Stone Soup by Jan Eliot for March 22, 2014

Val, you are soooo 19th century! Or so she would have you think! ;)

Star Trek predicted everyone would have a communicator on their chest.

We send out all of our church notices via email, and you’d be amazed (or maybe not) by the people who didn’t know about such and such, and then are angry that nobody called them.

I check my e-mail a couple of times a day. But my phone is too small to read. That is why I have my iPad with me at all times.

Its been going on for ten years already. The difference being it wasn’t as socially “acceptable” as it is now. Back then most people would acknowledge they were being rude—now they think YOU are being rude for expecting their attention when you are face-to-face.

Quick Val take her phone too.

With your brother ignoring or too busy with his life and not bothering with any message then leave him out. If he does not want to be bothered leave him out. He may not ask for holidays what everyone is doing and excuse not to attend.

My daughter cannot stand talking on phone but will text.

Borg implantsJust get it over with

. . . and I suppose that if you send him snail-mail, he’ll take his sweet time in opening it – if at all.

Last night I was with my homies that meet in each other’s houses every Friday – have since 1968, and we’re getting a bit long in the tooth. Well, all my husband and I have is a landline, two cell phones, computers, and cable TV. The rest of them were talking about hot spots and boxes and whether their provider double-charged them, and other arcane stuff I can’t recall.

For a look at the future from the past please read Ray Bradburys’ short story “The Murderer”.

In time, the fashion will become to be fashionably out of touch, hard to reach. People will give a very few true emergency contacts a reliable address/number. Everyone else will marvel at the fact that emails don’t get answered and calls not returned. The true elite will never be seen with a mobile communication device.

Every time someone “connects” with someone two states over, they ignore someone two inches away.

I have been connected to the internet since 1981… Even before I had a cell phone I read & respond to emails as soon as they come in… It may have been a fad back in the 80’s… it is now a way of life.

I never spend time with anyone who ignores me for their phone. That is rude and I have better things to occupy my time.

Yes, it’s pretty obvious that so many of the generation that “debuted” socially during the connectivity craze have zero social skills; have life skills limited to the size of their screen; are frightened of everything not contained in a phone; and believe that total self-involvement is completely natural, like Joan. I feel sorry for them, they are so vulnerable to the reality they don’t even know exist. The sad truth is that the only thing they’re connected to is themselves.

And, btw, Joan’s responses to her sister are disgusting. “Can’t stay in the past” because she prefers actual rather than virtual contact? “Get over it..” What incredible rudeness. I could get over a relationship like that very easily. Next time she needs someone to help with her actual children she can go to her virtual friends for it.

How true, now everyone is playing 2048.

The ones that don’t have emails should be mailed the church notices.