Text Messaging

Text Messaging

As a father of a 10 year old, I know the time will come when my son will “need” a cell phone. What once was a convenience has now become a necessity. I’ll gladly pay his bill as long as he uses his phone wisely. If he goes over his minutes (which will be limited), he will have to pay the charges.

I bring this up because I have heard horror stories about kids abusing their cell phone privileges. In fact, many kids and adults as well, are addicted to phone messaging. The main culprit is text messaging. With texting you can send messages without talking, so you do not disturb anyone around you. People become addicted to this convenient way of communicating with their friends, and like all addictions, it ends up messing up their lives. Important responsibilities are traded for messaging. Bills go unpaid, appointments are missed, and one’s priorities become generally turned upside-down.

I recently heard of a teenager who racked up a 500$ bill due to excessive texting. Besides the financial toll, texting can lead to tendonitis in the thumbs and fingers. Students use their phones to cheat on tests, and many lose sleep because they are up all night chatting with friends. Perhaps the scariest thing about texting is that it is causing the English language to deteriorate. Many teachers report that texting abbreviations and jargon are showing up in formal academic writing. I’m not against texting, but like most things, there has to be a limit. We can’t allow text messaging to be the downfall of civilization.