This post was not sponsored on behalf of  anyone. The opinions are mine (obviously).

For those not keeping score, social media guru Chris Brogan, posted a sponsored post for Kmart on Dad-o-matic. Long story short: they gave him some cash to shop, and he blogged about the experience. Longer story shorter, some people, namely some on Twitter, thought it was… a bad idea, and it hurt his credibility. Chris explained his rationale not too long after. I’ll have to admit - I did not finish reading it - it was quite long and I wanted to get some snowboarding in (sorry Chris!).

While I was enjoying my first run of the season at Mont Bromont,which is running a wonderful special on passes right now, I had some time to think (in between the moments when I realized that the edges of my Tech-Nine were dull and when I wiped out) about “the situation”. Did Chris betray the trust of his audience? Or was he perfectly in the right to do what he did, the way he did it? My final decision: “Doesn’t matter”.

We could debate this until we were blue in the face, but it won’t settle anything. The fact of the matter is that, for some, Chris has less credibility that he used to have, and for others, what he did was just fine. There is no right, there is no wrong. It’s kind of like arguing what is the best color of Crayola Markers (read Croyola’s tips for stain removal here).

For some, trust is based on whether they feel someone is transparent, while for others, whether they are transparent and in line with their moral system. Is either side right? No, at least not in my books. So if you lost trust in Chris, that’s totally your call. If you still think he’s a straight-shooter - by all means, go ahead. Vent or praise, do as you wish.

But regardless of what you think - know this: how you express yourself on the web is being watched and archived (as mentioned by Mitch Joel of Twist Image fame). How you praise or demean Chris is being watched and read - the web is very no-take-backsies these days, and people are making judgements on your character as well, and whether they should trust you.

With that said, I don’t have any gift certificates to give away, I have no agreements with any ski hills or marker manufacturers - I just like to share things I approve of, give my opinion, and make fun of situations that are really kind of silly in “trying economic times” like these, especially around the holidays.

By the way, WordPress 2.7 works like a dream. Like seriously. Wow.

Happy holidays. Play nice. Be safe.