Because that is our world these days. It's becoming more and more acceptable. People "understand" that everyone must stay connected. Only problem is, that kind of connecting is false, in my book.

Because they and their phone are more important than you are. See, See, see how important I am with all my phone calls and texting. I'm just so important. Misplaced self-importance..

The person on the phone with them is more important than you are.

I have told people to please put their phone away.

My daughter in law was texting during my father's funeral. I really had to restrain myself from saying ugly things and asking her to return to her car.

I like my cell phone too, but the people that you are in the moment with are more important by far.

Jesus wept, PKponder, I would have said something, though tried to keep it civil. That is beyond rude.

If I was invited on an outing with someone who then wouldn't stay off their cell phone, I'd tell them that next time they invited me, they should be sure it was _me_ they wanted to spend time with and not the invisible friends on the cell phone, and leave.

If someone did that to me, I would ask to borrow their phone and then call a cab and go home.

There was only one phone call which was brief and from a family member. The rest of it must have been checking Facebook or something which I can assure you, IMO, was pointless and boring compared to scenic nature.

It seems all common sense has gone out the door these days. Someone needs to start a "cell phone etiquette" movement and it needs to get really popular! I'm hoping this is just a phase and people will get over this and SOON!

No one has trained them. My son has found himself a girl. Last night, I said, put the phone down. He did. It buzzed again, and it took everything in him not to pick it up. I told him next time... (and here's where no one taught them and they haven't thought of it themselves) send a text saying that you're about to have dinner and you'll catch up later. When he finally did pick it back up (after dinner), that was the text he read from HER. Her mom had told her the same thing. Training is everything. Just a guess!

I'm going to catch hell for this but.....I think a growing part of the population is becoming addicted to cell phones and instant messaging because they fear being alone with their own thoughts. There, I said it. Now let's hear the battle cry ....cry havoc and let slip the dogs of war. On jeff

I'll agree with you jeff! I think there have always been distractions, just not ones we carried around. It's too easy now.

I agree, jeff. They're afraid of their own thoughts. They're afraid of silence. And coming soon is the addict's shortened attention span as a result of their addiction.

Let's face it. Some addicts won't even drive across town without staring at their cell phone.

I disagree that they are afraid of their own thoughts, it's just how many people tend to communicating now. And no, this isn't a "cell phone addict defending my kind". I like my smartphone, but if I'm socializing with people, I am rarely on my phone.

If you are socializing with someone who seems to prefer socializing with their phone, you should tell them to knock it off.

Cell phones do not belong at the dinner table. Period, end of story. Heck, I won't even answer the house phone at meal time. Caller ID will tell you if it is friends and you can call back after dinner. A child's call should be taken in case of an emergency.

I think JEFF, you are being too kind, my theory is much nastier. HEEHEE!

but peppi, if you don't answer it, landline or cell, how can you know it's a child? Seriously.

And anyone attending church should turn their cell phones off IMHO, or leave them in the car.

I don't find it at all acceptable. I would disconnect myself from that person and go home, or go somewhere else, as long as I left them behind.

Cell phones are not necessary for minute-by-minute life. The world will not implode if I miss a call.

Personally I find carrying around a cell phone an inconvenience. I have it for safety reasons in case my car breaks down and that's about the only reason I carry it.

asm198 i have a black berry ( i know, i know but it's a gift from fred flintstone) that i use a lot. and you sound like a person with a level head with a phone . but the people i'm talking about are the ones that act like the world should orbit around their call. i.e. self obsessed and entitled .

arkansas_girl , i like the way you think.

jeff-1010, nothing wrong with a blackberry. I had something similar for years and only switched when we changed our cell plan.

Here's my favorite cell phone addict story. A couple of years ago, I was out with a friend of mine, who spent the better part of two hours with her nose stuck in her phone. We could barely have a conversation because she wouldn't put the phone down.

I was about 15 minutes away before she noticed I was gone. She thought I had gone to the restroom and was completely livid when I told her I had left. She said I was rude. I said my time was much too valuable to waste staring at the top of her head and that she should be grateful that I didn't just walk out and leave her with my half of the bill.

There was a young girl killed when she pulled out into traffic while texting. Her father was on TV the next day to warn other young people about the dangers of using the phone while driving. He did not want it happen to any one else. very sad.

It's definitely an addiction. People can be addicted to all sorts of things, and it doesn't mean there's something wrong with them. I find people who don't suffer from the same addiction don't really understand it and tend to scoff at it. Much like I can't understand why people are addicted to cigarettes or alcohol or drugs because I've never experienced it and have no desire to.

I'm a Millennial and I use my phone a lot. I wouldn't say I'm addicted, but it feels pretty close sometimes so I can understand. I know better than to use my phone when I'm with someone or somewhere inappropriate, but there is an actual physical longing to check things sometimes. It's not about self-importance or being afraid to be alone with your own thoughts, but rather when a huge percentage of your world is online, it's addicting to be constantly in contact and there's a strong need to not miss anything.

I think a lot of posters here are more balanced with their online life than younger generations so they don't necessarily understand it. If all your friends, family, school, work and social life were all in one device, you might feel differently. It's just how it is nowadays. People did similar things in earlier decades, like teenagers sitting by the phone waiting for someone to call. If they could have been mobile while doing it, don't you think they would have? lol

It's like a really good book that you can't put down, or a craving when you're on a strict diet, or any other situation where you really, really want something even if you know better.

I'm not excusing people being rude on their phones or texting and driving. There are no excuses for that. But this conversation is going a bit further than that into generalizations about people who use phones a lot so I wanted to give my perspective.

If it is possible to be addicted to cell phones in much the same way as someone is addicted to food or shopping, then why is it that everyone who uses a cell phone is labeled as addicted? Not everyone who eats or shops is addicted. Not everyone who uses a cell phone is addicted. If you're a balanced individual, you're a balanced individual even if you own a cell phone. Owning and using it doesn't mean you have your head constantly in the phone. Some people do. But it's not a hard a fast rule that all cell phone owners are addicted and can't put them down; that's hyperbole.

I have a texting while driving, driver completely oblivious to the world around her, story. I was leaving the post office the other day...there was a lady (teen looking) in the middle of the parking lot lane right in front of a very VERY busy post office where it is the main turn in spot. Her car was just stopped in the middle of the drive way entrance and she was staring at her phone and texting. People were honking and trying to figure out what was going on and she was so tuned to her phone that she never even knew what was going on. She just sat there for a few minutes then finally drove off and as she was driving off, she still had her face in her phone. I was a passenger of the car I was in so I was watching the whole thing. She drove out to go to the intersection to make a left turn into a very busy road all the while staring at her phone. CRAZY!

I don't think anyone is saying that everyone who uses a cell phone is addicted. I thought this thread was about people who ignore others in social situations in favor of their phone and who often use them in inappropriate situations. Those are who I would consider addicted. Most people use cell phones in moderation.

Chi83 you said it best.

I think that's a very fine line the cell phones posts often walk.

Sometimes, all it takes is a gentle reminder to put their phones down and have a "device free" conversation. It doesn't hurt to ask.

And some of you sound like a bunch of crabby old farts! LOL Complain about young ones on their phones, but spend hours here complaining about things. Mehh.. It is what it is....

I guess those that keep their phones next to their sides every moment of every day think it's OK and those of us that don't care to be bothered with a phone at our sides 24/7 just don't and won't ever get it. As they say, it takes all kinds...I'm not normally here that much but the weather is dreadful so not much outdoor activities to keep me doing what I love to be doing the most!

dontpokethebear... i say this from my i pad. yes, i'm almost an old fart. and, i'm a dirty old man. hee, hee, he lol. but i grew up discussing philosophy, the lyrics of bob dylan and the words of dylan thomas, face to face, not who has the most friends.:-)

i almost forgot. the older you get the more you realize that phone is more an electronic leash.

Hi Jeff,

Those who have demanding bosses who expect them to be (pretty quickly) available, 24-7 will agree with you.

I've commented about the leash that folks are carrying to folks who have one glued to their belt ... some are surprised at the idea ... and may well agree.

How many receive extra pay for being so hampered?

How many submit an invoice following each call ... or, itemized or not, weekly?

ole joyful ... who doesn't have one ... but, being old and mobile, is considering one of the minimal-use ones

The part I like the most is when the on call phone rings at 3am because an idiot was texting and moved a decimal . point that a caused a systems crash.

Chi...thank you so much for your earlier post. It gave me an entirely new understanding; you are a gem.

The real question is why did anyone agree to go out with said addicted person?? Until the rest of us distance ourselves, set boundaries these rude people will continue . Simple: pull out your cell phone when talking to me, and I walk away.

Thank you rhizo, what a nice thing to say! :)

We attended a Roxette concert last night and were gobsmacked to see the couple next to us spending about 75% of the evening each glued to a smartphone. Was sooooooo tempted to lean over and ask if it wouldn't have been cheaper and easier for them to just have stayed home and put on a recording.

jeff-1010, and rob, what are your favorite mode of communication?

When I visited a friend who was tied to his cell phone and I got fed up with every meal being interrupted by a call to him, the next time we went out to eat and as we were walking toward the restaurant, I said "Why don't we both turn off our cell phones now so we won't be interrupted". It worked.

I am a cell phone addict, BUT: I know when to put it down. I don't walk through a mall with my phone to my ear or face, unless I'm trying to do some comparison shopping. Then I'll stand next to a wall and "google" what I'm looking for. Or if I have to send a message to someone because I found what they were looking for, and ask if they want me to buy it. When my husband and I go out for dinner, my phone sits face down on the table. I used to sit on it because we never really talk when we're out, but in the past year or so, I've made it a rule: no cell phones during dinner. If I can do it, anyone can. :) For Christmas Day, I made it a rule: no tv. No internet. No cell phones. We had the "fireplace" on the tv, and nobody was allowed to use their phones, unless they were taking pictures. We all actually spent the day talking, laughing and had a good time: like the good old days. ;)

Some days, I walk into our lunchroom at work and am sad to see several staff members in there eating their food and all of them on their phones. Nobody speaks to each other.

West gardener ...I prefer face to face any day . Yes, I'll use the phone , briefly , to exchange info. But I don't do idle chitchat.

I'm like arkansas_girl. I only take mine with me when I'm out and about.

My biggest gripe is people leaving messages on it. I've told folks (in some cases more than once) to use the land line number. I only turn it on when I'm out in case of an emergency. That can be as long as a week before I use it.

Secsteve--perhaps you can redo your cell phone answer message to include the fact that you may not hear messages left, for as long as a week. And then maybe follow that up with your land line number.