"It's nice to see your car being used for what it was intended for instead of sitting in some stupid parking lot." If you frequent most any Honda forum, you've no doubt read this line countless times. It always makes me chuckle a little since my '93 Civic project car was intended, by Honda at least, to get me from point A to point B without using much gas, perhaps pick up some groceries, or maybe even scoot a college kid or two to and from the university. I never bought a Type R, an S2000, or an NSX (damn you Aaron!), but instead opted for an economy car. Honda never really intended to see it race through a deserted business park at 3 a.m., cut through local mountain back roads as the sun starts to crest, grind away lap after lap chasing down that boosted all-wheel-drive monster, or stand proudly in a sweltering parking lot while a judge decides if it's good enough for the owner to be handed some arbitrary piece of plastic like the ones often found in storage wrapped in cobwebs and sawdust. No, it was actually me. I'm the one who decided what the car was intended for, although I never actually told anyone. If you see my car posted on a Honda forum, most would probably assume it's a show car. They'd have no idea where it's taken me, how fast it's gone, or what kind of competition it's faced. Unfortunately, judging books by their covers is a standard online practice these days.
You're Either With Us Or Against UsWhen it comes to forums and photo threads, members will usually formulate an opinion based on what's presented to them visually. A sort of label is attached to the car and its owner almost immediately. When it comes to the practice of labeling, we can be downright nasty, especially with the protection of a computer monitor and an alter ego fortified screen name. Nine times out of 10 it seems the car show regulars are the ones taking the majority of the hits. Street racers, mountain side speedsters, track day heroes, as well as non-Honda owning lurkers are quick to point out a "show queen" or "hard parker" whenever their sixth sense starts tingling. Expensive Japanese parts? Show car! Super clean paint and tucked bay? Show car! No dents or paint chips? Then it must be one of those dreaded show cars, which is a fate worse than death to many. Why so much animosity? Different strokes for different folks, right? Well, maybe not.
Fast Times At Hater High
You see, labeling gives some members a chance to lash out at others in an attempt to tear them down publicly without having to actually do it face to face. Think of it as a stress-relief program, or online therapy. Maybe they had a bad day, perhaps the wifey is nagging, or maybe they're just the self-conscious type. The hating used to be isolated but it's since become normalcy. It reminds me a lot of high school, and how every student was categorized by his or her interests. There were jocks, gangsters, skaters, and stoners at my high school. Sure, we were all in the same class and had the same short-term goal of getting through the day to find some freedom, but the labels discouraged cross-association between groups, and each stuck to their own while each mocked the others.