I live in central Texas and the book store is in South Austin - blue territory.
I asked the clerk about the scant selection of philosophy books. Her response surprised me. “ we can’t keep them in stock, everyone is reading philosophy now”
What do you mean? Why? I asked
“The pandemic seems to have sparked an interest in philosophy”
It’s true, there are a lot of Christians, a number of Jewish temples, almost 20 Buddhist temples, a half dozen Hindu Temples, many non-denominational churches, and at least one satanic temple.
I did scan political books and found it seemed to have more left leaning authors and Barack Obama featured displays.
So please know that we are more blue than red and less Christian than one might think. I’d wager there are more people attending youth football or baseball, yoga or Tai Chi classes on a Sunday than there are going to church. It’s a god of choice! Lol
Barnes and Noble is a business that is going to have books on its shelves that sell. It is not a library, though I do agree with you that they should have a copy of any Philosophy book. Try Powell's on line, they are a local store to Portland, Oregon and the owner supports all liberal ideas. I have shopped there both in person and on-line. Never disappointed. I see that you are in Texas, in which case, what would you think.
So seven full rows of bad historical fiction, damned shame.
@Willow_Wisp if you owned a giant book store and 65% of your surrounding population was religious would you have 7 rows of books on religion?
@lerlo No, fuck em.
@Willow_Wisp you'll be out of business quickly
@lerlo That's why the air is full of CO2 heating up the planet, people that think like you. We'll stop you before you kill us all for your precious fucking profit. You have no principles.
It's a lack of imagination at the lowest algebraically reduced level.
You have 1 row of religious books, and if they sell order more, if there's not enough variety they can always go elsewhere or special order it. Besides they'll probably buy it from Amazon anyway.
Now happily I have more room for a wider variety of fiction that's honest about being fiction, or sports and outdoors books, since many of the less informed have an awe for polluted rivers and dirt.
@Willow_Wisp the fact you can even equate that to pollution is mind-boggling but then of course you have to have one. Gee at least you didn't blame me for the Holocaust or hunger. Apparently you've never owned or run a business because you wouldn't understand how to stay in business. It's one thing to be anti-religion but to take it to the extreme is ridiculous. But then again you're probably one of those people who is just mad at God and not really a non believer
@lerlo Thanks for your intense psychological evaluation of me, I wasn't interested in playing your game to begin with, I don't care about book stores and I have a profession that's satisfying and in better times quite profitable thank you very much. I despise bean counters of every type. Remember on the planet of the apes? The chimp scientist befuddled at the antics of the other apes like the gorilla warriors and their political class the orange orangutans, they should have had another species of ape that corresponded to the bean counters, some kind of absurdly snotty dismissive arrogant prick of an ape that was convinced it was better than all the other apes because all it was concerned about was profit, you know like a Ferengi ape.
In this example I think of myself as the chimp type.
@Willow_Wisp the company's been in business for a 148 years but you know how to run it better than they do. You're a chimp alright
@lerlo I'm the product, I write the software that they can't follow. I've owned two successful companies that I started and sold.
Nothing like having a concept and having some numb skull bean counter with at best remedial statistical analysis skills attempt to explain money to me.
I've automated two Coca-Cola syrup plants, installed lines of robots for Sony, programmed JPLs space simulation chamber, replaced the motor generator that drives the 20g manned centrifuge at Aims research center, wrote all the software at the Owens Lake reclamation project.
I've worked in 12 countries and every industry I'm aware of from petroleum to environmental, in the navy I was a nuclear power electrician, the first from Alabama to ace both the ASVAB and the Nuclear power test when I was 17.
My degree is in Computer science and I make my own way in this life.
You have no idea of what I am.
I feel like I'm being snubbed by an arrogant possum, that assumes it can comprehend me.