Some time ago my (i)ncomparable niece sent me a remark made by the late Carl Sagan. She claimed I had used it in my blog. Sorry, but I searched my blog using the search widget and that remark did not appear here before today. However, prompted by a great conversation I had yesterday with my wonderful friend and neighbor, Jack, I thought I would repeat Sagan’s remark:
“You can’t convince a believer of anything; for their belief is not based on evidence, it’s based on a deep seated need to believe.”
Human beings have the amazing capacity to think outside the context of their lives, but many/most do not use that capacity. The universe, the real world, the human world are all very complex and, I admit, it is tempting to subscribe to some ideology that seems to simplify the complex. The path of least resistance is not always the best course of action, though.
My first blog was called An Unreasonable Man. That title had nothing to do with Ralph Nader, about whom a documentary was made with that title. Instead, it was inspired by a remark by George Bernard Shaw, which, in turn, inspired the title of the film about Nader:
“The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore all progress depends on the unreasonable man.”
I am not an attorney, but to me if an assertion has no empirical evidence upon which to make that assertion, then I do not believe it. People can say anything, but without proof those words are mere hearsay. To me, mere belief is not proof.
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From the famous Coys auctioneers in the UK, a picture of a car that is still available on Bring A Trailer. BaT has become aggressive at breaking links to pictures on its website, which is why I am using a picture from somewhere else. This is a Ferrari 456M GTA.
Via email I sent the link to the BaT listing to my wonderful wife with the subject of “How About This As A Grocery Car?” In the body of the email I wrote, “Just kidding, well maybe half-kidding…”
She and I are both quite smitten with the looks of this car. Unfortunately, even at the current bid of “just” $41,000 with one day to go, the 456 GTA is simply way too expensive to be a grocery car.
The 456 and 456M were produced by Ferrari from 1992 to 2003 as a replacement for the 412. I think the 456 is one of the forgotten Ferraris. The M spec was introduced in 1998 (M stands for Modificata, Italian for changed). Both the “unchanged” 456 and 456M were powered by a 5.5 liter/333 cubic-inch (have to keep Bill Stephens happy) V-12 that produced 436 HP/406 LB-FT of torque.
About 3,300 456/456M units were sold. About half of the 456M were sold with an automatic transmission (456M GTA), but only about 20% of the 456 were so equipped.
The car has four seats and the trunk has about 11 cubic feet of volume…I have dreams, but I live in the real world. Sometimes that is unfortunate, but I cannot believe it to be different without proof.
#Believers
#CarlSagan
#GeorgeBernardShaw
#Ferrari456MGTA
#somanycarsjustonelife
#disaffectedmusings
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Disaffected Musings 
There are forgotten Ferraris? I don’t believe you. Besides it is the wrong color. Yellow is for rain slickers for cops directing traffic not for cars.
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Sì, Ferrari dimenticati.
I like the yellow; I think the Mondial, the 412 and the 456 are three Ferrari models about which little discussion exists and which are not highly prized in the collector market. That 456M GTA was almost a quarter million when new and it might be had now for $50k. I don’t think that would happen with a 365 GTB Daytona or a 599 GTO.
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Please understand that my level of sarcasm has no bounds and I could not restrain myself with my earlier comment. Ferrari builds wonderful automobiles that the world loves. My problem is my knowledge of Ferrari is pretty much limited to the racing variety and the few very special collectibles.
As far as yellow as color for a car it is all a matter of opinion and to each his own. My comment about rain slickers and yellow is for the safety of the policemen. From and engineering standpoint,the human eye is most sensitive to the yellow-green color spectrum so if you want to be seen wear or paint it yellow.
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No problem, Philip. Maybe that Ferrari owner really wants to be seen…
The actual Bring a Trailer car has a Grigio Ingrid exterior, sort of a champagne color. The caveat is that I have partial color blindness. The Ashkenazi Jew genome strikes again.
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That would be some grocery car. 🙂
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No doubt, but not at $40,000+ for acquisition PLUS the cost of Ferrari maintenance.
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