Derpy Whooves 
"[@MoonGazer Lunarium":](/images/2076993#comment_8446881
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The United States is based around immigration, freedom, and equal rights. The First Amendment is what makes America special, not the Second.
However, the claim that the United States economy is dependent on the manufacture and sale of firearms and ammunition does not hold water.
There are individual companies making refrigerators and washing machines that account for more revenue than all of the firearms and ammunition manufacturers combined.
And the cost to the economy from fatal and non-fatal gun violence is TEN TIMES greater than the benefit.
Macy's - all by themselves - just that one single company - has annual revenues equal to all of the firearms and ammunition manufacturers combined.
Do you think the US economy would collapse and unemployment would skyrocket if Macy's failed?
No - of course not. No one thinks that. It would be ridiculous for anyone to think something like that.
Utterly ridiculous.
And Macy's doesn't cost the economy TEN TIMES its annual revenue is downstream costs.
[bq]
> But, no one really tries or wants to look at that[/bq]
Because those claims are utterly ridiculous and wrong and do not hold water from any perspective.
Here's some numbers I found looking up some other things:
$1 billion - Annual comic book sales
$3 billion - Annual revenue of gun and ammunition stores
$5 billion - Annual revenue from sales of Hasbro toys
$13 billion - Annual revenue of gun and ammunition manufacturing industry
$21 billion - Annual revenue for the Whirlpool company
$28 billion - Annual revenue from gun and ammunition sales (2015)
$47 billion - Annual revenue from milk sales
$62 billion - Annual revenue of Apple
$136 billion - Annual revenue from oil in the U.S.
$178 billion - Annual revenue from the manufacture and sale of military hardware in the U.S.
$229 billion - The cost of fatal and non-fatal gun violence to the U.S. (2012)
$230 billion - Annual revenue from liquor sales
$273 billion - Annual revenue from the auto aftermarket
$686 billion - Annual cost of the military industrial complex in the U.S. (2019)
$953 billion - Annual revenue from car manufacture
Yes, you read that right, the "Gun Culture" in the U.S. costs the U.S. more each year than the entire country makes in the manufacture and sale of military hardware. I knew it was bad, but I didn't realize it was that bad.
So - as everyone already knew, America is really about Car Culture & Alcohol, and to a lesser extent Oil and Apple. And Immigration. And Freedom. And Equality.
But mostly Cars and Liquor.
The entire United States gun industry could disappear tonight and the net effect on the economy would be positive.
Looking For My Doctor
The United States is based around immigration, freedom, and equal rights. The First Amendment is what makes America special, not the Second.
However, the claim that the United States economy is dependent on the manufacture and sale of firearms and ammunition does not hold water.
There are individual companies making refrigerators and washing machines that account for more revenue than all of the firearms and ammunition manufacturers combined.
And the cost to the economy from fatal and non-fatal gun violence is TEN TIMES greater than the benefit.
Macy's - all by themselves - just that one single company - has annual revenues equal to all of the firearms and ammunition manufacturers combined.
Do you think the US economy would collapse and unemployment would skyrocket if Macy's failed?
No - of course not. No one thinks that. It would be ridiculous for anyone to think something like that.
Utterly ridiculous.
And Macy's doesn't cost the economy TEN TIMES its annual revenue is downstream costs.
[bq]
> But, no one really tries or wants to look at that
Because those claims are utterly ridiculous and wrong and do not hold water from any perspective.
Here's some numbers I found looking up some other things:
$1 billion - Annual comic book sales
$3 billion - Annual revenue of gun and ammunition stores
$5 billion - Annual revenue from sales of Hasbro toys
$13 billion - Annual revenue of gun and ammunition manufacturing industry
$21 billion - Annual revenue for the Whirlpool company
$28 billion - Annual revenue from gun and ammunition sales (2015)
$47 billion - Annual revenue from milk sales
$62 billion - Annual revenue of Apple
$136 billion - Annual revenue from oil in the U.S.
$178 billion - Annual revenue from the manufacture and sale of military hardware in the U.S.
$229 billion - The cost of fatal and non-fatal gun violence to the U.S. (2012)
$230 billion - Annual revenue from liquor sales
$273 billion - Annual revenue from the auto aftermarket
$686 billion - Annual cost of the military industrial complex in the U.S. (2019)
$953 billion - Annual revenue from car manufacture
Yes, you read that right, the "Gun Culture" in the U.S. costs the U.S. more each year than the entire country makes in the manufacture and sale of military hardware. I knew it was bad, but I didn't realize it was that bad.
So - as everyone already knew, America is really about Car Culture & Alcohol, and to a lesser extent Oil and Apple. And Immigration. And Freedom. And Equality.
But mostly Cars and Liquor.
The entire United States gun industry could disappear tonight and the net effect on the economy would be positive.