Massive Cellphonization among Youth
By: Mohsin Ullah
Smart phones are one of the few devices that have become an integral part of our daily lives. In fact, they are almost like an extension of us at this point. Almost everyone has one so much so, that a recent report from the World Bank stated that the world’s poorest households are more likely to have access to mobile phones, rather than toilets. The youth are fully dependent on usage of mobile. I will not say that usage of mobile phone is not useful, it has many advantages, cell phones and smart phones make our life so much easier, there is no denying that the machine does bring some harm, and not only good. I will not talk about the effects of cell phones. I will not say anything about harmful radiations of cell phone nor will I talk about tissue damage, brain tumor and electromagnetic radiations caused by mobile phones. I will not talk about mobile phone devices which give off harmful radiations which effects the human health because such type of radiations is available everywhere and their existence cannot be felt and how these radiations penetrate in the body and they affect the cell structure and the DNA. I will just share my story without phone and the story of many more that are addicted to phone.
I spent a way too much time on my phone, and you probably do too. I lost my mobile, I lost my data, I was not able to interact with my family and friends, I was unable to see the statuses on Whatsapp, facbook and instagram. I was in contact with few friends which were nearby in my friendship circle. Believe me it was really difficult for me to survive without smart phone. I started using mobile phone in 2006. I started my journey from Nokia 3100, I was excited to listen short clips of music and other tones. The mobile shop charged me 10 rupees to install a single ring tone. I still remember when Logray (a special kind of Pashto symphony tune) was the famous tune of our time. After that I tried to upgrade my mobile models year by year. I was a hard user. I loved every second of it. I even slept with my smart phone by my side. It was what I fell asleep watching facebook and Youtube videos and it was the alarm clock that woke me up and I snoozed that for three times. It was never turned off. I am certain I texted while studying, driving, in libraries, and out with friends around restaurant tables and dinning with family. It got so bad that I grew uncomfortable with any 5 minutes span of head phones idleness. I felt obligated to reply to everyone on Whatsapp, Facebook, tweeter and instagram. Facbook was the only book which I studied a lot but never learnt something. I argued with some of my near and dear friends on political and religious debates and I lost most of my good friends due to critical debate. Cell phones interrupted our story, interrupted our ability to have a thought or a daydream, to imagine something wonderful, because we are too busy over passing the walk from the canteen back to the office on the cell phone. I was totally addicted to mobile phones and recently I realized when suddenly I got a problem in my smart phone and was unable to repair my mobile. I switched off my mobile phone. It was very hard to live without a phone. It was difficult to survive. I was tensed that I am not able to contact my friends and family. My friends will be waiting for my response. My friends will think that where I am lost? I realized one thing that we are totally dependent on technology. It’s a curse we live in a risk society. Technology has created many problems for us. I will say that Life without mobile phone is blessing. I have wasted my life taking the pictures and sharing my adventures with social media instead of enjoying them. The mobile phone is rapidly taking our humanity. It is Sad, but true. I got a simple mobile through which I can make important calls, I don’t need to remember and save birthdays of a large social circle and important events in my calendar. I have started a writing diary and write my important meetings and deadlines. I got more sleep. I look people in the eye. I eat food instead of photographing it and sharing it with people. My study, social life, and personal safety have not evaporated overnight either. I don’t ask for a charger when I visit my friends and relatives. I don’t ask for Wifi Password. I check my emails daily at morning and at evening with my laptop. We need to take a step backwards so we can focus on the reality of life. I realized that The world is full of attractions, and I can enjoy the life without checking messages every 10 minutes.
The writer is doing PhD in Sociology at Quaid-i-Azam university, Islamabad and can be reached at [email protected]
