Dead Mules

My book tanked. Sold for shit. I didn't believe Verso when they said I have no royalties coming. How could this be? I angrily countered. Why, "Savage Mules" was in Amazon's Top Ten political party bestsellers for the better part of a month, and in the Top 20 for weeks after that. No other Verso title rubbed shoulders with Arianna, Coulter, and Greenwald. So hand over my fucking money or I'll get crazy legal on your ass.

Then a friend, who has extensive experience in and ties to the publishing world, did an independent sales review of "Mules" through Bookscan, and Verso wasn't lying: I sold roughly 1,400 copies total, covering the US, Canada, and England. I was further told that charting well at Amazon is no real measure of success. It apparently doesn't take much to rank there, though I don't fully understand how I could be so high on their chart while selling so poorly. Does that mean the better-known authors aren't selling well, either? Who knows. Who the fuck cares. The bottom fact is, "Savage Mules" was a failure. End of story.

This means that a large chunk of my reading audience didn't buy my book. Ah well. What you gonna do? And what does this mean for me from here on out? I'm still pondering that.

Clearly, attacking the Democratic war machine and its many progressive apologists and enablers is not a wise career move, not in Obama's America. All those liberals who told me they would review my book, or chat with me online about it, then disappeared when they read or heard about "Mules" certainly didn't help. Verso blames Obama worship for my sad performance, and that's true to a degree, even though Obama is barely mentioned in "Mules." The publishing industry's slow death is another key factor, as less and less people are buying books. Whatever the combination, not many people are interested in dissecting, much less rebelling against the new Dem order. A certain amount of handwringing, arched eyebrows, and frustrated sighs is tolerated, indeed expected, as it shows how "flexible" some liberals can be, so unlike the Zombie Right. But in the end, "our" president will enjoy deep liberal allegiance, especially when re-election time arrives.

Meanwhile, Obama's war crimes are piling up, alongside the blasted bodies of women and children in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Torture, despite the pious chatter from above, continues, only under different management and away from cameras and microphones. Feel Good imperialism, mass murder with a happy face, is the flavor du jour. And other than a handful of miscreants and political losers (you know who you are), numerous people simply don't give a fuck.

I said well before Obama's coronation that his presidency would be the perfect cover for Business As Usual. How close did I call that? Does it even matter?