Technology is a big part of America today. People use computers, PDA’s, and cell phones everyday of their life. However, some take the technology way overboard. A thirteen-year-old girl, who is addicted to texting, sends out over 36,000 text messages a month. She is constantly texting her friends and sending out a lot of messages a day! At the dinner table, in the morning, while doing homework, while watching TV, she is never not on her cell phone texting a new person every second. An average teenager only sends out 1,700 text messages a month. Many think that, oh it doesn’t matter; the technology improves peoples social skills and helps them socialize from their own home. Technology can be very good for some purposes, however there are many downfalls to why technology ruins your social skills.

People, who are glued to their phones, don’t exactly spend that much time with others. The technology causes teens to be isolated from others and spending time with the family. Writer Alfonso says, “They reported spending less time talking with their families, experiencing more daily stress, and feeling more lonely and depressed” (1). Technology is not a socializing tool. Socializing is talking to friends in person, not texting them. The computer is a wall between you and the real person that you just cannot break through when you are texting. Teens do feel less comfortable talking to their families about things going on in their lives. So they turn to their cell phone to text a friend about the messages. They feel they can trust the person, but how do they know that person is not with someone telling them right now? If teens would stay off the phones and talk to their families instead it will strive them to want to spend more time going to a family dinner, or spending less time talking to strangers over the internet and more time talking to their families about something exciting and new in their life. Today, “interaction between individuals in slowly diminishing as people turn to their technological devices instead of attempting to make new acquaintance or simply experiencing the “natural” sights around them” (Song 1). Song is another writer who is arguing that technology is bad for the mind and bad for the soul. People have to have a little interaction with friends in their life. People have to learn how to socialize with friends and be happy. They believe that the computer or the cell phone is a great way of doing this, but however, it is not at all. People ignore others while they are trying to talk to them and have a friendly conversation, when you are in the middle of another one on your cell phone. Technology also allows you to almost become in a depressed state. It also allows you to most likely get caught doing something that you are not supposed to be doing.

The numbers of people who use the Internet and who do not use the internet are significantly different. It just proves that technology is very bad and messes with people’s life. People who just sit on the couch or at the computer and talk to their friends over instant messaging or texting surely do not know the meaning of socializing. The numbers of teens that socialize with their friends that do not use the Internet totally outweigh the ones that do use the Internet. The teens that use it are going to parties and having fun at social events. They are also attending some culture events. The others that use the Internet are just at home texting one of the people at the social events. Even though some may be very shy, the technology will give them even less confidence to go out anywhere and have fun with other people. It allows them to say; well I am still socializing because I am talking to all the people just not face to face. Nie writes, “the numbers for socializing for non-internet-users is 13.0 and for internet users, 12.6” (1). Also, “culture events for non-users 1.8 and for users 0.7” (Nie 1). These are the numbers and the numbers say it all. Technology is slowly ruining all of our social skills by the minute. Also, people who are non-users spend so much more time with their family than on the computer. They feel it is important to love and have that support from their family so they are going to make sure that they spend as much time with their family as possible. Once again, every time the teen texts at the dinner table, or at the family event it is adding more bricks to that brick wall that sets you and your family one either side. Families are becoming more depressed knowing that their teen is not wanting to talk to them and they just want to talk to their friends instead. The “time spend with family for non-users is 287.4 and for users, it is 185.7” (Nie 1). They numbers are greatly different and anyone can tell that. God gave everyone a family to love and have support from. However, how can you get support from a family that does not even feel like they are important enough for you?

Counterargument writer Harris writes, “she said, ‘I can’t live without walking around campus listening to music’” (1). This is the exact problem right here. People are so addicted to it; they cannot live without it. If kids get their phones taken away they tell their parents I will die if you do not give me my phone back and that its not fair. You seen kids as old as sixteen throw fits over their phones and iPods. The exact problem is right there, that kids say they cannot live without the phones. That, right there, is the problem we are facing in America. Kids are so addicted to it, they say they cannot live without it so they parents just give it right back. How about we take the phones away and give them time off from it? That would probably help us get through to kids that you cannot always be on the phone texting or on the computer instant messaging someone.

Internet sites today are not the safest place in the whole entire world at all. Writer Coget writes, “the Internet is a common space to encounter new friends… with the Internet information can be transmitted and received with ease at any time of the day to and from any number of friends” (1). Making new friends on the Internet is dangerous. People who talk to people on a website where you can talk to their friends may believe the person they are talking to is a 15 year old boy or girl just like themselves. However, they may be just another predator looking for information on kids to come and take them. Many believe, oh it’s fine they live in Canada. They are going to come all the way to America, however, people can so easily lie to get something out of the person they are talking to. Usually the people that give out information usually turn out missing and or are even found dead. We need to make sure that we are protecting ourselves. Yes, Facebook and MySpace are just a friendly website to add people. However, you need to be careful on who you choose to add to be your friend. Also, some say well you can have relationships from meeting people online. However, you need to know the personality of the person before you are so called “dating” them. People lie about themselves all the time on the internet, just to mess with young girls and boys. The Internet is not a safe place and it is a very dangerous place that kids should really not be exposed to.

Some may believe that the internet helps social skills, but however, it has many drawbacks to come along with it. People in America need to start caring about the technology issue in America. Cell phones, computers, iPods, should be taken away from time to time to teach kids that they have to make time for their families to. Technology is slowly taking over our earth but we need to fight back. Instead of using that extra hour you had because of no more homework that you have to do as computer or TV time, use it as family time to help your mom cook dinner or help her make cookies for your bake sale tomorrow. If you live your life in a shell, you will always live in a shell. However, when you branch out and see the world around you, you will see it is a beautiful place. Then you will never want to spend that boring day inside on the computer, but outside enjoying the fresh air. So think about it, if one day, you had to either save your beloved, expensive cell phone, or your family that loves you no matter what, whom would you save? If I was ever in that position I would definitely choose my family over the cell phone. So that is what we need to do today, choose the family over the cell phone, always.