The "Cult" of serial numbers......I just don't get it.....

I was talking with a guy the other day who was lamenting how nowadays average guys could never afford an ultra-cool musclecar. I begged to differ-"Now it's easier than ever-if your mechanically inclined and want to build it."  "For example-$5,000 will buy you a nice "little old lady" 318 '68-70 Dodge Dart in any state in the union." "Mopar Performance sells the crossmembers to put B / RB / Hemis in Duster / Darts." They also sell the 465 hp 426 Hemi crate motor for $15,000." "You'd have to chase down some other parts-a 727 tranny, a bigger radiator, etc-but you could do it for under 25K."  "You can't touch a "real" "original" Hemi Dart for under 100K." "Same deal-$10,000 will buy you a very nice small-block '70-'73 Camaro." "GMPP sells 440 hp 454HO crate engines for $5995." "With the right torque converter, shift kit, and cooler-a TH350 can stand up to 500 hp-so you won't even have to change trannys." "Cragar mags and Lakewood traction bars are available through Summitt, and it'd be pretty easy to copy the Baldwin-Motion paint job." For 20K you have a unique, badass looking and running car." "You cant touch a "Real" Motion car for under $50K." "You just did it for less than half that." "$15,000 will buy you a nice, restored '65-68 289 Mustang Fastback in any state in the union." "Tony Branda and other companies sell the taillights, hood and side scoops,reproduction wheels etc." "They even sell Tri-Y headers and reproduction Shelby intakes and 715 cfm Holleys." "Or you could buy a 345 hp 302 Ford SVT crate engine." "For under 30 grand you'd have a badass GT350 or GT350H clone."  "You can't touch a "real" Shelby for under 100K." "You got it for less than 1/3."  The guy says-"You just said it-it's not real." "What's not real?" I asked. "When your smoking the tires for 200 feet and banging through the gears or blasting down the 1/4 are you thinking about serial numbers?" "When you pass someone on the freeway at 75 mph-is the guy in the other car going to turn up his nose and tell his passenger-"That's a fake." "How would he tell without checking serial numbers?"  "The upside is you'd drive it like it was meant to be driven and actually have some fun with it." "If you'd spent 100 grand on it you'd be so goddamnded afraid of wrecking it or blowing it up that it would never see the high side of 3,000 rpm or 60 mph." "It still isn't the real deal." He protested. "Yeah but only you know that-unless you tell everybody or let people check your vin number." "The guy who won the Pure Stock drags last year did it in an L88 Corvette."  "Except it's not a "real" L88." "The rules say you can run any combination that was an option that year." "So you could put a crate Hemi in a 383 '71 Road Runner and race it because the Hemi was an option in '71." "Anyhow- since the L88 was an option in 1969-this guy took his garden-variety 390 hp 427 'Vette and rebuilt the motor to L88 specs." "When he's ripping off blistering 11.54 1/4 mile times at more than 120 mph- and winning the tournament and getting his picture in Hot Rod or Musclecar Review-do you think he says-"Damn! This is cool, but it would be so much more fun if this car was numbers-matching."  "Puhleeze." "You don't understand." the guy said. I had to agree-I really don't. I've said it before-I don't buy anything-a house, car, motorcycle,jet-ski, guns,sports memorabila etc-with the primary deciding factor being what it will be worth if or when I decide to get rid of it!!  If I like it-I don't care what it costs-If I don't like it, you can't give it to me for free-no matter how great a "Deal" it is. I've said this before and I'll say it again-Did you marry your wife because you thought she'd give you an easier divorce than the other women you dated? The average Joe CAN have an ultra-cool car-like an L88 spec Corvette or an RAIV spec GTO ( with Edelbrock's help ) or a Thunderbolt Fairlane ( with a pumped up 390, not a 427 but all "FE engines look externally identical-duh ) or a Boss 302 Mustang or whatever-if you have a little ingenuity and can get over the "It's not numbers-matching" fetish. I'd like to find a disco-era T/A and put a snarling Edelbrock headed 455 in it backed by a Richmond 5-speed. If I get the stencils from Phoenix Graphics and paint it like a "Macho T/A" I don't think Dennis Mecham is going to sue me. And when I'm blowing the doors off a little boy in a rice-rocket or an old man in a new Corvette with a big smile on my face-I won't be thinking about how my car isn't "Original!!!"  Think people just how important are those little numbers on the cowl??  Are they worth an extra $20,30 or $50,000 or even $100,000??  If they are-then you have a much larger bank account and a much smaller brain than I do. Mastermind