OFF THE CUFF: Texting zombies and demeaning comments

FEW OF US have failed to witness some of Panama’s texting zombies as they cross one of the city’s main thoroughfares, putting life on the cell phone before the real thing, as they sleep walk through traffic.

They seem unaware that there are other addicted creatures behind the wheels of approaching cars  equally oblivious to what’s going on in front of them as they hurry to finish what could be their last testament. 
Several US states have proposed “distracted walking bills” that would fine people for using their mobile phones while crossing roads. They already have laws in place for texting and cell phone chatting drivers, Panama has laws  too but  they seem to be made to be broken, largely by drivers of high end vehicles.
So maybe there’s a new challenge for Panama’s crusading mayor, Jose Isobel Blandon who is already tackling night-spot noise pollution, garbage and illegal retailing of booze.
Meanwhile authorities in the Chinese city of Chongqing have come up with a unique way of dealing with the smartphone ‘zombies’ that walk along its streets.
The city has divided a stretch of sidewalk into a ‘cell phone-free zone’ and a cell phone lane which carries a warning for pedestrians of the risks of walking there.
“There are lots of elderly people and children in our street and walking with your cell phone may cause unnecessary collisions here,” said a spokesperson for the company that manages the property, the South China Morning Post reports.
China is the world’s largest mobile phone market and addiction is widespread. Over 80 per cent of 10,000 white-collar workers admitted having a “severe addiction” to their phones, the Daily Telegraph reports.
According to a study by the University of Washington, one in three people are distracted by mobile devices when crossing the road, which can lead to deadly accidents, Sky News reports.
Researchers have been warning of the dangers of ‘distracted walking’ for years. In 2011, over 1,000 people were admitted to hospital in the US as a result of the problem, a figure that is likely to be much higher today. “Mostly we will see shattered pelvises,” one ER doctor told the AP news agency Other common injuries are to the head, back or neck.
No one yet seems to have a solution to sell phone addicts in Panama supermarkets, who, while exchange chit chat, push their loaded trollies into unwary shoppers.

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