Before we discuss whether the cellphone is a boon or bane, let us accept that it is an addiction the world over. In the 1990s, during one of my visits to the U.S., I noticed very few mobile phones in public. My relatives and friends had only land lines at home and a regular phone in their cars. But on my return to Bangalore after a few months, I was pleasantly surprised to see a building worker ordering materials for the day on the cellphone. In fact, today I saw a couple of gardeners listening to music on their mobile phones as they worked!
A.J. Venkatasubramanyam,Chennai
I would like to narrate how I found a way to get rid of unwanted and unsolicited SMS. A friend used to flood me with SMSs, some of them in bad taste. I sent him an SMS from my new mobile phone (the number of which he did not know) saying “We have received a number of complaints from mobile service providers that vulgar SMSs are being sent from your mobile to other mobile phone subscribers. You may be booked under the Information Technology Act — CCP.” He stopped sending SMSs — even the good ones — not only to me but also to others.
G. Johnson Manickaraj,Chennai
The older generation considers mobile phones with cameras a threat to others' privacy and freedom. Of course, the fear makes sense in a society where sex education is considered to be against the cultural values. When we look at the distribution of mobile phone-porn through the Internet and blue tooth among youngsters, we find that the girls who fall victim are uneducated (acquiring degrees does not mean getting educated) or have low self-esteem. The need of the hour, therefore, is not licensing of mobile phones but inclusion of sex education in the school curriculum. Personally, I rarely use the mobile phone because I find it disturbing. But I do not believe in forcing others to think like me as long as their freedom is not restricting my freedom.
V.R. Sudeesh,Thiruvananthapuram
