Posted on 04/22/2005 8:41:47 AM PDT by srm913
You know all those annoying people who talk into their cell phones as if you weren't standing right next to them? It turns out that many of them aren't really talking to anybody. The New York Times recently described research at Rutgers University as well as the Ethics and Public Policy Center that found that a great number of cell phone users are faking it.
A number of people make fake phone calls on their cell phones just for the benefit of those around them. Someone who's late for work may enter the 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 standing right in front of them. Not surprisingly, some of those big deals 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 hit 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 it stinks. It was bad enough when I thought people were being rude, talking loudly about their personal lives to someone while looking right at me. Now I find out that they're being rude and not even talking to anybody!
(Excerpt) Read more at cbsnews.com ...
If I walk around talking to myself, they send me down for a "random" drug check and my friends are all concerned.
If I do the same thing holding a cell phone, nobody has a problem.
So this article is no big surprise to me.
Oops, gotta go, Blair is calling again...
"...research at Rutgers University as well as the Ethics and Public Policy Center that found that a great number of cell phone users are faking..."
Who needed research to tell them this was going on?
Hilarious and True.
At work if I am discussing work related matters and they get a personal call (and let it take priority). I keep talking about what I need to convey and go on working. So naturally when they get off the phone and want me to re-explain, I tell them they must come back another time as they have wasted enough of mine.
At a previous job we had one woman who was way too chatty and kept people from getting work done. The rule was if you saw her pin someone down in his office, you went to another phone and called him so he had an excuse to leave.
So there - I listen to fake music.
At my job the cell phone was considered a security risk. (There were always classified discussions going on). So the phones were supposed to be turned off. But then my wife could not reach me with some Important personal business. (Like I needed to get home early.) When the cell phone rang in this situation, the empoyee would immediately take it outside, but it was proof that the phone was not turned off (Opps)
I've done that one :~D
You could try this:
With both Cingular's Escape-A-Date and Virgin Mobile's Rescue Ring service, a customer can arrange to be called at a set time, using the cell keypad.When the cell rings, one of Cingular's eight "emergency" messages says: "Hey, this is your Escape-A-Date call. If you're looking for an excuse, I got it. Just repeat after me, and you'll be on your way! 'Not again! Why does that always happen to you? ... All right, I'll be right there.' Now tell 'em that your roommate got locked out, and you have to go let them in. Good luck!"
And bingo, the bad date is history.
The rescue-call service is part of a Cingular package that costs $4.99 a month. Virgin Mobile offers its Rescue Ring at 25 cents per use, plus the price of the call.
I noticed several years ago that if a woman was coming out of a store or post office late at night, they were always pretending to be talking on their cell phones.
Dunno if it would fool any muggers. It didn't fool me.
*snrk* I love the free enterprise system...
Like lots of folks, I use a headset... it's great when somebody comes to my office door. They'll whisper in a hushed voice "are you on the phone?"
I usually just put a finger to my lips and whisper back "maybe."
At any speech I give, running a seminar, or any meeting that I chair; I ask all listeners/participants to "please turn off your cell phones and pagers."
I remember one episode of 'Andy Griffith' where Barney is faking talking on the phone in front of Andy and suddenly the phone rang. The look on his face was hilarious!
You need to learn the Unfriendly Face. It comes in handy when you want to communicate the message that you are dreary and lifeless, have no soul and kill random people just for talking to you without authorization.
There's this con where a guy will ask to use a chick's cell phone to make a local call b/c his cell just died. He'll then call his own cell, and...shazam!...he now has her phone number she wouldn't have given to the creep in the first place.
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