The Taurus hate is just what you said.. upselling . Sure it's not a" elite operators weapon", but it's also no hi-point.
I carry (sometimes) their 738tcp as a backup or in really hot weather, and so far it's been great. It's roughly half the price of a lcp or bodyguard and has last round hold...
I hate them because I prefer the ability to hit what I'm aiming at without learning inferior shooting techniques. I've also seen them fail more than anything else , but that is a probably a skewed view since the vast majority of armchair Rambo's agree ..they're perfect. . And perfect guns don't...