Hi and we are back! I must admit I really enjoy the TBB Comments section. It has enhanced my life by providing lots of entertainment. TBB readers are smart and we learn from each other. You even inspire my creativity lately to go off in unpredictable ways. I always wanted to be in a band as a kid but absolutely sucked in everything I got my hands on (my mother still has nightmares after I locked myself in my room and started practicing “drums” for…hours). So, instead of jamming in front of a stage and enjoying all the groupies wanting to be with the rock star (that would be me!) I just jam here for our mutual entertainment and your Amazon clicks lol.
I am going to try to get this blog feature back once a week. There are just too many gems in the comments and I realize sometimes it can get a little chaotic in there. I could be spending this time looking how to monetize or add a newsletter or a Facebook page but, you know, content comes first here! In the blogging world, content should always come first! Just like when you drop everything and do a post (cut and paste) about the amazing opportunity to earn 3 Chase Ultimate Rewards points when you dine in a restaurant on some Friday day of the week (sigh).
I will handpick some comments that, in my humble opinion, fulfill the TBB mission: To Entertain. Educate. Inspire. In That Order
On with the show. Grab a cold one like me to get in the mood!
COMMENT OF THE WEEK (YEAR?)
Note: To all bloggers mentioned here: This is a goofy innocent attempt to create some humor. If you take this seriously and your feelings are hurt maybe blogging is just not for you! Feel free to make fun of me, I dare you…Pleeeeeease!
The Common Man started it:
“Look at me in an airplane lav click on my link” gleff
“Look at this hotel toilet click on my link” Ben
“Look at my wife click on my link” MMS
“Look at my kid click on my link” MP
“Look at my dog click on my link” TPG
“Can I look at your girlfriend while you click on my link?” MV
“Click on my link Click on my link” DP
Steve was next:
“Look at my 7 SPG cards click on my link” Dan
“All hail our dear leader Kim Jong Un click on my Amazon link” TBB
“ahothaoe tuathnaz ytna7maoma& click on my link” FTG
“No but seriously, click on my link again” TPG
“I’m 6’7″ click my link. By the way, did i mention I’m 6’7?” TPG
TBB was inspired and it was my turn:
“Cut. Paste.Same.Deals.Every.Day. Click on my link” – Deals We Like
“Just found a targeted deal to waste your time. Click on my link” – Points, Miles and Martinis
“All credit card deals posted elsewhere a day or two later. Click on my link” – Noob Traveler
“Listen to my podcast, it is #1. Click on my link” – Extra Pack of Peanuts
“Click on my link, 24/7, 365″ – Wallet Slot
“One minute.Click” – Mile Nerd
“What is your T rate on that? Are you sure? Click on my link” – Milenomics
“Sitting by the fireplace. Remembering how easy it was to sell Amex Cards. Click my Barclays links” – Delta Points
“Help me resist the lure of the easy dough & stay independent, click on my Amazon link” – TBB
KennyB added:
“Click my link whilst I buy up all the good little blogs and write with a British accent” – Matt (of Saverocity)
Other gems from the past week:
Steve: For all the blustering OMAT is doing about his hotel living, he treats it as if he’s some pioneer in this space. To the best of my knowledge, he has not once acknowledged the fact that Drew has been doing this and writing about it for years already. And does it far more impressively since he doesn’t have the luxury of using all the affiliate commission to fund some of those nights at high end hotels.
The Common Man (talking about reader Ramsey!): Ramsey is the Great Charles Ramsey from NOOBITUP.com (a daily must read) and former guest host(by popular vote) for TBB. The craziest mind in the TBB comment space and the rumored love child of Gary Busey and Nick Nolte. After many years working as an FA in the skies (and watching many celebs getting handys under the blanket) he is now the full-time president of the TBB Fan Club and is the world’s leading expert on avatars. He was reportedly last seen putting up “no selfies, please” stickers in first-class lavs of all major carriers in an effort to prevent VFTW’s innocent readers from getting any more nightmares.
Steve: How convenient that certain bloggers are “finally” swapping out their SPG cards from their wallets after having them in their wallet for a decade. What was it that caused that sudden decision? After all, SPG points haven’t been devalued in a year, so what could’ve happened that would cause one to now suddenly remove that card from the wallet?
From April 30 post:
I don’t like to feed blog trolls but if you would like to entertain yourself reading a “dialogue” between Steve and James with my number one “fan” (Rick/ingy/FTGtheperson/Anonymous) this is a pretty good sample of what happens, click above! I no longer shake my head…No, I lied. I still do!
TWA44 singles out this from the interview of Randy Petersen by Wendy Perrin that was highlighted in the body of my post:
“Q: If you were an airline and you wanted to make a splash with a new loyalty program, what would you do differently?
A: Not have one. Imagine if Apple had an airline—an Apple Airways that concentrated on product, that did not ask customers what they want but knowingly delivered it to them, that found ways to entice them to pay a premium price for service and schedule, and that, more than anything, delivered sizzle with the steak. I’m not one to think that loyalty programs are needed for every enterprise; they are, however, great when you can’t do other things well.”
Steve: You should do a travel challenge
Step 1: “Fly from A to B with SPG points from you SPG Amex”
Step 2: “Call for an Uber taxi at the airport and receive a discount with the code you got from me
”Step 3: “Save at hotels using the cashback you received from Ebates, BigCrumbs and the knowledge you’ve attained from reading TBB-recommended blogs like Travel is Free and Loyalty Traveler”Do what they do on FTG.com – keep the same links and instructions every week, but just change the city. Daytona Beach, Austin, Minneapolis etc. etc. – CSP and Barclays arrivals will get you to them every single Thursday!
Chris (referring to Delta Points): I find it funny that the guy who calls the others angry is the same one who photoshops and removes another blogger from an online ballot.
Ingy: Millions of Dollars [referring to the Chase 60k Ink credit cards] as is continually clearly evident by the card posts today and every day. [in case some of you did not know what this hobby business is all about. Think about that when you click on a credit card link at FrugalTravelGuy website!] Sorry Georgie boy. You put up the good fight, but it’s time to fold like a cheap suit. [Yawn. Taking the insults and taunting for over a year. And I am doing it all to entertain you dear readers! And your Amazon clicks, LOL! Then again I am just terrible in pumping as this gif clearly shows]
Ingy: But when you think of it, you all are special. Of the over 1/2 million people participating in this hobby, you, “George’s Angries” all 800 maybe 1000 of you are a special group. [sure sounds angry!]
Erik: For me, a good travel blogger is someone who is passionate about the hobby, provides original/insightful content, shares information about the experiences they had on their trips (instead of taking the same 20 pictures of LH F that everyone else has posted) and doesn’t aggressively manufacture posts simply for the reason of inserting an affiliate link. I don’t mind if people have affiliate links or even write about credit card strategies, but if 4 out of 5 posts in a day have no real value-add or relevancy to me, I’m probably not reading that blog. [Amen!]
TBB: I am the guy who eats ramen noodles at luxury hotels I pay nothing for.
smittytabb: You’ve hit on something that I had not thought about in awhile. Five to seven years ago or so most of the blogs I read were pure travel blogs. It was a lot of fun reading about travel generally and having always been a travel junkie, I got inspiration, reflected on past trips and future trips and got to know other people in a kind of virtual travel community. Gary’s blog was the first one I read that had a miles and points spin to it and I began to become more interested in learning new strategies to enhance my already entrenched hobby. I am glad I started with his blog because I really learned a huge amount and came to enjoy the travel hacking part of the game. But the problem as I see it is that once you begin to get into it, you begin to feel like you need to start reading lots of blogs so you don’t miss anything. And in this hobby you can be on a flight sleeping and get off the plane and find out you missed a deal. So, what I now realize is that it used to be more enlightening to read lots of these points and miles blogs. And I really miss reading all the pure travel blogs I used to read. I am not sure how I got to this point but it is almost addictive to read this stuff because you keep thinking you’ll find something new or have your creativity sparked by someone else’s ideas. As I mentioned last week, anymore I am finding this space just being dumbed down with people many of whom are terrible writers or worse, shameless pimps. Even the good guys seem to be hitting a slippery slope. So, I need to get back to my roots and read some better travel journalism and better writing so I don’t forget why I love this hobby. OK…hoping to see some of you all in Charlotte. Peace out.
[No doubt about the passion! My passion about this stuff is evident. As much as this person’s passion for exercising right lol]
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George
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First?
Welcome back!
I’m going to make a recommendation based on my opinion, and leave it out there. I think my opinion applies widely, given the variety of events out there.
If I was running a conference or gathering regarding this hobby, I would not invite as a featured presenter the author of MileValue. It has been demonstrated time and again that he purposefully deceives his readers with regard to the best credit card offers out there, and deletes comments pointing out better offers and his deceptions. It’s been demonstrated a sufficiently large number of times, in fact, so that “pulling an MV” or “becoming an MV” are both expressions (on this blog and elsewhere) meaning “lying to your readers in order to get more commissions.” (I’m not clear on which other blogs do this as or more flagrantly because I’m not a former reader of many other blogs.)
There’s lying by omission (e.g., not listing hotel loyalty credit cards that do not pay a commission) and there’s lying by deception (pointing readers to sign up for inferior offers, and hiding evidence of better offers). I think the former is poor behavior, and I think the latter is sleaze. I would not reward people who engage in the latter by giving them a bigger audience.
This comment was provoked by MV’s recent post about “airlines hide deals,” which already has comments deleted. That post was featured in the previous TBB comments by Erik.
The problem is that FTU and other events rely on their speakers to sell tickets. FTU wouldn’t sell tickets if it wasn’t constantly blogged about by the speakers, so FTU is in a situation where they HAVE to have big name bloggers speaking at the event or they won’t make any money. MV gets pageviews, therefore is invited to speak.
The problem is that people in the community will link to anything, rather than linking to sites that have consistently shown that they put the reader first.They’ll also click on whatever affiliate link they see first rather than make a conscious choice to use a specific bloggers link.
It’s not just up to the bloggers, it’s up to the readers to help promote sites they actually find helpful.
I believe FTU events are non-profit events, they just try to break even and cover operating expenses. Any money left over gets donated to charity as well as all the money earned during the raffle. I hope I’m right.
Look at the birdies and click on my link. Surely someone out there needs a Scottevest?
@ Andrew: First First? Welcome to the Club! When you order something with my Amazon link please email me and I will donate my commission to CHARITY 🙂
@ Hua: Could not stay away long, needed my therapy session!
@ harvson3: Awesome comment. I need to add it to next week’s Gems 🙂
@ harvson3, William Charles and Grant: I am sure there will be attendees being wowed about his tricks (free oneways, except AA) and may even win Milevalue T shirts. The horror, the horror!
The FTU guys know better not to invite MV back. Come to think of it, MV will be presenting at the Chicago Seminars. Come to think of it again, looking at the Chicago Seminars speaker list, a thought came to mind: I have never seen so many bloggers in my Ignore list in one place! Howie will be doing a presentation about the Basics…I just hope it is not about Avios!. Talk about marketing these events, Howie tried to sell the Starwood card at the initial announcement at FTG (the blog).
William’s quote is very important and I think he nails it: “They’ll also click on whatever affiliate link they see first rather than make a conscious choice to use a specific bloggers link. It’s not just up to the bloggers, it’s up to the readers to help promote sites they actually find helpful.”
As I said before, the big money is on preying on uneducated newbies…because, well, they just don’t know any better and there is an infinite number of them out there.
Regarding the profit or non-profit status of these events…it’s all part of marketing. I would love to see the next conference organizer (#hint) to come out with a COMPLETE accounting of all the costs INCLUDING BENEFITS from hotels/sponsors. Open book. Copies of checks to charity. Perhaps even numbers of clicks and credit card apps coming from exposure to consumer TV shows such as Nightline. Huh…riiiight.
Waiting…
@ Tara: Good one, i should have thought of that!
I don’t actually care about conference finances. I assume someone gets value out of it, and that the organizers get organizer points. Eh, don’t care. That being said, I’m not attending one anytime soon; it’s not a good use of my time or money, and I’m generally a misanthrope.
In other news, galaxies go through generations in which increasingly heavier elements are formed. There’s a newly-discovered exceptional galaxy, however, that “fossilized” soon after the beginning of the (our?) universe, and remains mostly hydrogen and helium. Science is awesome.
I don’t care either as long as we don’t get the “all proceeds going to charity” and get legitimized in front of TV crews:-)
I attended the first two Chicago Seminars. I attended the FTU LAX. I am done with them. It is mostly good for socializing with fellow minded people (it can be a lot of fun) and targeting newbies to “click on my links”.
I never developed a love for science. But I would love to ride on a spaceship one day!
Thanks.
The Chicago Seminars = weekend long sales pitch
Drink the koolaid. Click the affiliate links.
100% not worth going to.
Went once. Never again.
If harvson’s not going, does that mean I’ll be the only misanthrope at the Charlotte event?
You must have missed the tiny T&C in the ticket stub. I made a deal with Matt that misanthropes have to click on TBB’s Amazon link. He let me slide this one in, pheew! 😉
As to the conferences, I really do not care who gets the money (unless it is marked as going to charity and it doesn’t). They are providing an opportunity that many are interested in taking part in. With that part of the opportunity comes the cost of attendance. At $100 a pop, they certainly aren’t making a killing. 450 FTU attendees x $100 = $45,000. I do not know what it takes to rent conference rooms at a hotel, but you have that, the marketing material, the travel expenses for speakers, the meals – it adds up. Plus, it is lose-lose for most speakers (concerning the detractors) – if they take a speaking fee, people get upset, but if they don’t take a speaking fee and just get eventual revenue from attendees visiting their site people still get upset by that! As it stands, these events continue to sell out so there are people who like to go and will continue going. There is no way any of the organizers ever will have to (or need to) create an open book policy regarding the finances.
Like I said, I don’t care about the conference finances really. I think the fee is very fair and no doubt these things sell like certain brownies in a college campus 😉
I don’t know what it takes to rent conference rooms at hotels either but I would like to find out. I think it would make a very educational blog post for blog readers. But of course we won’t get that even though I am certain it will be easy to find an excuse to sell some cards with it!
I would be upset if the speakers got paid a speaking fee! They should pay themselves a fee and cover the costs of attendees to have an audience hungry to “fly for free” and pitch their “expertise” so they can sell credit cards. But I understand why that will be hard to pull off as it would be easy to back out…no skin in the game for the attendees.
I threw out a challenge. Have a conference and OPEN the books, including non monetary benefits! It would be nice. Transparency is freedom. Obviously, I would be a dead man in North Korea for even thinking like this LOL.
Thanks for taking the time to comment.
Here is as close to the books as you’ll ever get George? rooms are comped to speakers, they are offered a $300 travel stipend which many refuse to increase the donations. The hotel rewards points for the conference are donated to the raffle. Come down for a face to face and I’ll gladly show you the donations. It runs between $10k and $18k as I remember. The big difference started when we started accepting credit cards for the donations 😉
Clicks from the seminars are negligible as far as I can tell and can’t speak for other speakers performance.
But I can tell you the exposure and click activity every time that Nightline piece runs is amazing. Site traffic increases threefold for about two days after the airing and then returns to normal. As far as the income generated goes IB absolutely crushes it I’m almost sure? probably more in those two days than you are worth all year 😉
Here’s my 2 cents (that should buy you 2 miles or don’t do it!) : find the blogs that track with your travel style and you’ll get most of what you need. Don’t need to fly Lufthansa 1st? Don’t think $300 is a great deal for a suite upgrade at the Vendome or think life isn’t lived unless you’ve been to the Maldives? Ignore those who tell you so. Nuff said.
Do you aspire to drive your Hyundai minivan to a Country Inn & Suites in Columbia, SC? Come on over to Personal Finance Digest!
Nick… I’ll see you at the free buffet breakfast.
I assume most kids are interest in “aspirational” travel (VFTW/OMAAT style) that allows you to discuss fantastic toilets with your college friends. Then you have families that may be want to experience something fancy and visit foreign countries and may enjoy MP. And then you have families with families abroad. For the last category you don’t need to find a blogger that fits your travel style you just need to find a boatload of points.
On the other hand, I find that there are too few bloggers covering good use of points in the US (excluding Hawaii/NYC/skidestination/miami beach) with the exception being loyalty traveler. Why hasn’t FTG covered Westin Hilton Head Island Resort & Spa (I know the answer, why only sell one card when you can sell several)? A great use of SPG points,so close to his home. The property was devalued in March, but in my experience it has been a great use of 40k SPG points for 5 nights during the summer.
You think you know the answer and wanted to take a shot. Typical of the TBB crowd. How about I never stayed there so certainly couldn’t discuss it very well no would I?
Keep on slinging you guys. It’s getting more comical everyday
Let he is who not the court jester throw the first tomato.
+1
That was +1 to Dia’s comment.
And here’s +1 for clarifying, Fishing4Deals !!
@ Dia: Great suggestion, makes sense. Thank you!
@ Nick: Oh man…I could do another parody on that too. At some point, I will say “phuck it” and just turn my site into a parody site. You know, like SNL for the “travel” miles/points credit card salesmen bloggers. It will sure save me a lot of time going through so much crap for you guys.
@ ABC: So, apparently Mommy Points and Gary Leff are vacationing in Maldives these days. And Gary has found the time to post about the Barclays and Chase cards but not much time to post about the Wells Fargo cards. And then finds the time to post about the Etihades ridiculous “Residence” suites while both Lucky and Gary keep taking pictures of other passengers’ feet and changing outside lavatories. And you want coverage of regular properties for regular people? 🙂 Sometimes I wonder if this hobby just gets people to lose grip with reality and humanity. smh.
@ Fishing4Deals: +2
I went for an Ink Bold for my blog “business” using Drew’s link=Full Disclosure
Who’s Drew?
Didn’t we just do this last week?
Drew is Travelisfree.com
Hey, I think I figured out who Gary’s wife his – it’s Mommy Points! They are both mentioning about vacationing in the Maldives – and they are there at the same time… 🙂
No way. MP’s husband looks like he can kick anybody’s ass! LOL
Hey, thanks for quoting me, TBB. Hope to meet you F2F at MileMadness. Left a message on the thread and it looks like our flights out of Charlotte are close in time. Would be happy to share a ride to the airport and meet for drinks & dinner on Friday with you and anyone else from this community going to this event. For the record, I enjoy these events…all of them. I have been to FTU and Chicago Seminars and find that even though some of the information is for newbies, it is great to be in a points and miles community. I can drive to Chicago Seminars, so why not go? I always pick up some pointers. The game is always changing. I personally would like to see this feuding stop. Life is short. Why close doors? I raised four children. Hammering back and forth with people does not teach them to change. People change when they want to. We’re all adults. Let’s stop acting like children.
Pat the Manufacturing Spend Queen @PatMikeL has a car and will offer me a ride. Please contact her to see if she has room for a ride to the hotel. Lets touch base at the hotel. With these things I find there is not much time to socialize with all. There are plenty leaving Sunday morning. Not sure of breakfast places around yet. I guess we ‘l figure it out there.
No doubt these meetings can be fun for the social aspect alone.
I would like to see it stopped too. Do you see other bloggers trolling other blogs every day and leaving comments that will make any sane person cringe? Apparently my favorite troll thinks is his duty to teach all us angry people a lesson every time we raise an issue with some blogs. And there is no doubt that this behavior ENCOURAGES continued references designed to make this troll angry and go off. I have been guilty of this and I have apologized and I think it’s time to do it once again.
I still would like to see open book on financial dealings. Transparency is freedom! So, here I go: My site made 56 cents from just ONE order in the first three day of May. U should laugh, I am hahahhahaha.
Smart bloggers ignore arguing with others on my site as they should. Definitely they can take some lessons from Mommy Points on how to handle criticism.
I will continue to blog as long as I have something to say to entertain, educate and inspire. If you remember I stopped doing the heavy critique of blogs in the body of my posts after I came out with my Blog Reviews lists. And then I was called the most despicable names because some John commenter made a stupid comment. I mean, come on, this is the Internet for Pete’s sake (who the hell is Pete anyway?)
Nice people who blog take all the feedback they can get! It is free and someone must care for taking the time to express it. Accept it with gratitude, thank them and promise to improve. And, you know, try to improve because they are not all angry for expressing the same criticism over and over. Or just leave and stop trying to change them and look like a total ass in the process.
Looking forward to meet you too. It’s a beautiful day. We are all in it trying to figure it all out.
You and harvson3 are the voice of reason. Dia too with that statement above I so agree with.
It is very easy to end the disagreement George. Quit trashing other people. If you can’t say something nice about somebody, don’t say anything at all.
Smittytab, unfortunately it appears that the basis for most of the comments here is to take shots at other people. As the commenter above suggested, if you don’t like a blog, don’t read it. The whining is non stop here day after day after day all complaining about blogs with affiliate links. I know as well as the other 99.8% of the community that doesn’t read this blog, it is nothing but jealousy and a chance to rant for free in anonymity as George has developed a position of allowing any comment to stand regardless if it is beneficial to the space or positive in nature. It is George’s opportunity to be the “Bad Boy” in the space with your help of free reign on anonymous comments. He has a voice now that is counter productive and stymied with .2% of the real hobby. As is obvious by last weeks link fest, he has absolutely no effect on the hobby in a positive manner. Anybody with half a brain could have put together his ignore list. It consists of blogs that are commercially viable. Don’t like them, don’t read them
Take away your opportunity to trash others and this blog would still be fine and could make a positive contribution, but the masses won’t put up with the needless trashing. It is stuck where it is. George will never get affiliate links that he constantly suggests he’ll get and teach us a thing or two. Bullshit. It is all marketing and fanning the flames of his limited readership. To be honest, a vast majority of the whiners here, remind me of a table of old biddies at a canasta game.
You know how to change the blog, but the will to stop the trashing just isn’t there. It is your chance to vent your frustration at missing the boat and your fear that a blogger will kill a deal you want to keep all for yourself. I expect it to continue til you all get tired and stop with the phony concern for the newbie.
Just my periodic checking in to point out you are the one spending your retirement coming on other people’s blogs and trashing them. It is easier for you to stay away from a blog you don’t like than to comment on others’! For example, I stopped reading yours years ago — even before you sold it!
>>>>>>>It is very easy to end the disagreement George. Quit trashing other people. If you can’t say something nice about somebody, don’t say anything at all.
“All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing.” –Edmund Burke
LOVE THIS QUOTE!
And congrats, you just made next week’s Gem Comment post.
Of course 98% don’t read this – but they should! TBB gets lost in the avalanche of sites that do nothing but pimp, pimp, pimp. How many pimps like you would ever have the cajones to actually do something worthwhile and link to TBB to truly educate those you purport to “help”? Won’t hold my breath waiting…
+1
“To Entertain. Educate. Inspire. In That Order”
I was having an internal debate over whether the best commenter on these boards was Ramsey, Harvson or Ingy. All 3 provide crucial contributions to your blog that have turned it into one of the most heavily nominated blogs during award season (i.e. PFDigest awards, Travel Summary awards etc.)
Ramsey is of course the most entertaining commenter on the boards with his awesome stories
Harvson is the most educational commenter – he provides pinpoint analysis. His assesment of seminars that invite MV is spot on – I would love to hear from organizers of events that choose to invite him
Ingy is the most inspiring. He inspires me to take criticism like an emotionally stable human being. Because if that’s the alternative….
Point is, if entertaining is the most important component of the blog, that makes Ramsey the best commenter. Congrats Charles!
I agree. Charles is the winner.
I just got an email by that guy running the Frequent Business Traveler awards (you know the one that had its ballot a little bit disfigured lol) reminding me to post the link to vote. I am not going to bother you guys.
There IS a lot of truth on the inspiration part 🙂
Deep down, my whole reason for blogging is to win a Digestie award…I will even give up my Amazon link for that…oh, wait lol.
Yawn. Same old incoherent non sense. So obsessed by my tiny blog it defies ANY logic!
“Don’t like them, don’t read them”
Following this logic: like it ->read it. If u spend more time commenting here than that other blog gets in weeks->must be totally in love with it!
WTF!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Dear readers, I would like to remind you that “If you can’t say something nice about somebody, don’t say anything at all”
I now know how Lucky feels about Frank…Is it time?
>>>>>>>>>>>George will never get affiliate links
So sure, I wonder why…
Obsessed with teaching you and your generation some manners George. You are providing NOTHING positive to the space. It is all the simple George. Your blog is the only one that goes after others personally. That is the truly incoherent Nonsense.
As far as affiliate links, do you honestly believe that banks are going to give you links after the comments you’ve made about them. Now that is delusional.
But that is your schtick George and you have a very loyal 2/10th of 1%. Congratulations on your popularity with the angry. Send me your mailing address and I’ll send you some Cheese for your Whine
Actually, highlighting the truth is quite a positive thing for this space.
The Truth Is Out There” – Fox Mulder of X-Files
The only TV show TBB ever watched…
Little did I know Fox meant to say out there on TBB 🙂
And this is what a broken crazy old record sounds like.
” It is all the simple George”
If you need repeated 40 paragraph comments to explain something simple, I would hate to see you trying to explain complicated things
No offense to George, but I think you two are closer to the same “generation” than you let on.
When I do retire (in about 40 years), I hope I’ll find something better to do than going onto other peoples’ blogs and calling them delusional. It will be sad if I work that long with that as the benefit in the end!
It takes seconds a day to come here for a good laugh, We have all been given the gift of free (OOPS almost free travel) and yet you guys have nothing better to do than day after day whine about a few blogs. I have very full and useful days with a little comic relief thrown in by the Whiners of TBB.
If you manage to post all of your screeds in “seconds a day”, you missed your calling. Instead of selling credit cards, you should sell your magical time management skills!
(I didn’t even think your generation could type that fast!)
@ Adam: I am 46, look 36 (I wish), feel like 26 (definitely) and act like 16 (just kidding on that last one).
Come on, I just got an AARP Membership kit in the mail the other day, those MFers, how do they dare?
I actually joined the AARP a few years ago (in my 30s, mind you) to get in on that legendary 5%-on-everything card, so I’m one step ahead of you. They mail me stuff pretty regularly
And it’s ironic if you refer to the 1%, since you’ve made a name for yourself by encouraging low-income people to take out credit they couldn’t afford.
The blog slogan – “your credit is one of my most important assets”
Bravo!
Another TBB beauty there. You have no idea of the success rate of those I have had a hand in helping up by giving them a chance. Keep on slinging you guys .You are on a roll tonight. Just more unsubstantiated whining.
The success rate of those you’ve helped?? You have statistics on the financial situation of people who have clicked on your links over the years, or read your advice to just take out credit cards?
Or how about your rants against issuers who dared to question why you needed more credit?
And someone raising a valid concern about a “hobby” that exists off blanket advice encouraging people to take out credit cards, with little disclosures as to the risk and conflict of interest of the blogger, is hardly “whining.” Calling it such is an ad hominem attack rather than an actual response.
(How many seconds did that take to read?)
George, as my comments have appeared repeatedly in the weekly gems, and I hope to see them in future gems, I give you full and encouraged permission to insert links and other affiliate possibilities into posts that feature my “work”.
Let me know if you need me to make an A+ caliber comment that has words like “Uber” or “Amazon” in it, so that you can naturally slide the links into the posts like TPG does in his Sunday reader questions
Working together we can take pimping to another level…never mind.
“Should I apply for the Chase Ink Bold or Ink Plus” – “Apply for Both!” TPG
But Steve, it is all about personal responsibility 😉
You guys are easy bait tonite. I love coming here laughing at the whining. You’ll say, accuse and do just about anything. Love the comment by the brain surgeon that said I haven’t posted about the Westin at Hilton Head cause it wouldn’t earn enough clicks. Brilliant reasoning there.
Here is the truth. Bloggers are gonna pimp credit cards if they have the links. And you guys are gonna whine because you don’t.
Nuff said
Oh Wait I forgot. Your criticizing because you want to save the poor unsuspecting newbie. And I’ve got a bridge to sell you as well.
“And I’ve got a bridge to sell you as well”
Must be a Chase or Barclays bridge
I’ve many links George, but I don’t pimp them. How come? I got the US Airways card link and the Lufthansa link the same day as all the pimps did last week- why didn’t I write long posts about them packed with links?
Simple answer: you are wrong, not everyone will do what you did.
Well good for you Matt. You are a very special person and the exception instead of the norm. And what is it I supposedly did? Careful now, Its a trick question 😉
The impression I get (and I understand it could be a trick here) is that you sold out your readers for cash. Have no qualms in taking money from various sources, and little care as to who is getting screwed over as long as you are getting paid.
You then go on to mock those who seek to enlighten the naive public about the antics that you and those you defend will use to line your own pockets at their expense, and do it in a bullying manner.
Don’t get me wrong, I am happy that you sold FTG and don’t think that is actually selling out, you can’t really control what they would do with the site – and if I was offered a similar package for Saverocity back in the day I would have been very happy with it too. However if the new owners had gone on to make things even more of a sham to sell cards rather than help people I would have buried my head in the sand and hidden, knowing that I was a sell out and that my good work had been used to convert people into $ with no regard for their well being, or if the information provided was accurate.
So, the biggest issue here Ingy, isn’t that you ‘sold’ it’s that you sold out your people and now spend your days heckling anyone that says this is wrong to do. You can scream this until your dying breath, but it won’t stop you being wrong and I think we both know it.
Matt
PS – Did I fall for your trick there?
Nailed it.
You didn’t fall for any trick and actually had a well thought out and reasonable response. I appreciate your taking the time to share your views. With this type of mature dialog maybe we can actually get some where.
I wish every blogger had the opportunity to catch the windfall I ran into in 2012. It was beyond my wildest dreams. Sorry you missed the crest.
I do struggle with your characterization of being a “sell out to my people”. As I hope you are aware, based on your financial background, I signed a contract with provisions that I’m sure you would follow being an upstanding guy I’m sure you are. What seems to be at issue here is the direction that the new owner took the blog. I didn’t take it there. They did, So if you want to call somebody a “sell out” because you think THEY changed focus well then “go for it” Call them whatever you would like. But I sold the blog. I didn’t make any promises to keep it the way it was. In fact, that was no longer my option. I’m not going to bury my head in the sand because the new owner went a direction you didn’t like and you think is a sell out. I got a big fat check and they paid for that right to do whatever they wanted with that blog. That’s how it goes.You got a beef with the direction that FTG.com took, take it up with them, not me.
If you think that it is proper to call out people’s sexual orientation, sexual attractiveness, drug use and common mistakes that people all make then that is your choice. There are members of this community I’m ashamed to say I called friends in the past. There is behavior that goes on daily in this space that disgusts me. Georges offering a carte blanche home to whiners is disgusting to me. I watch bloggers lie and cheat every single day just like you do. I see the crappy links, the bullshit they pass off, It is just the way the game is played. But whining and crying about it is not going to make one bit of difference and it just leads to more divisiveness in the space. That’s what really makes me sick. It used to be a big helping happy family til the whiners came along and George is fostering that whining.
My only wish for all of you is that you come to realize you are doing more to hurt the space than help it. If I need to stay on George and his other readers to find something good to say, to show some gratitude for what we have all been given I will continue to do so until my dying breath as you say.
We just have a different philosophy on this Matt. Mine is that this blog is not making for positive change to the space. Last weeks link fest is a perfect example. I will continue to give back to George and his readers what they are dishing out until they give up on the negative and find some good things. George is getting better but he has five or six commenters that do his blog a hell of a lot more harm than good.
You’d think at some point you guys would realize I’m right and your approach is wrong. Its been proven over the last 18 months of George’s attempts that things are not getting better. And I think YOU KNOW THAT. Come up with a different approach that doesn’t tear up the hobby while you try to correct the uncorrectable nature of human greed.
Hey Ingy,
To clarify, I’m not that upset about the sham that FTG has become, I just don’t know why you would defend it like you do, if it were me I’d feel shame about it.
The selling out part reflects your disdain for the people who stand up and say xyz is misleading readers, deleting comments in order to line their own pockets and generally who don’t care two hoots about the ‘ people’ who are being fed into the credit machine.
I think if you cared about the people rather than mocking people who care and calling their efforts futile you’d still be respected in this space, regardless of what direction FTG the site took.
He is in a tough position right now as far as criticizing the current incarnation of the blog, because as bad as the content is right now, as sleazy as the marketing is, as censor-happy as the current editors are all of that was far moreso in the later days of Rick’s ownership
Don’t know if you were around during the “deals of the day” period of that blog, but those features make the travel challenge look like a Frequent Miler post
From what you are saying Rick, the whiners are the ones destroying the hobby and the community and not the bloggers who are all good people and “help people travel for free”
*rolleyes*
Couple of seconds a day, eh?
The problem with your basic proposition is you are looking to live in an imaginary world where one blogger is right, and one blogger is wrong. That is an unnecessarily combative stance — far more combative than this blog has ever been.
Your hobby is coming on here and being a troll.
And I think it’s far more offensive to come and attack people daily and call them delusional than to acknowledge that a gay blogger is gay, or say someone is ugly.
“It used to be a big helping happy family til the whiners came along and George is fostering that whining.”
Really? You think people didn’t criticize others before TBB? I don’t think George would take that much credit.
I know I openly shared that I thought people were pompous self-righteous blowhards, self-motivated credit card shills, and morally irresponsible in a time of foreclosures in pushing individuals to incur consumer credit.
Au contraire! Since TBB started highlighting the scummy shenanigans of pimping, there’s been a lot more awareness in blogs about this issue. The newer bloggers aren’t pimping non stop – they don’t treat their readers like fresh meat to be scammed. How else does TBB get nominated as an influential blog if it isn’t making a noticeable difference? It’s too bad that instead of supporting George in cleaning up the space and bringing much needed integrity, that you instead take the side of the scummy pimps who would whore their sisters to make a buck. Simple despicable.
+1
Matt – +10
Matt, congrats. The comment (initial response to Ingy) just made next week’s Gem Comments. I will even go a step further and link back to your website.
Steven knows what he is talking about 😉
I think what is totally missing from my life is a class to learn manners taught by ingy.
And just when I thought I heard it all…
Shaking my head…not angrily
You haven’t heard it all George. Not even close. You have way more to learn. Try this one:
“Let he without sin, Cast the first stone”
At some point you have to stop sinning (over and over and over again)…
That makes you a woman caught in adultery?
I also recall verse 11: “Go, and sin no more.”
“A man or a woman who is a medium or a necromancer shall surely be put to death. They shall be stoned with stones; their blood shall be upon them.”
That’s a good one.
I prefer:
“I am going to Hell? Hell, I am taking the Hell Express there then!” – Eddie Murphy 🙂
Quick summary for those too busy to read the extensive text blocks:
1. Deceiving readers, posting inferior links, bombarding bullshit to sell credit cards = bad, but just part of the game.
2. Pointing out that bloggers are deceiving readers, posting inferior links, bombarding bullshit to sell credit cards = terrible, awful, no good, horrendous sinning that is tearing the community apart and must be stopped by continuous internet trolling on someone else’s site (get this definition right, please)
How do I know this? Because the above exact exchange already happened in a discussion last September, almost 9 months ago. Hell, I didn’t have to even read the above to know that.
And that, kids, is what solid trolling looks like.
One day I’ll learn to close tags. Today is not that day.
Last September’s link:
http://travelbloggerbuzz.com/weekly-comments-from-the-tbb-comments-september-7-14-2013/
Thanks again for making it so clear.
I know we have been through this in the past…and it IS getting tiresome.
And I think it’s educational for new readers too!
Let me know if you do not want any of your comments chosen as gems. I think this one belongs too.
Just a few seconds per day…hmmmm.
Troll’s comments just today:
7.29 am (it’s a good day to start your day on TBB)
2.17 pm
2.35 pm
7.21 pm
8.29 pm
9.11 pm
9.16 pm
9.33 pm
9.37 pm
9.46 pm
9.57 pm
10.37 pm
Considering the amount of time to read so many comments it is painfully obvious…If this is not a troll, I don’t know what is!
I must be amused that I have managed to develop such a devoted reader…
Look at the times posting here in a blog you absolutely despise and everyone reading it! There is something terribly wrong with this picture…
Get a grip and some help PLEASE.
8:29 to 10:37 PM the length of an online poker game. A guys gotta have a little fun while waiting for others to play. Winding you guys up is as easy as winding an old fashion watch.
I have to admit ONE of the posters above had a worthwhile comment There are some new blogs coming that do have some merit without pimping. That is a good thing. George, did your blog spawn that development? Did the whining here do that?
“TPG said this”
“Did you count the links in MV’s post?”
“Daraius is ruining the deals with his arrows and circles”
“FTG.com made a mistake”
“Count the links”
“My eyes are bulging”
“First”
“Second”
“Third”
And for Matt, I live a very happy life, sleep well at night, give back to others, have loving friends and family, and am accepted for who I am and what I gave, by the majority in the hobby. The last thing I want in life is the respect of the gang here at TBB.
So get back at it gang. A new day has dawned and another chance to Whine Away.
It must be hard being the Jesus Christ of cheap people from middle America who want to fly for free.
I can’t wait for the next post about poker, so enlightening and educational to readers. Because, you know, it’s all about the money!
You want respect, you gotta earn it you sell out.
Hey Ingy,
I have mentioned several times that the influence of TBB has helped me shape how I want to blog, and how I don’t want to be part of a ‘big happy family’ that is acting as front for credit card companies in order to get a big payday.
So yes, the whining works Ingy, the squeaky wheel shows more and more people how some bloggers will make concerted efforts to earn money while keeping their readers in the dark about how much they are taking out of their pockets by pushing an affiliate link over a non affiliate link, or presenting any made up story to sucker people into their revenue streams.
I’m sorry you are upset to hear that people are causing divisiveness by shining a light on the crap that occurs in our space and highlighting that not everyone will sell out their readers for the sake of an affiliate dollar. But the fact of the matter is, someone has to do it, and it is making a difference.
Ingy said:
“I watch bloggers lie and cheat every single day just like you do. I see the crappy links, the bullshit they pass off, It is just the way the game is played. But whining and crying about it is not going to make one bit of difference and it just leads to more divisiveness in the space. That’s what really makes me sick. It used to be a big helping happy family til the whiners came along and George is fostering that whining.”
My goodness, I sure don’t want to live in Ingy’s world where one should just sit by and not try to make things better because – horrors! – it might be divisive. There are bloggers who have ethical standards. They are the ones I read and their links are the ones I click.
I actually found TBB when, as a newbie, I was reading FT’s External Miles and Points Resources forum, hoping to get a handle on which blogs I could trust. I liked some of the comments by a poster and clicked through to look at his blog, and I’ve been reading TBB ever since. I think I found Saverocity the same way. I have no interest in reading bloggers who “lie and cheat every single day” and I completely disagree that “the game” must be “played” that way.
My proof? Milenomics. Saverocity. Frequent Miler. Travel Is Free. TBB. And they are by no means the only ones. Which is a very good thing for those of us who appreciate honesty and integrity.
On another topic, and with apologies to folks who can’t get past the paywall, this was the first I’d heard of Hopper:
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/04/travel/crunching-the-numbers-to-find-the-best-airfare.html
Anyone have any experience with them?
Thanks for the support. Don’t waste time dealing with trolls. Just sit back and enjoy the show 🙂
I do not have experience with the Hopper at all. I saw that article. Nothing in it made me take notice. If I see it again in other sources I may then take a look at it. There are a LOT of these tech thingies out there. Most fizzle out
Absolutely agree with the above… TBB definitely helped me find some of the blogs that are a little more creative, a little more original, and a lot less pimp-tastic. That’s a service. Especially considering that they are generally blogs with far smaller readerships that don’t show up in searches nearly as well as the major pimpers.
TBB also helped me realize that with the right Feedly setup and correct attitude, I could skim through all the craptacular vomitous pimp posts from the major blogs, find the important news, and then move on to the useful stuff. That’s also a service.
TBB comments sections (especially all you top quality commenters) serve to remind me that there are smart, pragmatic people out there doing this too… which is not what one typically sees on the ‘major blogs’. That’s a service too.
Finally, I also get a great reminder to not spend too much time getting defensive about my past decisions, lest it take over my valuable free time. Another service indeed.
Now if I could only remember to buy some stuff on Amazon though George’s link…
+100
Make my Amazon link your start up page 🙂 #brilliantmarketingidea
Love it George. Entertainment and education! All day, errday 🙂
thank you Kryton!