It certainly has its purpose, and always will. People talk like it’s outdated from seafaring days, but not only is there still plenty of seafaring going on, the Mercator got a new lease on life in digital mapping applications.
I called it shitty just because I really like maps, and when it comes to world maps, I think it’s overused, and just plain ugly. I realize that is a completly subjective opinion.
There are many equal area world map projections, this one is called Equal Earth. It’s a very solid choice too. Although the very top and bottom of this map are still stretched when viewed on a Tissot indicatrix. Still way better than the shitty Mercator.
That’s a long winded way of saying it, but I agree with you. If you’ve ever been alone and in a scary confrontation on public transit, it’s enough to make you never want to take public transit again, let alone bring your kids along on a trip downtown.
“Statistically it’s safer” doesn’t change anyone’s emotions around what’s actually happened to them. It just makes them think “cool, cool, so I’ll be in that stat as the outlier. Hope they point that out at my funeral.”
My grampa had a similar novelty glass with an inscription that read “my doctor said I can have one beer per day.”
It’s like that thing in the drive thru, where the person in the car ahead paid for your coffee. The President pardons the president behind him so the next president can pardon him.