But for the missing climbers families, they may be wishing their lost loved ones had been carrying SOMETHING that could have helped to find them.
It still falls down to personal choice, it's a bit much to say our families should have more control of our lives then we have, when it comes to family the debate is better left there.
Hikehigh is also correct in saying it opens the door for other actions, your beacon will undoubtedly be connected to your permit which could create all sorts of problems, an example is a hike I was on last summer, I was heading for the Whitney zone to resupply and double back but was forced to turn around and make a new route out off the mountains, the permit laws allow you to leave the wilderness for no more then 24 hours before you re-enter or you have to get a new permit, although I was on schedule on my permit by the time I was able to get to the Whitney zone I had been officially out of the wilderness for almost 48 hours, and what are the odds of me actually being able to get a permit to enter the Whitney Zone?
