On this - my fourteenth attempt - I believe I've nailed it.
For this barren month without a single national holiday, how about we declare August 1 as National Technology Turnoff Day? Given how uphill this battle is likely to be, I propose we start with just the two steps below. I welcome any ideas you have for ways to build momentum here.
1.) No device of any kind permitted in any public place on August 1. Just as we now ban smoking in public places year round, on August 1 only, the same goes for cell phones, tablets, laptops, etc. Picture families speaking to one another in restaurants, every train compartment being a quiet car, etc.
2.) In residences, private citizens wishing to show support for the technology turnoff alert family, friends, guests, etc. that no devices are allowed in their home on August 1. Imagine conversations uninterrupted by ringing phones or buzzing text messages and people relying on their memories to recall information. In a private residence, any fact in dispute can be settled via a reference book (dictionary, Atlas, encyclopedia!) or can wait for an answer until August 2.
As attached as I am to all thirteen holiday proposals I've made here on August 1 beginning in 2012, this one could be my favorite. That said, I purposefully waited to publish this post until just before August 1 became August 2. Wanted to be sure you read it - probably on August 2 or later - i.e., after National Technology Turnoff Day had ended. My ubiquitous rants about technology's intrusive and distracting effects on modern life and relationships always exclude my blog.
"Do I contradict myself? Very well then, I contradict myself. I am large, I contain multitudes.": Walt Whitman