Ear plugs can not only protect your ears, but also your peace of mind as well! Of course, some people like hustle and bustle, but many others prefer to keep commotion at a minimum. But a significant number of people also need real peace and quiet — even in the city?

You get ear plugs, that’s all! Inexpensive, they’re practically free when compared to what you get, some peace of mind. And oftentimes for city-dwellers neighbors are simply on the other side of a piece of drywall, even when they’re not roomies!

And that’s when ear plugs can help. They’re not always going to solve the problem, but they are often helpful, minimizing the noise if not downright stopping it altogether. That’s because the ones you’re likely to find are only good for blocking up to 33 dcB of noise, which is about the level of a typical conversation. Those of better quality are not as easy to find and will require a bit of research to procure.

But it may be impractical to wear them continuously. While many people get used to them, others find the practice increasingly irritable, especially when reusing ear plugs. Of course, they shouldn’t be necessary to being with. But hardly anyone anywhere believes noise pollution to be a serious isse, one warranting official action. In fact, even in New York City, reputedly the one place in the entire United States with stringent anti-noise laws on the books, enforcement is often wanting due to not enough resources being devoted to the issue, particularly manpower. And ironically, the one greatest source of noise complaints, that between neighbors, is precisely what civic involvement tends to shy away from!

Jean-Paul Sartre famously remarked that “hell is other people;” this may explain whyThe Big Apple is so reluctant to intervene between warring neighbors, which is but hell multiplied exponentially! But what do the laws on the books do, then? And what else does a call to 311 offer besides a chance to gripe to someone?

Well, enough people tolerate noise well enough such that it isn’t much of a problem. That’s the sad truth, in the final analysis: most folks just don’t mind it. Hence, some things will never change. Mental sanity is not something that’s highly valued; indeed, not many know what true sanity is nor how noise plays an important part in preventing it!