A reader sends the above scene that Stanley Kubrick captured in 1946:
Yes, smartphones and iPads are the problem, because in the old days we all used to talk to each other on the subway instead of staring down at an electronic object …
Another:
Joe Eskenazi made an uncomfortable point:
Authorities are preaching vigilance, which is probably a smarter thing to do than play Angry Birds. But left unsaid is just what the hell a train full of vigilant people were supposed to do if they noticed a man waving about a pistol – a man, specifically, in search of a random passenger to murder. What then?
I would make a similar but different point.
The reason why people withdraw so much from the public world in transit is because there are about six people in your personal bubble, which is generally considered unpleasant, because you invited none of them. The only way to stay sane in our sardine-packed transit system is to withdraw in your own world. People used to close their eyes and pretend to sleep, or read. These days smart devices give more options to relieve the stress of being squeezed against that fat, sweaty, blob that didn’t shower in the last three weeks, than can be possible relieved by a vigilant, paranoid crowd looking for criminals and terrorists and preventing an occasional crime or very rare terror plot. If we were to allow the latter, the terrorists have won.
Another reader:
Regarding the idea that mobile devices have made us less aware of our surroundings, I would argue that this has actually helped to reduce crime. As a New Yorker and daily subway rider, I can attest to the fact that absorption in texting or gaming can reduce interpersonal incidents that can lead to violence. Additionally, wearing headphones allows you to legitimately ignore an insult – a response that satisfies your honor as well as that of the person trying to pick a fight with you.
The Dish 