It's funny how a college professor goes from cool to angry in a split second. Case in point: my first transportation design class at CCS. People showed off their designs as per usual, but one day I opened my big mouth. I mentioned that a classmate's rendering sported wheels that looked like the Star of David. He seemed completely clueless about what he did. But I just had to "keep it real." Oh boy, was that ever a mistake! A design school that caters to the big automakers, staffed with adjunct professors who work in the business…well, they know better than some punk design student. My wrist was (kinda) slapped, and everyone was warned to not include religious symbolism in their products. Because everyone in this business wants to sell their product to anyone with green money. Nobody gives a crap as long as you can "splash the cash." Stop reading if you believe TTAC has no business discussing religion.
So anyway, I didn't much care for the exposed holes in my 2011 Ranger's bed, and I wanted some tie downs to take advantage of my "Truxedo" tonneau cover when carrying bags full of recycling. With four bedside hooks, I could strap down oversized cargo with two belts, and the big flappy hunk of Truxedo vinyl would keep the recycling from flying away. So I bought these Bull Rings. Plus, from the photos I saw on the Internet, they look pretty awesome. A great piece of Industrial Design, worthy of kudos from any CCS professor. And worthy of a little positive Venom from this series.
I once read something in a Hindu temple suggesting that Universalism between religions exists. It was in stark contrast to the kids in grade school who told me I was going to hell for my beliefs. One person later gave me a half-hearted apology for that, but it proved a point. And I learned to get over it: that's the beauty of growing older, I guess. Probably. So when I installed these (easy to use, rather awesome) bits on my Ranger, I was surprisingly upset when I saw the fish icon under the ring. I didn't pay for this, and I assume the BullRings sold by FoMoCo don't have Christian symbolism hidden under the ring. Even worse, it's been over a week and these things still upset me. I never gave much thought to it, but my CCS professor was right to make a big deal about car design and religion. Religion has a very important place in our society, and I respect that. But when I pay for a piece of Industrial Design, I don't expect a hidden religious message to go with. If you want to share your message, do it like the kids did in grade school: shock me by calling me "Gandhi" or "Maharaja" (neither of which are insults) and make fun of my religion because it isn't Christianity. I've always respected Christianity and have many friends in this faith who'd vouch for me, but these bits on my truck shall meet the grinding end of my Dremel tool. Sorry peeps: not on my truck, not with my money. This isn't what I signed up for, son. Off to you, Best and Brightest. from The Truth About Cars http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com | |||
| |||
| |||
|
Saturday, June 16, 2012
Vellum Venom Vignette: In God We Trust?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Archive
-
▼
2012
(7297)
-
▼
June
(664)
- Fifty Years of the Trans-Canada Highway
- Hammer Time: Finding A Cheap Ride
- LeMons Arse-Sweat-a-Palooza BS Inspections: Britis...
- This Week's Most-Read Stories
- Junkyard Find: 1980 AMC Eagle Coupe
- Most-Watched Video Reviews of the Week
- Toyota And BMW Plan To Take The Lead In Commercial...
- Phil’s Podium Of The Automotive Pure: Ten Trick Te...
- 2013 Dodge Dart 1.4 Turbo/Dual-Clutch First Drive:...
- 2012 Goodwood Festival of Speed: What’s Headed Up ...
- Jaguar Adds V-6, Turbo Four, New Gearbox to U.S.-M...
- 2012 Jeep Wrangler Freedom Edition Proudly Wears t...
- The Continental: Another Detroit Designer for Opel...
- 2013 Audi A6 Allroad First Drive: Off-Road Looks M...
- Audi R8 e-tron Sets “World-Record” Lap Time at the...
- 2013 Ford Focus ST First Drive: The Hot Focus Deli...
- McLaren Officially Confirms MP4-12C Spider, Provid...
- Cars.com's Convertible Buying Guide
- New or Used? : Seeking A California Vintage
- Toyota and BMW Announce Further Ties, Adding a Joi...
- Mercedes-Benz Reveals the Not-a-Station-Wagon 2013...
- We Be Sippin’: Nine Technologies that Significantl...
- GM’s Brazilian Spin: Dog Of An Engine Devours Any ...
- Where is Gas the Cheapest?
- Toyota Expands Floormat Recall
- Overcapacity In Europe: It’s Worse Than We Thought
- General Motors Looking To Cut Engine Lineup By 40 ...
- BMW And Toyota To Jointly Develop Sports Cars And ...
- Daily News Briefs: June 29, 2012
- Canadian Auto Plant Caught Up In Abortion Debate
- Take That, China: Japan Finds 200 Years’ Worth Of ...
- Adventures In Marketing: The Cocainiest Car Ad of ...
- Junkyard Find: 1969 Volvo 145 Wagon
- The Secret Of The Tiffany-Blue LFA, Or How Those A...
- 2013 Subaru Impreza: What's Changed
- 2013 Audi Allroad: First Drive
- Best Selling Cars Around The Globe: The Millionair...
- 2014 Chevy Tahoe / GMC Yukon Spied: Next Generatio...
- 2012 Pikes Peak International Hill Climb Postponed...
- 2014 Land Rover Range Rover Spy Photos: The Next-G...
- Mazda Considers Hotter Miata with 205-hp MX-5 GT C...
- The (Nearly) 1.0-g Nissan Leaf: Getting an EV to G...
- Next-Gen Alfa Romeo Spider Won’t Be An Upscale Miata
- Aston Martin Produces Another 77 One-77s: Okay, Th...
- LeMons Good/Bad Idea of the Week: Twin-Turbo Taxi!
- What’s Right With This Picture: A Father’s Advice
- 2012 Chevrolet Equinox: Car Seat Check
- C/D Video: We Thrash the Ariel Atom 300
- Trackday Diaries: How’d that Cadillac crash, anyway?
- Consumers Want Backup Cameras, Blind Spot Systems
- Hyundai Generation Why Intramural League, First Pl...
- Edmunds Issues June Sales Forecast: No Major Changes
- Ford’s Traffic Jam Assist Combines New and Existin...
- Cars.com Reviews the 2012 Chrysler 200 Convertible
- Mazda Can’t Make Its CX-5 Fast Enough
- GM Preps for Wireless Charging Tech by Filing to T...
- Daily News Briefs: June 28, 2012
- How to Drink Less (Fuel): Five Tips for Efficiency...
- Ford Predicts 47 mpg for C-Max Hybrid
- Generation Why: Throw Some D’s On That Spark!
- Carbuzz Builds Chinese Firewall To Lock Out Lone D...
- Chasing Perfection: 1000 Miles in the McLaren MP4-12C
- BMW/NedCar Now In Talks
- Junkyard Find: 1987 Chevrolet Nova Sedan
- Fun at 40 mpg: Real-World Mileage Test with Chevy ...
- Fiat’s Viaggio To Bolster Chinese Exports
- 2013 Nissan Altima: Explaining the Trim Levels
- The Zen of Cupholders
- World’s Largest Automaker 2012: Toyota Leads After...
- 2013 Porsche Cayenne GTS First Drive: A Little Mor...
- Here’s Why Your Mileage May Vary (A Lot) from the ...
- Toyota and Gazoo Racing Twincharge a GT 86 for Goo...
- How Dampers Work: We Slice Open Four Types of Shoc...
- Ladies and Gentlemen, Mazda’s Rotary Has Left the ...
- Trackday Diaries: I can tell you how to win a Lemo...
- Cadillac ELR: More Details On How the Volt Will Be...
- Ford System Could Block Incoming Calls While You M...
- 2013 Subaru Forester: What's Changed
- Cars.com Reviews the 2012 Volvo XC70
- Hyundai Generation Why Intramural League, Second P...
- 2013 Dodge Dart Video
- Daily News Briefs: June 27, 2012
- Carnewschina: Carbuzz Is A Bunch Of Thieves
- Ask An Engineer: Natural Gas For Dummies
- Ford Developing Traffic Jam Fighter
- Question: What Car Most Needs a Spec Racing Series?
- Cars.com Family Reviews the 2012 Infiniti QX56
- Junkyard Find: 1996 Volkswagen Jetta Trek Edition
- BMW And Toyota To Make Announcement This Week
- Opel Restructuring: Baby Steps Instead Of Big Bang
- Piston Slap: Of Winter Tires and The Nürburgring D...
- Vellum Venom: 2012 BMW 750Li
- Best Selling Cars Around The Globe: 1992, The Year...
- 2013 Hyundai Veloster Turbo First Drive: A Sportie...
- 2011 Mini Cooper S Countryman ALL4 Long-Term Wrap
- Four Hundred And Thirty The Hard Way: Porsche Intr...
- BMW M School: Learning How to Go Fast in German
- Name That Exhaust Note, Episode 141
- 2013 BMW 640i Gran Coupe Tested: Six Plus Four Equ...
- Ford Aims for 47-mpg City Rating for C-Max Hybrid,...
-
▼
June
(664)
No comments:
Post a Comment