What has happened to Americas' Youth?

[darthcual]

I'm 35 and reading spark plugs and tuning carbs is foreign to me. Widebands and Diagnostic codes are what I go by. You have to realize that by the time I started driving, carburators were a thing of the past. I also could not tell you if it was a 57 chevy, but, I bet there are cars I could point out to you that you didnt know. Knowledge is relative. While I hope my son will follow in my footsteps and be a car guy and do some boxing, I wouldnt force him. You must have passion. No one can make you.

 

[90lxcoupe]

I'm 35 and reading spark plugs and tuning carbs is foreign to me. Widebands and Diagnostic codes are what I go by. You have to realize that by the time I started driving, carburators were a thing of the past. I also could not tell you if it was a 57 chevy, but, I bet there are cars I could point out to you that you didnt know. Knowledge is relative. While I hope my son will follow in my footsteps and be a car guy and do some boxing, I wouldnt force him. You must have passion. No one can make you.

This post reminds me of one of my favorite lines from smokey and the bandit. "When you tell somebody somethin', it depends on what part of the United States you're standin' in...as to just how dumb you are."

 

[darthcual]

This post reminds me of one of my favorite lines from smokey and the bandit. "When you tell somebody somethin', it depends on what part of the United States you're standin' in...as to just how dumb you are."

Not sure if you are taking a jab at me or not, maybe thats the joke? Its been a long time since I've seen that movie. I am definately not the sharpest knife in the drawer. However, I do my own stunts.

 

[90lxcoupe]

Not sure if you are taking a jab at me or not, maybe thats the joke? Its been a long time since I've seen that movie. I am definately not the sharpest knife in the drawer. However, I do my own stunts.

Not a jab, i think that quote has to do with knowledge being relative. Someone could be a genius at tuning a carb but not know where to find the scan port on a newer car. Dosent make them stupid, just that they have a different skill set.

 

[Marks89GT]

I would have come over and taken a look. Im 20 and have an 89 GT. and had a 2000 V6 in high School but have grown up since then...

 

[Gearbanger 101]

Meh....I remember my buddy asking me a few weeks back if he could use my Mustang in a Wedding. I said sure....but she does know this is a "Fox Body" Mustang right. Its really nothing special? He assures me she just wants to be seen getting out of a Mustang, of any kind.

Day of the wedding comes up and she takes one look at my car and says...."Oh...this is what you were talking about? I thought it was going to be one of those classic ones."

I laughed out loud.

I'm absolutely floored how many people even under 20 now a days don't know what you're talking about when you say "Fox Mustang". Not a clue. Even most 25-year-olds I know are still pretty hazy on the details.

 

[darthcual]

Not a jab, i think that quote has to do with knowledge being relative. Someone could be a genius at tuning a carb but not know where to find the scan port on a newer car. Dosent make them stupid, just that they have a different skill set.

Precisely. My Brother in law has a double masters degree, one from A&M, but couldnt change the oil, or flat tire on his own car. Unfathomable to me.

 

[90lxcoupe]

Precisely. My Brother in law has a double masters degree, one from A&M, but couldnt change the oil, or flat tire on his own car. Unfathomable to me.

Last night, i was talking to my girfriend, who is very well educated and has the debt to prove it, and i said to her "education will only take you so far." I dont think she fully understood the point i was trying to make, and I definitly got the death stare.

I get into this argument all the time with college graduates... They tell my you HAVE to have a degree to get anywhere, which i dont think is true, it certainly helps, but i have gotten pretty far without a 4 year degree, and am working in an engineering department, making good money, and have the chance to go to school on my companies dime. Thier response is usually "well you are the exception to the rule." I dont really agree with that either, i worked hard, anyone could have done what i did. Thats the real problem with the college crowd is they think that just because they spent 100k on school for 4 to 6 years that they are entitled to a job.

sorry for the derail.

 

[FastDriver]

That's a huge part of the problem, in my opinion, and I put myself in the "highly educated" crowd. The problem is that companies often care more about diplomas and certifications than talent. That's just the way it is.

 

[Riceslayer302.0]

That's a huge part of the problem, in my opinion, and I put myself in the "highly educated" crowd. The problem is that companies often care more about diplomas and certifications than talent. That's just the way it is.

seriously, i barely passed highschool in 2006, (mostly due to the fact that i didnt give a ****) and i make 50k/year right now, a month away from earning my electrical journeyman's license. in the future, i am lining myself up to make 500+ k if all works out the way i like. i own 3 vehicles and a brand new 4x4 ATV. hopefully ill buy a house in the next year.

the valedictorian of my graduating class is over 50k in student loan debt and works a cash register at k-mart...

someday, when i run my own business, i will look at a degree as a potential black mark on someone's resume, instead, i will be looking for military service and prior employment history to decide whom i employ.

 

[Boss 351]

Forget car stuff for a minute, what really irks me are these guitar hero games. Kids would spend hours and hours playing a stupid plastic "guitar" with 5 buttons. Give them a real instrument to let them learn it. Not only does it teach music, it gets them laid in high school, teaches them what hard work can do, to focus and not give up. I can't stand these guitar zero games lol...

 

[Riceslayer302.0]

Forget car stuff for a minute, what really irks me are these guitar hero games. Kids would spend hours and hours playing a stupid plastic "guitar" with 5 buttons. Give them a real instrument to let them learn it. Not only does it teach music, it gets them laid in high school, teaches them what hard work can do, to focus and not give up. I can't stand these guitar zero games lol...

that and those goddamn banana sandwiches they are ridiculous

 

[S&B]

I remember when frankforters cost a nickel

 

[ReefBlueHatch]

Meh....I remember my buddy asking me a few weeks back if he could use my Mustang in a Wedding. I said sure....but she does know this is a "Fox Body" Mustang right. Its really nothing special? He assures me she just wants to be seen getting out of a Mustang, of any kind.

Day of the wedding comes up and she takes one look at my car and says...."Oh...this is what you were talking about? I thought it was going to be one of those classic ones."

I laughed out loud.

I'm absolutely floored how many people even under 20 now a days don't know what you're talking about when you say "Fox Mustang". Not a clue. Even most 25-year-olds I know are still pretty hazy on the details.

We were married one year ago and my wife insisted we left in the Fox (oh and we're 23 years old). But I've had 17 year olds asking "what kind of car is that?" I say mustang and they don't believe me!

 

[slow90coupe]

I like to think of myself as one of the last gearheads. Cars and girls are the ONLY thing I think about 24/7. But when school is in session I try to focus on that, so far all A's and B's in all honors crap, so I guess I'm not totally obsessed with cars. I'm turning 16 in a few months and am a Sophomore in high school. In my auto-tech class there are so many dumbasses it's not even funny. Over half the class didn't even know "lefty loosey, righty tighty" when we went out into the shop. The sad thing is some of them were seniors. There's one true gearhead in there. He works with his dad on diesels and stuff in his spare time, and had a 85 Fox that ran 7.80s up until a few months ago. Other than that, the rest that are somewhat knowledgeable all think that ferraris are the best thing on earth. Little do they know that a Fox can beat almost any ferrari with about $25k spent on it. They all LOVE my cars though, which is awesome. I'm the only one in the class with a "quick" car, other than one of my friends who's dad has a Porsche and my friend just got a WRX. I have done a pretty good bit of work on cars for being 15 I think. I have totally rebuilt my coupe BY MYSELF from the ground up, except for body work and the final assembly on the motor. Plus I saved my 89 LX hatch from being cut into 1 million pieces and have totally redid it from the ground up. All I have left is dropping the motor in. The "advanced" auto-tech 3 class is almost as big of a joke as auto-tech 1. I walked around the shop and noticed they were tearing down a 350 SBC. But they were too damn lazy to walk across the shop to get bolts for the engine stand, so they just took all but 1 bolt out of the engine stand that was sitting next to theirs. IT HAD A MOTOR ON IT. When I noticed it, the one bolt was twisted to hell and the motor was just barely hanging on to the engine stand. Smart huh?

 

[jrichker]

That's a huge part of the problem, in my opinion, and I put myself in the "highly educated" crowd. The problem is that companies often care more about diplomas and certifications than talent. That's just the way it is.

For most of you that haven't figured it out, I am an IT guy with a pretty good electronic & mechanical background. The degrees and certifications get you interviews, the experience and maturity get you hired.

I can paper a door with all the IT certifications I have, and they were very valuable in teaching me how things work. That gave me the opportunities to apply what I had learned, and that really made it stick in my mind. To be a well balanced person, you need both book and hands on leaning opportunities. If you fail at one, the other will not be sufficent to get you to the top of your potential.

 

[FastDriver]

If you could find a guy with education, talent, AND hard-work that's great, but if you had to pick any two of those qualities, which two would be the best?

The problem is that it's difficult to discern the last two qualities.

 

[1991notchbackLX]

I have to say that I'd also put myself in the "highly educated" category, though I know that the proper combination of qualities is the only thing that will allow someone to be truly successful at a career. I have a MS in Energy Management and Facilities Management, state certifications in industrial refrigeration, and a resume a mile long. Before graduate school I got a BS in Evolutionary Anthropolgy and was an active contract archaeologist for SUNY Stony Brook. I know that my resume got me the interview, but my personality and combination of work ethic and the diversity of my life experiences got me the job.

With all the education I have, I currently run high pressure steam turbines and turn wrenches on them daily. People ask me all the time why I don't wear a suit and sit behind a desk. I tell them what I make an hour, and more importantly, why I enjoy doing what I do, and they usually shut right up.

 

[CarMichael Angelo]

since the thread appears to have "mutated" slightly, I'll adapt to it.

I'm the guy that can't call himself highly educated. Barely getting out of H/S save for the "E" the Denver school system had back in the 70's that allowed me to get out of english comp w/a grade that showed I made an "effort" to get through the class. The extent of my formal education ends there.

I make my living w/ my mouth, I sell stuff. Specifically, I sell consumer electronics. After 3 years in the US Army trying to fly helicopters, I have worked for JVC and Maxell as a territory sales rep, Managed retail stores, and installation departments. For the last ten years, own a business that sells and installs Home theater systems.

Tied directly to the housing market, I have been hanging on for the last 18 months by my fingernails, and basically I'm getting too old to crawl around in an attic. Because of that have had to recently put myself out there again into the workplace. This time however I'm 53, I have no degree, and my last 10 years look like I've been unemployed to the average resume screener.

The lack of a degree certainly is no reflection on my capabilities or lack of them, but it has squarely stood in the way of me getting several good jobs where the HR department required that piece of paper in order to even get an interview.

 

[darthcual]

I will take hard work any day of the week over talent/education. You cant teach hard work. As a long time practioneer of Muay Thai and a short time teacher of said ring sport (about 4 years) I have seen some guys with serious talent. But, they dont have will power/the drive/focus/heart . I can see the talent, but it is wasted. They are smart and talented and that can get you far, but not as far as hard work.