smash your cell phone
Jan 10 2007 07:45
Hey, Just wondering how many of you have cell phones and what your opinion of them is. I realise that they are just one more of the stock-pile of capitalism's products, but I find them to be one of the most pestiferous and invasive. Everywhere I go, the park, the grocery store, walking down the street, the coffee shop, the bus, I have to dodge cell-phones. They are also quite alienating. Sometimes, while walking down a street I pass someone who starts to talk. I assume that they are addressing me and start to reply, when I realise that no, they are talking to a little head piece in their ear.
Aside from accentuating the alienation so prevalent in this society, I also worry about the radiation they put into the air. There's a couple of cell-phone masts near my apartment. I 've read that there's been more of a movement in the UK and Ireland against cell phone towers, and that a number of them were torn down by angry locals. But here in the US, where the apathy is higher, there hasn't been much success or wide-spread awareness against cellphone technology. For example, just the other day I went to a John Zerzan talk, (and by the way I am not a primitivist) and as people filed out of the bookstore a number of the young "radicals" were, of course, on their cell phones. Everyone seems to have one in this city.
For the hell of it, mainly because it was free, I started a fucking My Space Page against cell phones. If you're interested here : http://www.myspace.com/anticellphonecoalition
Jan 10 2007 09:04
#2
yer myspace wrote:
cell phone radiation causes shrinkage of brain-cells (esp. to those holding phones up to their heads), resulting in gaps between the braincells, gaps through which toxins and carcinogens can pass, allowing diseases to form. In short, the "blood-brain-barrier" (the brain's protective shield against harmful substances) gets damaged.
This sounds like something off 'Brasseye's science episode (ie it sounds like it's been made up as a satire of tabloid cod-science). I might be wrong, do you have a source?
I find that mobile phones actually increase the amount of face-to-face time I spend with my friends, since it's much easier to find them when they're out etc we can just text each other if we want to meet up, tell each other where we are etc. I think my social life would be fucked without one! I don't feel alienated by them at all.
I have to admit I do get a headache if I talk on my mobile for too long, don't know what that's about - I try to stick to texting.
Jan 10 2007 09:32
#3
quit whinging hippy and get with the times.
Jan 10 2007 10:13
#4
I agree that there are some problems with mobile phones. The radiation thing being a bit worrying. Allergic, what you are describing is as JDMF says, are the cultural practices of mobile phone use. That can and will change, and is very different from country to country (in my experience, people in Scandinavia are not as obnoxious with their use as people, say, in the UK or Egypt).
The mobile has changed the way we view time, fucked up the distinction between the public and private sphere, but so what?
As an activist I can't imagine being without the mobile phone. Makes organization and co-ordination of any political activity so much easier. I mean if some shit goes down and you want to mobilize people quickly, the fact that almost everyone's got a set makes it a hell of a lot easier.
Especially during protests they can be life savers, getting updates on what is happening, what can be done, places to avoid, for communication tactics between groups etc etc. E.g. as an ISMer in Palestine I felt practically blind when my phone was out of battery, range or got broken.
So
Quote:
quit whinging hippy and get with the times.
Jan 10 2007 10:20
#5
Also the youth in Saudia Arabia are using them to get it on behind the backs of the religious police using bluetooth messages.
Jan 10 2007 10:43
#6
Quote:
Also the youth in Saudia Arabia are using them to get it on behind the backs of the religious police using bluetooth messages.
Apparently, that is how you pick up hookers in Cairo's 5 star hotels as well.
Jan 10 2007 10:44
#7
atlemk wrote:
Quote:
Also the youth in Saudia Arabia are using them to get it on behind the backs of the religious police using bluetooth messages.Apparently, that is how you pick up hookers in Cairo's 5 star hotels as well.
Apparently, eh? I'd have thought the patrons of 5 star hotels wouldn't be reduced to sending bluetooth messages.
Jan 10 2007 10:50
#8
revol68 wrote:
atlemk wrote:
Quote:
Also the youth in Saudia Arabia are using them to get it on behind the backs of the religious police using bluetooth messages.Apparently, that is how you pick up hookers in Cairo's 5 star hotels as well.
Apparently, eh? I'd have thought the patrons of 5 star hotels wouldn't be reduced to sending bluetooth messages.
I'd have thought, eh?
Jan 10 2007 10:57
#9
Quote:
Apparently, eh? I'd have thought the patrons of 5 star hotels wouldn't be reduced to sending bluetooth messages.
Getting a hooker in Cairo is not as accepted in various other places. The Gulf tourist coming for gambling, sex and alcohol do not want people to know that they are doing just that. Also, the hotel doesn't necessarily want hooking in their hotel so the hookers have to be careful...
C'mon guys, don't see everything through eurovision.
Jan 11 2007 03:02
#10
magnifico wrote:
yer myspace wrote:
cell phone radiation causes shrinkage of brain-cells (esp. to those holding phones up to their heads), resulting in gaps between the braincells, gaps through which toxins and carcinogens can pass, allowing diseases to form. In short, the "blood-brain-barrier" (the brain's protective shield against harmful substances) gets damaged.This sounds like something off 'Brasseye's science episode (ie it sounds like it's been made up as a satire of tabloid cod-science). I might be wrong, do you have a source?
Yea, I got most of this information on line and here's the link for one good resource : http://www.earthpulse.com/src/subcategory.asp?catid=4&subcatid=3
So, this thread has been "marked for deletion". Why?
Also, my father and a friend of mine both developed skin-cancer on their ears where they used their cell phones. And this is no isolated incident. I've heard of many other cases, and a couple of law suites against cell phone companies due to such occurances.
Why should we not be skeptical of technology and products? Why should we passively accept what "experts" tell us? Does caring about the health of myself and those I love make me a "hippie"?
People could "organize" and communicate and have social lives just as well if not better before cell phones. I guess it's good if your cell phone helps you connect with people more. But think about why this is. If we lived in a different society, where we didn't have so much of our time taken up by jobs and the rush, what would be the point of cell phones? We'd have the time and space to meet face to face more often, and without needing to coordinate around rigid scedules.
Jan 14 2007 19:14
#11
It's sad, and yet not surprising to me that this is the sort of response I get to raising the question of why we should be skeptical of cell phones. I'm told things like, "activists need them to organize" (what the fuck do activists do anyway?) and "it's just a cultural change," Yea? Well Fuck your culture! I don't want any part of it! It's consumer culture. It's capitalist culture. It's an obsession with shortening time, to maximise production time and profit and all that bullshite!
Well, enjoy your Culture, with your cell phone up your ass.
Throw away my post cause it challenges your precious new "culture" life-style.
Jan 14 2007 19:18
#12
allergic wrote:
It's sad, and yet not surprising to me that this is the sort of response I get to raising the question of why we should be skeptical of cell phones. I'm told things like, "activists need them to organize" (what the fuck do activists do anyway?) and "it's just a cultural change," Yea? Well Fuck your culture! I don't want any part of it! It's consumer culture. It's capitalist culture. It's an obsession with shortening time, to maximise production time and profit and all that bullshite!Well, enjoy your Culture, with your cell phone up your ass.
Throw away my post cause it challenges your precious new "culture" life-style.
Well having a mobile phone helps me organise what spare time I have so i can meet up with my mates, get stuff done and a whole host of good shit.
Then again if I had mates as tedious, moronic and earnest as you i'd probably be able to do alright without one.
Jan 16 2007 08:24
#13
This comment has been moved http://libcom.org/forums/bin/blah#comment-182845">here.
Jan 16 2007 08:54
#14
This comment has been moved http://libcom.org/forums/bin/blah#comment-182847">here.
its just a cultural change which will take time for people to adjust their behaviour and expectations of others. In that sense the change might be irritating like in the past when you could actually start calling people on the phone instead of visiting or writing a letter or some similar technologically aided changes.
So i would rather try to look into myself and see why other peoples behaviour irritates you so much and try not to hype it up.
regarding the radiation, there are some real concerns there, which wont be addressed by anti-cell phone stance.