Titus, one of my FAVORITE TV shows, will be out on DVD on July 12th. Here is one of his quotes, just for sh!ts and giggles
LISTEN UP! WHAT IS ABOUT TO FOLLOW COULD CHANGE THE PLANET! So put down the carburetor you are rebuilding and pay attention. RODDING IS THE KEY TO WORLD PEACE! Now before you can call the men in the white ice cream suits to take me away, hear me out. At every event I have attended, I have yet to see a Nazi, a Black Panther, a KKK member or anyone from the Albanian Purity Front. Now they were probably there but they were all TALKING TO EACH OTHER about cool cars. When it comes to excellent workmanship there is no racism, just agreement, awe and camaraderie.
At the spring event this year after my ritual "bug wipe off" was over, a group of hard core looking Latinos walked up to my car, they looked in it and around it for a few minutes. Now I think of myself as open minded and not prejudiced but I have to shamefully admit that I was a little worried. One of the guys looks at me a little apprehensive, probably wondering if all the stuff he's heard about white boys is true especially one as "Richie Cunningham" looking as me. He says "cool car," and starts asking me about how I did this and that and this...we talked for at least forty five minutes about cars, custom techniques and the '56 Chevy post that he is currently building. We shook hands and as he walked off, I swear we were all humming "We Are The World". OK, maybe I'm pushing it a little but do you think this conversation would have happened on the street or at an ATM machine? Doubt it.
No other automotive hobby has the cross-over we have. Maybe drag racing (also HOT ROD based!) but you don't see a ton of African Americans crushing cars with their monster trucks on TNN, red necks hopping '64 Impalas at a Low Rider event or a Japanese NASCAR drivers association. Yet you see every nationality at a Goodguys event. So here is my idea.
We change the name of the United Nations to the "Unite World Rod and Custom Association." Instead of long boring meetings where countries argue about why they can or can't import lettuce if they build chemical doomsday weapons, we have rod runs. If a couple of countries are arguing, we make their leaders do a road trip together in a blown '32 highboy for 1500 miles. Either they will wind up best of friends or kill each other. Either way no one else gets hurt.
We settle countries differences on the drag strip! Nations spend hundreds of BILLIONS on weapons program. Instead, I say we put all that money into rod research! Can you imagine letting Chip Foose build a BILLION dollar rod! Imagine Clinton driving a 20,000 horsepower '40 Ford and grudge racing Boris Yeltsin in the shadow of the Berlin wall. We promote the "World Nats," a rod run for the whole planet. (In Switzerland, neutral you know). Every country puts all it's effort into the baddest rod they can build and we all show up and hang for a weekend. No judges, just the whole world looking at cars and paying way too much for concession stand soda pop. We will still have "PICKS", Baddest Pacific Rim Rom, Coolest Arctic Cruiser, Hottest Middle Eastern Sled.
I'm proposing an amendment to the U.N. charter. Motion: 426 H.E.M.I. (Hot rod, Education, for Mankind, Internationally). At the end of this summer, I need all of you guys to meet me in front of the U.N. building in your rods and customs. All of us will storm the building and grab a leader from each country, put them in our cars and let them drive. (I know, "No one drives my rod but me!" For God's sake guys, this is for world peace!) We drive to a pre-selected cruise spot. We order everyone burgers and fries and let them really work out the worlds problems. Whoever wins gets to destroy all of his nuclear weapons and whoever loses...uh...gets to destroy all of his nuclear weapons. Simple isn't it?
Keep the Flow,
Titus.
