It’s for the US, the only location Everytown is active in.

Definitely, meanwhile I guess I’m only buying used cars for the foreseeable future.

Small imported trucks are subject to the chicken tax, they could still be produced domestically without the penalty. Unfortunately manufacturers refuse to make them. The new Maverick is virtually the exact same size as the F-150 was when they discontinued the Ranger the last time around and the new Ranger is even bigger. Everything has grown immensely in size and price.

And dealers have done the same math. Inventory is based on the highest spec they think they can force onto someone coming in for a mid tier vehicle. You want an F-150 with a regular or super cab? Too bad, that $40k truck simply doesn’t exist. Your options are a $65k SuperCrew® on the PLATINUM, which is marked up another $15k because there’s only one and 4 other people want it more than the $83k Limited, (also with a SUPERCREW cab). Meanwhile 2004 Rangers with 200k miles are solid gold on marketplace because you literally can’t buy them anymore.

Everyone will say “they make what sells” but that’s bullshit. They spend millions to market and convince people they need the largest vehicle they can get away with producing. “Oh, you’re having your first kid? If you don’t have 14” of ground clearance and a 3rd row you won’t be able to survive.” A 2009 Jetta is just fine for a small family. If you need cargo space, they make a wagon. Just make fucking cars again.

There’s also the disconnect of what is being made by manufacturers versus what many people want. An overpriced and massive luxury SUV has never appealed to me, yet that is basically the primary vehicle being made. I could buy a new car if I wanted to, all 3 of mine are paid off but there isn’t a single new car being made that I want to drive more than my 2017 Ford Focus. If it was totaled tomorrow I would absolutely pay a premium to get it replaced rather than buy something new. When supply is low prices come up and used cars are a commodity that is desirable to many and not available from current manufacturers. 5000 lb EVs just do not appeal to me in any way.

It’s not a conspiracy or even hidden. The media shows what they want to show. They showed this shooting until they achieved their goals and stopped showing it. It is absolutely possible that each major media corporation did exactly what they wanted for their own goals at the time, no coordination needed, just that most of them are politically similar so their goals were fairly close. Shootings where attention promotes left leaning ideology are kept in the spotlight so long as they generate attention, any time that a right leaning narrative pops up they instantly drop all coverage. This isn’t a crazy conspiracy, it is a simple fact. Vegas resulted in Trump banning bump stocks; it succeeded and then was forgotten for whatever the next useful headline was that popped up.

The bump stock ban was enacted in 2018 which marked the end of coverage for the shooting. It wasn’t passed, it was dictated by arbitrary fiat. After it passed continued discussion could have had a negative impact, especially due to the investigation deliberately refusing to determine if they were actually used or not.

You hear about mass shootings (random public ones that are committed to generate news stories, not ones where it’s crime, usually gang related, with multiple people shot due to poor aim) when the media wants to leverage it for a specific angle. Shootings that play into the desired narrative linger for a very long time, shootings that go against the desired narrative disappear in a few hours to a few days. It has nothing to do with how many people were killed or what questions have or have not been answered; it is simply a function of how much it works towards the desired narrative.

The desired outcome of a gun ban was achieved and the fact that there are still unanswered questions means that continued discussion hurts the desired narrative, so it isn’t discussed. Not only has it “served its purpose” but bringing it up now could have a negative effect for those that control the media so the media never brings it up. No, we don’t know why he did it, we don’t even know for sure if he actually used bump stocks, but none of that matters; the headlines got the immediate response they were designed to get and then they moved onto other headlines before questions outside of their narrative were asked.

Does it lead to ducking?

There isn’t much on top of the wing that is highly critical. Some planes you can’t even see the top from anywhere in the plane too. An actual issue like leaking fluids or damaged flight control surfaces are visible from the bottom. Something like a few missing fasteners really isn’t t that alarming. I’ve flown plenty of times with some missing, sometimes speed taped and sometimes both the first few times I asked the crew chief but eventually I became familiar with where and how many missing weren’t an issue.