The next great addiction
Move over, alcohol. Get out of the way, cocaine. It’s time we acknowledge the most addicting habit to come our way: cell phones.
Records now show that nearly 90 percent of us subscribe to cell phone service of some sort. Less than five years ago, that number was 13 percent. This addiction doesn’t discriminate, as it affects men, women and children of all ages, races, religion or sexual orientation. Depending on the survey, somewhere between 60 to 70 percent of us say, when given options, that our cell phones would be one of the last items we would be willing to give up.
A few years ago, 220 Rutgers University students were asked to turn off their cell phones for 72 hours, and only three were able complete the task, citing high levels of anxiety, stress and insecurity. Few of these students paid their cell phone charges personally, much like our state workers.
Recent reports show that state of Iowa employees received annual tax-funded cell phone services exceeding $2.1 million. Rep. Jodi Tymeson, R-Winterset, unsuccessfully proposed that cell phone benefits for state employees be cut back, saving taxpayers $500,000 a year. Now that’s something to call home about.
Meanwhile, Marshall County is taking matters into its own hands by considering a ban on cell phone usage while driving. And although this may seem impractical for only one county to do, they may be on to something.
Addictions are serious business. Children ages 12 and 13 in Spain are now being treated for cell phone addiction. It won’t be long before government programs will be created here to do the same, and our tax dollars will certainly pay to treat them, if they aren’t already.
We can all try to break our addiction to cell phones, but we won’t. Advice includes setting limits on how long we use our phones each day, turning them off at certain times or purchasing prepaid minutes so as not to go overboard. These all sound great, but so does eating less and exercising more.
The simple fact is that we are addicted to cell phones, regardless of who pays for the services or when we use them. We are afraid to be without them, even for short periods of time, and we need help. If there was ever a need for government intervention, it should happen now before it costs us all a great deal more. CV
