Put Down Your Phones!

[WDSearcher]

Yes it's the first thing that popped up under google out of thousands when you search "texting family"

Really makes ya think when you see it doesn't it?

Not really. It's one moment in time; it's not a documentary on their entire life. I can also type "dog drinking beer" into google and get a whole batch of photos of that. But I certainly wouldn't infer that dogs drink nothing but beer simply because I can find lots of photos of it.

You were on your computer or tablet or phone in order to post the photo, and you were on your computer to find it. If someone had taken a photo of you at that moment and posted it as, "Isn't this sad that this poor person sits at her computer all day writing to strangers instead of interacting with the real world", would that be fair? Of course not.

If you had a video of this family day in / day out for, say, a normal week and it showed them buried in their electronics and not interacting with each other, then maybe it would "make ya think". But for all we know, five minutes after this photo was taken, the family was engaged in spirited conversation about their day or their upcoming vacation or > gasp! < even what they just read on Facebook or saw on their news update. And maybe five minutes earlier they were talking about how much they missed having dad there too, and decided to check their e-mails to see if he'd sent them any messages from Afghanistan.

This photo provides no real information.

 

[LSUfan4444]

Yes I know how many games and apps they have. Doesn't mean I am going to plop on down in front of each kid instead of playing together.

Okay, nobody is asking you too. I don't hear anyone criticizing your decision to refrain from playing those very same games ona tablet or phone.

Thats one MAJOR difference.

Your assumption that a family cannot and does not have quality interaction sans the phones or tablets just because you saw them during 1 meal is premature and many, MANY times incorrect.

 

[robinb]

I'm gonna Facetime my daughter from across the table next time I'm in a WDW restaurant! Maybe that will make everybody happy.

I've done that!

 

[Lorilais_mommie]

If it doesn't directly affect you or your family why should anyone care?

The sad thing is does effect us..
My DD was standing next to me, holding my hand! and got tripped over by someone texting on the phone..
She had a bloodily nose, and ruined one of her fav. Costumes..
The lady said She was sorry went on texting and walking.. Tripping over another child a few feet later!!!

Same trip,.
In Epcot someone ran into my DH with their stroller, b/c they were trying to pull up an app for there 3 year old..


I'd hate to think Disney is going to become a place where I can't let my children walk around, b/c they could get hurt..
In a place where people are walking/standing around,
Adults need to pay more attention, to them and others..

 

[LSUfan4444]

The sad thing is does effect us..
My DD was standing next to me, holding my hand! and got tripped over by someone texting on the phone..
She had a bloodily nose, and ruined one of her fav. Costumes..
The lady said She was sorry went on texting and walking.. Tripping over another child a few feet later!!!

Same trip,.
In Epcot someone ran into my DH with their stroller, b/c they were trying to pull up an app for there 3 year old..


I'd hate to think Disney is going to become a place where I can't let my children walk around, b/c they could get hurt..
In a place where people are walking/standing around,
Adults need to pay more attention, to them and others..

Wow, that's awful. Sorry that happened to you. The things is though, how are there phones any different than the handheld maps and time guides Disney has given for years?

People that don't pay attention with a phone in their hand won't pay attention without it.

There have been instances like this going back well before cell phones and smart phones were common.

Additionally, there are a few people in this thread condemning the use of phones while seated during a meal, not just on the go (which I agree, can get dangerous if you are unaware of your sorroundings and what is going on). If safety issues are a concern by using them on the go, the lighting issue during an attraction can be a distraction, etc., wouldn't using them while seated for dinner make the most sense?

As a few have mentioned, Disney is encouraging (or at least catering) to the use of these devices to buy tickets, make reservations, reserve fastpasses, check wait times, plan your itinerary, etc. There are also others who feel the use of the Disney sites for stuff like that also helps you land pin discounts. So, the usage of these devices won't stop, and should only increase so meals seem like a perfect opportunity and would open up the rest of the day for hands free family fun.

 

[Magpie]

The sad thing is does effect us..
My DD was standing next to me, holding my hand! and got tripped over by someone texting on the phone..
She had a bloodily nose, and ruined one of her fav. Costumes..
The lady said She was sorry went on texting and walking.. Tripping over another child a few feet later!!!

Same trip,.
In Epcot someone ran into my DH with their stroller, b/c they were trying to pull up an app for there 3 year old..


I'd hate to think Disney is going to become a place where I can't let my children walk around, b/c they could get hurt..
In a place where people are walking/standing around,
Adults need to pay more attention, to them and others..

Sooo... wouldn't it have been better if those people had waited until they were sitting down waiting for their meals to pull out their phones and text?

In other words, the next time you see a family all texting at a restaurant table in Disney, think to yourself, "Oh good! They're being responsible and not texting while walking."

 

[WDSearcher]

It does. The food lines are longer because people call in phone orders to family on other rides or look at devises until they get up to front and then ponder over what to order. They stop short in the middle of the parks to answer calls. They run into us because they are texting and not looking up. Their kids are misbehaving at the boneyard and no one sees it because their noses are browsing the Internet. Watching the show Lion King there are 4 young girls on their phones and giggling. In Disaster at Universal, there was a man on his cell talking to his office yelling at employees during the whole ride.

If you don't think cell phone use has changed society into self absorbedness and how it trickles down to everyone else, you are crazy.

So then, what you're saying is that if the food line was longer because mom and dad were playing peek-a-boo with the kids and waited to get up front and then ponder over what to order, that'd be okay. And people who stop short in the middle of the parks to look at maps or guidebooks ... no problem. Kids are misbehaving at the boneyard and no one sees it because the parents have their noses in the guidebook trying to figure out the afternoon ... perfectly okay. Four young girls giggling at Lion King because they're passing notes about the cute boy next to them is fine. A man talking to his family in a loud voice in the Disaster ride is okee dokee. All these things would be okay because there are no cell phones involved.

What you're failing to see here is that it has nothing to do with the electronics. All of these behaviors happened before cellphones and iPads.

 

[MakiraMarlena]

The OP doesn't have a problem with the phones possibly being dangerous (as in people walking into stuff because they're concentrating on their phones) or distracting to others (that is all stuff that was brought up later in the thread by posters other than the OP) but thinks other guests should put down their phones because it is perceived that they are not paying attention to their families.

I am not sure it would have occurred to me that other people's families were being neglected, or that I should have concerns about it.

In fact, if anything you should probably expect to see more cell phones as soon as the whole My Disney Experience Plus thing rolls out completely.

And if giving a kid an Iphone to play with will help keep him or her from melting down in a restaurant, I'm all for it.

Who am I to say how someone else's vacation ought to be, as long as they are not bothering anyone else.

 

[Suzanne74]

Okay, nobody is asking you too. I don't hear anyone criticizing your decision to refrain from playing those very same games ona tablet or phone.

Thats one MAJOR difference.

Your assumption that a family cannot and does not have quality interaction sans the phones or tablets just because you saw them during 1 meal is premature and many, MANY times incorrect.

I am not talking about one specific family. You see it everywhere and like the OP said, now in WDW. And it isn't a 5min look into everyone's life where they normally interact the other 11 hours and 5 minutes. Come on!! Electronic devices are crutches that are addicting and everyone rationalizing the constant need for them are no different than any other addict making excuses. There is a difference between one glass of wine and 2 bottles but to the person drinking the 2 bottles, there is a always a "reason" why.

Look at the studies of increased depression, anxiety and suicide with constant social media/ phone use. There are people that can't go an hour without checking. They get anxious, can't focus, diaphoretic. Seriously, it is a crazy addiction many don't realize until they are forced in psychological studies to give up their phone for increments of 1 day to 1 week.

 

[WDSearcher]

I am not talking about one specific family. You see it everywhere and like the OP said, now in WDW. And it isn't a 5min look into everyone's life where they normally interact the other 11 hours and 5 minutes. Come on!! Electronic devices are crutches that are addicting and everyone rationalizing the constant need for them are no different than any other addict making excuses. There is a difference between one glass of wine and 2 bottles but to the person drinking the 2 bottles, there is a always a "reason" why.

Look at the studies of increased depression, anxiety and suicide with constant social media/ phone use. There are people that can't go an hour without checking. They get anxious, can't focus, diaphoretic. Seriously, it is a crazy addiction many don't realize until they are forced in psychological studies to give up their phone for increments of 1 day to 1 week.

But, again ... just because you see a family do that in the one moment of your life you see that family, doesn't mean they're all addicted to their electronics and are destined for lives of increased depression, anxiety and suicide.

Yes ... there are true electronics addicts out there. But unless you believe that every person you see drinking a glass of wine is an alcoholic, you shouldn't infer that every person checking their cellphone at dinner is addicted to electronics.

You're talking in extremes.

 

[Lorilais_mommie]

Wow, that's awful. Sorry that happened to you. The things is though, how are there phones any different than the handheld maps and time guides Disney has given for years?

People that don't pay attention with a phone in their hand won't pay attention without it.

There have been instances like this going back well before cell phones and smart phones were common.

I do understand SOME people will never pay attention, but there are more and more, due to smart phones..


If you "NEED" to use that all important cell phone, just please find a place to stand/sit so you don't hurt yourself or others..

 

[mrsltg]

The OP is commenting on an overall issue that is pretty well recognized by sociologists today: our connectivity is making us more disconnected as society. Now, before you jump up and down and say that I commenting on your parenting, or you job, or judging you in some fashion, I AM NOT. I enjoy people watching. Why people do what they do is fascinating to me. I do notice, and not just at Disney, that people are very connected to their electronics. I am guilty of it, too. I'll pull out my phone and check Facebook when I just checked it moments before. Sometimes I'll do it to the exclusion of the people who are in my company. I am working hard to change the behavior because I realize that I am not always paying attention to the life that is going on around me. These devices make it very easy to slip into a virtual world removed from reality. And yes, this can become problematic if we allow it. The bottom line is that very few of us are neurosurgeons treating patients from our IPhones will on line for Peter Pan. If we're honest with ourselves, most of us are checking out for a few moments. There is nothing wrong with that unless the behavior becomes pervasive and we forget how to interact successfully with the world around us. Sadly, this is happening with kids now, and as a society we do need to find some middle ground.

OP, I didn't see your post so much as a judgement as a commentary.

 

[LSUfan4444]

If you "NEED" to use that all important cell phone, just please find a place to stand/sit so you don't hurt yourself or others..

Well, those people are being criticized to no end in this thread.

 

[Mom2six]

I'm talking about an entire table of people doing it for the entire time they are sitting at that table next to me, or in front of me (which is why I notice, just the way I'd notice a cute purse or top, or a little baby). If you don't notice that stuff, okay, but lets not pretend that it doesn't happen and that other people don't notice.

I think the percentage of people who are actually spending the day ignoring their families and Disney World (or wherever) is quite low. I am sure there are some families that never speak to each other the whole meal. I don't notice that because although I might "see" them a few times during our meal, I am focused on my family and could not tell you if they were talking to eachother during the meal or looking at a phone the whole time. So, either you are paying no more attention to your children then the people you watch on their electronic devices or you see them a few times during the meal and assume they have been on it non-stop. Are you listening to their conversation...or I should say listening for whether or not they speak to eachother? It is more likely that you perceive them as being on their devices the whole time because you noticed them on the phone once or twice when you looked over. Just like I'll see that cute purse but I can't tell you how many times the women got something out of it because I am not looking continuously at it.

Also, the title of the thread is something similar to "Put That Phone Down" which is kind of telling people what to do

 

[Lorilais_mommie]

Sooo... wouldn't it have been better if those people had waited until they were sitting down waiting for their meals to pull out their phones and text?

In other words, the next time you see a family all texting at a restaurant table in Disney, think to yourself, "Oh good! They're being responsible and not texting while walking."

I think it's better for everyone not to use it at all!
But it's not my family sitting at a table with their cell phones out.. So although it saddens me, it does not effect me or my family..


So if given the choice, yes! I'd be happy if they only used it while sitting.. So as not to hurt others..

 

[nuke]

So then, what you're saying is that if the food line was longer because mom and dad were playing peek-a-boo with the kids and waited to get up front and then ponder over what to order, that'd be okay. And people who stop short in the middle of the parks to look at maps or guidebooks ... no problem. Kids are misbehaving at the boneyard and no one sees it because the parents have their noses in the guidebook trying to figure out the afternoon ... perfectly okay. Four young girls giggling at Lion King because they're passing notes about the cute boy next to them is fine. A man talking to his family in a loud voice in the Disaster ride is okee dokee. All these things would be okay because there are no cell phones involved.

What you're failing to see here is that it has nothing to do with the electronics. All of these behaviors happened before cellphones and iPads.

Exactly!

 

[Lorilais_mommie]

Well, those people are being criticized to no end in this thread.

I saw it as.. The people being criticized are the ones
Ignoring their family... Which does sadden me..

I also answered a someone statement about is not affecting anyone..
To which I say it does affected people lives, even children.. Using my example on how is affected us...

However if you are sitting at the table with YOUR family and everyone is on their phones.. This is NOT my family, so I do not feel I have a right to say anything to you..
Although I THINK my family will have better experiences and memories, this is your choice .. No matter how sad it my be..

 

[HippieChickadee]

@Lorilais_mommie

I love your pic!!!!

I'm late! I'm late! For a very important date!

 

[carebee21]

I'm saddened to read that an educator and parent would be so judgmental of other people without first knowing all of the facts.

You've probably seen me in the parks on my cell phone, checking email, responding to emails or even taking a phone call. And sure, while I may have been paying more attention to my phone than my son in those 5-10 minutes, it was certainly for good reason. I'm an independent contractor, so responding in a timely manner is important if I want to keep my clients. But, before you feel bad that my son is "neglected" during vacation, consider this. This type of work has allowed me to set my own hours. As such, I have been able to volunteer in his school, weekly in K-2nd grade and as needed in 3rd grade. I was able to take him to each and every speech therapy appointment he needed when he was younger, which wouldn't have been the case if I had a 9-5 as the last appointment was at 5. I've been able to go on more vacations with him, simply because I can work in the hotel room or sit by the pool in the evenings with a laptop. I couldn't do that if I worked a regular job and he would have gone to fewer places and experienced less of what he's learned and experienced on vacations. So, in your opinion, being on my phone during a vacation is so detrimental to my child, but in reality, being able to access my phone on vacation has opened so many doors and allowed me to do what I feel is in the best interest of my child.

 

[Lorilais_mommie]

@Lorilais_mommie

I love your pic!!!!

I'm late! I'm late! For a very important date!

Thank you!
However they have added railings now, and is talk of enclosing that part of the ride..
It will never look like that again.. :-(