
We are cognizant of the problems associated with children being addicted to smartphones: suicidal ideation from doom scrolling and cyber bullying, sexual dysfunction from consumption of hardcore porn, social awkwardness in public from being immersed in a digital space and social isolation from preferring virtual reality to the real world.
But boomers’ addiction to cell phones is a growing concern for the younger generations who wish their grandparents would stick to rotary phones. According to the Pew Research Center, people 60 and older spend over four hours watching online videos.
I don’t mean to be ageist, but old people are deaf AF, and they have their phone notifications at such a loud volume that it that the ping reverberates around the entire house, including the basement and the attic. To add insult to injury the notification is usually for something fatuous like Aunt Betty sending a text to your grandma reminding her it is Bingo night.
Young people with their dexterous fingers and nimble minds are annoyed as hell when they witness their elderly relatives text with two trembling fingers. They have fantasies of crushing their digits with the rotary phone in the geezers’ living room.
Boomers are gullible and naïve and susceptible to manipulation. Witness the tons of shoddily created AI generated news and videos they send their children that they feel validates their MAGA conspiracies.
Parents, you are justified worrying about the ill effects of cell phones on your children, but you also need to be concerned about your screen-addicted elderly loved ones.