I AM A PASTOR of a congregation in a rural community and many of our members are farmers, so I have appreciated the attention you have given over the years to rural issues and sustainable agriculture vs. corporate farming. The corporate near-monopolization of the beef and pork industry is working a real hardship on some of our folk. Your September-October 1995 issue ("Hallowed Ground: Learning to Live Rightly on the Earth") was another fine example of this kind of attention to a problem that in a variety of ways is engulfing us all.
So I was, perhaps understandably, disappointed when I reached the "Calendar" in that issue to notice that all the listed book-signings for The Soul of Politics were at Borders. Now I occasionally shop at Borders, and I even on occasion wear a Borders T-shirt (a gift), but in Ann Arbor I prefer to shop at the Shaman Drum, one of the few remaining truly great independent bookstores. Especially when The Soul of Politics is published by an independent, non-profit publisher, The New Press, it would make sense to vote with the presence of your merchandizing strategy and person for independent, struggling bookstores rather than for K-mart-owned, corporate Borders Books.
Is a sustainable, human-sized economy the walk of Jim Wallis and Sojourners, or merely the talk?
Did this article have an impact on you? Tell us how! Whether you’re moved to take action, have a question, or want to share a comment (good or bad), we value your feedback!