As the person who started this thread, I am pleased to see that so many other people care about the topic. Here are some thoughts I've had since, in no particular order.

1. I have keen hearing. Not to a bizarre degree, but it's noticeably better than most people's. Why should I suffer when other people don't?

2. The store where I work is going to play "great hits of the 80's and 90's." The main reason is that they can play a local radio station for free. Its cheapness is the main reason. Evidently, having their customers bombarded by other people's commercials doesn't bother them. Probably they haven't noticed that it occurs.

3. I read a book on sex differences in the human brain recently. Too bad I can't remember the name of it. Anyhow, CAT scans, etc, show that in general, women notice more things than men do. Men tend to focus on one thing, while women will be processing 3-4 things at once.

Obviously, having a bunch of men make decisions about the environment for women customers (and employees) does not make a lot of sense.

4. Muzak is a brand name, and companies have to pay for Muzak. I haven't heard it for a while, but I'm pretty sure I would find Muzak much less irritating than commercial pop radio.

5. My basic response to all this is not to shop. It's been 9 years since I put down the last kitchen floor, and this time I hope for a longer stretch to pass before I have to hit Home Depot again.

6. I help garden down at my church. I love the garden, but it does have the drawback that bums and drifters hang out there. Most of the male vocalists I hear over the PA sound like they've been living behind the grotto, too. I refer to hoarse, cigarette-ravaged throats, the inability to carry a tune, and the themes of self-pity and anger.

Why do merchants work so hard to provide a clean store and polite salespeople, then fill the airwaves with dirty, depressing images?