The time has come to rebrand our Beefs & Bouquets page.

If you recall, in the early days of COVID, we temporarily replaced the Beefs & Bouquets page with 鈥淣o Beefs, Just Bouquets.鈥�

Here鈥檚 some good news about spreading good news.

We have made the decision to return to that format, permanently. The Comox Valley Record鈥檚 Beefs & Bouquets, as you know it, will cease after the Nov. 3 publication.

The reasons are plenty.

First and foremost, there is enough upsetting news in the world, without adding to it.

Also, the time spent weeding through the unpublishable beefs is not worth the effort - and believe us, a lot of weeding goes into that page every week. The vitriol spewed by some, thinking it will get published, is astonishing. And it鈥檚 grown exponentially since the pandemic (and subsequent restrictions) arrived in our country.

Certainly, many beefs are justified. But just as many are petty. When people start submitting 鈥渁 beef about the beef about the beef about the beef鈥︹�� it gets to the point of absurdity.

There is no reason to offer a cloak of anonymity for complaints. If you have a valid complaint you want published, sign your name to it and submit it as a Letter To The Editor.

We doubt that the targets of most beefs even read the section (other than responses to previous beefs).

Bouquets, on the other hand, are always appreciated, and widely read. Ask a businessperson around town if they saw the compliment they received in the paper. Chances are they did. If they didn鈥檛, chances are they heard about it from someone else. And that can only help their bottom line. Consumers are always drawn to businesses they hear (or read) good things about.

Fortunately, for those of you who are upset about this decision, there are plenty of other avenues available to post your complaints. There are social media pages designed specifically for that reason, and the nice thing about those pages is you get instant gratification for your complaint.

So start sending in your positive messages. The recipients will appreciate the effort.