Letter to the Editor

In response to the article written on students and their cell phones while in class, let me say this loud and clear: Huh?? In this land that’s in its own little world, where Gucci shades, Porsche convertibles, and breast implants are as common as the warm weather, you don’t have to be a genius to know that 99% of the calls students get during class are not emergencies. Lets just admit what this is really all about: social calls.
A sorority sister trying to figure out where and with who to eat lunch for the day. A roommate wanting to know which club to go out to that night. Or someone exchanging gossip while standing a whopping fifty feet away. Well God, let me stop the presses! Those are some real can’t-wait crises, huh?
I am glad professors have cracked down on the annoying little gadgets that are cellular phones. Nobody has the right to disrupt an entire class for the sole purpose of social interaction. I couldn’t tell you how many times somebody’s phone has rung during one of my classes, even though they’re supposed to be off, and it totally interrupted the flow of discussion or lecture. No, lectures should and will not wait for somebody’s social life.
So just turn the damn things off or silence the ringer. I understand that sometimes people forget, but I also know that a lot of times they don’t. And with today’s technology, most cell phones come equipped with a vibrating option and caller ID, so if it is really dyer then the student can be notified quietly enough and not disturb the whole class.
I own a cell phone and yes, I sometimes need to take a call, and yes, I’ve forgotten to turn it off before class a couple of times. Hey, we’re human. But there is no way in hell I believe in intentionally letting my personal business interfere with others for the whole hour and fifteen minutes that class lasts. I have too much respect for those who are trying to learn and for the professors who are trying to teach. And my education is just too important to me.
Unfortunately, however, there is the sad realization that there are those here who are treating school like a paid vacation and frankly don’t care. Kudos to professors for taking a stand against this increasingly irritating and abundant abuse of technology. One missed call could ruin a life? Oh, for Godsake, go back to the valley.

Derek Bramble is a junior majoring in broadcast journalism.