<VV> Quotations & Sarcasm; Was: Those Pesky Porsche Rumors

[Wrsssatty at aol.com]

I am shocked to see that, apparently two of the brightest minds  posting on 
this list have failed to realize  that in my original post I was  quoting 
others and remarking sarcastically upon those quotes.  I now find  myself in 
the uncomfortable position of having to defend myself.  I will  repeat my 
original post at the bottom.  First I will address your comments  and 
questions one-by-one:
 
1.  <Bill:  There is no story to tell.  If you go and  check the V-V 
archives
*snip* If you don't know who Karl Ludvigsen is...well, shame on  you.>
 
Well, all I can say is if you question whether I know who Karl Ludvigsen is 
 then you apparently don't know who I am!
 
2.  <I see that you have not heard Bob Benzinger say that the  good Doctor 
and his company had absolutely nothing to with the Corvair's  design>

Au contraire!  I have a printed transcript of Bob Benzinger's  remarks 
before CORSA conventioneers and have read the transcript many  times.
 
Please note that I was quoting the author of a magazine article published  
in December of 1959.  If you have a bone of contention, it is with one  
Howard Harrison, the author of the article, not with me.  I did, in my  original 
post, make clear that I was quoting a source other than myself.   BTW, in 
December of 1959 I was still packing my diaper, not writing for any car  
magazines.  
 
Perhaps my subsequent comment that <Over half a century later and that  
story still hasn't been told!> was a tad too subtle in its sarcasm for even  
our brightest minds.  My point was that in the nearly 51 years since the  
published suggestion that Dr. Porsche had a hand in engineering the Corvair  
there had not been a scintilla of evidence to bolster that claim!
 
Perhaps it is understandable that my bona fides as a knowledgeable Corvair  
guy might be called into question.  After all, I have only been a member of 
 CORSA since 1985 and my interest in Corvairs goes back only to that 
fateful day  in 1963 when a brand new Monza coupe wormed its way into my family's 
heart when  I was of an impressionable age.  So, please allow me to 
introduce  myself.  I am the author of "Defending the Corvair:  Anderson vs.  
General Motors" in the December 2000 communique; the author of "Defending the  
Corvair: Kaplan vs. Goldstein vs. General Motors" in the June 2001 communique;  
the author of "Defending the Corvair:  Seymour Goldstein vs. General Motors 
 Corporation and Lexington Chevrolet" in the February 2002 communique and 
the  author of "The Eye of The Beholder" detailing accolades garnered by the  
Corvair's design in the November 2004 communique.  Those are only the  
articles I've written for the communique that treat of historic matters  
concerning the Corvair.  I have also written for the communique regarding  my 
tracking down Corvairs in Havana, my taking my convertible on Amtrak's  AutoTrain 
to and from the Daytona convention and my trip to the Lexington  convention 
where I reunited my Corvair with prior owners and visited the  dealership 
where it was sold when new.  I was also the videographer for the  history 
presentation of David E. Davis at the Lexington convention in 2004 for  which I 
was given credit when the transcript thereof was published in the  
communique in January 2005 and my video tape of the history presentation at the  
Buffalo convention was the source for the transcript that appeared in the  
communique as "Tonawanda Engine Plant Memories" in the November 2006  issue.  My 
credit appears on page 9.  I have video taped many other  historic 
presentations at CORSA conventions and CORSA sanctioned events such as  last year's 
dedication of Corvair items donated to the Buffalo Transportation  Museum.
 
So, while I certainly may defer to the experts on matters such as, say,  
carburetor rebuild, I feel that, at least my interest in things historical  
vis-a-vis the Corvair is, or should be, well-known.
 
Here's my original post that seemed to be so confusing:
 
<My latest eBay acquisition is a tiny magazine from December 1959  entitled 
"FOREIGN CAR GUIDE."  I got it for the cover story comparing the  new Chevy 
Corvair with the Volkswagen.  Despite the magazine's name it  appears 
primarily to be about Volkswagens.  Although the writers give lip  service to 
road testing other "foreign" cars, the articles inevitably end  up comparing 
whatever car to the Volkswagen.  Nearly all the ads are for  aftermarket 
Volkswagen accessories.  They never miss an opportunity to  mention "the great 
Dr. Porsche, designer of the Volkswagen."  What caught  my eye was a comment 
at the end of an article entitled simply, "The  Tatra."  The writer closed by 
saying; "The next best choice for a bigger  replacement for the Volkswagen 
might be Chovrolet's [sic] new Corvair.  The  great Dr. Porsche might have 
had a minor hand in that design, too.  But,  that's another story to be told 
at another time."  

Over half a century later and that story still hasn't been told!
 
~Bill Stanley>
 
Thank you for letting me set the record straight.
 
~Bill Stanley