I stopped contributing dollars to MoveOn a couple of years ago. As much as I share the same positions as many MoveOn supports, I have been disillusioned by MoveOn's rhetorical tactics. They are as damaging and insulting to the notion of thoughtful political discourse as the efforts and tactics of that Roving band in the White House. It doesn't have to be played that way. Time to move on from MoveOn.

I laud what they're trying to do, whether they're the first to do it to the 50th. Ultimately there's no reason why there shouldn't be a thriving marketplace in self-published music. The market can decide whether a band is worth 25 cents or $10 per track. However, Radiohead's experiment will surely fizzle if they can't get their shopping cart and security mechanisms to work. Maybe they're overloaded but three tries later I seem to have failed. I set my price at $4 or about three times their former royalty. For a band with their size following I think that's more than fair.

I appreciate the comments. As I indicated in my post, Salon will be making money from the Salon Store and what money we do make will help in supporting our ongoing operations. As you may know, Salon has had mixed financial results over the years. It is very important we achieve better financial results going forward. The store is part of that effort. We feel it's a great way for us to identify products Salon readers might like and, yes, make some money while doing so. The way we manage the store and the underlying financial arrangements are straightforward. John Pound oversees the store and he picks products that he feels make sense for Salon to present to its audience. Sometimes he'll be right, sometimes he'll be wrong. Those selections will increasingly be guided by input from our readers. Under our financial arrangements with the various vendors, Salon receives a commission on each unit sold. If we don't pick the stuff Salon readers like we don't make money. I should point out that one reason we felt a Salon Store made sense was the great popularity of the gift guides Salon has done in previous years. Will all Salon readers appreciate the store or buy its products? I expect not. But all Salon readers will benefit to the extent we can better afford to present the content that Salon readers enjoy.