people in the same carriage would all be reading the latest Harry Potter edition, but they were almost all reading something that requires some focus and might teach you something.
Recently I went on the Underground and the contrast was almost a 100% change.
Pretty much every single person was staring at their phone. Everyone whose shoulder I could glance over was playing some variety of Candy Crush. Like zombies on a conveyor belt, being shuffled from A to B with zero agency.
I am 100% certain that each of them would be a far more interesting person to work with or have lunch with, if they read something on their commute. Just that single change would make life more interesting.
Put down your phone. Talk to your kids. Take away their phones. Give them a book. Give them a life!!
Nope. She was.
I saw her walk across the pavement staring at her phone. I thought she would stop at the curb, but she just kept walking, without looking up as she stepped off the curb and into the road.
What inane message or social media post is worth ruining someone life over?
That's the thing that is often forgotten in these scenarios. Yes, she might have been hit by a car and severely injured. But that leaves out the fact that the person driving the car now has to deal with the fall-out.
Other than this short anecdote, which luckily did not end in someone being injured, I do see 3 reminders of how frightfully addicted our species is to these screens:
1 - On the school run - fellow drivers:
I've done the school run pretty much every morning and afternoon since our daughters started school, and every day sadly is the same thing. 8 out of 10 fellow drivers are actively doing something on their phones.
Some are trying to hide it by their side, whilst driving, glancing up and down, trying not to let the act of driving interfere with whatever is going on on that little screen. Others simply have it in one hand on the steering wheel, not even pretending to be focussed on controlling a car or van.
Sam Harris once mentioned the idea, unfortunately impractical, of setting up an obituary website, showing the text message or social media post that was the cause of each person's demise, either on their phone, or the phone of the driver who killed them.
Pity we can't have that.
2 - On the school run - sad boy:
On the same school run, on the last stretch of road, I would see the same scene 5 days a week, without fail.
A young boy, maybe 8 or 9, walking to his school or bus stop, fixated on the phone in his hand. He is walking this route every morning, and he has not noticed anything about his surroundings.
He doesn't strike me as the kid who walks through the school gate and has the confidence to walk up to a group of friends to strike up a conversation. I suspect he sits on the bus staring at his phone, sits in the playground staring at his phone, and does the same thing on the way home.
How is a child growing up like that, expected to be socially well adjusted and prepared to be a successful member of society? Why are we allowing this to happen to kids?
3 - London Underground - visible change in society:
When I first came to the UK in 1997, I lived in London, and for a few years travelled on the Underground most days.
At the time, almost everyone would be reading on their commute.
It might have been that almost everyone was reading the day's Metro or 10+ people in the same carriage would all be reading the latest Harry Potter edition, but they were almost all reading something that requires some focus and might teach you something.
Recently I went on the Underground and the contrast was almost a 100% change.
Pretty much every single person was staring at their phone. Everyone whose shoulder I could glance over was playing some variety of Candy Crush. Like zombies on a conveyor belt, being shuffled from A to B with zero agency.
I am 100% certain that each of them would be a far more interesting person to work with or have lunch with, if they read something on their commute. Just that single change would make life more interesting.
Put down your phone. Talk to your kids. Take away their phones. Give them a book. Give them a life!!