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Guess what I bought wrapped in plastic

tuttle88tuttle88
edited August 2007 in Everything Else
Well it wasn't a sandwich and it wasn't a DVD and it wasn't even porn, yesterday I bought the book American Psycho which in Australia has to be sold wrapped in plastic with a warning label on it.

Now this is the first time I've ever seen any book restricted anywhere, and I'm wondering why this book has boon. Well of course its because of the violence and the rape and the killing but that can't be the only restriction because I've bought actual erotica at the same shop (Borders) and on the shelf in plain view right between the self help section and the health section is the freakin Marquis de Sade.

Censorship in Australia is known for being harsh and freedom squashing. My feeling is that if I'm an adult and I know what I'm getting into then I should be able to watch what I want. I'm used to hearing about movies that have been banned and video games that have been banned or caused an uproar but this is the first time its invaded the world of books.

I'm done now.

Comments

  • tuttle88tuttle88
    Oh and the OFLC can go die in a fire. A big one.
  • SparkybuzzedSparkybuzzed
    But, you were able to buy it, right? Then it's not censored. The comic shop down the street from me is selling Harry Potter 7 in shrink wrap. It was probably wrapped due to content. Keeps the little ones from reading it, but allows you to buy it and read it at your leisure.
  • AprecheApreche
    But, you were able to buy it, right? Then it's not censored. The comic shop down the street from me is selling Harry Potter 7 in shrink wrap. It was probably wrapped due to content. Keeps the little ones from reading it, but allows you to buy it and read it at your leisure.
    Or maybe they just don't want punk kids reading it for free.
  • HMTKSteveHMTKSteve
    Or maybe their customers want as pristine of a copy as they an get their hands on? I always hated those circular comic racks where every comic in the thing had a bent binding!!!
  • AprecheApreche
    Or maybe their customers want as pristine of a copy as they an get their hands on? I always hated those circular comic racks where every comic in the thing had a bent binding!!!
    I never understood the obsession with having books in good condition. As far as I am concerned, there are only two conditions a book can be in: readable and unreadable. Unreadable would mean there are pages missing, words blurred out, chunks of pages with words torn out, a completely broken binding with pages slip sliding all around, etc. Other than that, I couldn't care less.
  • tuttle88tuttle88
    I used to care a lot about my books being pristine, now I don't really care. As long as it is readable. However if you're reading someone else's book you need to treat it well.
  • DrexDrex
    I'm fairly obsessed with buying new books that are in good condition to the point where an entire series must have the same size or style of binding, hardback for example. However, with second hand books i don't care as long as it's readable. The only books I've seen shrink wrapped are graphic novels and manga.
  • tuttle88tuttle88
    I'm fairly obsessed with buying new books that are in good condition to the point where an entire series must have the same size or style of binding, hardback for example. However, with second hand books i don't care as long as it's readable. The only books I've seen shrink wrapped are graphic novels and manga.
    I used to do that but then publishers keep changing the covers half way through the series and I have to start all over!
  • HMTKSteveHMTKSteve
    edited August 2007
    If I am buying a new product I want it to be in the best condition possible. If I am buying a used copy I only care that it is complete and readable.

    Why should I pay the same money for a copy of something that has been mishandled and abused as I pay for one that is still mint?
    Post edited by HMTKSteve on
  • MamathMamath
    Keep in mind that the plastic wrapping is AWESOME if you happen to be the store owner. Sure, a bent corner here and there is not such a big deal but the world is full of stupid people who can do a lot worse in a small amount of time. :|

    Funny that American Psycho was censored. I bought the Battle Royale novel from Borders a year or two ago and it was not wrapped. It was pretty bad, too. I'm sure I could find worse.
  • DrexDrex
    edited August 2007
    I've found copies of Arm of Kannon unwrapped in Borders before.  In my opinion, it's much worse than Battle Royale in terms of content (It does have a good story though). It almost seems as if Borders isn't particularly bothered about stopping people from looking at books.
    Post edited by Rym on
  • AprecheApreche
    If I am buying a new product I want it to be in the best condition possible. If I am buying a used copy I only care that it is complete and readable.

    Why should I pay the same money for a copy of something that has been mishandled and abused as I pay for one that is still mint?
    The value of the book, as far as I'm concerned, is the reading experience it delivers. That experience isn't going to be different if say, a page is bent or the cover is creased. As long as the damage doesn't doesn't diminish the reading experience, the book has the same value. My iPod nano is all scratched to hell, but that doesn't diminish the value of the device in any way. The screen is still perfectly visible and readable, and the electronics are still in perfect working order. Superficial damage to a product is just that, superficial.

    Granted, in most cases of damaged products that I can think of, the damage does diminish the function. Books are just a particularly durable medium in that they can take a lot of beating without actually being harmed in any real way.
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