Bookstore Cop
by MikeGene
Ste' is a blogger who works in a lab and he/she has come up with a nifty way to keep the threatiness alive. Y'see, when not in the lab, Ste polices the local bookstores with digital camera in hand (although it is not clear if the evidence is gathered in latexed hands). Ste is looking for examples of public sin and is on a mission to save us.
It is my mission to correctly re-shelve books to the appropriate section of the bookstore.
For example, "Darwin's Black Box", the famous psuedo-science book by the non-evolutionary non-scientist Michael Behe, should not be in the "Evolutionary Biology" section, but something more appropriate, such as "New Age", "Religion", "Christianity", or even "Fiction". You get the idea.
I call on all readers of this blog to follow my example. Help your local bookstore correctly stock their science section. Spread the word.
Okey dokey, but for some reason I'm reminded of "Citzens Arrest!, Citizens Arrest!"
Sometimes when on patrol, Officer Ste encounters a dilemma:
The science section is tiny, only two small aisles three shelves high, but it doesn't take long to come across a miscategorized book - and it wasn't what I expected. God is not Great by the celebrity atheist Christopher Hitchens. Seeing as my aim is to re-shelve religion and/or philosophy books to the correct part of the store, I am duty-bound to act. This is a book on atheism from a non-scientist, and it simply does not belong in the science section.
Very good. We all appreciate it when the police are fair. But what's this?
Science is a secular process and has nothing to do with the question of the existence, or the non-existence, of a God. It is thus relocated to the Philosophy shelves upstairs. "But what about Dawkins?!" I hear you cry. Dawkins is another well-known atheist, I agree, but he is best known as an evolutionary biologist and his books are strongly evolution-themed.
How can this be? Our trusted bookstore cop doesn't seem to realize the famous evolutionary biologist could not disagree more that science has nothing to do with the existence or non-existence of God. In fact, this very evolutionary biologist argues, in his best-selling book, that science itself has effectively shown us God does not exist.
Sounds to me like someone needs to go back to the Police Academy.
August 10th, 2007 at 7:53 pm
Ste, get a life.
Comment by Bradford — August 10, 2007 @ 7:53 pm
August 10th, 2007 at 8:03 pm
The irony of all of this is that the message that is being sent is that Ste is afraid of open debate and prefers censorship instead. Which isn't surprisinging although they strenuously deny this.
But as they say, denial isn ot just a river in egypt
Comment by thesciphishow — August 10, 2007 @ 8:03 pm
August 10th, 2007 at 8:15 pm
Ste isn't censoring anybody; he's just putting books on the correct shelves. Whats wrong with that?
Comment by Aagcobb — August 10, 2007 @ 8:15 pm
August 10th, 2007 at 8:32 pm
There's nothing like juvenile antics to warm the hearts of Darwinian robots.
Comment by Bradford — August 10, 2007 @ 8:32 pm
August 10th, 2007 at 8:36 pm
There, I fixed it.
I have to say, it takes some kind of human being to go into a business and mess with the store's organization just because I don't like certain books. Not to mention (as Bradford said) that it is perhaps time that could be better spent with more productive matters.
Comment by thechristiancynic — August 10, 2007 @ 8:36 pm
August 10th, 2007 at 8:43 pm
As a side note, the poll question on Ste's blog is "Where should I be reshelving Dawkins' "The God Delusion"", and currently, "Leave it in science" is losing to "Theology" by a fair margin.
Comment by thechristiancynic — August 10, 2007 @ 8:43 pm
August 10th, 2007 at 8:45 pm
Does Ste work in those bookstores? No. Does Ste have the authority to decide which book goes where? No. Is it juvenile? Yes.
What does this tell us about Aagcobb?
Comment by Jean — August 10, 2007 @ 8:45 pm
August 10th, 2007 at 8:49 pm
The most likely reason is that they perhaps believe putting Dawkins in the theology section will help convert a few theists to atheism.
Comment by Jean — August 10, 2007 @ 8:49 pm
August 10th, 2007 at 8:53 pm
Next up for Ste: policing pizza places to be sure the proper type of cheese is being used.
Comment by Lurker — August 10, 2007 @ 8:53 pm
August 10th, 2007 at 9:01 pm
Huh?!!
Okay, whose the wise guy that put Behe's book in the science section?
Comment by MikeGene — August 10, 2007 @ 9:01 pm
August 10th, 2007 at 9:24 pm
When I was a freshman in high school our principle used to say "We're not in Jr. High any more guys" when he caught us doing something particularly childish. That's what I first thought of when I first heard about this.
Comment by macht — August 10, 2007 @ 9:24 pm
August 10th, 2007 at 9:38 pm
They are not her books, for one thing.
For another thing, she renders the bookstore's book location software useless, so the store can't find the books for customers who ask. If the books can't be found, they can't be sold or purchased. She might as well just steal the books and burn them since the end result is the same.
Comment by russ — August 10, 2007 @ 9:38 pm
August 10th, 2007 at 9:47 pm
While I find ste's antics to smack of totalitarian do-gooding, but is not in any way censorship. The books aren't being denied anyone by these actions, with the exception of the timid soul who daren't ask a clerk if a book is in stock and hasn't the fortitude to look around a bit.
Regardless, to censor has a specific meaning which in this context doesn't apply. Though, to be fair to ste, they may well support the kind of real censoring which goes on among prominent science journals and which happened in Dover!
Comment by todd — August 10, 2007 @ 9:47 pm
August 11th, 2007 at 3:54 am
If Ste wants to buy the books, then misshelve them, then I have no problem with here sabotage. But not everyone is in on the finer points of the debate, and knows to look in the religion section for a book about evolution written by a molecular biologist. Let her use her own property to make her childish political point, instead of interfering with willing sellers and buyers who want to do business.
And what's to stop Ste's more witty friends from putting "The Edge of Evolution" in the "witchcraft" or "children's literature" section? This is sabotage that renders stores' normal method of locating books (a computer search) useless, and puts an obstacle in the way of the store selling, and a customer buying, a book. It may not technically be censorship, but it will have the same effect for bookbuyers unfamiliar with Darwinist stereotypes of ID.
Comment by russ — August 11, 2007 @ 3:54 am
August 11th, 2007 at 4:15 am
Comment by russ — August 11, 2007 @ 4:15 am
August 11th, 2007 at 7:27 am
Ste wrote this too: "This horrible rag doesn't even belong in a bookstore, nevermind in religion."
So what shall we do next? I say, burn baby burn!
Comment by inunison — August 11, 2007 @ 7:27 am
August 11th, 2007 at 7:33 am
Oh, dear!
Comment by inunison — August 11, 2007 @ 7:33 am
August 11th, 2007 at 9:02 pm
Borders in Milwaukee, WI (downtown) is the same way.
Daniel Dennett's books "Breaking the Spell" (and others) is in the Science (biology) section. Behe's "Edge of Evolution" is in the religion section.
All of Michael Shermer's books are in the Science (cosmology) section, Gerald Schroeder and Stephen Barr's books are in the religion section.
Philosophical books critical of ID - Science (biology) section.
Christopher Hitchens, Dawkins and Harris's recent books Science (cosmology).
Owen Gingerich's "God's Universe"…. religion section.
Complete joke.
Comment by Doug — August 11, 2007 @ 9:02 pm
August 12th, 2007 at 2:44 am
I think the book police will be very interested in this crime.
Book 'em Danno!
Comment by Lurker — August 12, 2007 @ 2:44 am
August 12th, 2007 at 8:48 pm
It is an attempt to hide the books away from people looking for them by deliberately misfiling them. It is most certainly a low level attempt at censorship.
It is also incredibly childish and speaks volumes about the fear that Mike's book causes. Although Ste denies this strenuously, but hey, actions speak louder than words and her actions say, "I must attempt to stop people finding this book in case they read it and understand it".
Jason
Comment by thesciphishow — August 12, 2007 @ 8:48 pm
August 13th, 2007 at 12:31 am
I just purchased Behe's new book today at Barnes & Noble. Fortunately I found it in the small science section, right next to Dawkins' book on his delusions about God.
Comment by Randy — August 13, 2007 @ 12:31 am