Joseph Biden’s Charge to Keep
The Borders book store offers a table of books related to the presidential and vice-presidential candidates. There are several books pro and anti McCain, several books pro and anti Obama. There is the rushed out reprinting of that small publisher’s Sarah Palin book. And then there’s the Joseph Biden book — I don’t know what it’s called, but let’s just reference the George W Bush 2000 campaign book title: “A Charge To Keep”.
Almost perfunctory, this Biden book. I imagine the table really ought to only have three, four, maybe five copies instead of the dozen or so it holds. And I further imagine that those three, four, maybe five copies should be the only copies the store has in stock, to remain right there — on that table — until the first Wednesday of November — all three or five copies. It is a necessary book to place at this table, but it’s nothing that is going to be purchased, and in the event that it is purchased there is a three or four book buffer.
When I hear Biden on the radio, as opposed to when I see him speak on television, I feel as though I am hearing John Kerry. And maybe I am. The mediocre but you wouldn’t be able to do any better Democratic strategist Bob Shrum states that if he hadn’t been the presidential candidate in 2004, Kerry would almost assuredly have been selected by Obama as his running mate, which sounds about right, and also sounds about why Biden sounds Kerry-ish. The smart thing for the Democratic Party, of course, is that this time out he’s at the bottom of the ticket. The Republicans can have their little “gaffe clock” clicker. And they can believe that the public is going to be watching and playing a “Foot in the Mouth” drinking game at the Vice presidential debate — which I’ve noticed when I’ve looked over as their rejoinder to voices over Sarah Palin on the looming vice presidential debate. Nope. It’s all a drinking game dedicated to the words “moose-burger” and “Hockey mom”. I even suggest Biden may as well lay off the initial obvious line “You are no Hillary Clinton”, as by now Palin’s advisors have worked up something amusing and fireworky, as opposed to Dan Quayle’s biting of the lips. Biden — a fire-cracker in the innards of Washington and when only the most politically interested are paying attention; boring in the rest of the country and when everyone else is paying attention. Buy his book!
September 21st, 2008 at 4:57 pm
New books are sold on a returnable basis. Chain stores will stock enough copies to fill out their displays, regardless of how many they expect to sell, and then return them when they’re out of season. The excess copies printed to fill out chain store stock will eventually flounder around in the remainder book market (heavily discounted and non-returnable) until they’re recycled. Barnes & Noble may even have a pay-by-scan terms in place with the publisher or distributor — basically a consignment arrangement. So they won’t even have to lay out any cash if they hold the stock past the usual 30 day payment terms.