I think 99.9% of Americans would think inside of their heads that being able to to afford a car every 5 years by vaporizing a whole city is a good trade off

Goddamn that's 100% true. I don't even want my car (I have to one because there is no alternative) but the idea of needing to "upgrade" every 3-7 years is insane to me. I want to keep this one vehicle until the wheels fall off.