New Hampshire is thinking about upgrading its 911 system to include other digital data. Under the new system, you wouldn’t simply call 911 — you would upload to 911.gov or something like that. You could transmit pictures of your deployed airbag from your very own traffic accident. You could send text messages. Instead of LOL it could be BAO (burning all over) or BOB (burning out back).

The New Hampshire authorities could design some emoticons to indicate the seriousness of the conditions. Instead of smileys you could have agonycons. O: () (That means “head wound,” obviously.) Uploading medical information and geo-locations would be critical and a serious improvement to 911 service, of course.

But what about status updates like on Twitter or Facebook? “Car burning up quickly now” or “Nervous about this pistol being pointed at my head.” Certainly if the late Nicole Simpson had been able to send a camera phone picture at the same time as her 911 call it might have made things clearer. But what is the likelihood of the text message, “stranger coming through my bedroom window” actually speeding law enforcement to the scene of a crime? Perhaps it will change that other iconic phrase of the early 21st century: “If you see something say something.” That might just become: “If you see something text me with a picture of something.” … Or something.