I think the OP makes a good point. I don't think it's a matter of excluding anyone, but a matter of weighing the value of someone's knowledge or opinion on a topic. I have caught myself more than once from responding to a post because I realized my knowledge of the topic is mainly hearsay from a cousin, friend, or neighbor who lives there, not from my own personal experience. I own in TV, but unfortunately do not live there yet. I have visited off and on for about 7 years or so and have done a lot of research on TV, to the point my husband thinks I'm obsessed and I don't deny it.
Still, I tend to put more weight on the opinion of someone who has actually lived there and experienced it on a regular basis than someone like myself.
Fraugoofy in post #15 also makes some excellent points regarding this. Being willing to look at things from different perspectives gives you a better overall picture.