If you don't have direct experience in something.... shut up.

[HEMI6point1]

Due to life and other things I haven't posted here in a long time. Anyway....

Once again the mainstream media is making a big deal about this Indy 500 being Danica Patrick's last Indy 500 Race.

Sorry, but as a big car and racing fan, it sucks that mainstream media has over-hyped this woman.... just because she is a woman.

I was once told by someone, "You like to bash Danica but what race car are you driving?"

Well....

Fans who regularly watch the IRL and NASCAR know that the only thing Danica is good at is making the highlight reel when she crashes into other cars. This is also mentioned by people within the organizations, so it's not just fan assumptions. Danica also has videotaped evidence of being rude to her fans, to put it nicely.

Meanwhile, over in the NHRA, Courtney Force - an actually good driver who's good with fans - has won 3 times so far this year and is currently leading the points in Funny Car. But do you hear anything about that from mainstream media? Nope.

Now....

My issue is the comment "what race car are you driving?" One does not have to have direct experience in something in order to talk about it.

I'll use (American) football as an example. Let's say I tell you that if the losing team would have tried another type of play instead of the one that they actually used they might have won. It would sound pretty foolish to tell me, "Are you a player or coach? Then shut up."

[Greenday]

Not sure if it's irony or not but she crashed out of the Indy 500...untouched.

At least she stayed consistent with her crappy driving all the way through the end.

[TheHuckster]

Ugh, I hate this. Criticize a piece of artwork and it's, "Well, can you do any better?"

No, I can't. But I can at least appreciate good art, and know the difference between skilled art and unskilled art.

In the case of sports, of course I can't say I'm as knowledgeable as a coach. But coaches make stupid decisions all the time, and I can call them out on it. Anyone who watches enough football will tell you that if you go for it on 4th down at your own 20 yard line when you're up by two points with 2 minutes left in the game, you either have a deal with a bookie or you completely lost your mind for that moment.

[Mr Hero]

I don't have to be a game developer to know if I'm enjoying a game.
I don't have to be in the movie industry to know if I'm enjoying a movie.
I don't have to be a musician to know if I'm enjoying a song.
I don't have to be an author to know if I'm enjoying the book.

And yet you have to be a NASCAR racer to be able to say anything about it. Doesn't make sense to me.

[protege]

And yet you have to be a NASCAR racer to be able to say anything about it. Doesn't make sense to me.

There's not much to understand about NASCAR. All it is, is several people driving nearly-identical cars around in a circle at 200 mph

But seriously, I remember being at a local car show, and muttering "what a piece of shit" about someone's attempt at fixing up their ride. You don't need to be an expert to know that you don't use nails to hold your bumpers on. Styling is subjective; build quality is not.

[Tanasi]

But seriously, I remember being at a local car show, and muttering "what a piece of shit" about someone's attempt at fixing up their ride. You don't need to be an expert to know that you don't use nails to hold your bumpers on. Styling is subjective; build quality is not.

For Rat-rods anything goes and when you're working on a tight budget sometimes you use what you have to to get the job done.

[protege]

For Rat-rods anything goes and when you're working on a tight budget sometimes you use what you have to to get the job done.

Even rat rods are getting annoying. There's a huge difference between trying to capture what was done in the 1950s...and trying to outdo each other by building the biggest piece of crap. Seriously, I've seen the 1950s rodding magazines--nobody was welding together license plates for floors. Nor was anyone cutting apart their fenders, and crudely 'stitching' them back together.

[Tanasi]

Even rat rods are getting annoying. There's a huge difference between trying to capture what was done in the 1950s...and trying to outdo each other by building the biggest piece of crap. Seriously, I've seen the 1950s rodding magazines--nobody was welding together license plates for floors. Nor was anyone cutting apart their fenders, and crudely 'stitching' them back together.

Rat rods are their form of art. I've seen lots of RRs that I thought was ugly but to each their own and in the eye of the beholder...
I have a good friend that has a Packard painted Mauve with teal stripes and flames. It's uglier than home-made sin but he and his wife like it and that's OK by me.

[veniteangeli]

I don’t need a pilot’s license to know that a helicopter doesn’t belong in a tree.

[jackfaire]

I get this same thing when I criticize an author that's "celebrated"

If I point out how parts of that writer's writing sucked or makes no sense "they're a genius" Uhm no.