cell phones...can u live without them?

[leggzz66]

i agree! i have four kids and a grandson and one on the way. my son and his gf have a four wheeler and had an accident, thats only way i found out, he called me crying from a cell phone. they are all alright, but when that addrenillan is flowing, u need to express it out. if either of us didnt have our cell, we wouldnt of been there for each other.

[AngeloAntonino]

This question will always have two sides who will argue their case.
What frustrates me is people who can't afford a mobile and yet they have one. Some poeple believe they can justify anything.

My thoughts are of course we can live without them. The only criteria's for having a mobile phone are:
1) if you can affford it
2) for business use (and the business needs to bae able to afford it)

[leggzz66]

your right about 2 sides but i disagree with your theroy. Im on a family plan myself, 9.99 a month, and mine is for emergencies. I hate being somewhere and all those business peeps talking on thier phones, so rude. i broke down on i-75 going to ada ohio and had to walk down 75 with all my kids when construction was in place, wasnt pretty, and it was hot as hells fire. I had a lady pick me up and drive me back 8 miles other way. it was a pain.

[alw_ays]

An inactivated phone will dial 911. It's the law. Keep somebody's old cell, you can get them for change these days, plugged into your cigarette lighter. "Emergency use only" covered. There are still payphones in hundreds of places around towns, so fifty cents in your pocket can reach any one else "in an emergency" other than your emergency services.

[cicy33]

I don't feel that every emergency includes 911. Like a flat tire. or out of gas, or lost. I don't even think we have payphones around here. maybe at the mall. but that is it. Do those things still exist??? A cell phone is one of the those things that to some people are a necessity and to others are a luxury. for me it is a necessary luxury. Yes, I could live without it, I choose not to, so I cut other places to afford it. Of course we also don't have a home phone anymore.

[alw_ays]

ah, but one must consider whether out of gas or flat tire or lost is a life-or-death emergency, or if the generations of people before us have managed without the convienence of just picking up a phone. A flat tire is only an emergency if you've got two. Otherwise you just don't know how, and that's your fault: did cell phones make us too lazy to learn, or too lazy to do the work? and running out of gas is our fault: did cell phones make us too ignorant to check our fuel gage and too lazy to walk to get some gas?

[leggzz66]

its not just 911, if your broke down on the highway, you can dial #55, it goes to the state troopers in that area and they do send out tows, trust me, had to do it in fort wayne.lol serpentine/pully went out in toledo and had alot of walking to do, cause i didnt have a phone at that time and if u know toledo, two years ago, which im sure its basically any year, alot of exits were blocked due to construction. my cats almost died from heat. i couldnt carry them, and walk 3 kids down i 75. 3 young kids and me hoofin it in the heat of the summer. next time thru ft wayne, i broke down again, this time had a phone, ive broke down in ft wayne, same spot, 3 times out of 4. exit 102 off 69. i was out of minutes and #55 still worked and they sent a tow for us. no walking that day!

[lynclarke]

We both have cell phones. I have a Tracfone which came with a reconditioned phone- one year plan for $108. My husband had a Verizon plan ($29.99) but ultimately, I figured out he was only using about 200 minutes per month. So I switched him to a Net 10. Yes, I had to pay for the phone but his minutes are now only 10¢. It took me about 7 months to break even- now his costs are roughly $20 a month. If I get a Target coupon like $5 off $25, I buy a Net10 card regardless whether or not he needs one to lower the overall costs. He calls his son when he is commuting back and forth to work on the metro. I think it is a good use of his time and I don't have to nag him- "have you called your son?".

I have carried a phone since the bag phone days. I was a rural hospice nurse and drove about 200 miles a day seeing various patients. At that time, a phone was critical and a life saver. Sooo much better than the beepers of old. But, now it is a convenience and for $9/mo a little treat to me.

[Aleta]

It's true that the generations before us did without these conveniences, but they also didn't live in the fast pace world that we do. People are traveling more by car and jet than they ever did, whether it be for personal or business use.

We could also say that we don't need computers either but look at how much money a computer really does save you in the long run? I would spend so much gas and time just comparing prices by going from store to store. Everything is alright in moderation. It's when we go overboard and make a nuisance out it.

[Ima saver]

I personally would not have a cell phone if it was free. They are very annoying to me. My husband only uses his for work, he never takes it anywhere else.

[Aleta]

Yes, they can be annoying but more annoying is to be in an emergency situation with no phone. You could be broken down on the side of dark street with no help in sight. People have used their phones to call for help for an emergency and have saved people's lives by being walked through an emergency procedure over the phone. I bet the person needing help was grateful that someone had a phone.

The main point is that they have a function in our lives and you don't have to answer every call that comes in. They can leave a message and you can call them back later at your convenience.

[disneysteve]

Also keep in mind that the emergency isn't always one affecting you, but could be one affecting others. On numerous occasions I have used my phone to report an auto accident that I had just witnessed and to summon an ambulance. I've called the police to report people driving erratically and probably drunk on the highway. It is very possible that my phone calls prevented those drunks from killing someone. Personally, I used my cell to call for help when the car I was driving caught fire. Without a phone, I would have had no way to call the fire department as I was on a rural highway.

Could I live without one? Sure, but I wouldn't want to.

[pheezy]

I have one and will never be without. I don't have a landline and don't see the need for one, so I opt for the cellphone. Luckily for me my work pays for the phone so I don't have to worry about the bill or charges, but even before I went with the cheapest plan and it worked out to be the same as a landline. I don't really see the need for a copper based phone anymore. I guess if you were without power for a week or two and couldn't charge the cell phone, but the landlines still worked, or if you live in an area where there is little to no service I could see the usefulness of a landline, but I don't think that applies to many people.

[leggzz66]

another bonus for all kinds of phone users, even cells, go to donotcall.gov and register your #'s there, and u wont get annoying calls. some come thru, now and then, just when you answer, tell them, did u know im on the do not call list, and they will not ever call you again!

[Lori63]

I lived pretty much without one at all until last month. I've gone back to work fulltime, have one in college, one in middle school, one in high school. Plus hubby who doesn't know much about lots of household/finances/etc. because I've run the household for the past 20 years.
We mostly text (free) but it has come in handy-like when I'm stuck at the DMV and my youngest needs to get to soccer.

[snafu]

DH has had one since they were 'bricks' as employer requires 24/7 access to faculty in case of a security threat. He had to upgrade because his was too ancient for text messaging.
DH insisted I get a cell when I was significantly late returning from a shopping journey in China. There had been an accident and the bus was snarled in traffic. There was no point in seeking a taxi in that mess. DH was frantic, sure I was lost and unable to communicate [Mandarian].

He bought me a phone the next a.m. Neither of us use them much, only to explain delays or verify directions. I think too many people shout on cells and are boors, unexceptably rude. They seems to tell people their location and ask what groceries to bring home.

I don't drive and talk as I feel it is dangerous. What do you think?

[disneysteve]

Originally Posted by snafu

DH has had one since they were 'bricks'

I never had a brick but my first phone was a bag phone. Came in a black bag the size of a pocketbook. The handset was wired to the base, like a regular home telephone, but you could carry the whole contraption with you and plug it into the cigarette lighter of the car.

[cicy33]

I am one of those people that cannot change a flat tire. and you know, so what? I pay for a very good insurance company that will come and change it for me. I have personally never run out of gas but I can say that I have been driving and suddenly realized the tank was really low. People make mistakes. It is so easy to say that people are stupid but everyone has something someone else cannot do and that is okay. I know people that cannot figure out how to do a load of wash without ruining clothes and I think that is really silly but maybe nobody ever showed them. I know people that think cooking is ordering out or heating up a can of something. Again, strange to me but oh well. And unless you break down or have a flat in the very best neighborhood in this day and age I think that it is serious especially for a woman to be stranded in a bad area. or even in a mildly good area! Cell phones are just one thing that are problems. People focus on them cuz they are all over the place. I can think of much worse issues. Can we say together: TURN SIGNALS!!!! At least 5 people turned in front of me within the last 2 days without using them. Wouldn't you say that they should know better? Drives me nuts! But I will say that I do agree that people are very rude on their cell phones in public but then I also feel people in general are rude these days in public.

[Cassandra]

For me, a cell phone is a necessity. My parents got me one for emergencies and that's all I've used it for. I once got stuck in the snow at almost 11 o'clock at night and had to go up to a stranger's house to use the phone (before I had the cell phone). Even though my town is very safe, I would never want to have to take that chance again.

If I had to, I could live without a cell phone. However, they can be a life saver (literally) and I like that I can easily reach help should I ever need it.

Cassandra