On Tue, 22 Dec 2009 16:26:55 -0500, Gene
wrote:

On Tue, 22 Dec 2009 12:12:42 -0500, wrote:

On Tue, 22 Dec 2009 01:37:26 -0800, jps wrote:


LAREDO, Texas — The final chapter has been written for the lone
bookstore on the streets of Laredo.

With a population of nearly a quarter-million people, this city could
soon be the largest in the nation without a single bookseller.

The situation is so grim that schoolchildren have pleaded for a
reprieve from next month's planned shutdown of the B. Dalton
bookstore. After that, the nearest store will be 150 miles away in San
Antonio.

I assume the "book stores" can't compete with Walmart. I know around
here B&N is having their ass handed to them by Target, Walmart and the
public library. I see lots of people milling around but not many
actually get into a checkout line. If it wasn't for the coffee they
might not be making any money at all.
There is also a lot of pressure from the internet
Amazon will make it tough for anyone who has rent to pay in a mall.
I would never buy a DVD in a store. You can usually get a disk or a
book sent to your house cheaper than the best bargain bin deal in a
store.

I would no more expect to find books at Wal-Mart than I would expect
to find office supplies.

Well, yes, they might have a smidgeon of each, but why waste the
effort with hopes they might have what I need.

What few books I have seen at Wal-Mart are not the ones I'd be looking
for at Barnes and Nobles, Borders, or even Books-a-Million.....

These don't look like big readers, anyway.....
http://www.peopleofwalmart.com/?paged=1

The cheerleader reads the Star and People Magazine. You know, "all of
'em."