Hope I die before I get ... deaf So Pete Townsend, famously of the Who (and a blogger, as it so happens), is now cautioning legions of iPod cultists that those little ear buds may cause hearing loss. Of course, for Pete himself, the hearing problems stemmed from years of playing loud rock'n'roll. But I think his caution should be heeded. I'm trying to limit the volume on the el cheapo 256 meg mp3 player I use during my workouts. But the gym can be a noisy place, and the music in my ears provide solace. Still, a report on last night's TV newscast featured a physician warning that the sound waves emanating from our mp3 players don't have a chance to dissipate before they run smack into the inner ear. So that could be a problem.