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Car Talk: Rules About Bumper Stickers

May 29, 2008 By Ruth Everhart 9 Comments

I’m not referring to the radio show. ?I’m being literal here. How much should cars be allowed to talk?

My family and I have debated this when we’re stuck in traffic, and have established the following Rule of Thumb (which I believe should be widely adopted, if not become the Rule of Law): Cars may only make one statement about any given opinion. Cars breaking that rule are understood to be driven by fanatics.

To clarify: A car may express an opinion through any of the following means: the license plate letter/number combo, the license plate picture, the thingie that surrounds the license plate, bumper stickers, decals (such as metal fish), ribbons, oval stickers with letters that are meaningful to people who take vacation.

According to the Rule of Thumb, only one of these arenas may proclaim an opinion on the same subject (e.g.: I am a Vegetarian OR?I Hereby Proclaim My Allegiance To Law Enforcement in the Event I Get Pulled Over OR My Kid Plays Soccer).

It is permissible to make many opinion statements, but they may not repeat themselves. ?(Be Aware: Certain combinations do add up to the always popular message:?I Have More Money than the Average Person.)

If a theme is repeated, the car owner is proclaiming things they did not intend to convey. What I mean: someone who tells you about their vegetarianism three times, without your asking, is probably a closet cheeseburger-eater.

Words & Writing how many bumper stickers can car have,  what bumper stickers are trying to tell us

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Heather Zempel says

    May 29, 2008 at 8:21 pm

    This is awesome!

    Reply
  2. Lorraine says

    May 29, 2008 at 4:42 pm

    Ruth, no I don’t have a blog, just read others. I have a list of about 10 or so that I check in on. I never thought of having one of my own. Maybe I should….

    Reply
  3. ruth everhart says

    May 29, 2008 at 3:06 pm

    Go Blue! Remember how Hannah puzzled over “I bleed maize & blue”? So there is definitely a conversation-starting aspect to Car Talk (hence reinforcing the name of the post)

    Reply
  4. Pam says

    May 29, 2008 at 2:32 pm

    Yup, but off in a very good and holy way.
    Now, me, I’m guilty, too, according to your post. You Ruth have ridden in my U of Michigan decal-plastered van for hours on end and never mentioned my apparent fanaticism. But, it’s OK with me, I won’t change. Last night we saw a PBS program about a famous Russian conductor (Dimitri ?) and, can you guess what ball cap he was wearing during an interview on a train? U of Michigan Band!

    Reply
  5. ruth everhart says

    May 29, 2008 at 12:25 pm

    Oh, but I am a bit “off”!

    Reply
  6. pinkhammer says

    May 29, 2008 at 12:12 pm

    Congrats Lorraine!

    And as for you Ruth, when I first started reading this post I thought maybe you were a bit…off. 🙂 I am glad I kept reading. Definitely a funny post! 🙂

    Reply
  7. ruth everhart says

    May 29, 2008 at 10:23 am

    Oh Lorraine, I skipped presbytery, didn’t realize it was a big day for you. I new you were in VA, but thought you were over by Norfolk like Pink Hammer. I am not a good Presbyter, really. You should follow the example of my friends, but not me. I am bad, bad, bad. Anyway, congratulations on being a candidate. BTW, do you blog or just read other peoples?

    Reply
  8. Lorraine says

    May 29, 2008 at 8:13 am

    By the way… were you at Presbytery on Tuesday? I meant to ask around after lunch but forgot because of nerves. Mine. lol… but — I am now an official Candidate! woot! It went well, I think, and of course as soon as I got up in front of everyone I wasn’t too nervous anymore. (I’ve learned that from all the preaching I got to do this past year — the nerves of anticipation are worse than when I actually get started.) — anyway, I’m happy. :))

    Reply
  9. Lorraine says

    May 29, 2008 at 8:09 am

    I love this post. 🙂 I know someone who says he does not believe in God, but who wants to debate and discuss EVERYTHING relating to God/church/faith/scripture/etc.

    And — guilty. I have the breast cancer license plate, AND a “Survivor” ribbon magnet with the Komen number/website on it. Although, perhaps not quite the same thing as the four-time atheist. lol…

    Reply

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