REALITY CHECK
As I was checking Amazon.com for the newly available digital versions of several of my books [I was right, Chris -- you can "borrow" THE POVERTY OF LIBERALISM on Kindle, and it has the Mill essay in it], I noticed that several of my books are available used for -- wait for it -- $0.01, which is to say, for a penny. One of the less-often mentioned virtues of a market economy is its salutary effect on swelled heads.
Well this may greatly upset you, but having been a seller on Amazon before, it turns out that selling books for $.01 actually means the seller LOSES money. Because the cost of shipping $3-4, is not completely covered by amazon. So actually sellers are losing $.25-2.00 to sell your book at a penny. Now before you get too sad, do know that the reason people engage in this behavior is to boost their amazon profile. If they sell enough books for $.01, and get them shipped in a timely fashion, amazon and buyers mark up their profile, allowing the seller to receive future benefits and discounts.
ReplyDeleteAll that aside, I don't own a kindle, or any e-book, so I can't borrow the essay :(
oh well.
Chris, it turns out that I have on my shelf a little stack of offprints of just that essay from the Marcuse/Moore/Wolff book, so if you email me an address, I will mail one to you.
ReplyDeleteYou don't need a kindle to read kindle e-books. Any computer will do; just download the free kindle app.
ReplyDelete