More thoughts on the Goodreads situation

Like a lot of people, I've already blogged about this topic. Now I've had a few more days to think about it.

Goodreads stepped on their dicks on this issue. I think we can all agree on that. It seemed like they were trying to stop the feud between certain reviewers and whomever the authors behind the infamous bully stopping website are and went about it in the most wrong-headed way possible.

Does it suck? Yes. Does it violate our first amendment rights? No, that only applies to government as I understand it. Is it the end of free speech in America? No. It's just an asshole corporation doing asshole corporation things. Is Goodreads going to change anything no matter what we do? Probably not. The user base is so large Goodreads is now like a hydra. Even if all 13000 people in the feedback group deleted their accounts, more reviewers would just rise to take their places. I think Emily May's new profile pic is the most effective protest so far. Hard to ignore a cute girl with tape on her mouth.

Right now, a lot of us are at a crossroads. We're like that person in a bad relationship but isn't sure if they want to work things out or try something new.

Despite having this empty liquor bottle of an event hurled at me, I owe quite a bit to Goodreads. I wouldn't have met such great people, I wouldn't covet more books than I could read in a lifetime, and I wouldn't have my favorite living crime writer sending me ARCs every time he puts a new book out.

So I guess right now, I'm still seeing Goodreads but I'll continue looking Booklikes up and down like a piece of meat and occasionally sexting her. Until the next whisky bottle comes flying at my head...