It is silly, but many can't resist. Some radios have a small indicator
that shows when they are transmitting, but a big red light would be
nice. I had one stick many years ago on an old Genave radio.
Fourtunately, I was leaving the traffic area so it probably didn't
bother anyone for long. I noticed after about ten minutes, but by then
the output transistor had died and it wasn't working anyway. Some 2-way
radios we used in broadcasting had timers that shut them down after 5
minutes because they weren't designed for full time duty cycle. That
wouldn't be a bad idea either.
--
Gene Seibel
Confessions of a Pilot - http://pad39a.com/publishing/
Because I fly, I envy no one.