GT40s.com Paddock Politics Thread

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Ron Earp

Admin
Yep, read another thread or forum if coming here pisses you off. I too get emails, PMs, etc. every now and again from folks who do not like someone else's viewpoint or attitude. It's a paddock area folks, you do not have to participate.

I don't participate in the paddock, for the most part, because I've never been one to argue with folks over politics on the internet. I use the term argue because most of these threads are not discussions - people aren't learning new concepts, or learning how others might view a particular topic, you know, being empathetic. These threads are typically sides presenting their viewpoint and little discussion happens. I realized that long ago and decided to not waste my time. Your mileage may vary.
 

Mike

Lifetime Supporter
I follow your approach but admit to getting sucked in a couple times a year. I mostly just jump in to yank someone string but it's a poor use of time for everyone I think. I bet I can guess who tattles to the mods though. I'd bet their initials are ROD! I hear it's enter at your own risk but then I hear threats of banning and what not. Which is it? If you mouth off and then tattle when someone fires back I'd can your ass yesterday. I'm heading back to more interesting GT40 topics. Too bad the main parties don't have more seem remotely interested in the core subject matter of this forum.

PS I'd support making it for GOLD members only. You should have to pay to lay all the BS on everyone that many in here do.
 
Ron, according to my Webster a "paddock" is a place where horses are saddled or a parking place for race cars at a race track. Ergo all conversations in the GT40 Paddock should be limited to horse or race car parking subjects. I wonder if many of the members in this forum agree with me that these political tirades should go to some other forum?
 

Ron Earp

Admin
Tom, it is irrelevant what Webster's defines the word Paddock to mean. Here, we have defined it to be a place where all threads not associated with other subforums are to reside.

Ghost stories? Paddock.

Jokes? Paddock.

Latest movie? Paddock.

Politics? Paddock.

And so on. It is what it is. Don't want to read political drivel? Don't click on political threads in The Paddock. Can't refrain from clicking on political threads? Bone up on self control or don't enter The Paddock.
 

Doug S.

The protoplasm may be 72, but the spirit is 32!
Lifetime Supporter
Hear-hear!!!

I applaud you for the guidance you just provided, Ron.

Cheers!!!

Doug
 

Keith

Moderator
A bit late to this party - have been in the dreaded sick house.

I'd like to chuck my 2 cents in - as a UK based moderator, I have no clue as to what much of the Politics threads are all about as it's 99.9% US centric, but I'll tell you one thing (or maybe 2 :quirk:) that it doesn't represent the best facets of the American character by a long way with a couple of minor exceptions. I have met many Americans and have liked them all. Heck, one of my American friends I've never even met!

I think it's quite clear there are only half dozen or so involved so I've never thought it a major issue as it's now compartmentalised.

The Politics thread just seems like a great pissing contest with no hope of winning and no cigar. In many ways, the Politics also thread seems to reflect the deepening divisions in American Society in general, perhaps that's why it's so feisty.

The Paddock however does serve one useful purpose. It keeps this kind of crap off the main forum and thus Ron's vision for his site is intact and unharmed, making it still the greatest resource of GT40's (and a heck of a lot more beside) info in the world.

If I wasn't involved, would I object to it? No, I don't think so, as others have said, if I was offended by it, I'd just not visit. I believe people object to the Politics thread because it doesn't exactly cast the protagonists in a very good light and, from what I understand from some pm's, people are ashamed of it.

Whatever, carry on as far as I'm concerned with the wish that civility returns in some measure.

Plum Out.
PS Please don't remove or deface my statue..
 
A bit late to this party - have been in the dreaded sick house.

I'd like to chuck my 2 cents in - as a UK based moderator, I have no clue as to what much of the Politics threads are all about as it's 99.9% US centric, but I'll tell you one thing (or maybe 2 :quirk:) that it doesn't represent the best facets of the American character by a long way with a couple of minor exceptions. I have met many Americans and have liked them all. Heck, one of my American friends I've never even met!

I think it's quite clear there are only half dozen or so involved so I've never thought it a major issue as it's now compartmentalised.

The Politics thread just seems like a great pissing contest with no hope of winning and no cigar. In many ways, the Politics also thread seems to reflect the deepening divisions in American Society in general, perhaps that's why it's so feisty.

The Paddock however does serve one useful purpose. It keeps this kind of crap off the main forum and thus Ron's vision for his site is intact and unharmed, making it still the greatest resource of GT40's (and a heck of a lot more beside) info in the world.

If I wasn't involved, would I object to it? No, I don't think so, as others have said, if I was offended by it, I'd just not visit. I believe people object to the Politics thread because it doesn't exactly cast the protagonists in a very good light and, from what I understand from some pm's, people are ashamed of it.

Whatever, carry on as far as I'm concerned with the wish that civility returns in some measure.

Plum Out.
PS Please don't remove or deface my statue..
Oh f*** off Keith, Just kidding :) Glad you're feeling better.
 
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Doug S.

The protoplasm may be 72, but the spirit is 32!
Lifetime Supporter
A bit late to this party - have been in the dreaded sick house.

...I'll tell you one thing (or maybe 2 :quirk:) that it doesn't represent the best facets of the American character by a long way with a couple of minor exceptions. I have met many Americans and have liked them all. Heck, one of my American friends I've never even met!

The Politics thread just seems like a great pissing contest with no hope of winning and no cigar.

The Paddock however does serve one useful purpose. It keeps this kind of crap off the main forum and thus Ron's vision for his site is intact and unharmed, making it still the greatest resource of GT40's (and a heck of a lot more beside) info in the world.

I believe people object to the Politics thread because it doesn't exactly cast the protagonists in a very good light and, from what I understand from some pm's, people are ashamed of it.

Plum Out.
PS Please don't remove or deface my statue..

Glad to see you've beaten back the dreaded heebie-jeebies, Keith! May you have many more years of success in doing so!

There is NO winning a political argument...so my focus is on validating information posted (that we may use to support our position during the discussion...note that I did not say "...the argument") as well as on just disagreeing, if necessary, in a congenial manner. There is nothing to be gained from being less than friendly, and as you stated, there are some who are quite active in the Politics thread that do go a bit too far with their claims and become insulting. Nothing to be gained there except for p***ing others off and showing the forum in a bad light. Those whose political opinions are different than mine (and others') are promoting their opinions, and just that, opinions.

On the other hand...our current POTUS is busy making it difficult to support him in many ways...all of his "tweets" (no, I don't tweet) are a good example, and this IS embarrassing to me when the rest of the world wants to use us as their own laughing stock because of the extreme nature of his actions. At this point I don't know if he's going to be a decent POTUS or not...whether he will survive his first term or not...whether or not he'll be running for POTUS again in 2020...or not. He doesn't like to "telecast" has moves, which has a lot of people all over this world concerned...most of us in the U.S. are use to a bit more transparency and a little less secrecy, and that includes me, and that the POTUS refuses to divulge some of his "plans" (I'm not sure he's a real "planner", he functions more in a reactionary manner) is a bit of a disappointment.

I guess my point is that Ron was right...the Paddock is for discussions of all sorts and I am glad Ron did not restrict the discussions there. I participate in hopes I may understand the feelings and "motivations" of the voters who swept Trump into office, and although I do have some "conservative-friendly" practices, I still seem to be viewed more as a liberal because I am so vocal about the way Trump is such an (my humble opinion, now) unusual entry into our political arena. I don't mind grousing about his nepotism (usually taboo here in the USA unless your name is Trump, I guess)...his goofy nature...really, I doubt there's much more we here in the USA know about this POTUS that those in Europe or Asia or Australia or any developed country knows...he is very secretive...in a society where transparency is suppose to be a good thing.

I agree and totally support the idea that there should be fewer personal attacks on those who participate in the discussions in the Paddock...and hope the manner in which many express themselves can be "improved".

Cheers!!

Doug
 

Randy V

Moderator-Admin
Staff member
Admin
Lifetime Supporter
Good to read you again Keith... I was just sending an email off to you to see what's up! I'll send it anyway... :)
Thanks for the support Ron....
Carry on as you will gentlemen! (Within reason of course) ;)
 

Pete McCluskey.

Lifetime Supporter
Glad you are feeling better Keith.

Re the Trump tweets, granted some may be embarrassing but if the media were not so biased against him maybe he would not have to resort to twitter to get his point across.
BTW. the media is dominated by the left in Australia as well.
 

Larry L.

Lifetime Supporter
Re the Trump tweets, granted some may be embarrassing but if the media were not so biased against him maybe he would not have to resort to twitter to get his point across.


As many have pointed out, it doesn't/won't matter what Trump says or does not say...or what he does or does not DO - Schumer, Pelosi, Waters and that whole crew, as well as all their co-conspirators in the media, will decry/denounce/oppose/bellyache/nitpick/condemn/scream and complain about it 24/7/365. (Think about it. Have ANY of the aforementioned ever had even ONE good word to say about anything Trump has said or done - even with a caveat? Anything? Ever? I can't think of one.)

As I've mentioned a number of times, if Trump were to come up with a cure for cancer completely on his own, the left would find a way to spin that into a negative.
 

Doug S.

The protoplasm may be 72, but the spirit is 32!
Lifetime Supporter
Re the Trump tweets, granted some may be embarrassing but if the media were not so biased against him maybe he would not have to resort to twitter to get his point across.
BTW. the media is dominated by the left in Australia as well.

Trump has attacked the mainstream media organizations with a vengeance I have never witnessed, not even during Nixon's admin were the attacks this frequent and vehement. He, himself, alienated the media organizations with claims of "fake news", which to most of us just means any news story that does not idolize Trump. He's getting what he deserves...but his loyal admirers eat it up like candy.

Having a college major in Radio/TV production, I realize that the entire "industry" may seem to be leaning slightly to the left, with some organizations leaning more than just slightly. However, when the Fox News(?) network starts to abandon supporting Trump because of his eratic actions, that should give the general public some idea of the severity of Trump's (mis)deeds.

I had high hopes for him, Pete...he came from "outside" the mainstream political arena, which I think was what our country needed...we just DIDN'T need his divisive rhetoric or his self-serving orientation to the office to which he was elected...he should be more focused on serving our nation. He is a renegade (which at first was attractive to me), but he's a "Rebel Without a Cause" (other than his own self-aggrandizing actions) and when one listens to his rhetoric it is painfully evident that he's cutting off his nose to spite his face and the angry tweets don't help...nor does his personal rudeness to the media against which he has declared a personal war.

He can't do anything about the media...but he can do something about the way he keeps poking them with a stick. There is no wonder the media hates him.

It's a classic "which came first" conundrum...and it's hard to tell who started it. I just hope it ends soon.

As for Larry's assertion that Trump could invent a cure for cancer and nobody would offer praise for that...well, having lost a wife to breast cancer, I would have kissed the ground Trump walks on if he could have prevented that loss that devastated my family and deprived my kids of their mother. Sadly, he didn't...or couldn't...or wouldn't.

Cheers, Pete...nice to see you commenting here again. I always admire the diplomacy with which you state your position :thumbsup: !

Doug
 
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I have no dog in this ribble, however, one will not change anyone's opinion on a forum.
Carry on gentlemen!

Good to hear from you Keith!
 

Mike

Lifetime Supporter
How many of the biggest complainers in this thread have a GT40 or any intention of ever having one? This section is like a mousetrap for whiners who care nothing about GT40s.
 

Doug S.

The protoplasm may be 72, but the spirit is 32!
Lifetime Supporter
There is no edit function in 'The Paddock', something you folk should bear in mind before hitting submit reply.

I can edit when I am in the paddock, Jac...in fact, for some reason the one hour limit on edits does not exist and I have just edited (removed a redundant word for clarity) a post I made a day or two ago.

[edit @ 1:38 PM CST]...see...this response was originally posted at 11:22 AM...my edit is being done right now at 1:40 PM.

The post in this thread I edited today at 11:19 AM (#1613) was originally posted at yesterday at 12:16 PM.

A post I made on 8/17/17 (#1549 of this thread) still has the edit function.

I recall that soon after I registered my membership there was a group that was going back and changing things they said in posts and pretty quickly after that the edit function was time limited...guess the new software didn't carry this over, though...who knows?

Cheers!

Doug
 
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Doug S.

The protoplasm may be 72, but the spirit is 32!
Lifetime Supporter
How many of the biggest complainers in this thread have a GT40 or any intention of ever having one?

I do have intentions of owning one...in fact, I'm hoping to spend my final (3rd time) retirement putting one together and have made a first contact regarding the product in which I'm interested.

I also post in other technical forums...not that you would notice, I don't see you posting much in the technical forums I frequent. Sure, most of my posts are here in the paddock, but I was a GT40s member long before this whole political issue blew up into what it has become (I was a member of this forum for 5 years before you even joined).

So...you own a replica of an original GT40 (your car was not produced during the period in which these cars were undergoing development for racing purposes, so for all intents and purposes it's a replica, although I'll admit that it is a damn good replica...when almost all of the parts will fit an original, that's a damn good replica to me!!).

Congratulations and I sincerely wish you many years of happiness with it! :thumbsup:

Cheers!

Doug
 
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