to think mosquitos should be banned?

[Skyrg]

For anyone who doesn't know, mosquitos are those things outside shops that look like burglar alarms and emit a constant high pitched whine which can only be heard by young people. They are designed to stop teens hanging around shops and are advertised as 'teen repellants'. I am not talking about the insect (although not keen on those either!)

Now, I am 22 years old. I'm not a chav/thug/yob/criminal/owner of an asbo. I can hear the bloody thing! They are unnerving and bloody annoying, the noise goes right through you. I am an adult, I am eligible to vote, pay taxes etc. Why is my government allowing shops to put up a device to 'repel' me? WTF?

I don't understand how a government that bans all forms of discrimination allows the sodding things. We're not allowed age discrimination. These things are primarily heard by those under 25. What the hell is that if it's not age discrimination?? Why does age discrimination only count for those who are older? A pensioner repelling device would never be allowed!

AIBU? Or possibly just crazy?

Ooh, I hate them too (although I'm secretly pleased that I can still hear them as I'm 35!).

I've heard children being told off for complaining about 'a noise' by their parents who can't hear anything. They're just so indiscriminate.

I'm impressed you can hear them at 35! Not that 35 is ancient or anything, just that most people can't after 25.

I just cannot understand how people think it's fair to discriminate against young people.

I think I'd go in, & explain to the shopkeeper that, as an entirely non-yobbish woman in your early 20s, you will be taking your custom elsewhere because he/she's chosen to install a device to repel you.

I'd suspect that most shopkeepers have no idea some adults can hear them (I certainly can't - FAR too many loud gigs over the years).

Also, it is crap running a corner shop & having every local teenager use your forecourt as a handy hangout. It drives the guy who runs our local offy nuts - they're perfectly ordinary kids, but they're loud & thoughtless & regularly pester his customers to buy them alcohol.

Obviously the Mosquito isn't the answer. Horrible things. But I think the way to get rid is for shop owners to be made aware that they're pissing off many of their clientele (& their children).

I understand that it's annoying having kids hanging about, I really do - but I was a perfectly reasonable, polite teenage, how is it fair? Plus, I don't think they work, the yobs ignore them. I'm sure I read that somewhere. Perhaps they can't hear them because they've been to too many gigs? :)

I thought you meant mosquitoes the nasty little buggers that bite - I wanted a rant because I have four HUGE bites on my thighs that I can feel though my jeans.

Bastards.

Sorry about the thread hijack

[scratch scratch]

I don't have anything against banning the nasty little buggers Suncottage, but it'd be a bit impractical to arrest them all :)

I can hear them - am 27 - and those fecking mole/cat repellent things too.
A woman a few doors down had one in her garden so all summer we had to have bedroom windows shut. :(

We had a perfectly good telly that emitted a squeal only I could hear so we had to get rid.

Very annoying.

YANBU at all. I can hear the damn things (19) and it is quite frankly painful. I make a point of avoiding all shops that use the things. I'm not giving any of my hard earned money to someone who spends it on a device which causes pain!

I thought that they were going to stop shopkeepers using them as it affected young children too. I wouldn't shop somewhere that was going to freak my small DC's out.

Oh so THAT'S what I keep hearing. I thought The Voices were trying a new tactic.....

Stop kids hanging around outside (and often vandalising) shops and offices at night, and there would be no need for them.

ccpccp, my point is not all 'kids' do that, so it's unfair to 'punish' the whole lot.
Children under 10 can also hear this sound, and they're not really likely to be vandalising shops, are they. Adults over 21 can hear them, and considering they're liable for taxes etc, it seems incredibly unfair to treat them all as 'yobs'. I have already mentioned that as far as I'm aware, mosquitos have been unsuccessful in preventing vandalism. In fact, I should think they're quite likely to be vandalised themselves, given how irritating they are.

I'm aware shops have a lot to deal with, including vandalism, but I don't think this should be a legal solution. Far better to increase the police force and make the 'yobs' clean up the vandalism, or install CCTV.

Your response sounds a bit immature, I'm afraid. You know that's not possible, and you're not really considering the issues here.

I think you're absolutely right - they're completely unfair and just play into the general mindset that if you're young, you're therefore a menace to society.

And it will become self-fulfilling - remind people that they're unwelcome and somehow "bad" often enough, and they'll eventually give you actual cause to think that.