This whole debacle with the American car companies has been pretty hard to stomach if you live in the Midwest like I do. Today marks a very sad day for Detroit and our region. One of the most philanthropic companies in the world will move into bankruptcy, a thought that is still surreal.

As the bankruptcy filing moves through its course, there will be hard losses for many to endure in this process. It will no doubt sting badly for many aspects of the industry. There will be more job losses. Dealerships will close and dealers will lose their life’s hard work. Other businesses will not be able to weather the storm, most likely closing their doors. But when it’s all said and done, I expect General Motors to come out as a stronger company, one that will finally be a healthier and more flexible business.

Even through all of this craziness, Chevy in particular, has remained a strong brand and one that is selling well. I believe that one of the main reasons why Chevy is such a strong and healthy brand is thanks to the community of outdoor enthusiasts in America.

There is something very American about trucks and the outdoors. Whether it is a brand new Silverado or a used Suburban with 250,000 miles on it, America’s trucks have remained the very symbol of American pride and American quality.

The days of foreign advantage are over. The days of a large quality gap are over, as American producers are turning around America’s best cars and trucks.

This is what America has become for the time being. We must all keep our heads up and stay loyal. We should all feel compassion for those in pain and do so as Americans. As a concerned American sportsman, it is my plan to go out and buy American. I believe in supporting those who support us and I will stay loyal to those who support my passion for the outdoors.

Sincerely,
A concerned sportsman

In our efforts to expand our Network, we are looking for people far and wide to dig in and set up a blog with Skinny Moose Media. The Network is looking for bloggers in many genres which include Politics & Current Events, Sports, Outdoor Recreation, Parenting, Health, Religion, Electronics, Movies & TV, and much more. If you are interested in joining a fun and laid back place to blog, look no further. We provide all technical support, we create the blog for you, and we even offer blog tips. Join us Today!

NEWTOWN, Conn. - -(AmmoLand.com)- Firearm sales continued to surge across the country for the fifth straight month, extending a trend that began after the November elections. The increase also follows recent comments by several high-profile members of the Obama administration about re-imposing permanently and expanding the ban on modern sporting rifles.

Data from the FBI’s National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) show background checks on the sale of firearms jumped 29.2 percent in March when compared to March 2008 and were up 27.1 percent for the first quarter of 2009 over the same quarter last year. Read Entire Article at AmmoLand.com

One of the main goals for Skinny Moose Media in 2009 will be to expand our reach into other avenues. We have always been open to other genres but we will be making a concerted effort towards expanding in all directions. Skinny Moose, as an online media source, has an interest in all journalistic style writing including politics and commentary, religion, current events/news, sports, outdoor/recreation, and more. We are seeking individuals who are excited to become part of the Skinny Moose network. Please go here if you are interested in writing for us.

One of the things Skinny Moose Media has failed to communicate to others is that many of our bloggers would be more than happy to have a few guest bloggers. Guest blogging is a practice that a lot of bloggers do in order to gain more exposure. It is, in most cases, a win/win situation driving traffic back and forth. It also is a great way to get to know other fellow bloggers and do a little Networking.

If you are interested please take the time and head on over to our Contact Form and select “To request guest blogging” from the drop down menu. In the comments section just mention which blog you would like to guest blog on and what your article might be about. We will then get in touch with the blogger for you and let them know. You can see our full list of blogs here.

Right now Skinny Moose Media is running a cool deal. Place a 468×60 size banner above every single post on every one of our hunting blogs for only $40 up through the New Year!

That’s right. This is no joke. Your banner will rotate with others this season for only $40. (Regular price is $2,000) This is a smokin’ deal. All banners will come down on the same day right after the New Year, so hurry and get your banner up and going now to get more bang for your buck..

Right now, all our hunting blogs are bringing in more than 1/4 of a million page views each month. A $40 price to place your banner above all blog posts is an amazing price.

Contact me with details at skinnymoose[at]gmail[dot]com to get your banner up ASAP. We accept paypal and checks. We do not place banners until payment is received so using paypal will get your banner up on our network within minutes of submission…

Please send your image as an attachment with the URL you wish the image to be linked to… Here is the size of a 428×60 banner

I have been aware of such In-text advertising programs as InfoLinks. How the program works is very simple. After signing up, you are given a code to place in the footer.php file of your website. That is all the work you have to do. Then companies purchase words. If you happen to have those words on your website then it will appear linked with 2 lines under it. If you hover over that link a little window appears providing information about that link. You earn money whenever someone clicks on those links.

Skinny Moose has been experimenting with this program and have been running the ad links across a lot of our blogs and magazines for over a week. The results have been very interesting. Let’s say most people start off trying to monetize their websites with Google Adsense. Skinny Moose used this form of monetization first like most people did. We still run a lot of Adsense on our sites, and it helps pay the bills. InfoLinks in just 8 days has out-performed Adsense by a long shot.

Some of the drawbacks of using this program might be worth mentioning.

Cons:

Not all links that become active are relevant to your content. Maybe we haven’t been running the program long enough, but InfoLinks (much like Adsense) says it can take a while for the program to really narrow in on what your site is about and can take some time to get more relevant ad links. I haven’t seen a lot of relevant links. It’s 50/50 maybe.

The ad links can be annoying at first. Like anything it takes time to get used to changes. At first you may feel your readers are annoyed by them. Most people won’t notice or won’t really care. It’s the nature of the Internet to provide links and information and it isn’t usually a problem. But you will probably find that some will be annoyed, especially if they have been a regular reader of your site for a long time. So be prepared for that.

The ad links don’t always seem to mesh well with your site. The code is customizable so you can actually determine what color you want your links to appear. Unfortunately the ad links have 2 underlined lines under the word. Most sites have one or none. So if you are linking regularly on your own, the combination between your natural links and the ad links can create a bit of inconsistency.

You are sending people away from your website. Although you might be making money per click you are still sending people away from your blog. Now if it were always bad then nobody would ever link to any other source ever. Sometimes it is good if it is relevant information. Your readers will begin to accept you as a good resource and will return often.

But there are good things associated with using InfoLinks.

Pros:

It’s easy. Implementing the code is all you have to do. Once you set it up all you need to do is login and check your sales. There is no maintenance, no fees, or any other time consuming process. This way you can continue to grow and build your website. As it grows, naturally the more money you can make from this program.

There is more money involved. More people are apt to click on links embedded in your posts than advertisements in your template. Therefore whatever you are earning with Adsense, I would double or triple that figure as to what your earning potential is.

Is it good for SEO (Search Engine Optimization)? This is still up for debate but we do know that Google not only likes it when you have many links coming to your blog, but they have begun to really like it when you link out, especially to related content. With all of these links going out to other sources it could naturally boost your Google page rank. Now that’s the theory anyway.

Some big sites have used this program before including the large news site Reuters.

So what is Skinny Moose going to do?

Right now we will continue to run the InfoLinks program across many of our blogs and magazines. We will give each of our bloggers the option whether or not they would like it on their blog or not. When we first began this Network, we felt that Skinny Moose had the right to implement whatever we felt necessary in the form of advertisement and appearance across all the blog templates. We also felt the bloggers would have complete control over the written content of their blogs. While these are technically ads driven by a code embedded in the template, the actual results appear in the written content. So we have made it an option for our bloggers whether they would like to let us run this program or not.

If you are interested in trying InfoLinks on your website you can do so right here.

Well it was an adventure and a little bit of an experiment to see what we could do with the home page at Skinny Moose. We took a month off to test it out and we transformed the site into a Fox News type site, linking to news stories both inside and outside of our Network. After a month we did assess that it took way too much of our time and a lot of commitment to keep up with the news. I bow to those who can continue to post the news day in and day out and link to articles all over the web. People that come to mind are those like Drudge Report. It’s an entire business in and of itself. We didn’t want to get off target and lose focus of the fact that we are a blog network.

Therefore, Skinny Moose has taken the time to transform back into a main blog which will keep readers informed on what is happening here inside the Network. We have had some growth here in the last month or so and have more than 60+ blogs ranging in all topics. Although we focus on many topics these days, nearly half (30) of all the blogs are hunting related. You can get a full list of blogs right here.

For those who are potentially looking to advertise with us, we receive consistently 1/4 of a million page views each month which translates into 100,000 visitors per month. These numbers are growing each month and are on target to double these figures in the next year.

We are asking those who might be interested in blogging with us, no matter the topic, to visit this page and get in touch with us. We are a fun group of bloggers and so if you are looking to do a little bit of Networking then we are here for you. We develop your blog and run it all at no cost. We take care of all the technical aspects of your blog. All you need to do is focus on what you enjoy, and that’s writing and networking.

OK, so “talks” is a bit of a stretch… You may recall me making a previous blog entry about Ted Nugent. I am currently about 1/3 of the way through Nugent’s Book - Ted,White and Blue. I will be posting a full review in the future, but I have to tell you - so far, his book has exceeded my expectations. It has the “in your face” rhetoric that you would expect, but it also has a ton of common sense. More than once I have exclaimed “Yeah! That’s what I think too!” and hurried off to show my wife some particular passage, quip, or pontification. I would recommend this book to any of you, hands down!

Anyway, in my discussions with Emily the Publisher, I asked if she thought Ted Nugent could grant me an interview, and I offered to do it via e-mail. She replied “No problem”, and true to her word, I had answers in hand within a day or two. Is it an interview, when it is via e-mail? I dunno. Regardless, this little blogger can now claim to have had a personalized question-and-answer session, with The Nuge himself. Enjoy!

1) DR - What prompted you to write the Manifesto? Was there a straw that broke the camel’s back, or was it a project that has been simmering, and the time had finally come? TN - The intense energy and appreciation for my joy of life from 60 years clean and sober drive me to do all I can to give back and fight for upgrade as a participating American in this glorious experiment in self government. The desoulling of America has been metastasizing for at least 70 years since the misdirection of the suicidal New Deal and the so called Great Society debacle. Rewarding misbehavior is a surefire path to self destruction and I am compelled to raise as much hell as I possibly can to change America’s course. It is always the right time.

2) DR - With all these great ideas, is there a run for political office in your future? TN - My campaign manager, Mrs. Nugent, will make that determination. You never know.

3) DR - How did political correctness and pandering become so pervasive, that even “right-wing” politicians are afraid to address hard issues effectively and honestly? TN - A growing segment of the American society is on the receiving end of the American Dream and have deceitfully over pressured the corrupt bureaucrats to redistribute wealth while rewarding slovenly, gluttonous behavior with no accountability whatsoever. Too many Americans have conveniently forgotten the past and a cult of denial has taken over. We must end it now.

4) DR - For average hunters, what should they be doing, to preserve our way of life? Political activism? Public education? Conservation groups? TN - If just the licensed hunters in America actually voted their conscience, America would be on the fast track to recovery. But horrifically, apathy in our sporting community is pandemic and beyond embarrassing. We should all become extremely active, vocal, and communicative to the absolute best of our individual ability and join the NRA and SCI at the very least.

5) DR - How are you feeling about the upcoming election? TN - Sick to my stomach. I pray America wakes up ASAP and votes McCain/Palin and then turns up the activism heat to an all-time high.

6) DR - Have you been to Arizona to hunt Coues yet? If not, we really need to get you over here. It might make a good TV show, too! TN - I love my AZ hunting. I have hunted elk, mule deer, Coues and javelina and look forward to more in the future. An AZ adventure would surely make wonderful Ted Nugent Spirit of the Wild TV. Come to tednugent.com and invite us ASAP!