Scott Dolan

Dan's "logic" is hard to contest. Using it shows my boys going 162-0 this year. I can live with that. The AL Central is really going to be a bloodbath this season. I'm not worried about the Twins, but we're going to have to fight our tails off to win the division over Detroit and Cleveland. And likely have to battle both of them for the final wildcard spot... This should be a really fun season.

Sounds like I need to check it out. AMC has really been knocking it out of the park in recent years. The Walking Dead slipped a bit this past season, but even it is still pretty good.

Is it really good? He was far and away the most entertaining character from Breaking Bad, but I haven't brought myself to watch this new series yet.

Dude, you are of absolutely no importance to me. I could not care less if you stayed, or left.

Your humanitarianism knows no bounds.

I fell asleep halfway through his post as well.

You know, it's funny you say that. My wife bought that new Taylor Swift album, and while it's not really my cup of tea, I find pretty inoffensive. She's a horrifying singer outside of the studio, but I find nothing wrong with her music. I've certainly heard far worse.

Scientilogy, the religion where you genuinely pay your way to the top. Don't hold your breath on that two for one sale for Operating Thetan VIII.

Let's call it "theoretically better".

Spotify streams 320kbps for their premium subscription. I haven't heard it because I don't do streaming services, but I'd bet money you wouldn't be able to tell the difference between it and lossless. And to be fair, I don't know that people "prefer" lower quality MP3, I just think the price is right for them.

A balanced and thoughtful explanation, thank you. Certainly a niche market exists, and likely always will. I think my biggest hangup was sidewinder seemingly inferring that high rent was the sole factor, or even the biggest of multiple factors. As I said, if the demand is there, no business capable of meeting said demand will shutter due strictly to rent prices. Oddly enough, if you read into the demise of the Virgin Megastores, part of the problem was that their rent was so far below market value that it was bought out by real estate companies who wanted to make more money off of their prime real estate locations. There was no way they were going to stay in business had they paid market value for their properties because of the dwindling market for physical music and books.

No, the ones around here are set up the exact same way (all B&N locations are that I've ever been in). But, they no longer staff that area because it makes no business sense. My neighbor is a manager at our local B & N, and he said they cut the full time staff from that department a couple of years ago. Definitely not true in Tokyo. Disk Union continues to not only survive but open in new locations. Their stores are always crowded whenever I visit. That's cool, but most definitely not the case here in the States. Or the rest of the world, for that matter. In 2007 Music Zone closed all 104 of its store in the UK, Virgin Megastores shuttered for good in 2009, Tower records is no longer with us, nor is Camelot/FYE, and I think Peaches is now down to one lonely location. These weren't due to accidental mismanagement, or the rent being too high. These were enormous, in some cases global, chains.

Yeah, never use CBR. Might as well go ALAC/FLAC at that point.

Because I stated my case and gave reasons as to why closing a business where there is still demand simply because the rent is too high doesn't make sense? Ok...

Hope you have a wonderful B-Day, Mr. hoots!

And it will be interesting to see for how much longer. Barnes & Noble don't even staff their CD department anymore. And independents (outside of larger operations like Dusty Groove and Downtown Music Gallery) are pretty much extinct in the U.S. Even large retailers like Barnes & Noble and Best Buy have dramatically cut their in-store stock. That has nothing to do with rent, it has everything to do with demand. There's a very good reason why Virgin shuttered it's megastores globally years ago. If rent is too high, the smart business owner moves. If demand doesn't dictate staying in business, then you close. That's why your assessment doesn't make any sense.

I seriously doubt that the rent was the major problem. Jazz and Classical don't sell well to begin with, and folks are moving away from physical products in droves these days. Those two factors would kill any shop, even if the rent were dirt cheap. The simple fact is that record/CD shops are a thing of the past because records/CDs are no longer the desired and profitable medium they once were.

Online bulletin boards are a dying breed, no matter what interest they cater to.

100,000!!! Yikes! And I thought my 1,000+ CD collection was hard to keep up with...

If AAJ still has their forums up, I suppose that would be a good place to check out. The Steve Hoffman forums have some Jazz heads on it, but I'd tread lightly there. The heavy-handed moderators there (Gorts) can make it a difficult ride.

Hmmm… completely unfamiliar with that one. Thanks for the rec. Sounds like a subject I'd be highly interested in. I'm not as hardcore into politics as I once was, but the history of colonialism is an important one. I'll add it to my list based on that fact alone.

Yeah, I certainly don't deny that there are issues. It's a system run by humans. There will always be issues. I stated earlier that all shipping companies have various issues. It doesn't mean they suck, though. As I said, Fed Ex was my most recent issue. But, you don't see me starting a Fed Ex Sucks thread because of it. Anecdotal evidence from you, and others, in this thread show a lack of consistency AND infallibility from both the USPS and vendors (Dusty Groove, in this particular case). Am I wrong?

More horrifying news…

I'll say.

How could this be?! The USPS is horrendous…and with malicious intent! Good god, jlhoots. Please stick with the theme of the thread!