Even great leaders have to live in a mobile world

A Different View with Dave O’Connell

The first thing that most of us do in the mornings – even before our ablutions – is reach for the mobile phone.

As if we were Captains of Industry, we check to see if there have been any important emails overnight that require our immediate attention – and we might have a quick look at Sky Sports News for good measure.

Because we know the world didn’t stop revolving just because we went to sleep for six hours – so there’s a lot of catching up to do before you can even swing your feet onto the floor.

Our mobiles have become an extension of our hands; we use them last thing before sleep and first thing in the morning, at lunch, at meetings, when we’re supposed to be watching the telly….there is no part of the day when the use of a phone is inappropriate.

And we take our lead from the top – remember Enda Kenny whipping out his phone in Castel Gandolfo during a little downtime in an address from the last Pope.

The subject matter of the Pope Benedict’s address was something that should have had Mr Kenny’s undivided attention – it was the first time they’d been in the same room since the Taoiseach had castigated the Vatican for its inaction in dealing with the issue of child abuse in Ireland.

But such was the Fine Gael leader’s preoccupation with his phone that he was unable to properly applaud the Pope when he finished – because his mobile was in his hand.

He denied he was playing Nintendo, claiming he was just scrolling through his messages. And as the leader of a nation that’s once again heading towards sovereignty, then he needs to be in contact – although perhaps not at the same time as he’s supposed to be listening to the head of the Catholic Church.

More recently, a British Conservative MP was photographed playing the Candy Crush computer puzzle game during a parliamentary committee meeting.

And having been caught bang to rights, Nigel Mills has admitted he “wasn’t focusing” on the proceedings while playing the game.

Neither, it should be said, was the person who filmed the MP during his Candy Crush Saga – because while playing games isn’t appropriate, filming others in the House of Commons is most definitely in breach of the rules.

Candy Crush is the world’s most popular computer game, and is described by those who play it as highly addictive. Those players, it must be said, are of school-going age for the most part and not sitting in the House of Commons.

But the developers of Candy Crush, King.com, claim it is played more than a billion times a day. Playing it is free, but users can pay to improve their scores – which is where the money starts to roll in.

For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.