It’s Time To Take a Stand

I’ve always been a very compliant person.  I never caused waves, avoided conflict and pretty much shied away from any hard decisions.

No more.  Today I made a terrible mistake. I sluffed off my responsibility as a husband and a father and shifted the responsibility (and blame) onto my wife for an incident I should have handled.

It was wrong and after apologizing to my wife I came to the conclusion (prompted by God I'm sure) to stop with the wimpiness and take a stand and state my mind, regardless of the consequences.

It’s something I have to do if I want to live with myself and to ever have an iota of self-respect.  I owe it to my family, friends and especially to God to do so.

So here goes.  It’s time to state a few of my beefs come hell or high water.

I detest the whole Wokeness and political correctness agendas foisted upon society.  Just because I disagree with some people does not mean I am a racist, homophobic or believe myself better than others.  I can no more change other people’s beliefs than they can change mine.

I believe the people in charge of our Federal Government; specifically the president, vice president and many of their associates are woefully unprepared, unqualified and inept at their jobs.  They seem totally out of touch with average American citizens and their needs and concerns.

It’s almost like common sense has flown out the window.  Does the Federal Government even know what a balanced budget is and that you don’t spend more than you make?  

Inflation is out of hand.  The cost of living is destroying families.  When are we going to see politicians address the real issues instead of their own political agendas?  Compromise is not a bad word.

I apologize to no one for my Conservative views.  I respect other people’s views and I expect to be respected in turn.  I certainly don’t hate people for their views or lifestyles.  I agree to disagree-period.

I am a senior citizen, male, white American and quite frankly I’m fed up with being blamed for everything.  Everyone screams about his or her rights.  What about mine?  Am I not allowed to state my views?  What’s good for the goose is good for the gander.

I am a Christian. I love God, my family, my country and others--even those that consider themselves my enemy.  I don’t want anyone to spend eternity in hell.  God loves them just as much as he loves me-period.

No one better mess with my family or friends-you won’t like the outcome.

As far as my blog and other social media sites go:

I am fed up with companies refusing to send review samples and instead expect me to review their products from press releases, photos, PDFs or streaming videos.

Would you ask a food critic to review food from a photo?

I’ve been reviewing products for 30 years.  I have the volumes of reviews to prove it-thousands of reviews-both printed and online.

I absolutely loath most YouTube review sites-especially those about pop culture collectibles.  Most only talk about the ‘hottest’ products and their worth.  And it’s not just YouTube-Facebook, Twitter and other sites are just as guilty.

Few (very few) get into the meat and bones of any particular product.

Enough with the, “Golly, gee, isn’t that a cool product?”  I’m not interested in seeing pretty pictures-I want to know the content, context and substance of a product.

Why is that most YouTube review sites that offer little more than fluff get all of the attention and products to review?  Large traffic numbers do not necessarily mean the content is being viewed. Trust me when I say that numbers can be faked-there are apps and programs that will do just that.

I’ve been writing reviews a long time as I previously stated.  You would think with all those years under my belt I’d get a little respect. 

And another thing, how do certain individuals get off expecting to be paid because they show videos of their daily lives?  Talk about living vicariously through someone else!

So, the bottom line is, if you are a publisher, studio or manufacturer and if you want to see reviews of your products-send products.  Don’t expect me to promote your products if you’re not willing to send products to me.

I love writing reviews. Obviously, I’ve been doing it for decades.  Has it ever occurred to anyone that longevity and experience counts for something?

If you want a review that dissects your product, tells consumers what to expect and includes some personal observations from my years of experience (I’m 69 years old) then I’m the guy to provide it.

I appreciate those companies that do send product.  You're what keeps me going.  I offer any and all manufacturers, companies and publishers the opportunity to have their products reviewed honestly, thoroughly and professionally  It’s up to you.