I can't read this article in a serious manner at all, they are trolling/joking, right?
It's not like Airpods are the first wireless device that go in your ear? We saw the same thing with bluetooth headsets in the early 2000's, and the joke/meme that became. Like that, it's just a fad that will fade over time. This is no different than being rude with any other type of headphones in your ear while talking with someone. It's not like Airpods invented someone being a rude jerk. If someone has Airpods in during a conversation, and it bothers you, be an adult and politely ask them to remove them, just like you would if they had ear muffs on and you weren't sure if they were listening. It's not that big of a deal.
Carry on, and worry about much larger problems in life than silly nonsense like this pretending to be "news."
For me its there is an important difference. Airpods are comfortable enough that I often forget that I'm wearing them when they are off. This never happened to me before because the cords were a strong enough reminder.
Because I forget that I have them on, I have many more interactions wearing Airpods than I would have with any other device. This will presumably continually get worse as the batteries and comfort improve for more people, and the Air pod could become more like a hearing aid.
Slightly off topic, but fun fact: Airpods can already act as a hearing aid through the accessibility settings on an iPhone. I actually just learned about this the other day: https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT209082
It's not like Airpods are the first wireless device that go in your ear? We saw the same thing with bluetooth headsets in the early 2000's, and the joke/meme that became. Like that, it's just a fad that will fade over time. This is no different than being rude with any other type of headphones in your ear while talking with someone. It's not like Airpods invented someone being a rude jerk. If someone has Airpods in during a conversation, and it bothers you, be an adult and politely ask them to remove them, just like you would if they had ear muffs on and you weren't sure if they were listening. It's not that big of a deal.
Carry on, and worry about much larger problems in life than silly nonsense like this pretending to be "news."