"Cellboors". I like that.

I've seen one practice that actually seems to teach these phone users a lesson, and that is to start making sarcastic replies to everything the phone caller says, as if she were speaking to me.

Typically, she will call me out as being rude -- to which I will point out that she is in a public place, and if she wants privacy she can always go somewhere private. (Those who don't talk back will usually figure that out for themselves.)

I was hoping you'd write about this.

Thursday night I was in a bar and a guy sat down next to me and proceeded to conduct a loud, booming, drunken "business deal" on his cell. ("SERIOUSLY, BRAH, WE'RE GONNA MAKE MILLIONS..."). The place was busy and there was no place to move.

I know cellphone jammers are illegal in the US -- but are they rude?

Actually, Amy, if they're as annoyed by the cellboor as you are, they might be amused by the sarcastic replies. They might even join in.

We could start a tradition. When someone is speaking on a cellphone in a public place, we could all start making sarcastic replies.

I'm with Patrick - let's start a tradition of publicly shaming these "cellboors."

But, I know that it won't work for all. For instance, on a train one time we had just such an idiot and several people asked him to lower his voice. His reaction? Just get louder and complain about all the "phone police" on the train. What an ass!

Some people have no qualms about annoying others and no amount of asking/telling them to shut up will work.

But, maybe, just maybe, it will work for most. Kind of like when someone tries to cut in line - depending where you are most folks WILL speak up and therefore, there are less line-cutters.

If you want to avoid annoying others with your replies, face the caller and speak just loudly enough for him to hear you. If that's still louder than his voice, then he's really not being a boor and you should leave him be.