I came across this comment today and wanted to offer my perspective, as the author of the Illinois Tool Works piece.

You’re correct to point out that I don’t draw any investment conclusions, and that’s intentional. My blog is for discussing technology-related matters of interest, and some time ago David Jackson asked if I would be interested in participating in Seeking Alpha.

As an investor, I’m sensitive to the power of the written word and that’s why I take great pains to NOT make investment recommendations. My goal is to foster discussion on matters that interest me.

As to the factual matters, I like anyone else publishing content is subject to scrutiny if I get the facts wrong. I take great care (as most if not all of the Seeking Alpha contributors do) to make sure that fundamental and factual data I write about is accurate.

To your point, blogs are certainly about personal opinion and I don’t hide that. It would be my hope that the audience my blog is regularly consumed by understands that.

With Yahoo! carrying the content (an entirely new circumstance, by the way), it raises the point of whether our blog’s reach now extends to people who otherwise don’t understand that nuance.

I liken my blog (I won’t generalize for other bloggers, many of whom are trying to make their livings as journalists or analysts) to an online op-ed piece. Perhaps Yahoo! needs to delineate the difference between op-ed pieces and actual news; that’s not for me to decide.

One other point, just to make sure you’re aware. I disclose whether I hold a position in any publicly traded company I discuss, and that extends to my personal and professional holdings.

Best,

J