Noise to the Ears: When Enough is Enough

Several posts ago, we were on the topic of ...noise. While London's use of LED decibel meters for up-to-the-minute noise monitoring may be brilliant, the Mosquito by Santel is a stretch. And now, it's causing uproar. (As a side note, it was sold under the North American company name "Kids Be Gone".)

Essentially, it's a device to ward off teens and those in their early 20's from places they shouldn't be loitering. How? By giving off high-pitched (that's an understatement), ear-damaging (another understatement) frequency waves similar to, "fingernails dragged across a chalkboard or a pesky mosquito buzzing in your ear." Come on, now. No one can argue that ear drums should not be tampered with to this extent. Not only that, but it's just a poor way of dealing with annoying teens.

While some areas admit that the Mosquito does its job in irritating teens to the point of shoo-ing them away, other cities have banned it or are in the process. As predicted, it's becoming a huge invasion of private property, echoing its way into sidewalks and apartment complexes.

And I couldn't agree more....

"There is a significant problem with giving people a tool like this and empowering the public to take over the tasks of law enforcement...It can certainly be used in a way that's inappropriate, and without a doubt, it will be."