To "ban" phones at the dinner table...

[bluegrufallonose]

This is sort of a lighthearted thread, because I'm fully aware I don't have the right to control or ban anything.

But, I'm sick of everyone staring into their fucking phones like zombies every 5 minutes.

My parents and in laws are by far the worst culprits and it drives me mad!!

My 2 year old has tried to talk to his grandad so many times and grandad is totally oblivious, in a trance like state on his phone.

Is it just me?!

Do they actually use their phones at the dinner table?! If so, that’s incredibly rude.

Phones are like a second-brain these days!

Nobody uses their phone at the table in this house. DH is absolutely addicted to his, partly because it contains so much of his work but also just because he is addicted.

If you can't put down your phone you can't come to the table. I hate having phones on tables when we go out to eat, too, and will call DH and DS1 out on it. It's rude.

Yep...FIL often does when we're eating.

I’d find that incredibly rude too. I’d not be having it in my house but then I cannot imagine anyone thinking it was acceptable unless a close relative was having major surgery or in labour.

@bluegrufallonose

I’d stop inviting your PIL’s for dinner!

It would def be unreasonable if you were to ‘ban’ phones at your ILs house. But in your own home? YWNBU at all to impose a no phones at the table policy, your house, your rules

We don't have any technology when we eating unless its the sat night takeaway and movie night. Food time is for family to be social and talk about day

Phones are banned at mealtimes in this house, definitely.

Not unreasonable at all, in your house, or out with your family.

It's an unbreakable rule here, we all spend way too much time on tech as it is

We have a mobile phone ban at the table.

No phones at the table here either, it's not up for discussion.

Of course YANBU. We don’t use phones at the table so when my dad got his out at the weekend the kids told him to put it away so I didn’t have to!

You absolutely wouldn’t be unreasonable to make that rule at your house OP.

How appallingly rude to sit at the table on their phone whilst eating

Phones are completely banned at our dinner table

Do they ever invite you for food at theirs? Take a book along and get it out during the meal.

Myself and the kids spend far too much time on our tech. But one unspoken rule is no tech at mealtimes (apart from sometimes sitting in front of the telly for a lazy meal). We've never had to say it because it's just always been that way.

A few years back, Dolmio we're bringing out a pepper grinder that actually you twisted and it was a signal jammer! It was going to be a competition to win one I think but that didn't end up happening. But it was in the adverts. It was because market research showed this was in fact a huge issue for many families. They did a lot of work on this and really did find that putting away tech at the dinner table helped families come together and talk more together (and therefore increase the family bond I guess).

So no, yanbu - and most definitely not alone!

If in someone else's house though it's hard - perhaps you could say to parents and in-laws that you're trying to set an example to the kids that we don't have these things at the table and would they mind joining in with that just when any kids are there? Or joke and say first one to touch their phone does the washing up?

You can definitely ban them at your own dinner table! It's a good rule. You can tell FIL you're trying to set a good example to the children.

Take a book along and get it out during the meal

good idea

I read somewhere (on MN) that someone thought that smart phones were the work of the devil. They have a point.

They are only allowed and then only by one person right at the end of the meal if we want to settle an "argument"

DS's GF came to dinner, brought her phone to the table he told her it needed to go on the side.

This is after years of bitching at us about the house rule.

Mobiles allowed at breakfast here but not at other meals. Too bloody anti-social!

I really, really dislike it when I make the effort to meet up with a friend for lunch and she answers her bloody phone. I just find it rude. I wouldn't do that to anyone unless I knew there was an ongoing crisis and X might ring about it, and I would have warned however I was with and apologised in advance.

But I am a Luddite, though. Possibly my manners are a few decades out of date.

No phones at mealtimes here. It's just so rude.

That is so rude and YANBU. Your house, your rules. Just tell him next time before you sit down that phones are banned at the dinner table.

God no, if I have cooked a meal then they can sit and ear it politely and make pleasant conversation.
Phones are totally banned at mealtimes (just as toys were banned from the table when they were small).
Am shocked at how many friends think this is acceptable. I drove 50 miles to meet an old uni friend recently (hadn't seen her for 4 years) and she repeatedly fired off texts and checked her social media for the couple of hours we were together.

Phones are totally banned from the table in our house. Couple of guests over the years have grumbled, but accepted it when we said it's the house rule and if the kids have to follow it then it's not fair to make exceptions just for an adult to check facebook or whatever. It's incredibly rude.

I hate the fact phones are out so much on nights out and the likes now - I go out to talk to the people I'm with, not look at the top of their head as they look down at their phone.

No phones no tv during dinner here.