I think you've hit on something that has been in the back of my mind for a while- that the kind of "acquisition syndrome" of anything has a kind of fantasy element to it, you know?
Maybe I get little pouches for my bag because I fantasize about taking x with me everywhere, the EDC culture, etc. Being the kind of person that always has x on me.
And this acquisition paired with the fantasy pushes me toward making that fantasy closer to reality. Maybe I do take x with me everywhere. Maybe I start to hang out in EDC forums to talk about my loadout for x. And with EDCs, it's pretty harmless (mostly, that I'm aware of- I'm not really an EDC person, although I dabbled).
The problem with the AR-15, as you've so well put it, is that this is a Thing that people can most easily realize their fantasies about, and then commune with others about. Hang out on forums, depending on the group, push at boundaries, maybe play around with some fantasy fulfillment. And it's....not always harmless.
I think you've hit on something that has been in the back of my mind for a while- that the kind of "acquisition syndrome" of anything has a kind of fantasy element to it, you know?
Maybe I get little pouches for my bag because I fantasize about taking x with me everywhere, the EDC culture, etc. Being the kind of person that always has x on me.
And this acquisition paired with the fantasy pushes me toward making that fantasy closer to reality. Maybe I do take x with me everywhere. Maybe I start to hang out in EDC forums to talk about my loadout for x. And with EDCs, it's pretty harmless (mostly, that I'm aware of- I'm not really an EDC person, although I dabbled).
The problem with the AR-15, as you've so well put it, is that this is a Thing that people can most easily realize their fantasies about, and then commune with others about. Hang out on forums, depending on the group, push at boundaries, maybe play around with some fantasy fulfillment. And it's....not always harmless.