Just how big is our foot print?

Hey everyone,
I always treat this forum as kind of a fun place to learn and share with others, which is otherwise not that relevant.

I mean, it's a good place to get ideas of gear to listen to, and how to hook things up, but I never imagine that there are those who feel their income depends on what gets discussed here. Lately I've gotten several signals that there are dealers and those with financial interests who come to these forums to generate buzz and revenue at a scale which matters to them personally.


In a thread about speaker design there was a comment that  "this blogger says things you never read about in professional reviews." That's what I like about this space. We aren't limited by the need to make an advertiser happy.


I mean, sometimes it's pretty obvious, with sales of $20K doo hickeys which seem like total snake oil, but other times I see people getting seriously offended over my not being overwhelmed by a piece of gear they promote, and these people stay pouty for years after.


I'm going to have to step back and think about how I use this new found power I didn't know I had.

Constructive ideas welcome. Should I just start my own blog space?


Best,
E