Historical sites you’ve been to or want to go to thread

[Phrozen Sands]

Originally Posted by PrettyBoy

I’ve seen most of the automotive historical sites I’ve always wanted to see due to the fact that I went to school in Detroit and lived in Michigan for several years. The school I went to itself is a historical automotive/industrial design school. That was a treat. Hard work, but still a blessing to be accepted there. I’ve been to Le Mans in France several times, but I still have not been to Modena, Italy to see the old Ferrari factory, and also Sant’ Agata, Italy to see the Lamborghini old factory and museum. I also would enjoy seeing the Aston Martin factory and museum in GB, along with the Porsche, Mercedes-Benz, and BMW factories and museums in Germany.

With the other conversation on this thread, I’ll have to respectfully disagree that the 60s are the same as today. I didn’t live in the 60s, wasn’t even thought of, but my parents did. Based on the stories they’ve told me and what I’ve seen in media compared to now, it’s night and day. To them and to me, today is much darker. As my dad always said “Folks today don’t have a lick of sense.”

Whether people have changed fundamentally over the past 60-years or whether they have gotten worse, depends on the lens through which you view human behavior. To me, I have never in my life seen the foolishness that I see today. The violence is unheard of. 5 and 6-year old children getting killed at school in mass, etc. and nobody does a damn thing about it.

However, I do think at our core, human behavior remains largely the same — we seek connection, purpose, and survival. But circumstances, societal pressures, and cultural shifts have influenced how we express those needs. I also think with the constant use of smartphones and the internet, that in itself has profoundly changed how people interact, think, and spend their time. With that, it’s led to less face-to-face communication, and for some, a sense of disconnection.

IMO, today is darker and people seem worse in many ways due to the magnifying of technology and social media, which highlights both the best and worst of humanity. But I do believe the core of human nature —our capacity for love, creativity, and connection does remain the same.

Well said, PB. I couldn’t agree more. Facts!

[cheerfulgreek]

Originally Posted by honeychile

I wrote the letter, standing exactly where John collapsed after being shot. How I wish I had a copy of it!

So, I have that song on my phone in my iTunes, and now whenever it plays, I know I won’t listen to it the same way I always have, like a normal song I like on my iTunes. honeychile, your post is such an amazing story that I’ll always listen to that song differently. I can now say I chatted with the person that influenced parts of that song. Thank you for sharing that.

Originally Posted by carnation

See...a lot of those protests, probably most, petered out or were just for show. Friends at northern universities would get really mad because a big group of protesters would block a campus building or cause classes to be canceled because of the danger. After a few days, the cops would clear them out and arrests would be made and it would be discovered that most of the protesters weren't even students there.

A lot of times, they were for ridiculous things, like "students shouldn't have required courses" or "this campus should immediately be replanted as a forest", etc., and the media bought into it and filmed it. Some turned out to be very dangerous; my husband's cousin was caught on the Kent State campus in the middle of those shootings.

However, I would say that there wasn't any more "dedication to the cause" than there is now. Most people weren't going to sacrifice their homes or lives to a cause any more than they do now. I know what it seems like! The media have recreated the 60s and 70s as romantic times when anything was possible and huge causes were followed and youth prevailed.

In reality: it was no different from life today.

I think if I lived back then, I don’t know if I’d recognize the gradual changes, maybe with an exception of a few.