LOL=D | Teen Ink

LOL=D MAG

November 30, 2009
By Lauren Burkhalter BRONZE, Rockwall, Texas
Lauren Burkhalter BRONZE, Rockwall, Texas
1 article 0 photos 0 comments

You've heard it before … that incessant clicking in the middle of the new hit box-office release. The beeping of buttons as you try to carry on a conversation. The snap of a cell phone as the person you are talking to mumbles an apology about the text they just have to answer – the one that's so important it can't wait. Texting in the middle of conversations, movies, or any other event where it is otherwise inappropriate to talk is as rude as answering the phone.

Texting has always seemed unnecessary to me, and has successfully interrupted many a movie and halted conversations in their tracks. I am not against texting as an alternative form of communication, but the constant beeping and clicking of buttons during events and conversations is irksome, irritating, and just plain rude! No one can claim to have manners when, as they talk, they are also staring at a tiny screen and typing a note to their “bff, Jill.”

Supporters say that texting is useful in situations where calling is not permitted; it is less obtrusive and more easily ignored than a phone call, perhaps even more polite. However, while texting does not involve speaking out loud, it is still an interruption and therefore still can be considered just as rude.

Why can't people ever wait to answer a text? Unlike a phone call, a text will sit patiently in the inbox until answered. The text will not go anywhere unless the phone spontaneously combusts. So why is it that most people – adults and teens alike – find it necessary to immediately respond to a text at any time of the day or night, no matter what is going on around them?

Maybe I am old-fashioned. Perhaps I haven't caught up with the times. Maybe I was raised differently, or maybe I am just plain weird. Whatever the case, I consider texting in the middle of a conversation, a movie, or a lecture ridiculous and unnecessary.



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This article has 41 comments.


on Jul. 17 2010 at 2:07 pm
Scarecrow BRONZE, Vancouver, Washington
3 articles 0 photos 20 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;A father is a banker provided by nature.&quot;<br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> -French Proverb

If I'm talking to you and then my friend comes up and butts in, should I immediately drop my conversation with you and talk to them instead?

If you wouldn't talk to them if they were standing there, don't do it over the phone.


on Jul. 15 2010 at 6:08 pm
sweethearrrt GOLD, Portland, Oregon
10 articles 7 photos 43 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;I&#039;m selfish, impatient and a little insecure. I make mistakes, I am out of control and at times hard to handle. But if you can&#039;t handle me at my worst, then you sure as hell don&#039;t deserve me at my best.&quot; <br /> &mdash; Marilyn Monroe

okay! i agree on some points, like its rude to interrupt a very importnant thing, but if you are talking to someone, you might need to check ur phone. its okay if you say, "sorry, i need to check this.". and (as some of the ppl were saying here) i have NOT lost the power to vocally communicate. i talk on the phone tons, and i text alot, too. i do think this article was very well written and brought up some good points. :)

Joyce said...
on Jul. 7 2010 at 11:14 pm

Wow! This is great...I'm telling...epic! I always hate texting...and I totally agree with you. Thanks for bringing up the point of the annoyance of texting sounds, I never thought about it till now. good usage of "they say" "I say"

 

I never texted before, just twice in my three years with my cell phone. One thing is that I don't get unlimited text, but I find texting an unnessary thing. Phone calls do the trick, unless you are in a real emergency that phone lines don't work. And people talk to people, do we do that anymore? Seriously????

I find it annoying when people text in class and like you said, in movies or in formal events. It's rude and disrecpectful. And especially in class, you'll probably meet with your friends after class, won't you? It it that important?

Nice piece of writing. Keep up good work!


on Jul. 4 2010 at 5:04 pm
emergingtalent SILVER, Riverton, Utah
5 articles 0 photos 33 comments

Favorite Quote:
Be who you are and say what you feel, Because those who mind don&#039;t matter, and those who matter won&#039;t mind. -Dr. Seuss

AMEN SISTER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

on Jul. 2 2010 at 9:01 pm
JacintaT BRONZE, Brisbane, Other
4 articles 0 photos 33 comments
It's almost like you've gone into my head, taken all my thoughts on this matter and spilled it over your keyboard. This is 100% true, and I totally agree with everything you've said. My best friend ALWAYS interrupts our 'deep and meaningful' conversations to reply to a guy she fancies text message. It annoys the heck out of me! Thanks so much for writing this, I pray that everyone reads this!

reesha SILVER said...
on Jun. 20 2010 at 12:00 pm
reesha SILVER, Rawalpindi, Other
6 articles 15 photos 124 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them.&quot;<br /> Walt Disney<br /> <br /> &quot;Hakuna Matata!&quot;<br /> Lion King<br /> <br /> &quot;The British policy was &#039;unite and conquer&#039;. But I say &#039;unite and conquer&#039;.&quot;<br /> Greg Mortenson (Three Cups of Tea)

I know how you feel. I used to do the same thing, but then my mom gave me a lecture, then I realized how rude it looks. It's about time someone highlighted this issue!!

on May. 5 2010 at 4:59 pm
krazykathleen BRONZE, Edwardsville, Illinois
1 article 0 photos 99 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;7/5 of all people do not understand fractions.&quot; -Unknown

Even though I like to text, I don't text during the movies, events, etc. I completely agree- it's rude!! Great job!

on Mar. 31 2010 at 6:08 pm
tennisplayergirl GOLD, Arrington, Virginia
10 articles 0 photos 36 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;He who will not risk cannot win.&quot; John Paul Jones

i know what you mean. My parents have decided I can't have a phone, and I don't really mind. Our parents grew up without cell phones and texting, and they turned out okay. You could even say that people are happier and better at communicating without all these crazy electronics!

on Mar. 19 2010 at 8:42 pm
poetishstar13 BRONZE, Oak Ridge, Tennessee
3 articles 1 photo 9 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;dear gangsta: yo pants be fallin down, and yo life be failin.&quot;

ya know.. i hate to say it, but...lmfao. and sorry.

on Mar. 9 2010 at 9:40 pm
curlygirl BRONZE, Toledo, Ohio
1 article 0 photos 1 comment

Favorite Quote:
&quot;I&#039;d rather be hated for who I am than loved for who I am not.&quot; Kurt Cobain

Ohhh my god. I know exactly what you mean. My friend does it 24/7 and even though she says she can focus on both conversations it still really hits a nerve when she texts while talking.

on Feb. 11 2010 at 1:11 pm
Shel-Bells SILVER, Middletown, Delaware
8 articles 2 photos 13 comments

Favorite Quote:
When nothing goes right , go left (:

Im sorry you feel that way , but personaly there's a line between okay and too far. some teens need texting , like me i cant live a day without my phone , so what if im just saying lol , they said something funny ! okay well too far is texting someone we'll there at a birthday party when there supposed to be singing . But people like me can listen to people while there talking and still listen and comprehend and text at the same time. I dont deal with the beeps of pushing the buttons there is a thing called silent so that your keys dont do that . Texting is a way of life. Get used to it , sorry.

minky54333 said...
on Jan. 25 2010 at 3:31 pm
Wow this article is right on point! It's very true and yes, I do find it rude when people start texting while talking to me, or while I'm on the phone with them. I try not to do the same thing, and texting in movies? That's just ridiculous.

on Jan. 18 2010 at 8:16 pm
caitlin.calamity BRONZE, Houston, Texas
1 article 0 photos 46 comments

Favorite Quote:
Action and reaction, ebb and flow, trial and error, change - this is the rhythm of living. Out of our over-confidence, fear; out of our fear, clearer vision, fresh hope. And out of hope, progress. <br /> -Bruce Barton

I completely agree. When I get a text, I only check to see who it's from because a lot of the time it's from my dad. ESPECIALLY when I'm at the movies. I'm not allowed to turn my phone off in the movies. It must be on vibrate and I must answer within ten minutes. Otherwise, he suspects the worst. I know most people who text during conversations and movies and such aren't texting their parents, though. Honestly, there are only 2 friends of mine I text on a regular basis. So most of the time when I get a text it's my mom, dad, sister, stepmom, cousin, or anyone else that it is inherent I answer back asap.

CP3bigplay said...
on Jan. 7 2010 at 5:19 pm
CP3bigplay, Lyndhurst, Ohio
0 articles 0 photos 7 comments

Favorite Quote:
I am the master of my fate:<br /> I am the captain of my soul.<br /> <br /> Invictus, by William Ernest Henley

I can see how this frustrates you. I have a phone and I text but, honestly, I don't text that much. Well, at least compared to some people. My music teacher sends 5000-6000 texts in a month. Me, I send maybe 100-150. But that's nothing. I was watching this video on YouTube, and this kid in southern California sent 217,541 texts in March '09. The video is called "Did You Know 4.0." I think that's totally unecessary. It seems we're losing the nice VOCAL conversation.

J1208 said...
on Jan. 6 2010 at 7:31 pm
This is very true. It bugs me to no end when someone whips out their phone when your talking to them. And when they don't answer to the simplest of questions you ask them while they're texting!

on Jan. 4 2010 at 3:26 pm
cass.zero BRONZE, Maryville, Tennessee
4 articles 0 photos 2 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;I could write all day and have nothing on the paper, for my brain is were the story is.&quot;<br /> -Wilkerson!

My birthday was last month and when we were singing that annoying but very fun song, "Happy Birthday", out of the corner of my eye I saw... my best friend texting. She looked up and held a hand up in apology. "Sorry it was important." So when we were done singing I asked about it. She handed me her phone. "LOL" was here response to the text. I hate the letters LOL. It is lazy and unsophisticated. And I totally agree texting in a conversion is rude.

on Jan. 2 2010 at 4:42 pm
onehandoneheart, San Marino, California
0 articles 0 photos 19 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;In Paris they simply stared when I spoke to them in French; I never did succeed in making those idiots understand their language.&quot; - Mark Twain

Wow thanks for writing this article everything you said is so true!! Trust me, you are not the only old-fashioned person out there! (That’s a compliment) ;)

on Dec. 23 2009 at 11:49 pm
crg_rose SILVER, Johnsburg, Illinois
9 articles 0 photos 2 comments
I agree with you 100%

Way to go!

oceansblue17 said...
on Dec. 15 2009 at 10:35 am
well ive always been a texter and it doesnt rele bug me if the other person texts while were talking. but i can understand y sum people can think its annoying, thats fine. and i am sorry to any one who i may of texted durin a conversation and annoyed u. :)

lauren2323 said...
on Dec. 2 2009 at 10:22 pm
lol Very true. I actually took a friend's phone away for texting while they were out to eat with me.