I read an article this morning about Squint TV. The article discussed how companies are bringing live television to the very small screen – the cell phone. The reason for the word squint should be apparent. I was struck by the new term, but I fear the consequences of the technology.

I never thought I’d begin a story using the words “when I was growing up”, but here I go. When I was growing up, we had a single one black and white television in the living room. Using an antenna, we could receive three or four channels of programming. I think we had a better chance of finding something worth watching back then compared with today with our hundreds of channels of mostly garbage on digital cable, but I digress.

We were told by our parents not to sit too closely to the television because it was bad for our vision. When we finally got a color television, around 1982, the word was that if we sat too closely to it, we would be exposed to harmful radiation. I think these fears have since been debunked as wives’ tales. (Is that politically incorrect? Husbands can tell tales also.)

I have to wonder what effect there may be on a person’s vision if he or she watches too much Squint TV. I’m sure it will be debated and studied for years to come. Common sense as well as my own astigmatism and worsening far-sightedness after years of staring at computer monitors makes me think so. One might argue that age has something to do with it, but who wants to hear that argument. I am 45 years young.

Just as my father was slow to adopt the latest technological gadgets, I have a similar history. I was the last person I know to purchase a CD player and a microwave oven. I held out quite a while before purchasing a cell phone, and when I did it was the day I became stranded on the road –after the stranding, not before.

The problem is this. I know that everybody can make a choice about whether or not to adopt a new technology. But now that I have a cell phone, I can’t imagine being without one. I even gave in recently and upgraded to a Treo and I feel the same way about the Treo. Once I got a taste of it, I now feel that I “need” to be able to access e-mail wherever I am.

Please don’t get me hooked on Squint TV! My high school physical education/health teacher at Eastern Regional High School, Mr. K (his last name was difficult to pronounce and more difficult to spell), said something to our class that I have never forgotten. When talking about recreational drugs, he said that he refused to try them because he was afraid he might like them. That’s how I feel about some of these new technologies.

If the market demands Squint TV, I can’t stop it. And if I can’t trust myself not to get hooked, I guess my only recourse is not to try it in the first place.