and we are at our apogee

[bookshop]

Best commentary on #amazonfail yet:

Why does this matter anyway? Isn't it just entertainment?

Yes, but entertainment is our common cultural currency. It's where we see ourselves reflected, and it's one of the primary ways we learn about people who are different from us.

When we are reduced to our sexuality, we are seen as other - something less

Comments

[suaine]

I have noticed something. The sales ranking on butt plugs and dildos is absolutely fine, but they aren't searchable through All Departments, the frontpage search. This means even if we do get the rankings back, we're still invisible for a casual searcher.

EDIT: Looks like they're returning searchability on a case by case basis now. The original book that started it all is now searchable in All Departments and has its sales rank back.

[daisy_chan]

NPR has noticed your twittering :D
http://www.npr.org/blogs/monkeysee/2009/04/amazon_learns_a_painful_lesson.html

[slashpine]

Yes. Excellent! Loved that whole article. And really felt sad for the one commenter who said her school blocks AfterEllen and AfterElton and won't let the gay kids organize a club, because that would be all about who people "want sex with." Aaaaghhh.

There's a difference between embracing sexuality, and being defined by it, and OMG WHY do so many people not get this?

Alas that this includes gay ppl as well as straight, but I think for many on both sides, it's because of the f**ked up cultural indoctrination we get. My experience is that thank goodness we most of us get more wise on this as we get older and realize that love is being friends, fixing dinner, taking care of people, sharing good times and bad, not just (or sometimes not even) sex!

[aventria]

I don't know if you've seen it yet but they're doing a Google bombing because of this.

[142978]

After canceling my Amazon account they sent me a nice email that said: This is an embarrassing and ham-fisted cataloging error for a company that prides itself on offering complete selection. It has been misreported that the issue was limited to Gay & Lesbian themed titles. They went on to say that they are in the process of "fixing" the problem by only blocking the rankings, not the ability to search them on the site.

So. I'm now not only angry because they're trying to claim the problem did not exist; I'm angry because they still seem to think that censorship is not a problem if they're consistent in their criteria. Except part of the reason why I'm angry about this in the first place is that they're blocking any books, regardless of content. The fact that gay-friendly titles seem to be targeted just adds another level of insult.

I'm nervous that when Amazon has finally "fixed" the problem, they'll still be blocking "adult content," and people will rationalize it by saying, "At least their criteria is fair."