I once pulled up at a level crossing, waited for the train, and despite the fact that it has “Jaguar” written on the wheel spinners, on the boot and elsewhere, was asked “Is it an Aston Martin?”
kind regards
Marek
1 Like
I designed it and had a local print shop make one for me , $25.
Nearly 60 years on… STILL a good-lookin’ car!
Maybe it was the mention of the fact that it was two African American ladies…not just two lovely ladies?
1 Like
That’s what I was thinking, but I didn’t see it as an offensive comment. It’s not a derogatory term and wasn’t used in a derogatory manner. Sometimes a more detailed description helps in the understanding of the statement. Maybe or maybe not, in this case, but that’s not my call.
Agreed: given the history of the writer, and in looking at the comment again, it wasn’t derogatory, and it was an observational comment.
The times we live in…
1 Like
Well, I woke up this morning and checked into J-L and was quite surprised by the discussion that was apparently triggered by my post. @WWayman, I’m sorry that this detracted from your original story.
First, I deeply apologize if anyone took offense. @CarloM, it would have been nice if you had just reached out to me. Or even reported the post as offensive to the moderators, who I’m sure would have let me know. While I certainly did not mean anything by it and others here seem to agree, if you were offended I apologize, and also deeply do so to anyone else who was offended.
Curious as to the response here, I just called an old friend who’s judgement I greatly value. He is a former board member of NABOB, the National Association Of Black Owned Broadcasters, and currently serves on an NAACP advisory board. I read him my post and his response was “Cute story. What’s the problem?” He further said that he gets deeply disappointed when there are those in our society who want to squelch any mention of race as if it does not exist, especially when they do not apply that same fervor to actual racism. As he said “Our race is something that defines who we are, and those differences are what enriches all of us. We must embrace and enjoy it. Just don’t let it be an obstacle to anyone”.
My whole point was to help point out that in our little hobby of loving old Jaguars (of which we must bluntly admit is a hobby dominated by old white guys, with few exceptions), the sheer beauty of the E type captures the hearts of many across all sorts of demographics, old and young, male and female, different ethnic heritages, and rich and poor. I was trying to simply paint a picture of a brief experience which touched me last Saturday. It wouldn’t have been the same if I dehumanized the description, also stripping it of gender and age, and said “Two people in a car said…”
As someone who has spent my whole career actively pushing diversity in my organizations and devoting countless hours of volunteer time working with disadvantaged youth (mostly people of color) to introduce them to science and engineering careers, I am deeply committed to ensuring that the rich tapestry of our multi-ethnic culture is something to cherish. I’m repulsed by the continued racism in our society, and have actively been involved in numerous efforts to raise its awareness, including recent participation in BLM protests in our city.
But despite all that, we all probably have inadvertent slips in communications that arise not from abhorrent beliefs but from historic figures of speech that still percolate from our childhoods. And if my original story here was one such example that offended anyone, I again deeply apologize. I’ll leave this here for a short while as I feel further discussion might be constructive and enlightening, although it is mindful that this is not the Pub subform, so discussion must be tempered here. And if it is felt appropriate, I’ll delete the original post.
13 Likes
Your call of course, but no, don’t do that.
4 Likes
Thread drift is what makes these things so interesting. No offense taken.
1 Like
@Jcrosby , very classy post.
I did not take offense to anything you wrote. But you took the high road and removed any potential misinterpretation of your words or your character.
I’ve said to my kids, many times, “Look, you said something, and somebody told you that they took offense to it. There are two ways you can proceed. 1) dig in your heals and make it clear that you meant what you said, even if it hurts others, or, 2) apologize for hurting them, and explain that it was not your intention to hurt them, and that you will learn from it”.
And sometimes, there’s not even anything to learn.
I respect and appreciate your response.
2 Likes
That is ALL I took your comment as.
3 Likes
When the statement is “That’s offensive” with no further explanation as to why, it almost assures there is nothing to be learned.
It’s beyond me what could have been interpreted as offensive in the original comments, and it seems we may never know…
2 Likes
Personally, I think YOU deserve an apology. Just because someone’s “offended” doesn’t mean they should be.
7 Likes
More on car show comments, the thing I find the most tedious is the many people who approach with long, drawn out stories about their brother-in-law’s best friend’s uncle’s car that was just like this one that he saw on weekends in the neighborhood when he was growing up. It’s not that I don’t love the stories, it’s just that it takes ten minutes to tell them, and after hearing a dozen, it’s hard to remain patient.
I know, we’re privileged to have our cars, so it’s a minor distraction, all things considered. Just a whimsical memory.
Don’t worry Tom. Here in Blighty, everyone I’ve ever met knew someone who worked at the factory.
3 Likes
When I take one of my classic motorcycles to a show I am always told of stories about the time when they could have bought a Vincent for £5 or know where there is one in a barn.
ALL of this subject is a first-world “problem.”
1 Like
Back on topic, the very best car show exchange ever directed my way - reported here previously, went like this:
Him: Wow! Nice Jag! Had it long?
Me: Thanks. 35 years.
Him: V12 eh?
Me: No. Inline DOC six.
Him (doing a double take) Are you sure?
5 Likes
Well Nick you are getting on a bit, maybe he thought you were becoming confused?
Ah, perhaps so. But now I’m into year 40, so my grey matter has doubtless deteriorated further 
2 Likes