Posted on 09/15/2004 5:04:36 AM PDT by Cincinatus' Wife
Conservatives like to tell war stories-and refute them, a la the Swift Boat Vets-and some of those stories concern bookstores. And the people who work in them. Who tend to be….well, not exactly the most conservative-friendly people in the world. The bookstore leftist is more standard than the bookstore cat. And conservatives have often found these stores to be hostile territory.
In recent weeks, reports have circulated that customers-or would-be customers-are having a hard time finding Unfit for Command, John O'Neill's anti-Kerry book. Conservatives have suspected that stores are keeping it from them, or that clerks are deep-sixing them, or that something untoward is happening. Paranoia is in the air.
But sometimes paranoids can be on to something. I don't scoff at these suspicions, mainly because of my own experience-most of it in Ann Arbor, Mich., my hometown. (Ann Arbor is a bookseller's paradise, and, in some ways, a conservative's hell.) I worked at a store called The Little Professor. The manager there-a nice guy, actually-wouldn't put out conservative magazines and gun magazines. He flat refused to bring them to the floor, acting as censor. My brilliant (and conservative) friend Eddie Krause came up with a new name for the store: The Little Suppressor.
It may be hard to believe, but it took something like an act of courage to buy a conservative magazine in an Ann Arbor bookstore. I used to dread it-the clerk was almost invariably cold, and he often bristled, and sometimes you got snotty remarks. It was a relief just to get through a purchase without incident. And I know many who could give the same testimony.
In truth, it could be dicey to ask for a bag-yes a bag. That made you a despoiler of the environment, you see.
I know a journalist who lived in the Ann Arbor of the West, Berkeley. Purchasing his National Reviews and American Spectators at Moe's, he would say to the clerk, "Well, just keeping an eye on what the enemy is doing"-anything to get by. These tactics may not be brave, but, gosh, are they human.
As the Swift controversy heated up, the two bookselling giants, Borders and Barnes & Noble, were besieged by callers angry that they could not find Unfit for Command. Conservative hollered, "J'accuse!" Both companies pleaded that it was the fault of the publisher, our beloved Regnery-the supplier had not printed enough copies to meet demand. Liberals, for their part, also besieged the companies, demanding that they pull the book from their shelves.
Come with me now, to BorderUnion.org, "The Borders Books Employee Union Web Site." Herein lie some revelations-or confirmations. In notes to one another, Borders clerks have been griping about having to sell Unfit for Command, to the troglodytes who seek it. Although not every seeker is a trog: According to one clerk, "We did have a college professor come in looking for [the book]. She teaches a writing class and wanted to use it as an example of a 'false book.'" Or maybe she just wanted to read it and wanted to avoid grief from the clerk?
But let's get to the nitty-gritty. Writes a Borders Books beauty,
"We're "finding" [note those quotations marks] that most of the few copies we're getting are damaged and need to be sent back. So sad. Too bad. Bushies! Regnery needs to be more careful. I'm hearing from people at two other stores that this seems to be common. Why should we help destroy what is left of our country?"
Back for a second crack, our man exhorts,
"You guys don't actually HAVE to sell the thing! Just "carelessly" hide the boxes, "accidentally" drop them off pallets, "forget" to stock the ones you have, and then suggest a nice Al Franken or Michael Moore book as a substitute. Borders wants those recommends (sic), remember?
I don't care if these Neanderthals in fancy suits get mad at me [fancy suits?]. They aren't regular customers anyway. Other than "Left Behind" books, they don't read. Anything you can do to make them feel unwelcome is only fair."
Another Borders beauty writes, "I wish [conservative customers] really knew how little respect I have for them." Oh, we know, babe-we know.
Not long ago, readers of National Review Online sent in to me their experiences of trying to buy Unfit, and of dealing with bookstore clerks in general. Care for a (very) small sampling of their observations?..........[Continued]
ping.
That old Castrol Duckingham fluid is brutal. I still must use it on my British sports cars. I epoxy seal every crevice and joint on brake and clutch cylinders near any painted surface. If you can limit a failed master cylinder to it's leaking remaining internal or a bypass leak, you have prevented a real nightmare. When I spent a hundred dollars on my first strip job on paint stipper it dawned on me just how foolish I was. A gallon of Castrol will do a whole car for $30.
What blatant hypocrisy. The Unioneers on the forum talk about conservatives being paranoid with delusions of corporate conspiracies... even as they discuss ways of hiding and avoiding selling it. They also express an almost universal disgust for anything Republican or conservative. How can we not infer a conspiracy from that?
I was in the Indianapolis airport on Sunday and was pleased to see "Unfit for Command" displayed prominently right at the entrance. Kind of disconcerting to be walking along and notice Kerry pointing at me multiple times!
Cheers
Jim
Maybe it's just me but I've never really had a problem with either B&N or Borders. In fact when I bought my copy of Unfit For Command two weeks ago at Borders (there was a large stack on the new releases table) the clerk remarked that they couldn't keep them in stock.
(Suggestion) If you do run into a crerk who get snotty ask to talk to the manager, nothing cost customers quicker than a bad clerk
only quit because I ran out of shelf space
I bought myself a new bookcase last year for Christmas and it's already full.
Good job. Most of the time I just get sugar sweet and ask innocent questions like "Do you have plans to carry it soon?"
That pisses them off even worse.
I do have to say that I am enjoying this political season far more than any in my life!
I just freeped the customer service supervisor about .
She professed ignorance of the website, and said her computer wouldn't allow her to view the website.
She says she will let me know what happens.
Me, not holding my breath....
Just checked out the Borders Union site... I suggest we refer to it as BU, it seems to have something in common with that "other" political site we talk about here.
What's needed is a hidden video camera of this, just like 60 minutes, 20/20. Then take it to the stock-holder's meetings and play your short film. Make sure you use the "Nazi" tag frequently.
Semper-Fi, from another Gunny.
"See the Witch with her dyed black hair and all black clothing. Listen as she describes the details of her art."
For the record, she referred to herself as 'Witch', saying that by using the term to describe herself as a practicing wiccan, she could desensitize the term and get away from the Halloween idea of 'witch'. And she shared with everyone who came the 'ideals' of wicca and loudly and openly scoffed at any books from one of 'those Christians'. I don't go there anymore.
How very interesting!
Good work!
I'd rather confront them than avoid them....they are so comical in their cluelessness
Funny story....although it ticks me off big time.
I'd have to really think...but I'm fairly sure I bought a Investor's Business Daily there once. That's the extend of my patronage there. I don't expect that to change.......
Thanks for your service, Sir.
FRegards,
Like we can't tell when we encounter her kind and she's just being 'professional'. Well, the feeling is mutual.
I love how she arrogantly believes that she has managed to conceal her contempt for us and treat us civilly inspite of her true feelings. At the Borders' I go to, they are openly contemptible to anyone buying conservative or Christian books and will loudly discuss this with sympathetic shoppers. Yeah, they try 'real' hard (sneer) to be civil.
If you could only give their brains some therapeutic shock treatment.
FRegards,
I think "bookstore clerk" is the lowest level of employment for which a person may still consider themselves an active member the leftist intelligentsia. Given a choice of $6 an hour jobs, a leftist will naturally choose the one which allows him exercise his moral sanctimony and intellectual snootery. They're like little commissars of the checkout counter.
It's "www.bordersunion.org" and boy is it...um..."interesting".
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