I see several folks have joined the group and I want to welcome you!

I also want to acknowledge that very few of you will be inclined to pay to be Supporters right out of the gate and at such an early stage. If I were in your position, I would probably want to wait to see if the livelihood of the group, and the growth of this Practical Woodsman stuff is going to take off and turn into anything first.

So let me express an understanding of that and tell you that I’m ok with that thinking. I also don’t know how the growth of this group, or The Practical Woodsman brand is going to play out. But I’ll tell you this: I’m having fun with it so far, and there has been a lot more interest and engagement than I expected, so it all seems to be going in a positive direction.

Let me tell you why I chose this platform along with its ‘Free’ and ‘Paid’ system membership: Any creator needs some sort of financial support for the time and energy he (or she) invests in producing content in order to make it worth his (or her) while over the long run. Every little bit helps. Of course, I could have chosen to grow The Practical Woodsman community on Facebook or other platforms like it, but most of us know by now that those platforms are not devoted to concepts of free legal speech and sharing, and this platform (Locals) is. I refuse to support Facebook and any other platform where I am afforded no financial support for my work while the platform itself benefits financially off of my back, and while that very same platform shows complete disregard for the principles of free legal speech and sharing that I value and believe in.

Here, on this platform, the free and paid arrangement means that our legal speech and sharing are always protected. This platform is not funded by stealing your personal information and selling it to advertisers, therefore this platform is not beholden to the whims and politics of advertisers. Imagine we get some hunters in the group who want to discuss some of the unpleasant realities associated with killing and butchering animals. What if they want to share pictures. Things like that have been banned on other platforms. But not here.

So while a person’s first reaction upon realizing that The Practical Woodsman’s online community is based on a platform that relies partially on a paid subscription system might be disappointment, please think of the great long-term benefits this inherently translates into for this community. It’s not only a positive thing for me and my ability to continue churning out content, but it also direct benefits you as somebody who aplreciates a lively, free-speech-oriented group on the topics of the woods, backcountry, survival, hunting, and so forth.

I have tried to choose a Subscriber cost that is low and fair for everybody. $5 per month gives you full access and rights within the group. That’s full access for an entire month for less than the cost of ONE SINGLE highfalutin cup of coffee from Starbucks.

As our community here grows, annual Subscriber options will become available here, offering two months free access in the process.

I hope those of you who are already here will have a chance to read this and give it a thumbs up. For those who join later and see this, I hope you also will consider giving it a thumbs up. I’ll be doing my part in the meantime trying to continually add interesting content here for your enjoyment.