[StarSlayer]

now the kicker. are they allowed to turn it off, ever?

Funny enough the Peabody Essex Museum actually had a 200 year old Chinese house taken apart and shipped over to Mass for a big exhibition.  Its very cool and interesting building but it still has the government squawk boxes installed and the outside frescos where defaced so as not to offend the State. 

It was rather disturbing the prospect of gov't propaganda being piped into your abode, especially in such a quaint old house.

[Lorric]

now the kicker. are they allowed to turn it off, ever?

I don't think it had to be running, but that's all that it would pick up.