Hi ChristiaanJ
I'm afraid it's definitely repression. Otherwise it's only a matter of time before there's a serious incident. The morons are begining to receive sentences (four months seems to be the tariff) so the more publicity this offence gets the better.
WP
Stop press! Scrub the bit about before there's a serious incident! From the Independant:-
A bus driver was badly injured when a ray from a laser pen was shone into his eyes as he drove a vehicle full of passengers. The victim was taken to hospital with a serious eye injury following the incident in Walsall, West Midlands.
Phil Bateman, a spokesman for the bus company, Travel West Midlands, yesterday called for a ban on the sale of the pens to children. "The consequences of this incident could have been absolutely horrendous," he said. A youth has been given police bail in connection with the incident.