[Dubai944]

[quote name='Chris Vais' timestamp='1331250684' post='122973']

Back in the day when I made my living flying, the fighter pilots were always viewed as the cream of the crop, because it was thought that air to air combat was the most difficult environment in which to fight and survive. Actually recce flying is the most dangerous because you have only speed and your wits with which to save your a$$ if the mission goes south on you. The fighter pilots always looked down their noses at the light attack guys and then there were the guys in the utility squadrons that flew the CODs, the carrier onboard delivery aircraft, the low men on the totem pole.

[/quote]



Hey Chris,



I have been lucky enough to do two trips out to carriers in the Gulf on the COD. Anyone who lands on a carrier is way cooler than most race car drivers in my book, even the COD drivers. <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/rock.gif" class="smilie" alt="" />

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[flash]

yup - they say dropping a plane onto a postage stamp blindfolded (which is how i have heard it described) is the hardest thing to do. naval aviators today are generally pretty bright too. you have to know a lot about a lot before they let you get behind the stick. heck, you have to have a 4 year degree before they even let you into the school.

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[vliegwielolaf1234]

I think all of you got it wrong in the first place .



When you start judging people based on their skills or for what they do or have , really .

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[raydog]

"When you start judging people based on their skills or for what they do or have , really "" "



My sentiments exactly. Some can't see beyond the computer monitor.

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[Cloud9...68]

I'm relieved that in the end, most people have been pretty good-natured about this whole topic. As I've said, I do regret bringing fan stereotypes into the discussion, as it wasn't really necessary, but to try to bring it back full circle, we did, to my surprise, uncover some defenders of NASCAR on a Porsche site, and they actually made some interesting and valid points when you look past some of the heated words. With F1 coming to my town this year, and my car getting closer to completing its conversion to a mostly-track car, I should be following the racing world a lot more closely than I have in years past, and who knows, maybe I'll look into this NASCAR thing a little closer - maybe there's more to it than it appears on the surface through the ESPN highlights I've based most of my opinions from.

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[flash]

no worries - i'll take all of the heat. i have no issues being what i am. i'm not going to make excuses either. none of this is bragging either. i know how i got here, and it is what it is. very early on i was placed in an accelerated program. i was tested very early, skipped 1st grade altogether, and was then sent to audit college extension classes while still in elementary school. by the time i got to high school, i spent the time in school that most people spend socializing, going to college and high school at the same time. i managed to play a couple of sports, but no going out with the kids. i spent any free time with much older people. this allowed me to get a full 2 year jump on people my age, but it cost me learning any social skills. as a result though, i was launched into groups of older and more affluent people, and learned about the finer things and limitless possibilities the world had to offer. it made me intolerant of those who accept their lot in life and don't try to improve it. my family were perfect examples of that which i found distasteful, and further reinforced my desire to be more. it has been a great motivator, and largely responsible for why i can accomplish things the way i do. i think it was a good trade. this country and society rewards those who exceed the norm and rise above mediocrity. i am a product of that philosophy. i'm fine with that.



i'm not the only one to use stereotypes and profiling either. porsche is excellent at it. they market to the more educated and affluent. they could easily have marketed to the average joe. but that's why they have volkswagon.



before anybody thinks about finding fault with me being an elitist or a snob, they should consider that anybody who buys a porsche because it's a porsche and thinks that it is some form of status symbol is just as guilty of being a snob as i am. if you want to escape that, then a decent start would be to do what i am doing and remove the logos and labels off of the car.



we come here because of the common interest in the car. we stay because of those we meet here. not everybody is going to like everybody. nobody is going to like everything about anybody. that's what makes the world go around.



formulating an opinion of a person, based on the snippets you read here is just plain stupid. posting about it, especially in an area where the subject can't respond is just plain cowardly and childish.



this is a diverse group, and that's a good thing. it's the differences that make things interesting. for better or worse, motivation comes from desire. sometimes that comes from opinions that are not popular. i would no sooner try to change somebody's mind about something they love or believe, and expect a result, than i would try to tell the traffic to instantly disperse and expect it to do so. that doesn't mean that i don't wish with every fiber of my being that it did.



so to those who can't stand what i say or do, or me for that matter, take a look at your own intolerance before criticizing mine. i'm not the one discounting somebody because of what they say on a silly car website. who is really being the narrow minded one?

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[rxter]

Finally - something interesting in this thread. Cloud I am definitely making the trip for the US GP. I may very well drive the 968 over and make a week of it. You planning to attend the race?

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[Rap]

Flash, just so everyone is clear about this topic, Jay seemed to suggest that you were charming, must we agree with Jay and think your charming!! Lol. When people say they are leaving the site does the administrator take them off or are they allowed to see the error of their ways? The only time I would like to be thought of as charming would be if I was trying to lay some chick. And since that doesn't happen anymore, partly because I'm not charming like you, it's not a real concern. Lol. This site continues to be great fun and illuminating to me

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[Dubai944]

Now everyone join hands and sing "We are the world.."



I'm starting to be offended by all the apologising going on...



You just can't make fun of anything anymore...sheeezz... <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/smile.png" class="smilie" alt="" />

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[Chris Vais]

"they say dropping a plane onto a postage stamp blindfolded (which is how i have heard it described)"



Someone once asked me what a night carrier landing was like and I described it as driving, with no headlights, down a long dark unlit driveway at 150 mph and braking to a complete stop without driving through the back fall of the garage.

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[flash]

lol - no worries. i never take anything said here personally.



as for me being charming, clearly you have been drinking again. this early? wow



re admin actions: we don't do anything anymore. we had one guy who kept emailing us to remove him, so we just removed his password, but we don't even do that anymore. we don't remove anybody's information, and certainly not their posts or content. that would just not be in the best interests of the site. so, they can leave if they want to, or they can lurk, or they can come back. whatever. we get them doing all of the above. i've certainly done or said some dumb stuff and wished i could go back and fix it. no reason to prevent anybody else from being able to do exactly that.

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[chudson]

Flash, I realize this changes the entire direction of this thread (and start a new if you like) but no one has ever been banned as they do on other sites?

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[flash]

nope. not since we took over the site 4 years ago. there are only 2 people that eric banned way before we got the site, and they remain banned. there has only been one suspension that lasted more than a matter of hours while we sorted something out.



none of the specifics of any such case will be discussed here in public though, as that would just be bad form.



this forum is open to all opinions and comments. this includes anything about vendors, sponsor or not. we encourage frank and honest discussions. as long as it doesn't get personal, profane, or anything of the kind, like it does on other sites, we have no issue with anything anybody says.



and it's always free of charge.

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[ds968]

[quote name='flash' timestamp='1331482331' post='123127']

a decent start would be to do what i am doing and remove the logos and labels off of the car.

[/quote]



What ?!, surely you jest..not all of us are psychopaths with o.c.d ! <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/glare.gif" class="smilie" alt="" /> <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/tongue.png" class="smilie" alt="" /> ( Jay refers to that state as "charming" , obviously he was drinking one too many glasses of some "uppity" scotch or cognac when he wrote that.. <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/rolleyes.gif" class="smilie" alt="" /> )

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[94SilverCab]

Just to clarify, by "Charm" I meant he can be an a$$hole...



<img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/beer.gif" class="smilie" alt="" />



Jay

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[flash]

lol - yup

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[Rap]

Charm equals asshole. Do we have any other code words we can use? Lol. Personable= dickhead, loving=profane, wino=fruit lover any other suggestions?

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[flash]

968 enthusiast = all walks of life

968 Forums = best place on the planet for 968 enthusiasts (there's over 2000 of them now)

those who don't get it = who cares? (there's only a dozen or so of them)

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[ds968]

Watching CBS' Sunday Morning , and the story they did on Jimmy Johnson I have to admit ( guilty admission, lol ) that I gained some respect for at least one NASCAR driver, and in the process maybe also a little, just a little respect for the demands and challenges of that sport. Ironically, Jimmy was born and raised in SoCal, so he does not fit the stereotype of the Nascar driver or the demographic of the fan base, but with so many diverse and international drivers now on that circuit perhaps the sport is also changing its image a bit....in my eyes anyway. Still , not sure I'll ever warm up to the cars themselves or the majority of the nASScar followers, but I'm taking baby steps at this point toward reaching a " tolerance " stage of sorts ..:-) :-)

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[Cloud9...68]

Yeah, I have to admit, after looking into it just a bit, I've come to the conclusion that NASCAR requires a unique set of skills. Still not my cup of tea (I like smaller, lighter race cars, and can't get into races that just go in circles, which goes for Indy as well), but the Ricky Bobby stereotype of a NASCAR driver is very far from reality.

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