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I have some sympathy with Goode’s argument, but can see that Salt, perhaps, has no choice but to hard sell its product, as it has to keep afloat. I suppose the danger is that such an approach can produce an image that could be seen as crassly commercial (which is, indeed, how Goode sees it) and which, in the long-term, could be counterproductive. My view is that poetry (especially the sort that Salt used to exclusively produce) is largely unsellable in quantities sufficient to make a hard sell approach worth the effort. My major criticism of Salt is that it is trying to be all things to all people. It should have just stuck to its original niche market; instead, it is in danger of becoming a poetry monopoly—the Microsoft of difficult to sell books, you could say. I am surprised other poetry publishers have not become of aware of this. Original Message: I find all you people here intelligent, talent, etc., but I think your attitude toward the idea that ***PoEtRy!!!!*** is not just another commercial product lunatic. I can understand why people selling bread and wine at the local Catholic church might feel that way about their products, but . . . I'm curious: am I the only one here who feels this way? --Bob G.