FCC talking about relaxing cell phone rules

C Kingsbury wrote:

When I'm on a plane these days I have an excuse for being
unreachable. It's pretty much the last place where that's true.

Yeah. We used to vacation close to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. One
of the advantages to doing so was that cell phones and pagers don't work there.
On top of that, most of the places we stayed had no phones.

George Patterson
The desire for safety stands against every great and noble enterprise.

C Kingsbury wrote:

If I turn the phone off I'll get an angry message saying "why didn't
you pick up?" The other party may be the boorish one but that doesn't
solve my problem. When I'm on a plane these days I have an excuse for
being unreachable. It's pretty much the last place where that's true.

It's too bad you need an excuse not to answer the phone...

--
John T
http://tknowlogy.com/TknoFlyer
http://www.pocketgear.com/products_s...veloperid=4415
____________________

Want to know the source of that problem? Look in the mirror.
If you want to let these folks control you in that manner
that's your business - but it sure isn't my style.

There is still a widespread perception that it is necessary
to raise one's voice when speaking on the phone. I can
remember being unable to make a call across Paris about
30 years ago. I also remember a Frenchman who would always
scream at the top of his lungs whenever speaking on the
phone or radio. However, I don't remember problems of that
sort here in the U.S. So I don't know where such ideas
come from.

Having said that, I see no reason why using a cell phone
is inappropriate in any situation where normal person to
person conversation is acceptable. Like in a restaurant,
on a bus or airplane, standing in line, etc. And what
difference does it make whether, in my office, I answer
the phone on my desk or the one on my belt? All that is
required is to keep the volume down - be it one's voice or
ring tones - and to be considerate of others present.

David Johnson

wrote in message
oups.com...

Having said that, I see no reason why using a cell phone
is inappropriate in any situation where normal person to
person conversation is acceptable. Like in a restaurant,
on a bus or airplane, standing in line, etc.

I don't know. On one hand, I can see your point, but there's something about
listening to one half of a conversation that's annoying to me. Couple that
with the additional volume that seems to accompany cell calls and it gets
really annoying. Also add on the annoying ringtones that the cell phoner
thinks is so neat. Additionally, the usual delay that the caller experiences
(making for choppy, stilted conversations), not to mention bad signal
strength that creates the, "you're breaking up.....OK....can you hear
me?.......OK, you're back.....NO, you're breaking up
again....Hello....Hello....OK......I can hear you now........Oh you're gone
again.......Hello....etc.

You ever notice that public phones are positioned so that the conversation
you are having is as private as possible? Heck, they used to be in a
booth....with a door..... that closed! Nowadays, folks have no problem
having a personal conversation right next to you on a bus, train, airport
terminal etc. and you can't HELP but overhear because they are 12 inches
away from you (and annoying, see above). Kind of interesting in a "social
experiement" sort of way.

I don't blame the cell phones, they're a great advance. I have one, I hardly
use it, but I have one. I just think that they have allowed rude people to
be even more inconsiderate. Hey maybe someone should come up with a "cell
phone booth". A booth with nothing in it!

-Trent
PP-ASEL

Want to know the source of that problem? Look in the mirror.
If you want to let these folks control you in that manner
that's your business - but it sure isn't my style.

There is still a widespread perception that it is necessary
to raise one's voice when speaking on the phone. I can
remember being unable to make a call across Paris about
30 years ago. I also remember a Frenchman who would always
scream at the top of his lungs whenever speaking on the
phone or radio. However, I don't remember problems of that
sort here in the U.S. So I don't know where such ideas
come from.

Having said that, I see no reason why using a cell phone
is inappropriate in any situation where normal person to
person conversation is acceptable. Like in a restaurant,
on a bus or airplane, standing in line, etc. And what
difference does it make whether, in my office, I answer
the phone on my desk or the one on my belt? All that is
required is to keep the volume down - be it one's voice or
ring tones - and to be considerate of others present.

David Johnson

Gee .. I just turn mine off when I don't want it to ring. And then if
someone gripes I just say "gee .. that's funny, it didn't ring .. must
be a cell phone thing".

"
If I turn the phone off I'll get an angry message saying "why didn't you
pick up?" -cwk.

On Wed, 15 Dec 2004 16:03:45 GMT, "C Kingsbury"
wrote:

As a very frequent airline flyer, this sounds like an awful idea to me.

Me too.

I am amused that the Trailways bus that takes me home from Logan
airport prohibits cell phone use, even though this is one occasion
(telling the spouse that yes, you made the early bus) where a phone
call seems to be justified.


all the best -- Dan Ford
email: (put Cubdriver in subject line)

Warbird's Forum www.warbirdforum.com
Piper Cub Forum www.pipercubforum.com
the blog www.danford.net

"Reid & Julie Baldwin" wrote:
The news lately has mentioned that the FCC is meeting to
discuss relaxing the ban on using cell phones in airplanes.

Interference and electronics aside, just out of common COURTESY to
others, I hope the current rule is upheld.

How many calls CAN'T wait until the passenger is back on the ground? In
airliners, subjecting the person/people in seats around you to your
cellphone chatter when there's no choice about where you sit is both
inconsiderate and rude.

We have cellphones belonging to employees and customers ringing every
few minutes at work, 98% of which calls could have waited until a break,
lunch or after hours ... how do I know? because everyone in the entire
work area can hear the conversations whether they want to or not! Ditto
for restaurants, where being seated next to a table with an incessantly
ringing cellphone and the ensuing loud conversations is as much of an
intrusion as a toddler standing up in the booth behind you screaming in
your ear while you try to enjoy the quiet, relaxing dinner you waited
all week for.

The Post Office now has signs that read: "Please turn off your
cellphone. This is a cellphone-free establishment." Bravo! ...
cellphones are terrific for true emergencies, but some people have them
permanently attached to their ear, calling to announce whenever they
break a nail or lose an eyelash.

How many questionable things do you see people on the road do while they
have their cellphone up to their ear. I shudder to think about pilots
talking on their cellphone about who's going to the Christmas party and
with whom while missing another aircraft announcing their position and
intentions.

Aren't there *enough* potential distractions without adding CELLPHONES
to that mix?

wrote in message
...

Interference and electronics aside, just out of common COURTESY to
others, I hope the current rule is upheld.

Tell me about it. Just a few minutes ago, while a sales rep guy was talking
to a colleague whose desk is right next to mine, the rep's phone rang. And
rang like a bell, I might add. His ringtone was "Hells Bells" by AC/DC and
it was loud! Now I'm about the biggest AC/DC fan in the world, but
gimmeabreak, it was very annoying. What was even more annoying was how long
it took him to actually answer the dang thing. It was like he wanted
everyone to hear his precious ringtone. Jeez.

You think things are bad now, just look around at your run of the mill
teenager. They all have phones nowadays. I went out for lunch one day at a
Subway which is close to the local high school. Four kids sat down at one
table and commenced to text each other or have loud phone conversations the
whole time they were there. Not to mention the annoying ringtones. And if
you think that a business person's phone rings a lot, you haven't seen a
teenager in action. I'm afraid there is a whole generation of cell phone
morons coming down the pike!

-Trent
PP-ASEL

"Trent Moorehead" wrote in message
...

teenager in action. I'm afraid there is a whole generation of cell phone
morons coming down the pike!


Already happened in Europe. They're well ahead of us when it comes to mobile
phones, technologically and culturally. I used to work for a European
company, and the guys from over there would (a) leave their phones on in
meetings and (b) answer them, frequently leaving the room in the middle of a
discussion to carry on a 10-minute conversation. I'm talking 50-year-old VPs
too, and plenty of the calls were not at all mission-critical.

-cwk.