Dear Editor,

Am I the only one who sees the misuse of smartphones as unhealthy for our environment? Gone are the days where we had to be orators to share an interesting experience with absentees. Every jack or jill owns or has some access to these devices and, by the look of things, have been using them for the wrong purposes. True, we are in the ‘new age’ and Jamaica must try to, as best as is possible, be on par with the rest of the world, but some measures must be put in place. There must be some legislation enforcing some boundaries. As it now stands, it seem if one is drowning or injured, he/she will first have to ‘pose’ for the camera before receiving aid.

As humans, we are naturally inclined to be overly excited by intriguing experiences and so we may want to document these occurrences audio-visual style, but how many things we would desire to do that we can’t? The Ministry of Security has a responsibility to put strict guidelines on what we document from what we shouldn’t. Our people need something to adhere to or else we are on our way of becoming a wreck.

I cannot keep count of the many bright females I have witnessed walking shame-faced on our streets because their once ‘Knight in Shining Armour’ had ‘released’ a private moment for some reason or another. The nation needs sensitisation to engage their thinking on the negative effects of these recordings, both long term and short term. Our girls are most vulnerable, they seem to act in the spur of the moment and their lives are forever ruined because of a few seconds caught on ‘tape’.

In the same breath, I am not convinced that our males are fully aware of the implications stemming from these ‘releases’, and neither are the recipients who instantly transform into senders. A campaign needs to start and we need to get everyone on board. The Government must put rules in place for us to follow and a few examples must be made out of the cyberbullies, as some persons are not aware or do not view cyberbullying as a crime.

Cleopatra Young