[LINK] phone jammers

[anthony hornby]

Thanks Ivan,

I guess we have to clarify what is being discussed.

I thought what was being discussed originally was a person silently
jamming all mobile phones anywhere without the users knowledge and
others lauding that behaviour as acceptable.

What is now being used to defend that behaviour is systematic use in
particular venues like movie theatres - where you have the ability to
forewarn people of what will occur and what is acceptable - not the
same thing at all.Maybe some sort of public education campaign coupled
with legislation and clear signage + Jamming in locations where mobile
phones are not acceptable like theatres etc would be OK.

I don't agree with the approach that you can just indiscriminately
remove the service from everyone in a 30ft radius whenever you feel
like it. This is just plain wrong on many levels.

As you have stated there are social changes that need addressing as
well. People are obnoxious in many ways in society and we all have to
find ways to deal with them. I guess we all set our own thresholds and
limits on what is and isn't acceptable and how far we are willing to
pursue behaviour we find unacceptable, and we rely on society to set
the broad parameters.

As to distance via technology, I like LINK, I find out interesting
stuff here, but I don't live here. A few years ago i found myself
getting too immersed in work & technology and have made some
deliberate choices in my career since then to get the balance back
between work and what's really important - FAMILY.

Its also good to have a rant every now and again about things you feel
passionate about - I always feel better afterwards ;-)

Anthony.





On Nov 14, 2007 2:15 PM, Ivan Trundle <ivan at itrundle.com> wrote:
>
> On 14/11/2007, at 3:17 PM, anthony hornby wrote:
>
> > Using jamming devices like this is irresponsible as well as illegal  -
> > mobile phones have many legitimate uses and the jammer is
> > indiscriminate within its range.
>
> Alas, an old argument - cue: 'doctors must have access to their mobile
> phones at all times...' - what a tired and pathetic excuse that is,
> but then I remember the days before mobile phones (BMP), when people
> were still able to be 'on call' and could still find out if the
> babysitter had set fire to the cat.
>
> 'Legitimate' use is not an excuse for poor social behaviour.
>
> It should be noted that the French government (and possibly others)
> made exceptions to permit the use of jammers in certain locations,
> namely theatres and the like.
>
> And most airlines enforce this for the benefit of the majority who
> travel (thankfully). We survive.
>
> > If you are unhappy with a behaviour go and tell the offending person
> > why.
>
> Not always possible in the middle of watching a movie or play in a
> theatre. Not all of us are in a position to do this, and some are
> easily intimidated by others, especially those others with
> underdeveloped social skills or antennae. Jammers might be
> indiscriminate, but they don't have to be on all of the time.
>
> > Most people don't deliberately set out to annoy you each day (said
> > while carefully placing tinfoil hat on head) and will tone it down.
>
> 'Most' is an irrelevant qualification here. Some people are completely
> unaware that they have no social skills, and yet still persist in
> being obnoxious.
>
> > As to the rest, accept that society includes all types including a
> > small percentage of anti-social wankers and move on.
>
> That's fine if there is room and space to move on - in train
> carriages, movie theatres, restaurants, etc - there is not always that
> option.
>
> <rant>
> What bothers me is the underlying social disease that is spreading:
> being social animals, we are moving away from direct contact with
> people, and relying more and more on being distant/remote from others
> in our social interaction (Link is an example of this). I don't see
> mobile phones as evil, per se, but I see in them a displacement of
> some key communication attributes: such as a shared experience, shared
> views, shared emotions, and a distinct lack of feedback cues that we
> would otherwise rely on to negotiate with each other to higher planes,
> and for better relationships. All this is too existential, too 'me'
> orientated... (with or without 3G phones).
> </rant>
>
> iT
>