On a recent attempt to return a book to the campus bookstore, I found myself stepping back into the thicket of a socialist bureaucracy. Having lived in several socialist countries, I found the familiarity of the flashback frightening: "If you look at this list of dates, you'll see that you do not qualify for a refund. Nor do you qualify under this list of specifications. If, however, you bring documentation that you have dropped the course, we can give a refund."
I could only wonder if this documentation would require five stamps from five different governmental ministries and the signatures of three members of the politburo.
I explained that I was not dropping the course, that I merely forgot that I already possessed the book in my personal library when I bought it. I also explained that I had spent nearly $500 on books for various seminars, and this $18 book was the only one I needed to return. "If you bring me a drop slip ..." The mind of a bureaucrat is boggling.
Then it struck me. I am not in a communist country; this bookstore does not hold a monopoly on the market. I have choices. A cursory investigation into the major online booksellers revealed that I would have saved 20 percent to 30 percent on most of the books I had purchased. Delivered free of charge, within 24 hours, to my door. Better yet, I could have ordered and purchased my books at a small community bookstore, where they would have accepted my $18 return with a smile and a "Thanks for your business!"
Exercise your right to chose. Boycott the campus bookstore.
Michael Mackey
Ph.D. Student
Communication Studies
