I’m visiting a rural part of the southern US, and I have noticed that about 2/3 of the houses outside the town have yards full of cars and tractors in various states of disrepair, as well as tons of other miscellaneous stuff. Why is that? Is it kind of a culture of self-reliance and a supply of spare parts? Some other reason?

  • snooggums@lemmy.worldEnglish
    106·
    1 day ago

    One or more of the following reasons.

    • Cost to dispose of it is greater than zero.
    • They or someone they know might need it later.
    • They plan on doing something with it, but can’t afford to right now.
    • They don’t have a garage or shed to store it in, or they do but those are also full.
    • Their backyard has an above ground pool, so no room there.
    • They are hoping that someone driving by sees something and makes them an offer.
    • They are too overwhelmed working 3 jobs to spend the time and effort to get it cleaned up.
    • Whats_your_reasoning@lemmy.world
      8·
      9 hours ago

      Cost to dispose of it is greater than zero.

      I was looking for a comment mentioning this. If it’s a rural area, the local waste management facility might take a trek to get to. If you have to make multiple trips, or rent/hire a vehicle to get rid of something (like having to tow an old car), the time and cost can add up.

      So if it’s not accepted with a typical trash pick-up, it’s still gotta be somewhere, even if you don’t want it anymore. Keeping it on your own property is at least more ethical than dumping it in the woods somewhere (though you’ll find plenty of that in some areas, too.)