The Blackberry: Servant or Master?
The mere fact of putting the question betrays the answer. I leave mine in the car most of the time I am home or at the office, but take it with me everywhere else. It demands my attention frequently. Three weeks ago I apologized to a district judge because it kept beeping in my briefcase. These devices are lifestyle changers. They may replace God (the Old Testament God who demanded obeisance and fealty) as objects of unceasing devotion.
I share your worry about our devotion to electronic devices, and have commented about this on my blogs (“What’s in Your Back Yard,” “Looking Up”). It concerns me that people are not living in the present, not using their senses, and will not hear bird song, or even the sound of an oncoming car or train. Perhaps Darwin will have the final word on this issue.