In reply to Jordan Baker.

Hmm. “Should” is a word that implies a single answer exists for all parties. As for me: I’m quite certain it was intentional, and all’s well in my world.

But some people may be irreparably damaged by the…well…supposition to which we refer. Some party tricks just don’t work, in some circles. It’s obviously a matter of taste, or preference, or even breeding.

Should one ‘suppose’ the following usage was intentional?”

“Suggestions as to his or her suppository identity may also find a loving home in the comments.”

http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/suppository
“a small, solid pill containing a drug that is put inside the anus, where it dissolves easily.”

In reply to Felix.

I’ll bet they could climb out if they were sinking that slowly.

Sorry! Couldn’t help myself. But yeah, I think denial is a problem for many. The other major issue is that power has shifted, and some business models just won’t cut it anymore. Doesn’t mean the people who love books can’t find ways to contribute and make a living, though.

In reply to David.

Ha ha, yes, I know. I meant that people in the industry keep complaining about impending doom, while making business decisions that would precipitate that doom (if it were true), thus making a self-fulfilling prophecy.

It would be great if the dinosaurs sank in the tar pit already and left the rest of us to live in peace. But that only happens on geological scales…

In reply to Felix.

Eh, I think the industry is always sinking. Sort of like a Great-Aunt Norma who makes a career out of dying and rules her family with an iron fist for decades. Only maybe in a boat.

OTOH the doom & gloom may be premature: http://kriswrites.com/2013/05/29/the-business-rusch-the-changing-playing-field/

I dunno. I’m feeling optimistic today.

Wait… so you go into a bookstore, and they recommend you a movie? Because that’s what it looks like — as if they were advertising the movie and not the book. What if I didn’t know it was a book in the first place? I’d be looking around for the DVD… then getting out of the store to look above the door again.

Sooo… we have publishers who don’t market their own books, bookstores that sell anything but books… Gee, I wonder why the industry is sinking.

In reply to Tom.

Well said. This reply brought to you by Carl’s Jr.

Pffft!