Let's say you have the customary midlife crisis fantasy of the upwardly mobile - you decide one day you want to open a little restaurant or perhaps a small hotel. You're going to need a liquor license of one kind or another (unless you don't want to serve alcohol, which makes a merely bad idea really, really terrible). So here's what's in store for you. You're going to have to go to your state (in some cases, local) regulatory agency that issues these licenses. For the sake of this diary, let's call it the "ABC". The ABC is going to want to know everything about you (and in many states, your spouse or domestic partner). You'll have to be fingerprinted and the fingerprints will be run through the state and in some cases the FBI criminal databases. They'll want to know where your money comes from. They'll want to see your bank records, sometimes for several months. And if the money you plan on using just suddenly appeared in your bank account a month ago, they'll want to know where it came from. If you borrowed it, they'll want to see the loan documents. They'll make you complete a personal history. If you're using a corporation or LLC, they'll want to know all about that, too and who else owns it. If you're in a partnership (general or limited), they'll want to know who your partners are (certainly general and in some instances limited, even though as a matter of law, limited partners can have no say in the operation of a limited partnership). And all those individuals (and in some instances, their spouses or domestic partners) will have to be investigated too. In some states, they want to know about your other family members. It's going to take the ABC several weeks, possibly several months, to issue your license. Oh yes, the local community zoning/planning people may have a say too. Public hearings may be involved. Publication in a local paper usually is, as well. And then once you have your license, you'll be strictly regulated as to how you use it and you flat-out can't sell to people who are under age or visibly intoxicated. And all you're doing is running a small business that sells a legal product.
Contrast that with purchasing a weapon of mass destruction such as an AK-47 or similar gun. In most states, you need to show up at a gun show with money or credit card in hand and maybe your driver's license. That's it.
Does this make sense to anyone?