Riding a bike can be hazardous to your health, especially if
you’re around people who are connected.
I routinely ride a bicycle for exercise in the summer along
the streets and off-road trails around my neighborhood in Dearborn, Michigan. I
wear safety gear to protect my head and hands, but there’s no padding to
deflect drivers on cell phones or school kids walking with their heads down and
locked in on smart phones.
Last week, I took a late lunch and went for my usual
45-minute ride. I go about eight miles, and I’m used to carefully crossing busy
main streets. Most drivers are courteous and will stop for me even when they
have the right of way. But those on phones will roll right through stop signs.
Many will be on the phone and looking in one direction, preparing to turn,
while continuing to move right through an intersection and blowing the stop
sign. I stay on the sidewalk until I’m confident it’s safe.
I don’t normally see too many young people at lunchtime, but
my late departure last week changed that. It was amazing! High school kids can
walk for blocks with their heads down, eyes glued to cell phone screens as they
obliviously stroll through intersections or up sidewalks. Last week, I watched
a long line of kids on their way out of Dearborn High School, each one alone,
many looking at devices or listening to music on ear buds. It looked like a
line of drones headed home in a trance. No jovial conversations, No one living
in the moment absorbed with friends and natural surroundings. Just a somber
stroll back to the hive, with an electronic buzz guiding them home.
I stopped my bike for a good minute and observed some 50
kids, no one talking to the other. But half of them were on devices in virtual conversations.
Their expressions were glum despite the gorgeous weather on a brilliantly sunny
and mild day.
All communications technology comes with its share of
hazards. But I predict today’s small-screen hyper-connectivity will produce
poor vision, sore necks and a decline in conversation.
Hopefully, the person-to-person contact doesn’t occur
because people are literally running into each other. Heads up out there!
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