Couple Can't Stand Sounds Of Kids Playing, Installs Device That Repels Them
A UK couple who was tired of hearing children playing outside their home installed an anti-child noise repellent to drive them back inside. Yes, these unbelievably exist. It’s a device that emits a sound that is inaudible to adults, but causes severe discomfort to children.
Michael Mitchell, 66, and his wife Kathryn, 52 installed the device because they insist the screams of young children were forcing them indoors. Their neighbor, 36-year-old Beth Chappel, is pretty pissed that the couple uses a device that physically hurts her children. She told The Telegraph, “They’re really nasty people.” One of her friends added, “Beth’s children have been in the tears because the sound gets to them so much.”
How can a device that treats humans like pests be legal? It somehow is. It’s called the “Mosquito Device” by Moving Sound Technologies. This is how the device is described on the site where it’s sold:
The patented Mosquito is a small speaker that produces a high frequency sound much like the buzzing of the insect it’s named after. This high frequency can be heard by young people 13 to 25 years old.
The latest version of the Mosquito is called the MK4 Multi-Age. It has two different settings one for teenagers 13 – 25 years and one setting for all ages. When it is set to 17KHz the Mosquito can only be heard by teenagers approximately 13 to 25 years of age. When set to 8 KHz the Mosquito can be heard by all ages.
The site claims the device was made to “combat vandalism.”
The couple told The Telegraph, “As soon as we turn the power on we see a difference in how the kids play. They stop screaming and go into the house. I heard one of them say to another child in the garden ‘I don’t want to play outside anymore, the sound isn’t very nice.'” The couple doesn’t think they’re doing anything wrong at all: “When the kids play quietly in the garden we have no problem with that. I don’t think we are being cruel at all, I would never do anything to hurt a child deliberately.”
A council member and Environmental Protection Officer does not agree. After a complaint from Chappel, an investigation was launched by the borough council and the device was deemed a “nuisance.” The couple has been ordered to keep the device off “at all times.” Despite this, Mitchell has vowed to continue using the device.
What. The. Hell.
Guess what? You cannot control the noise that happens outside your home. I lived in Florida for a while, where there is year round sunshine and grass grows like you would not believe. Not a day went by when someone in the vicinity wasn’t having yard work done — lawn mowers and leaf blowers constantly. Try living next to train tracks, or an elementary school. Noise is a part of life — you cannot avoid it. If you believe you are entitled to a life of silence, move your ass to a desolate location where you have no neighbors.
God forbid kids run around outside and make some noise. Half the time we’re complaining they don’t get enough exercise, the other half we’re complaining they’re too loud when they do. The couple has been threatened with fines and prosecution if they continue to use the device.
There’s an audio demo on the right side bar of this page so you can hear this annoying sound for yourself. I’d rather hear kids screaming any day than listen to this for hours on end.
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