Halina+D's+Op-Ed+Article


 * Sorry, but You Have Been Replaced- by a Cell Phone**



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It’s Friday night, school is out, and the weekend has just started. You are so stoked it’s mental. Why? Because it’s junior year and you are just over it- something like, pre-mature Senioritis. No, but really.

Anyway with that in mind, consider how disappointing it would be on a Friday night when you’re with all your closest buddies just hanging out, being dorky, and enjoying each others company…WHEN WAIT. That’s not reality. Well, yeah it’s true you’re with your closest buddies and sure you may be acting dorky- but enjoying each others company? Oh, no- you’ve been misinformed. While you’re chilling on a worn bean bag chair trying to make decent conversation with your friend you’ll realize there’s something in between you. It’s acting like an invisible wall. A thick, impenetrable barrier. You’re yelling and pounding against this wall, begging for attention because you’re so over school and you need someone to complain about it to. But they’re not listening. After a rant about AMEX, or Physics, or about how you don’t understand why Psychology feels more like another class rather than an elective…all you hear is the rapid clicklclickclackclickclackclackgigglegiggleetc in return. This "thing" is a cell phone.

Defeat.

And you didn’t even get the chance to fight back.

And you know what? That rant took a lot of energy! You’re exhausted and your friend didn’t even listen in the slightest bit.

Excuse me, but what the heck is going on?

Is face to face contact not enough anymore? Is your friend not as cool as your high-phone? Do you not have any friends that can make you laugh or elevate your mood when you're down? I don't understand. Why would someone consciously choose to text some other friend when A FRIEND, is right there, in front of you, with you. Come on, people. Let's all appreciate our friends. You say you're bored even though you're with them? Where has your sense of friendship gone? Imagination, anyone?

Plus, from what I can recall- a phone is a technological device. It's only there to entertain you. It can't talk back and give you a hug. It can't say the right inside joke at the right time. It can't produce tone. It's not human!

So to all those people who are hanging out with your best friend (or any friend really) and suddenly you feel that quiet, insidious buzz buzz in your pocket, think about it. What’s more important?

[rough draft]