The communication phenomenon called "texting" is often portrayed in the media as negative and harmful.
Billboards advising "dnt txt n drv" remind us of the potential dangers of texting behind the wheel. We are bombarded with frantic reports of the burgeoning trend of "sexting." Then come the tired lamentations about our culture of instant gratification and short attention spans. While these complaints may contain some validity, the media often overlooks the unique advantages of texting that other forms of communication just can't offer.
Passive-Aggression
For conflict-phobes everywhere, texting is a godsend. You can send statements much bolder or more spiteful than anything you would ever dare to utter in person, and if the argument gets heated, you can just set the phone aside and deal with it later, or never. Tricks such as using extra punctuation or being overly-polite can send a subtle message of displeasure without ever having to have a meaningful conversation about the issue. When confronted, the sender of a passive aggressive text can allege that it was simply a misinterpreted joke, and then the conflict blows over until next time.
Avoiding people
Early cell phones were crude and unreliable, so texts sometimes arrived late or were lost altogether.
This rarely occurs anymore, due to the proliferation of high-tech smart-phones, though the excuse is still widely utilized and accepted as valid.
The best strategy is to assert that due to your incredibly busy schedule, the only way to reach you is through texting. Then, when an unfavorable text arrives, such as "can you help me move on Saturday," you simply claim later that you never received said text or that it arrived on Sunday, effectively skirting a responsibility without being held accountable.
Minimalism
Office workers have to deal with meaningless small talk all day long, spitting out automatic phrases like "gotta love that coffee" and "I'm hanging in there" or "someone's got a case of the Mondays!"
After a long day of these trite musings, no one wants to continue this drivel over the phone. Texting streamlines communication and forces people to cut out the small talk and condense their discussions into quick sound bites.
Instead of exchanging pleasantries, you can get right to the meat: "let's get dinner," "I got laid off," or "I'm breaking up with you."
Finally, no more sugarcoating, blabbering on, or having pointless exchanges. In texting we free ourselves from the constraints of polite society, becoming raw, primal beings, like simple cavemen grunting at one another.
Multi-socializing
Finally, texting gives you the ability to be in two places at once. I will always remember the first day my friend brought her new cell phone to the sports event we were attending with her boyfriend. I stared in awe as she spent quality time with her beau and chatted with another boy at the same time through texting, maximizing her flirting potential. T
his is why texting is so popular with rappers and rockstars, who often have the responsibility of juggling many love interests at once. There just isn't enough time in the day to keep in touch with your 500+ Facebook friends, unless you do some serious multitasking.
Conversely, if caught in a situation where you are alone, texting or pretend-texting gives off the illusion of popularity, saving you from looking awkward or uncool.
As you can see, texting offers countless communicative advantages that more than make up for its potential dangers or negative societal implications.
If you have any comments or questions about this article, texting is the best way to reach me, although I must admit that my phone has been acting up lately...[[In-content Ad]]
