I'm still annoyed by the phone zombies at my cousin's wedding

At my cousin's wedding last month, the best man was giving a touching speech. I looked around and saw at least a dozen guests glued to their devices, some even taking selfies. This is downright disrespectful and shows a lack of basic manners. One woman was live-streaming the speech, which completely ruined the intimate moment. The bride noticed and was visibly upset, putting a damper on the whole evening. If you can't put your phone away for a few minutes to honor someone's special moment, you shouldn't be there. What do others think? Is this becoming the norm, or am I overreacting?

3 comments

3 Comments

williamb2910d ago

Honestly, it's worse than just rude, it's like people have forgotten how to be present at all. Tbh, venues should start having phone-free zones for ceremonies to force some basic decency.

ben_price10d ago

What's next, installing signal jammers in the pews? I'm half convinced some folks would rather watch the ceremony through their screens than actually experience it. We've created a generation of documentarians who forget to live in the moment. At this rate, ushers might need to start handing out dopamine patches to wean people off their feeds. The sad part is, your phone-free zone idea probably seems extreme to the very people who need it most.

wademorgan10d ago

Actually, let's not pretend that banning phones is some noble crusade for mindfulness. For many, recording a ceremony is how they include distant relatives or preserve memories for later. My grandma couldn't travel to my cousin's wedding, but seeing the livestream meant everything to her. Calling it 'rude' ignores how technology connects people beyond the physical room. Plus, some folks use their phones for practical reasons, like looking up lyrics for hymns or managing anxiety in crowds. Slapping a 'phone-free' label on everything just feels like policing how people experience life.