Bay Area Not Maverick Enough To Read Palin Book [Un-American Demographic?]

SFChronicle ^ | November 20th, 2009

[Steelfish]

Bay Area Not Maverick Enough To Read Palin Book

Steve Rubenstein November 19, 2009

It might as well have cooties. Hardly anyone wants to touch the thing, or even get close to it. The new autobiography by moose hunter and failed vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin is harder to find in the Bay Area than a hockey mom. Some bookstores figure it's one of those grit-your-teeth First Amendment deals that principled booksellers must put up with from time to time.

But many nonchain bookstores won't handle it. "Our customers are thinking people," said Nathan Embretson, a bookseller at Pendragon Books in Oakland. "They're not into reading drivel." There's not a single copy on the shelf. Embretson said no one has asked for it except for one guy, who was kidding.

"He said he wanted to look at it but he also said he didn't really want to read it," Embretson said. "Anyway, he certainly didn't want to buy it. I think he regarded looking at it as a kind of punishment." There are no copies of the book at Cover to Cover Booksellers in Noe Valley, either.

"Anything like that we wouldn't carry," said clerk Emily Stackhouse. "We're a small store and it would probably gross us all out. Some things you carry because of freedom of speech, but a book like that is just gross."

One customer did put in a special request for the book one evening but, perhaps thinking better in the light of day, failed to show up and actually pay money for it, Stackhouse said. Sheryl Cotleur, the head buyer for Book Passage, which operates stores in Corte Madera and San Francisco, said the two stores have sold exactly two copies of the book.

[refermech]

What a bunch of elitist idiots. Hope they go out of business.

[jdsteel]

Ah, yes. Thinking people. So smart. So refined. Knows what best for all of us. Just ask them. Oh, wait, you don’t even have to ask....they just won’t shut up once they start telling you how you should live your life. That’s why they run such large, successful businesses. (/sarc)

[manc]

so they like to think and then they state that they have not read it but determine it is gross

exactly where was the thinking there?

Typical stuck up elitist yuppie sheep, always following their leaders and have no idea how to actually think for themselves

[skeeter]

I always try to find out who's dog left a steaming pile on my lawn and apply the same policy to "journalists" writing for the local rag - in this case the very provincial SF Chronicle.

On the right.

[JaguarXKE]

Libs are so open minded! Not.

[Bryanw92]

>>”Our customers are thinking people,”

says the liberal bookseller, “and we don’t want them thinking TOO much!”

[I Buried My Guns]

As this story goes viral, I bet "Nathan Embretson, a bookseller at Pendragon Books in Oakland" is not gonna be getting a lot of love from his employer, as he has made said employer look like a close-minded idiot who hates American values.

Which, statistically, is very likely, but hey, let's spread the hate and derision anyway.

I am middle America, hear me roar!

[The Grammarian]

Bought my copy today at a Barnes & Noble on a college campus.

[Publius6961]

"Our customers are thinking people," said Nathan Embretson, a bookseller at Pendragon Books...

Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!

Delusional ignorant idiots.

Liberal logic: "if we read a book with only 2000 buyers, we must be an elite, very exclusive and special group."

MMMMMMMMMMMMMmmmmm...K

I believe that 20% of all readers buy 80% of all books. Why do I have the feeling that the radical left, the Neofascists, and the ones who have this attitude, can't possibly account for more than 20% of all book readers max. And that would include, LOL, comic books...

[El Cid]

"Anything like that we wouldn't carry," said clerk Emily Stackhouse. "We're a small store and it would probably gross us all out. Some things you carry because of freedom of speech, but a book like that is just gross."

I am sure that Miss Stackhouse's small book store (Cover to Cover Booksellers), located in the 'fine' Castro Street district, carries items that would gross out a skunk living in a garbage dump...
But a book by Governor Palin? ... Noooo ... can't touch that one (it would be like throwing water on the wicked witch of Oz).

[I still care]

Libs have such an elitist view of “small” enterprises.

If no one is buying it from their small business, it must not be selling, right? Perhaps the truth is no one cares to patronize their small, elitist bookstore. On top of other things, it’s probably filled with strange looking people who’s sex is undetermined and smell a little bad.

[Huskrrrr]

Just freeped the comment box at the bottom of the SF Chronicle box:

Too bad we didn’t use the same standards in vetting Obama that were used on Palin, we could have avoided turning over the country to a two-bit Chicago huckster who has given us 10% unemployment and deficits three times those of George Bush. But at least he kept his promise to bring the troops home, right”

[rightwingcrazy]

There’s always mail order. Their loss.

[Terry Mross]

The headline should read BAY AREA NOT INTELLIGENT ENOUGH TO READ, RESIDENTS WILL LET PELOSI TELL THEM WHAT THEY NEED TO KNOW.

[skeeter]

Liberal logic: "if we read a book with only 2000 buyers, we must be an elite, very exclusive and special group."

This exemplifies the mindset of the sf bay area liberal. They seem proud that they are out of step with the rest of the country. They seem unaware we are laughing at them - they think the world is in awe of their intellects.

[Gator113]

I can understand this. Heck, they probably make far more money selling books titled, “My Mom Billy & Daddy Fred”, “Gerbils, Mans REAL best friend”.

My memory of San Francisco is at least 40 years old. I remember interesting city hills, wonderful old houses, historic buildings, trolly cars, the smell of the wharf, an orange tree in my uncles back yard in Walnut Creek, the miles of the Bay Bridge, the incredible view of the Golden Gate Bridge at sunset, and the fog. I found it all very sexy. That all seems tainted now. I could never visit that city again. Such a shame.

[Steelfish]

Good for you.

[Bryanw92]

I always buy Ann Coulter and Glenn Beck books at the B&N on the liberal side of town. I’ll buy “Going Rogue” in the same place. I love seeing open-minded, free-thinking people sneer at me for not thinking exactly like they do.

[KJC1]

They are so out of touch that they think their comments make Sarah Palin look bad instead of making THEM look like elitist, unlikeable jackasses.