Aibu or is this a thing - no headphones

[spanieleyes22]

So I was at a busy hospital waiting area today very crowded nearly every seat taken about 60 people. Woman opposite me and dd was watching something on her phone very loud. I would have loved to watch a movie or something on my phone but forgot my headphones and it wouldn't occur to me to just play it with the sound. Is this a thing now am I out of touch or aibu

I've seen it alot and I'm getting braver about asking people to turn it down / use headphones, especially in a restaurant or something

Height of rudeness / ignorance

It does seem to be a thing, now, unfortunately. It happens regularly on the train, which is really annoying. I don't understand whether it just doesn't occur to people how fucking annoying they're being, or they know and just don't care.

I think some people are so self absorbed it doesn't occur to them how rude they are being

Happens a lot on the bus - generally not DCs either but adults watching their rubbish at full volume. I notice now our local bus company has put up some adverts about how it's more polite to use headphones.

It's soooooo selfish and annoying, aslo when people walk round on videocall/phones held under chin on loudspeaker rather to ear. So much unsociable all I care about is me and what I want to hear, watch. Xx

It's only a thing with inconsiderate people who have absolutely no manners.

Honestly I'm sick of it ds has headphones they are kept in a specific place we can grab them if we need them if I forget he can play games with the volume off he was doing that one day and someone's granny (she literally had a grandchild with her) pulled something up on her phone it sounded like bad porn with the moaning and the noises grandchild went to look and grandad said "best not" and said "maybe not on the train love" she glanced up to see the whole freaking carriage looking at her even the teenagers were scraping their jaws on the floor 😂

They got off at the next stop not sure if they needed too but it was just so ???? Like people forget there are other people on the planet (or don't care)

It seems to be a thing. It's really rude, and bloody annoying.

Coming home on a late evening train and I had the pleasure of a man a couple of rows away watching a porn film with the sound at full blast. So that was lovely.

It is rude and unacceptable, whoever you are and wherever you are.

I hate how this is the norm now. Just as strange as people who only ever talk on the phone on speaker. Why? Just why?

Yes I have to deal with it on trains as well and it has got way worse over the last decade or so. It might be a start if alongside the frequent wibble on the loudspeakers about see-it-say-it-sorted, they could slip something in about please have consideration for fellow passengers and avoid using phones on speaker mode. I think being noisy in that manner is a breach of railway bylaws but the train manager mostly doesn't want to confront people, because they tend to react aggressively and they will not risk their safety. British Transport Police are in no position to come to the aid of the train manager. The antagonists thus learn that thuggery gains and actions have no consequence, so their behaviour evolves into a hardwired entitlement and we end up where we are now.

It is not just blaring out conversations/music/videos on phones/tablets, this sort of thoughtlessness has permeated into many areas of society. I reckon the pandemic has played a part in eroding people's situational awareness/social etiquette through the periodic lockdowns and isolation. The population of the town where I live in SE England seems to have got more gormless/thoughtless on average in recent years, making going about my business more stressful than it needs to be at times.

https://www.railforums.co.uk/threads/why-do-some-passengers-not-get-how-annoying-it-is-to-play-music-and-videos-out-loud.273564/page-1#post-1

One of my colleagues does this in the staffroom. She plays some kind of American telenovelas. I'm not quite sure how to describe them. They're not interesting. And I'm trying to mark usually.

Maybe I'll pluck up courage and mention headphones!

You are a GOD!!! Brilliant - I will do exactly this next time something similar happens to me!! 😂

Happens to me a lot on public transport!

Super selfish behaviour.

i always ask them to put in headphones.

i had to ask cabin crew to speak to people with two kids blaring out tablets on an 11 hour flight. The parents had headphones so not sure why they didn’t have some for the kids.

headphones cost a few pounds - you can afford a phone, you can afford headphones

Mate do it. The louder the better. Only a few people on the carriage actually knew why I was doing it and must have been very perturbed. The businessman opposite pissed himself though.

I was going on a Southeastern train recently and a young woman was watching a TV show, no headphones and no shits given about anyone else. One woman asked her to turn it down but apparently it was her right to do what she wanted as she'd paid to travel just like everyone else.

The ticket inspector can along and said to her 'turn it off or put headphones on', she turned it off then back on at a lower level so he turned around and said 'turn it OFF or get out at the next station and finish watching it on the platform. No one else should have to put up with it and I'm going to keep checking the sound is off!'. He told me it happens a lot.

People are so hypnotised by their phones that this kind of day to day social awareness seems to be dying. Loads of people wouldn't be so selfish of course, but the numbers who don't seem to care or even realise the effect on others seem to be growing.

Surely it's no big deal to listen with buds or headphones when in a shared public space?

The ideal solution would be to ban devices UNLESS buds/headphones are used.

Would anyone care to guess why public transport/airline companies and especially hospitals won't do this?

This was discussed on Radio 4 yesterday but I can’t find the programme now.

The obvious issue nobody mentioned is that most mobile phones have had the headphone jack removed, so existing wired headphones don’t work. If you don’t have charged up Bluetooth headphones/earbuds (which are expensive) you’re stuck. Phones don’t come with earphones/handsfree set any more. The phone manufacturers have basically normalised not using headphones.

I say it has got worse since magazines and books were removed from waiting rooms due to Covid.

No headphones - then no sound .

absolute no brainier.

and before anyone says ‘my kids can’t tolerate headphones’ because of being autistic -Sorry - I don’t care - that is tough to manage as sensory difficulties are - but there are many different types and if they genuinely can’t manage any head phones then they can’t have volume when in public

no one had the right to inflict noise from their devices on others. Devices are ubiquitous but not a compulsory features of life - there are other ways for kids and adults to amuse themselves .

I say this as an autistic myself and mother of multiple children many of whom have autism.

We should normalise this. I’d love for someone to read me a story on the train. Of course the problem is, I’d have to follow them off the train to find out what happened next.

YANBU, it seems to be very common now for people to play videos/music without headphones. I find it very disrespectful. I love listening to music when I'm out and about but I know not everyone else does so I wear headphones.

It is so fucking rude. There is no excuse for it whatsoever. None. No headphones, no sound. It’s just another sign of what a selfish, self entitled society we’ve become.

It's got worse as the tech has become ubiquitous and social media and streaming have proliferated. The Lib Dems want to ban playing music and videos on public transport without headphones with fines of up to £1000.