You Might Start Getting ID'd When You Buy A Cellphone in Vermont
MONTPELIER, VT (WKBW) — A proposed bill in the Vermont state senate would ban people under 21-years-old from using a cell phone.
According to The Barre Montpelier Times Argus , the bill would make it a misdemeanor to those under 21-years-old to have a cell phone. Young adults caught with a cell phone could face up to a year behind bars and a $1,000 fine.
The bill says the Vermont Legislature concluded that if people under 21-years-old are not mature enough to smoke cigarettes, drink alcohol, and possess a gun, then they shouldn't be allowed to have a cell phone.
The only thing I'm thinking is it's a good thing I don't live in Vermont. An age limit on cellphones? No thank you. I'm all set. What exactly is that gonna solve? You can still access the internet from a laptop, desktop, tablet, etc. So it's not like taking away kids' phones is really gonna solve anything. Do they think all of the teenagers are just going to willfully relinquish control of their phones? Absolutely not.
The punishment for having a phone seems a little ridiculous. A $1,000 fine or jail for scrolling twitter on my phones is just unreasonable. If I'm not allowed to fire off some hot Jokic takes when I'm on the go, then you might as well just lock me up anyway.
But say I don't own a phone because now I can't legally buy one, fine, whatever (totally hypothetical). Am I supposed to pull my laptop out and fire off a tweet? No. That won't happen dammit. All this would do is just force kids to carry their laptops/tablets everywhere and that would be a debacle of epic proportions.
And to compare the maturity necessary to own a cellphone - a mere form of entertainment - to the responsibility of being able to buy guns, booze, and cigarettes is frankly one of the stupidest things I've ever heard in my entire life. I'm not 100% sure but I think this is something that would be voted on by the public if it ever came down to it (probably won't), it would get shut down by the great people of Vermont.