LessWrong is largely about rational debate. This means that when you make a suggestion, you should provide arguments. In this post you haven't provided an argument for why you consider this way to run a fire drill to be effective.
Sigh. I suppose I haven't. Can you steelman it for me? (At least in your own mind.) If you can't, then I suppose this post deserves all the downvotes it has.
Not speaking for Christian here. Personally, I can't steelman suggestions that have never been defended. I see the point of steelmanning as trying in good faith to build the strongest version of an opposing view, and then criticizing it. However, to do that, I need material! I need the voice of a proponent, I need something stable and sound to argue against.
I don't want to generate arguments for your idea, since I will probably misrepresenting it and build a strawman out of speculations, even if I work in good faith. This is why I need your voice!
Can you explain how the not-turning-on-the-phone drill would increase preparedness for the advent of AGI? Is it that it is a demonstration of humanity's ability to coordinate on a massive scale?
Not only are there no fire alarms, there are also no fire drills. What do you think about trying the following?
If on November 22, 2018 nobody turns on their phone, the world is saved. (We’ll get to personal computers and clouds later in later drills.)