While your statement is true it reads like a non sequitur because it misunderstands GP’s objection, which is not to others’ opinions but rather to unfiltered noise in the workplace. Or rather, to a product that pipes in noise that deliberately evades filtering. To focus properly I need silence or something equivalent. This has nothing to do with others or their opinion or my subjective evaluation of the same. It’s a matter of attention.

Yes, this was my interpretation. I don't mind cafes or whatever, because as many people mention, the blending together of all those convos is fine, and helps sometimes, but would lose my job in am office pretty quickly at this point. All it would take is one asshole crunching an Apple and I'm done