Denied shelf space in a major outlet like Borders, smaller publishing houses will be hard pressed to survive. The Kremlin would have found it difficult to invent a more subtle and effective way of suppressing original viewpoints and ideas.

Books are not just another consumer product. They form much of our society's repository of ideas; they are the bloodstream for the life of the mind. You have a responsibility to serve as well as to gain, for your books have the protection of the First Amendment. If you were not ready to accept this responsibility, then we cannot imagine why you would have entered the book business to begin with. There are many other things to sell.

We wonder, how do you understand your role in regards to your readers, and those of future generations? In your view, how many titles are "too many titles" to lose? By what measure will you decide whether your plans have cost the public too much in terms of access to ideas? What steps will you take to ensure that diverse choices are lost because of your "category management" plans?

The Borders Group is the nation's second largest book retailer. It has more than 1,190 bookstores in all 50 states, which operate under both the Borders and Wadenbooks names. You are in a unique position to maintain a high standard for book sellers throughout the country.