^

I would never have met so many great people, and that probably outweighs all of the other benefits on its own.

However, my travel life is far better and my points accrual has shot up dramatically from my participation in Flyertalk.

B.F.T. (Before FlyerTalk) I upgraded domestically on United most of the time, using 500 mile upgrade certificates -- purchased them frequently, in fact. I didn't even know it was possible to confirm upgrades at booking, let alone upgrade internationally!

B.F.T. (Because of Flyertalk) I attended the Freddie Awards last year, where I won a door prize of a trip to Puerto Rico, where I had a phenomenal suite on the ocean.

B.F.T. I picked up $150 business class tickets to Puerta Vallarta, as well as other incredible fare deals.

B.F.T. I earned 40,000 BA miles from the BA-Jaguar promotion last year.

B.F.T. I received 60k Starwood points for naming the new Sheraton Checkin Kiosk.

B.F.T. I launder Continental miles through Amtrak to United where they become useful.

B.F.T. I'm an Airtran elite

B.F.T. I take advantage of promos that net me, easily, an extra 250,000 miles a year (probably much more).... that I wouldn't have known about otherwise... Fly Free Faster, Faster Free Nights, BankDirect for AAdvantage miles, eBay Anything Points, miles for online shopping through various portals...

I'm hooked. I've learned so much, travel so much better, and the kinds of trips that others only dream about I can take with ease. And I have friendly faces to visit no matter where I go.

Why even bother getting involved in squabbles when there's so much out there to enjoy (and not enough time in the day to absorb all of the things here that could possibly make me better off!)?