Phone Zombies

Diddums

Diddums

Diddums

Caporegime
Joined
24 Oct 2012
Posts
27,213
Location
Yer nan's knickers
This is a rant.


Why the hell do people think it's acceptable to block walkways, choke points, tube barriers, walking at a snail's pace, checking their Facebook or whatever, while the people around them are clearly irritated by their inconsiderate behaviour? As someone who commutes on London's overcrowded transport network at least 5 days a week, I've gotten to the point where I just barge people out the way. I'm sure I've even caused one or two people to actually drop their phones, and you know what? I just don't care. Not even a little bit. I've had tuts, stares, glares, you name it, I take no prisoners. No Facebook post or tweet is so important that you can selfishly inconvenience the hundreds of people around you trying to get to work / home.

Now obviously I'm not some battering ram handing out sweet sweet justice, but if I'm walking around a tube station and we're moving at a glacial pace, if I come up to someone who is on their phone doing whatever, they'll get a nice hard shoulder to wake them up. I hope these people learn but sadly my faith in humanity has diminished to the point of having very little hope.

Sometimes I wish I had a little EMP.


Judge me.
 
The worst are people who are so oblivious they walk across the road without looking and nearly end up underneath a vehicle.
 
I feel your pain OP, I haven't quite gotten to the stage of elbowing them, i tend to just place myself firmly in their path and let them walk into me, thus making them feel like an idiot

Aedus said:
The worst are people who are so oblivious they walk across the road without looking and nearly end up underneath a vehicle.
Click to expand...

Agreed, "nearly" just isn't good enough :(
 
Luckily I don't walk around London where I imagine this is annoying, it happens locally but places aren't as busy but still annoying, very sad they can't go 2 mins without Facebooking or twittering.
 
The absolute top two worst things on the tube are:
  • People who don't step down from a crowded train when they are standing by the doors to let people off quickly, instead making everyone squeeze past and ensuring the whole process takes longer
  • People who step down from a train and then freeze on the spot to stare at the signs to figure out what way to go, rather than moving to one side
On my shortlist are people who approach a ticket barrier and then decide they had best search for their ticket.
 
Caged said:
The absolute top two worst things on the tube are:
  • People who don't step down from a crowded train when they are standing by the doors to let people off quickly, instead making everyone squeeze past and ensuring the whole process takes longer
  • People who step down from a train and then freeze on the spot to stare at the signs to figure out what way to go, rather than moving to one side
On my shortlist are people who approach a ticket barrier and then decide they had best search for their ticket.
Click to expand...


And those who need to be told to move down so other can get on. I usually politely, firmly and rather loudly ask them to move down. Zero ***** given.
 
Diddums said:
And those who need to be told to move down so other can get on. I usually politely, firmly and rather loudly ask them to move down. Zero ***** given.
Click to expand...
Same tactic. Normally get a dirty look off them or a tut. Morons.
 
While I understand your frustration your choice of actions are going to end up getting you nocked out. You nock the wrong persons phone out their hand it'll end badly. Unless of course, you carefully pick who you're going to barge and who you're going politely stand behind and say excuse me to :p
 
It's a scourge.

On holiday recently. Young woman in front of us on a travelator walkway in Miami blocking the way with her case next to her was soooo engrossed in her phone she tripped and fell over when we reached the end.

Not a lot of people who were in the big queue behind her had "that" much sympathy.

Inconsiderate twit. With an "A"
 
TS7 said:
While I understand your frustration your choice of actions are going to end up getting you nocked out. You nock the wrong persons phone out their hand it'll end badly. Unless of course, you carefully pick who you're going to barge and who you're going politely stand behind and say excuse me to :p
Click to expand...


Of course I do. I'm not gonna pick a fight with someone I can't easily bash / run away from :D
 
London is absolutely rife with phone zombies.

Ever wonder if you have a murderous streak inside you? Walk down Oxford Street at, well, most times during the day but especially at 6pm.
 
Diddums, you must be a long lost family member of mine ;)

I am a Londoner too, and encounter the same daily on my travels. I detest many commuters.

I usually wait for them to nearly walk into me and at which point I raise my voice and tell them to look where they are going.

Anyway, I'm not going to judge you, I support you. Let's grab a drink one day.
 
Honestly I have done this a fair few times, although I do try and get out of the way most of the time.

Reality is the vast majority of the time it is not because I'm checking Facebook and zombying around but because I want to send that last message off ("just getting on the tube, will be there in 10 minutes" etc) before the signal goes, or because I want to check google maps to make sure I'm going the right way etc.

Point I'm making is just because someone has got a phone in their hand doesn't mean they aren't doing something "important".

Caged said:
The absolute top two worst things on the tube are:
  • People who don't step down from a crowded train when they are standing by the doors to let people off quickly, instead making everyone squeeze past and ensuring the whole process takes longer
  • People who step down from a train and then freeze on the spot to stare at the signs to figure out what way to go, rather than moving to one side
On my shortlist are people who approach a ticket barrier and then decide they had best search for their ticket.
Click to expand...

+1, both those annoyed me greatly.

You know there is a ticket barrier there, it was there yesterday, and the day before than, and there at every tube station. Get your ticket out before getting to the gate. :(

The other one would be people on escalators. People that just stand still are a bit annoying but that's fine, it's when there are two people talking and a line appears behind them, yet they are to engrossed in the conversation to actually have any spacial awareness and not stand two abreast, or leave your bag next to you, blocking the way. :(
 
Not nearly as bad as those that run and barge past people on the underground to catch that all important train. Are they really do bad at time management that they can't afford to wait the whole 6 mins for the next one?
 
Probably tourists using Google maps to navigate their way around London. Good job keeping up the impression the rest of us get that London is full of self-important ***** though
 
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