www.cbsnews.com/stories/2005/04/20/opinion/garver/main689651.shtml
It turns out that many of them aren't really talking to anybody. The New York Times recently desc ribed research at Rutgers University as well as the Ethics and Public Po licy Center that found that a great number of cell phone users are fakin g it. A number of people make fake phone calls on their cell phones just for th e benefit of those around them. Someone who's late for work may enter th e office talking to "an important client" to cover her tardiness. Others pretend they get a call when they don't want to talk to someone who's s tanding right in front of them. Not surprisingly, some of those big deal s you hear people negotiate on the phone are just done to impress those within earshot. Men will pretend to be on a call as they walk over to hi t on a woman. Women will pretend to be on a call to avoid getting hit on by men. Maybe this sounds like a creative use of technology to you, but I think i t stinks. It was bad enough when I thought people were being rude, talki ng loudly about their personal lives to someone while looking right at m e Now I find out that they're being rude and not even talking to anybod y! Many of the cell phone tricksters say they pretend to be on a call just t o be noticed. Until now, whenever I've seen crazy drivers on the phone s werve all over the road or come to an inexplicable stop, I've always fel t they were just making a call that could probably wait until the drive was over. I'd pull up next to them and give them the traditional shake o f the head and dirty look. Now, it turns out that my look may be exactly what the "caller" was hoping for. They're not putting our lives in dang er because they're ordering a pizza delivered to their house. They're do ing it because they want us to notice their new blouse or tie. We're all probably pretty understanding when someone we're sharing an ele vator with is talking baby talk into his cell phone, ending with, "Daddy will be home soon." But now that we know that "Daddy" might not even ha ve a kid, and might be talking to the weather forecast, we may not be so forgiving next time.
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