ON MY MIND
I am in La Guardia in the United Lounge trying to catch up on blog posts! I am working from April 17 and going forward.
That’s all!
I must catch up
I must catch up
I must catch up
MILES/POINTS
This article by Saverocity was posted the day before I left for my trip to Norway: “The Problem with Credit Card Miles and Points – why using Credit Card points for free travel is a bad idea.” It makes some excellent points and is a worthy read. Hey, if it wasn’t I would not include it here:-) Loved the disclaimer too “No Chase Sapphire Preferred Cards were harmed in the making of this article.”
While I was gone my Google Reader feed caught fire with the 50k AMEX Business Gold Rewards Card promotion. I thought about doing a separate post and single out how each blogger wrote about the promo. Some were totally ridiculous posts! Since the post was going to be quite extensive I changed my mind as I was traveling and there was no way I will ever catch up to it. But one blogger’s subject headline caught my eye for the most ridiculous headline of all:
“Sick Deal Alert: 50,000 American Express Business Gold Rewards Card” from Noob Traveler“. Sick, really? I guess be ready to get sick in a month or two again. #hownottogetangry?
Another Delta Elite sticks it to Delta! 3 Reasons To Stop Flying Delta in 2013. From DoubleWides Fly in Upgrd. I can think of 23 more but that’s besides the point.
While I was gone Frequent Miler continued to produce killer content while most other bloggers continued to come up with yet more innovative and sick (see above) ways to push yet more affiliate links. “Bluebird swipe reloads via ATM“. And “The hunt for perfect gift cards, part 1“. This is just getting ridiculous now with all the different ways to get miles/points really cheap!
TRAVEL
When Google Earth Goes Awry. From Twisted Sifter. AMAZING “anomalies”!!!
10 of the best travel quotes of all time. From A Luxury Travel Blog. I LOVE these, you WILL love them too!!
Insane Wingsuit Cave Jump. Wow, this is totally insane!!!!!
Selling out on Social Media: Travel writers and Twitter. From Grumpy Traveller. Excellent article! It ends with “…despite your protestations to the contrary, is it that you just fancied a freebie and don’t really care what you have to do to get it?”
Tromso Snow Wonderland. From Dima’s Corner. Holy cow, that is a lot of snow in northern Norway. Fellow blogger Dima was traveling there while I was in southern Norway. The weather was dramatically different!
ODDZ & ENDZ
Creative Dad Takes Most Adorable Kids Photos Ever. From Twisted Sifter. I have no idea how this guy takes these pics but it’s quite remarkable to see them!
15 of the Most Fascinating Looking Fungi in the World. From Twisted Sifter…again!
50 Quotes That Will Free Your Mind. From Marc and Angel Hack Life. Free your mind and your ass will follow 🙂
50k for the Amex Business Gold is a good deal. It’s better deal than the previous offer, and it’s reasonable for blogs to write about it.
But it’s not the first time this deal has been around, it probably won’t be the last time.
It isn’t a “sick deal” — it isn’t “Bluebird while Vanilla Reloads were at Office Depot” and it isn’t a $33 business class YYZ-LCA mistake fare.
There are actually several bloggers who write reasonably about these sorts of deals. And – commissions or no, but we know there are commissions – it makes sense for them to include credit cards in their miles and points coverage.
We all know you have some outsized love for Frequent Miler, he’s good and has a particular niche. And you have an outsized love for MMS, which is odd given his over the top marketing schtick, how in your face it is, how even when he tells you about better offers he’s totally in your face about how he’s telling you about a better offer (and includes his affiliate link at the same time he says not to use it!).
But other than FM and MMS, you seem to link the rest of the bloggers together. I think that does us all a bit of a disservice.
TBB, you have become our voice!!
You need to use that voice for good.
Don’t lump “the rest” together as though they are all alike. Give us your good list. Even if it’s not done, share the list of good bloggers even as a work in progress.
And share the naughty list! There are several reasons for being naughty, one of claiming 50k Amex points is a SICK DEAL. Another is just not being very good. Like most of the bloggers on a certain new site. Like FTG has become (he was a great one.. 3 years ago).
TBB we need you back!
I’ve said it before…I dont mind these people earning a living with these CC links. They should be able to earn a living, absolutely!! HOWEVER, when some people (like FTG) post that their 30K link is better than a 40K link or 30K is better than 70K, ahhhhhhhh….
There’s a special place in hell for people like that. And you’ve named one of the more prominent ones.
Speaking of those links, Travel Summary finally got some links and, sure enough, he has ads up and links for the inferior US Airways offer. So sad…
@Anonymous April 23, 2013 at 4:42 PM
Man I loved your post. Summarizes everything I feel about the whole blog scene. I hate when TBB sucks up (and he is doing it more and more these days) to MMS and other malignant card pushers. He clearly is doing it more and more these days and I hate the thought that now he is selling out.
You cannot change MMS but he deserves every bit of criticism for all the malignant things travel blogging has become.
Mucho respect for FM for all the research he is doing. The gateway idea is from Flyertalk PIN thread, but he always takes it several steps further. I knew for a fact that next day MMS will copy it for his persecuted customers.
God bless the 10,000+ idiots who have signed up to receive only one email from him everyday.
I single out FM for the killer content and very welcome way of doing affiliate links, yes. I single out MMS for the CLARITY of his writing (yes you need some talent to do this!) and much better disclosure practices compared to many bloggers. That is all. Don’t make it out more than it is.
I have a good list and a bad list. I do not want to explain my reasons for making it in both lists as I will take a lot of crap from the ones who felt have been included unfairly in the bad list. The last thing I need at this time in my life is more crap:-) Do you think just throwing it out there as is without my (incendiary) commentary would be fine? I will do it one day. I am just trying to keep it all together. Taking a week off to travel has put me way behind, I need to catch up first!
I have never said that bloggers should take a vow of poverty (like I have done so far). But providing and focusing on good content should always be paramount. Then must find a decent way of doing it. I highly prefer FM’s way but he does have the Boarding Area umbrella comforting him. And whatever way is done bloggers should always adhere to “you shall do no harm” (do not push inferior deals) and, for god’s sake, provide adequate and full disclosures!
But once you start going down this path…the mud may suffocate you. First of all, you focus on editing the darn cc links all the time to make sure you are “in compliance” with the affiliate companies/middlemen…
Someone tell Travel Summary, he will change the links…At least I hope he does so. I think he is at FTU.
For the record, I do not suck up to anyone or anything. Yes I do have biases, I am human! I have not sold out yet, give me a break por favor. Am I thinking about it? Yes, but I want to do it in a DECENT way and do it MY way. Is it possible/feasible? I am not sure, I am trying to figure it all out myself while keeping my family and main business intact. It is a little challenging:-)
MMS stuff is perfect for newbies, come on admit it. The way he writes is so clear even a Caveman can follow and do what he says:-) I can think of one blogger in particular whose writing is just painful to read!!
I read on the intranet MMS is going to interview A.J> Clemente news anchor Bismark, ND.
Got it, saw the clip, poor poor guy. Hope someone gives him a 2nd chance. Unbelievable
FTG….Free Travel Guys?
FTG=Frugal Travel Guy
Always will be.
This tweet:
InACents @InACents
Discover Miles Card 60,000 Bonus Mile Offer Revealed http://is.gd/ir4FhS
Led me to this post:
http://inacents.com/2012/08/15/discover-miles-card-60000-bonus-mile-offer-revealed/
Which was MOST aggravating since it was about a bad, defunct, and targeted offer. The post is dated August 12, 2012. I sure hope this was a mistake.
But I kinda doubt it. Another tweet from InACents today was to a June 29, 2012 post. Please, InACents, do not waste my time!
Maybe they use an app to tweet old tweets. I usually see their headline blog posts in Google Reader, hardly ever click on them to read more.
So FTG joining f2b…so much for that no credit cards thing…..
FTG is advertising in f2b. That is all. For now
Credit where credit is due: TPG’s series on ANA redemptions uncovered aspects of a potentially useful program that I knew nothing about. Now I’m not particularly convinced that I need to redeem ANA miles, as some of those fuel costs are awful (less AC, UA, US, Air NZ, and some others), but I’m now more knowledgeable.
harvson3
Yes I scanned those posts. I don’t do ANA miles because of the fuel surcharges too and have plenty elsewhere. I thought about featuring it and then I saw the Top 10 posts about mothers and…changed my mind;-)
which FTG are we talking about? there are 2, Frugal Travel Guy?
If you ever see FTG here, it will always be Frugal Travel Guy.
With all the posts about gift cards and reloadable cards, etc, what happens if one should LOSE that card, or if it should be stolen? If one loses a credit card, report it and there’s no loss; lose a gift card, and there goes your money. No thanks. I don’t need all the extra effort to keep track of which gift card I want to use, etc. I’ll just keep on using my various credit cards and racking up the miles, points, or whatever.
You make a GREAT point!
Thanks for the mention! I’m grafting away at the blog and trying to get as much feedback as I can to make it better, I already got a few people come from here to leave their thoughts on it which is a big deal for me.
Cheers,
Matt from Saverocity
You are welcome, that was a great post (Hey, I only feature great posts here!).
I am in the finance business and was thinking about working on something dishing out my finance and travel/miles&points advice as they are clearly my two passions. I decided to keep them completely separate.