Loud Music in Your Car

{Disclosure, I am over 40 and I’m a metalhead, so I like my music loud}

I was young enough once to enjoy going to loud rock concerts where I would stand in the front row, next to the speakers that were blasting the music so loud that I still heard it a week later. Yeah, I have been known to “crank” it up in my car every once in and while. In addition, I will admit that I like my music on the loud side. However, I still do not want to hear your music. There is probably nothing more annoying than pulling up to a stoplight and having your car shake because the asshat behind, in front, or next to you has his/her music blaring so loud with the bass so deep that your windows vibrate in your car. Not only does it vibrate the windows in my car, but also the thumping is so deep that I can feel it in my chest.

Looking in the rearview mirror during those times is a challenge as it too is vibrating in sync with the bass of the inconsiderate jerk in the car next to me. I cannot wait until the light turns green so they can drive off and pollute someone else’s environment.

However, it is not just stoplights that you have to endure this problem. I was sitting at a fast-food drive-thru the other afternoon when someone with deafening music pulled up behind me. The music was so loud that I could not hear the employee at the window. Of course, they did not bother to turn it down, not even the least amount.

I find it equally annoying to be rudely disturbed by this noise pollution in the middle of the night or while sitting down with the family to watch a television show. Just as it is nice and quiet and everyone is relaxed, here comes that thunderous booming as some shithead drives his boombox on wheels down the street. To make matters worse, in a few minutes, they will drive back down the street for whatever reason, I guess cruising the neighborhood is all the rage now.

I am not trying to be a hypocrite here; I am also worried about those people driving these giant mobile stereos and those people around them. Studies have shown that more than 28 million Americans have some degree of hearing impairment and nearly 1.5 million are children. Since the air around us belongs to everyone, then we are all being subjected to second-hand noise pollution. Since a car stereo can produce over 154 decibels and a jet aircraft engine will produce around 140 decibels, this means that we are being subjected to dangerous levels of noise every day.

Ok, so it is only noise and I will agree to that. Ok, it is their right to listen to what they want as loud as they want, I will buy that too. However, what about my right to have quiet and not be forced to listen to their music? What about the health implications? What about my hearing? When I pull up to a stoplight or I am driving through a neighborhood, I politely turn my music down to a reasonable level, so those around me are not being forced to listen to my choice of music.

Consider that the loud music will distract the driver and make it harder for them to concentrate on their driving because of loud music. How about hearing the emergency vehicle sirens, which only produce around 123 decibels? If the driver cannot hear the sirens, then he/she will most likely not know to get out of the way of the emergency vehicle, which could cause a crash or at least delay the response to the emergency call.

It is so simple to deal with this problem, if you are one of those people that are offended by reading this, then simply show some respect for another person’s space. Turn down the tunes some; you will be glad you did later in life. It will help you avoid having to say “WHAT, I DIDN’T HEAR YOU” later on in life.