Cell phones in the skies?

If you're flying over Europe, you'll soon be able to yammer away on your cell phone. But not in the U.S. -- at least yet.

The European Union has confirmed what many of us have long suspected: the turn-off-your-cell rule isn't a safety issue per se. But it could be a sanity issue.

Europeans use their mobile phones differently from Americans. They tend to text -- much cheaper in Europe than calling -- and talk briefly. Yes, right, fine, thanks, ciao.

Americans, as we all well know, use their phones as an extension of their personal space. A trip to my local grocery is an involuntary expedition into fellow shoppers' health issues, marital distress, love affairs -- and in amazingly graphic detail. It's not unusual to find someone so engrossed in their business negotiation or gossipfest that they stop in mid-aisle or forget to pull out money at the register.

Now, let's take that scenario to the skies. 3B is yelling about the deal that went south, 12C is placing a bet with his bookie, 14D is making a salon appointment, 16A is chattering about last night's hot date, and the teen in 22C is plotting parental revenge. My husband is the guy complaining -- loudly -- that his Bose noise-cancelling earphones aren't protection enough, and whose stupid idea was this cellphone thing anyway?

With those images in mind, I think I'm in favor of keeping the cell switch turned off in-flight.

What about you? Click to comment below and take our poll at right.
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NOTE: We removed the poll to add our most recent question about airline safety. But the cell phone issue was a hot button: 128 people voted the first day, with 20 percent in favor of allowing cell phones in the air and 80 percent against.