Laws and regulations increase dramatically with population density in a jurisdiction. It's not a US thing - it's a "civilization thing". More people per square

Laws and regulations increase dramatically with population density in a jurisdiction. It's not a US thing - it's a "civilization thing". More people per square mile and the blast radius of reckless profiteering and all kinds of criminal mischief explodes. This is why Alaska has even more liberal gun laws than Texas - it has more bears than people - literally. Especially in the US, where these regulations lag severely, waiting until the abuse and damage gets completely out of hand.