Posted by
peripheral on Thursday, May 20, 2010 6:11:09 AM
From My Perspective - - -
Thumbing a ride on a roadway? No! Thumbs Up – an indication of
approval? No! A new phenomenon has infiltrated our nation and entered
most homes! Questions we might ask: Is it a danger for particular age
groups? Is it addictive? Can it be life-threatening? Is it a disease? A
mental disorder? What is this phenomenon called? For want of a better
description, we can call it Digitalized Detachment! A more common name
would be – Text Messaging!
The NY Times on May 13, 2010 contained an article entitled: “Cell-phones Now Used More for Data Than for Calls”
By Jenna Wortham. She writes: “…although almost 90 percent of
households in the United States now have a cell-phone, the growth in
voice minutes used by consumers has stagnated…Instead of talking on
their cell-phones, people are making use of all the extras that
iPhones, BlackBerrys and other smart-phones were also designed to do —
browse the Web, listen to music, watch television, play games and send
e-mail and text messages. The number of text messages sent per user
increased by nearly 50 percent nationwide last year…and for the first
time in the United States, the amount of data in text, e-mail messages,
streaming video, music and other services on mobile devices in 2009
surpassed the amount of voice data in cell-phone calls…Originally,
talking was the only cell-phone application…but now it’s less than half
of the traffic on mobile networks.”
An ABC News Study released in July 2007 stated: “The addictiveness of
cell phones, and the dangers of calling while driving, has become a
high-profile issue over the past several years. But the effects of text
messaging - which is likely even more dangerous because drivers must
avert their eyes from the road for longer periods - have been mostly
ignored. Is addiction to text messaging interfering with the lives of
teens and endangering their safety? The evidence is mounting:
Twenty-eight percent of teens admit to sending text messages while
driving, according to a study just released by the American Automobile
Association and Seventeen magazine. Signs of a youth population
increasingly hooked on text messaging abound. Sixty-five percent of
people between the ages of 18 and 28 send text messages, nearly double
the population average of 35 percent, according to the Pew Internet and
American Life Project. In total, a whopping 93.8 billion text messages
were sent in the United States during the last six months of 2006,
nearly double the 48.6 billion sent in the same period in 2005…Text
message addiction is slowly showing up on the radar of mental health
professionals…The Priory Group, a top mental health provider in
Britain, announced in 2003 that they had begun treating patients for
phone-texting addiction.”
Wikipedia contains these thoughts: “Today text messaging is the most
widely used mobile data service, with 74% of all mobile phone users
worldwide or 2.4 billion out of 3.3 billion phone subscribers at end of
2007 being active users of the Short Message Service. In countries such
as Finland, Sweden and Norway, over 85% of the population use SMS. The
European average is about 80% and North America is rapidly catching up
with over 60% active users of SMS by end of 2008.”
Is text-messaging a waste of time? While some would argue that it is
valid means of communication, others would argue that it consumes too
much of one’s time in meaningless thumb-chatter. How one uses his/her
time is an important factor in the development of life and value
choices. The Message translates Luke 6:31-35, “Here is a simple rule of
thumb for behavior: Ask yourself what you want people to do for you;
then grab the initiative and do it for them! If you only love the
lovable, do you expect a pat on the back? Run-of-the-mill sinners do
that. If you only help those who help you, do you expect a medal?
Garden-variety sinners do that. If you only give for what you hope to
get out of it, do you think that's charity? The stingiest of
pawnbrokers does that. I tell you, love your enemies. Help and give
without expecting a return. You'll never - I promise - regret it. Live
out this God-created identity the way our Father lives toward us,
generously and graciously…” For this behavior, you’ll get a Thumbs Up!
Consider these things with me!