On Wednesday, November 28, the question of free expression and First Amendment rights in cyberspace returned to the U.S. Supreme Court, as the justices heard oral arguments in Ashcroft v. ACLU, a case involving the government's second attempt to regulate access to material with sexual content on the Internet.
Support continues in Washington, D.C., for a proposed sales tax holiday, according to proponents. However, if passed, the initiative is likely to launch in mid-February, to help lift retail sales around the Presidents' Day holidays.
Considering the events of September 11, bookstore sales in September must be considered quite respectable, as they managed to exceed sales for the previous September by 6.7 percent. Preliminary sales of $1,621 million for September 2001 compared favorably with the $1,519 million performance of September 2000.
On December 5 at 8:30 a.m., the Colorado Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in the Tattered Cover Book Store's appeal to protect the privacy rights of bookstore customers.
Two venerable bookstores, unrelated, but with a great deal in common, celebrated
major anniversaries this fall. The Booksmith in San Francisco and the Brookline
Booksmith in the Boston area are both still owned by the people who founded
them 25 and 40 years ago, respectively, and they both are just about the oldest
businesses in their neighborhoods.
