Fuck Cars

Like with so many things, especially in the US, it seems to me the people complaining most loudly about it are the ones doing everything they can to make the problem worse for themselves.

I watch Berm Peak (formerly seths bike hacks) and he recently did a video on a large expensive cargo bike intended for commuting with two kids.

He commented on the high price and safety features, and the large amount of time and resources spent on design to make it safe for anyone you might run into (as it's large, unwieldy, and heavy as hell compared to normal bikes) and he in passing comments "but no-one wants to spend on keeping anyone else safe" and my jaw just dropped.

Everyone. Everyone wants to spend on that. Everyone who isn't a goddamn psychopath who ignores the fact that you or someone you care about is just as likely to be on either end of such an accident.

Is that really just the default way to think in the states? I'll spend on my survival, but no-one elses?

The 93 ford ranger was perfect. I hate these fucking abominations we have now and I think industry grossly underestimated the demand for a sensible pickup

When you snort so much iron oxide that the only notes you have on car design is "bigger! BIGGER! ADD SPIKES! "

Too low to the ground, they might be able see a child in front of them.

Truck / SUV drivers like : "What pedestrians???"

There are many reasons: marketing propaganda, sexism, insecurity, politics, and selfishness. Americans are seemingly very susceptible to propaganda and marketing has convinced people that the type of products and brands we consume define who we are.

Sexusm. They have tricked us into believing that small cars are feminine and that huge trucks are for manly, rugged, outdoorsy types.

Insecurity. Even if someone realizes that judging people based on what vehicle they drive is stupid, lots of people are very insecure and are worried other people will judge them for driving a small car.

Politics. Leftists advocated for smaller cars because they care about urbanism, pedestrian fatalities, and the environment. In response, conservatives have turned large tank sized vehicles in a conservative political statement.

Selfishness. Engineering can only do so much to cheap physics so bigger / heavier vehicles are a little safer for the passengers of the larger vehicle when crashing into smaller cars but at the cost of the safety of the smaller car. It is far from a 1 to 1 exchange, large vehicles greatly increase the traffic fatality rates, but large pickup owners don't give a shit about the safety of others. They have no love for their fellow countrymen which means they have no love for their country.

I don't remember exactly but it's something to do with new ~~safety and emissions~~ fuel efficiency regulations brought about in the 90s(?) that would fine manufacturers who didn't meet the new standards. "Light trucks" such as the F150 were exempt so manufacturers started pushing those hard as the fashionable choice.

Fast forward 30 years, the regulations haven't changed, and here we are. There's a good video about it somewhere...

Yeah here we go: https://youtube.com/watch?v=jN7mSXMruEo

Since the 1950’s, particularly in rural america, it’s been common for a family to have 1 truck and 1 car. Cars have become less desirable in these areas over time. Everyone wants a truck. There’s more to it in rural areas like where i live. Our roads suck. It rains a lot. The closest town is an hr away. I use my truck every day to haul, tow, and get to where i need to be. Couple that with i’m a big guy. And i’m not young. Getting in and out of an average car is a challenge. Riding in an average car for more than a short time is torture. I never asked for trucks to get huge. I never asked for 400+ hp. I would gladly trade these big, tall trucks for trucks the size they were in the 80’s with enough power to pull my trailer and get decent economy. But for some reason that’s not an option. I just bought a new Ram with the base 3.0 turbo. It’s very impressive. We took a 1k mile trip and averaged 22mpg. That’s impressive as well. But i remember an Isuzu Pup diesel in the 80’s getting 38mpg. It was slow. It smelled like diesel. But it ran for 300k miles needing nothing but a clutch. There were some futile attempts recently at putting diesels back in 1/2 ton trucks, but come on. Toe nail clippings for engines that had zero reliability across the board. I guess for me, the summary is I have to have a truck. I can’t afford 2 vehicles. There are many people in this country in the same situation. I do think there’s a market for economical trucks over these modern monsters but until manufacturers start listening, we’re stuck with what we have. On the other hand, all vehicles are doing better with their safety systems. From a pedestrian perspective, that is going to be a bigger help than anything. It doesn’t matter what a person is driving if they are not paying attention.

There is a lot of ego to it as well. You aren't a "real man" if you don't drive a truck. People assume they see a truck, thats a hard working real man right there, even if it is just some guy driving to his desk job that doesn't need 500+ hp and 4000lbs towing capacity. I can't remember which company but a truck manufactuer surveyed people with pictures of men next to cars or trucks and the truck scored higher in things like resourcefulness, trust, reliability. And when the exact same guy is pictured next to cars, he scored lower in the same categories. Even some women get trapped in this ego thinking they are tough with stickers like "silly boys, trucks are for girls". Trucks aren't for a specific gender, they are for hauling bulky loads or towing. .

It's the ultimate result of Society being nothing more than Consumer Society: weak minded individuals after a lifetime of being made to feel inadequate by Adverts are led by Adverts into feeling (all car adverts nowadays use techniques from Psychology to manipulate people at a subconscious level, not logic to convince them, so the push to buy comes via what people feel about certain products) that an oversized car will make them look important and irresistible to the opposite sex.

In places were people feel that Society (the part that exists beyond just the Consumer bit) frowns on people running around with big trucks it's harder for Adverts to induce such feelings.

Mind you, living in the Europ I'm pretty happy that at this point in time the impression that people here have of America is pretty low, so people don't have as much the "I want to be like an American" effect that would otherwise push "American practices" (what people think they are from what they see on TV) here.

I am probably going to break down and get truck again. Most uses people give are bs. A tarp and car will let you haul 90% of what you want. Chicken, dog, cat, pig feed. Car is fine. All of those animals too (though 300 lb pot belly pushes the limits).

If you stick it out the back of the trunk you can haul long lumber. You can load a surprising amount of rocks and concrete too.

You are probably loading and unloading appliances that often. Or furniture.

If it wasn't for the travel trailer I would suffer through it, but its the straw that broke the cammals back. Renting is just such a pain in the dick too. I would rather have a piece of junk desiel that I am tinkering with the schedule a day to pick up a truck to race around trying to use it before I run out time.

If I need to clear brush. I just want to go do it. If I need rocks I just to get a load. Friend or family moving I can just bring the truck.

Don't get me wrong I hate a lot of the truck out there. I don't need a new house worth of truck to move junk around.

@Elkenders @return2ozma their egos

Nothing. But you never know...

Meanwhile in Europe:

How am I ever going to carry a couch on my bicycle? Haha, silly me. I don't carry couches. (Or I'd just spend a whooping 80 euros to rent a van for a few hours)