“Well, there are only so many Patriot missiles to go around, we have to prioritize”
Hah. That’s funny. I claim priority over Slavic gangsters and Khazarian gunmen.
“A taxpayer”
Just like me man. Therefore I hereby grant me the privilege.
“Hey, if you want to build your own air defense missile system, nobody is stopping you”
Actually that’s not true. You will face a thicket of barriers starting with Munitions Manufacturer licenses (includes intended customers), ITAR barriers, classification review, etc. For people who are capable of designing and manufacturing high accuracy air defense guidance systems and high acceleration propulsion systems to get them to their intended targets, there may be no technical limits but there are certainly a multitude of legal barriers. You can be assured that the current “administration” would be rather rabid about that.
“Just like me man. Therefore I hereby grant me the privilege.”
I suppose we’re at an impasse. We’ll have to settle it with rock, paper, scissors.