Some time ago a message was posted regarding a question being asked of
the members of this list and no response being given to the sender of the
question. He was quite thoroughly trashed for voicing his frustration.
After all, even though the question was a serious one to the sender,
everyone on the list considered it "stupid". I cannot speak for others
on the list but I'm sure there are others lurking in the shadows who know
very little and are hoping to pick up what we can by reading the
discussions carried on by the more experienced owners. Occasionally, we
venture forth with questions which are important to us. Questions, whose
answers may be obvious to the more experienced people and are, therefore,
not responded to.
Those of you who have gained experience in various aspects of British
cars started out much the same as those of us who know little. You
gained your knowledge by reading, asking questions of others and working
on your cars. No one is born with the knowledge that many of you have
gained over the years. Think of where you would be if there had been no
one willing to answer your questions.
Too some extent, more experienced members of this list have, for want of
another word, an obligation to pass on their experience to those who are
new to the field of British cars. Being part of a group such as this
does impose some responsibility on other members to pass along
information. After all, we all are working toward the same goal, which
is the enjoyment of these British cars by keeping them on the road.
This list is intimidating. When you know so little and constantly see
people who obviously know a great deal sharing information, it can be
hard to venture forth with questions. Especially after seeing another
list member being thoroughly trashed for venting about the lack of a
response to his questions.
The old adage "there is no such thing as a dumb question" could not be
truer. If someone poses a question this list it is because he or she does
not know the answer. To deny him that knowledge by not responding is the
"stupid" act. I would rather receive 50 responses from different people
saying the same thing than to not receive any.
Which brings me to my point.
The other day I posted a question asking the difference between the
various definitions of replacement when taking out collision insurance.
There was some discussion recently which said that when taking out
insurance be sure that you specify one type of replacement.
Unfortunately, I do not have access to that previous discussion. I
received one response which described what I needed to provide the
insurance company when taking out the collision but not whether it should
be agreed replacement, stated value or whatever the term is.
I will be taking out collision insurance within the next week or two and
it is important to me that I get the proper coverage. After all, if
something happens to the car, I want to be able to repair it and get it
back on the road.
I would hope that in the future when a question is posed to the list
those of you out there with the expertise to provide an answer might say
"that's a stupid question but I'll answer it anyway because I'm sure I
asked a few dumb questions in my life". You have a lot to share with the
rest of us, if only you will.
OK, I've had my say. Fire away.
Ed
74 TR6 CF17687U
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