Yes, but had you kept your shit you used to accumulate, at the prices you and I used to buy that shit at, that mag dump with M193 equiv 5.56 would cost us about 5-6 bucks or
so, maybe $7.50 on a bad year where the Rileys drive by XM193 loaf price was like $125.00...
I wouldn't blame gun culture in its entirety. It's new vs old. You probably have been shooting longer than I have but the method of induction so to speak has changed. Back before Sandyhook and obamascares, new gun owners were
different. They entered with some trepidation. Which means they sought guidance from others that they thought knew better. New gun owners WANTED to be informed. Now it's all about instant gratification. You still see that pragmatism now with some new gun owners, but it ain't a majority. It's some guy going into a gun shop now going BWEAHIWANNAGUN CUZ IM AFRAID OF OBAMA (or insert some bogeyman here) not, "I'm going to ask my friend Greg about guns because I know he owns them and can probably tell me a few things". I think most of us from the pre-sandy hook BS era had a lot more guidance from others. Either from family (because people grew up in gun families) or from accumulated experience from other gun people we knew, etc, or because we stuffed our face into some book or internet post about some gun that captured our attenetion and wanted to learn shit. I love the fact that there are more gun owners, problem is many of them are taking the homer simpson approach... "Waiting Period? BUT IM ANGRY NOW!!!!"
Nobody has any patience for anything anymore. There was a measured pragmatism among the overwhelming majority of gun enthusiasts. Now as a % a huge part of that is gone. I blame a lot of social
media BS, and the 24 hr news cycle as well. It froths people into a lather and then people on the "Ow, my balls" end of the spectrum succumb to hysteria rather easily.