Because government is a very blunt instrument and it's reacting to the harm caused by large scale economic behavior (especially fueled by a debt based system that sucks wealth away from the edges so it's hard to retain the slack required to not turn the screws).
"Outlaw" is a bit overstating it though, don't you think? Is the average motorist an outlaw due to the proliferation of unreasonable speed limits? I get that it's a bit vexing, but once you've got your hands on your illicit chainsaw, nobody is coming to check where you bought it. Personally I'd be more worried about getting called out for felling the type of trees you need a gas chainsaw to cut.
You've got a good point about PG&E being institutionally prohibited from gas chain saws in a way they can't sidestep like individuals can. But much of their right of way maintenance is likely done with heavy machinery or helicopters, rather than solely relying on manual labor with 2 cycle engines.
No one has to check where you bought it, just the manufacturing date which is stamped on the case.
And yes, you are an outside the law, as trivial as it seems. For some of us breaking the law is a big deal; we put a large burden on "unjust law is not law" because we recognize that "stupid" "inconvenient" or even "ruinous" law isn't obviously "unjust"
"Outlaw" is a bit overstating it though, don't you think? Is the average motorist an outlaw due to the proliferation of unreasonable speed limits? I get that it's a bit vexing, but once you've got your hands on your illicit chainsaw, nobody is coming to check where you bought it. Personally I'd be more worried about getting called out for felling the type of trees you need a gas chainsaw to cut.
You've got a good point about PG&E being institutionally prohibited from gas chain saws in a way they can't sidestep like individuals can. But much of their right of way maintenance is likely done with heavy machinery or helicopters, rather than solely relying on manual labor with 2 cycle engines.