Is it rude to check your BlackBerry in public? |
97 Comments |
Posted by Marc Saltzman at 4:25 PM | E-mail this post
Had an enjoyable lunch today at a Dell event in downtown Toronto and found myself seated at a table with a few analysts and journalists (including Sync contributor and all-around nice guy, Peter Wolchak). OK, so I glanced at my BlackBerry a few times as I was expecting an important email. Was that rude?
So I've read all these articles about how our social graces are going in the dumpster because our faces are stuck in our smartphones when in public. Etiquette has been kicked to the curb in today's day and age, and all that.
Honestly, I don’t think I’m one of *those* guys who can't carry on an eye-to-eye conversation with someone, but it's true when you work for yourself and you have access to your digital world in the palm of your hand, it's freaking tempting to look down to see what's going on. After all, if it weren't for this technology I wouldn't be able to attend this lunch n' learn event because I'd be tethered to my PC at home, no?
So, what' the proper protocol? Never look at your BlackBerry when you'e in public? Or is it perfectly acceptable today to carry on a conversation while you're thumbing through your inbox? Personally, I split the difference: I politely notified the table of 6 or so that I was expecting an email from an editor and had to check my messages every few minutes, and I did not continue talking to anyone while looking down at my phone. Did I handle this correctly?
What do you do?
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Posted by Marc Saltzman at 4:25 PM in Handhelds
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| Comments (97)
Mike on November 21 at 5:26 PM | Report abuse
I have a notification tone on mine that is just loud enough for anyone I'm talking with to hear. When it goes off, everyone knows that I have an email/text/phone call and, depending on the company I'm in, I either ignore it, or if it's important, I'll ask them to excuse me and answer it.
Tarrah on November 21 at 5:42 PM | Report abuse
All depends. Did you stop and read the e-mail and respond back to it when you got it? I don't see this as something wrong, you told them that you were expecting an important call. It wasn't as if people were texting you and you were texting them back throughout the whole conversation.
Steve on November 21 at 8:45 PM | Report abuse
This is why there is vibrate so you don't have to keep looking and then when you get your important email just go to the bathroom, that way no one knows and you can kill 2 birds with one stone.
Carter on November 22 at 12:07 AM | Report abuse
I like Steve's comment because it's true. Personally, although I stay away from cell phones, I would think as long you let them know and excuse yourself from their company without making a scene people should be okay with you taking important calls/e-mails/texts.
Dwayne on November 22 at 3:32 AM | Report abuse
Any excuse for using your hand held device while speaking with others is not only ignorant, it can be dangerous. Any attempt to explain otherwise only belittles those around you. You only made the effort to show how powerful and important you think you are.
The proper thing to do is to demonstrate your real power and ability by managing your schedule responsibly and by turning off the device to respect any situation. This applies to private meetings with your boss, subordinates, friends or family, as well as public gatherings such as movie theatres and driving.
You never need to ask if it is okay, you know better.
If you were my child, I would confiscate the device. As an adult, I would get up from the table and say “I will contact you at my convenience.”
Sandra Davis on November 22 at 9:13 AM | Report abuse
Yes i consider it rude ! If you say " Excuse me , I need to check my BlackBerry for a moment" then proceed to check it... fine , but to just bring it out of your pocket & start checking it, especially if you are engaged in conversation with this person, then yes , it is in my opinion, RUDE !
Tina on November 22 at 10:41 AM | Report abuse
Well, as stated there is a vibration mode..Use that. I have a BLackberry too, and when it vibrates I check it(when it is not rude) when I have time.I dont jump and check it the very second I get it. People who non -stop are texting and checking there Blackberrys look like they r trying to be COOL, and you are not! Just annoying!
Marc Saltzman on November 22 at 10:46 AM | Report abuse
Thanks for the feedback, guys. I failed to mention the BlackBerry was on silent (not even vibrate) but had to glance at it from time to time...such is the life of a freelance journalist...!
Marc
Hannah on November 22 at 12:02 PM | Report abuse
I think it depends on your attitude, but I personally have no problem with people checking their Blackberry, especially if it's something important.
Schmid on November 22 at 12:04 PM | Report abuse
YES
bigted on November 22 at 1:38 PM | Report abuse
I just got my blackberry yesterday so I am new at this. But I am a free lance writer so keeping in contact with my editor can be very important. I would set it to vibrate and excuse myself from the table to look. They don't need to know why, you could be going to the washroom However, you might be someone who gets lots of e-mails and that might not work in which case depending on the company and the situation, I might just be honest and say so.
Having said that is it any different than glancing at our watches - in some circles that would be considered rude too.
John on November 22 at 5:31 PM | Report abuse
I have to agree with Dwayne.
Get an assitand,
your prodectivity will increased by 100% and you will finish conversations and the meal while it is hot.
hamburglar on November 22 at 5:41 PM | Report abuse
I grew up with parents that ran a business. They were working even at home or dinner or when they were among friends because of constant phone calls. It's an understandable situation.
Personally, I think you did the right thing. To say that you are rude, is a bit harsh. People nowadays have careers that are impacted by the standards of technology.
In the end, it really depends where you are, the relationship between the person you are having a conversation with, and the seriousness of the conversation.
Eric Morse on November 22 at 5:49 PM | Report abuse
Mainly it's called self-discipline. You do not need to be tethered to any device, and unless you are a rapid response medical, bomb-disposal or SWAT team or stockbroker there is rarely as much urgency to anything as you wish to persuade yourself there is.
I can feel smug of course since having vision problems (no, not THAT kind of Vision!) I can't use a BlackBerry at all, or text on a regular phone. For me the smallest it will ever get is those nice almost-pocket-sized ASUS thingies with the flash drives. But I still forget to turn off my phone at lunch when I remember to bring my phone at all.
Rule 1A In public is ok; in public spaces like restaurants and theatres it is not ok.
Rule 1B: in company (any kind of conversation group) it io never ok. Your immediate company takes precedence over all remote contacts.
Rule 2. You're expecting an important call/message/whatever. When it comes, you'll know it because the phone will, you know, ring or vibrate or whatever it is they do now. So don't bother checking, you're just telling everyone around you that someone who isn't there is more important than they ever could be.
In ALL cases. Whoever you are presently physically with is more important than someone not there who might or might not call. Stoop squandering your moral credit with others, one day you'll need it.
E
anonymous on November 22 at 6:56 PM | Report abuse
i dont think so
Patricia on November 22 at 10:19 PM | Report abuse
Absolutely 100% rude. I find it offensive that a person can't carry on a personal conversation without checking any device.
Put the darned thing away - at least while you are in my company.
Pete on November 22 at 10:37 PM | Report abuse
I think it depends on the company you are with.
I too am a journalist and often on call for fires/accidents and so on.
If I'm with fellow journalists, I would hope they would understand when I quickly check an incoming vibrating alert.
However, in a more personal setting, I think it is rude. Checking your iPhone or blackberry while enjoying dinner with a personal friend, family member or beautiful, engaging date, it is time to not only ignore the machine, but turn it off completely. Amazing - they do take messages!
chris on November 22 at 10:49 PM | Report abuse
YES IT WAS RUDE !!!
jenn on November 23 at 12:43 AM | Report abuse
It is so rude. Im sure your email can wait 30 min. till lunch is over.
kitkat on November 23 at 1:05 AM | Report abuse
No, I think depending on the company, and the occasion, it is not rude to check an incoming msg/email, as long as you're checking it because you actually got an alert.
Personally, i broke my watch a little while back, and have yet to replace it, because my phone has become my new time-keeper, so I haven't seen the need. Treat it like a watch... ask yourself before you look at it whether, in the other persons/peoples place, would you feel like you are being treated with disrespect?.. would you come off as a person who is constantly looking at his watch because he is bored of his present company?
M on November 23 at 1:11 AM | Report abuse
Tough! I feel in certain settings that its so rude! Such as, during an intimate breakfast, lunch, dinner, etc. However, in the case that its at an event similar to your lunch event. I feel that a polite warning with an apology, without carrying a conversation while checkin the Berry, is acceptable. I am so very annoyed by people checking their phones while i'm talking to them, or engaging in some way. In this case, I feel you did the right thing. I would have done the same.
CK on November 23 at 4:20 AM | Report abuse
What is so important in everyone's life that they need to check something every minute? It's a sad sad world when people seem to think that an email or text message can't wait 2,10,30 minutes or more without life as they know it stopping. TURN IT OFF for meetings, meals, etc. Everyone else can wait. As a Manager of Information Systems, I have a cell phone for emergencies, and staff that I trust to handle everything in between. I have a hard enough time remembering to turn the volume up on my phone after taking the kids to a movie, and I will only carry a 'Blackberry' or similar gizmo when they offer a feature to VIBRATE/go silent for a SET period (mute for 1 hr say). My beef is I want to 'mute' it for a 1 hour meeting for example, but not have to constantly 'remember' to turn it back up afterwards. (needs something like a 'snooze' feature on the audibles to allow people a chance to 'live' away from technology beeps for a while!)
Anyone from RIM here reading??
Can't go 2 minutes with playing with your 'device'? Get a life then I say. Family should come first, along with the company you're 'PHYSICALLY' around! Anything else is ignorant I say.
Billy Perks on November 23 at 6:52 AM | Report abuse
Now what kind of question is that??? It's like asking.."Does Dolly Parton sleep on her back"? Blackberry's,Cell Phones, Ipods, etc. should be shoved up the keister's of ANYBODY that opens one, listens to one or texts on one while at work UNLESS either your house is burning down or your dad is being rushed to the ER with chest pains,what scourage thou has wrought on society!!!!!
Vinnie on November 23 at 7:04 AM | Report abuse
I don't open my laptop at the dinner table, in washrooms, while driving, at restaurants, on subway platforms etc...No one and I mean NO ONE is that important that they need to check their berry every 2 seconds and avoid face to face conversations and those that do live in a world that tells me I don't want them in mine!
elaine mitchell on November 23 at 7:18 AM | Report abuse
I do feel that it is rude to be checking your Blackberry, cell phone etc. while in public...I'm tired of people interupting with calls, should you as a customer have a sales associate answer or check their phones whilst dealing with them you would not be happy, well it goes both ways, turn your devices off for awhile, take time to interact in person, we always take everything to the extreme.....be thankful for the technology, but use it with common sense, something else we seem to be running short on.
Martin on November 23 at 7:24 AM | Report abuse
I can't agree with swaying to the power of any device while conversing or meeting with others. I watch my daughter on the computer/MSN with her cell phone handy for texting and phoning as well as our land line in case another call comes in. And we still need to leave messages? I ask my own daughter to pack it up and concentrate on one thing, why can't we do the same?
Bryan on November 23 at 7:28 AM | Report abuse
It's unfortunate that the convenience of "on demand" services has created such a burden. Simply put, if someone is demanding it then someone else has to deliver. Instant gratification comes with a price.
I'm newly self employed and I've quickly discovered that being your own boss is a 24/7 job. I've forced myself to focus on the task at hand and ignore the current crisis for the moment. Not only does it make me more productive and less stressed, but I also find that most times the crisis averts itself.
Put down the Blackberry and enjoy your lunch.
B on November 23 at 7:54 AM | Report abuse
WEll, I do not do this, as I find it rude when it is done in my company, though I must say, the standard of acceptability was set when you are seeking service in a retail store, for example, and the person is attending to you, and then their business phone rings, and it gets answered before the person finishes serving me. No, they do not typically say, can you hold? They deal with it there and then. Some have put the caller on hold, but rarely. There you go!
Steve on November 23 at 7:57 AM | Report abuse
Think of it in the context of manners in General. If you glance when the conversation does not focus on you AND it does not disrupt others there is no problem. If you rate your physical company as less important than your blackberry/phone/pager it will be seen as such. If you have to check & you are the center of the conversation excuse yourself to the washroom/Bar & check there. It is all about making those around you feel like they are the most important people in the world to you at that moment.
Cynthia Chan on November 23 at 8:10 AM | Report abuse
My former boss had a Blackberry with her; she's deaf, so the Blackberry was essential. Anytime an e-mail came her way, she'd glance at it, and put the Blackberry away, responding later.
I guess it depends on the situation. It's OK to check it if an e-mail does come in (and it rings or vibrates), but it is not OK to keep checking every minute or so.
Rhonda on November 23 at 8:16 AM | Report abuse
I think it is rude if someone is ignoring a dinner partner (or group in this case) and texting, etc...but because you use this device for work, and you informed everyone as to why you needed to be checking your email, i think that is perfectly acceptable. A doctor uses a pager for important calls ie: baby deliveries, emergency operations, etc. and we don't think anything of the interruption-so I think if people know that you are working, and not just socializing via your Blackberry, while in their company-I don't think anyone is going to be offended! :)
Clare on November 23 at 8:18 AM | Report abuse
Dear Marc, yes I do think it is rude to keep looking at your blackberry during a lunch engagement.I cannot imagine that you would even entertain the idea of looking every few minutes to see if your "important" message from your editor had come through. I think my age group of 60 plus puts me in the quite old fashioned group, and therefore my take on this is going to be a lot different from the younger people.
All this merely serves to do,is make people feel more important than their lunch companions. There is absolutely no reason not to wait until lunch is over. We are talking only one to two hours here. Please , give me a break and lets put manners back on the table ; not Blackberry`s .Clare.
Wayne R. Smith on November 23 at 8:46 AM | Report abuse
I feel that it is indeed rude to ignore the folks you are with in favour of your 'crackberry' but having joined the ranks of those that use/need them it has become increasingly difficult to follow the proper etiquette. I generally let those around me lead the way - if they are constantly on the device then I simply follow their lead - I would prefer to do something useful with my time than to be surrounded by folks all more interested in their phone/email. The truly most annoying breach of etiquette is when these same folks take calls and don't excuse themselves or if you're in a business or personal meeting with someone and they ignore you to take a call - that to me is the ultimate in RUDE. The call is more important than the meeting you arranged? Living in Singapore this is such a frequent occurrence it is amazing - you'll attend a meeting with someone who called the meeting - booked the meeting likely on their BB and then during that very same meeting they're 'excusing' themself to take a call - that to me is the ultimate in rude. Also I keep my BB on silent mode/vibrate for all purposes - there is nothing more annoying than sitting in a meeting or at dinner or anywhere else for that matter - and this happened in movie theatres - and have someone's annoying tone or even worse favourite song start blaring.
RV on November 23 at 10:41 AM | Report abuse
Well I guess this is a situational thing. If you are in a meeting/special occation then you should be able to leave the call or e-mail until you are done. If you are out with friends for say a quick let's get together lunch, then I think checking a call or e-mail when your device alerts you to quickly assess weather it is urgent or not is acceptable. Put your device on vibrate mode people. I have had my phone on vibrate for 5 years now and never on ring (the one time it somehow ended up on ring, I missed the call because I didn't realize it was mine). If you are with friends, why should they get upset if you check when alerted. They did choose to be with you at the time. They could have declined or cancelled the get together to be available for the call/e-mail if they knew it was coming. Besides, I have never heard anyone say that it was rude to answer their phone at home when it rings. Just use common sense and again put it on vibrate so no one knows it has gone off, especially in public.
Jacob on November 23 at 10:46 AM | Report abuse
What ever happened to enjoying lunch with friends, and not having their faces glued to their phones texting or checking their e-mail/messages through out lunch. I think it sends the message that your company in not really interesting and I must carry my little device around with me to be entertained. I think it is one of the worse social effects on society. A group of people can go out for lunch and actually spend more time talking/texting with other people, then with their actual group they are with...I just hate it, the e-mails/messages/texting can wait an hour...what ever happened to stress free moments with friends....
Marc Saltzman on November 23 at 10:47 AM | Report abuse
Thanks for the great feedback, guys.
I agree it depends on the situation -- and your company. I wouldn't pull out my smartphoine while out with my wife at a fancy restaurant but when with a group of people at an event -- and high-tech journalists and analysts who were also doing the same thing -- I think it'as more accepted. I love working for myself, truly, but one of the downsides is that you're always "on call" and sometimes have a hard time segregating personal and professional life.
Marc
Scott on November 23 at 10:59 AM | Report abuse
I dont like this at all. I was on vacation with my family and my wifes sisters family at Disney this past summer. Every 2 or 3 minutes she would stop to check her stupid blackberry and then spend the time in between checkings telling us what was going on back at her home or job or whatever. She is an accountant so it is not like it was really important work stuff, it was just social. She may as well not have come on the trip at all because she never left work.
Rhonetta Hayes on November 23 at 11:13 AM | Report abuse
I believe that it is very rude to be on your blackberry while at an event. If I am expecting an important email, then I will excuse myself from the table and go to the restroom and check my email, but other than that, if you're just checking your emails for no reason, then you've got issues... I think we need to learn to have some down time, where we have fun and are not obsessed with our work 24/7. We need to have time for our families and friends. I don't know, is it just me?
Daniel J. Andrews on November 23 at 11:16 AM | Report abuse
Was that message from your editor of such importance that you had to check for it every few minutes? Couldn't it wait, say, 30 minutes? And if it was of such importance that you needed to check every few minutes, then does that mean you needed to respond to it right away? In which case, why were you out having lunch when something of such importance would require your immediate attention? Or if it was so urgent, then why didn't the editor contact you by phone (assuming you have a cell phone) instead? That is certainly the better way to handle urgent requests.
If you didn't need to respond right away though, then why bother checking every few minutes?
So without knowing anything about your situation specifically, it sounds like you're just making excuses as to why you were checking your email. It sounds almost like you have an addiction, and you're feeling a bit defensive about checking your email due to some comments from your table mates. Mind you, I could be completely wrong about the urgency of the email and you did need to check every few minutes.
Whether you were rude or not, I don't know. That's between you and the type of company that you are in. You may want to look at a 12-step program though.... ;-) (half-joke).
Warren on November 23 at 11:33 AM | Report abuse
I think most people have gotten out of control with blackberrys and other pda's. We have to get back to reality and shut down these devices when having lunchons or out for dinner. I think it is highly rude deciding to pay more attention to your Blackberry than the people you are with and also very annoying.
Times that I ave been in resturants and people answer there phone and such, I find this very disturbing to my enjoyment of having a nice meal.
Proper etiquette is gone just left with total rudeness.
Warren
Cheryl Matiation on November 23 at 11:53 AM | Report abuse
It is not rude to check your blackberry in public, but it is rude to check it at the breakfast/lunch/dinner table. You are basically telling everyone you are sitting with that they are not important enough for you to spend time with.
Grant on November 23 at 12:05 PM | Report abuse
Sorry Marc,
You are totally off base and are simply doing what everyone else does to justify their rudeness. Expecting an important call, have to check every few minutes? Cmon how important was it anyway. Be real, the problem is everyone has become too self important. Prioritize. tell your table guests that you are expecting an "important"call and would they mind if you checked every half hour, that is much more reasonable. If "the call" was important enough maybe you shouldn't have been there. I am in the camp of "our social graces are going into the dumpster" In 20 years of corporate life I can think of fewer than 1 time a month (and I am being extremely generous) where I would need to "get information" on a real time basis if I was scheduled to be elsewhere. Be honest with yourself (and your guests)
Arn on November 23 at 12:31 PM | Report abuse
Whether or not you should answer a blackberry or any other smartphone in public really depends on the context.
If you are in a social engagement in a restaurant or coffee bar for example, and if you must answer the call, then immediately excuse yourself from the table and take your call out of ear shot. Nobody likes to be ignored because you cannot organize your time better, so if you insist on checking your emails or taking your calls, do it where nobody has to suffer through your tiresome distractions.
If you are in a business meeting with several other narcissitic, navel gazing, smartphone carrying busines troglodytes,then by all means read your emails and answer your calls at the meeting because after you are in a meeting with a bunch of boors who would not hesitate to be equally rude to you. Birds of a feather.
If you are alone on the floor of a public space, then use a handsfree device with your blackberry when you are responding to a call. You will then be able to walk around a public space apparently talking to yourself while all those near you can snicker and smirk because you appear to be a delusional idiot.
I hope I have clarified my position on the etiquette of blackberry use.
Alex on November 23 at 1:41 PM | Report abuse
Im so glad no one in my house has a cellphone or Black Berry; its easier just to go without them. Really, it is. Id rather not be bothered by the world while Im out.
If essential to have one, respect people around you while using it. (minimal conversation, talk quietly, etc). Doesnt matter who you're around, be it friends, family, business partners, or even on the bus surrounded by strangers. Show common curtesy, please.
mad as hell, and not going to take it anymore on November 23 at 1:46 PM | Report abuse
Mobile phones and text messaging are not too far removed from any other social disease in today's society. Both are widespread, nobody wants to admit to being part of the problem and although one makes the individual physically ill, the other makes everyone else around them annoyed and disgusted with their inability to demonstrate courtesy to others.
This problem is rampant among [but not limited to] younger people today, who cannot comprehend the demands by others for them to turn it off or take it outside when they engage in calls or text messaging. This is especially widespread at the cinema. It is selfish for someone to have a bright light-emitting, loud noise generating device anywhere around other people, especially in a place like the theatre, a lecture, or the cinema. Talking LOUDLY on public transit is another sign of just how rude people have become and it is a direct result of the use of these devices.
I was at the cinema a few weeks ago and there was a man seated a few seats away from me actually trying to read a newspaper by the light of his mobile phone- during the picture. When asked to stop this behaviour, he muttered a disgusting comment, and continued reading as though I had some nerve to actually want to watch the film... after-all, he was trying to read his newspaper! Why he was even there I do not know.
I was unable to enjoy another film on a different night when a young couple were repeatedly making calls and text messaging- throughoutthe entire film- [why were they even there?] ...despite my repeated requests- that later became strong demands- to turn it off or leave. Thier reaction was one of utter dumbfoundedness- they had no concept of courtesy to the people around them. this problem in the cinema happens all the time, it makes me not want to go at all. Thankfully, in LA there is a cinema that has strong rules in place to enforce their rules so I can at last enjoy a film now :)
These devices, along with email and the geometrically expanding social networking sites online have together contributed to a tremendous loss in real, progressive social behaviour that involves face to face communication, and courtesy towards others. if you do not understand what I mean, just take a look at how many people go online to make horrifically rude and slanderous comments towards others yet keep their name a secret, using instead an online psuedonym- it is entirely anonymous and therefore eliminates any form of accountability or retribution- this has been a rampant problem in the internet for years and years and will probably alweays be there, ensuring a further growth of rude behaviour.
Everyone MUST have their devices on at all times, and MUST respond immediately, no matter when or where they are -and just like smokers, [who don't care about their own health, so how can one expect them to care about the health of those around them?] -simply do not care if it annoys anyone else around them. Thier call or text message is far too important than anyone else.
There was a time when the only people who had mobile phones were doctors and police officers. Today, six year old children have them. Technology has advanced far faster than human beings' ability to evolve socially- it is inevitable that rudeness will result from the use of loud, bright noisy electronic toys. People must let everyone know their toy is special and the newest greatest thing, therefore they show it off in public. This is a psychological defect encouraged by mass advertising brainwashing us into believing that we will be better happier people with a higher social status if we only owned this 'thing'.
It is all a sign of a degeneration in social manners that has probably past the tipping point.
I too have a mobile phone, it is unfortunatelty necessary in my work but I am only too happy to turn the damn thing off, or turn off the ringer when I am in the company of others, whether I know them or not, and I refuse to partake in text messaging. That alone is possibly responsible for the rapidly growing iliteracy in our society. If you don't believe that, just listen in to young people how they engage one another in conversation.
I work in a high technology field and rely upon the latest greatest fastest most advanced computers and telecommunications in my career and am grateful for all of it... but that does not mean that we as human beings must be selfish and rude to those around us as we thoughtlessly go about our conversations or business publicly, in a manner that annoys and disgusts those around us. There are always alternatives to being rude.
There.
I got it off my chest. I feel so much better now :)
Jamie on November 23 at 1:58 PM | Report abuse
Sounds like substance abuse.
Jamie on November 23 at 2:04 PM | Report abuse
How about Narcissistic Personality Disorder?
John Brown on November 23 at 2:27 PM | Report abuse
To start, I have had a blackberry for a number of years now and made a concious decision to not get the "addiction". I only carry mine when I am going to be away from my office for an extended period of time or travelling on business. Even while out with others I will find an appropriate private moment to check mine. Call me old school but I do not appreciate only getting the half attention of others when face to face and would expect that I exhibit the same respect. It brings back memories of working in Argentina for a few years. The business culture there seemed to dictate that if an office phone rang while in a discussion then the discussion should be lower pioritized and the recieving of the call take priority. Imagine the shocked look on their faces when I would say "Don't answer that call, let it go to voice mail" I soon realized that I was no further ahead. The person would be so rattled by the fear that they had missed some important message they only half contributed to the conversation anyways.
My point being on this is that we are on a slippery slope, the young are so attached to their electronic devices these days that real face to face events seem to have become secondary communication forums. Where will this lead us in the future? Will we all only communicate remotely? Certainly that scenario would contribute to a more balanced use of energy, but at what cost to relationship building and friendship? Let alone personal interchange? Just another mystery for these changing times.
Brigid on November 23 at 3:52 PM | Report abuse
I think the Blackberry has become such a common part of society today that a table of business people shouldn't be offended by a couple of glances at one. Yes it is rude to be glued to your Blackberry at all times but if you can keep up with the conversation, maintain eye contact and all other social graces while pressing one button on your Blackberry every so often to check for an email then you're probably fine. I think that particularly in the industries the lunch dates were in Blackberry use should be *more* than understood.
JimMcc524 on November 23 at 4:25 PM | Report abuse
It's not rude if you aren't bothering anyone or disturbing their space. If you're looking at your Blackberry and even responding, and your ringer isn't even on - then they can only be disturbed if they are staring at you - so they are the ones being offensive. Most people who complain about this sort of thing don't have a Blackberry and have no idea what the big deal is. They are invaluable.
What's next for these people? Next thing you know they'll be trying to stop us from typing on then while we're driving. Sheesh.