Maybe its just me, but something i've been noticing lately is that a lot of musicians have little regard for their hearing and the preservation of it. In a function that's primarily based on auditory perception, your hearing is the most valuable tool for your craft (more important than your hands, more important than your instrument).
I dont know about any of you here, but i like hearing. And lately i've found myself in positions where i've refused to play because the other musicians are just too loud. When I cant hear the singers singing, you're too loud! When i cant hear myself playing out of a 12" monitor sitting right in front of me, you're too loud! When I cant have a conversation in the back of the church after service without us shouting at each other, you're too loud! When its just 2 or 3 of you in the church rehearsing and i can hear you outside down the block, you're too loud!
Sometimes I think they just think its old people complaining (u know how old people complain about everything. lol) I had to tell one of my drummers friends who's 14, that if he keeps playing constantly at a volume like that with others playing like that, in 10 years, when he's my age, he's going to have hearing problems. I didnt start playing till 22 and only recently did the people i play with get significantly loud (my drummer and his friends), so i still have good hearing, and i'd like to keep it that way. So i get up and leave. I've been to other services, rehearsals, etc where they are way too loud. Why should the mic's be maxed out on the sound board?? The musicians need to come down on volume. If not for the sake of the people, simply be selfish and do it for the sake of yourself.
Would anybody just stare at the sun all day? But thats the equivalent of what some are doing to their hearing. This is the biggest asset and something worth caring for.