BlogJanuary 20, 2015 7:15 PM ET

I didn't know selfie sticks existed, but venues are starting to ban them

selfie stick

I guess I don't get out as much as I need to, because there are now things called "selfie sticks." For the uninitiated, these devices are extendable camera and/or phone holders that enable users to take better (via a wider angle) group photographs.

According to Billboard, a handful of UK venues have begun banning the selfie sticks, calling them safety hazards. A spokesperson for Britain's largest indoor venue, the O2 arena, had the following to say:

"The O2 do not allow selfie sticks into the arena due to safety considerations and so as not to impact the view of other fans. We welcome selfies, but leave the stick at home please."

This sounds like the right move to me. If you go to shows with a selfie stick and are not a professional photographer, you're annoying, and you need to re-evaluate your priorities. These things haven't started showing up at hardcore or metal shows, have they?

For what it's worth, at least one Washington Post writer does not agree with me.

11 comments

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anonymous 1/20/2015 4:30:48 PM

Smartphone users support ISIS.

rick____tocchet 1/20/2015 4:45:57 PM

If found with one of these, it should be inserted directly up the jerk, phone with it.

buzzsaw 1/20/2015 5:48:27 PM

Japanese tourist girls are not stoked

anonymous 1/20/2015 9:10:48 PM

They should just ban asians

genghisjohn 1/20/2015 9:58:53 PM

Its time we all died for hatching such idiocy

anonymous 1/21/2015 4:02:38 AM

Every comment above is spot on. Stop fcking bragging about what show you're at or how great of a time you're having. Enjoy the show through your EYES

birdman_prrr_prrr 1/21/2015 5:18:56 AM

the only time ive seen one of these was when an Asian tourist was using one downtown. ridiculous shit

anonymous 1/21/2015 7:56:28 AM

I wonder how much of that handle I could fit up my ass while taking a grundle selfie.

anonymous 1/21/2015 8:11:15 AM

"If you go to shows with a selfie stick and are not a professional photographer..." As if professional photographers use selfie sticks.

SN00PY 1/21/2015 10:20:07 AM

Club yourself and other patrons to death with it

anonymous 1/23/2015 1:33:19 PM

Because a teen with a nice camera is somehow a professional photographer because they have a website their twenty friends check out.