Welcome to My View From the Front Porch

Welcome.

If you’ve found your way here, there’s an empty rocking chair waiting for you.

My View From the Front Porch isn’t a news site. It isn’t a political action committee. It isn’t a place where people scream at one another in all caps because someone dared to hold a different opinion.

It’s something a little older. Maybe even a little slower.

It’s a front porch.

If you’ve ever lived in a small town, you already understand what that means. The front porch was where neighbors stopped to visit instead of sending text messages. It was where families watched thunderstorms roll in, where grandparents told stories that somehow got better every time they were told, and where the world’s biggest problems were solved somewhere between the second cup of coffee and sunset.

The porch wasn’t about winning arguments.

It was about having conversations.

That’s exactly what I hope this website becomes.

Why I Built This Place

Like a lot of people, I’ve spent years watching the public conversation change.

Somewhere along the way, discussion gave way to division. Common sense became uncommon. Every disagreement became a crisis. Every issue became an emergency. Every opinion had to be delivered with the volume turned all the way up.

Frankly, I’m tired of it.

I’m old enough to remember when people could disagree without becoming enemies. We could argue over politics, taxes, baseball, the weather, or whether the neighbor really needed another pickup truck, then shake hands and share another cup of coffee.

Those days may not be completely gone, but they’re getting harder to find.

So I decided to build one small corner of the internet where thoughtful conversation still matters.

That’s what My View From the Front Porch is all about.

Notice the title.

It doesn’t claim to be the view.

It’s simply my view.

You’re welcome to agree with it.

You’re welcome to disagree with it.

You’re even welcome to laugh at it now and then.

The important thing is that we think.

Four Old Geezers on a Porch

When I first described this website, I imagined four old geezers sitting in rocking chairs on a covered porch.

Someone brings up something they saw in the news.

Someone else says, “Well, that doesn’t make much sense.”

Another tells a story that happened forty years ago that somehow fits perfectly.

Before long, they’re discussing everything from politics and technology to manners, common sense, history, family, culture, and whatever else wandered onto the porch that afternoon.

Sometimes they’ll complain.

Sometimes they’ll laugh.

Sometimes they’ll probably change each other’s minds.

But nobody gets canceled.

Nobody gets shouted down.

And at the end of the conversation, everyone is still welcome back tomorrow.

That’s the atmosphere I hope you’ll find here.

A Little About the Guy in the Rocking Chair

I’ve been around long enough to know I don’t have all the answers.

I’ve worked in broadcasting, marketing, publishing, and more than a few other adventures along the way. I’ve started businesses, made mistakes, learned lessons the hard way, and discovered that experience is often a better teacher than theory.

These days I spend much of my time writing books, building websites, and creating projects that keep my mind busy. I’ve learned that one of the secrets to growing older is always having another project waiting around the corner.

The calendar may insist I’m getting older.

My curiosity hasn’t gotten the memo.

That’s probably why this website exists.

I’ve reached the point where I have a few things to say, and I suspect some of you do too.

What You’ll Find Here

Expect opinion pieces.

Expect observations.

Expect the occasional rant, though I’ll try to keep it polite.

Expect humor.

Expect stories from everyday life.

Expect commentary on current events, culture, government, technology, and whatever else catches my attention while I’m sitting on the porch with a fresh cup of coffee.

Most of all, expect honesty.

Not because I’m always right.

I’m not.

But because I’ll tell you what I honestly think, explain why I think it, and trust you to decide for yourself whether you agree.

That’s a pretty old-fashioned idea these days.

I think it’s worth bringing back.

Pull Up a Chair

The internet has plenty of places where people are eager to tell you what to think.

I’d rather give you something to think about.

So pull up a chair.

The coffee’s hot.

The rocking chairs are comfortable.

The conversation is just getting started.

I’m glad you’re here.

The Old Geezer