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Tuesday, 19 September 2006 16:27 |
| John North
Editor & Publisher |
I find the inconsiderate use of cellular telephone technology among the most irritating aspects of todayës society.
Worldwide, cell phones disturb plays, concerts, lectures, films, funerals and weddings. Cell phones are omnipresent, bleeping and buzzing in trains, airplanes, restaurants and even bathrooms.
I even saw a student jabbering on her cell while exercising on an eliptical trainer at the UNC Asheville Health & Fitness Center last week.
Not
too long ago, I wrote a column about this problem. Now, I think itës
time to do something about it. Specifically, I urge progressive
Asheville businesses, especially restaurants and cinemas, to establish
cell phone-free zones.
Alas, without
the establishment of cell phone-free zones, the less-desirable
"stealth" option remains ÇƒÓ the use of illegal cell phone jammers.
Jammers, which
are readily available over the Internet, can be battery-powered and fit
in a pocket or briefcase for people who would like to enjoy a meal, a
movie or church service in peace.
For instance, a
portable C-Guard sells for about $900 and can cover the area within a
450-foot radius. Lemelës offers an $890 M2 jammer, which comes in a
briefcase and can block phones within a maximum radius of 50 feet. For
the more budget-minded, Hubgiant of Taipei, Taiwan, sells its WAC1000
personal jammer that has an operating radius up to 30 feet for $169.
In some
countries, jammers are gaining popularity as a legitimate defense
against cell phone abusers. In Japan, Tokyo-based Medic Inc. sold
thousands of its Wave Wall jammers to restaurants, funeral directors
and others before the government limited their sale. Now jammers must
be licensed for use in Japan and used only in spaces such as
live-performance theaters, where cell phones are judged by the
government to be a nuisance.
In Stockholm,
Sweden, public transportation officials in August designated special
cell phone zones because of complaints about electromagnetic fields and
loud, one-sided conversations.
In the U.S.,
Star Theatres, an affiliate of Loews Cineplex Theaters and
Entertainment, recently declared "phone-free zones" in at least 10 of
its cinemas in Michigan.
Meanwhile, at
Central Michigan University, signs are posted on the walls declaring
the exercise rooms and locker rooms "Cell Phone-Free Zones." However,
officials at CMU emphasize that itës a courtesy request and thereës no
enforcement.
Foes of cell
phone-free zones say jammers could prevent someone from receiving an
emergency call ÇƒÓ and that the answer is education in etiquette.
Still, U.S.
federal laws broadly prohibit interfering with licensed radio spectrum.
Owning, manufacturing, marketing, offering for sale or operating a cell
phone jammer is punishable by an $11,000 fine and up to a year in
prison for each offense.
Despite the
stern warning, the FCC reportedly has never seized a single jammer or
prosecuted an operator. Perhaps this is because no one has complained
since when your cell phone is jammed, you might think youëre in a
non-service area. However, itës not as if theyëre not in use in the
U.S., which is the biggest market for Lelmelës jammers.
However, the education approach just wonët work in the short run ÇƒÓ and jammers are illegal.
In light of
this international noise conspiracy, I think the kindest and most
effective approach is the set up of cell phone-free zones ... that are
enforced.
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