But I am puzzled when I see a man who constantly keeps his beard short (as has become fashionable with the trimmers available today). My brother does this, and he (in my eyes) only looks decent when he is on the point of trimming all over again.
I agree. The "permanent stubble" look may be in fashion because it makes men look rugged without making them look like cavemen (according to the fashionistas, anyway), but I personally think it's a travesty.

I keep my beard somewhere around 3/4" to 1" long. It's long enough to be a beard, but doesn't get out of control. Sadly, my facial hair is very curly and wild if I let it get long. Instead of laying down and hanging, it will point straight out. And to make matters worse, I have a "cow lick" on both sides of my jaw, so the hair grows in a circular swirly pattern there. Some of it grows upwards, instead of it all growing downwards. So I have to keep it trimmed to the lengths mentioned or it just gets silly looking.

I usually will shave my cheeks and neck once a week, using the electric clippers to trim it back between shaves. The rest of my beard just gets 'maintained' with the electric clippers when the wild ones start to poke out from the crowd. I have a tiny pair of scissors I use to keep my mustache trimmed off my lips. All in all, the maintenance is a heck of a lot less trouble (and a lot less discomfort) than shaving like most men do.