a civilian MRAP would cost a bundle -- say, $500,000 to $750,000. But it would offer an excellent way of maintaining contemporary American class distinctions on the highway. I would imagine that a Wall Street hedge fund manager driving an MRAP vehicle en route to the Hamptons could easily squash
any of the pathetic losers who got in his way driving miserable little Hummers.
[WS:] I do not think that a Wall Street hedge fund manager needs that kind of props to show his status. AFAICT, Hummers are driven, for a large part, by middle class wannabies who have nothing else to show for their status. It is a classic small bird big cage phenomenon. The Hummer has similar kind of appeal as professional wrestling - it is pretty parvenu or noveau riche at best.
Another point, the American class distinction on the highway is manifested by a slightly different way: upper class folks are chauffeured in limos, middle class folk drive their own cars, and proles take the bus - except in NYC, where public transit erases the distinction between middle class and proles.
Wojtek