Letters: Don't want to be a slave to tech? Don't own a phone. Like me

Montreal Gazette

28-07-2025

Josh Freed nails it. These days, everyone is outsourcing their brains to their phones.
Can't do math? Ask Siri. Can't get anywhere? Ask Waze. Can't remember your best friend's number? No need, your contacts app does, same with their birthdays.
Even basic memory, focus and orientation seem to be slipping away with every scroll and swipe.
But there's a fix: Don't own a phone. Like me.
Hard to believe, I know, but I walk among you. A unicorn in the age of dopamine pings. No cell. No apps. No constant tether to a digital leash.
And the result? I remember phone numbers. I look up. I ask strangers for directions and survive.
I even listen when people talk. I get through meals, walks and full conversations without being interrupted by a buzz, ding or the urge to check a screen.
I don't stop mid-task to answer a call or chase a notification. My time is my own. My thoughts are my own. And it's great!
People say, 'I could never live without my phone.' I say, sure you could; you just don't want to.
So if you're tired of forgetting why you walked into a room, maybe it's time to stop cradling the culprit.
Want your memory back? Your attention span? A working sense of direction? Try the one thing tech companies hope you never will: Put the phone down, or better yet, don't even buy one.
Lindi Ross, Carignan
Pension funds should 'buy local,' too
Pension fund money is made up of deductions from our earnings in Canada and surely should be invested in Canada.
I know fund managers must achieve maximum returns to cover payouts, but at a time when Canada desperately needs investments to expand and create business that will enable us to become more independent of the U.S., I believe these funds should not be invested in U.S businesses.
Local investment is surely better for Canada than foreign investment. Canadian successful startups must not be bought out by American firms, as happens too often, but should be encouraged by local investment.
We, the public, are trying to buy more local products; why shouldn't pension funds?
Jeff Ware, Pointe-Claire
Spoke in the wheel of Bixi?
Re: ' Bixi launches bike trailers — but don't put pets in there ' (The Gazette, July 22)
We're told children and pets are not permitted in Bixi's new rental trailers. But unless police strictly enforce their proper use, I fear it may be too tempting for some to break those rules.
And speaking of safety, when is the city going to enact a mandatory helmet rule for all cyclists?
Ian Copnick, Côte-St-Luc
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