Can you hear me now?

Wireless is the way to go.

Anywhere you go on campus, people are talking on a cellular phone. You own one and I own one. We dare not leave home without remembering to toss it in the backpack along with our wallet and keys. Communication could not be more efficient for the scores of 21st-century yuppies, and the mobile-phone industry is ever growing. Forget pagers, telephone cards or shiny quarters, because the cell phone is all you need. Suppose you were stranded on an island entertaining a volleyball. Forget the pocketknife, you could probably build a shopping mall with a Nokia at hand.

You love it that your boyfriend is just an easy dial away on your walk home from class. But be that as it may, you hate it when the guy sitting next to you on the bus gushes with his lover over who gets to hang up last. And while it is a relief that Mom can reach you anytime (and since she is a paranoid freak, she will), it is terrifyingly embarrassing when your corny ring tone sets off in a lecture hall brimming with 200 angry students. Worst-case scenario: the professor proceeds to point out your measly existence in a sea of students and engage in amusing banter with the caller at the expense of your minutes.

Wireless phones are used so frequently in our daily lives that it encroaches upon our personal space. As far as you are concerned, your Motorola is the messiah, but what about the one that ceaselessly rings an obnoxious tone in the library? The issue of cell-phone etiquette concerns us all. Is it considered rude when people interrupt a conversation in order to pick up their call? How many annoying beeps followed by a guilty "sorry!" does a TA have to endure before class ends?

We only think about turning off our cells when there are blatantly enormous signs that remind us to do so. But imagine a theater without such warnings before a movie, or picture a library missing such signs of propriety. There would be something else to add to our lists of complaints during small talk -- rude and inconsiderate cell-phone etiquette. And most of us would be hypocrites if we were to criticize others about such discourteous behavior.

If an important call is expected, one could make sure it is picked up at a time of privacy. If you want to duke it out with someone, do so at home, and not in the public like a gladiator. If you absolutely must know who might call you or leave a message, then leave the cell phone on its silent function. Vibration always comes in handy when ring tones are inappropriate.

More importantly, wireless phones also put to risk our health and lives. I am not talking about the unproven theories that cell phones cause brain tumors or cancer. I am asking people to recognize the distractions their mobile phones create when in use. Whether in moving vehicles or on foot, your phone will detract from much of the attention needed to make note of your surroundings.

To reach back more than a week ago, The Daily's staff editorial brought to attention the case of Sarah Potts, who rammed into a car full of a family of four due to the negligent use of her cellular phone. Fortunately for her, she gets off just by paying a fine of $250. I guess it is just too bad for the deceased parents and their two daughters, eh? Nonsense! To even charge $250 as a fine is insult upon injury (or should I say death?) for the family.

It angers me to know that such an ingenious invention designed for the advancement of communication between people can be used as a weapon for murder. Sure, Potts had no intention of killing the family -- it was just an accident. However, it looks like the leaders and justice enforcers of our country are sending out the message that drinking and driving do not mix, but reckless cell-phone usage and driving do not matter because the law does not otherwise state so. Potts' case is just one among many that have already occurred.

Where I come from, Taiwan, mobile-phone use is far more widespread than in United States. People have come to recognize both the dangers and the rudeness of such mobile communication. Cellular use is outlawed in cars unless a hands-free phone is employed.

Perhaps if the United States is into such wireless technology for the long run, then such laws should be adopted to guarantee security in practice. And as for you and me, let us be attentive to one another's personal space and safety when it comes to our cell phones.