General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Remington does in fact sell, quite literally "military-issue weapons of war" to civilians. (GUN PIC) [View all]hunter
(38,343 posts)Why would I deny that?
Automobiles are an environmental catastrophe and they kill and maim many people every year. I'll bet you know someone who has been killed or maimed in an automobile accident. I'll bet you know of some once pretty place that was paved over for cars, or made accessible to lazy car driving vandals.
But automobiles do have practical purposes, especially in a society specifically designed to encourage the use of automobiles and discourage walking or public transportation.
I have a car. I hate it and it hates me. It continues to roll past 300,000 miles, and when it finally expires I'll probably have to buy another piece of shit $800 car. No problem, I can fix most things that go wrong with a car, and I know better mechanics with more tools who are honest and find me entertaining.
On the other hand, my wife and I don't drive much. When my wife and I met we were Los Angeles commuters, 20mph freeways or worse, many hours wasted sitting in our cars breathing smog. By some planning, and more good fortune, we left that and haven't suffered commuting like that since the mid 'eighties. One of the compromises is living in a place that's a little wild west, with a high crime rate and serious gun problem. Our kids got free lunches in school because so many kids qualify for free lunches it's not worth the trouble to collect money from those who can pay.
It's still a much nicer place than the affluent white suburban hell I grew up in. I fled, my siblings fled, my artist parents fled when they retired from their "day jobs."