Originally Posted by
RichSPK
There's a lot of ways to answer that question. I'm not particularly invested in the debate (and I don't want to be), so I'll keep it simple. I defend cars because I like them. I don't like crime, generally (everyone can probably think of a law they think is stupid), so I don't defend that.
Things that people like can be unintentionally destructive. For example, 100 years ago, everybody heated their buildings with coal or wood. That seemed like a right, or it was believed to be the only practical way to make it through the winter. Certainly no harm was intended. But when there were thousands of coal fires burning in a big city, the result was disastrous.
Cars are a lot like that, IMO. They've gotten to be pretty destructive in cities. But at this point most people just can't imagine a way past them.