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Ask Slashdot: Will You Shop Local Like President Obama, Or Online?

theodp writes "President Obama and his daughters headed to an indie bookstore last Saturday to promote shopping local. The White House did not disclose which books were bought, but author Lauren Oliver tweeted her delight after a White House photo showed her books Delirium and Pandemonium were among the 15 children's books purchased by the Obama family for Christmas gift-giving. While it made for a nice Small Business Saturday photo op, do you suppose the President paid much more for the books at the small indie bookshop than he might have at an online retailer like Amazon, where the hardcopy edition of Pandemonium is $10.15 (44% off the $17.99 list price) and the hardcopy edition of Delirium can be had for $10.47 (42% off the $17.99 list price)? Kindle Editions of the books are also available for $7.99. And with both titles eligible for free Amazon Prime shipping, the President could've saved on gasoline and Secret Service costs, too! So, will you be following the President's lead and shop local this holiday season, or is the siren song of online shopping convenience and savings too hard to resist?"

3 of 430 comments (clear)

  1. Re:Like Obama? by bmo · · Score: 4, Informative

    Stuff like gifts and whatnot, is out of pocket for the President (unless it's for diplomatic purposes). So is food.

    While my cousin who is a lawyer gets food delivered at work on the company dime, the Presidential family has to pay for their own.

    Your post is a troll and stupid.

    --
    BMO

  2. Re:Like Obama? by wvmarle · · Score: 4, Informative

    Well, his salary is paid out of your taxes...

  3. Re:Like Obama? by snarkh · · Score: 5, Informative

    > I don't take services from the government.

    You don't use roads. That's impressive!