originally posted on 9/3/2021 11:50:31 AM
During my time in ACE, I have always thought of myself as a unique individual in a group of other unique individuals, all of whom have diverse opinions. But lately, and especially on social media, it appears that there are people who are only active in the “enthusiast” universe who measure themselves by how many likes, shares and followers they have, regardless of the roller coaster they ride and the legacies in the industry.
I know that’s not me, or even for me. I rather infamously don’t really know my current coaster count, preferring instead to say that my focus is always on the attraction I’m getting ready to ride. I can’t begin to comprehend why anyone would value my opinion about a particular ride rather than experience it for themselves. Yet there are obviously a number of people who think certain individual opinions matter more than most, and certain individuals who think their opinions are golden gifts to the enthusiast community.
Why? I just don’t get it. Where does someone get the chutzpah to think they have a better understanding or critique and thus deserve attention to the point that they can openly criticize an opinion different from their own? It’s one person’s opinion, not a fact, and will always only be just a personal expression. And others’ judgments can’t be “banned” from the enthusiast ecosystem.
Besides this superiority, there are other social media outlets who seem to endlessly scream privilege and “look at me and what I got to do!” while not outright saying, “And you are just a poor unfortunate soul who needs to envy me and all my awesomeness.” Trust me when I say I hope that this air of pomposity will never be what ACE is about. I’ll admit that being the club’s president does open up some personal opportunities, but I hope every member feels that they have an important part to play in this diverse organization. The leadership is elected by the individual members. The regions are run by people who live there. We truly are an all-volunteer club.
So if your opinion is different from others, celebrate it! If we weren’t different enough to enjoy various interests, we’d only be riding the same roller coaster over and over again. To me, that sounds exactly like the opposite of heaven. Don’t envy others for their “luck.” Instead celebrate yourself for taking advantage of the opportunities being an ACEer provides you!
See you in a queue!
— Robert Ulrich, ACE President
rulrich@aceonline.org
#ACENews